Nations League – Suriname Trip
By Larry Zyma
We are playing Where? Who? How do we get there? We get to see HISTORY!!
Playing in Concacaf can lead to fun challenges and experiences for attending away matches, November’s 2024 Nations League match was a new test. A small group of V’s decided a few years back to try and make an annual trip out of away NL matches. Curacao in March of 2023 was a start, Kingston in November 2023 was part 2 and plans for 2024 took place during our Copa run. This may sound simple for planning but with the set up of FIFA windows and the qualifying process it is not. Unlike FIFA rankings the Concacaf rankings are based on recent form and Canadas form over the summer and fall was stellar.
We knew when the FIFA windows were as they set those up way in advance in each year so that helped in planning for timing and the start of flights- not being from Toronto, we all knew that any trips south would have to go through the centre of the universe and seat sales purchased in August had that leg covered …..for 3 of us anyhow!
Prior to our October Panama match Jamaica & Honduras had locked up 1st & 2nd in group B, only group A was left and Costa Rica, Suriname, Guatemala & Martinique were all still fighting for the top 2 spots in the group and we still had no idea where Canada would be ranked or who we would be playing….not the best thing for planning a trip in less than a month!
Final match day saw Costa Rica defeat Guatemala to claim 1st place, Martinique drew Guadeloupe which knocked both out and the last match was Suriname vs Guyana which would decide the final standing in Group A. Suriname dominated with a 5-1 result and finished tied for 2nd in the group with 7 points. Goal differential would be the determining factor to decide 2nd place and Suriname took the final spot. The same night we defeated Panama but still were not sure where our November matches would be- it all depended on the final Concacaf rankings which were released the next morning – #1-Mexico #2- Canada #3- USA #4- Panama, this meant we would play the top ranked 2nd place team- Suriname.
Next step to the trip- where is Suriname, how do we get there, where do we stay, and as we found out later how do we fly out.
Step 1- find out where Suriname is, a quick search showed us a country in South America that borders Brazil- Concacaf is truly a large confederation. Population under 300K, the most heavily forested country in the world, a Dutch colony, left hand driving, a FIFA ranking in the 130’s and a stadium that holds 3500 people.
Step 2 is something we all take for granted but this part was a challenge worse than getting to a 3rd place match in Copa – FLIGHTS! From Toronto to Paramaribo held limited options- we could fly KLM via Amsterdam but only on certain days and that wasn’t appealing to anyone. Caribbean Air had connecting flights from Trinidad and Guyana, a couple if other airlines could take us from Guyana to Suriname- but who has heard of FlyAllways?
Step 3- Where do we stay, how safe is it and what is there to do? Flying to Amsterdam did not sound appealing, Paramaribo didn’t check off a lot of the boxes so other options came into play. What about flying from a Caribbean Island and using that as a base? Curacao was perfect in 2023 when we played there but flights didn’t work, Aruba, another great island, but alas no flights worked. Trinidad could work but how safe would it be for our group? What about Tobago? Upside- Safe, options for a vacation rental, rum, beaches, vodka, sun, air conditioning, easy to get to, beer, food, and did I mention rum? Downside- another flight segment, left hand driving, lots of rum, vodka and beer.. Tobago it is! Oh yeah another thing- we would require a Yellow Fever vaccination to go to Suriname from there
Upon arriving in Tobago, we got our rental car and drove to our place in the pouring rain, in the dark, on the left-hand side of the road trying to avoid potholes the size of the Capo stand in Toronto! When we saw the road in daylight the next day all of us were astounded that we didn’t lose the car in one of them.
Next problem- what do we do with our rental when we fly to Suriname? Simple solution arrived when my wife Carla volunteered to sacrifice going to the match. She would suffer through 2 days without the rest of us….not sure it was the “sacrifice” she made it out to be.
