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The Belated NASL End-of-Season Report
I could hide behind the fact that the blog IS called MLS Cleveland and just skip this post, but it’s been a crazy month and I wouldn’t feel right if I didn’t finish what I started, which would be the complete NASL report. So here goes:
OTTAWA FURY FC • What a run the Fury went on! The second-year group can be extremely proud of being both Fall Season Champions and the beaten NASL Finalists. To get there, they won at San Antonio 1-0; blasted Jacksonville 3-1 to clinch the Fall Crown; and they finished the regular season with the 1-1 draw with Atlanta and riding a 12-match unbeaten streak. Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] was fantastic in San Antonio, playing 87 minutes before subbing out. He played 87 more brilliant minutes at Jacksonville and a) drew the foul that led to the Fury’s first goal, b) scored a brilliant chip that earned him Goal of the Week nomination and c) got himself on the NASL Team of the Week, for the fifth time this season. In the season finale, he rested and the Noir et Rouge (did I do that right?) finished the Fall with 45 points out of 20 games – and 56 out of 30, good for second place overall.
Since the Fury won the Fall Season, they got a pass straight into the Playoff Semifinals, and there, they knocked out Minnesota United 2-1 in extra time. Ubiparipovic played all 120 minutes and assisted on Tommy Heinemann’s eventual game-winner in the 108th minute. 
The NASL Final, played at one of the New York Cosmos six different home stadia – ended with New York winning 3-2, but the Fury had a man sent off in the 68th minute with the score 1-1. They fought valiantly, but ran out of time. Ubiparipovic played 72 minutes before being subbed out. It was at that point that the Cosmos went up 2-1 and Fury Head Coach Marc Dos Santos threw on fresh-legged attackers to see if they couldn’t dig the team out of its hole. The scoreline went to 3-1 New York and Ottawa made it 3-2 in the final moments of the game, but that was all she wrote.
ATLANTA SILVERBACKS • The Silverbacks got two of nine points in their three final games. It was 0-0 v Tampa Bay, 0-1 @ Minnesota Utd., and a 1-1 v Ottawa. They finished sixth in the fall (25 from 20) and eighth overall (33 from 30). Matt Horth [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] came on in the 87th minute against Tampa Bay, played the entire second half at (the other) MUFC and he was not in the team for the Ottawa match.
INDY ELEVEN • The Boys in Blue won two of their final three games of the season, 3-1 against Minnesota United FC and 2-1 against the Fort Lauderdale Strikers. Despite losing the season finale 3-1 at the Carolina RailHawks, those six points out of nine did help Indy climb out of the NASL basement by one point. Indy finished with 20 total points from 20 fall games, and 33 from 30, all told. Neither Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] nor Judson McKinney [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] suited up for the two victories, as they were out injured – Hyland with an adductor strain and McKinney with a sprained ankle – McKinney was an unused sub at Carolina.
The next NASL-related post will detail these fellas’ seasons and their stats, as well as a prognosis/prediction for them as they look towards 2016.
PHOTO CREDITS: ottawafuryfc.com
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 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
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
2015 Week 23 Report
I can’t help it, but for the second week straight I’m going with the hot weather-tons of goals analogy. Good lord, the goals…
MONTREAL IMPACT W 3-2 @ New York City FC • It’s getting to the point that when teams see NYCFC coming up on their schedule, they work on their crossing and finishing twice as much and trust that their backline can handle the All-Star trio of Villa-Lampard-Pirlo. It’s been working. On Saturday, the Impact scored two, gave up a PK, got a PK of their own and then allowed a consolation. All in a day’s work at Yankee Stadium! Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] made three saves on the day in his 90 minutes of work. In related news, you may notice that NYCFC is no longer in boldface all caps. That’s because the day before the game, Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] was put on waivers by the Man City JV and then subsequently picked up by Toronto FC! So one day soon, we’ll get a 1/2 CLE backline up north! 
DC UNITED W 6-4 Real Salt Lake • This match had so much offense that even right back Chris Korb [Gates Mills/University School] ripped off three shots for DC. The Eastern Conference leaders allowed two first-half goals for the second straight match before storming back. It was a 4-4 tie with about 20 minutes left before DC got the final two goals.
