Monday, November 30, 2009

UVA Rolls On

The UVA men's soccer team has made it to the NCAA round of 8 as a result of their 2-0 win against Portland.  That makes their 10th shutout in a row.

Next up is uber rival University of Maryland.  The tilt is scheduled for this Friday night in the rarified climes of Charlottesville, Virginia.

I have no idea who is going to win this one.  On the one hand, I never count out a side coached by Sasho Cirovsky.  Add to that the fact that the Maryland supporters will be present in large and loud numbers.

On the other hand,  the boys from Virginia are playing the kind of soccer that wins NCAA championships. It isn't that pretty, it's grind-it-out and get a goal or two and close the other team down.

Whoever wins this match could very well go on to win the whole thing.

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Interesting Questions and Answers

...especially one towards the end...

MLS 2008 Team Kits Review

Chicago Fire

I hate this shirt. The ones they had last year looked much, much more refined and professional than this blocky, bumpersticker-fodder throwback to their first shirts.

Chivas USA

This is a nice evolution of the design they had last year. I think the shirts look better without the thumb-print that was so prevalent in MLS team shirts last year.

Colorado Rapids

Not much, if anything, has changed on Colorado's shirts since last year.

Columbus Crew

Major points up for Columbus for FINALLY getting "COLUMBUS CREW" off the front of their shirts! Also for admitting that their yellow shirts are their home jerseys. Like how there's more black this time around. They were also good to change the design of the away kit, though the single strip in the middle doesn't always work out. I think it looks nice, however.

DC United

I have to admit, I really like this shirt. It may look a little plain with nothing on the front, and I certainly miss "the Three," but it's a lot more sophisticated than it looks on the outset. The sheer black-ness of the home kit has also really grown on me. I think once DC United signs a shirt sponsor, their kits will look complete.

FC Dallas

Some things about this shirt I like, others I don't. On average, I really don't much care for horizontal stripes, and I thought their design last year actually looked pretty nice. This year, I just don't know. The blue stripes on the sleeves look less incongruous; something that really bothered me about their kits last year. And it's good that they abandoned the gray strips on their away kits. But I don't know, maybe it's just that I just don't like horizontal stripes.

Houston Dynamo

If there's something about this shirt that's changed from last year, I certainly can't tell what it is. This design has grown on me a lot since they first introduced it. I used to hate the blue stripe, but I think it does a nice job of offsetting the orange. Points for Houston on signing a sponsor.

Kansas City Wizards

Finally, Kansas City's kits have arrived! Last year had them looking professional, but rather plain. This year, they are flat-out nice. The use of different shades of blue and the yellow trim makes this KC's best uniform yet.

LA Galaxy

While this shirt is definitely nice, I feel it's a step down from what they had last year. The revised thumb-print design just doesn't give the same flair to the shirts as what they had going in 07.

New England Revolution

This team, in my opinion, has taken Best Shirts In MLS away from LA. Their home shirts and away shirts are simply stunning. This is a kit I would love to own.

New York Red Bulls

The only noticable difference on the home shirt is the slightly larger Red Bull logo. The away shirt, however, has added some white trim that greatly improves its attractivness.

Real Salt Lake

A good use of the new thumb-print design. This kit reminds me more than ever of the Spanish national team.

Toronto FC

Not really any changes have been made to this kit from the one I loved last year.

San Jose Earthquakes

This is a nice continuation of San Jose's previous variations on the white, black, and blue. I like how they're giving black a spin as the primary color.

Saturday, March 8, 2008

MLS 2007 - Week 11 Goals


Music: Girls Aloud - "Wake Me Up (Tony Lemezma mix)"

Week 11 Results:

Real Salt Lake 0:1 FC Dallas
New England Revolution 3:3 Columbus Crew
DC United 3:1 Chicago Fire
Red Bull New York 3:3 Kansas City Wizards
CD Chivas USA 2:0 Colorado Rapids
Toronto FC 4:0 FC Dallas
Los Angeles Galaxy 3:2 Real Salt Lake

Goals: (in order shown)

Maurice Edu
Maykel Galindo
Juan Pablo Angel
Chris Brown
Pat Noonan
Kerry Zavagnin
Danny Dichio
Guillermo Barros Schelotto
Dominic Oduro
own goal (Terry Cooke)
Clint Mathis
Adam Cristman
Jeff Cunningham
Yura Movsisyan
Edson Buddle
Juan Pablo Angel
Alejandro Moreno
Chris Brown
Robbie Rogers
Yura Movsisyan
Nate Jaqua
Carl Robinson
Adam Cristman
Cobi Jones

Missing: Rod Dyachenko, Luciano Emilio (x2), Jerson Monteiro

Thursday, March 6, 2008

MLS 2007 - Week 10 Goals

After a long absence, here we are again, going through the goals of MLS 2007.



Music: Oasis - "Turn Up The Sun"

Week 10 Results:

Toronto FC 1:2 Red Bull New York
Houston Dynamo 2:1 Colorado Rapids
FC Dallas 3:1 Los Angeles Galaxy
Chicago Fire 0:1 CD Chivas USA
DC United 4:2 Red Bull New York
Columbus Crew 1:2 Houston Dynamo

Goals: (in order shown)

Ben Olsen
Juan Toja
Luciano Emilio
Juan Pablo Angel
Joseph Ngwenya
Ben Olsen
Robbie Findlay
Jeff Cunningham
Alejandro Moreno
Jose Cancela
Paulo Nagamura
Juan Pablo Angel
Abe Thompson
Stuart Holden
Ben Olsen
Juan Pablo Angel
Dema Kovalenko
Joseph Ngwenya
own goal (Chad Marshall)
Drew Moor

Friday, February 22, 2008

DC United 2008 season - early predictions

First and foremost, I think DCU will get off to another slow start this year. What with having lost Gomez, Carroll, Boswell, Perkins, and Gros, Tom Soehn has basically rebuilt the team. Most of those guys were starters! How many football clubs in the world (which are not Arsenal, Chelsea, Barcelona, or Real Madrid) are simply going to rebound from that kind of roster change without a period of rough weather? I don't know many.

Secondly, United will probably crash out of the CONCACAF Champions Cup... again! They'll almost definitely sail past Harbour View FC - unless there are serious problems - but then most likely they will have to face off against Mexico's Pachuca; a team who I do not see DC United beating.

Well, that actually wraps up my predictions.

Thursday, January 31, 2008

MLS 2007 - Week 9 Goals


Music: Chemical Brothers f/Ali Love - "Do It Again"

Week 9 Results:

Toronto FC 2:1 Colorado Rapids
New England Revolution 0:0 Real Salt Lake
Kansas City Wizards 3:2 Red Bull New York
Los Angeles Galaxy 0:0 DC United
Houston Dynamo 2:1 FC Dallas
Chicago Fire 3:2 Columbus Crew

Goals: (in order shown)

Herculez Gomez
Eddie Johnson
Chad Marshall
Juan Pablo Angel
Ricardo Clark
Eddie Johnson
Jeff Curtin
Duncan Oughton
Danny Dichio
Eddie Johnson
Dema Kovalenko
Willian Oliveira
Abe Thompson
Chad Barrett
Andrew Boyens
Joseph Ngwenya