2016 – The March Report

I realize that month-old news isn’t exactly “news,” but since this blog only aspires to be timely when it’s the summer and I’m able to bang out the posts on Mondays, you’ll forgive me doing a first-month-of-the-season report.  Below, you’ll find a few statements about each team’s results in March, along with links to the pertinent game reports, as you have in the past, followed by a few words and some stats, if they played.

EVAN BUSH [Montreal Impact]  •  Bush played all 270 minutes in the Impact’s three contests, which resulted in two wins and one loss.  He made a total of 14 saves – eight of them in a 3-2 win over Vancouver – and he authored a 3-0 shut out of the Red Bulls.

CHRIS KORB [DC United]  •  Not a lot to report in March, as Korb continues to recover from the ACL injury he suffered late last season.  DC went 0-2-3 in March, got bumped out of the CONCACAF Champions League Quarterfinals by Mexican club Querétaro, and scored two goals while allowing nine.

JUSTIN MORROW & JOSH WILLIAMS [Toronto FC]  •  TFC earned four points in March, after a 1-1-1 string of results.  While Morrow started and played all of that trio of contests, Williams was an unused sub in a 2-0 victory over the Red Bulls, came on for the final minute of a 2-2 draw at NYCFC, and he started and played 86 minutes in a 1-0 loss at Sporting KC.

DARLINGTON NAGBE & BEN ZEMANSKI [Portland Timbers]  •  Like the Reds, Portland went 1-1-1 to start the season.  Nagbe started and played all of those games, while Zemanski was an unused sub in them.  Above and beyond that, Nagbe was named to the US Men’s National Team roster for two World Cup Qualifiers with Guatemala.  On 25 March in a 0-2 loss at Guatemala City, Nagbe subbed on at halftime for an ineffective Mix Diskerud and played the rest of the game.  Four days later in Columbus, he was an unused sub in the 4-0 win.

BRAD STUVER [Columbus Crew SC]  •  Not much to write about from a Stuver perspective here.  As the Crew took two points from its four games despite generally outplaying its opposition, Stuver was Steve Clark’s backup goalkeeper.  Too bad you don’t get points for possession.

2015 Playoffs – MLS Cup Report

If you’re a follower of this blog, that means you’re a fan of the league, which means you probably watched the game on Sunday.  Maybe you were there, like I was.  Assuming all of that, you know the score and how things went, so here are details from our Cleveland-centric point-of-view.

MLS Cup XX
COLUMBUS CREW SC  1-2  PORTLAND TIMBERS FC  •  @ MAPFRE Stadium
Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] was the backup goalie for the Black and Gold and Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] did not dress.  On the winning side, Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] started and played all 90.  Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] and Ben Zemanski [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] did not dress for the game.

Here are four thoughts I had while at the game and/or watching the game again once I got home and/or in the days following the game:

