2015 Week 30 Report

Did you notice that prior to this weekend’s games, just eleven points separate the team that’s currently in the final MLS Playoff spot (TFC, 37) and the team in the lead for the Supporters’ Shield race (Vancouver, 48)?  If the playoffs were to begin today, five of our guys’ teams would be in.  Over the next month, we’re going to see some crazy stuff and it’s a safe bet the table won’t look like it looks right now (1pm, 19 Sept).  Here’s how our fellas’ teams did this weekend:

TORONTO FC  L 0-2  @ New York City FC  •  Our defensive duo of Justin Morrow [Shaker Heights/St. Ignatius] and Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] started and played 90 in what was a pretty disappointing performance on the road for a playoff contender.

MONTREAL IMPACT  D 1-1  @ San Jose Earthquakes  •  This would qualify as a “good point” for Montreal, as it was earned after the visitors were down a goal after 35 minutes and down a man after 49 minutes.  Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] was not in the travel team, as he remains home with his wife and newborn baby.

TORONTO FC  W 3-1  Colorado Rapids  •  These three points helped TFC dig into that fifth Eastern Conference playoff spot.  Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] and Justin Morrow [Shaker Heights/St. Ignatius] both started and played 90.

COLUMBUS CREW SC  W 2-1  @ DC United  •  A massive road win put the Crew in first place… for about 18 hours or so.  But even after the conclusion of the weekend, the Black and Gold are second in the East and fifth overall.  They should be able to clinch a playoff berth next weekend.  Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] was the backup keeper and Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was not in the gameday XVIII.

MONTREAL IMPACT  W 3-0  New England Revolution  •  Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] was back in goal after a couple weeks off, and he made three saves in the shutout to help Montreal get a foothold on the sixth playoff spot in the East.

LOS ANGELES GALAXY  L 0-3  @ Real Salt Lake  •  Sheesh!  Just when it looked like LA was going to run away with everything and there was no need to even have playoffs this year, these last two games happened.  Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] was not in the team.

PORTLAND TIMBERS  L 0-2  New York Red Bulls  •  During and after this one, there was a lot of talk on Twitter about the reality of the notion/perception that the teams in the Western Conference were far superior than those in the Eastern Conference.  Well… here’s one of the arguments against.  Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] started and went 90.  Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] was not in the team.

Next Week’s Matches
~ Wednesday, 23 September
Central FC  v  LOS ANGELES, 8pm – CCL Group H
~ Saturday, 26 September
TFC  v  Chicago, 2pm
MONTREAL  v  DC, 5pm
COLUMBUS  v  PORTLAND, 730pm
~ Sunday, 27 September
LOS ANGELES  v  FC Dallas, 930pm – live on Fox Sports 1

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The USL Regular Season is all done and dusted and we now know who the 12 participants in the Playoffs are.

PITTSBURGH RIVERHOUNDS  D 1-1  Rochester Rhinos;  W 2-1  @ Harrisburg Islanders  •  INSKI!  After a midweek draw left them with a win-and-you’re-in deal for Saturday, that’s just what the Riverhounds did – and they took home the 2015 Keystone Cup in the process.  Mike Green [Strongsville/Strongsville] started at the back on Wednesday and played all 90, then on Saturday, he subbed on in the 68th minute to help close up shop and preserve the win.  Mission accomplished.  Pittsburgh will now play at New York Red Bulls II next Saturday at 5pm.

CHARLOTTE INDEPENDENCE  L 1-3  @ Charleston Battery  •  It’s disappointing that the Independence’s inaugural season ends just one point shy of the playoffs.  The loss also gave the Battery, the Eastern Conference’s number-three seed in the playoffs, a 2-1-1 advantage in the series with their new northern neighbors.  Jack Thompson [Hudson/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] did not feature in the gameday 18.

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The NASL Fall Season has a several more weeks to go.  Here’s how those boys and their teams did this weekend:

OTTAWA FURY FC  W 2-0  @ Fort Lauderdale Strikers  •  Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] had a goal and an assist in his 90-minute shift to help keep the Fury on top of the NASL in the Fall Season – 28 points from 13 games.  Good enough to get him the NASL Player of the Week!  Next up is a Tuesday showdown with second-place New York at their place for a 730pm kickoff, followed by a Saturday game at Carolina at 730pm.

