Buddle, Gomez make U.S. roster

BRISTOL, Conn. -- The phones started ringing at 2 a.m., and players were told to come down to the third floor for a meeting. As Herculez Gomez pressed the elevator button on 17, his mind raced.

Were his dreams about to be fulfilled - or crushed?

This is the way the U.S. World Cup team was finalized, in the dead of night in a Hartford hotel.

"It's been such a crazy and unbelievable journey," Gomez said.

And the big trip hasn't even begun.

For Gomez, it was good news. He and Edson Buddle went from long shots to the American roster Wednesday, joining veterans Landon Donovan, DaMarcus Beasley and Tim Howard on the 23-man U.S. team headed to South Africa.

While there was joy and relief for the chosen, there was only heartache and anguish for the seven players called downstairs earlier, the players leaving the group selected May 11 for the preliminary roster, only to be cut four days before departure.

Donovan consoled Brian Ching when his roommate found out he wasn't going. Ching was on the 2006 Cup roster but never got into a match. Having turned 32 Monday, this was his last chance.

"It's hard to imagine your lifelong dream not coming true, someone telling you that it's not going to happen," Donovan said.

Players on the bubble were nervous before and after Tuesday's 4-2 loss to the Czech Republic, the first of three exhibitions ahead of the U.S. World Cup opener against England on June 12. Before the game, the squad scheduled a nationally televised announcement Wednesday at the ESPN campus.

After the final whistle, coach Bob Bradley still wasn't ready to tell players, wanting to first review the DVD with his coaching staff.

"Bob told us to give him some time and he'd give us a call," Gomez said. "It was one of the most nerve-racking couple hours of my life."

Then Pam Perkins, the team's general manager, started calling players and Bradley greeted them in the meeting room.

This morning, Gomez will be with the team at the White House to receive personal congratulations from President Barack Obama and former President Bill Clinton ahead of Saturday's sendoff game against Turkey in Philadelphia.