1.  Someone who doesn’t really know soccer might say that “Nagbe really didn’t do anything during the game.”  In truth he did a LOT.  We all know that stats don’t always tell the story in soccer, and when you look the fact he only took one shot, and he only attempted 37 passes – out of Portland’s 312 total – that’s not a lot for a guy with his ability to change a game.  But it was pretty clear that his role on the day was more about trying to keep Justin Meram quiet and he did such a good job of it that Meram was subbed out in the 78th minute.  The vision of him chasing down the fresh-legged Cedric Mabwati – who had a ten-yard head start – late in the second half to beat him to a through ball and win possession.  I’m not sure Nagbe gets enough credit for the work he does defensively, and his work was incredibly important and nearly perfect on Sunday.  That’s sometimes harder to notice than the goals he creates.
2. Our seats were in the corner of MAPFRE Stadium, just above the tunnel.  The Timbers who didn’t dress for the game were in a tent up above us on the concourse.  You should have seen those guys laughing and celebrating and partying after that first goal went in.  Several of them had a look on their face that said, “OMG! We are going to win this game!”  That’s something I’ll never forget.
3. I’m going to take off my objective journalist hat for a second here…  It’s been over-discussed that the assistant ref made a mistake and should’ve called that ball out that began the Timbers’ second goal.  It’s also been over-discussed that “you don’t stop playing until the whistle,” and that the Crew made a bunch of errors from that point (Tchani stopped playing and didn’t chase Nagbe, Francis had taken a knock and didn’t close down the cross from Melano, Wallace went right by Afful to head home, some jerks in the Nordecke threw stuff onto the field).  As a Crew fan, it’s hard to stomach “giving the title” to Portland like that on two horrible errors.  It was hard to watch the team that we all loved to watch all season when they were at their attacking best, find itself lacking in ideas and unable to break down the Timbers’ nine-behind-the-ball blockade.  Don’t get me wrong, I coach HS soccer and this past season, we had two teams do that to us and my boys got frustrated and yelled at each other and eventually ended up winning both games, so I know how hard it can be to find a crack in a team that’s so well-disciplined defensively.  Portland led the league with 13 regular-season shutouts for a reason.  My hat is off to them for, as their TIFO put it, coming to Columbus to “do what they say can’t be done.”  (Thank you very much, Jerry Reed.)  And while I’m extremely happy for our three guys who are going to get sized for MLS Cup Championship rings, but at the same time – from this blog’s point-of-view and also from a Crew SC fan point-of-view – I’m soooooooooo bummed for our two who came so close.  
4. A friend of mine who is a Timbers season ticket holder made the trip in for the game.  We met up pregame to chat a bit and one thing he said stood out to me, “I think the wood-work is going to play a role today.  It’s been a part of every big game for us so far on this playoff run.”  Turns out he was right!  In the second half, the Timbers – AND THE CREW – hit Steve Clark’s posts and crossbar at least three times.  The wood-work didn’t decide the outcome of the contest, but it kept it from turning into a blow out.  I dunno… maybe that’s a stretch.

The next post will deal with MLS and NASL and USL free agency and where our boys stand.  Then we’ll do some season-review posts just before Christmas.  It’s crazy, but preseason training will be upon us before we know it.

D-Nag’s USMNT Adventure

In the week or so prior to the MLS Conference Finals, there was an International break and, unless you’ve been hiding under a rock you already know that, Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] got his first call-up to the United States Men’s National Team by Head Coach Jurgen Klinsmann.  Nagbe played in both of the games the team played during the break, which were the first two matches on the road to qualify for the 2018 World Cup that will be held in Russia.

USMNT  W 6-1  St. Vincent & The Grenadines  •  Nagbe subbed on for Fabian Johnson for the final 22 minutes and played decently.  In my ratings system, he earned a 5.5 out of ten.  Not bad for his debut.  He kept the ball moving and made a couple dangerous passes.  He even took a corner.  All-in-all, a good start to his international career.

USMNT  D 0-0  @ Trinidad & Tobago  •  Nagbe got another 22-minute sub gig, this time in Port-of-Spain, coming on for defender Tim Ream, but playing an attacking/right midfield role.  He made less of an impact on this game than he did on Friday night, but that was partly due to the better quality of opponent.  Still, he did well and made some nice runs and did good work defensively to help keep T&T of the scoreboard.  I gave him another 5.5 out of ten.

I’m sure he’ll have worked out any jitters he had from representing his country for the first time.  Hopefully, he did enough to convince Klinsi to call him back into the team for the next pair of Qualifiers in March.  He looked good out there, and is our first National Team player since Justin Morrow got a January call back in 2013.

2015 Playoffs – Conference Finals Report

Wow… what a set of Conference Finals these were.  Not only because we had horses in each race, but I can’t recall a better, more exciting pair of pairs of games.  Yes, a pair of pairs.  Best thing is – we end up with our dream scenario… the maximum number of Clevelanders involved in the 2015 MLS Cup!!!  (Now if only all five of them could get to play in the game somehow…)

Stuver is top left in green… obviously.