ATLANTA SILVERBACKS  W 2-1  Carolina RailHawks  •  Atlanta recovered from allowing a goal in the first minute of the game to take the points on Saturday night.  Matt Horth [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was not in the team.  Next up is a Saturday trip to San Antonio for a 830pm contest.

INDY ELEVEN  L 0-2  FC Edmonton  •  A pair of second-half goals from the visitors handed the Eleven their eighth loss of the Fall Season, which puts them tenth in the league on 12 points from 14 games played.  Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] started and played 90 at left back.  Judson McKinney [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was not in the gameday 18.  Next up is a Wednesday game at 730pm in Tampa Bay against the Rowdies.

PHOTO CREDIT: nasl.com

2015 Week 24 Report

It was a busy few days for our boys last weekend, featuring two teams playing twice and a mess of goals all across the board.  Here’s how their teams did last week:

MONTREAL IMPACT  D 1-1  New York Red Bulls  •  On Wednesday night, Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] gave up a goal in the second half and made one save in his 90 minutes.  Montreal scored in the first half, but could not keep their visitors quiet – but to their credit, they kept things tight for the last 11 minutes after having a man sent off.

TORONTO FC  W 4-1  Orlando City SC  •  Too much Giovinco – that was the story in this one, as the little man scored three goals and was constantly a threat to the OCSC backline.  Justin Morrow [Shaker Heights/St. Ignatius] started at right back and played all 90 for TFC.  New Red Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] was not in the team.

LOS ANGELES GALAXY  W 5-1  Central FC  •  The Angelinos opened up their 2015-16 CONCACAF Champions League season the best way possible, by hammering an outmanned bunch from Trinidad & Tobago in the teams’ Group D lid-lifter.  Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] started as a holding mid and played all 90.

PORTLAND TIMBERS  W 1-0  Chicago Fire  •  On Friday night in the Rose City, the Timbers scored once after the break to earn the three points.  Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] started and played 90 at attacking mid.  Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] was not in the gameday XVIII.

TORONTO FC  L 1-3  Sporting Kansas City  •  Morrow subbed on for the final 21 minutes of this one, in hopes that his offensive leanings would get the game back to level (TFC trailed 2-1 at the time), but the final nail in the coffin came with three minutes to play.  Unlike midweek, the Reds suffered from too little Giovinco… though he did assist on the goal and generally speaking, Sporting is a lot better defensively than Orlando City.  No Williams in this one either.

MONTREAL IMPACT  L 0-1  DC UNITED  •  One shot, one goal, three points.  DC did the most with the least in this one, becoming the only team in league history to ever achieve that feat.  Chris Korb [Gates Mills/University School] played all 90 for the victors.  Bush did too, but all he got for his efforts were bumps in his Goals Against Average and Save Percentage stats.

COLUMBUS CREW SC  W 2-1  @ Colorado Rapids  •  There’s been a lot of talk about the diminutive fella in Toronto, but the leading goal scorer in MLS is Kei Kamara of Columbus.  He bagged both in this win, the Crew SC’s first in Denver since 2009.  Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] was the backup keeper.

LOS ANGELES GALAXY  W 2-1  Seattle Sounders  •  Despite allowing a goal in the first couple minutes of the match, the Galaxy rebounded to defeat the Sounders at home on Sunday.  Walker was an unused sub.

Next Week’s Matches
~ Wednesday, 12 August
MONTREAL  v  Vancouver, 730pm – Amway Canadian Championship, leg 1
~ Thursday, 13 August
NYCFC  v  DC, 730pm
~ Saturday, 15 August
NYRB  v  TFC, 7pm
FC Dallas  v  LOS ANGELES, 9pm
RSL  v  PORTLAND, 10pm

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Here are the details on how our USL and NASL guys did last week:

CHARLOTTE INDEPENDENCE  D 2-2  New York Red Bulls II  •  Those two teams each scored in each half – with the Red Bulls’ JV opening and closing the scoring.  Jack Thompson [Hudson/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] subbed in for the final four minutes.  Up next for Charlotte is the return leg of the NYRB home-and-home on Wednesday, 12 August for a 730pm kickoff, followed by a Saturday contest at 7pm in Pittsburgh.

