I wasn’t at the SkyDome on Oct. 23, 1993 when the Joe Carter homered into the history books with his famous "touched ’em all" moment for the Toronto Blue Jays.
I wasn't in that same building on March 24, 1996 when the Raptors beat the greatest of all time, Michael Jordan, and his Chicago Bulls for the first time in franchise history.
And I was still 10 years away from being born on May 2, 1967, but I will try to be at the Toronto Maple Leafs' next Stanley Cup victory.
But on Sunday, March 27, 2022, I was there at BMO Field.
My wife and I were there to witness what I truly never thought I would see in my lifetime, let alone in person. Canada clinching a berth into the World Cup, their first in more than three decades!
We were there with nearly 30,000 other fans and, thankfully, I wasn't the only one shedding tears after a 4-0 win over Jamaica.
The great thing about being from Barrie was that the first goal was scored by Cyle Larin, co-owner of our new League1 Ontario club here in the city. The Simcoe County Rovers FC Canadian men’s team connections also include Larin’s teammate Doneil Henry and national team legend Julian de Guzman.
I’ve been watching soccer since 1990 and have cheered for other countries because Canada getting there was never going to happen, in my mind. Canada has only been there once before, in 1986 (known for Diego Maradona’s 'Hand of God' goal), and didn’t score in the three games they played.
As a die-hard England fan, I figured that would be the closest I’d get to a red-and-white World Cup squad.
But here we are.
As a footy fan, it's great to see the country going through a renaissance of the sport. Already the world’s game, soccer is the sport with the most participation in this nation, nearly 400,000 more people hit the pitch than the ice every year.
I’ve been telling anyone who will listen how great the sport is, but it would usually fall on deaf ears.
Thankfully, the Canadian women won the gold at last year’s Olympics (player Janine Beckie is another Rovers FC co-owner) and the men’s squad has been playing some of the most exciting soccer in the qualifying stages anywhere in the world right now.
I don’t need to tell anyone how great the game is; they’re seeing it.
We've qualified and are sitting at the top of the CONCACAF group with one game left.
Being there live, amid the brisk March wind coming off the lake, was something I'll never forget.
Non-stop chanting, singing, cheering and moving to stay warm in our three layers of clothing.
It's been a long, difficult road for Canadian soccer fans. We've watched our team suffer some tough losses, cheered when no one else did and when watched when few others were paying attention.
Now the whole country is watching.
This was the greatest sports moment I have ever seen and I will always be able to say I was there, in the cold, on March 27, 2022.
We're going to Qatar. We are going to the World Cup!
Shawn Gibson is a staff reporter at BarrieToday and a die-hard soccer fan.