EASTERN CONFERENCE
#2 COLUMBUS CREW SC  v  #1 New York Red Bulls  •  CCSC advance 2-1 aggregate
*  Leg 1  @ MAPFRE Stadium –  W 2-0  •  Leg 2  @ Red Bull Arena –  L 0-1  *
Which was more important, getting that second goal in the final few minutes of the home leg or keeping the Red Bulls scoreless in that contest?  We wouldn’t find out the answer until the dying moments of the away leg, but the answer was… BOTH!  While this series lacked the goals of its counterpart, it was no less exciting.  The Crew SC got a goal nine seconds into the series and another moments before “halftime” and surrendered a goal late in the “second half” before one final heart-attack-of-a-ball-off-the-post with seconds left to play, before emerging victorious.  Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] was the backup goalie in both contests, as usual, and Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] did not dress for either one.

Nagbe is hidden behind the guy behind Diego Valeri (kissing the trophy) and Nanchoff is second from right edge

WESTERN CONFERENCE
#3 PORTLAND TIMBERS  v  #1 FC Dallas  •  PTFC advance 5-3 aggregate
*  Leg 1  @ Providence Park –  W 3-1  •  Leg 2  @ Toyota Stadium –  D 2-2  *
The Timbers really were in control of this series from start to finish, despite a few nervy moments in the second half of the second game, but an impressive bit of skill provided the final margin.  Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] played all of both legs and took 12 corner kicks and suffered eight fouls, for whatever that’s worth.  Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] was an unused sub in both matches.  Ben Zemanski [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] is still out injured, recovering from a torn ACL in the preseason.

The Timbers advance to MLS Cup for the first time and Crew SC will play for its second league title.  Back in July, Portland beat Columbus 2-1 at MAPFRE Stadium, but that isn’t going to matter on Sunday.

2015 Playoffs – Conference Semifinals Report

From our perspective, we got the best possible outcome from the two conference semis.  Maybe not from the playing time p.o.v., but Crew SC does have two of our guys on its roster and the Timbers have three, while Montreal only have one (same for DC), so there you go.  Here are the details:

EASTERN CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS
#2 COLUMBUS CREW SC  v  #3 MONTREAL IMPACT
– Leg 1 @ Stade Saputo  –  L 1-2 •  Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] didn’t have that much to do while helping Montreal jump out to an early advantage in the series, though it was Crew SC that jumped out in front with an invaluable away goal.  Bush made two saves on the night.  Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] was the backup goalie for Crew SC and Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was not in the team.
– Leg 2 @ MAPFRE Stadium  –  W 3-1  •  As Crew SC needed to win by two clear goals to advance, this one was shaping up to be a track meet, and Bush was a lot busier in the return leg in Columbus.  Both goalies were constantly under assault, as the two teams ripped off a combined total of 44 shots, with a whopping 20 of them on target.  Bush’s numbers were six saves, four punches and two corners caught in the 130 minutes that it took to settle things.  Same deal for Stuver and Speas.  At the end of regulation, the score was 2-1 Crew SC, which sent the contest into overtime.  Six minutes into the second overtime period, Kei Kamara sent the Black and Gold fans (including me) home happy with the game-winner/series-ender that pushed Columbus into the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2008.

WESTERN CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS
#3 PORTLAND TIMBERS  v  #2 Vancouver Whitecaps
– Leg 1 @ Providence Park  –  D 0-0  •  The best thing about the first leg for the Timbers was that they didn’t give up a goal to the Whitecaps.  That meant there was everything to play for a week later up in Canada.  Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] played all 90 in a variety of attacking positions.  Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] was not in the team.
– Leg 2 @ BC Place  –  W 2-0  •  A goal in the 31st minute was all the Timbers really needed to move on the the Western Conference Finals for the first time ever.  Just for good measure, they got a second goal in second-half injury time  Nagbe played 90 in this one, too.  Same deal for Nanchoff.

After the international break this week, the Conference Finals will see Columbus play the New York Red Bulls and Portland face FC Dallas.  Leg 1 will be in Columbus and Portland on 22 November, with Leg 2 taking place the following Sunday at NYRB and FCD, respectively.

