Average Team v. Above Average Team in MLS Action Tonight

The intensity of the MLS season has dropped a few notches due to the bloated friendly schedule. A lot of teams are in league match action tonight so hopefully the fire can start burning again.

Too many friendlies especially when you toss in an international tournament going on here in the country. It's a lot to chew on but it'll matter little to fans as months tick by I guess. Stepping back I think it is great for the game and creating interest in this country but bad for MLS.

I'd venture to say that more soccer has been watched this year on North American soil then any year previous. Let's run down the list: Women's WC, Gold Cup, friendlies, World Football Challenge, and Copa America (plenty of folks following that in the US for sure). Not bad for summer time in the US opps... forgot Major League Soccer in my list, duh. Yes, that league is going on right now too.

With all this interesting soccer now going on in the US I truly hope that MLS realizes the needlessness of a playoff system. The playoff thing has cheapened just about everything this summer for MLS teams involved. Why? Besides rewarding and fostering mediocrity, if there were no playoffs, teams would go after some of these friendly matches. They would also REALLY go after the Open Cup, CONCACAF Champions League and even the Canadian Championship (hopeless TFC pressed for it this year). Priority at the moment: Teams simply need to prioritize the CCL.

Now that our English and European guests are leaving soon (and we finally have that all-star abomination behind us) MLS is now left with the task of hitting the ignite button to get that fire going again.

So, as it stands, a slightly Above Average team in our domestic league beat an Excellent team away last night and my favorite hometown Average Team is taking on a near excellent one tonight.

I hear first place in their conference is on the line. Well, 1st in points anyway. Don't want to get too excited here. How about we just go with improving playoff position for now.

MAN VS. MACHINE

to say that i watched last night's MLS All-Star game against Manchester United is to say that I watched the game up until United scored their 3rd goal. that was for two reasons. the first reason was because I had told my sweet lady, who was itching to hang out and watch a movie, that if United scored again I would stop watching my silly soccer game and give her all my attention. but the real reason is because I had seen the monster attacking the city and i didn't need to stick around to witness it's total and complete destruction.

now, before we go any further let's do some full disclosure.

I am not a Manchester United fan. in fact, I find the Red Devils to be a wholly despicable army of imps led by a wholly despicable dark master. I am a Liverpool fan. it is my job, my duty, my responsibility to despise them. but, if I may say, I am confident I would hate them no matter where my support lie.

But, yes, Man U are a powerful team. and Sir Alex Ferguson definitely knows what he is doing with his club. they are a well-oiled machine. and last night they fielded a team that has played together for seasons on end. played together in the Champions League. won and lost and fought hard together. this team. this army. this machine. they came to town and played our MLS All Stars. the best players plying their trade on American soil. but players as far removed as D.C. to Seattle. thousands of miles. these were players who've maybe only seen each other once or twice before.

the boys did have a strong start and there was much made of their attacking formation, which some found just absolutely audacious. "against United?!... blah blah blah!" but it was never gonna hold up. and sure its a friendly but 4-0 is a hard pill to swallow no matter how big of a piece of bread and peanut butter you bury it in.

so, i've come to a question. who is this benefitting? this All Stars vs Manchester United match. the MLS? the All Stars themselves? United?

and is it worth it ?

Newcastle Slingshot

Newcastle struggled in the first two friendlies here in the US but made pretty sure that their last one would be a good one.

Columbus came out with a mixed line-up. Meaning, half the starting side was good and then, after mass subs, half of the 2nd half side was solid. I think MLS thought it was a good idea especially after the Seattle thrashing by Man Utd. (7-0),

Most of the game was dominated by Newcastle. They owned the tempo. The Crew couldn't get more then a few passes strung together in the first half. I could tell the Magpies meant business. There was not any experimenting or laziness on their side. They were gearing up for a long EPL season. I was gearing up too. So thankful to be able to see Newcastle in the flesh. Good supporters group on hand.

A silly red card by Andy Gruenebaum (um, charging the ball 30 yards out and falling on it?? Only in Columbus) cost the Crew a man going into the second half. Gaven came in and settled the Crew but it was too late.

