Perfectly Weighted Through Blog

Soccer on TV/Computer This Weekend

2011-10-01T11:06:00.000-05:00

NASL Play-offs Free Stream and EPL On FOX Again and

Every weekend, we fortunate soccer fans in the Huntsville area have a wealth of soccer options to watch on TV and the Internet. I've compile a list of games I'll be trying to catch on Saturday and Sunday. This week will include the NASL. The USA's second division playoffs begin on Saturday evening and they are being streamed for free via U-Stream. Also, for the second time this season, FOX54 will be airing a tape delayed game from the EPL. This time the North London Derby will be feature as Spurs and Arsenal line-up against each other at White Hart Lane at 1 p.m. on Sunday.

Here's the weekend's offerings with the my picks for the best games in bold.

SATURDAY
England, Everton-Liverpool 6:30 a.m. ESPN2
Germany, Hoffenheim-Bayern Munich 8:30 a.m. GolTV
Germany, Hertha Berlin-Cologne 11:30 a.m. ESPN3.com
Italy, Inter Milan-Napoli 1:30 p.m. Fox Soccer
MLS, Houston-Chicago 3 p.m. Telefutura
Mexico, Morelia-Tecos 5 p.m. Fox Deportes
NASL, Ft. Lauderdale Strikers-FC Edmonton, U-stream
NASL, FC Tampa Bay-NSC Minnesota Stars, U-steam
MLS, Toronto-New York 6:30 p.m. Fox Soccer
MLS, New England-Seattle 6:30 p.m. Direct Kic
MLS, Colorado-Dallas 8 p.m. Direct Kick
MLS, Los Angeles-Real Salt Lake 9:30 p.m. Direct Kick
MLS, San Jose-Kansas City 9:30 p.m. Direct Kick

SUNDAY
England, Spurs-Arsenal 10 a.m. Fox Soccer
Germany, Hamburg-Schalke 10:30 a.m. GolTV
Spain, Gijon-Barcelona 1 p.m. GolTV
England, Spurs-Arsenal 1 p.m. FOX
Italy, Juventus-AC Milan 1:30 p.m. Fox Soccer
MLS, Columbus-D.C. United 4 p.m. Direct Kick
Spain, Espanyol-Real Madrid 3 p.m. ESPN2
MLS, Vancouver-Portland 4:30 p.m. Direct Kick
MLS, Chivas USA-Philadelphia 7 p.m. Direct Kick

Best League in the World?; UAH Wins at Home, Loses on the Road; UAB Cracks the Top 25

2011-09-24T12:41:00.000-05:00

What is the best league in the world?

Lately, there's been a lot of debate in soccer circles as to what is the best league in the world. No doubt, some of that debate is spurred by statements by the MLS brass that they have shifted thier focus from a survival mode to a quest to become the "best league in the world". It's an interesting question, but what exactly do we mean when we say "best league in the world"?

Surely, we can narrow the list of hopefuls down immediately to the European leagues, sometimes called the big four, the English Premier League (EPL), the German Bundesliga, the Italian Serie A, and the Spanish Premira (La Liga). Sadly, as much as I believe that Major League Soccer is underrated, the reality is that MLS doesn't yet come close to being included in the conversation. An argument could possibly be made to include the Mexican and Brazilian top flights, but world wide reach of those leagues aren't anywhere near the top four.

MLS not in this debate

For me, the best league in the world must have:

Quality teams: From top to bottom the teams must be good and able to make for exciting matches. In other words, there must be parity, so that a league leader's match against a cellar dweller is not a forgone conclusion. The EPL certainly has strong teams from 1-12, but there are some stinkers at the bottom. La Liga sees a major drop off after the top 8. The Bundesliga has good parity throughout making even the bottom table match-ups exciting. Serie A has pretty good parity this season.
Fan participation and attendance: There's no question that games with fans who are into the what's happening on the field dial up the intensity and excitement. However, a few thousand die-hards just can't make up for tons of empty seats in a stadium. So, attendance across the league must be good. The Bundesliga surely has the advantage here, as they are the best attended league in the world, and their stadiums rock for each match. Too many of the EPL, La Liga, and Serie A matches are half empty toward the end of the season.
Champion diversity: Perhaps this is just different version of my first point about league parity, but a league with one or two teams who dominate the league is a bummer for everyone. All the league's have deficiencies in this area. See Madrid and Barcelona, Inter and Milan (maybe not this season), Chelsea and ManU, and Bayern Munich.

From those requirements, my pick for the best league in the world is the Bundesliga.

Although they might not have the best teams in the world (Manchester United and Barcelona lead that debate), the league top to bottom provides the most exciting and entertaining games. Each Bundesliga game is played at a very high level with exciting, attack-minded tactics in front of loud, boisterous crowds. Despite Bayern's relative dominance in the competition, there have been 4 different champions in the past 5 seasons that provides a level of parity not seen in the other leagues.

UAH Split Results Against Georgian Opposition

Last Saturday, UAH matched its win total from the previous season with a 5:0 shutout of Georgia Southwestern. The goals came from five different scorers as Mitch Wilson, Jared Muggleton, Kyle Simmons, Oscar Leon, and Brandon Lemier each notched one. The performance capped an excellent week from Kyle Simmons who was named GSC Player of the Week.

UAH 5:0 Georgia Southwestern

The Chargers then took to the road for the first time this season at North Georgia State. A slow start saw UAH down three goals after only 22 minutes. Despite waking up and attempting to make a game of it with two goals from Ragnar Gunnarsson before the end of the first half, NGSU ended all doubts with three unanswered in the second half to hand UAH a 6:2 loss.

UAH (4-3-0) will try to turn things around when they travel to take on St. Leo on Sunday.

UAB Ranked in National Polls

After starting the season with seven games without a loss, UAB, the only Division I NCAA team in Alabama, have been honored with rankings as high as the 20th position in the various national rankings. Surely a loss to a tough Portland team will knock UAB down a few notches, but the Blazers expect to continue their early success in the hopes of making an appearance in the NCAA College Cup to be held in Hoover, AL this year.

I HEART DirecTV, EPL on FOX on Sunday

2011-09-17T10:15:00.000-05:00

DirecTV Still The Way to Go in Huntsville

A few years ago, I posted a study on which Huntsville area TV package provides the most soccer for the discriminating fan. Since that post nearly two years ago, the landscape of soccer on TV has changed a little bit; FOX networks showing EPL and Champions League; NBC and NBC Sports (Versus) soon to show MLS matches; and Sentanta is replaced by FOX Soccer Plus. However, my recommendation remains the same. DirecTV is the soccer lovers choice here in Huntsville.

Note: The development of soccer on the Internet is a greatly welcomed addition to soccer viewers choices. From MLS Matchday Live, ESPN3.com, foxsoccer.tv, and the various reliable (and nefarious) live streams of matches across the globe adds literally hundreds of additional choices to the soccer fan's menu. I won't attempt to describe these here, but they are still a viable option for someone looking to view matches on the cheap.

So, here's some update info for soccer on TV in Huntsville.

Leagues/Competitions: Networks

American MLS: ABC, ESPN2, FOX Soccer (FSC), FOX Soccer Espanol (FSE), MLS Direct Kick, RSNs, (2012: NBC, NBC Sports)
English EPL: FOX, FSC, FSP. FSE, RSNs,
Italian Serie A: FSC, FSP, FSE
Spanish La Liga: GolTV, DirecTV LaLiga Channels
German Bundesliga: GolTV
Brazilian Pulista Championship: GolTV
Columbian League: GolTV
Australian A League: FSC
Scottish Premier League: FSP
Mexican MFL: FSE, GolTV, Univision, Telemundo
UEFA Champions League: FOX, FSC, FSP, RSN, DirecTV Europa Channels
UEFA Cup: GolTV, DirecTV Europa Channles
Copa Libertadores: FSE
Concacaf Champions Cup: FSC, FSE
World Cup/Friendlies: ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNClassic, FSC, FSP, FSE, GolTV, Univision
American USL/NASL: FSC
NCAA Soccer: CBS CS, FSC, ESPN2, ESPNU, RSNs

To catch all of this soccer action here are the packages you need.

DirecTV Premier Package: Includes FOX, ABC (WAAY), ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNews, ESPN Classic.

DirecTV Sports Pack Package: Includes the major Soccer related channels like Fox Soccer Channel, Fox Sports Espanol and GolTV. Also included are the regional sports networks (RSNs) and others channels that show the occasional Soccer match or two (ESPNU, CBS College Sports, etc.) This package also includes at no extra charge the DirecTV Europa Channels (480-489) and Spanish LaLiga (477-479) channels which show all of the Champions League and Europa League matches including a mix channel to watch them all simultaneously. If you've not seen this Mix Channel in action, you are missing out. I often record the games with Americans and watch later. IT ABSOLUTELY ROCKS!

DirecTV's Europa Mix Channel is Awesome!

*FOX Soccer Plus: This is a channel that DirecTV offers that is not included in the Sports Pack and used to be called Setanta. You must pay an extra $15 a month for the channel. It broadcasts EPL matches, SPL, Italian Serie A, and English 1st division matches. I personally don’t think it is worth the extra money, and that's probably why Sentanta went out of business. I suppose if I followed a certain team in one of those competitions, I might reconsider.

MLS Direct Kick: This is the best deal around. For a once a year fee of $70, you get all of the MLS matches not shown on ABC, ESPN2, FSC, or Telefutura including play-off games. That’s over 200 games a year. This is how I watch my beloved DC United.

So, as you can see, there is plenty of soccer to be seen, if you know where to get it.

FOX54 To Show ManU-Chelsea on Sunday

Keeping with the soccer on TV theme of this post, FOX54 will air the Manchester United-Chelsea match at 3:30 p.m. on Sunday. The local over-the-air FOX affiliate will show the tape delayed match that will originally air on FOX Soccer earlier in the day. The match-up of EPL giants will go up against prime NFL broadcasts including the Chargers-Patriots game over on WHNT.

It will be interesting to see if any casual gridiron fans will be turned to the dark side by this game. I feel conflicted about this for a couple of reasons that are well put by Jason Davis at Match Fit USA. And then again, maybe I'm just afraid that my love of the game will be overtaken by bandwagon jumpers.

This isn't the only broadcast of EPL matches this season. There will be at least two more broadcasts in the next two months. As always, I'll let you know when they do.

UAH Drops Montevallo In Impressive Fashion, 3:1

2011-09-15T08:45:00.001-05:00

Behind two goals from freshman Kyle Simmons, University of Alabama-Huntsville took a large scalp in the fourteenth ranked University of Montevallo. UAH came out with their hackles up and tallied first after 15 minutes. Kyle Simmons volleyed Felix Hjalmarsson's cross in from close range. Montevallo, stunned, attempted to put together a response on Jordan Steelman's goal. Steelman was making his first start as UAH first choice keeper Kel Markert is serving a suspension. The Falcons nearly equalized on several occasions only to be frustrated by the Assistant Referee's flag each time.

UAH GoalMeister Kyle Simmons

However, the Falcons would find the equalizer off a second half corner kick from when Jackson Tolleson nodded home Tyson Eyo's delivery in the 54th minute. UAH and Simmons were quick to respond when 3 minutes later fellow freshman Mitch Wilson danced around two defenders and served up a ball for Simmons to jackhammer home with his noggin for his team leading 6th goal in 5 games.

The Chargers weren't finished though. In the 75th minute, Jarrod Muggleton delivered a precise free kick that Hjalmarsson met with aplomb to put the match out of reach and give UAH its biggest win in years. UAH is brimming with confidence heading into its next match at Charger Field on Saturday at 3PM against Georgia Southwestern.

UAH Wins, Maryland-Under Amour Soccer Boots

2011-09-09T10:02:00.000-05:00

UAH Shuts Out Christian Brothers

University of Alabama-Huntsville picked up its second win of the season on the back of a strong defensive effort and the creativity of sophomore forward Felix Hjalmarsson. Coming off a soggy 1:2 overtime loss to at home to Lincoln Memorial University on Sunday, the Chargers (2-1) shutout victory give the team confidence through the 3rd of their season opening 6 straight home games.

The Charger defense held strong through out the match, and the Icelandic forward Hjalmarsson would reward them with a goal in the 80th minute from a nice combination with midfielder and fellow Icelander Ragnar Gunnarson. It was the frosty forward's second goal of the season. Hjalmarsson wasn't finished as he and freshman forward Mitch Wilson combine to seal the win with Wilson's goal in the 83rd minute.

The Charger's will hope to keep the momentum going when they host Tennessee Wesleyan on Saturday at 2:30 PM at Charger Field.

University of Maryland Flag Soccer Boots Are Awesome!

Fear the Turtle!

The University of Maryland's throwball team has been getting an huge amount of press about their uniforms, but it's the Terps soccer boots that I'm interested in. The Under Armour Blur boots (and the uniforms) are based on the flag of Maryland with feature the Black and Gold banner of the Calvert family, and the Red and White banner of the Crossland family.

The Terps soccer team also features the Calvert banner

Confession: I'm was born and raised in Maryland's Calvert County. So, my opinion in these matters may be a little biased. I fully understand people who think they are bufugly, but I think they are awesome!

UAH Season Opener, USA v Costa Rica Viewing Party, TV Updates

2011-09-02T08:51:00.000-05:00

UAH Kicks Season Off Thursday

UAH hosts Talladega in their season opener at 2PM on Thursday. Coach Mike Mitchell is looking forward to playing the NAIA school to guage his teams progress from a disappointing season last year.

American Outlaws host USA vs Costa Rica Viewing Party Friday at the Brickhouse

The local American Outlaws chapter will be hosting a viewing party for the USA v Costa Rica match this Friday at the Brickhouse. Game time is at 10PM and as always there will be food and drink specials.

Soccer On TV Just Got Sexier

Soccer on TV in the USA has reached a few milestones recently. MLS has announced a major deal with NBC Sports where 45 MLS and USMNT matches will be shown on NBC and the NBC Sports Network (currently called Versus). Originally, I was lukewarm about the deal, but in the days since, NBC has announced a major effort to challenge ESPN's dominance and will feature live sporting events like MLS and NHL.

Another sign that soccer is coming to the mainstream sports consciousness is FOX's announcement that they will broadcast 4 EPL games this season.

PWT-blog Goes To Germany

2011-08-27T12:11:00.000-05:00

I recently got back from a fantastic trip to Germany to partake in two of my loves, soccer and beer. My traveling companion John and I planned a great weekend with 3 professional matches mixed in with many visits to the local Biergartens. Unfortunately, on our second day in country before we had a chance to see any matches, John had a medical incident that forced him into the hospital for the entire weekend. He was good humored throughout and forced our host Jan and I to attend the matches that we had spent so long planning to see.

FC Nuernberg Stadium

The weekend started with a drive past the FC Nuernberg stadium on the way to the Bundesliga 2 match-up between Bavarian sides Greuther Furth and Ingolstadt. The Furth stadium has old timey feel and is nestled in a quiet neighborhood.

View from the Greuther Furth Terraces

Jan and I were able to score some tickets in the Furth terraces with the fanatics where there was some impressive chanting accompanied by the best drummer this side of the Who's Keith Moon.

Beer and Brats at the Furth Stadium

Furth clears the danger

At half time, we moved into the seated section to enjoy the rest of the match from a different and more low-key perspective. Furth would dominate the match and come away with the easy 3:0 win.

Marcel, Jan, and I outside the Paulener Bier Garten and Alianz Arena

Our next destination saw us move from the neighborhood stadium in Furth to the corporate behemoth that is Bayern Munich's Alianz Arena for the Bayern v Hamburg match. For the match, Jan and I were joined by German ex-pat living in Birmingham, AL, Marcel.

View from the Alianz Arena's press area

Bayern's Beer and Pretzel

We were fortunate to get tickets through my good friend and Bayern season ticket holder, Juergen. Juergen is a former soccer journalist and current publicist for many of the Bundesliga's biggest players. He let me use his journalist ticket to get a view from the press area which is very close to the action. We also joined Juergen and freinds in his normal seats in the upper tier to watch the game.