PHOTO CREDIT – Craig Mitchelldyer/Portland Timbers

DARLINGTON NAGBE GETS A CALL UP TO USMNT!!!!!!

The moment we’ve been waiting for has arrived – Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] has been called up to join the United States Men’s National Team for its two upcoming 2018 World Cup Qualifiers.  The USMNT will play in St. Louis against St. Vincent and the Grenadines on Friday, 13 November and then in Port-of-Spain against Trinidad & Tobago on Tuesday, 17 November.  Nagbe becomes the first of our guys to get called up since Justin Morrow [Shaker Heights/St. Ignatius] got the honor during the January camp back in 2013.

2015 Playoffs – Knockout Round Report

Two of our guys’ teams – three if I were still reporting on the injured Chris Korb’s [Gates Mills/University School] DC United – won their knockout round match this week to advance to Conference Semifinal matchups.  For two others, the offseason has begun.  Here’s how it all went down on Wednesday and Thursday:

#5W LOS ANGELES GALAXY  L 2-3  @ #4W Seattle Sounders  •  Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] was not a part of the Galaxy’s disappointing season-ender, as the visitors pretty much gave their hosts two of the three goals they scored.

#3E MONTREAL IMPACT  W 3-0  #6E TORONTO FC  •  Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] made just two saves in a pretty comfortable win for Montreal over its Canadian conference competitors.  Didier Drogba… yeah… maybe HE should be the league’s MVP instead of Sebastian Giovinco.  Both Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] and Justin Morrow [Shaker Heights/St. Ignatius] did their best in 90-minute stints to keep their Reds alive, but in the end, les Bleu were too hot to handle.  The Impact moves on to face Columbus Crew SC in a two-leg series that’ll be played the next two Sundays.

#3W PORTLAND TIMBERS  D 2-2 (7-6 pk shootout)  #6W Sporting Kansas City  •  Wow.  If you like drama and late goals, go watch this full game on MLS Live.  Not only did both teams score in the overtime to send the match to penalty kicks, but it took 11 rounds of kicks for Portland to advance!!  That’s right – after the first set of five kicks each, it took six more sudden-death rounds to determine a winner!!  WOW!!!  Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] made his kick – in round 8, if you care – after starting and playing the entire match.  Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] was not in the gameday team.  I’m sure folks in the Rose City are going to be talking about this game for a looooooooooooong time!

This Weekend’s Conference Semifinals Schedule
~ Sunday, 1 November
#3W PORTLAND  v  #2W Vancouver, 5pm – live on ESPN
#3E MONTREAL  v  #2E COLUMBUS, 7pm – live on Fox Sports 1

~ Sunday, 8 November
#2W Vancouver  v  #3W PORTLAND, tba
#2E COLUMBUS  v  #3E MONTREAL, tba

PHOTO CREDIT:  Craig Mitchelldyer/Portland Timbers

2015 Weeks 33 & 34 Post

Well, the 2015 MLS Regular Season has come to a close and for the first time in the history of this blog, ALL of our boys’ teams are in the Playoffs.  There were several nervous moments over these past two weeks and two teams nearly didn’t make it.  But in the end, it all worked out and I will have lots to write about next weekend after the knockout round has concluded!  Here’s how things went in Weeks 33 and 34 for our fellas: (I refuse to refer to them as the Audi 2015 MLS Playoffs.  It just sounds dumb.  Audi doesn’t sponsor this blog, but if it did – or if it wants to… – then I would refer to them as such.  Audi, you know where to find me.)

COLUMBUS CREW SC  •  After defeating TFC 2-0 last Saturday to wrap up the 2015 Trillium Cup and officially clinch a playoff berth, the Crew needed to win on Decision Day and hope for some help up north to wrap up the second seed in the Eastern Conference.  Columbus took care of what they could, by destroying DC United by a club-record margin of 5-0, and then got a huge favor from Montreal (see below).  Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] was the backup goalie in both and Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was not in either gameday XVIII.  So the SC is the #2-seed in the East and will the higher-seeded knockout round winner in the Conference Semifinals on 1 and 8 November.

