U.S. Under-23 Team Plays for Title Today

The excitement of qualifying for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games had not worn off Saturday morning for the U.S. Under-23 national soccer team, which left Coach Clive Charles with the task of trying to get his players refocused.

Today, at Hersheypark Stadium, the Americans play a match that on the surface is meaningless in the wake of Friday night’s 4-0 victory over Guatemala that clinched a berth in the Summer Games.

But the game against Honduras is significant. If the U.S. wins, it will be the North and Central American and Caribbean (CONCACAF) Under-23 champion.

“We’ll go out there Sunday and try to win the game, the same as we do all the games,” Charles said. “Our job was to qualify for the Olympics. We’ve done that. Now, I’ll talk to them about trying to win this CONCACAF competition.”

In an earlier game, Mexico will play Guatemala for third place in the Olympic qualifying tournament.

John O’Brien, the midfielder from Playa del Rey who scored the first-minute goal Friday that sent the U.S. on its way to Australia, said the team would have no trouble focusing. “Any game you play as an international has a motivation, I think,” he said.

Teammate Landon Donovan, the Redlands teenager who scored twice against Guatemala, can’t help thinking beyond today, however.

“I can’t wait,” he said. “It’s the Olympics. Every athlete in the whole world dies for the opportunity. Hopefully, I’ll get picked for the 18 who go and we’ll do well down there.”