I'm a happy Bayern fan after watching 5:0 win

A view of the Alianz Arena from the autobahn. The stadium lights up Bayern Munich red after the match.

As a Bayern fan, I'm happy to report that Bayern had no troubles with Hamburg. Marcel, who is an HSV Hamburg fan, was not so happy to see his team go down 5:0 to Bayern.

The Old Mainz Stadium

The Mainz Boys dominate in the old stadium

The next day, Jan and I visited a smaller Bundesliga club in Mainz. Mainz has recently built a brand new stadium, but first, Jan and I went to the old stadium to watch the U-19 Mainz 05 team play Eintract Frankfurt in a youth Bundesliga match. Can you imagine playing a youth match in a 20,000 seat stadium?

The New Mainz Stadium

Feuerwurst (spicy sausage) and Beer in the Mainz stadium

Jan formerly coached two talented Mainz youth players in Marcel and Niko Seegert who were kind enough to provide us with tickets to the senior team's match against Shalke 04 later that day.

A Fussball Day in Mainz with the Seegerts

The Mainz v Shalke match was a great game for the neutral. Mainz came out of the gates on fire and were up 2:0 after the first quarter hour, but missed chances would doom them.

Inside the new stadium before the game

USA international Jermaine Jones warms up for Shalke

After the half, Shalke made some changes and scored 4 unanswered to travel home with the full three points and the 4:2 win.

SV Silber Workers Schorndorf e.V.

After watching all that soccer, we had to try some of the moves out ourselves. We picked up John from the hospital and drove down to hang out with Juergen and his buddies from the Silber Workers soccer team.

At the Bierakademie after the match

We built up quite a thirst kicking around and had to refresh ourselves at the Beer Academy.

Stuttgart practice

After showing off our skills, we went back to learn from the professionals at the VfB Stuttgart practice.

Hoffenheim's Stadium from the Autobahn

With the trip nearly over, we zoomed past the Hoffenheim stadium on the autobahn.

USA v Mexico Watch Party; HASL Season Kicks Off; UAH Preseason Predictions

2011-08-05T08:24:00.000-05:00

AOs to Host USA v Mexico Viewing Party at Brickhouse

The American Outlaws-Huntsville will be hosting a Viewing Party for the USA v Mexico friendly with food and drink specials at the Brickhouse Sports Cafe, next Wednesday, August 10. Several AOH members will be making the trip up to Philadelphia to support the team in person, but for those of us with "real jobs", the local soccer bar is the place to be. I hope to have more on the trip up to Philly by the local boys next week.

HASL Season Kicks Off On Sunday

The Huntsville Adult Soccer League kicks off its Fall 2011 season on Sunday. The league will once again consist of five divisions of six teams who will play ten matches to determine division champions. Also, for the second season, there will be a small sided Women's division. For more information, check out the HASL website.

UAH Preseason Predictions

The University of Alabama-Huntsville Men's Soccer team has been picked to finish third in the Gulf South Conference in 2011. The preseason predictions come just a few weeks before the season begins on September 1. Returning for the Chargers will be pre-season all-conference player Jarrod Muggleton. There are also a pair of incoming local freshmen, who are expected to make an impact on the team. Midfielder Kyle Simmons from Bob Jones and Forward Mitch Wilson from Grissom will look to help UAH drive the Charger's attack.

Jacksonville United Captures 2011 NPSL Championship

2011-07-31T00:58:00.000-05:00

In a thrilling final, first year side Jacksonville United FC complete the incredible midseason turnaround to take home the NPSL Championship with a 3:2 win over Hollywood United. After losing its first four matches, JUFC turned the results around and rode three goals in Saturday's final from Tommy Krizanovic to finish its season with 8 straight wins and raise the NPSL Championship trophy.

Krizanovic opened the Jacksonville scoring in the 16th minute with a left-footed 15 yard drive across the width of the Hollywood goal before settling just inside the far post. Hollywood responded shortly thereafter when Arturo Albarran cheekily swivle kicked a cross to the head of Emmanuel Bentil. Bentil's downward header was knocked down by a Jacksonville defender's arm and the referee pointed to the spot. However, Hollywood would fail to convert the spot kick, when Albarran crashed his attempt off the crossbar.

Albarran would make up for that mistake with a wonder goal just minutes later. After receiving the ball in space about 30 yards from goal, Albarran laced into a curling drive that swerved into the far side netting and equalized the match. But it would only take 11 minutes for Jacksonville to retake the lead when Ramak Safin found Krizanovic for the finish in the 37th. The 2:1 scoreline would be taken into halftime.

2011 NPSL Final Quotes

After the break, Hollywood implemented its possession oriented game, and patiently probed the Jacksonville defense with good work from Nick Blanco and Jose Miranda coming close several times but unable unlock the Jacksonville defense. In the 76th minute, the breakthrough came when substitute Brent Whitfield broke into the penalty area and was taken down for a penalty. Albarran showed real moxie to step up and atone for his previous miss by slamming home his second penalty attempt of the night to level the score.

Hollywood continued the persistent pressure while looking for the winning goal, but in the 88th minute it was Jacksonville who struck against the run of play. Despite being outnumbered in the Hollywood penalty area, Ramak Safi danced to the endline and sent in a cross for Krizanovic to head home and spark jubilant celebration for the Jacksonville faithful.

After 4 minutes of desperate attacking from Hollywood in an attempt at a third equalizer, the referee blew full time and Jacksonville United captured the 2011 NPSL Championship.

For the Love of the Game: A Soccer Conversation with Donal Logue

2011-07-30T08:25:00.001-05:00

I love this gig I have. I've met many of my boyhood soccer idols. That's just one of the terrific things about my involvement in the game. Recently, this gig had me crossing paths with another of my non-soccer heroes. It was with great pleasure that I was able to spend a few short minutes talking soccer with one of my all time favorite actor/directors and friend in football, Donal Logue.

Since this is my blog, I can digress a little off the topic of soccer, if I feel the whim. So, bear with me and I'll warn you, skip the next few paragraphs, if you're not interested in reading some deeply personal revelations about how Mr. Logue's work has affected me in a very real sense.

Donal is an actor of immense talent and starred in one of my favorite movies ever, the 2000 independent romantic-comedy, "The Tao of Steve". In it, Donal played the philisoph-slacker, Dex, who laid down some simple tenets for life (and for picking up women, coincidentally) which can be distilled into the following, "Be desireless, be excellent, be gone".

The Tao of Steve

For me, a guy who struggled with self-image problems, especially around women, these ideas were a revelation. After dozens of viewings, my roommate and I could be heard around the apartment quoting lines from the Buddha and discoursing on solipsism. Yes, we were wild and crazy guys.

However, those six words became a personal mantra of sorts and I used them to help get over a very real problem with social anxiety and a general lack of confidence. By clearing my mind of desire or the need to be seen as something other than who I was, I was able to stand tall in who I actually was. (Does that make sense?) The second tenet was working hard to be excellent at whatever I chose to do in life; career, hobbies, soccer... These first two led me to the third tennant of "be gone" which I interpreted as being unafraid to face new challenges, which has eventually led me to the adventure of moving out of my comfort zone I'd built in Maryland and building a life here in Huntsville.

I know, it sounds kind of silly that a rom-com could affect a person so fundamentally, but life is like that sometimes. All the personal reflection that the movie inspired gave me the confidence to approach, woo, and eventually win over the smart and sexy woman I now call my wife. It has also led me to explore and enrich my life through soccer by giving me the confidence to appear on camera as a part time TV soccer analyst and play-by-play announcer. Art really can influence you in profound ways.

Now, Donal also wrote, directed, and starred another of my favorite movies, "Tennis, Anyone...?" about the celebrity tennis circuit. My father was the local tennis pro in the rural part of Maryland where I grew up. So, I certainly spotted some of the same types of egos in the movie that would swing the rackets around on my father's courts while I was rollerskating outside the fence to retrieve errant tennis balls in the late 70s/early 80s.

Plain and simple, I really appreciate Donal's work and he has more recently appeared in many successful movies and network shows including "Life" and "Terriers". Now that I've gushed on about my man crush on the guy, we can get down to the heart of the post.

It just so happens that Donal is also a soccer geek like me and has poured his passion into his club Hollywood United. He's "living the dream" of soccer ownership. His club will be playing for a National championship in the 2011 NPSL Finals on Saturday night. Here are some excerpts from our conversation a few days ago.

Hollywood United Owner and Actor Donal Logue Interview

BTW, the debate is now raging about whether you can use my name in your next game of Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon.

RCU Finally Win at Home vs All-stars; Erie beats Milwaukee

2011-07-30T00:35:00.000-05:00

RCU Drills All-stars 3:1 for First Home Win

Rocket City United's head coach Gerry Cleary hasn't had much to smile about after home games this season, but he was beaming after Friday night's All-star game. His side who finished last in the Southeast Region took on and thumped a side filled with the best talent in the NPSL. On each side of the break, Keniel Hyde took advantage of All-stars defensive errors to give RCU the 2:0 lead. The All-stars were able to answer back through a familiar face. RCU's lone All-star representative, Joseph Omondi, scored a poachers goal to pull the All-stars back within one. But in the dying seconds of the match a brilliant mazy 60 yard run and finish from Andrew Nkururnungi sealed the victory for the home side.

2011 NPSL All-star Game

Erie Admirals Claim Third Place

2011 NPSL Third Place Match

Disappointed about their loss on Thursday, the Erie Admirals emphatically staked their claim as the third place team with a 5:0 drubbing of the Milwaukee Bavarians on Friday night. Erie was paced by Gavin Falconer who scored twice. Aaron Meehl came off the bench to bag a goal before Erie added two goals at the death by Michael Blythe and Shane Howard.

NPSL Final Preview; NPSL Commissioner Speaks

2011-07-29T10:49:00.002-05:00

NPSL Final Sets Up To Be A Classic

Two newcomers to the NPSL will kick off Saturday night to crown a national champion. The match-up will be the second year in a row that the champions of the West and Southeast regions meet to determine a national champion. Hollywood United will be looking to be the third West Region team in a row to be crowned champion (Sonoma '09, Sacramento '10). While Jacksonville United is attempting to bring home the winners medals to the Southeast for the first time in NPSL history. Atlanta FC, Rocket City United, and Chattanooga FC have all failed to raise the Cup for the Southeast region in years past.

If they are to buck the trend, the odds will be stacked against the Florida eleven. Jacksonville United is undoubtedly the underdog in this match. The first year club scraped into the post season by the slimmest of margins. However, coach Eric Dade is not concerned with the early season sluggishness, and has seen his team grow into a side capable of good things, "I think a lot of guys were on a very good men's adult team, and then all of a sudden, we're pros." He explained that as the season wore on the JUFC's professionalism and consistency took hold and the good results followed.

JUFC is certainly riding a wave of moment while on a 7 game winning streak and Dade is looking forward to the final on Saturday night, "I think it'll be a good game. I think you'll see two teams play with similarity. Hopefully, we'll find a way to be there at the end of it."

2011 NPSL Final Preview

Hollywood United is also in its first year in the NPSL having moved over from the USL PDL, but is loaded with professional and international experience. For instance, both of Hollywood's goalscorers in the semifinals came to the squad with experience in top global professional divisions. The Hitmen's first scorer, Emmanuel Bentil was captain for the U-17 Ghana team that captured the World Youth Cup winner's medal. That experience led to three years on the books at Bayern Munich, before injuries led to time with other teams around Europe. Not to be outdone, two goal scorer Brent Whitfield spent time in the USA's Major League Soccer with Chivas USA.

Coach Jose Botello will be looking to use that experience against a JUFC side that he thinks plays an attractive game, "Jacksonville looks to knock it, looks to play, and get behind through short passes." Botello urges that a possession style game is also key to Hollywood's success, "It's something we stress. We want to keep the ball, and possession moving forward. At times, we struggled moving forward [in the semifinal]. That final pass wasn't there in the beginning of the game, but toward the end, we were much better."

NPSL Commissioner Is Excited About 2011 and Beyond

Dan Trainor has seen his league grow from a provincial outfit to a nationwide developmental league in a very short time and he is excited about the future. The twinkle in his eye is fully evident when speaking of the "continued steady growth" of the future of the 4th division circuit.

NPSL Commisssioner Dan Trainor Interview

NPSL Finalist Set; NPSL All-star Game; RCU's Sabio's Phillipines Out of World Cup

2011-07-29T00:33:00.001-05:00

NPSL Finals Set: Hollywood United v Jacksonville United

The 2011 NPSL Final will be a battle of Uniteds as Hollywood United will take on Jacksonville United on Saturday at 7:30PM at the Madison City Schools Stadium.

Semifinal 1: NPSL newcomer and West Region champion Hollywood United scored three second half goals on their way to defeating Midwest Region champion Milwaukee Bavarians. The teams ended the first half scoreless despite several good chance from Hollywood. The second half would see Hollywood continue the pressure and a golazo from Emmanuel Bentil two minutes after the break opened up the match. Bentil roped a drive into the top corner of the goal from outside the area. Shortly after, second half sub Brent Whitfield made the most of his fresh legs as he paced the Hitmen with a brace of goals on their way into Saturday nights final.

Semifinal 2: The second semifinal was a wild affair. Twice the Erie Admirals took 1 goal leads and twice Jacksonville United battled back to equalize before adding two late goals to take seal JUFC's place in the final. Erie started the scoring in the 22nd minute with a headed goal from Gavin Falconer off a nice cross from Shane Howard. Jacksonville United got the equalizer before the break when Tyler Williams scored on the second effort after his first shot was knocked down. Erie then benefited from a deflected cross from Michael Kennedy that found the net for the 2:1 lead in the 58th. JUFC only took 3 minutes to respond with a blast from Tommy Krizanovic. Just 10 minutes later, JUFC took the lead for good with a Akinwale Leyimu tally followed two minutes later by a Nick Salafrio's effort that just crossed the line before the Erie defense could clear. The wild game wasn't over yet as JUFC keeper Stuart McCrory turned away an Erie PK attempt in the waning minutes to keep the score 4:2 in favor of JUFC.

The third place match between the Erie Admirals and the Milwaukee Bavarians will take place Friday night at 5:30PM at the Madison City Schools Stadium.

NPSL All-stars take on RCU

Rocket City United will suit up one more time this season, as they take on the NPSL All-stars Friday night at 8 PM. RCU will have their work cut out for them as a strong NPSL side has been selected from over 60 recommended all-star players from around the league. RCU defender Joseph Omondi will have the rare privilege of suiting up against his current club as he was selected for the All-stars. When asked about which team he'd play for in Friday's match Omondi broke out in his trademark smile, "I've been asked that a couple of times now. Being selected [to the all-star team], it' s a big honor for me. So, I think I'll be playing against Rocket City, and it's just going to be a fun game for me." NPSL Technical Director and All-star head coach claims this year's all-stars a much more talented side than the one that beat RCU 2:0 in last year's exhibition match.

2011 NPSL All-star Press Conference

RCU's Jason Sabio and the Phillipino National Team fall to Kuwait in World Cup Qualifying

Rocket City United defender Jason Sabio and his Phillipino National Team fell to Kuwait 5:1 on aggregate in the second round of the Asian Football Confederation's World Cup Qualifying. The Askals needed a miracle win by 4 goals in the return leg in Manilla after losing in Kuwait 3:0 in the first leg. Sabio did not appear in the second leg as the team fielded an attacking line-up in an effort to maximize its goal scoring capability. The miracle looked possible after the Azkals took an 1:0 halftime lead, but as they pressed for goals, Kuwait struck twice and eliminated the Phillipines' and Sabio's World Cup dreams.

NPSL Semifinals Tonight!

2011-07-28T14:50:00.005-05:00

First, I must apologize to my loyal readers (all three of you, not including my mom) for my lack of posting recently. I was out of town and on my way back into town I caught a bug of some sort and have been "laid low" for nearly two weeks. In the meantime, RCU finished up it's regular season, and Jacob and the guys over at Southern Soccer hosted another wildly successful Rocket City Invitational tournament.

