2015 Week 28 Report

This is the smallest slate of the season, with only three games involving three of our boys’ teams.  Just one of them won.  Here’s how they all did:

MONTREAL IMPACT  W 4-3  Chicago Fire  •  Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] made four saves and got a great view of Didier Drogba’s MLS debut and hat trick.  The home side impressively fought back from a two-goal deficit in the 59th minute to get the victory. 

TORONTO FC  L 1-2  @ Seattle Sounders  •  TFC went punch-for-punch with the Sounders without their talisman Sebastian Giovinco, but gave up the winner with 13 minutes to go.  Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] started at center back and played 90, while Justin Morrow [Shaker Heights/St. Ignatius] was not in the team.

COLUMBUS CREW  L 0-3  FC Dallas  •  Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] started at left mid and went 58 minutes before subbing out with the Crew SC trailing 1-0.  Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] was an unused sub as backup goalie.  The home side dominated most of the match, but got hit thrice on the counterattack to make for another frustrating national television appearance (Columbus drew 2-2 with Chicago on a Friday night back in May).

Next Week’s Matches
~ Wednesday, 9 September
PORTLAND  v  Sporting KC, 1030pm
~ Saturday, 12 September
Philadelphia  v  COLUMBUS, 7pm
LOS ANGELES  v  MONTREAL, 1030pm
~ Sunday, 13 September
TFC  v  New England, 5pm – live on ESPN2

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And now for the news on our NASL and USL guys:

INDY ELEVEN  L 0-1  @ Minnesota United FC;  W 3-0  Jacksonville Armada FC  •  Three points from two games is always better than zero.  Indy is now in ninth place with 12 points.  Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] was an unused sub at the other MUFC and then he played all 90 against Jax.  Judson McKinney [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was not in the team for either match.  Next up is a trip to San Antonio for a Saturday night 830pm match.

OTTAWA FURY  W 1-0  @ San Antonio Scorpions  •  Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] started and played 90 at attacking mid as the Fury bumped their lead at the top of the NASL Fall Season to five points over New York.  Next up is a Saturday home match with Fort Lauderdale at 3pm.

ATLANTA SILVERBACKS  L 0-2  @ Carolina RailHawks  •  Goals in the 24th and 28th minute were all the home side needed to defeat Atlanta, who now are fifth in the Fall standings with 18 points.  Matt Horth [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was an unused sub.  Next up are two home games – Minnesota United FC on Tuesday and Carolina on Saturday.  Both are 730pm kicks.

PITTSBURGH RIVERHOUNDS  D 1-1  Charleston Battery  •  Mike Green [Strongsville/Strongsville] started up top and played 74 minutes before subbing out.  This loss bumped Pitt back to seventh place in the Eastern Conference with another important game looming next Saturday in Wilmington against the Hammerheads at 730pm.

CHARLOTTE INDEPENDENCE  W 1-0  @ Wilmington Hammerheads FC;  D 2-2  Wilmington Hammerheads FC  •  Jack Thompson [Hudson/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] started in the win and played 89 minutes before subbing out.  In the draw, he was not a part of the gameday team.  Next up for the Independence is another two-match week, as they host TFC II on Wednesday at 7pm and then they’ll travel to St. Louis for an 830pm match on Saturday.

PHOTO CREDIT:  Sy Bean/The Seattle Times

2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup 5th Round Report

And then there was one.  We came into this week with five of our fellas’ teams still alive in the country’s oldest knockout competition.  Three of them lost and the last one to play in this round won.  Here are the stories:

DC UNITED  L 1-2  @ Philadelphia Union  •  You’d have bet that quite a few of the home fans in attendance at PPL Park for this contest were fearing the worst when their Union were down a goal on the scoreboard and a man on the team sheet when these two teams went into the locker room at halftime.  But the fiesty Philadelphias fought back and got two goals before time and live to fight another day.  Chris Korb [Gates Mills/University School] was an unused sub for DC.

COLUMBUS CREW SC  L 0-2  @ Orlando City SC  •  Too much heat and humidity and too much Kaká put an end to the Crew SC’s USOC dreams on Tuesday night in Orlando.  Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] started in the playmaker slot and went 65 minutes before subbing out.  Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] got the call between the pipes for Columbus.  He made four saves and besides the goals allowed (no goalie anywhere could’ve stopped the second one), put in a solid 90-minute shift.  It’s a shame he’s played so well in his last two starts but both resulted in losses.

CHARLOTTE INDEPENDENCE  L 1-3  @ Chicago Fire  •  Despite scoring first, it was the USL side that fell by the wayside on Chicago’s South Side (kind of), thanks to two goals from a former MLS MVP and one from a Ghanaian.  Jack Thompson [Hudson/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was an unused sub for the Independence.