Step 2A- Finalizing flights to make sure we get to Suriname and back to Toronto for the return leg. Toronto/Tobago was easy with Caribbean Air. 3 of us flew in on the Sunday- Carla & Larry from Edmonton, Doug from Winnipeg, Patrick, the Canadian Captain Picard, from wherever his whip is parked flew in on Tuesday and the last-minute addition of Lee arrived from Saskatoon on Wednesday. Our house was high on a hill with a perfect view of the Caribbean Sea and the soaking pool was a perfect place to relax with a rum/vodka/beer. My V’s flag proudly displayed at the house and at the beach before leaving for Suriname.
Tobago to Paramaribo return was not without its challenges- Caribbean Air has a connecting flight that would get us in on match day around 1 pm- NO chance on that one for fear of missing the match. What about Thursday? We had a couple of options- a flight that went Tobago- Port of Spain- Georgetown (Guyana)- Paramaribo scheduled to arrive around 6 pm or another that was Tobago-Port of Spain- Georgetown- Paramaribo for a 9 pm arrival. 3 of us booked the early flight but when Lee tried it was full and he was forced to take the later arrival with a longer layover in Port of Spain which allowed for a side trip to the National Stadium for Trinidad, albeit with a minor hiccup when he returned his rental car. Doug, Captain Picard and I made our way to Georgetown on a Caribbean airline flight that after stopping in Guyana would continue to Toronto. We got some strange looks when 3 guys all wearing Canada gear departed the plane there. We had a tight connection of under an hour from arrival to scheduled departure to catch out FlyAllways flight to Paramaribo and our confidence of making the flight was shaky. Our biggest concern was if the counter would still be open when we got there after clearing immigration with just under 30 minutes to our scheduled departure time. Looking back on it now our biggest concern should have been had anyone heard of the airline because when we asked people in the check in area it became apparent that the airline was not a major player or even an airline according to some of the responses we got! Eventually, Doug spotted a stand-up banner for the airline in a corner, so we knew it existed, but there was no counter open. Being from Winnipeg, Doug was a specialist in airport functions and spoke to another person who told him that they would have a counter soon, even though we were 10 minutes from a scheduled departure. He directed us to an area where we found 6 other people also nervous about an airline that Jambo was sceptical existed. Minutes after our scheduled departure time the gate opened, and we all got boarding passes! Relief!! After clearing security, we grabbed a couple of Bank’s beer to celebrate seeing our plane on the tarmac- we were 1 step closer to Suriname. Boarding time and across the tarmac we go to board, but one final hiccup was awaiting us. Doug’s boarding pass had him sitting in row 26 on a plane that had only 21 rows, fortunately for him the flight crew found him a seat, but with only 9 passengers on a jet that could fit 100 it wasn’t difficult.
While we were departing for Paramaribo, Lee was racing back to the airport in Port of Spain for his flight to Georgetown before he boarded a Suriname Air flight to join up with us…Lee Kormish pro tip- don’t believe the driving times that google maps gives!
A quick flight, speedy immigration process and a long drive from the airport to our room in Paramaribo gave us hope that we were almost settled in and could relax while prepping for next days match….that was until the door to the apartment opened and we were greeted by families of cockroaches. A few stomps and crunches seemed to clear up the problem and off to the store for refreshments then back to the airport to pick up Lee we went.
Driving in Tobago was a challenge but left-hand driving in Suriname came with its own thrills. Headlights were an option that only half the cars used but even fewer scooters turned on, speed limits were just a suggestion from what I could tell and people walking on the highway combined with multiple other obstacles kept one alert, Thankfully, Doug was navigating and calling out dremples along the route. Patrick was simply happy to find a bottle of vodka after a long day. Lee landed around 930 pm and we got to feel what the temperature would be like for the match- humid and mid 30s awaited us and the team, although the team was probably hydrating differently than we would be. Back to the apartment we went with beer and water to relax. Open the door and the 2nd largest cockroach I had ever seen was on the kitchen table greeting us as to Suriname.
Game day was busy. Started by picking up our match tickets that Canada Soccer helped us get (thanks Al & Kaitlyn) to the sold-out stadium, we were informed that the flight crew and Canadas ambassador to Bermuda would be with us- almost tripling our cheering section.