LOS ANGELES GALAXY  •  After being so hot and so unstoppable back in August and September, the Galaxy have gone just as cold here in October.  Needing two big wins to earn one of the top two spots in the Western Conference and a coveted bye into the Semifinals, LA got blasted 5-2 at home by Portland and then fell to a second-half strike from Dom Dwyer in a 2-1 loss at Sporting Kansas City on Decision Day.  LA dropped all the way to fifth in the standings, which earned them a knockout round matchup at #4 Seattle on 28 October.  Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] did not feature in either contest, but he did make the trip to Guatemala for the mid-week CONCACAF Champions League Group E finale at Comunicaciones, which ended in a 1-1 draw, sending LA to a quarterfinal matchup with Mexican side Santos Laguna.  A win would have given the Galaxy the #1 seed.  Walker was an unused sub that night.

MONTREAL IMPACT  •  The Impact won its final three matches to get into the playoffs, with Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] authoring shutouts in the first and second games in the string.  If Week 33’s 1-0 victory at New England was a hard-fought grinder, then Week 34’s 2-1 win at home against Toronto FC was a bare-knuckle brawl between two teams that have developed a genuine enmity between each other and their fans.  Good thing, though, since the two Canadian teams will play each other in the knockout round on Thursday.  Bush made two saves against the Revs to earn his ninth whitewash of the year, and he pulled off four more saves in the TFC win.  One of those saves was voted MLS Save of the Week.  Which one?  Click here for the video.

PORTLAND TIMBERS  •  Portland got into the playoffs much like Columbus did, but with three very convincing wins that helped it jump over other teams.  The Timbers are the #3 seed in the Western Conference thanks to double victories in Week 33 – a 1-0 win at Real Salt Lake midweek and the aforementioned 5-2 dismantling of LA  – followed by a 4-1 drubbing of Colorado on Decision Day.  Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit], who made his return to first team game action at RSL with a three-minutes-of-injury-time-runaround, was an unused substitute against LA and not in the team for the Rapids game.  Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] was a BIG part of all three wins, but none bigger than his MLS Player of the Week performance against Colorado, when he scored two goals – one on a free kick and the other on a delicate header – and he helped create another.  He played 89 minutes at RSL, 90 at LA – and scored this goal – and 87 minutes this past Sunday.  Portland will now face Sporting Kansas City in the knockout round on Thursday.

TORONTO FC  •  Losing two straight to arguably their biggest rivals was not how TFC wanted to head into the playoffs.  But at least they’re in the postseason, right?  In the 2-1 loss to the Crew, Justin Morrow [Shaker Heights/St. Ignatius] and Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] both started and played all 90.  Same deal in the 2-1 loss to Montreal.

So, all four knockout round playoff games will be televised live on UniMás.  I can’t guarantee a post on Friday, but if you follow on Twitter, I’ll try to link to match reports and highlights of goals, etc.  I’ll be watching these games, for sure.  I hope you will, too!  Here’s the line-up:

Wednesday, 28 October
Seattle  v  LOS ANGELES, 10pm

Thursday, 29 October
MONTREAL  v  TORONTO, 7pm
PORTLAND  v  Sporting KC, 10pm

PHOTO CREDIT:  Craig Mitchelldyer/Portland Timbers

2015 Week 32 Post

The pending International Break made for a light schedule this week (and it gave me a little more time to finish the post before I fall behind on the next week’s report).  There’ll be so few games that we’ll double-up on next week’s post.  Anyways, here’s how things went the weekend of 3 October, plus:

TORONTO FC  W 3-1  Philadelphia Union  •  Our dynamic defensive duo of Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] and Justin Morrow [Shaker Heights/St. Ignatius] have really meant a lot to TFC’s playoff push.  Maybe not as much as Sebastian Giovinco’s goals, but still, they’ve put in some solid performances recently that have helped the Reds climb up towards the postseason.  They each played 90 in this win.