And I have to give a special thanks to an outstanding young writer and friend, Drew Wooley, who stepped in and kept you all up to date on the all things RCU. Thanks, Drew. We'll miss you when you move on to bigger and better things.

NPSL Semi-finals Tonight

It's a great time to be a soccer fan in Huntsville-Madison. The NPSL Championships area upon us again. This is the second straight year that the championships of the nation wide league in the fourth division of the US soccer pyramid will be hosted by Rocket City United at the Madison City Schools Stadium. Last year, we were treated to five fantastic games including a great all-star match, a tremendous NPSL Final won by Sacramento, and appearances by some US soccer celebrities. This year's championships are looking to live up to last years event.

2011 NPSL Championship Coaches Press Conference

Semifinal 1 at 5:30PM: Hollywood United (2) v. Milwaukee Bavarians (3).

Hollywood United (not to be confused with FC Hollywood as German giant FC Bayern Munich is often called), is a first year NPSL team. Hollywood United has had an impressive Western Region season going 14W-1D-2L in their first year after switching over from the USL-PDL. The Hollywood in the name is also well deserved since the club was founded by several musicians, actors, and Hollywood celebrity types. One of my favorite actors, Donal Logue, is part owner of the club and was spotted in Madison today documenting the club's time here at the championships. Hopefully, I'll get to sit down with him sometime this weekend and discuss his club and his views on soccer in America.

HU's opponent is no slouch either. Midwest Region champions Milwaukee Bavarians are one of the most storied clubs in American soccer, and I'll be honest. They will be my sentimental favorite in the tournament, because they were founded in 1929 as FC Bayern, a similar name to my favorite European club (the previously mentioned "FC Hollywood"). Like their German namesakes, they have really come into their own as a soccer power in the last 30 years and are only slightly less decorated by silverware. The club holds 6 National Amateur and Open Cup trophies, and dominated this year's NPSL Midwest Region with a record of 8W, 2D, 2L.

Semifinal 2 at 8PM: Erie Admirals (1) v. Jacksonville United (4)

Northeast region champion Erie Admirals are making their 2nd appearance in the NPSL championships in three years. You might recall it was this same side that dashed Rocket City United's 2009 NPSL Championship hopes in Madison, WI by handing RCU a solid 4:2 drubbing in the semifinal. Erie is coming into the finals as the number one seed due to Points-per-game. They will be without one of their top players in Afrim Latifi who had a personal commitment out of the country and could not travel with the team.

Jacksonville United is the surprise of the tournament. A 2011 NPSL newcomer, the Florida team had trouble adjusting to the league initially, dropping their first four matches in the NPSL Southeast Region. JaxU then performed a remarkable about-face and reeled off six straight victories to pull level on points at 6W-0D-4L with fellow Region leader Georgia Revolution and qualified for the Championships based on number of wins. Despite the rough start Jacksonville is an experienced side in American soccer with many team members gaining US Open Cup experience with Lynch's Pub FC.

Sad Note:

The NPSL lost a member of its family as NPSL Board Member Charles Billings was found dead of what appears to be natural causes in his home this week. Billings was the Midwest Region Commissioner and GM of the Madison 56ers and was scheduled to travel to Madison, AL for this weekend's festivities.

Home Win Eludes RCU in Final Game

2011-07-17T17:45:00.005-05:00

Looking desperately for their first home win on Saturday, Rocket City’s final home game of the season went the way of most of their season.

“We dug a hole by going down 2-0,” said Cleary. “We got back in the game at 2-2, had two chances to make it 3-2. Then we give up another silly goal to go down 3-2 and you’re chasing the game.

“This is the story of our season,” he added, “we get back in it and then we kick ourselves in the teeth.”

While the regular season is over, Rocket City will close out the summer with a 6v6 tournament, followed by an exhibition game against the NPSL All-Stars.

As for his future with the club, Cleary seems open to returning but recognized that his record will not be his greatest selling point.

“I don’t know whether they’ll want me back,” he said, chuckling after Saturday night’s loss. “Instead of me they might need a good coach. But we’ll see.”

PWT-blog Visits Red Bull Arena

2011-07-17T08:17:00.002-05:00

On my recent vacation I had the opportunity to visit the Red Bull Arena for the New York Red Bulls v Toronto FC match. Although TFC didn't put up much of a fight in a 5:0 loss to NYRB, I had a fantastic night at a great soccer stadium. And as a DC United fan, it really pained me to write that last sentence. Anyway here are some of the action from that night.


Driving up to the Stadium

A converted old warehouse turned parking garage

Tailgate in the Warehouse

Kids game outside the stadium


RBA

Inside


View of the action from our seats

WWC Watch Party, RCU Finale Saturday, NPSL Tournament Taking Shape, RCI Coming Together

2011-07-13T19:29:00.001-05:00

American Outlaws to Host Women's World Cup Final Watch Party at the Brickhouse

The new American Outlaws-Huntsville chapter will host a Women's World Cup Final watch party at the Brickhouse Sports Cafe on Sunday at 1PM. After the US Women took care of business in Wednesday's 3:1 semi-final win over France, they'll look to bring home their first World Cup trophy since 1999's memorable triumph at the Rose Bowl. Let's get out there and support our ladies! HAIL, COLUMBIA!

Rocket City United Look to Pick Up First Home Win in Finale

The ad says, "We must protect this house!" Rocket City United must not have seen that one. The team is strangely more successful on the road then they are in the confines of the Madison City Schools Stadium. Coach Gerry Cleary is at a loss to explain the losses in which RCU seems to be the better side, "Again we’re saying Rocket City should have won a game when we didn’t win, but maybe we’re just not that good." RCU has its final opportunity to win at home of the 2011 regular season Saturday night against expansion side and surprise of the NPSL Southeast Georgia Revolution.

NPSL Championships Taking Shape

RCU's match against the GA Revs will have postseason implications. GAR sits in second in the Southeast region and can take the top spot with a win and loss or a tie by Chattanooga FC in their match against the Knoxville Force. Only one of the other NPSL regional titles have been claimed as the Milwuakee Bavarians have won the Midwest. The NPSL Championships will be hosted by RCU for the second consecutive year on July 28-30.

Rocket City Invitational

The 2011 Rocket City Invitational is coming together nicely, and Jacob and Co. over at Southern Soccer are looking at another smashing success of a tournament. Photos of the tournament T-shirts were just released as have details of the tournament party at Amendment XXI. Looks like it's going to be classic!

Poor Defending Costs Rocket City; High Drama in WWC

2011-07-10T15:27:00.005-05:00

4-1 Defeat for RCU

Rocket City United were looking for their first home win of the season last night. What they found instead was a 4-1 defeat at the hands of Jacksonville United. Early goals for both sides were followed by 3 unanswered goals for the visitors to give RCU their worst loss of the season.

"The lads are trying but if they were a little smarter in the final third then it’d be a lot easier," said Gerry Cleary after the game. "We were just stupid. They were little school girl errors that we made tonight, it’s ridiculous."

Cleary and company will now try to turn their attention to the final game of the season, next Saturday against the Georgia Revolution. "There’s always a chance," Cleary said of the odds that his team can get a win at home next week. "If it’s one in a million then it means there’s a chance."

Incredible US Comeback Against Brazil

If you didn’t watch the game, you really should.

Abby Wambach’s header in the 122^nd minute, Hope Solo’s penalty save (or was that two saves?) even Marta deserves some credit for her beautiful extra time goal. The United States women put together a dramatic performance in Germany every bit as nail-biting and, in the end, euphoric as the men’s last second win against Algeria last summer. Congrats on overcoming Marta, Brazil, and some downright confounding refereeing.

See you in the semis.

RCU Return Home; MLS Welcomes an Old Villain

2011-07-07T10:13:00.005-05:00

Rocket City Faces Jacksonville United in Homecoming Match

Rocket City United will finally return home this Saturday after a three game road trip to play their last two games in front of their home fans. After last weekend's disappointing loss to Atlanta, RCU can no longer win the region. Gerry Cleary is adamant, however, that these last two games will not be used to run-out young players.

“We’re not running out, we’re still going to stick to the same team,” he said. “Stay with our philosophy and do something we haven’t done all season which is win at home.”

They will face Jacksonville United on the 9th, a team they beat 3-1 earlier this season. RCU will hope to repeat that result, but it won't be easy with JUFC on a four game win streak.

Toronto Brings in Two DPs
Toronto has bought two designated players in an attempt to revitalize their less-than-stellar season. One of them is German international Torsten Frings, who US fans are sure to remember for his infamous handball in the 2002 World Cup quarterfinal. Frings comes in alongside striker Danny Koevermans in a move that Toronto are hoping can help them push for a playoff spot.

Never hurts to have some quality villains in the league, and US fans have long memories.

Rocket City Falls 1-0 in Atlanta

2011-07-03T19:38:00.004-05:00

Penalty Kick Sinks RCU, Cleary Questions Commitment
United played their final road game of the season last night, falling 1-0 on an Atlanta penalty just before halftime. RCU had a spot kick of their own earlier, but Kenniel Hyde was unable to beat the Atlanta goalkeeper. Gerry Cleary felt that his side played well, especially considering that he only had 14 players to choose from. "We were playing an injured player at center back, a center midfielder at right fullback," he said, "it was strange."

Cleary expects that the final two games of the season will be less about giving young players run-outs and more about determining who will stay and who will go for next season. "We’ve just got to see who comes to training. We’re lacking commitment right now at this part of the season and we just need to see who’s committed to Rocket City and we’ve got to take notes for next season."

RCU Travel to Atlanta; Copa America on YouTube

2011-07-01T14:27:00.007-05:00

Rocket City United return to Atlanta
After bagging their first win in the last five games against the Georgia Revolution, RCU travel back to Atlanta this weekend to face the Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves. ATL handed United a heartbreaking loss at home in their last meeting, so the visitors will be hungry to return the favor on Saturday. Rocket City will be doubly motivated as a victory would lift them to third place in the region, giving them a chance, albeit a slim one, to salvage something from a trying season.

YouTube to Broadcast Copa America 2011 to Over 50 Countries

The Copa America kicks off tonight with Argentina taking on Bolivia. The tournament can be difficult for American viewers to see, but no worries. YouTube will be broadcasting every game of the tournament to over 50 countries on their Copa America page: www.youtube.com/copaamerica. Watch to see if Argentina literally explodes from their wealth of attacking talent. Leo Messi, Carlos Tevez, Sergio Aguero, Gonzalo Higuain, Diego Milito, and Angel Di Maria...3-1-6 anyone?

On Vacation

2011-06-27T11:17:00.002-05:00

I'll be away on vacation and won't be posting for a few weeks. Take care all!

RCU Away to Georgia; American Outlaws Huntsville Become Official

2011-06-24T19:36:00.002-05:00

RCU Travel To Meet NPSL SE Surprise Georgia Revolution

Rocket City United will be looking to change the tenor of their season and build toward the future in this weekend's match away to NPSL Southeast region newcomer Georgia Revolution. GAR have been the surprise of the region topping the table for several weeks and now sit in second with 11 points. While not mathematically eliminated, RCU is essentially eliminated from contention for the NSPL Southeast region title. As a result, RCU is expected to use the remaining matches of the season to build confidence and experience for its younger players.

Local American Outlaws Chapter Becomes Official

The hard work and enthusiasm of its founding member Andrew Adams has its rewards as Huntsville has been granted an official chapter of the American Outlaws. It was announced Thursday AOHA has become the 55th AO chapter in the US. The Brickhouse Sports Cafe will server as the club's local bar to view all the US matches, including Saturday's Gold Cup final (Gametime is 7:30 PM). Drink and food specials will greet chapter members.

Gold Cup Final: USA v Mexico Watch Party at Brickhouse on Saturday

2011-06-23T20:23:00.001-05:00

Gold Cup Final Watch Party at Brickhouse

The Gold Cup Semifinal watch party last Wednesday night was a huge success. The place was standing room only; songs were sung; the ubiquitous U-S-A, U-S-A chant rang out; and most importantly the US won.

Gold Cup Semis USA 1 0 Panama AO-Huntsville at the Brickhouse

USA vs Mexico is the final everyone wanted and that's what we got. So now, join the American Outlaws - Huntsville for the Gold Cup Final watch party at the Brickhouse Sports Cafe on Saturday night at 8PM. It's bound to be a classic.

Another RCU Loss to CFC, USA v Jamaica Watch Party at the Brickhouse on Sunday

2011-06-18T20:00:00.005-05:00

RCU Loses to CFC Again

They say "the third time's a charm", but that wasn't the case for Rocket City United as they fell to Chattanooga FC by the same 2:0 scoreline for the third time in 4 weeks. Goals from CFC's Mark Sharrod and Chris Ochieng sealed the three points for the Blues while torpedoing RCU's chance to play in the NPSL Championship in Madison at the end of July.

Gold Cup Quarterfinal: USA v Jamaica Watch Party at Brickhouse

The US Men's National Team's form hasn't been very good, but that is not for lack of support from the American Outlaws, and the local would-be Huntsville chapter has been stellar in that regard. They have had terrific crowds for each of the three first round matches, and are hosting another watch party for the Gold Cup Quarterfinal match between the USMNT and Jamaica at the Brickhouse Sports Cafe on Sunday at 1:30PM. Come out and join us and bring your father, too!

RCU at CFC, CFC Fall In US Open Cup, My New Favorite Writers

2011-06-16T20:36:00.003-05:00

RCU Try To Be First To Win At CFC Since 09

Rocket City United have had a strange season so far. Undefeated on the road and winless at home (2-3), RCU will try to keep that undefeated part going this Saturday at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga. RCU will have to overcome inconsistent play if they want to be the first team in years to come out of Finley with three points. The team has looked disjointed at times, perhaps due to the revolving lineups as players have joined the squad late. I spoke to RCU veteran Brian Hadley who is the ranking player on the roster, having been with the team since 2008. He's optimistic that the team will come together soon.

Longtime RCU player Brian Hadley

CFC Can't Hold On To Lead, Fall in OT

Chattanooga FC may be a little tired for this weekend's match with RCU after they bused around 24 hours to and from Pittsburgh and played 120 minutes before falling 3:2 in the US Open Cup match on Tuesday. CFC held a 2:0 lead with about 30 minutes left to play, but gave up two goals late and one in overtime to lose 3:2 to the USL Pro's Riverhounds. Only one of the four NPSL teams in the tournament survived the first round as the Madison 56ers beat USASA team AAC Eagles 4:0.

Writers Rip US team, Becomes My Hero

We all know the US team has played terribly in the past two weeks. This AP writer gives it to us straight saying Clint Dempsey failed to finish a chance "a third grader should make". NICE! She's not the only one criticizing the US team. This writer compares coach Bob Bradley to George Lucas, and if you've seen Episodes 1-3, you know that's not a compliment.

CFC at Pittsburgh in US Open Cup, Hassli Golazo!, Alaska Airline Commercial

2011-06-13T17:35:00.020-05:00

CFC travel to Pittsburgh Riverhounds in Round 1 of US Open Cup

The NPSL Southeast Region's representative in the US Open Cup, Chattanooga FC will travel to Pittsburgh to take on the USL-Pro (3rd division) Riverhounds on Tuesday night. We spoke with CFC's coach Brian Crossman about the rigors of the Open Cup match midweek between two NPSL matches against Rocket City United.

CFC Coach Brian Crossman on the US Open Cup Match vs Pittsburg

Golazo-azo-azo-azooooooooo!

Vancouver's Eric Hassli is perhaps more famous for his tendency to attract red cards, but it's that chip on his shoulder that led him to attempt and score with this strike. Un-real!

Portland Coach Stars in Alaska Airline Commercial

This commercial staring the Portland Timber's Scottish Coach John Spencer tickles me. Enjoy!