PITTSBURGH RIVERHOUNDS  W 3-1  @ Toronto FC II  •  Mike Green [Strongsville/Strongsville] started up top and played 86 minutes of this road win that moves the Hounds up into the Eastern Conference top four.  Up next for Pitt is the visit from Charlotte on Saturday.

OTTAWA FURY FC  W 4-1  @ INDY ELEVEN  •  Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] got the party started with a goal in the fourth minute, as the Fall Season league leaders dominated from start to finish.  His work that night earned him a spot on the NASL Team of the Week.  For Indy, Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] played all 90 at left back and Judson McKinney [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was an unused sub.  The Fury hosts Minnesota United FC on Saturday at 7pm, while Indy will host the Tampa Bay Rowdies at 730pm on the 19th.  Earlier in the week, Indy lost 2-0 to FC Edmonton and in that match, Hyland and McKinney flipped roles. 

ATLANTA SILVERBACKS  W 2-1  Fort Lauderdale Strikers;  D 3-3  San Antonio Scorpions  •  It’s not often you see one team getting three guys sent off in the same game, but that’s what happened to the Strikers in Atlanta last Wednesday.  Yes, the outcome was already in hand by the time the cards started flying, but going 11-v-8 didn’t hurt Atlanta’s efforts.  On Saturday, it was goals galore as the home side squandered a 3-1 lead in the 57th minute to end up with one point.  Matt Horth [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] subbed on up top in second-half extra time on Wednesday and on the weekend, he got in for the final four minutes plus stoppage.  Up next for Atlanta is a 730pm game on Saturday in Jacksonville with Armada FC.

PHOTO CREDIT:  lagalaxy.com; Matt Schlotzhauer

Second post in 24 hours!!

Here’s the same sort of post as the previous one, although it’ll be focusing on our two NASL guys – and one who was in USL PRO last season, but slipped past our radar.

MIKE GREEN  [Strongsville/Strongsville]  •  The 2011 graduate of the University of New Mexico has played the last three seasons with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds in USL PRO.  In 2014, Green played in 28 games with 25 starts and he scored four goals.  According to the Hounds’ website, he is still on the team’s roster.  The USL PRO season kicks off 21 March and Pittsburgh plays its first game a week later, at home against Harrisburg City Islanders.  Keep an eye on this space for updates on Green.

KYLE HYLAND  [Bay Village/Bay]  •  After his first season with NASL  newbies Indy Eleven, Hyland did enough to impress his way to a new contract for 2015.  Despite a couple injuries and a surgery that ended his season early, he played in 17 games at left back (with a shift or two at left mid mixed in) and started 12 of them.  He racked up four assists, which is a decent total for an outside back.  The Eleven struggled to find their footing on the field and had an uneven season, which was to be expected in their first year.  Off the field, things went very well, and there are even plans to build a fancy new downtown stadium.  In year two, Hyland and company will aspire to a more consistent set of performances, which should lead to more points and, ideally, a berth in the playoffs.  Indy kicks off its spring season at Atlanta on 4 April, but they have not yet announced their preseason plans.

SINISA UBIPARIPOVIC  [Mentor/Mentor]  •  Our other NASL guy playing  with an expansion franshise had a typically solid season, one with the kind of numbers we’ve come to expect from him based on his time in MLS with New York and Montreal.  Ubiparipovic played 25 games, started 22 of them and contributed four goals and two assists, which is his best season numbers-wise, since 2008 or 2009.  It’s simple – when he plays, he produces.  He’ll be back in Ottawa in 2015.  Seems like they’ve got a good thing going up there, and will look to improve upon a herky-jerky first season.  Ubiparipovic should be a big part of that, if he’s healthy.  At age 31 are his MLS days behind him?  Depends on a lot of things, but his skill with the ball is up there with anyone in any American league.  The Fury’s preseason has begun and will run through March, as the NASL season doesn’t kick off until the first weekend in April, when they at the Carolina RailHawks.

* In doing my homework for these three, I discovered a new site that I dig – us.soccerway.com  I’m not sure who runs it or posts stats, etc. to it, but it’s very helpful for the non-MLS guys.  Lots of good info there that I can’t seem to find easily on the NASL or USL PRO sites.  (Yet?)

** Please let me know of anyone else who may be out there playing in the lower divisions that I might not have included in posts last year.