PORTLAND TIMBERS  L 0-2  @ Real Salt Lake  •  Two second-half goals from the hosts bumped the Timbers out of the Cup.  Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] subbed on in the second half and got 16 minutes of time.

LOS ANGELES GALAXY  W 1-0  @ San Jose Earthquakes  •  Our guy Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] got the game-winning assist on a beauty of a pass to Jose Villarreal.  Walker started as a holding mid and played 69 minutes before subbing out.  No doubt this win must’ve been just a little bit sweeter after the loss the ‘Quakes handed to LA on the weekend.  The Galaxy moves on to the USOC Quarterfinals, where they’ll play at Real Salt Lake on 14 July at 10pm

PHOTO CREDIT:  Reinhold Matay/USA Today Sports

2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup 4th Round Report

MLS clubs almost went 100% in their Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup 4th Round  matchups this week.  Our boys’ teams all moved on, which is truly the most important thing:

PORTLAND TIMBERS  W 3-1  @ Seattle Sounders  •  On Tuesday night, another memorable event was added to the already massive tome of Cascadia Cup lore.  Not only did the Timbers’ victory ended the Sounders’ previously undefeated record at Starfire Sports Complex; not only did the Timbers improve their own winning streak to four, across all competitions; not only did the visitors score two goals in the overtime periods to avoid a penalty kick shootout; not only did the match end with Portland holding an 11-to-7 players on the field advantage, thanks to three red cards and an injury; but this match will also be remembered as the time that Clint Dempsey tore up the referee’s notebook.  Check out the highlights.  Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] started and played all of it and Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] was an unused sub.

COLUMBUS CREW SC  W 3-1  @ Richmond Kickers  •  Wednesday night in Richmond, the Crew SC broke a 1-1 tie in the 42nd minute and added another goal after the break to advance the boys in yellow onto the next round.  Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] started and played all 90, as did Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] in goal.  Speas assisted on the Crew’s first goal and Stuver made one save in the victory.

DC UNITED  W 3-1  @ Pittsburgh Riverhounds  •  Popular scoreline, huh?  Just like the two teams above them in this report, DC had to take its act on the road to get the job done on Wednesday night.  Just like Portland, they needed extra time to settle the tie.  Chris Korb [Gates Mills/University School] was an unused sub.

LOS ANGELES GALAXY  W 6-1  v PSA Elite  •  Just like the Riverhounds, it was the lower-division side that scored first in this tie… and then the dam broke open.  Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] started and played 90 as a holding mid, and he assisted on the Galaxy’s first goal.

The USOC 5th Round ties – the quarterfinals, essentially – were announced the following day, and here’s what our boys have awaiting them:

Tuesday, 30 June
COLUMBUS CREW SC  @ Orlando City SC, 730pm
DC UNITED  @ Philadelphia Union, 730pm

Wednesday, 1 July
PORTLAND TIMBERS  @ Real Salt Lake, 10pm
LOS ANGELES GALAXY  @ San Jose Earthquakes, 1030pm

2015 Week 15 Report

Just three MLS games last weekend, but every US team has a US Open Cup tie this Tuesday or Wednesday, so there’ll be a bigger report to come.  Here’s how our head-to-heads went this past weekend:

NEW YORK CITY FC  W 3-1  MONTREAL IMPACT  •  If you’ve been following the league since 1996 like I have, you know that at some point in the season, every team gets hot.  NYCFC is now hot.  This victory, accomplished without the injured Josh Williams (adductor strain) [Copley/Copley] in the gameday XVIII, is their second in a row.  For Montreal, Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] made eight saves in the loss.

COLUMBUS CREW SC  D 1-1  LOS ANGELES GALAXY  •  LA scored in the first half and Crew SC scored in the second to earn both teams a point.  Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] subbed on in the final minute for Crew SC and Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] subbed on nine minutes earlier for the Galaxy.  Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] was the Crew’s backup keeper.

DC UNITED  L 0-1  @ Orlando City SC  •  It took three tries (and a dive?), but the purple new boys finally defeated DC last Sunday night in the wicked heat and humidity of Central Florida (did you hear about the water breaks in each half?).  Chris Korb [Gates Mills/University School] started at right back for DC and played 90 minutes.

