Soccer: Ticos turn 1000 in style
Although their early days in the world's game were not so spectacular, the last 20-odd years have been wondrous times for Costa Rican football (soccer).

Crowned champions of Central America for a record sixth time back in February, the stylish Ticos are in a process of seemingly incessant assent. Having qualified for the last two FIFA World Cups and with an old legend now at the coaching helm, things are looking up for the Costa Ricans ahead of this summer's CONCACAF Championship - the 2007 Gold Cup.

Hernan Medford - hero of the debutant Tico side that surprisingly surged to the knockout stages of the FIFA World Cup in Italy in 1990 - seems to have his national side playing some fancy football in his first stint on the touchline. Since he took over from former team-mate Alexandre Guimaraes - now coach of Panama - in November of 2006, the red-clad skill merchants have been going from strength to strength after a disappointing finals last summer in Germany and the international retirement of talisman Paulo Wanchope.

All that progress seemed to culminate on 29 March when, in a friendly international with Chile in Talca, the outstanding Rolando 'el Principito' Fonseca swooped to strike the national team's 1000th goal and seal a 1-1 draw with the South Americans.

It was a goal befitting its vaunted status - no damp squib, goal-mouth scramble or spot kick this. Instead, Costa Rica's all-time leading goal scorer surged into the penalty area and smashed home a bicycle kick home from an inch-perfect cross out on the right.

With his 47th goal in 100 caps, LD Alajuelense-man Fonseca brought his country, who won their first-ever match back in 1921 7-0 over El Salvador, into some distinguished company. The Costa Ricans are now the only team in the CONCACAF region save for Mexico to have scored 1000 goals. They reached the mark in just 524 games - that's an average of fractionally less than two per contest.

After grabbing the elegant landmark goal, Fonseca - who played two matches with Costa Rica at this summer's FIFA World Cup in Germany - was quick to deflect attention away from himself.

"It was truly an honour to score that goal, knowing that it is a special one. But really it is a prize for the whole team and Costa Rica, not just me. In my heart, I feel like we all scored it," the striker remarked after the match. "I never thought that I would have the privilege of scoring the 1000th goal," he added. "To tell the truth I didn't think it was going to be me and much less that it would be such an extraordinary one."

All generous romanticism and talk of records will be banished this summer, though, when the Ticos set their sights on a new landmark: a first-ever CONCACAF Championship. The 2007 Gold Cup will take place in six venues in the United States from 6 to 24 June and feature 12 teams from North, Central America and the Caribbean.

The closest Costa Rica have come to taking the continental honours was back in 2002 when - led by current boss Medford in attack - they lost out 2-0 to the United States in the final match. Now the new coach is expecting to go one step beyond. "Our first goal this year was to win the UNCAF (Central American) title again, and now that we've done that we are aiming to win our first Gold Cup. I think we can do it."

With history made in the form of a stunning 1000th goal, Medford and his men are now looking forward to a fantastic future and a hot run this summer in the States would be just what the doctor ordered.