2014 Week Twenty-Six Report

This past weekend in MLS action, our boys’ teams took a trip to Draw City!  Only two of the games didn’t result in a tie ballgame… and those were both losses, by the way.  However, in CONCACAF Champions League action, it was a different story.  Three games, three wins for our fellas!  Nice!!  Here’s how it all went down:

MONTREAL IMPACT  D 2-2  v LOS ANGELES GALAXY  •  Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] started and played all of this match, which ended the Galaxy’s steam-rolling run
 through the league on a five-game winning streak.  No Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] in the Galaxy travel team for this one.

DC UNITED  L 0-1  @ New York Red Bulls  •  No Chris Korb [Gates Mills/University School] on the night, still out with a groin strain.

MONTREAL IMPACT  L 1-2  @ New England Revolution  •  No doubt with an eye towards the mid-week CONCACAF Champions League contest with New York looming, Bush was given the night off.

COLUMBUS CREW  D 2-2 @ Houston Dynamo  •  Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was an unused sub.  Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] is out recovering from surgery.

TORONTO FC  D 1-1  @ Chicago Fire  •  Justin Morrow [Cleveland/St. Ignatius] was back from the hamstring injury that had kept him out of action since early August.  If you’re any kind of fan of the league, you’ve already seen the video of the TFC goal that was disallowed at the end of this match.  In case you haven’t seen it yet, here it is.  Terrible call.  Unreal.

PORTLAND TIMBERS  D 2-2  @ Colorado Rapids  •  Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] started and played 85 minutes as the Timbers let two points slip away at home.  Again.

LOS ANGELES GALAXY  D 1-1  @ San Jose Earthquakes  •  Walker made the subs’ bench for this match, his first appearance in nearly a month!

DC UNITED  W 2-1   @ Waterhouse FC – CCL group 3  •  No Korb.  DC is currently second in the group behind Waterhouse with two games in hand.

PORTLAND TIMBERS  W 4-2  v CD Olimpia – CCL group 5  •  Nagbe subbed in with 27 minutes left.  Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] started at wide mid and played all 90.  Ben Zemanski [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was an unused sub.  Portland is currently second in the group behind Olimpia with a game in hand.

MONTREAL IMPACT  W 1-0  v New York Red Bulls – CCL group 4  •  Bush shut out NYRB in a big match that puts the Impact on top of the group.  NYRB has a game in hand right now, so the Canadian “champions” are going to want to keep winning in order to stay there.

UP NEXT:
PORTLAND  v  Vancouver, Saturday, 20 September, 5pm – NBC Sports Network
COLUMBUS  v  New England, 730pm
MONTREAL  v  San Jose, 730pm
Chicago  v  DC UNITED, 830pm
LOS ANGELES  v  FC Dallas, 1030pm
TORONTO FC  v  Chivas USA, Sunday, 21 September, 3pm – UniMás
PORTLAND  v  Alpha United, CCL group 5, Tuesday, 23 September, 10pm – Fox Sports 1
DC UNITED  v  Tauro FC, CCL group 3, Wednesday, 24 September, 8pm – Fox Sports 2

Non-MLS Report
WILMINGTON HAMMERHEADS  L 1-4  @ Sacramento Republic FC – USL PRO Playoffs  •  All things must come to an end, and in the California capital, so did both Wilmington’s stay in the playoffs and the loan spell of Columbus Crew goalie Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] with the Hammerheads.  The visitors fought fiercely to keep their season going, but in the end, the Republic were/was just too much.  Stuver made six saves in the match and over the course of his time in teal (or is it considered more of a sky blue?), he’ll hope his body of work was enough to impress the Crew brass as they look towards next year.

INDY ELEVEN  D 1-1  v FC Edmonton  •  No Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] in this match, as he’s still dealing with a groin tear from the previous week., but the point was much-needed for the Eleven in order to keep their faint playoff hopes alive.  Indy is tied with Ottawa on points, but has played one fewer game, so they’re technically ninth.  

OTTAWA FURY  W 2-0  v Tampa Bay Rowdies  •  The Fury snagged three huge points with this win, as Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] scored Ottawa’s second goal during his 20 minute-shift after subbing in at center mid.  He now has four goals and three assists on the season for the NASL’s eighth-place team.