Soccer Book Review: Brian Boyd on "Bloody Confused" by Chuck Culpepper

2011-06-13T05:37:00.000-05:00

We at the PWT-blog don't just sit around and watch soccer all day. We're more refined than that. We also read about soccer, and today, I present to you friend of the PWT-blog Brian Boyd's review of the Chuck Culpepper soccer book called "Bloody Confused! A Clueless American Sportswriter Seeks Solace in English Soccer".

I just finished reading "Bloody Confused!" and as a fan of soccer and the English Premier League it is both entertaining and informative. Chuck Culpepper decides that in the 2006 / 2007 season he is going to follow one team in the English Premier League as a fan. He chooses Portsmouth FC that plays in Fratton Park.

He describes so well for us the highs and lows that true soccer converts feel as they follow their team. For example, Portsmouth in this season remains highly ranked all year and can move up with a win over Fulham FC in Craven Cottage. Portsmouth goes up 1 - 0 on an early goal and Chuck describes the agony of watching your team hang on minute by minute through the second half as the home team pounds your goal. He writes, "We even made it to ninety minutes, and through a good bit of the four minutes of added time. Added time had begun at 4:51pm, but I couldn't be sure how many seconds had passed within that minute, so I felt confused. I reached the point where you think just one or two more solid defensive plays might finish off matters."

Fulham nets a goal in the waning seconds of added time tying the score. The Portsmouth faithful feel as if they lost 3 - 0 and despair sets in. After games like this one, they end up drinking enough beer in a pub to "numb a yak".

The next week Portsmouth plays Manchester United, who is vying for the title, at Fratton Park. Portsmouth again goes up 1 - 0 early in the game and again agony sets in. Then in the 88th minute, Rio Ferdinand of Manchester United passes back to goalie Edwin van der Saar and somehow the ball rolls and rolls and rolls and ends up in the net. Chuck describes it as being in slow motion and somehow shock registered throughout Fratton Park. He writes "So as Fratton Park palpably went from this moment of vague confusion to this moment of grand realization, and as the realization seemed to spend a lagging second creeping up the rows and across the sections and into the top corners and the wigs and the drummers and the buglers and at least one blue bear, and as I began to absorb the truth probably another second after everybody else, something happened to me that I would not confess to just anybody. I cried. I hopped and hopped in disbelief, and the tears rolled."

Any true convert to soccer has experienced the highs (elation) and lows (depression) that accompanies the wins, draws, and losses of your team.

If you want to find out what is being sung in some of the songs, what the fans think of the center referee, how you buy tickets, how you travel to and from games, what watching from an English Pub is like, and much more, then this book is for you.

"After a year following the biggest league on earth, I may know a little about a little and not much about much, but I do know one thing. I think it's hard to be a fan."

Enjoy!!

RCU Drop Another Heartbreaker To CFC 2:0

2011-06-12T14:06:00.003-05:00

It's a script we've become used to around the Madison City Schools Stadium. Rocket City United play well enough to win, but after 90 minutes come away with zero points. This time losing 2:0 to Chattanooga FC.

This time it was at the hands of Chattanooga FC who weathered the pressure from RCU for 80 plus minutes and found a nicely created goal against the run of play. In the 83rd minute, CFC forward Chris Ochieng received a pass in the area, and realizing he was well marked, spun quickly to slide a pass for an on rushing and unmarked Michael Brooks. Brooks took his time and slotted home to take the wind out of RCU's sails. Then, deep into added time, it was Brooks earned his brace and sealed the match for CFC with another nice finish.

Coaches Quotes from RCU loss to CFC

Now, RCU has to go on the road next Saturday against the same CFC team. They'll have to show real mental fortitude to win in Finley Stadium, where no NPSL team has won since 2009.

RCU v CFC, Greg Petersen Update, AOHA US v Panama Watch Party, Book Review

2011-06-11T06:47:00.029-05:00

RCU Host CFC Saturday Night

Rocket City United will be hosting defending NPSL Southeast Region champions Chattanooga FC on Saturday night. The teams are familiar with each other after CFC beat RCU 2:0 in the US Open Cup qualifying tournament 2 weeks ago. Coming off the heart breaking, soul sucking, gut wrenching loss to Atlanta last week, this match is huge for RCU. The team is 0-2 at home and needs to get a win in the Madison City Schools Stadium Saturday to have any chance of winning the region and the spot in the NPSL championships which is also being held at in Madison. Expect a fairly large amount of traveling fans from Chattanooga to provide some atmosphere that has been somewhat lacking at the MCSS this season.

Former RCU Coach Finds Home in Plant City FC

Former Rocket City United coach Greg Petersen has been hired as Technical Director by Plant City FC outside of Tampa, FL. Petersen who has been a strong critic of US youth soccer in the past was impressed with the community involvement in the club, and sees this as an opportunity to play his part in changing the youth soccer culture. "Ultimately, I see this as the ideal opportunity to really establish a proper club in the U.S., a club in the European style, where the Club is the focal point of the whole community. "

AOHA US v Panama Watch Party at Brickhouse

The second of three US Gold Cup group matches will be against Panama on Saturday night and the American Outlaws-Huntsville will be hosting another watch party at the Brickhouse. The game starts at 7PM and the fun lasts all night.

RCU and Beer News

2011-06-10T06:53:00.000-05:00

RCU Reserves in Action Wednesday

The Rocket City United reserve squad saw action Wednesday night as they traveled down to Birmingham to take on Birmingham United Soccer Association's U-19 squad. BUSA is a member of the US Soccer Development Academy and provided stiff opposition for RCU. Huntsville native Alex Clay scored the first goal for BUSA. RCU Kyle Simmons looked good for RCU and added a goal to his tally and despite good play from RCU, BUSA would prevail 2:1 on a late goal from Cristos Noisiadis. Director of Operations Jan Henner was happy with the play overall. "It was good. We were able to get a run out against very good competition and we were able to draw some conclusions on a few things."

Saturday Is Youth Night

Remember that Saturday is Youth Night at RCU's home match against rival Chattanooga FC. All kids wearing their youth soccer jerseys get in for FREE!

Brewery Modernization Act Signed Into Law

As a Free the Hops member I'm proud to report that beer lovers across the state of Alabama can rejoice as another bill designed to update the antiquated restrictions on brewing and selling beer was signed into law by the governor today. The Brewery Modernization Act will allow breweries to have tap rooms and tours. It will also allow Brewpubs to sell the beer they brew outside of their location. As the man from the Redstripe commercial says, "Hooray, Beer!"

Soccer Bar Review: The Brickhouse Sports Cafe

2011-06-08T20:39:00.002-05:00

It's been a while since I've done a Soccer Bar Review. Honestly, I'd gotten kind of turned off on doing the reviews because it didn't seem worth the effort. Often, the places that I went to were just not really interested in being a soccer bar. Or the places that were reviewed went out of business a few months after I posted the review.

Well, hopefully we've found a place that can surpass expectations in the Brickhouse Sports Cafe. Located in the Village of Providence, the Brickhouse is a sports bar with a nice beer selection, lots of TVs and pretty good food. It's a major plus that the Brickhouse has embraced the soccer community. It has been selected by the Hunstville Chapter of the American Outlaws as its home bar, and Rocket City United can be seen there eating their pregame meals when they are at home on Saturday nights.

Since it's been so long since I've done a Soccer Bar Review, you may have forgotten the criteria that I use to produce the rating. If so, check it out here. I visited the Brickhouse three times to watch the UEFA Champions League Final, the recent USA v Spain friendly, and the first US match in the Gold Cup against Canada. So, let's get down to the nitty-gritty of the review.

TVs
The Brickhouse has plenty of TVs. The bar itself has three TV above the beer taps, and many others around the bar area. The dining room has a TV for nearly every table. They have a satellite TV system and get the typical soccer channels. They are also capable of ordering pay-per-view events (like the USA at Honduras World Cup Qualifying match in '09).

Soccer Priority
The Brickhouse is a sports bar, and so, it caters to sports fans and understands that fans can get rowdy. I've heard chanting and singing a few games and the staff didn't bat an eye. BTW, the bar area has really great acoustics and our chants and songs sounded really, really loud. The USA v Canada match went head to head with Game 4 of the NBA Finals, but the priority was definitely given to the USA v Canada game. I'd say there 70% of the TVs had the US game while the remainder was split between NBA and various baseball games.

Beer
Soccer and beer go hand in hand. The Brickhouse recognizes that fact and have a good selection of beers on tap including local brews Straight to Ale and Bluepants (I am a little disappointed in the lack of Guinness). The beer is moderately priced, and there will be drink specials during all US Men's National Team games.

Food
I've had three meals at the Brickhouse and have enjoyed all three. I'm not a finicky eater, but they do seem to have a large selection to choose from at moderate prices.

Ambiance
The Brickhouse is a sports bar that has a pub type feel. There is plenty of sports banners and memorabilia (SEC banners, Huntsville Havoc jerseys, Golf photos, etc), but sadly no soccer gear on display. That may be remedied soon as I've been told that they will be hanging an American Outlaws banner soon. I like the fact that they focus on a set of clientele that are focused on watching the game with their pals without any gimmicks (a la skimpily clad bimbos, karaoke nights, etc). That type of establishment suits the soccer fan nicely.

The Rating

Brickhouse: 3 and 1/2 Soccer Balls

So, all tolled the Brickhouse is a sports pub that serves the needs of soccer fans better than any other place in town. The only thing that prevents me from rating them a full four soccer balls is the general sports bar theme with no visible recognition of soccer. I do think the Brickhouse has the potential to turn into a terrific soccer bar if they expand their hours to include morning matches, and cater directly to the soccer fans that are willing to patronize their bar, for example, an EPL keg and eggs special.

AOHA Gold Cup Watch Party: USA v Canada at the Brickhouse

2011-06-06T20:27:00.000-05:00

The Huntsville Chapter of the American Outlaws are at it again. They'll be having Gold Cup watch parties for all of the US matches in the Gold Cup starting Tuesday night at 7PM at the Brickhouse Sports Cafe.

Here's the US Gold Cup schedule:

Date, Opponent, Kickoff Time,

Tuesday June 7, Canada, 7 p.m.

Saturday June 11, Panama, 7 p.m.

Tuesday June 14, Guadeloupe 8 p.m.

Sat/Sun June 18/19, Quarterfinal, TBD

Wednesday June 22, Semifinal, TBD

June 25, Final, TBD

The US is a favorite to make it to the final. So, there will be plenty of chances to join the AOHAs at the Brickhouse for a game. So, mark your calendar.

If you're still on the fence about joining the American Outlaws, here's a brief interview with the man behind the Huntsville Chapter, Andrew Adams.

Andrew Adams- American Outlaws of Huntsville, AL

RCU Fail To Hold Late Lead, Lose to Atlanta

2011-06-05T22:25:00.004-05:00

It is said soccer can be a cruel game. Rocket City United found out just how true the saying is on Saturday night in the Madison City Schools Stadium. Holding a late 1:0 on a goal from newcomer Fatai Alabi, and with reports filtering into the stadium that the other NPSL Southeast Region matches had ended favorably for them, RCU needed only to see out the remaining few minutes of their match against the Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves to see themselves alone at the top of the table. However, any hopes of first place in the region faded as a poor defensive effort led to the first ASR goal. As RCU pushed for a goal to regain the lead, a busted defensive assignment on a set piece led to the second ASR goal late into added time and a gut wrenching 2:1 loss for RCU.

RCU Coach Gerry Cleary After Loss to ASR

Winless at home, RCU will now have to regroup quickly as the defending region champions Chattanooga FC come to town next Saturday in what turns out to be a must win for both teams.

RCU Host Atlanta on Saturday

2011-06-02T20:52:00.000-05:00

Rocket City United will attempt to get their first home win of the year on Saturday against the Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves. Head coach Gerry Cleary will be missing some first teamers in Kenniel Hyde who is out with a hamstring injury and Brian Kimbugwe who will be getting married.

RCU Coach Gerry Cleary

AOHA USA v Spain Watch Party at Brickhouse

2011-06-02T20:34:00.002-05:00

The group of rabid soccer fans who are attempting to start an official American Outlaws in Huntsville are getting together at the Brickhouse Sports Cafe on Saturday to watch the USA v Spain match at 3:30PM.

The watch party is open to all, and AOHA officers will be there to help register new members. The group is just a few members away from the minimum necessary to be officially designated as the 55th AO chapter in the country and the first from Alabama.

USMNT Studio 90

The US faces the World Champions as a warm up to the Gold Cup beginning on Tuesday against Canada. I think it will be very interesting to see who steps on the field against Spain and who is rested for the main event next Tuesday.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

2011-06-02T15:29:00.001-05:00

The World Cup in 11 years from now will be played in temperatures 20-25 degrees hotter than it is outside in Huntsville today (for those not in H'ville, it was a high of 100 degrees).

Give that some thought...

Now tell me they didn't buy the World Cup 2022.

RCU Recap; CFC Into US Open Cup, Will Face Pittsburg Riverhounds; Worst Miss Ever?

2011-06-01T20:23:00.003-05:00

RCU Back From Open Cup, Focus on League

After a weekend testing their mettle in Open Cup qualifying, Rocket City United turns its focus back to league play where they sit in third place with 7 points after 4 matches. Their opponents this Saturday will be the Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves who currently trail RCU by one point, despite playing an extra match. Gates open 6:30 PM and kick off is 7:30. Members of the YMCA get in for half off!

RCU will host a meet the team event at the Little Gym in Providence and Jones Valley on Friday at 4-6PM.

CFC Qualifies for US Open Cup

Chattanooga FC qualified for the US Open Cup by beating the Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves 1:0 in the finals of the NPSL Southeast Region qualifying tournament. CFC will now travel to Pittsburgh to face the USL Pro's Riverhounds (who I saw play last month in Charleston) in the opening round of the US Open Cup on June 14th. If CFC should pull off the upset, they would take on the winner of the Dayton Dutch Lions vs Richmond Kickers match in the 2nd round.

Worst Miss Ever?!

Holy moly! I've seen (and had) bad misses before. But this miss is so bad!!!

RCU Falls To Chattanooga FC In USOC Qualifying

2011-05-29T10:17:00.003-05:00

Saturday was not a good day for teams wearing red and black. While Rocket City United weren't dominated in quite the same way their more famous United team were, both went down to superior sides. CFC's star forward, Chris Ochieng, created one goal and finished the other. And it could have been much worse as Tyler Early had a terrific match keeping CFC off the board for the first two thirds of the match.

RCU failed to generate much in the way of possession and attacking penetration and were punished by a 2:0 defeat and elimination from NPSL Southeast Region's US Open Cup Qualifying Tournament. CFC will meet the Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves in the Finals Sunday night. ASR defeated Jacksonville United 3:1 on two very late goals.

RCU Blows Out FC Tulsa In USOC Opener

2011-05-27T23:17:00.004-05:00

Rocket City United couldn't stop scoring Friday night in Chattanooga as they crushed FC Tulsa 7:1 in the NPSL Southeast Region's US Open Cup Qualifying Tournament opener. The win sets up Saturday night's 8 PM (7 PM Central) match with host Chattanooga FC in the tournament semifinals. I'll be tweeting updates of the match. Follow me @ryanogol.

RCU forward Kenniel Hyde opened the scoring early with a classy slotted finish, and he wouldn't stop there. After pouncing on a bobbled ball from the Tulsa goalkeeper, he finished into the open net to make it 2:0. Minutes later FC Tulsa briefly made it interesting by scoring against the run of play on a counterattack. However, RCU deliverd the knockout blow within seconds of the ensuing kickoff and it was Hyde who completed his first half hat trick.

USOC Qualifying: RCU v FC Tulsa

The second half was a glorified training session as RCU ran out several subs. The substitutes would not take the foot off the gas, however. Andrew Nkurunungi came off the bench to score a break away goal in the 59th minute. Hyde then scored his fourth goal of the night and was immediately subbed off. Shortly thereafter, Hyde's replacement Marco Nunez was hauled down by a Tulsa defender who was sent off for the action. Nunez converted the spot kick himself. The carnage wasn't over as center back Joseph Omondi got into the action with a long distance bomb to make it 7:1 shortly before the final whistle. When it was all tallied up, RCU had set team records for goals scored and largest margin of victory.