It was interesting to see Meram playing up top by himself with 10 men. What a waste really. Nothing, of course came of it. Newcastle tucked a few away and are going home 3-0 winners.

I've watched all but one of the Crew games this year (brimming with pride over here). I wish I could say this game was just a fluke or something. The line-ups might of been different but Newcastle really exposed some of the weaknesses that the Crew have had all year.

I wish the Crew (and other MLS teams) took these games head on to win. It would really go a long way with the rest of the world.

Final thought. Eddie Gaven looked completely natural out there in the 2nd half with the Magpies. Completely.

Through These Gates

I lost a couple hard working employees to a local foundry that has recently begun rehiring. I live not far from this foundry. It's a place called Columbus Steel Castings (formerly Buckeye Steel). It has a history that goes back over 100 years.

The above picture is from her front entrance.

I picked up a new black Crew jersey today (hopefully for the Newcastle game, my canary yellow one just didn't feel right for that game). Below is what is written on the inside of the collar.The game of soccer was born behind places like Columbus Steel Castings and in towns like Newcastle Upon Tyne. The "Through these gates..." like sign is not uncommon around union halls and other mfg facilities around town. "America's hardest working team" comes naturally to this part of the country.

I asked the son of a man that works at a place called Griffin Wheel, a ductile iron foundry, once what he knew about the team. He stood there, clearly not knowing much about them and said; "Hardest working team, right?"

Columbus looks at the rustbelt as a cancer that they are trying to cure. It so desperately wants to shed this image. I don't see it that way. It's jobs that have to be done. Jobs that Americans have always performed better then any other nation on the planet. Working environments have gotten better in foundries but they can only ever be so good when you are working inches from 2000 degree molten metal.

Columbus doesn't quite know what it has around here in the Crew. What it could mean to this area. I wish I were smarter and could write (more) better to make the connections.

I guess I'll just say that seeing that in the jersey today put a smile on my face.

I've put up a lot of little bits of art/design work for the Crew this year. I'm organizing a place to put it all up. Since I work with posters all day here is one I made up for the team based on this post. The other two writers that come around Helltown are much better then I at this but the Crew deserve a poster of some sort so Sasquatch make poster.

Gaven Great Crew win 1. Timbers 0.

The first note I jotted down in my little notebook around the 8th minute was "Lot of energy from Gaven." The guy was all over the place and showed even more hustle then he usually does. He was rewarded right before the 80 minute with a goal that proved to be the only one needed to put away a toothless Timbers team.

I ran over to MLS website and checked out the "chalkboard". I wanted to see what Eddie Gaven and Jewsbury were doing all night. I felt it was two field commanders going at it. Turns out they were basically playing the same way. A couple of the best midfielders in the country. Fun to watch.

Other notes from the Game:

- Gardner is coming along. He has developed above average crossing ability and a savvy about when to push up and when not too.
- Rogers had a good game. Back to his old self. He is still 'nervy' around goal though. It's a mental thing he needs to work on.
-Crew really goal hungry all night. The Timbers did everything they could to pack it in and in doing so they were zero threat most of the game.
- Crew pushed both right and left defenders up all game then eventually just went to a 3-4-3 at the end. They got a goal out of it but they probably should have had a couple.
-Cunningham had zero contribution after the first 20 minutes. I read somewhere that he hasn't committed a foul this year. That about sums it up for me.
-Jewsbury (and Cooper) are good players on a bad team
- Happy to see Renteria back. He played well, didn't look rusty at all.

Two final notes:

1. Marshall is really, really shining now. The guy is a bulldog out there. Man of the Match for me (edged out Eddie by .00001 %). He and Eddie were fired up this game. They were not going to let this team lose.

2. Crew games end on time because the fans DO NOT tolerate injures. They will BOOO your ass. Crew games are the shortest games I watch. Warms this SCFC fan's heart!

