Jeff Bradley took his Boot Room to Barbados for Wednesday's World Cup qualifier. To read his daily notebook, click here. He filed this Pulsecard the day after the match.

In the Hall of Fame of "people who never stop bitching" there is a separate wing for sportswriters. Basically, we get to go to games for a living and spend half our lives complaining about how hard it is to find a good cup of coffee.

Well, I'm here to tell you that my complaining days are over, having been to the island of Barbados to see the United States national team advance in World Cup qualifying with a 4-0 victory over the Barbadians -- or Bajan (rhymes with Asian) Rockets, as they like to call themselves. This is as good as it gets. A Caribbean island and a sporting event that really made me appreciate the game of soccer more than ever.

This has nothing to do with how the U.S. played. My most lasting impression comes from the side that lost the game, a team representing a country of 300,000, that put forth a brave effort in a game that they played for nothing but pride. The Bajan Rockets are mostly a team of semi-professionals. Their goalkeeper, Horace Stoute, is going to retire soon so he can devote more time to his profession. He is a barber.

Yet, in front of 4,000 fans in a rickety stadium that triples as a velodrome and track and field venue, Barbados scared the hell out of a U.S. team that would have been eliminated from the World Cup with a loss. For the better part of an hour, the Bajan Rockets created dangerous scoring attempts in the U.S. end, while frustrating the American attack. Five minutes into the second half, U.S. keeper Tony Meola had to make a brilliant reaction save to keep the game scoreless, and when Chris Klein's apparent goal was waved offside, even American coach Bruce Arena had to admit, "I thought it might be one of those days." In the end, the Americans were more fit, and put the game away with four goals in the final 27 minutes. Personally, I was a little sad for Barbados.

I will remember the game for the Bajan Rockets' effort, for the halftime show that featured native dancers in shimmering gold skirts and men on stilts who danced to calypso music like nothing I'd ever seen. I will remember Barbados coach Horace "Tobacco" Beckles, who seemed satisfied that his side showed it was far more competitive than the one that got blown out of Foxboro by a 7-0 score.

On the beaches outside my hotel, I watched some boys juggle a soccer ball in ankle deep water, keeping it aloft for long stretches with deft flicks and fancy back-heels. I thought of them during moments in the game when the crowd would go wild because one of the Bajan Rockets dribbled out of trouble with a fancy spin move.

It is a beautiful game when a country as large and rich as the U.S. can play a competitive match with a group of men who are out there for the love it.

Thank you Barbados for a wonderful game, and a wonderful time. --Jeff

Jeff Bradley covers soccer for ESPN The Magazine, and contributes a regular Boot Room on ESPN.com. E-mail him at jeff.bradley@espnmag.com, or click the "reply" button at the top.