This Week’s Games
~ Tuesday, 16 June ~ Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup 4th Round
New York Red Bulls  v  ATLANTA SILVERBACKS, 730pm
Seattle  v  PORTLAND, 1030pm
~ Wednesday, 17 June~ Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup 4th Round
PITTSBURGH RIVERHOUNDS  v  DC UNITED, 7pm
Richmond Kickers  v  COLUMBUS, 7pm
NYCFC  v  New York Cosmos, 730pm
LA  v  PSA Elite, 1030pm
~ Saturday, 20 June
TFC  v  NYCFC, 7pm
MONTREAL  v  OCSC, 8pm
LA  v  Philly, 1030pm
~ Sunday, 21 June
DC  v  New England, 5pm – live on ESPN 2

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The NASL wrapped up its Spring Season last weekend and here’s how things went for our fellas’ teams:

ATLANTA SILVERBACKS  L 0-3  @ Tampa Bay Rowdies  •  Matt Horth [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] started and played all 90 as the ‘Backs ended up last in the league with only eight points from their ten matches.

OTTAWA FURY  D 0-0  @ San Antonio Scorpions  •  Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] started and played 90 as an attacking mid.  The Fury finished their season with five straight shutouts and an un-scored-upon streak of 526 minutes!  The only bad part of the streak was that it didn’t feature many wins – 11 points from ten games, good for ninth place.

INDY ELEVEN  W 3-0  v FC Edmonton  •  Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] started and played all 90 at left back as the Eleven put together its most complete performance of the season to wrap up things on a high note.  They’re in fifth place, with 13 points from their ten matches.  Indy will play an international exhibition match against Mexican club Monarcas Morelia on Sunday, 28 June at 130pm.

Our USL club was in action too:

PITTSBURGH RIVERHOUNDS  L 1-2  @ Charlotte Independence  •  Mike Green [Strongsville/Strongsville] started and played 90 in this loss, but the Riverhounds still find themselves with 16 points from 12 matches, good for fourth in the Eastern Conference.

 

2015 Week 14 Report

More double weeks in Week 14, but things lighten up next week.  Lots of guys in action, but none of them scored a goal.  At least their teams were winning… except for two that came in a head-to-head.  Here’s how it all went down:

DC UNITED  W 3-1  Chicago Fire;  L 1-2 @ Toronto FC  •  Last Wednesday, DC smoked the Fire with Chris Korb [Gates Mills/University School] absent from the gameday XVIII.  It was the same deal for him on Saturday, as DC fell victim to the hottest player in the league, TFC’s Sebastian Giovinco.

MONTREAL IMPACT  W 2-1  Vancouver Whitecaps;  W 2-1  @ Columbus Crew SC  •  Last Wednesday, the Impact and Whitecaps engaged in some seriously entertaining attacking soccer.  Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] made only three saves, but had to organize his guys to defend against 11 corners and he also have three other crosses that he had to deal with.  Bush had three more saves on Saturday in Columbus, and the Crew SC took ten corners, but les Bleu got their pair in the second half to earn their first away win in 25 MLS matches.  Not a typo.

TORONTO FC  W 2-1  DC United  •  Justin Morrow [Shaker Heights/St. Ignatius] didn’t have any diving headers in his team’s win, but he started and played 90 and continued his strong work at the back for the Reds.

COLUMBUS CREW SC  L 0-3  @ Philadelphia Union;  L 1-2  Montreal Impact  •  Two games played, two eggs laid.  Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] subbed on for the final 25 minutes against the Union and for the final 22 minutes against Montreal.  Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] was the backup goalie in both.

NEW YORK CITY FC  W 2-1  @ Philadelphia Union  •  No Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] in the gameday XVIII for the City, as they came back from 1-0 down to get the three points.

LOS ANGELES GALAXY  L 0-1  Vancouver Whitecaps  •  Trailing after a 33rd-minute goal from the visitors, the Galaxy looked for, but could not find an answer.  Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] subbed on for the final 34 minutes.

PORTLAND TIMBERS  W 2-0  New England Revolution  •  Look who has won three straight, including two over Eastern Conference contenders.  Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] started and played 90.  He put a couple shots on goal and drew four fouls – that’s more like it!  Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] was not in the gameday XVIII.

Next Week’s Matches
~ Saturday, 13 June
NYCFC  v  MONTREAL, 7pm
COLUMBUS  v  LOS ANGELES, 730pm
~ Sunday, 14 June
OCSC  v  DC, 7pm – live on Fox Sports 1

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Here’s how the fellas did in their NASL and USL PRO games this past weekend:

PITTSBURGH RIVERHOUNDS  D 1-1  Saint Louis FC  •  Mike Green [Strongsville/Strongsville] started and played 90.  Pittsburgh is currently 4-3-4 on the season in the Eastern Conference.  It’ll be a two-match week for them, as they’ll host DC United in the 4th Round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Wednesday and then travel to North Carolina to play the Charlotte Independence at 7pm on Saturday.