Dispatching the Crew

I wish I could debunk the numbers and data reported in today's Columbus Dispatch. I've got game by game data here in front of me. No matter how you slice it; Crew attendance is down. Way down. Since I am in agreement with the paper about the numbers (and I enjoy the local beat writer) then why am I still a little angry?

"Thanks to roster turnover, a prolonged economic slump and some rotten weather, the Crew's average announced attendance is last in the league - 22 percent lower then last year."
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(hope Bleeno likes my title up there).

Developed Process Measure, Run of Play and I need a Trophy Name and Logo

We are in trouble if the remaining manufacturing facilities in the United States measure performance the same way the club front offices of Major League Soccer does.

Here are the top goals scorers during the run of play. In other words, I've taken out penalty kicks.

10: Thierry Henry (NY)
9: Brek Shea (DAL)
8: Chris Wondolowski (SJ)
7: Landon Donovan (LA)
6: Fredy Montero (SEA)
6: Nick LaBrocca (GOATS)
6: Luke Rodgers (NY)
6: Camilo (VAN)
6: Maicon Santos (TOR)
6: Carlos Ruiz (UNION)

I need two trophies. One for the player that scores the most during the run of play and one for the guy that gave him the most assists.

HB Boots? no. Beer Boots? nah. hmmm. Schaefer pops? Yes and bend thy knees before my Schaefer beer ad upload that has 78k views on youtube. Who knew?

Part one of a series of journal posts titled: "How to Create the Best MLS team in History" could possibly end at part one. But if it doesn't maybe I'll name the next one part II: "the search for part I". Regardless. In all seriousness, Part III will simply state the following:

Why talent is negligible in a league that's capped lower than a rich kids weekly allowance and how to spend your DP money on a group of coaches that know the game.

I will defend this thesis in front of the Manatee aquarium part of the Columbus Zoo.

Loss to Galaxy. But Better from Crew.

Late night for the Crew and Crew fans alike. In it, the LA Galaxy proved too much for Columbus.

The LA Gear were organized and confident. Impressively so. Bruce Arena has a championship team here.

Even though it was a loss, I gotta say that Columbus looked the best they have all year in a 4-5-1 (at least I think it was that formation. Anor and Ekpo seemed to drift). Important to note that Mendoza went out early (4th min) and was replaced by Tom Heinemann up front. While it didn't net anything for the Crew, at least they were not tripping over themselves in the mid.

Tommy had his best game with the ball at his feet - which was nice to see. Good touches. As for the team core: Robbie Rogers was active (good). Gaven was solid (as always). Marshall, Miranda and Hesmer were zz tops (Marshall had standout game).

So what happened? How can the Crew play solid football and lose? First off. The Galaxy is a better team. 2nd off: Two players. Anor and Gehrig. Gehrig is all hustle and heart but might not be ready for this level (uh, ouch). Check the 30th and 38th minute. Ugly. Donovan made him look goofy on the first and the whiffed clearance at 38 was beyond embarrassing. Anor had a muggly one at 50. I'm calling out specific moments here because the Crew (including these two guys) played an otherwise solid game.

Donovan did his thing in the first half but disappeared in the 2nd. Beckham was involved the whole game which was nice to see. I fear this will be the last time I see him against the Crew. I appreciated the moment though. Ultimately, LA's Franklin came through with a screamer and a deflection off (who else) Gehrig.

Other Crew play.

Ekpo... I'm going to ask the same question with him as I did with Cunningham earlier this year, what is going on here? I'm curious if the Crew management brought in Tchani to start over Ekpo at this point. I'm not sure where Ekpo belongs. Good player but roams all over the pitch (sort of like Gardner did earlier in the year, hmm going to have to think on this issue more. coaching?). I'm hoping, Justin Meram will get some more chances as the season goes on.

One last note. Julius James was also noticeably a step off. Not terrible, but maybe the weakest link in the back 4.

Predictable loss for Columbus, but memorable for solid football and the perspective angle that it good to see what the team might look like in the future without hired gun, Mendoza.

Promising.

Quick turnaround for the Crew. Back home Saturday.