TORONTO FC L 1-3 @ New England • Leave it to the defending Eastern Conference champs to keep Sebastian Giovinco quiet. The hottest player in the league only played 45 minutes before being removed so TFC could add some midfield heft. Justin Morrow [Shaker Heights/St. Ignatius] played all 90 and put one of the visitors’ two shots on goal.
COLUMBUS CREW SC L 2-5 @ Orlando City SC • Ugh. Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] was the Crew’s backup keeper. Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was not in the team.
LOS ANGELES GALAXY W 3-1 @ Colorado Rapids • Colorado scored first. They’ll always have that to be proud of, but all that did was wake up the Champs. Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] didn’t make the trip.
PORTLAND TIMBERS D 0-0 @ San Jose Earthquakes • No goals? Who do these guys think they are not scoring? Portland even missed a PK! Only four teams went scoreless on the weekend and these were two of them. Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] started and played all 90 at attacking mid. Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] was not in the team.
Next Week’s Matches
~ Wednesday, 5 August
MONTREAL v NYRB, 8pm
TFC v OCSC, 8pm
~ Thursday, 6 August
LA v Central FC, 10pm – live on Fox Sports 2 • CONCACAF Champions League Group D
~ Friday, 7 August
PORTLAND v Chicago, 11pm
~ Saturday, 8 August
TFC v Sporting KC, 4pm
MONTREAL v DC, 730pm
Colorado v COLUMBUS, 9pm
~ Sunday, 9 August
LOS ANGELES v Seattle, 4pm – live on ESPN2
And now for our not-so-MLS guys:
OTTAWA FURY W 1-0 @ FC Edmonton • Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] started at attacking mid and played all of this one, creating the game-winner with a beautiful corner kick that was headed home by Rafael Alves. Ubiparipovic earned Team of the Week honors for his command performance that keeps the Fury on top of the Fall Season standings. Brilliant! Next up is a road match at Indy on Saturday at 730pm.
ATLANTA SILVERBACKS W 1-0 @ INDY ELEVEN • In an NASL match that featured the maximum possible number of our Cleveland dudes, it was the visitors who got a 15th-minute goal and then did the rest with defense. Matt Horth [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] subbed on for the final five minutes up top for the victors. Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] did his usual 90-minute shift at left back for Indy, while Judson McKinney [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was an unused sub. Both clubs are looking at a two-match week, as the ‘Backs is a Wednesday night visit from Fort Lauderdale and a Saturday night visit from the San Antonio Scorpions. Both matches kick off at 730pm. Indy travels to FC Edmonton for a 9pm midweek kickoff and returns home to host Ottawa on Saturday.
PITTSBURGH RIVERHOUNDS W 3-0 Wilmington Hammerheads FC • Mike Green [Strongsville/Strongsville] was back at forward for this victory, which moves Pittsburgh to 8-8-4 on the season, which puts them in the sixth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot. Green subbed out after 81 minutes. Next up for the ‘Hounds is an 8pm game at TFC II up in Ontario.
CHARLOTTE INDEPENDENCE W 4-2 Rochester Rhinos • Nothing like giving the unbeaten league leaders their first loss of the season, right? Two goals in each half did the trick for Charlotte, which is now 6-6-5 on the season. Jack Thompson [Hudson/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was not in the team. Next up for Charlotte is a Wednesday night visit from New York Red Bulls II for a 730pm kickoff.
PHOTO CREDIT: torontofc.com
2015 Week 21 Report
Before we get to the weekend’s MLS action, we had a Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Quarterfinal earlier in the week. It went, unfortunately, just like last year’s one octavos de final matchup went for one of our fellas’ teams. Here’s how everything went since our last posting:
LOS ANGELES GALAXY L 0-1 @ Real Salt Lake • On Tuesday night, RSL knocked the Galaxy out of the Cup by the narrowest of margins. Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] started in the middle and played 77 minutes before subbing out in favor of a forward as the visitors chased the game to no avail.