OTTAWA FURY  D 0-0  @ Jacksonville Armada FC  •  Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] started and played 90 minutes before subbing out.  The Fury has ten points from nine matches, which puts them in eighth place.  They’ll wrap up the spring season at San Antonio on Saturday night with a 730pm match against the Scorpions.

ATLANTA SILVERBACKS  L 0-1  v San Antonio Scorpions  •  Matt Horth [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] subbed in for the final 17 minutes, but could not make or score the equalizer.  The Silverbacks have eight points from nine matches, which puts them in eleventh place.  They’ll wrap up the spring season at the Tampa Bay Rowdies for a 730pm contest.

INDY ELEVEN  W 2-1  @ Fort Lauderdale Strikers  •  Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] started and played 90 as the Eleven grabbed three big points on the road.  They have climbed to seventh place, with ten points from nine games.  They’ll wrap up the spring season with a visit from FC Edmonton for a 730pm kickoff on Saturday.

PHOTO CREDIT:  Craig Mitchelldyer

2015 Week 12 Report

Long story short, it was a Draw-Win-Win/Loss-Draw-Win-Loss kind of weekend. Here’s how our fellas and their respective teams did:

COLUMBUS CREW SC  D 2-2  v Chicago Fire  •  On a night when the Crew SC were the superior team for most of the game, the plucky little Fire huffed and puffed and scraped out a road draw, getting their second goal in the final minute of the match.  Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] subbed on for the 87th minute and Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] was the backup keeper.

LOS ANGELES GALAXY  W 1-0  v Houston Dynamo  •  Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] has returned from injury and is now full fit, but he got upstaged by Robbie Keane’s return from injury in which he created the Galaxy’s final-minute game-winning goal.  Walker was an unused sub on the night, but with two matches this upcoming week, we could see him get some minutes.

TORONTO FC  W 1-0  v PORTLAND TIMBERS  •  It wasn’t exactly some sort of mini version of The Holy War, but it was Justin Morrow‘s team [Cleveland/St. Ignatius] getting the better of Darlington Nagbe‘s team [Lakewood/St. Edward] for the third game running.  TFC won 3-2 last year and Morrow’s San Jose won 2-1 back in late July of 2013.  Both men played all of this match, which was settled by TFC’s little Italian DP.  BTW, Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] is back and fully recovered from his sports hernia surgery and he’s been turning out for the Timbers 2 of USL PRO recently and looking lively and good.  Should just be a matter of time before he’s back in the first team.

DC UNITED  D 1-1  @ New England Revolution  •  Chris Korb [Gates Mills/University School] started at right back and played 65 minutes, subbing out with his team down 1-0 on the scoreboard, but up two men on the field.  DC’s equalizer would come 15 minutes after Korb’s departure and it was a well-stolen point by the Black and Red.

MONTREAL IMPACT  W 2-1  v FC Dallas  •  Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] was back in net for the Impact and he sure was busy, making seven important saves, like THIS ONE, punching away three dangerous balls and catching two crosses.  FCD took 14 corners in the match and didn’t technically score off any of them.  Despite all he did do on the night, Bush will be replaying the visitors’ goal in his head (how about a little help, other defenders?) – which began from an illegally-placed corner kick, BTW.  Much easier to get away with when you’re in the left corner, no doubt.

NEW YORK CITY FC  L 0-2  @ Real Salt Lake  •  Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] was not in the travel team for this loss and has been out for the past two weeks after suffering an adductor injury.

Next Week’s Matches
Wednedsay, 27 May
~ LOS ANGELES  v  Real Salt Lake, 1030pm
~ PORTLAND  v  DC UNITED, 1030pm
Saturday, 30 May
~ TORONTO FC  v  San Jose, 5pm
~ NYCFC  v  Houston, 7pm
~ DC UNITED  v  Philadelphia, 7pm
~ Orlando City  v  COLUMBUS, 730pm
~ Chicago  v  MONTREAL, 830pm
~ Colorado  v  PORTLAND, 9pm
Sunday, 31 May
~ New England  v  LOS ANGELES, 7pm – live on Fox Sports 1

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And now the NASL and USL-PRO guys’ report:

PITTSBURGH RIVERHOUNDS  •  On Saturday night, the Hounds beat Richmond 2-1 to pick up some huge away points.  Mike Green [Strongsville/Strongsville] subbed on for the final 29 minutes for the Hounds, who gave the Kickers their first home loss of the season to improve to 3-3-3 on the season.  Earlier in the week, Pittsburgh hosted the USL PDL’s West Virginia Chaos in a US Open Cup 2nd Round tie the resulted in a Riverhounds 3-0 victory.  Green started at right back as usual and played all 90.  Coming up will be another two-match week for Pittsburgh.  On Wednesday, they’ll continue their run in the USOC 3rd Round when they take on NASL side Tampa Bay Rowdies on Wednesday at home at 7pm.  On Saturday, it’ll be a return to USL PRO action with leg two of the Keystone Derby when the Harrisburg City Islanders visit for a 7pm kickoff.