PHOTO CREDIT:  Bush/cbc.ca; Ubiparipovic/Ottawa Fury

The Non-MLS Report for (most of) August

Yep.  It’s been a while.  But let’s get caught up real quick.  Here’s what our fellas in the NASL and USL-PRO have been up to since August began:

INDY ELEVEN
   L 2-4 v Atlanta Silverbacks (2 Aug)
   D 0-0 v Ft. Lauderdale Strikers (6 Aug)
   L 0-2 @ San Antonio Scorpions (9 Aug)
   L 1-5 @ Minnesota United FC (16 Aug)
Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] was an unused sub against Atlanta but then returned to his normal starting gig at left back for the Strikers and Scorpions matches.  In the Minnesota United match, he started at left back and subbed out in the 67th minute.  The Eleven is currently eighth in the NASL with seven points from seven matches.  UP NEXT:  v Ottawa Fury, Saturday, 23 August, 730pm

OTTAWA FURY FC
   L 1-2  v Minnesota United FC (2 Aug)
   L 1-2  v Ft. Lauderdale Strikers (9 Aug)
   D 0-0  v San Antonio Scorpions (16 Aug)
Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor]  started and played 90 in the loss to Minnesota, scoring the Fury’s only goal and picking up a yellow card in the 61st minute.  He started as one of the center mids and played 90 against both the Strikers and Scorpions.  The Fury is currently last in the ten-team league, with just two points from six matches.  UP NEXT:  @ Indy Eleven, Saturday, 23 August, 730pm

WILMINGTON HAMMERHEADS FC
   L 1-2  v Dayton Dutch Lions (9 Aug)
   L 0-1  @ New York Red Bulls Reserves (15 Aug)
   L 0-2  @ Sacramento Republic FC (20 Aug)
Since being loaned to the Hammerheads of USL-PRO for the remainder of the season, Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] has yet to win a match or shut out an opponent, but we know that’s not all his fault.  The important thing is that for the first time in his professional career, he’s getting a steady run of games and playing time.  He started and played all of those matches.  UP NEXT:  @ Orange County Blues, Saturday, 23 August, 10pm; @ LA Galaxy II, Sunday, 24 August, 3pm

Start of the Fall Season NASL Report

While I was slacking, the NASL fired up its Fall Season.  Here’s what you missed:

INDY ELEVEN  W 2-1  @ Carolina RailHawks;  L 1-2  v Tampa Bay Rowdies;   W 1-0  @ FC Edmonton  •  After failing to record a ‘W’ in the Spring Season, Indy not only broke a nine-game winless streak with a road victory.  In fact, they now have two this season and they’re still in search of a first-ever home win.  Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay], who was out injured at the end of the Spring Season, is back healthy now, but he was not in the team at Carolina and was an unused sub in the other two matches.  (That photo comes from the Eleven-Rowdies match back in the spring.)  Next up:  v Atlanta Silverbacks, Saturday, 2 August, 730pm

OTTAWA FURY  D 0-0 @ FC Edmonton;  L 0-1  v New York Cosmos;   L 0-1  v Rangers;  L 0-3  @ Carolina RailHawks  •  Despite the shaky start to the Fall Season, Ottawa has had some things to be proud of in July.  First, the club’s new home, TD Place, opened up for the Cosmos’ match, and the attendance that night (14,593) set a new NASL record.  Also, the club hosted its first international friendly when legendary Glasgow Rangers visited last week.  Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] started all four of the Fury’s matches this month, playing 61 minutes in Edmonton, 90 against the Cosmos, 65 against Rangers and 57 at Carolina.  Next up:  @ Minnesota United FC, Saturday, 2 August, 530pm

PHOTO CREDIT:  Hyland/Doug McSchooler, Indianapolis Star; Ubiparipovic/Dean Jonkas Photography

Early June non-MLS Report

The NASL Spring Season wrapped up a couple weeks ago, so here’s what went down with our two guys playing their ball in that competition:

 

OTTAWA FURY  L 0-1  v New York Cosmos  •  The Fury allowed an early goal to the visitors, but could not find their equalizer.  Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] was not a part of the gameday 18.  For the season, he played in seven of nine matches and scored one goal, as the Fury put together a record of 3 wins, 1 draw, 5 losses, which was good for 6th place.  Next up:  Fall Season kicks off on 12 July when the Fury travels to FC Edmonton for a 6pm kickoff.