Next a stop at the stadium to take a few pictures. Walking around we found an open entrance and decided to see if we could look inside and walked into the Andre Kamperveen Stadium. There were workers prepping the field signage, broadcast areas, hospitality tents, etc. It wasn’t hard for the workers to tell who we were cheering for and after a few minutes of walking around they started asking us to take pictures with them. Lee got a tour of the locker room that Canada would be using that night. Chatting with the workers they were happy to show us their stadium and were proud of their team for getting to this match.
After the stadium it was time to check into our new room at the Royal Breeze Hotel right in the heart of Paramaribo. The hotel was perfect for our remaining time, a clean room, an actual shower, no unwelcome Blattodea, pre match drinks and lunch at the roof top bar overlooking the waterways erased any negative memories of the night before. Wearing our Canada gear was greeted with friendly banter, the hotel was having a viewing party for the match and Canadians added to the flavour of the afternoon.
A taxi to the match would get us there in plenty of time to experience the atmosphere. People were cooking, selling beverages, dancing and enjoying the warm night in the lead up outside before the gates opened. The Surinamese people were friendly to us and made us feel welcome with warm smiles and pictures. This was a huge night for Suriname, having the chance to qualify for the Nations League final would be a major accomplishment for the 134 FIFA ranked team against, arguably the team that was in the best form in our confederation at the time. Let that sink in and remember that 10 years prior Canada was in a similar ranking as Suriname is now.
Getting into the stadium early was important so that we could set up the flags in a good spot as we found out our tickets were general admission seats- we did see the charter flight crew but not the ambassador. Front row, atmosphere, away from the band, general seating, looking through the chicken wire fence, close to the beer stand were the positive to the seats- the negative was the amount of people standing 5 deep in front of us. The stadium may have had a seating capacity of 3500 but there were 4500 at the match and they had to go somewhere!
From kickoff you could feel the excitement in the crowd, the band was pumping the tunes and people were dancing and chanting along. There is nothing like signing the national anthem in a stadium outside of Canada and the four of us belted it out loud and proud… if slightly off key. The fans sitting near us were in good form with their chants although very few joined in our CANADA CANADA chants for some reason. With a 0-0 score at half the Suriname fans were elated and when they hit the crossbar in the 2nd half it was loud in the stadium- from them not us, but when Hoilett finished the cross from David the noise came loud through 4 guys from Western Canada.
When the final whistle went the crowd was still in good spirits realizing that they kept the scoreline close and their team was going in the right direction. The 4 of us were also happy that our team finished it off and after on field handshakes the entire Canadian team came over to where we were standing and applauded towards us- a classy touch by a group of classy players! The Suriname fans were still wanting pictures with us and a couple even said they would see us in Toronto- fact check….we didn’t see them at BMO!
The Voyageurs flag that made the trip was given as a parting gift to a group of young fans that sat beside us during the match. The smiles on the faces made for a great memory of people that made us feel welcome, safe and part of Canada Soccer history- for the first time ever, the Men’s squad won a competitive match in South America and we were there to witness it!
After the match it was back to the hotel to have celebratory drinks amongst the remaining people who watched the match from the sky bar. As much as we all wanted to have more than a few drinks we had a 5 am flight to board. I previously mentioned that Suriname is not the easiest place to get to- while getting out wasn’t any easier and at 1 am we departed for the drive to the airport to get us back to Tobago where Carla had carefully watched over the house while emptying the fridge of coolers and beer…but thankfully, not all the rum.
Heading to Toronto on Monday for the 2nd leg knowing that although the travel isn’t the easiest in Concacaf, we witnessed history while watching a match in a South American country of our Football Confederation and that makes trips like these memorable and worth it!
In 2024 Patrick & Lee saw the Men’s team play in three continents with 11 matches for the Canadian Captain Picard and Lee taking in 10 matches out of the 14 total played- a truly remarkable number for 2 of the biggest travelling V’s!
If you ever think about a road trip for a match to see Canada play, countries such as Curacao, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Suriname are the way to go! Not only are the friendships and memories long lasting our dollar goes further than anywhere in the States! Personally, I can’t wait to see where our November 2025 Nations league match will be- cause I will be there flying the V’s flag proudly…and possibly having a few rums.