COLUMBUS CREW SC W 1-0 @ Chicago Fire • FINALLY!!! It only took ten games, but Crew SC got its first road win of the season on Wednesday night. Despite dominating the match, it was the narrowest of margins that earned the three points. Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] was the backup goalie on the night, but Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] did not make the trip to Chi-town.
LOS ANGELES GALAXY W 5-2 San Jose Earthquakes • Walker started and played 82 minutes of this contest that continued LA’s recent roll through the MLS regular season schedule. It’s now 20 goals in five games and four victories in those games.
TORONTO FC W 2-1 @ Philadelphia Union • TFC can really put on some brilliant performances when they’re in the mood. It sure helps when midseason MVP candidate Sebastian Giovinco is doing what he has been doing lately. The Reds were in control from the get-go and are firmly in the Eastern Conference playoff chase. Justin Morrow [Shaker Heights/St. Ignatius] started at right back and played all 90.
NEW YORK CITY FC L 0-1 @ New England Revolution • The hosts scored early and did the rest with defense. Still no Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] who is out injured.
MONTREAL IMPACT L 1-2 @ Sporting Kansas City • Sporting hasn’t been beaten at home this calendar year. The Impact put up a good fight, but weren’t strong enough to end the streak. Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] made a couple saves and had to deal with three other dangerous shots/crosses.
DC UNITED L 1-2 @ FC Dallas • Chris Korb [Gates Mills/University School] started at right back and then was subbed out at halftime for a forward. DC Head Coach Ben Olsen must’ve seen something he didn’t like that called for the formation change. Despite that, FCD scored first and then DC equalized before the home side got its winner in extra time.
PORTLAND TIMBERS D 1-1 Vancouver Whitecaps • The two sides split the goals, one in each half, and they also split the points. Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] started and played 83 minutes. Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] was not in the gameday XVIII. The Timbers currently find themselves in last place in this season’s Cascadia Cup standings. It wouldn’t be impossible for them to end up on top, but they’ll need to win their 30 August match at Seattle and then hope the Whitecaps and Sounders tie in their two upcoming games.
COLUMBUS CREW SC W 3-1 Chicago Fire • While the Crew didn’t dominate on Sunday like they did earlier in the week, they were aided by a Fire red card in the second half. The win was convincing and the three points were well-deserved. Same roles for Stuver and Speas as on Wednesday.
Next Week’s Matches:
~ Saturday, 25 July
COLUMBUS v TFC, 730pm
MONTREAL v Seattle, 8pm
Houston v LA, 9pm
Dallas v PORTLAND, 9pm
~ Sunday, 26 July
NYCFC v Orlando, 230pm – live on Fox Sports 1
DC v Philadelphia, 5pm – live on ESPN2
ATLANTA SILVERBACKS D 2-2 @ Fort Lauderdale Strikers • A road point is better than a loss, no? Even if you’re winning 2-1 until the 90th minute, when a PK for the home side levels things? I dunno… Matt Horth [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was not in the team for this match. Next up, the ‘Backs travel to Ottawa for a 7pm kickoff on Wednesday.
CHARLOTTE INDEPENDENCE D 0-0 @ Rochester Ragin’ Rhinos • Jack Thompson [Hudson/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] subbed on and played 14 minutes. Next up for Charlotte is a home game on Saturday with FC Montreal at 730pm.
OTTAWA FURY W 4-2 INDY ELEVEN • Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] did his normal 90 minutes at attacking mid and he created the opening goal for the home side with a free kick that Rafael Alves headed home. Indy’s Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] started at left back and played 90. Judson McKinney [Cuyahoga Falls/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] subbed on in the 77th minute and scored a consolation goal in the 90th minute. Next up for Ottawa is the Atlanta game on Wednesday, while Indy hosts New York Saturday at 730pm.
PITTSBURGH RIVERHOUNDS L 1-2 Louisville City FC • The teams traded goals in the first half before the visitors got their winner in the second half. Mike Green [Strongsville/Strongsville] started at forward and played 83 minutes. Next up is a Keystone Derby trip to Harrisburg on Saturday for a 630pm match.