 

INDY ELEVEN  D 3-3  @ Atlanta Silverbacks  •  After being down 3-1 at  half and then fighting back with ten men to earn the three points, the Eleven can hold their heads up high about finishing the Spring Season on a positive note… sort of.  Giving up those three goals in the first half isn’t great, but to not fold up shop shows something.  Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] played the first half and then subbed out.  On the season, he played in all nine matches, but did not register a point, as the Eleven went 0 wins, 4 draws, 5 losses, which was good for 10th (last) place.  Next up: Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup 4th Round @ Columbus Crew, Tuesday, 17 June, 730pm;  Fall Season kicks off on 12 July when the Eleven travels to Carolina RailHawks for a 730pm kickoff.

 

DAYTON DUTCH LIONS  L 3-4  @ Orange County Blues FC; L 1-5 @ LA Galaxy II; W 2-1 Arizona United FC  •  The Lions went out west and came back with some mixed results.  Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] did not make the trip, after having surgery to clean up some business in an ankle he damaged during Dayton’s USOC match with Indy back in late May.  The Lions added a goalkeeper to their roster recently, so it’s going to be interesting to see what happens to Stuver once he begins training again.  Next up: v Rochester Rhinos, Friday, 20 June, 735pm

2014 Week Nine Report

I can’t lie to you – I have writer’s block and I can’t come up with any sort of clever or interesting lede into this week’s report.  But be aware that the Canadian Championships have gotten underway, crowding the fixture lists of our guys in Canada.  Here’s what went on last week:

TORONTO FC  L 1-2  v New England Revolution  •  Justin Morrow [Cleveland/St. Ignatius] started at left back and played all 90, as the Reds fell to 3-4-0 on the season, with nine points from seven games.  Next up: Amway Canadian Championships Semifinal, leg 1 v Vancouver Whitecaps, Wednesday, 7 May, 730pm

COLUMBUS CREW  L 0-2  @ Sporting Kansas City  •  Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] started at right back and played all 90, as the Crew fell to 3-2-3, with twelve points from eight games.  No Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] in the team for this match, but with three games in a week, maybe he’ll get a sniff in the next two.  Next up: @ Houston Dynamo, Wednesday, 7 May, 8pm; v Vancouver Whitecaps, Saturday, 10 May, 730pm

PORTLAND TIMBERS  W 3-2  DC UNITED  •  Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] started as the right mid in a 4-2-3-1 formation and played all 90 for the Timbers.  Both Ben Zemanski [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] and Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] were unused subs for the home side.  Chris Korb [Gates Mills/University School] returned to the field for DC after a month on the shelf recovering from knee surgery.  He started at right back and played all 90.  The Timbers really had to work hard to earn their first win of the season and are now 1-3-5, with eight points from nine matches, while DC has eleven from eight and a 3-3-2 record.  Next up for PTFC: v Los Angeles Galaxy, Sunday, 11 May, 230pm – NBC Sports Network   Next up for DC: v Montreal Impact, Saturday, 17 May, 7pm

LOS ANGELES GALAXY  L 0-1  @ Colorado Rapids  •  Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] was an unused sub as the Galaxy dropped to 2-2-2 on the season, good for eight points from just six games.  Next up: @ Portland Timbers, Sunday, 11 May, 230pm – NBC Sports Network

MONTREAL IMPACT  •  No game this past weekend, but the defending Amway Canadian Champions begin their defense of the title they won last year with a trip to Alberta.  Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] played every ACC game for the Impact a year ago and as the team has a new coach this year, let’s hope that he gets the call again this year.  Next up: Amway Canadian Championships Semifinal, leg 1 @ Edmonton FC, Wednesday, 7 May, 930pm; v Sporting Kansas City, Saturday, 10 May, 4pm

And now for the not-so-MLS news…

INDY ELEVEN  L 2-3  v Minnesota United FC  •  Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] started at left back and played all 90 as the Eleven remains winless on the season at 0-2-2.  Next up: v Tampa Bay Rowdies, Saturday, 10 May, 7pm