In the night's other match, Jacksonville United defeated the Knoxville Force 1:0 to set up Saturday night's early match against the Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves.

FIFA Implodes, Time for a Name Change?

2011-05-27T16:37:00.001-05:00

Everyone at FIFA is under investigation. At least it seems that way. Asian Federation President Mohamed Bin Hammam, CONCACAF President Jack Warner, and even FIFA President Sepp Blatter are under investigation by the ethics committee. Bin Hammam and Warner for paying/getting paid for votes, Blatter for knowing about said payments and not telling the ethics committee about it.

Warner, Bin Hammam, and Blatter in FIFA's Reservoir Dogs

It reminds me of the penultimate scene in Reservoir Dogs (I know it was a rip off of some Hong Kong action flick, but I've never seen it and don't really care.) where three of the main characters face off with guns pointed at each other. In the end, they all get theirs.

Now, the scheduled election for FIFA President between Bin Hammam and Blatter may be postponed. This is freaking circus!

By now, you're probably tired of hearing my griping about FIFA corruption. You can go to all the usual soccer sites to read more if you'd like. But recent events have forced me understand that significant change is order for FIFA.

So, with that in mind, I submit my proposal to change the name of FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football Association) to one of the following:

Federation of Incompetent Football Administrators
Football Is Fleeced Absolutely
Freedom In Funding Affluence (of Executive Committee Members)
Fatcats Instituting Fraud Abundantly
Federation of Incriminated Fraudsters All
Fools In From the Asylum
Feels Insult From Accusations
Faces Indictments For Absurdities
Federation of Infant Football Assemblers (see child labor scandal of a few years back)
Fraternity of International Filching Artists

Feel free to add your name changes in the comments.

UPDATE: Bin Hammam has quit his bid for FIFA President. Claims he's putting the game before his personal ambition. Whatever...

Champions League Final Viewing: Brickhouse Sports Cafe

2011-05-26T20:48:00.000-05:00

This year's Champions League Final between Manchester United and Barcelona is one of the most anticipated matches in recent years. This is a perfect time to get together with fellow soccer heads to enjoy the beautiful game together. So, where are you gonna watch it?

There is one group of dedicated fans who will be gathering at the Brickhouse Sports Cafe in Providence. The game starts at 1PM and all are welcome to join them. I have a family commitment that may keep me from joining them, but expect a soccer bar review of the Brickhouse next week.

HUGE SOCCER WEEKEND!!! US OPEN Cup and Champions League

2011-05-25T20:33:00.000-05:00

This weekend will be a huge weekend for soccer in the Tennessee Valley. There are two high quality US Open Cup Qualifying tournaments within a two hour drive from Huntsville and a dream match up in the Champions League Final on TV.

US Open Cup Weekend in NPSL SE Region

The NPSL Southeast Region season will take a break for the week to focus on determining a qualifier for the US Open Cup tournament. The NPSL has been given four automatic spots in the nearly one hundred year old knockout tournament. Previously, each NPSL club had to qualify out of its USASA region to gain entry to the tournament (see next section). Each NPSL region has been given free reign to decide how to determine its qualifier with the Southeast Region electing to hold a mini-tournament over the Memorial Day weekend at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga. Here's the schedule of games.

All times Eastern
Friday, 5:30 PM Knoxville Force v Jacksonville United
Friday, 8:00PM Rocket City United v FC Tulsa
Saturday, 5:30 PM Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves v Winner Friday 5:30 PM Game
Saturday, 8:00 PM Chattanooga FC v Winner Friday 8:00 PM Game
Sunday, 7:00 PM Winner Saturday 5:30 PM Game v Winner Saturday 8:00 PM Game

Tickets are available for $5 per game or $15 for all 5 games. At this price, it's well worth the short drive up to Chattanooga.

USASA Region III US Open Cup Qualyfying in Tuscaloosa

Of course, if you wanted to drive in the other direction, you could catch some pretty good soccer in Tuscaloosa this weekend, too. The US Amateur Soccer Association Region III will be holding its tournament over Memorial Day weekend, too. Eight teams from six states (but none from Alabama) will compete for two slots in the US Open Cup. The schedule will be published on Thursday night from a blind draw in Tuscaloosa. Until the NPSL was granted the 4 automatic berths this year, the Region III tournament was the route teams like RCU would take to attempt to qualify.

Champions League Final on FOX!!!

Oh! BTW, there's a little soccer match on TV, too. Manchester United doesn't often find themselves the underdog, but that's what they are in this match against Barcelona. The game will be shown on FOX54. That's right! For the second year in the row, the UEFA Champions League will be shown over the air on FOX in America. The broadcast starts a 1PM with the kickoff at 1:45PM. If I hear of any watch parties, I'll let you all know.

RCU Victorious Over Struggling Jacksonville United

2011-05-21T20:20:00.003-05:00

After going behind in the first ten minutes for the second game in a row, Rocket City United (2W-0D-1L) fought back to score three unanswered goals to defeat the winless Jacksonville United FC (0-0-4). Two goals by debutante Kenniel Hyde and a third by super-sub Freddy Okello where enough to make the long ride home a happy one for RCU. The three points bring RCU's total to six and enough to guarantee them third place in the table after this weekend's action is tallied.

In the rest of the NPSL Southeast, it was a weekend of derbies. The I-75 Derby saw Chattanooga FC (2-1-0) remain on top of the table by defeating the visiting Knoxville Force (1-0-2) 1:0. On Friday night in the first of two weekend matches between the two Atlanta teams, the Georgia Revolution (2-0-0) traveled east to upend the Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves (1-1-1) 3:2. The same two teams will step on the field in Conyers in the Atlanta Derby rematch on Sunday.

RCU At Jacksonville Saturday, Closer Look At The Knoxville Force, and Rocket City Futsal

2011-05-20T18:57:00.001-05:00

RCU Play Away to Jacksonville United Saturday Night

Rocket City United boarded the bus for the 12 hour trip to Jacksonville at 5AM Friday morning. Following the trek, Coach Gerry Cleary's club has the unenviable task of taking on Jacksonville United at their inaugural home match. RCU (1W-0D-1L, 3 pts) is smarting from the unexpected home defeat to Knoxville and are sitting mid-table in the NPSL Southeast region. Meanwhile, their opponents JAXU (0-0-3, 0 pts) are struggling at the bottom of the table, having opened their season with three losses on the road.

Knoxville Soccer Team Trying to "Force" Its Way Into Relevance

Forgive me the silly pun, but you have to admit that name of the newest NPSL Team in Knoxville is not the greatest. Anyway, Cari Wade Gervin of the Knoxville Metro Pulse wrote a terrific article about the expansion team that traded home defeats with RCU in the first two weeks of the season. If you have a few minutes, it's well worth the read.

Rocket City Futsal To Start League in July

The new futsal court in McGucken Park in Southeast Huntsville is the home of Rocket City Futsal. The new small sided league began earlier this year and fields teams of all age groups.

If you've never played Futsal, the game is much more technical than the smash and run game typically played in a hockey-like field in America. It's played on a field, or court really, roughly the size of a basketball court with 5 players on a side and no walls. It can be played outdoor or indoor and is a great way to learn control and touch for young players.

RCF is registering teams and individual players, sign up here.

American Outlaws in Huntsville, Rocket City Invitational

2011-05-18T20:14:00.001-05:00

American Outlaws Want You!

The American Outlaws, a supporters group for the US Men's National Team started in 2007 by some soccer buddies in Lincoln, Nebraska, are looking to expand to the Rocket City. AO member Andrew Adams is looking to organize the new chapter in Huntsville and needs 25 paid members to become official.

The chapter will gather for USMNT viewing parties at the AO's home bar, organize trips to USMNT games, and generally support soccer in the Huntsville area. It will also be the first AO chapter in Alabama. Right now, Andrew has 12 members. I've just signed up, and if you are a fan of US Soccer, you should too!

With your $20 membership fee you get an AO t-shirt and bandana, discounted tickets for USMNT games, flight discounts on Continental airlines to any US Soccer game, even games in other countries.
Join now through the AO Membership page.

Rocket City Invitational Announced

The Rocket City Invitational 6-aside tournament is back. The 2011 version will be held at Dublin Park on the weekend of July 23-24. Southern Soccer is going all out once again to provide the best tournament possible including several divisions for all skill levels, on site massage and mist tent. Register your team now.

Guest Post: Random Musings on RCU Home Opener By Chris Shaffer

2011-05-17T21:44:00.003-05:00

Friend of the PWT-blog Chris Shaffer casts his critical eye on the RCU loss to the Knoxville Force on Saturday night. Enjoy!

RCU aficionado Chris Shaffer

RCU now stands at one win and one loss, both vs. the expansion Knoxville club (Storm, Force, help me out here (It's the Force, Chris. Knoxville Force, forgettable name. I agree.), and the real meat of the season yet to come. That the loss to Knoxville came in Huntsville raises some questions.

We must bear in mind that the team is literally still coming together, with veterans of the 2009 championship season Joseph Omondi and Fredy “The Kenyan Quasar” Okello arriving in town this week.

I don’t know what to expect in terms of other players joining the squad in the next week or two, but a few things seemed obvious as I sat next to speedy winger Sutton Shults during the second half. Sutton goes under the knife Tuesday and may return in a month:

• RCU lacks speed on the wings. Please don’t tell me this also because Paul Willoughby is injured, as I highly doubt PW would play for RCU this season were he healthy. Remember last year’s press release “Willoughby Signs on for2010 Season.” Sure.

• RCU lacks a bonafide central distributing midfielder. Last season, the whole game plan centered on the gifted Lexi Munro, a real #10 in the sense of a Riquelme or Zidane. This year there’s a gaping hole there.

On the positive side

• Jason Sabio’s return to central defense, and Joseph Omondi’s ability to play there or at holding midfield should be a vast improvement over last year’s back line.

• Gifted left-sided player and this year’s captain Jacob Letsholo has returned. Unfortunately, if he plays on the left wing in mf, we lack speed and at left back.

RCU Ironman Brian Hadley

• Brian Hadley is back and, now starting at forward, has actually played every position except ‘keeper for RCU. Why he’s not playing right back, central defender or even holding mf, I don’t know.

• There was only one 1st half substitution not due to injury.

• The return of Andrew Nkurunungi, which I probably spelled incorrectly, is a plus. He just knows how to score, period. If that doesn’t work, he knows a few quality swimming pool maneuvers too.

• Brian Kimbugwe is a solid player in mf.

Tell Me Why??????

Why does RCU expend time and resources signing out of town goalkeepers when we have two outstanding, experienced ‘keepers here already in Tyler Earley and Jeffrey Preston. These guys are veterans of US Open Cups and NPSL Final Fours. We don’t need a carpetbagger for this. Shades of last year. On Saturday, the winning goal for Knoxville was scored when the RCU ‘keeper came off his line, failed to get a touch on the ball, and was beaten by a headed chip. This shouldn’t happen. OK, I said it.

Why does RCU not have a home field advantage? Aside from silent, lethargic fans, because, instead of painting lines on the field that would allow both benches and the 4th official on the same side as the fans, they either don’t think about it or just take what’s given them. There’s plenty of space on either sideline to do this AND the pitch, unlike last year, is in decent condition. Chattanooga gets a lot of mileage out of having the visitor’s bench directly beneath the fans. Plus, why should the visiting team get the short walk to the locker room while our boys trudge across the field at halftime to get to theirs? Furthermore, it would make the press box volunteers jobs a whole lot easier.

Finally, last year’s “experiment” with Desmond Armstrong set the club back. It caused dissension in the ranks and destroyed good players’ confidence. RCU is on the right track and they deserve your support now more than ever. The bus trip to Knoxville was just the sort of idea to inspire a real, rabid following. Kudos to whomever came up with that. Now we need some songs, and someone other that Chattanooga fans tailgating in our parking lot.

RCU Drops Home Opener to Knoxville

2011-05-16T21:09:00.000-05:00

To say Rocket City United started slowly Saturday night would be an understatement. After just 10 minutes, Knoxville had taken advantage of two defensive mistakes to go up 2:0. It took another 30 minutes to make a dent in the Force lead when Freddy Okello slotted a goal to bring the Rockets back into within one, but that's as close as it would get. Despite better play in the second half, RCU couldn't break down the bunkering Knoxville defense, and RCU dropped three points, 2:1.

Postgame Quotes

RCU Soccerfest Thursday Night, NPSL News, Southern Pro Teams

2011-05-16T19:46:00.000-05:00

RCU Soccerfest at Madison YMCA Thursday Night

Rocket City United is kicking off its season by holding a Soccerfest at the Madison YMCA Thursday night from 5-7PM. Fans will be able to meet players, staff, and the team's mascot, Rocky! The Soccerfest was originally scheduled for April 28, but was rescheduled due to the recent tornadoes.

RCU hosts its home opener on Saturday night at 7:30PM. They'll be taking on the Knoxville Force, who they beat 2:0 last week.

RCU, CFC, and ASR Featured in Article on Southern Pro Soccer

Believe in US Soccer has written a nice article on pro soccer in the southern US and includes profiles of the NPSL Southeast Region teams along with other pro teams from the south. Staff from RCU, Chattanooga FC, and Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves are interviewed for the feature.

NPSL West Leaders Penalized for Fielding Ineligible Player

The NPSL West Region's top team, the San Diego Flash, has been sanctioned for fielding an ineligible player in two matches. The league has ordered the Flash to forfeited both games in which the player took part. Those games against the Hollywood Hitmen and Bay Area Ambassadors will be recorded as 3:0 losses by the Flash. The Flash, who were 6-0-0 before the sanctions, now sit second in the Southwest conference. These sanctions hurt doubly as the NPSL West Region uses their regular season results in the first seven games to determine their qualifier for the US Open Cup. As a result, the Hollywood Hitmen have qualified with a 7-0-0 record. No other team can catch them.

Behind the Scenes: Knoxville Force v Rocket City United

2011-05-10T17:03:00.003-05:00

Here's a video I put together of the trip up to Knoxville for the RCU season opener. Enjoy!

Behind the Scenes RCU at Knoxville Force

RCU at Knoxville: Post Game Quotes

2011-05-09T18:21:00.040-05:00

Here are some videos from some of the key players and both coaches following the 2:0 win over the Knoxville Force.

First, here's a link to a report on the game from a local Knoxville TV station. It shows both goals.

RCU GK Jeffrey Preston

RCU GK Jeffrey Preston talks about the shutout and his key saves.

RCU Fwd Andrew Nkurunungi

RCU goal scorer Andrew Nkurunungi describes his goals and looks forward to the home opener next week.

RCU Coach Gerry Cleary

RCU coach Gerry Cleary discusses the game and his halftime talk.

Knoxville Force coach Derek Broadley

Knoxville Force coach Derek Broadley on the game and his team's effort despite the loss.

RCU beats Knoxville in Season Opener

2011-05-09T05:56:00.004-05:00

Sorry it took so long to post this. Yesterday was Mother's Day and soccer was put on the back burner for the day.

Rocket City United went on the road Saturday night to face expansion side Knoxville Force. It was the Force's inaugural match and a large crowd of nearly 1,200 were disappointed by the 2:0 victory for the visitors. Andrew Nkurunungi scored two good goals just before halftime to give RCU all it needed to secure the three points. Knoxville stepped up the pressure early in the second half, but RCU weathered the storm with some nice saves from goalkeeper Jeffrey Preston. RCU then successfully killed the game with good possessional play. Full game reports can be found here and here.

I'll have more on the match later.