2015 Week 20 Report
It was a small MLS schedule, but a full NASL and USL schedule for our fellas. Look up top for the MLS guys, down below for the others.
PORTLAND TIMBERS L 0-3 @ Philadelphia Union • This result ended Philly’s winless streak against Portland (0-3-2 all-time). Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] subbed on and played the final seven minutes of the match. Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] did not play, nor did he make the trip, as he recovers from a shoulder injury.
MONTREAL IMPACT W 3-0 COLUMBUS CREW SC • 
What were the takeaways from this one? The Impact picked up just its second win in its past six games and Crew SC’s up-and-down season continued (6 wins, 7 losses, 6 draws) with yet another non-win on the road. Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] made five saves in the shutout, his third of the season. He’s now fifth in the league in saves with 61. Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] and Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] were both unused subs for Crew SC.
LOS ANGELES GALAXY W 2-1 Club América • Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] played the second half at holding mid. If you haven’t seen the highlights, do check them out to watch Robbie Keane’s goal. It’s something else.
NEW YORK CITY FC D 4-4 TORONTO FC • Much like last weekend’s NYCFC match, the DP’s in this one did not disappoint… well, except for when David Villa and Sebastian Giovinco each missed penalty kicks for their respective teams, I guess. But the little Italian scored a hat trick in nine minutes and the little – but comparatively larger – Spaniard added two goals of his own. Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] is still out injured. Justin Morrow [Shaker Heights/St. Ignatius] played all 90 at right back for TFC and picked up a yellow card late in the match for a foul.
Next Week’s Matches:
~ Wednesday, 15 July
Chicago v COLUMBUS, 830pm
~ Friday, 17 July
LOS ANGELES v San Jose, 11pm – live on UniMas
~ Saturday, 18 July
Philadelphia v TORONTO, 4pm
Sporting KC v MONTREAL, 830pm
Dallas v DC, 9pm
PORTLAND v Vancouver, 1030pm
~ Sunday, 19 July
COLUMBUS v Chicago, 5pm – live on ESPN2
ATLANTA SILVERBACKS W 1-0 v Jacksonville Armada FC – Matt Horth [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] subbed on in the 83rd minute of Atlanta’s first home victory of this calendar year. Next up for the ‘Backs is a trip to Fort Lauderdale for a 730pm kickoff on Saturday night.
CHARLOTTE INDEPENDENCE L 0-1 @ Louisville City FC – Jack Thompson [Hudson/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] subbed on and played 28 minutes. Next up for the Independence is a trip to league-leaders Rochester for a 705pm on Saturday.
INDY ELEVEN W 2-1 v Carolina RailHawks – Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] started at left back and assisted on the Eleven’s first goal – please see the highlights for the simple cross to header tally. Judson McKinney [Cuyahoga Falls/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] was an unused sub. Next up for Indy is a trip to Ottawa for a 3pm Saturday tilt.
OTTAWA FURY D 1-1 @ Minnesota United FC – Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] started as usual, but went off injured in the 43rd minute. If that guy didn’t have bad luck with injuries, he wouldn’t have no luck at all. Despite the loss of their midfield maestro, the Fury was able to fight back from down 1-0 to get the road draw with a PK in the 75th minute.
PITTSBURGH RIVERHOUNDS W 2-0 @ TFC II; L 2-4 v FC Montreal – Mike Green [Strongsville/Strongsville] started and played 90 minutes, but I’m not exactly sure at which position. As you should know, the first player listed is the goalkeeper, then the defenders are sometimes separated from him by a semi-colon or a dash, same for the mids and the forwards. Well, Green is the second name listed. Was he a forward/striker last Wednesday up in Ontario? Can’t tell. On Saturday, up the road a piece at FC Montreal, he subbed on in the 86th minute for the third guy listed. So… outside mid? Third forward? Again, I’m unsure. Anyways, Pittsburgh is now fifth in the Eastern Conference on 25 points (7-6-4) and will host Louisville City FC on Saturday at 7pm.