OTTAWA FURY  L 1-3  @ Edmonton FC, Amway Canadian Championship, Quarterfinal, Leg 2;  L 1-2  @ Atlanta Silverbacks  •  Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] started and played all 90 on Wednesday as the Fury was bounced  from the ACC, losing 3-1 on aggregate to Edmonton FC.  In Saturday’s NASL match against Atlanta, Ubiparipovic started as one of the mids, played all 90, captained the side and got the assist on the Fury’s goal.  I know getting a win would’ve been more important to him than the last three things mentioned in the previous sentence.  The Fury fell to 1-0-3 on the year.  Next up:  v FC Edmonton, Saturday, 10 May, 730pm

DAYTON DUTCH LIONS  L 0-2  v Charleston Battery  •  Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] was the backup goalie as the Lions dropped to 2-3-1 on the season.  Next up:  v LA Galaxy II, Saturday, 10 May, 730pm

PHOTO CREDIT: canadasoccer.com

2013 Recap – Speas, Stuver & Ubiparipovic

Ben Speas  —  Speas had a decent 2013, impressing early and making six of his ten starts  in a row.  He got his goal – a ripper at DC United – and assist during that string of matches, but as the Crew struggled and former head coach Robert Warzycha looked to change the lineup, Speas was moved to a supporting role.  The summer months were a bit of a roller coaster, with an injury robbing him of game-time and the dreaded DNP-CD keeping him down once he was healthy.  And again, the Crew’s uneven form didn’t help.  Still, when Speas played in the Open Cup and reserve games, he played well and created goals.    PREDICTION FOR 2014:  A new head coach with a fresh perspective on the skills Speas possesses, along with a better season overall for the Crew will provide #17 with an opportunity to get consistent, meaningful minutes, which will enable him to put up numbers that will help the team reach the playoffs.

Brad Stuver  —  Stuver spent his first year as a professional footballer as a pool  goalkeeper based in Columbus after getting drafted by Montreal.  He did not play in a league game, but he was called in to be the backup goalie for Real Salt Lake during the Gold Cup and he played in a few reserve games for the Crew.  Before Christmas, the Crew signed him to a contract for 2014, which will at least keep him from bouncing around the country and doing more training than playing this season.    PREDICTION FOR 2014:  Based on a couple things I’ve read, it seems that of the four keepers on the Crew roster, Stuver is the most likely to get loaned to USL affiliate Dayton Dutch Lions.  The Columbus Dispatch’s Adam Jardy figures as much in his early prediction on the Crew’s starting lineup on opening weekend.  (p.s.  Check out where he thinks Ben Speas will end up.)

Sinisa Ubiparipovic  —  Ubiparipovic suffered an injury early the preseason of 2013  and it took him until April to get back to good.  After the slow start, he did not see any MLS action for Montreal in 2013, though he was an unused sub for three matches – two of them being the Amway Canadian Championship games, earning him a Champions medal.  Before going on loan to NASL side Minnesota Kickers in mid-July and got in seven games.  Sad as it is to say, the writing was on the wall and he was released by the Impact in November.    PREDICTION FOR 2014:  I will be extremely happy if I get to report on Ubiparipovic’s MLS exploits this upcoming season, but at age 30, I have my doubts that he’ll get picked up.  Perhaps there’s an NASL or USL team that could use him, but I haven’t seen any rumors heading in that direction anywhere on the internet.  If his MLS career is over, he’ll carry the distinction of being the only Clevelander to have played in an MLS Cup, when his New York Red Bulls lost to Columbus 3-1, and he has career numbers of 76 games played and four goals.

More Mid-Week Stuff

Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] has been loaned out by Montreal to the Minnesota  Kickers of the NASL, which is probably a good thing for him, considering he has only played a handful of minutes for the Impact and with the Kickers, he’ll probably be a starter. Makes sense and we’ll wish him the best of luck!

Tough week for one of our Cleveland refs, Sorin Stoica. Last Saturday, he red-carded Seattle’s Osvaldo Alonso for this tackle and then the League rescinded the suspension that would have gone along with that card, basically saying, “Sorry. That shouldn’t have been a red.” And then last night, he gave a questionable red card to Chivas USA’s Eric Avila and then did not call for a penalty kick after this play in the box in which Toronto FC’s Jonathan Osorio seemed to get taken out in the box.  We’ll see what happens with that red card.  I wouldn’t be surprised to see it get the same treatment that Alonso’s received.