scafool, I agree with you that in most respects matches are not the best choice anymore if one has limited space. They are single use items and unless waterproofed can be completely useless. That said, in all my little kits (I've made up four, one for each vehicle and one in the house) from a belt pouch kit to a full daypack I've included at least a few strike anywhere matches wrapped in foil in my fire starting pouches. If the weather is good, that's what I'll use first to make a small fire to have some tea. If the weather is wet, I have other choices but then unless I got stuck, I'm a fair weather hiker anyway.
Matches are still the easiest fire starters to use in reasonable weather. Sparkers are the most reliable (firesteels, mag bars, Blastmatch, Spark-Lite, etc,) especially in bad weather.