2015 Week 19 Report
We had two head-to-heads over the USA Birthday Weekend, a weekend that two of our guys will want to put in their rearview mirror ASAP. Check out the highlights to see what I mean. Here’s how it all went down:
DC UNITED L 0-1 @ Seattle Sounders • 
A late goal for the home side sent the visitors flying back across the country lamenting missed chances and the poorly-dealt-with corner kick that led to their demise. Chris Korb [Gates Mills/University School] played all 90 at right back for DC.
COLUMBUS CREW SC W 2-1 New York Red Bulls • A goal in each half gave the Black and Gold all three points. Ben Speas [Stow/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] and Brad Stuver [Twinsburg/Twinsburg] were unused subs for Crew SC.
MONTREAL IMPACT L 1-2 NEW YORK CITY FC • The visitors’ Designated Player, David Villa, scored twice to give his team all three points. The second goal came on a free kick that went past Evan Bush [Concord Township/Lake Catholic] and just inside his left-hand post. Bush made one save in the loss for Montreal. Josh Williams [Copley/Copley] is still out with an adductor strain.
LOS ANGELES GALAXY W 4-0 TORONTO FC • And yet again, the reigning MLS Champs pounded their opponent on their home turf. Kenney Walker [Wickliffe/Wickliffe] subbed on for the final four minutes of the victory for his Galaxy. Justin Morrow [Shaker Heights/St. Ignatius] played 90 at right back for TFC.
PORTLAND TIMBERS W 1-0 San Jose Earthquakes • PTFC got a late, late goal from Jack Jewsbury that was a bit of a goof – he literally closed his eyes, stuck his foot out and hoped for the best – to earn all three points. Darlington Nagbe [Lakewood/St. Edward] played 84 minutes of this contest before subbing out. He’s still not 100% after a shoulder injury he suffered the week before at Los Angeles. Michael Nanchoff [North Royalton/Walsh Jesuit] was an unused sub.
Next Weekend’s Matches:
~ Saturday, 11 July
Philadelphia v PORTLAND, 7pm
MONTREAL v COLUMBUS, 8pm
LOS ANGELES v Club América, 11pm – International Champions Cup, live on Fox Sports 1 (or 2)
~ Sunday, 12 July
NYCFC v TFC, 3pm – live on ESPN2
NASL’s Fall Season got underway this past weekend and the USL campaign kept on rolling. Here’s what those dudes were up to in their games:
ATLANTA SILVERBACKS L 1-2 @ Tampa Bay Rowdies – Matt Horth [Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] started up top and played all 90 as these two teams traded own goals. Next up for the ATL is its home opener against Jacksonville Armada FC, Saturday at 730pm.
CHARLOTTE INDEPENDENCE L 2-1 v St. Louis FC – Jack Thompson [Hudson/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] subbed on at halftime. Next up for Charlotte is a trip to Louisville to for a 730pm contest next Saturday.
INDY ELEVEN D 0-0 v Monarcas Morelia; D 1-1 @ New York Cosmos – Kyle Hyland [Bay Village/Bay] subbed on in the 59th minute of the Eleven’s international friendly against Liga MX club Monarcas. He started at left back and played all 90 of the draw at the Cosmos. Judson McKinney [Cuyahoga Falls/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy] played the second half against the Mexicans and was an unused sub at New York. Next up for Indy is a 730pm Saturday visit from the Carolina RailHawks.
OTTAWA FURY W 2-0 Jacksonville Armada FC – Sinisa Ubiparipovic [Mentor/Mentor] started at attacking mid and subbed out after 86 minutes. Next up for the Fury is a visit from Minnesota United FC on Saturday at 730pm.
PITTSBURGH RIVERHOUNDS W 3-0 v NYRB II – Mike Green [Strongsville/Strongsville] started at right back and played all 90. The ‘Hounds have two games next week, starting with a Wednesday trip to Canada to play TFC II at 8, followed by Saturday’s home game against other Canadians when FC Montreal shows up at 4pm.
PHOTO CREDIT – mlssoccer.com
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
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
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
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.
Major League Soccer Players from Cleveland 