COLUMBUS CREW SC  L 1-2  New York Red Bulls  •  The Crew may not slide out of the playoff picture, but they’re certainly not making their run into the postseason comfortable.  The Black and Gold could’ve wrapped up a berth by winning on Saturday night, but they’ll have to wait until after the International Break to finalize things, including – hopefully – a direct pass into the Eastern Conference semifinals.  Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] didn’t dress and Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] was the backup keeper.

MONTREAL IMPACT  L 1-2  @ Orlando City SC  •  OCSC ended the Impact’s three-game winning streak and, most amazingly, kept Didier Drogba off the scoresheet.  Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] made two saves in the match, which was an entertaining, back-and-forth tussle that the home side won with ten minutes remaining.

PORTLAND TIMBERS  L 0-1  Sporting Kansas City  •  If you’re going to get beaten by the goal of the year – and in my mind, this one is it – then you take your hat off to the guy who scored it and regroup for the next game.  Wow.  Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] played 90 and took four shots, three of which forced Sporting’s goalie to make saves.

LOS ANGELES GALAXY  D 1-1  @ Seattle Sounders  •  Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] was not in the team for this road draw, which woulda’/shoulda’/coulda’ been three road points for LA, if not for a last-second goal from former Galaxian Chad Barrett.

MONTREAL  L 1-2  @ New York Red Bulls  •  Drogba did score in this game, and busted out some pretty annoying shenanigans on a Red Bulls PK, but the top team in the Eastern Conference showed its quality in winning, forcing Bush to make five saves.

MONTREAL  W 1-0  @ Colorado  •  Drogba.  Free kick.  Ballgame.  Bush made three saves in what was a pretty easy night for him.

Next Week’s Matches
~ Thursday, 14 October
TFC  v  NYRB, 7pm
RSL  v  PORTLAND, 930pm
~ Saturday, 17 October
TFC  v  COLUMBUS, 2pm
New England  v  MONTREAL, 730pm
~ Sunday, 18 October
LA  v  PORTLAND, 7pm – live on Fox Sports 1

---

Here’s how things went over the past couple game weeks for our NASL guys:

OTTAWA FURY FC  W 2-0  FC Edmonton (3 Oct); D 1-1 @ Tampa Bay Rowdies (10 Oct)  •  Wow.  I’m not sure any one of our guys is ballin’ harder than Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] is right now.  He scored both goals in the win against FC Ed, which clinched the first-ever NASL playoff berth for Ottawa and he also got on the NASL TOTW… AGAIN!!  AGAIN!!!  Three weeks in a row, again!  He started and played 90 in both games and is the engine that is driving Ottawa towards a deep postseason run and maybe even a league crown.  (He did not make TOTW after the Rowdies game, however.)  First things first, though, and that would be this weekend’s game with San Antonio on Sunday at 3pm.  There are a lot of different scenarios going on regarding the open playoff spots, but if Ottawa keeps winning, they will earn the overall top seed in the playoffs and home field advantage for the semifinals.

INDY ELEVEN  D 1-1  @ Jacksonville Armada FC (3 Oct);  L 1-2  San Antonio Scorpions (10 Oct)  •  Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] started and played 90 in that Armada draw, but was not a part of the loss to the Scorpions.  Judson McKinney [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was not a part of either game.  Indy is playing for pride and to be the spoiler at this point, as they’re in last place.  If they could beat Minnesota this Saturday at 730pm, it’d certainly help out Ottawa.

ATLANTA SILVERBACKS  D 1-1 @ New York Cosmos (4 Oct);  L 0-3 New York Cosmos (7 Oct)  •  Matt Horth [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] subbed on in the 79th minute of the loss, but did not feature in the draw three days earlier.  The Silvers are close to a playoff berth, and they need to start winning if they want to get in.  They host Tampa Bay on Saturday at 730pm.

PHOTO CREDIT:  I don’t know… it was with an article from the Daily Mail of England, but there was no credit with it.  Sorry, to whomever the photog was.