ATLANTA SILVERBACKS  L 2-4  @ FC Edmonton  •  The two teams played more than 40 scoreless minutes before the hosts got their first goal, then one each in the 54th and 66th minutes gave them a comfy lead they wouldn’t relinquish.  Matt Horth [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] started up top and subbed out once the score went to 3-0.  This Wednesday, the Silverbacks enter the USOC with a 3rd Round trip north a bit to play the NPSL’s Chatanooga FC at 730pm.  This weekend is Atlanta’s NASL bye and they currently sit on eight points from eight matches in the Spring Season.

OTTAWA FURY  W 1-0  v INDY ELEVEN  •  Our two guys in this game both played all of it, with Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] and the Fury coming out on top of Kyle Hyland’s [Bay Village/Bay] Eleven.  It’s obviously great to see these two fully fit, starting and contributing to their teams’ efforts.  If you click on the link above (Fury website) and watch the highlights, you can see the two come together just prior to the goal.  The Fury has eight points from seven NASL matches, while the Eleven has six from seven.  Up next for Ottawa is a visit from FC Edmonton for a 7pm Friday night kickoff.  Indy will take on USL PRO’s Louisville City FC in the USOC 3rd Round on Wednesday night for a 730pm kickoff, and they’ll welcome Tampa Bay on Saturday night for a 730pm game.

 

2015 Week 6 Report

It was a buncha’ draws and losses, and one lone victory last weekend for our fellas’ teams, and our guy did not play in that one win.  [SIGH]  Here’s how our MLS guys did last weekend:

COLUMBUS CREW  D 2-2  @ Vancouver Whitecaps  •  I’m sure the Crew SC viewed last Wednesday night’s draw as a mixed blessing, considering they twice gave up one-goal leads to end up with the point, but the stalemate kept the Black and Gold from losing.  It also slightly cooled off the league’s hottest team.  In the absence of Federico Higuaín, who was suspended after picking up a red card the week before, Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] started at attacking mid and played 70 minutes.  He was able to put a couple shots on goal and took three corners, but that was nothing compared to the Caps’ Pedro Morales, who took all 11 of his team’s corners – none of which created a goal.  Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] did not make the trip, as Steve Clark and Matt Lampson were the two keepers that Head Coach Gregg Berhalter chose to take.

COLUMBUS CREW  D 0-0  @ New England Revolution  •  No room for either Speas or Stuver in the team for the Saturday afternoon game in Foxboro, which featured a lot of wind and sun, but few real scoring chances for either team and, obviously, zero goals.  After last year’s playoff series with the Revs, Columbus had to be happy with the shutout.  Also, from the Crew SC’s point-of-view, getting two points from the longest-travel, shortest-turnaround road trip in MLS history is a heckuva lot better than if it had ended with the team on a three-game losing streak.

NEW YORK CITY FC  L 1-2  @ Philadelphia Union  •  Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] returned to the  starting lineup and played 81 minutes before being subbed out, which means he maybe could have somehow helped prevent Philly’s stoppage-time winner if he had still been on the field.

DC UNITED  D 2-2  v New York Red Bulls  •  DC thought it had all three points in the bag until a 90th-minute goal from their Atlantic Cup rivals stuck them with just one.  Chris Korb [Gates Mills/University School] was an unused sub.  Hmmm… maybe if he’d been subbed in towards the end, he could’ve somehow prevented Lloyd Sam’s equalizer.

MONTREAL IMPACT  L 0-3  @ Houston Dynamo  •  It would be careless to talk about a potential “CONCACAF hangover” affecting the Impact on Saturday in Houston.  That for sure wasn’t the case as the visitors outshot their hosts and earned 11 corner kicks.  The Dynamo scored a scrappy goal early, scored on three of the four shots they put on Montreal’s net and rode their luck to victory.  It happens.  It’s a long MLS season and everyone hits a bump in the road or two.  Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] was in net and made one save.

PORTLAND TIMBERS  L 0-2  v Orlando City SC  •  When a team plays well and still loses, it frustrates everyone on its side.  The Timbers have six points from six games this season (1 W, 3 D) and have outplayed their opponents for – on my guesstimate – 480 of 540 minutes.  But… yeah, you can finish the rest.  Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] started as a wide mid and played all 90 for PTFC.