RCU Open Season, NPSL News, and FOX Soccer Night In America

2011-05-06T19:57:00.000-05:00

RCU Open Season in Knoxville On Saturday

Rocket City United hits the road tomorrow to open the 2011 season against one of three new teams in the Southeast Region, the Knoxville Force. The Force will play their inaugural game in University of Tennessee's Regal Stadium. Don't expect a beautiful game during this one. Neither team will be at full strength and each will likely try to grind out a results until their full complement of players arrive in the next few weeks.

Video of RCU Coach Gerry Cleary on the Season Opener vs Knoxville Force

RCU has made seats available on the team bus for fans who would like travel to the game. This is a unique experience in sports and any fan interested should contact Director of Operations Jan Henner for more details.

BTW, here's a nice league-wide season preview from the Wisconsin Soccer Central website.

NPSL In Talks with Jamaica's Premier League Clubs

NPSL Technical Director Matt Driver will participate in the International Alliance Symposium hosted by the Jamiacain Premeier League Clubs Association. "The mission is to have the top U-21 players from both of our leagues have access to different markets, different stages to play on," says Driver. Hmm, I wonder what this is about. A player sharing scheme? An international competition between the leagues?

Chattanooga FC to Host DC United U-23s

Chattanooga FC has announced that they will host the DC United U-23 team at Finley Stadium on July 23rd at 7PM eastern. DCU's U-23 is coached by the legendary Jaime Moreno and features the DC Metro areas top college prospects. The teams met last year at RFK stadium in Washington with the DCU defeating the eventual NPSL Finalists 3:0.

FOX Soccer Night in America

FOX Soccer Channel has rebranded its weekly MLS broadcast into Soccer Night In America, and it will begin with the Portland Timbers v Philadelphia Union match on Friday night at 9PM. Also, as part of the festivities for those without FSC (Hello, Knology customers!!!) MLS is offering access to the 2011 MLS Matchday Live online streaming service for free for all of this weekend's matches.

NPSL Southeast Region Preview

2011-05-05T17:05:00.010-05:00

Three new teams, two returning teams, and one rebranded team... The NPSL Southeast Region has a very new look in 2011. Matches begin this Saturday, May 7th as Jacksonville United travels to Chattanooga FC and the Knoxville Force hosts Rocket City United. The teams will play ten matches home and away to the others with the top team at the end of league play advancing to the NPSL Championships held locally again at the Madison City Schools Stadium.

In this post, I'll preview the teams.

Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves

Original NPSL Southeast team Atlanta FC had been on a downward trend. After winning the inaugural NPSL Southeast title in 2008, Atlanta served as runner up the next season before finishing bottom of the table last season. Then, last winter the team aligned themselves with the new NASL Atlanta Silverbacks pro team to become the Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves. The team will retain one of the most talented coaches in the region with Ricardo Montoya. One of the reasons that AFC found themselves in such troubles last year was the absence of Montoya who was away for much of the season coaching overseas. I fully expect the team to bounce back, find some new great talent, and battle for the regional title this season.

Chattanooga FC

2010 NPSL Runner-up and Southeast Region champion Chattanooga FC will once again be impressive on and off the field. The league's attendance leader has the majority of it's lineup back for the year, but coach Brian Crossman has two big holes to fill. Forward Luis Salazar and goalkeeper Richard Masters have left the club for personal reasons. Expect CFC to once again be in the hunt for a place in the NPSL Championships.

Georgia Revolution

The first of the new additions to the region, the Georgia Revolution hails from Conyers, GA which is an eastern suburb of Atlanta. The team is owned by Rockdale Youth Soccer Association and will look to build a team using players from the many surrounding universities. Eventually the RYSA would like to use the team as a top level in a player development structure from youth teams to pro. Expect the Revs to have some growing pains as they adjust to the competition. Will coach and general manager Rafe Mauran be able to mold the new group into a unit capable of making a dent in the region?

Jacksonville United

The latest expansion team to the join the region is Jacksonville United FC. The team from the Florida coast will draw many players form the successful Lynch's FC club and have added some former professional talent to their roster. Expect JUFC to use the experience gathered from the Lynch's FC club to smooth some of the hurdles most expansion teams face.

Knoxville Force

Another expansion club who will look to make an impact on the region is the Knoxville Force. Experienced coach Derek Broadly would like his team to play "passing football" and will build a team with an eye to that end. The top talent form Eastern Tennessee will fill the roster, and will be tested on Saturday when they host the region's opener against RCU. I expect the Force to face some difficulties in their opening season.

Rocket City United

Rocket City United will likely have a rebuilding year. New coach Gerry Cleary will serve as the third coach in as many seasons. The lack of consistency in coaching and player personnel will make it hard to compete with the top teams in the region. Only midfielder/defender Brian Hadley has played in every season for the club. Two season ending injuries to Paul Willoughby and Derek Pirtle has hurt the depth in attack. However, there are some exciting returnees form the 2009 championship squad including star defender Joseph Omondi. Expect RCU to have trouble against some of the top teams and finish somewhere in the middle of the table.

UPDATE: You may be asking, "What about FC Tulsa?" As far as I can tell, FCT is still affiliated with the NPSL, but due to travel costs, the league decided to remove them from the Southeast Region. The idea is that they will take part in a new region along with future teams from Texas, Oklahoma Arkansas, etc.

A Storm Refugee at a Charleston Battery Game

2011-05-05T05:18:00.034-05:00

Last Wednesday's storms tore through North Alabama and in addition to the terrible death and destruction, it knocked out power all across the Tennessee Valley. After sitting in a darkened house for nearly 24 hours and no restoration of power in sight, it was time for my family to seek refuge elsewhere. Fortunately, we have relatives in the Charleston, SC area and after we spent the one night in a hotel in Chattanooga hotel and still no news about the power coming back at home, they were adamant that we should take the opportunity to visit them. I love our visits there for the many relaxing diversions available: good company, the beach, the pool, the hammock, and... the soccer. Charleston is the home of one of the most unsung clubs in American soccer, the Charleston Battery.

The Battery were founded in 1993 and have been a mainstay of American minor league soccer ever since. They've won several titles and hold an very successful annual preseason tournament that attracts the best MLS clubs. But perhaps their most important achievement is the 1999 opening of the country's first real soccer specific stadium, Blackbaud Stadium. The 5,100 seater has two stands and an in-stadium Pub that is the closest thing to a soccer museum that can be found in the South (and perhaps the USA now that the Soccer Hall of Fame has closed its doors).

Charleston Battery v Pittsburgh Riverhounds Video

Shortly after setting off from Chattanooga to Charleston, I got a call from my uncle asking if I was interesting in a trip to the stadium on Saturday night. "Of course!" It was Kick for the Cure Night where the home side would wear pink to recognize cancer survivors, and we had great seats for the match against the Pittsburgh Riverhounds.

The night was fantastically cool and despite numerous opportunities the home side could not find a goal and the visitors were happy with a scoreless draw. But it was another great visit to one of the best venues for soccer in the South.

Here are a handful of photos from the night.


Kids sit on the cannon outside the stadium gates

The Battery Supporters Group, The Regiment, raffle off a jersey. I didn't win. :(

Stadium food. Yummy!

The Stadium's Pub: The Three Lions

Line-ups for Pink Night

The Beer Garden behind the goal. Every stadium needs one of these.

Guest Post: Greg Petersen on the New US Soccer Coaching Curriculum

2011-05-04T05:40:00.005-05:00

Former Rocket City United head coach and current technical consultant for Extratime Professional Football Consultants is kind enough to share his opinions on the recently released USSF's Coaches Curriculum which is designed to organize the development of players in the United States through consistent coaching methods. If you are a youth coach, you should become familiar with the curriculum and read what Greg has to say about it.

Greg Petersen

The New Curriculum: Hopeful and Positive, with Some Concerns

Recently viewing Claudio Reyna’s presentation on You Tube (see below) and getting feedback from my colleagues during the recent summit at Nike Headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon left me with two reactions:

The Positives:

The first reaction was positive. Reyna came out and said we are not doing a good job developing top talent in our country for the world stage. It was refreshing to hear this from someone who had a very impressive professional career in Europe and represented his country in four World Cups. Even more impressive is the time he has spent learning and observing the developmental process in top football countries and at clubs around the world. Mr. Reyna is working very hard to learn his new position as US Soccer’s Youth Technical Director and does not suffer from the self-aggrandizing hubris that some former USA National players do. One simply can’t know everything about a job without any real experience in that position. It is also refreshing that Reyna is spending time truly learning from and honestly evaluating developmental methodology in other parts of the world, something I have been very critical of in coaching circles in the USA. How can we assess and develop top level talent if we really don’t know what that means?

Reyna will be learning as he goes. Colleagues of mine in attendance at the summit mentioned that Reyna stumbled on a question during the Q&A about “how do you run less,” demonstrating he still is growing into his new role. But to be fair to Claudio, might he have been in shock that someone would ask that question? Claudio needs to teach the elite youth coaches what “good positional play” means to answer that question. It also will help promote the possession style he wants the youth of our country to play. I know the curriculum was presented was designed for players 5 to12, in which the main emphasis and goal should be developing competent technical players by age 12. Promoting good positional play, however, even in the simplest of forms at early stages of development is just as important to learn how to pass and control a ball. You should not introduce possession without promoting good positional play. You cannot have one without the other. Good positional play makes defending much easier, too. Possession exercise diagrams in the newly presented curriculum in which supporting players stand in corners must be corrected. Reyna’s project will be a work in progress and will have its dips, but I like what I hear from Reyna and like the staff working with him. He should have all our support. He definitely has mine. Let’s hope US Soccer does not get in his way with politics and vote preservation tactics. Let’s hope this is not another Project 2010!

USSF Youth Technical Director Claudio Reyna Introduces the Curriculum

Some Negatives:

My second reaction was of anger and frustration. Why has it taken our country so long to recognize and acknowledge that the inherent flaws in our system of developing top talent? Reyna will be the first to admit that his new curriculum is not new information. It is information that has been available before and it is not like our country didn’t have other good information available prior to Claudio’s tenure. I like the fact Reyna is trying to promote a possession style foundation and promoting one language amongst the youth coaching community, but I have some real concerns about this really paying off, especially concerning development of special talent within our youth ranks.

In our country, nobody has ever put a gun to anyone’s head and told them what style to play. Coaches have had complete tactical freedom. That said, most coaches have chosen a style emphasizing the physical attributes of their players, thinking is optional and technical qualities are accepted at inferior levels. Not to say there are not coaches and clubs that try to promote the style of soccer Reyna wants. Unfortunately it is a small minority. One could argue that coaching is reflected by the talent pool, but I am too experienced to know that is not true. Maybe at the professional and Senior National level that is true. At these levels coaches are hired to succeed immediately, if not they will be fired, but the inadequate talent we are developing at the youth level has nothing to do with the talent pool. It has everything to do with the coaching, the selection process, incompetent decision makers who have no business being involved in the game, and the current youth soccer culture of winning over development that has been prevalent for the last 30 years. The culture must realize results are not important in youth development at younger levels. If Reyna’s main goal to really develop a higher level of an intelligent, technical player base within our country, do we really have the coaches to get there? My opinion is no! I don’t think we do. This is based on first-hand knowledge: most coaches in this country promote a style of football and possess a mentality of how the game should be played that is far away from Reyna’s vision. Playing and promoting an attacking style of football is the most difficult form of football to teach. We have very few coaches that are capable of teaching this style and more importantly have the moxie to commit to it. We also must lose the “Defend first” mentality. Teaching attack should be promoted as a priority for our youth. Emphasis on teaching possession not only has it’s importance in attack, but creates an understanding that possessing the ball is a form of defense, a much more effective form of defending than defending when the other team has the ball. Simply look what happened to Germany against Spain in the last World Cup.

Our Current Youth National Teams selection motto seems to be, “athletic players with very little smarts or technical ability wanted!” Is this perception or reality? Because we really don’t have that many athletically gifted technical or intelligent players. Or is it because of the selection process used by the current coaches? Or is it a reflection of our coaches’ abilities and understanding what an elite player is? Or is it a reflection of the environment our players currently come from? Or is it that we have no true definition of what we are really trying to achieve here? I would say a little of everything mentioned. The last thing we need are coaches at the youth national level telling players who just gained possession to kick the ball behind the opposition’s back line because if they lose possession, which they do most of the time, we can put the opposition under defensive pressure farther up the field, but unfortunately they do. Where is the development in tactics like that? Why do we even have coaches like this at this level? Saying this tactic is reflective of the talent at this age group is not a good enough answer nor is it true. It just reflects coaches’ limitations. Let’s hope US Soccer and Bob Bradley will let Reyna do his job. This age group needs to be taken more seriously by US Soccer. Technical players in this age group should be the focus and made a priority. If we don’t have enough of the quality players we need, then it should be made a priority we start developing them. Changes definitely must take place here. We will never improve at the World Cup level if we don’t produce more intelligent and better technically competent players at a younger age. Recently viewing USA U-17 and U-20 squads performances just demonstrate we are currently not doing a very good job of providing this type of player. Contrary to media reports, neither of these squads is very talented, and any talent that is there, which is miniscule for the top level, is very difficult to see when you watch them play with their supporting cast.

The Problems with Prevailing US Youth Soccer Culture:

Our current youth soccer culture will be a big challenge for Reyna.

First, it is financially driven. In the big picture everything financial is a priority, where development should be the priority. This leads to decision makers like State Youth Associations, Youth Club Boards, Director of Coaches, US Soccer, and Coaches who most of the time that make decisions in the interest of making money or self interest, which usually means “how do I keep my big paycheck and my controlled environment?”

Follow the money?

Secondly, the people who supply most of the money, parents of players, are really clueless in the big picture of development. As long as their kids are winning and have a positive experience, they are happy, even though the child might be getting poor coaching or leave a team that is well coached prematurely because the team is not winning. The fact is parents are mostly interested in getting their child in front of college coaches. Very few have interest in the child being offered a professional contract. A serious culture challenge when we are talking about development for the top level. Do players and all others involved really care? The current culture is not providing an environment for quality soccer and high level soccer development. Just look at the stop-start nature of current youth’s soccer training and competition calendar. There is no continuity. In reality the structure is poor! We can do so much better. The shear number of youth players creates the perception that we are doing a good job developing top players, but in comparison to other top soccer countries with smaller population, we fail miserably with the percentage of players we develop for the top level.

Lastly, our culture needs to stop making things bigger and better than they really are.

There are always media darlings who are touted as our country’s next GREAT COACHES, but recent sessions at the summit demonstrated this is far from true. Like many other coaches in this country, they don’t address the small details. Reyna really needs to spend time identifying coaches who are actually capable of coaching his vision and have the ability to teach attacking soccer. Claudio must ignore the hype and focus on the quality coaches this country does have to offer; especially coaches who can help him reach his goals, so to speak. Currently, talented coaches with proven coaching experience are ignored. Look for coaches who are there to challenge you and your vision, but at the same time to support you and your vision. Remember, the college game has nothing to do with developing players for the world stage. In order to get to the next level, the college game has and will have very little, if anything, to do with us getting there. This last MLS Draft pool was touted as a special group of players. If this was the case, would the cream of the crop really have signed with MLS? Also remember the tactical and technical foundation that most retired MLS players possess and understand is not the kind of soccer Reyna is promoting.

Letter to Brian McBride:

Dear Brian,

We need you to be integrally involved in player development in this country, but we don’t need robotic training methods promoted here. These methods have hurt the development of U.S. youth greatly over the years. We need training that promotes creativity, technical competency, and intelligence, especially with our attacking players. Wouldn’t it be nice to produce skilled and multi-dimensional strikers with your goal scoring abilities, midfielders who can possess the ball and dictate the rhythm of the game, and defenders in this country who can actually possess and pass a ball?

Role of Coaching Schools and Academies:

Where do the US Coaching Schools fit into Reyna’s new vision? I hope the importance, professionalism, and the seriousness under Chysowicz’s and Gansler’s tenure will return. US Soccer’s Coaching Schools have gotten soft over recent years, but are great revenue generators for the US Soccer. When will we have a course for the professional coach? Do we currently have a staff that can fulfill the above and promote a level much larger than the MLS?