2015 Week 31 Report

Just a few games this weekend.  Here’s how things went for our guys’ teams:

LOS ANGELES GALAXY  D 1-1  @ Central FC  •  Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] started as a central mid and played 90.  He was on corner kick duty and put in five, as this draw was enough to give LA a berth in the CONCACAF Champions League Quarterfinals for the fourth year in a row.  Walker picked up a yellow card in the 61st minute for “unsporting behavior.”  Gotta’ love that vague term.

TORONTO FC  W 3-2  Chicago Fire  •  The Fire tried and tried to give the game away, as they twice squandered one-goal leads.  TFC was more than happy to accept such generosity from their visitors.  Justin Morrow [Shaker Heights/St. Ignatius] and Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] both started at the back and played 90.

MONTREAL IMPACT  W 2-0  DC United  •  I guess you gotta’ give it up for Didier Drogba.  He has really turned things around in Montreal.  They can’t stop scoring goals and they won’t stop gaining ground on all those Eastern Conference teams above them in the standings, thanks to all those games they have in hand.  Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] made three saves in the win.

PORTLAND TIMBERS  W 2-1  COLUMBUS CREW •  A week after being in first place for the first time in three years, the Crew SC got bumped back into the middle of the playoff pack after this loss.  Portland continues its climb towards the postseason, bound and determined not to finish on the outside like it did last year.  Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] was a menace to his home-state side throughout his 90-minute stint.  He carved up a beautiful assist on the Timbers’ first goal.  Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was not in the team and Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] was the backup goalie for the home side.

LOS ANGELES GALAXY  W 3-2  FC Dallas  •  This was an entertaining match to watch, played between two of the sides that really can get after it when they have the ball.  There was never any chance that the match was going to end 0-0.  Walker was not in the LA gameday XVIII.

Next Week’s Matches
~ Saturday, 3 October
Philadelphia  @  TFC, 7pm
NYRB  @ COLUMBUS, 730pm
MONTREAL  @ OCSC, 8pm
Sporting KC  @ PORTLAND, 1030pm
~ Sunday, 4 October
LA  @ Seattle, 930pm – live on Fox Sports 1

---

 

And now for the report on our one USL playoff team:

PITTSBURGH RIVERHOUNDS  L 2-4 aet  New York Red Bulls II  •  LOTS of action in this contest, and most of it came late.  Pittsburgh opened the scoring in the 15th minute and the home side equalized in the 62nd, but that was all the scoring in regulation, which sent the game into overtime.  The guests again scored first, seven minutes in, but the home side bagged three before all was said and done, to advance to the USL Eastern Conference Semifinals.  Mike Green [Strongsville/Strongville] subbed on in the 71st minute as a midfielder/defender.

---

And here’s how our NASL dudes did last week:

ATLANTA SILVERBACKS  D 3-3  San Antonio Scorpions  •  Matt Horth [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was not in the team for this slugfest that Atlanta thought they had won until surrendering two goals in the final 12 minutes to end up splitting the points.  Next up for the ‘Backs is two games in four days with the New York Cosmos – away on Sunday, 4 October and back at home the following Wednesday.

INDY ELEVEN  D 1-1  @ Tampa Bay Rowdies  •  Neither Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] nor Judson McKinney [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] were in the Eleven gameday XVIII for this road draw.  Next up for Indy is a 730pm game on Saturday in Jacksonville with the Armada FC.

OTTAWA FURY FC  W 3-1  @ Carolina RailHawks  •  This win, Ottawa’s sixth on the road in a row, keeps them firmly entrenched in first place in the NASL’s Fall Season.  Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] started and played 85 minutes before subbing out.  Who needs 90 minutes when you can get on the league’s Team of the Week while playing less than the maximum minutes allowed?  Not Ubiparipovic!!  He has nearly spent more time on the TOTW than he has off it – this is appearance number four for him, coming on the heels of last week’s POTW performance!  The guy has been ballin’ out in the month of September!!  Next up for the Fury is a 3pm Saturday game with FC Edmonton.

PHOTO CREDIT:  Matt Ellis/Columbus Underground