LOS ANGELES GALAXY  W 1-0  v Seattle Sounders  •  It was more shelf time for Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] as he recovers from a groin injury that led to surgery, as the home side got its second victory of the season and ended a 270-minute scoreless string in the process.

Next Weekend’s Games
Thursday, 16 April
~ NEW YORK CITY FC  v  Philadelphia, 7pm
Saturday, 18 April
~ DC UNITED  v  Houston, 7pm
~ COLUMBUS  v  Orlando City, 730pm
~ Dallas FC  v  TORONTO FC, 830pm
~ LOS ANGELES  v  Sporting KC, 1030pm
Sunday, 19 April
~ NEW YORK CITY FC  v  PORTLAND, 7pm – on Fox Sports 1

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And now, here’s how the NASL & USL PRO guys did last weekend:

INDY ELEVEN  D 1-1  v New York Cosmos  •  Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] subbed on in the 70th minute of Indy’s home opener.  This Saturday, Indy travels to the San Antonio Scorpions for a 830pm match.

OTTAWA FURY  D 1-1  @ ATLANTA SILVERBACKS  •  No Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] for the Fury in this one.  He’s still out nursing an injury.  But, Matt Horth [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] is back!  After  spending 2014 playing in Iceland with Leiknir Reykjavik, he re-signed with the Silverbacks in January (sorry I’m just figuring that out now).  He started as one of Atlanta’s forwards and played 71 minutes before subbing off.  (In week one, he started up top and played 77 minutes against Indy before being subbed.)  So far, this young NASL season, Ottawa has one point from its first two games and Atlanta has two from two.  The Fury hosts Minnesota United FC on Saturday at 3pm, while Atlanta travels to the Carolina RailHawks for a 730pm contest.

PITTSBURGH RIVERHOUNDS  D 1-1  v St. Louis FC  •  Michael Green [Strongsville/Strongsville] started as an outside back and played all 90 of this match.  On Sunday, the Hounds, who are 1-1-1 on the season, host Louisville City FC at 3pm.

2015 Week 4 Report

Yeah, not much to report here.  If you saw the tweets last Saturday, just one of our guys got a starting assignment and only one other got playing time.  Jeez!  Our guys don’t get no love.  No regard.  No esteem, either.  And even though NYCFC didn’t play this weekend, our Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] can’t seem to catch a break.  He’s currently sidelined by an inflammation of the liquid sack that surrounds the heart – viral pericarditis.  Seems like it’s a serious, yet manageable thing.  Here’s how it went down for everyone elses last weekend:

PORTLAND TIMBERS  L 1-2  @ Vancouver Whitecaps  •  Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] started as an attacking mid and played all 90.  He didn’t get credit for an assist on the Timbers’ lone score of the night, but his delightful through ball did make it all possible.  Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] and Ben Zemanski [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] were/are both unavailable to play as they recover from their respective surgeries (sports hernia for Nano, torn ACL for Ben).  The win gives the Whitecaps an early advantage in the race for the 2015 Cascadia Cup.  They’ve won it the last two years, but there’s a long way to go before they can make it three.

COLUMBUS CREW  L 1-2  v New York Red Bulls  •  Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] subbed in for the final 26 minutes of this match, with the two teams tied at 1-1.

MONTREAL IMPACT  D 2-2  v Orlando City SC  •  After starting the Impact’s first five competitive matches of 2015, it was time for a break, so Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] sat this one out.

DC UNITED  W 1-0  v LOS ANGELES GALAXY  •  Chris Korb [Gates Mills/University School] was an unused sub for DC last Saturday, while Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] was not in the gameday XVIII for the visitors.

TORONTO FC  L 1-2  @ Real Salt Lake  •  Justin Morrow [Cleveland/St. Ignatius] was unavailable for this match, as he sat out suspended from the red card he was given at Columbus on 14 March.

Next Weekend’s Games
Friday, 3 April
~ Orlando City  v  DC UNITED, 7pm
Saturday, 4 April
~ Chicago  v  TORONTO FC, 3pm
~ PORTLAND  v  FC Dallas, 10pm
~ Vancouver  v  LOS ANGELES, 1030pm

PHOTO CREDIT:  Anne-Marie Sorvin/USA Today Sports

2015 Week 1 Report

The 20th season of Major League Soccer kicked off this weekend with some very entertaining games, and from our perspective, in the best possible way – all of our field playing guys got in and contributed to their teams’ efforts.  Of the eight who played, six of them started and played all 90 minutes!  Here’s how everyone did this weekend:

LOS ANGELES GALAXY  W 2-0  v Chicago Fire  •  Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] got the start as one of two central mids and he played 63 minutes before subbing out for Baggio Husidic.  The match was tied 0-0 at the time, but there’s no clear line to be drawn from his removal and the goals coming afterwards.  He did a fine job of moving the ball around and harrassing any visitors in possession when they got near him.