I know certain MLS US Development Academies have produced players for their first teams and I hear some are quite decent, but most of the US Developmental Academy games I have seen and evaluated for my work in Europe have been played a very low level. Finances are still a big issue here. Some good players cannot afford to play, yet MLS Academy teams are paying for their players’ expenses and MLS owners’ are committing serious money to this project. I would too if I were MLS. Player transfer revenue is serious business and big money. The question is, will the MLS Academy commit to Reyna’s vision or do their own thing? Do the other USDA’s who charge fees for players to play understand that they’re not entitled to any developmental fees under current FIFA rules? The fee-based “pay-to-play” system in our country is a big obstacle in developing top talent that needs to be rectified.

Summation:

In conclusion I am very positive about what Reyna is bringing to the table, but this requires far-sightedness over the long-term. I hope it is not just another US Soccer gimmick like project 2010. It definitely will not happen overnight and will have its share of road blocks, but it can happen much faster than most think. We just need to be realistic and use the resources available to us in this country. Being on the Senior Technical Staff Ajax Amsterdam‘s American project and currently scouting for the top levels of Europe, I know first hand we produce very talented players in the USA comparable to their European counterparts at the U-12 level. My sincere hope is that under Reyna’s vision we will produce even more, because based on our numbers of youth players playing right now, we are not doing a very good job overall. Until we get this vision established, I can’t recommend special players over 12 to stay in this country under the current conditions, even if MLS has money to throw at these players and their parents. Our best players must be in Europe no later than 14 years of age or, unfortunately, they will get worse. This is a sad fact about our current youth soccer environment that I hope will change under Reyna’s plan, along with the improvement of our U-14, U-15 and U17 National team programs, along with the MLS establishing serious youth academies. Remember MLS, Europe is your competition, not these non MLS US Developmental Academies. Set your standards high and start focusing on younger age players. If not your return on your investment will be disappointing and so will the opportunity to improve the level of play in the MLS. Good Luck Claudio!

HASL Plans To Resume On Wednesday, RCU Postpones Soccerfest

2011-05-02T20:40:00.002-05:00

HASL to Play Wednesday

The Huntsville Adult Soccer League has announced that they will attempt to continue league play on Wednesday, May 4th provided the curfew has been lifted by then. League President Jacob Noffke said in an email to team and league representatives, "Assuming the curfew is lifted, we will attempt to resume on Wednesday." The league suspended play due to the aftermath of last Wednesday's tornadoes cancelling two match days in addition to the already canceled matches on the night of the storms.

Noffke also volunteered league resources to help anyone in the HASL soccer community affected by last Wednesday's tornadoes. "Lastly, If anyone on your team is in need of help, let us know and we'll try to organize something through the league. I'm sure HASL can pull together our collective resources and pitch in a few items of need for somebody in our small soccer community. We have over 600 players that span North Alabama. I pray that everyone made it through safely."

RCU Postpones Soccerfest

In light of the aftermath of the Tennessee Valley tornadoes, Rocket City United has decided to cancel the Soccerfest originally scheduled for Thursday, May 5th at the YMCA in Madison. The event will be rescheduled for a date to be determined.

RCU Cancels Red/Black Game

2011-04-30T11:08:00.000-05:00

Rocket City United has canceled the annual Red/Black intra-squad game scheduled for Saturday night in Athens due to the aftermath of Wednesday's tornadoes.

HASL Suspends Season

2011-04-30T08:42:00.000-05:00

The Huntsville Adult Soccer League has suspended its season (Men's and Women's Leagues) until further notice due to the aftermath of Wednesday's tornadoes.

Tennessee Valley Tornadoes

2011-04-29T08:18:00.000-05:00

Let's all take a moment to think about the people who were impacted by the terrible tornadoes that blew through the area on Wednesday. Many in the Tennessee Valley Soccer Community have friends or family who lost their homes and/or lives.

My family and I have been fortunate enough to be able to evacuate the area. The majority of Northern Alabama is still without power and will be for days to come. If you can help, please do so by donating to the Red Cross.

RCU Shuts Out Nashville Metros In Preseason Finale

2011-04-27T05:27:00.037-05:00

Rocket City United used some flukey goals and a solid defensive effort to beat their regional rival Nashville Metros 3:0 Monday night in Pulaski, TN. In their final preseason match of the year, RCU started quickly when they were awarded a penalty after ten minutes. Jacob Letsholo setpped up a slotted the PK home. Just sixty seconds after the PK, RCU scored the first of two fortuitous goals on the night. A shot from Ryan Maxwell took a beneficial deflection off of forward Bradley Sanford and eluded the Nashville goalkeeper for the early 2:0 lead.

Nashville dominated possession in the remainder of the half in an attempt to get back into the match. The Metros got several good looks at goal but were denied each time by RCU goalkeeper James "Jaffa" Colman. It looked like the breakthrough had finally come when the PDL team were awarded a penalty in the 40th minute. However, the resultant spot kick clattered off the left post.

RCU v Nashville Metros

In the second half, RCU's "bend but don't break" defensive efforts were impressive as the Metros grew increasingly frustrated with their impotence in the attacking third. When they did crack the code of RCU's back four, second half sub Jeffrey Preston was up to the task in the goal. As the half wore on without a goal, the Metros expressed their frustration with physical play.

RCU didn't seem rattled by the rough tactics as a good spell of possession and some more good fortune led to the final goal of the match. After several trips around the RCU back four, a good diagonal ball found Brian Hadley in the penalty area. Hadley's controlling touch fell to Bradley Sanford. Sanford's scuffed shot took on a spin that sent the ball skyward and the Metros goalkeeper reeling. When the ball came down, the disoriented netminder lost his bearings and pawed the ball into his own net for the 3:0 final score.

RCU now has two weeks of training with an public intra-squad "Red and Black" scrimmage in Athens on Saturday before the NPSL season opener in Knoxville on May 7.

NPSL News, CONCACAF Champs League Leg 2

2011-04-26T05:52:00.002-05:00

Chattanooga, Knoxville Will Host Mexico's Monterrey

RCU v Monterrey in 2008

Mexican soccer power Monterrey's U-20 team will tour Tennessee this summer and take on NPSL Southeast teams Chattanooga FC and Knoxville Force. The Rayados will return to the US after a successful 2008 tour when Rocket City United hosted them at Alabama A&M's Lewis Crews Stadium in an exciting match in which won by the Mexican side 6:3.

New Supports Group in Cleveland

Chattanooga has the Chattahooligans and now Cleveland has its own supporters group. The 6th City Syndicate has been organized to root on the city's NPSL team AFC Cleveland who is set to join the NPSL in 2012.

CONCACAF Champions League Final: 90 Minutes In Salt Lake City Will Determine Champ

Real Salt Lake hosts Leg 2 of the CONCACAF Champions League on Wednesday night (9PM on FSC). Here's the latest behind the scenes look at the build up to the match.

NPSL News, RSL Earns Draw in Mexico, USSF Releases Coaching Curriculum, and Atlantic Cup On ESPN2

2011-04-21T05:43:00.010-05:00

NPSL News

The NPSL PR arm is in full effect as the league prepares to kick into full gear. League Commissioner Dan Trainor has described the league as a "democracy in action" with the team ownership making decisions about the best way to develop players and also financial structures of the clubs.

Speaking of developing players, the Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves sees its team as "an avenue to move guys into the professional ranks."

Meanwhile, the new Knoxville Force have released a series of Facebook videos in which fans were allowed to ask the coaching staff questions like, "What formation will you be playing?"; "What will be the toughest challenge for the Knoxville Force this year?"; and "What style of play will Knoxville have?".

RSL Earns Road Draw in CONCACAF Champions League Final

Real Salt Lake earned an exciting 2:2 draw in Monterrey in Leg 1 of the CONCACAF Champions League Final Wednesday night. It looked as if RSL would have to settle for a road goal as consolation for its efforts when Javier Morales scored a great goal in the 89th minute to pull even. Now, RSL goes back home where they haven't lost in years (literally) with two road goals. Check out the highlights.

US Soccer Releases Coaches Curriculum

The US Soccer Federation has released a 123 page US Soccer Coaching Curriculum to guide the nation's coaches in developing players. USSF Youth Soccer Technical Director Claudio Reyna introduced the curriculum Tuesday at the US Soccer Player Development Summit.

"The curriculum is designed to improve development of players representing the largest organized player base in the United States. The curriculum concentrates on improving the youngest players by creating more organized, age-appropriate training sessions, developing coaching practices and creating an environment that is fun for the players."

If you are a youth soccer coach, you need to download, read and follows this doc. (But beware the download is nearly 100MB!) The PWT-blog will have a guest post on this in the near future.

MLS Game of the Week: DC United v NYRB

I've rarely posted about my favorite MLS club, DC United, here on the PWT-blog. Mainly because they have provided much worth writing about since I started the blog two years ago. They've played some pretty horrible soccer in that time. However, with the introduction of some exciting new young players like Charlie Davies, things are looking up for the Black and Red. On Thursday night at 7PM on ESPN2, they'll take on the star studded NY Red Bulls in the latest match in the rivalry that has been dubbed the Atlantic Cup. Here's a preview of the game.

RCU v Nashville Metros, American Signs With Barca, RSL In Champs League Final

2011-04-20T05:28:00.005-05:00

RCU to face Nashville Metros

Rocket City United will take on the Nashville Metros in the final preseason tune-up next Monday (April 25th) night at 7PM up at the Martin Methodist College Soccer Complex. The game against the USL PDL team should prove a good test for RCU who are still trying to identify the final 11 who will step on the field in the NPSL season opener against Knoxville on May 7th.

American Signs With Barcelona

I debated with myself about whether to post this. We as a soccer culture tend to over hype our young soccer players who show even a modicum of talent. So, please folks, can we agree not to go the Freddy Adu route here? Thank you.

Yes, it is true that an American has signed with FC Barcelona, but no, it's not Jaun Agudelo. It's a 10 year old from LA. This kid has signed with the same FC Barcelona Academy that produced Messi, Xavi, and a host of the other stars that play for the super club.

Champions League Leg One is Tonight!

Champions League 360 Part 2

Real Salt Lake take on Monterrey tonight at 9PM on FSC in the first leg of the finals of the CONCACAF Champions League. This is the biggest match for an MLS team in years. YOU SHOULD WATCH THIS MATCH!!!

CONCACAF Champions League Final, Freedom of Press In Qatar?, Robots Sports Journalists, Quote of the Week

2011-04-19T18:14:00.003-05:00

RSL Prepare for CONCACAF Champions League Final

Real Salt Lake plays Monterrey in the first leg of CONCACAF Champions League Final on Wednesday night (9PM FSC). Here's a video as the team prepares for the big game in Mexico.

Champions League 360

Press Crew Arrested In Qatar

A team of Swiss sports journalists were arrested in Qatar recently. Were the Qataris trying to hide the fact that they bought right to host the World Cup? Nah, everyone already knew that. Whatever the reason, that ain't good.

Robots to Write Sports Articles

NPR has an interesting story about a program that compiles data from sporting events and writes articles about the games. Does this spell the end of sports reporters? Don't worry, the Perfectly Weighted Through Blog will not be assimilated! :)

Quote of the Week

One of the PWT-blog's favorite writers Raphael Honigstein brings us another great quote. Speaking about the 5:1 thumping of Bayer Leverkusen by perrenial Bundesliga power Bayern Munich, Honigstein evokes a former Leverkusen General Manager who said,

Leverkusen... turned up "wearing Pampers."

Absolutely brutal! I love it.

NPSL Team Goes Public

I've heard of EPL and La Liga teams that have going public, but this is a first for me. NPSL Western Region team San Diego Boca FC has gone public. The American Soccer Corporation which owns the first year club is being listed on German Boerse Exchange. It'll be interesting to see how the model works out for them.

RCU Loses One, Wins One in Weekend Preseason Action

2011-04-17T21:25:00.000-05:00

Rocket City United are still working out the kinks and Saturday they fell to Montevallo University 1:0. The team were without legitimate forwards and struggled to maintain possession in their attack. On Sunday, the team fared better with the introduction into the lineup of returning players Brian Kimbugwe and Andrew Nkurunungi. After a scoreless first half with Belmont University, RCU made some adjustments and the 2010 leading scorer for RCU, Nkurunungi picked up were he left oft with a nice lob of the keeper to open the scoring. About 15 minutes after the opening score, midfielder Tyler Cunningham volleyed a first time shot over the keeper to seal the match.

RCU v Belmont Universtiy 2nd Half Highlights

"Both games were played at a high level, and both opponents provided strong opposition," said Director of Operations, Jan Henner. "It's good to have games on that level at this stage of the preseason. We are getting the right conclusions out of the games, and we feel that results at this point are secondary. We have three weeks of hard work ahead of us, but we are pretty confident that we can field a good squad on May 7th and that's the game that counts."

NPSL US Open Cup Schedule, Work for RCU, Are Players Also Fans

2011-04-16T10:17:00.003-05:00

NPSL SE Region US Open Cup Qualifying Schedule Released

Rocket City United and the rest of the NPSL Southeast Region will play a mini-knockout tournament in Chattanooga over the Memorial Day weekend (May 27-29th) to determine a representative from the region for the 2011 US Open Cup. Two days of double header matches on Friday and Saturday will determine the finalists for the Sunday match. RCU will open play Friday at 8PM EDT and if they win, they'll take on Chattanooga FC who received a bye through the first round. The final will be Sunday, May 29th at 7PM EDT. All games will be played in Chattnooga FC's home ground, Finley Stadium.

RCU Wants You

Rocket City United is has some openings they are looking to fill. If you are interested in hosting a weekly podcast, tracking team stats, or serving as a video analyst, contact RCU's director Jan Henner. The team is also looking for game day volunteers to work the home matches.

Are Players Also Fans? Not Really

Ryan Knapp on Soccer Player and/or Fans?

Former NPSL PR Director Ryan Knapp has written a great blog post about the disparity between being a soccer player in the USA and being a soccer fan. Ryan's come to find that being a soccer player does not guarantee that you will be a fan of the game. His former life as a promoter of the game has exposed him to the frustrating fact that a large majority of the US soccer community does not regularly support their local club. I've personally experienced this phenomenon many times. I'd try to discuss the big game on TV or at the local stadium with my teammates and would be met with blank stares and questions like "Oh, are they playing again?"

RCU Preseason, Soccerfest Announced, No Alabama US Open Cup Teams, and

2011-04-14T17:42:00.003-05:00

RCU Go on the Road to Play Preseason Friendlies

Rocket City United will take to the road this weekend when they play the University of Montevallo on Saturday and Christian Brothers University on Sunday. RCU is continuing to assemble and evaluate playing talent and will use these two matches to that aim.

UPDATE: The Christian Brothers match on Sunday has been replaced with a match against Belmont University. The match will take place in Pulaski at the Martin Methodist East Campus Soccer field.

RCU Announces Season Kick-off Festival

RCU has announced that it will host a season opening Soocerfest at the Hogan Family YMCA in Madison on May 5th. Two days later RCU will open the 2011 NPSL season in Knoxville against the new Knoxville Force. There will be a player meet and greet and other fun for the family.

Despite Hosting Qualifying Tournament, Alabama Will Have No US Open Cup Teams Playing

The 2011 USASA Region III US Open Cup tournament qualifying tournament will be held in Tuscaloosa and despite the opportunity to compete on home soil, no Alabama clubs will be participating. Instead teams from Florida, Louisiana, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Texas will compete for a spot in the nationwide tournament. Last year, RCU and Pumas of Birmingham took part. However, the NPSL has been granted automatic berths into the US Open Cup and RCU will travel up to Chattanooga over the Memorial Day weekend in an attempt to gain one of those spots.

New Soccer Channel in the Works?

According to the Wall Street Journal, Univision is planning on launching a sports channel that will focus on soccer. The new US Spanish language station will be called Univision Deportes likely cover Mexican League matches and other Latin American competitions. That's more good news for soccer heads like us.