DC UNITED  W 1-0  v  MONTREAL IMPACT  •  Chris Korb [Gates Mills/University School] started at left back and played all 90 for DC.  As usual, the stats won’t show the good work he put in, helping blunt Dilly Duka’s influence on the game.  He even got a front-row seat for Justin Mapp’s horrific elbow dislocation towards the end of the second half.  The Impact’s Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] made two saves in his 90 minutes in goal, and was only beaten by a 1-v-1 50-50 ball with Jairo Arrieta in no-man’s land.  He dealt with everything else cleanly and comfortably.

TORONTO FC  W 3-1  @ Vancouver Whitecaps •  Justin Morrow [Cleveland/St. Ignatius] wins the prize  as our first guy to register an assist in 2015, as his cross from the left side of the box was struck home by Robbie Findley to give TFC a 2-1 lead in the 59th minute.  He made the MLS Team of the Week for his performance, which you’d think should involve a bonus of some kind.  Maybe he gets a supporters’ scarf or some free Tim Horton’s donuts.  I’ll investigate and see what I can dig up.

COLUMBUS CREW SC  L 0-1  @ Houston Dynamo  •  Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] subbed on in the 80th minute as the Crew pressed unsuccessfully to tie the game.  He put in two corner kicks, one of which Kei Kamara probably would like to have back again.  Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] was not in the gameday 18 for this contest.

PORTLAND TIMBERS  D 0-0  v Real Salt Lake  •  The most important number in this match was 41.  That’s how many fouls the two teams combined to commit.  It’s a wonder the ref’s whistle was still working at the end.  Another crazy number was 10.  That’s how many corner kicks the Timbers’ Jack Jewsbury took, compared to RSL’s zero.  Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] started and played all 90 and Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] subbed on with four minutes left.  Nanchoff had a shot on goal in the dying seconds that would have won it, but RSL’s Chris Shuler cleared it away to preserve the draw.

NEW YORK CITY FC  D 1-1  @ Orlando City SC  •  Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] became the answer to a trivia question by starting at right back for NYC last Sunday.  (Can you name the only Northeast Ohioan to start in NYCFC’s first game ever?)  He played all 90, making the CLE a perfect 3-for-3 on outside back playing time in week one.

It’s a much lighter schedule next weekend, as five of the teams we care about will be in action – four of them in a pair of head-to-heads.  We’ll be at the Trillium Cup clash down at MAPFRE Stadium, living tweeting the events.  Can’t wait!!
Next weekend’s contests:
Saturday
– COLUMBUS  v  TORONTO, 730pm  [Here’s a nice little story on the Cup from mlssoccer.com]
Sunday
– NEW YORK CITY  v New England, 5pm, ESPN
– PORTLAND  v  LOS ANGELES, 7pm, Fox Sports 1

PHOTO CREDIT:  Jimmy Jeong/The Canadian Press

2015 Preseason Report #3

We’ll start off this report with the news on how our boys did in their respective CONCACAF Champions League fixtures this week.  Then, we’ll go over everyone’s recent preseason scrimmages.  Here’s how it’s all gone down:

MONTREAL IMPACT  •  The Impact became one of few teams in CCL history to ever have visited Mexican soil and not come home with a loss, after earning a 2-2 draw with Pachuca in the Cuna del Fútbol (Birthplace of Soccer) on Tuesday night.  Montreal’s Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] started and played all 90 in goal, making four saves in the match.  He was busier than that number might make it seem, though, as the hosts clawed and scratched to earn the point.  I guess it stinks that the visitors blew a 2-0 first-half lead, but the fact they didn’t lose is the real takeaway here, highlighted by the two precious away goals.  The home leg of the tie is next Tuesday in Montreal.

DC UNITED  •  The good news about DC’s trip to central Costa Rica is the two away goals they’ll take back home for the second leg of their series with Alajuelense  The bad news is they got beat 5-2 down there.  So there is hope.  A 3-0 DC win would see the Americans advance.  But we all know how those Central Americans play when they’re up – lots of diving and time wasting, deliberately slowly taken free kicks.  It’s not going to be pretty or easy, but stranger things have happened.  Chris Korb [Gates Mills/University School] was an unused sub on the night.  The home leg of the tie is next Wednesday in Washington, D.C.

COLUMBUS CREW  •  At the first edition of the IMG Suncoast Pro Classic, played in Bradenton, Floriday, the Crew defeated the Costa Rica U-23 Team last Saturday 2-0 and then drew 1-1  with the Philadelphia Union yesterday, before losing 5-3 in a penalty kick shootout.  The shootout served as the tiebreaker between the two teams, as they would have been level on points (4) after two games played in the tournament.    Against the Ticos, Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] subbed on in the 62nd minute and he played the entire second half of the Union match.  He did convert his penalty during the shootout.  Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] did not get any time in goal in either match.  The Crew will play once more in Bradenton, on Saturday against OKC Energy FC of USL PRO in the 3rd place match at 5pm.

TORONTO FC  •  The other team we care about at the IMGSPC (the prefer to call it The Classic) lost its second match down in Bradenton, falling to the New York Red Bulls 2-0 last night.  Last Saturday night, the Reds beat Danish club HB Koge 1-0 and Justin Morrow [Cleveland/St. Ignatius] played all 90 minutes.  He didn’t suit up against NYRB because Head Coach Greg Vanney chose to give most of the minutes to the reserves.  Today, the TFC “varsity” scrimmaged their new USL affiliate, TFC II, and won 4-0.  Morrow played a bunch.  Next up for TFC will be a contest at 230pm on Saturday against the Costa Rica U-23 Team that will determine the tournament’s 5th place finisher.

NEW YORK CITY FC  •  Having returned to the States, NYCFC has been taking part in the Carolina Challenge Cup for the past week or so.  Last night, they lost 2-1 to the Houston Dynamo.  Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] subbed in at right back in the 40th minute and played the rest of the match.  Last Saturday night, this season’s two expansion teams met and it was NYCFC who scored in the second half to earn a 1-1 draw with Orlando City FC.  In that match, Williams started at right back and played all 90, and he almost scored late in the first half off of a corner kick.  NYCFC will play once more during their time in Charleston, against the host Battery on Saturday at 730pm.

LOS ANGELES GALAXY  •  The league champs finished off their European tour last Saturday with a 1-0 win in Dublin, Ireland against Shamrock Rovers.  From what I can discern, Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] was an unused sub in that match.  LA is now 5-0-1 on the preseason, and will wrap up their regular-season preps with a friendly against San Jose this Saturday.

PORTLAND TIMBERS  •  It’s been a mixed bag for our guys out in Portland through the first two matches of the own Simple Invitational, the preseason tournament that the club is hosting.  The Timbers drew 1-1 with the Chicago Fire last night and lost this past Saturday night, they fell 1-0 to the Vancouver Whitecaps.  Head Coach Caleb Porter has been rotating his players throughout the preseason scrimmages, and as such, Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] got the start and played the first half against the Caps, while subbing on at halftime and finishing the Fire match.  Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] was an unused sub against the Caps, but started and played just the first 28 minutes of the Fire match before subbing out with a hip flexor – however, he did score the team’s only goal with a free kick.  I’m pretty sure he is now Portland’s all-time leading preseason scrimmage scorer, but I don’t have the stats to back that up.  Seems like he has a real knack for getting goals in February.  In the Vancouver match, Ben Zemanski [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] started at center mid, but tore his ACL in a 50-50 ball in the 23rd minute and will be out for who-knows-how long, pending surgery and rehab.  We’ll wish him the best of luck with getting back on the field again.  You don’t want to put a timetable on something like that, but let’s hope that it’s in time for the Timbers’ playoff push.  Portland will play its final game of the Simple Invitational this Saturday at 8pm against Norwegian club Stabaek.

And now, the not-so-MLS news… unlike some of their NASL brethren, the two teams we care about the most haven’t been gallivanting across the globe.  Their more humble owners’ less-deep pockets are keeping such frivolous expenses from ruining the two clubs before they can even start their second seasons.

INDY ELEVEN  •  We haven’t had any preseason updates on the Eleven until now, and they’ve begun their training sessions out in Arizona.  Indy’s first scrimmage of the preseason was a 75-minute affair on Wednesday night, and ended with a 1-0 win for Minnesota United FC.  Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] played left back in the second “half.”  Meanwhile, back home, the State House of Representatives voted in favor of the proposal to build a new stadium in downtown Indianapolis.  The Eleven will continue its work in Tucson until Saturday.

OTTAWA FURY  •  Things have been quiet up north, as Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] and his mates have been training and trying to keep warm.

PHOTO CREDIT:  Speas/USA Today Sports Images; Nanchoff/Craig Mitchelldyer