RCU Wins One, Ties One in Preseason Friendlies

2011-04-10T09:01:00.005-05:00

Rocket City United beat UAH 3:0 and drew Young Harris College 1:1 in Saturday's preseason friendlies. The two 60 minute games gave the RCU staff a good opportunity to gauge the team's preparedness and to trial several players in a game situation. With about a month to go until the season opener, the team is looking to fill out depth in several positions and looked at 8 new players to fill those needs.

RCU Preseason v UAH and Young Harris

In the day's first match against UAH, RCU came out flying netting 3 goals in the first 10 minutes and then let the foot off the gas and coasted to the victory. The second game an hour later saw a tiring RCU squad much less sharp against Young Harris College. After RCU went up with a nice goal early in the second half, Harris Young equalized with a nice headed goal from a corner.

Building a team: RCU's Director of Operations Jan Henner (left), President Andy Zorovich (center), and Gerry Cleary (right) discuss what they saw during Saturday's matches

RCU coach Gerry Cleary was pleased with the outing that exposed the team's lack of fitness. "It's just fitness. They need to run on their own... But it was better than last week." The team has 4 full weeks of training prior to the May 7th opener in Knoxville. Most of the team will be in camp by next weekend. However, there are several players who will join the team at the end of April due to school commitments.

Local Sides in Action Today

2011-04-09T05:48:00.003-05:00

Rocket City United, UAH, Martin Methodist College and Georgia's Young Harris College will take the field for a series of freindly matches Saturday morning in Decatur. RCU is preparing for the NPSL season while the college sides are getting in some spring workouts. The games are open to the public and will be held at Wilson Morgan Park.

9am MMC vs. UAH

10am RCU vs. UAH

11am Harris Young vs. MMC

12am Harris Young vs. RCU

Another New NPSL Club, USA U-20s Out of World Cup, and Dumb Send-offs

2011-04-07T05:29:00.002-05:00

Hollywood United Defects to NPSL from PDL

Hollywood United, the celebrity filled LA based club has moved from the USL's PDL to the NPSL for the 2011 season. The club often fields celebrities for charity matches like actors Anthony LaPaglia, Dermot Mulroney and Donal Louge (who stars in one of my favorite movies, The Tao of Steve); musicians Ziggy Marley and Steve Jones (Sex Pistols); and ex-soccer stars Alexi Lalas, Eric Wynalda, Vinnie Jones, and Frank LeBoeuf. However, the club's Hitmen team is a serious contender in the NPSL's West Region.

US U-20s Crash Out of World Cup Qualifying

Conor Doyle's Classy Finish in Loss

The USA's rising stars were brought back down to earth by losing 2:1 to Guatemala in the CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying tournament. The loss eliminates the Young Yanks, but sent Guatemala to its first World Cup appearance of any age group. To be fair to the heavily favored US team, injuries and the prospect of playing the home team in front of a hostile 30,000 fans, tilted the match against them, but the USA's missed early chances came back to haunt them.

Vancouver's Hassli Tossed for Removing Shirt!?

Eric Hassli scores PK and gets tossed

The Whitecaps forward Eric Hassli was tossed from Wednesday night's game after celebrating his PK goal by taking off his jersey to reveal a short sleeved version of the same jersey. It was Hassli's second caution of the match, and he was shown a red card. Idiot! But should he been thrown out from the match?

The FIFA Laws of the Game state a decision from the IAFB:

Players must not reveal undergarments showing slogans or advertising. The basic compulsory equipment must not have any political, religious or personal statements. A player removing his jersey or shirt to reveal slogans or advertising will be sanctioned by
the competition organiser. The team of a player whose basic compulsory equipment has political, religious or personal slogans or statements will be sanctioned by the competition organiser or by FIFA.

But Hassli "undergarment" was exactly the same as his outer garment! Does that count?

Fortunately, FIFA released a position paper to further elaborate :

A player who removes his jersey to celebrate a goal must be cautioned for unsporting behavior... It doesn't matter if the player has anything on underneath nor does it matter exactly what the player may have on underneath (including an exact replicate of the removed jersey). Bolding added for emphasis.

So, let this be a lesson to any players out there. Don't take off your shirt! BTW, if Grant Wahl had been elected FIFA President, these types of cautions would be eliminated.

UPDATE: You think that send-off was dumb, check this one out from Santos' Neymar.

Side Volleys

2011-04-06T05:46:00.010-05:00

Holy smokes, did you see the Stankovic goal?! If not, here it is.

That was a great goal, but there was another right footed side volley that was more important yesterday. Real Salt Lake's Jamison Olave second half side volley form 8 yards put the MLS club into the CONCACAF Champions League Final. Despite losing the match, RSL came out on top 3:2 in the aggregate score to qualify for the home and away style final with games on April 20th and 27th.

CONCACAF Champions League Semifinal Highlights

This is a big deal for US soccer, since no US club has made it to the final of the CONCACAF championships since the format went to a Champions League.

Champions League Tuesday

2011-04-05T05:10:00.002-05:00

Today is a huge day for Champions League on two continents. In addition to the more globally popular UEFA Champions League quarterfinal matches, the CONCACAF Champions League semifinal second leg match is tonight with Real Salt Lake heading down to the purple cauldron of Saprissa with a 2:0 aggregate advantage.

RSL talks about second leg

RSL is the standard bearer for the MLS who as a league has an attrocious record away from home in international tournaments. Should RSL come away with victory in the tie, they would face the winner of the Monterrey v Cruz Azul tie.

Another RSL preview of the match

You can watch the match live on FSC at 9PM from San Juan, Costa Rica.

Photos from Nashville

2011-04-01T17:18:00.002-05:00

Here are some of my photos from Tuesday's match in Nashville along with several from friend of the PWT-blog Mario.

Starters

Kickoff

RCU's Andy Zorovich (left) and Jan Henner (right)

FSC's sideline reporter Brian Dunseth delivering the dirt

Waiting for 2nd half kickoff

Final score

On the bus ride home, through the wet city streets

RCU Signs Omondi, Jacksonville United, and Law Dogs Over-30 State Final

2011-04-01T05:22:00.002-05:00

RCU Signs 2009 Standout Joseph Omondi

Omondi (left) will suit up for RCU again in 2011

Rocket City United has signed Joseph Omondi for the 2011 season. Omondi marshaled the RCU back-line on their way the 2009 NPSL SE Region Title and the clubs only appearance in the leagues championships. Omondi, a native of Nairobi, Kenya, is coming off another successful year at Bethel University, where he led the Wildcats to NAIA quarterfinals while being named to the TransSouth all-conference team.

Jacksonville United Confirmed As 6th NPSL SE Region Team

The NPSL Southeast Region schedule was released and it confirms the rumored Jacksonville United has indeed joined the league. The new club from northeast Florida will round out a 10 game schedule for each of the NPSL SE Region teams.

HASL's Law Dogs Play in Over-30 State Cup Finals

2009 Over-30 Champions Law Dogs will look to capture the title again Saturday

Local side Law Dogs are set to play in the Alabama Over-30 State Cup Championship match on Saturday in Birmingham. They'll play Iguanas of Birmingham in a rematch of the 2009 final in which Law Dogs were triumphant in penalties.

More USA v Paraguay

2011-03-30T19:27:00.004-05:00

I put together a little vid of our bus trip, the pregame tailgate, and some game highlights. As you can see, we had pretty sweet seats and a pretty great time, despite the result.

USA v Paraguay in Nashville

According to the announced attendance figures, the match was the biggest in Tennessee history at 29,059. That's about 7,000 walk up tickets sold, and a lot more than I thought would come out on a cool rainy Tuesday. Well done, soccer fans!

Record crowd cheering on the USA

As for the game itself... We certainly had enough chances to score, but when was last time the US were the first team to score in a game? As much as I respect Bob Bradley as a coach, our team sucks in the first half. Maybe we can get a interim coach just to run out the starting line-ups and tactical formations, and then let Cheatin' Bob (That's what I call him. Ask me about it sometime if you see me) finish coaching the match, since he seems to make decent adjustments and substitutions as the game goes on.

Here's a pretty good recap with plenty of pics from the Tennessean, who treated the match as a big event. Nice!

I'll share some photos of our trip in my next post.

Guest Post: USA v Paraguay, An Armchair Analysis

2011-03-30T06:43:00.002-05:00

PWT-Blog is happy to welcome back our guest blogger, Chris Shaffer. I'm tired from getting home from Nashville wee hours. So thankfully, Chris breaks down the game for us, as only he can. I'll have further coverage of the game in the next day or two.

In tonight’s USA/Paraguay friendly, seen as a key warm-up for the USA as it prepares for this summer’s Gold Cup competition, the US succumbed 1-0 to a typically hard-nosed, defensively organized Paraguay side.

I was going to go with a blow-by-blow, minute-by-minute account of the match but, honestly, it’s just not worth the effort.

The approach, therefore, will be a Lessons-Learned tutorial. Mind you, none of these lessons will deal specifically with Paraguay.

Let’s also remember that some key players in the USA’s stunning 1-1 draw with Argentina were not involved, including GK Tim Howard.

USA: 23-Marcus Hahnemann (18-David Yelldell, 46); 21-Timmy Chandler (2-Jonathan Spector, 80),15-Jay DeMerit (3-Carlos Bocanegra, 41), 6-Tim Ream, 12-Jonathan Bornstein (16-Sacha Kljestan, 77); 8-Clint Dempsey, 7-Maurice Edu (13-Jermaine Jones, 46), 4-Michael Bradley, 10-Landon Donovan (capt.); 17-Jozy Altidore (19-Eric Lichaj, 60), 9-Juan Agudelo

USA 0:1 Paraguay

Lessons Learned:

If Honduran referee Jose Benigno is any indication, Hondurans have utterly failed to appreciate the great things US companies like United Fruit and our government’s financial and military support of their death squads and dictatorship have done for their people. Also, Jonathan Bornstein’s last gasp goal against Costa Rica in an otherwise meaningless final World Cup Qualifier for the US vs. Costa Rica put Honduras into the 2010 World Cup finals.
This is the last positive thing I’ll say about Mr. Bornstein.
Paraguay is not just defensively organized and stout, they are masters of the professional foul, yet only one Paraguayan was booked at all despite repeated fouling of US players holding the ball at midfield with their back to goal.
Paraguay’s Directo Technico Gerardo Martinez must find a sport coat that doesn’t cause pixallation on TV.
Kyle Martinez, doing color commentary, referred to US left back Jonathan Bornstein as, “not the best one-on-one defender.” This is a vast understatement in more ways than I care to list.
The aforementioned may have something to do with just how much Bornstein blows at every phase of the game. He minored in giving the ball away under no pressure.
Conversely, Timmy Chandler, a right back of Amero-Germano (sic) parentage is really, really good. He defends, he goes forward, he can cross the ball. He plays for Nurnberg. He is the real deal. Meanwhile, Bob Bradley’s out looking for David Regis on the Streets of Metz after the Born-de-bacle.
Nike’s new “Indivisible” US Jersey will be plugged continuously from now through the Gold Cup
Oscar Cardozo (Par) knows how to finish, especially when US central defender Tim Ream (NYRB), who played respectably, is pulled down from behind. Or maybe he just fell.1-0 to Paraguay. Tim Ream was a Billiken in College.
Paraguay received one booking (yellow) and the US none.
Did I mention the Honduran ref was awful?
Estonia inexplicably drew 1-1 with Serbia today as a Serbian goal in stoppage time was not acknowledged. Look up Luddite in the dictionary and you’ll see a pic of Sepp Blatter.
One moment Clint Dempsey seems somnambulant and the next he’s hit a knuckling 30-yarder on goal.
The Nashville crowd was great, and was repeatedly acknowledged as such by JP Dellacamera. Evidently 1,000 more than WC qualifier!
37^th minute: J. Bornstein completes his 1^st pass of the game
Jay Demerit is no Carlos Bocanegra…J. Spector is no Jay Demerit.
Evidently there’s a product called “ProActive,” you know for acne and whatnot. I’ve never heard of it.
BTW, props to Eric Wynalda for his ad promoting AYSO soccer, where you can, “learn soccer and have fun doing it.” And I thought you were an arrogant jerk…
2 halftime subs for USA: GK David (Who?) Yelldell (Duisburg) for Hahnemann, and Jermaine Jones for Mo Edu. I can’t believe Bornstein is still on the pitch.
Did you know the new Nike USA “Indivisible” jersey is available?
OK, Bornstein’s mark fell down and lost the ball, yet Bornstein still was beaten. Doesn’t this violate a law of physics?
50^th minute: Bornstein completes 2^nd pas of game.
Dempsey/Altidore/Agudelo repeatedly fouled, yet they’re not…Thanks a lot Allen Dulles. (If you didn’t know, who owned a whole bunch of United Fruit stock)
US player Eric Lichaj’s last name is pronounced “Lehigh.” He comes in for Altidore, not Bornstein. He actually plays sometimes for Leeds Utd., but is on loan from Aston Villa, where Michael Bradley sits. Bradley is having a solid game in the holding mf spot. Why can’t this guy get a start for Villa?
Best US chance of the game comes in the 69^th minute when Agudelo crosses from the right side and Landon Donovan, unmarked, can only hit side netting as the ball bounces through the Paraguay box.
Clint Dempsey now looks like he’s taken a worse beating than at a Fulham away match to Stoke.
Lots of subs now. Sasha Klejstan on for US. Every time he touches the ball the game seems to go into slow motion.
Aside from Agudelo and Timmy Chandler, the squad lacks pace and plays too slowly. Of course when Paraguay has 9 field players behind the ball after the 18’ mark and fouls at will with no consequences, Barcelona might have problems.
Last 10 minutes: US has some offensive breaks, but they’re all 3-on-6
Final: 1-0 Paraguay.
This ProActive stuff must be really effective.
Credit to the USSF for playing a tough schedule of Amistosos (“friendlies” not in MSWord dictionary), instead of padding its FIFA ranking with games vs. Macedonia and Austria.

Nashville Notes

2011-03-29T15:15:00.002-05:00

A few last things before I get on the RCU bus up to Nashville:

As of this morning, 22,000 tickets have been sold. I would expect a few thousand walk-ups and a possible crowd of 25,000. Despite the frustration I have with the USA's support at home, that's not bad for a cool, wet Tuesday night game.

USA v Paraguay Pregame Press Conference

If you are not heading up I65, the game will be shown on FSC with a full pre-game and post game show. Coverage begins at 6:30 PM.

There area also some other pretty good matches on TV today.
1:30 PM, Germany v Australia, ESPN2
2 PM, England v Ghana, FSC
4 PM, Columbia v Chile, FSC

There's plenty of speculation that the Yanks goalscorer on Saturday Juan Agudelo will get his first start for the USMNT. But if it weren't for his call up, he'd be in Guatemala with the US U-20s as they attempt to qualify for the U20 World Cup. This USA U20 is chock full of seasoned professionals and is probably the most experienced U20 group the US has ever put on the field. If you have access to ESPN3.com, you can also watch the U-20s play Suriname at 7 PM, but if I were you, I'd watch the replay after the US v Paraguay match finishes.

USA U20s Preparation for World Cup Qualifying

USA in Nashville News

2011-03-28T18:11:00.013-05:00

USA 1:1 Argentina

After surviving Saturday's match with Argentina, the US Men's National Team now turn their sights on Paraguay. Over 20,000 tickets have been sold for the first match at LP Field since the 2009 World Cup Qualifying win over T&T, but I'd be surprised if the attendance numbers will reach the nearly 28,000 that were sold for that match. You see, the weather and the Tuesday night game time won't be optimal for a large walk up crowd.

Jozy Altidore Remembers Nashville

Let's not forget Paraguay no slouch of a team. The Yanks will be facing fellow 2010 World Cup group winner and top 25 ranked team. No, they may not have their star players, but they will have a few exciting young players just like the US does. This should be a really fun match especially since I'll be riding on the Rocket City United bus to and from the game.