Give Em Something to Talk About

I loved Brian Straus's terrific story for Sporting News on dissension within the U.S. men's national team regarding Jurgen Klinsmann's leadership.  I loved it even as a huge fan of Klinsmann's philosophy and approach and a totally over-the-top, unfair, irrational critic of Bob Bradley's regime.

In substance, Straus's reporting communicated exactly what I want to hear:  the U.S. players are being challenged to be more than automatons meant to execute strategic orders.  They are, instead, professional footballers responsible for forming a cohesive whole based on a loose structure, their own aptitude, and creative chaos.

That this challenge is being made in the wake of former conservative management of tight control and preparation is all the more perfect.  Straus's narrative walks off the silver screen of the fictionalized account of Brian Clough's doomed attempt to replace Don Revie at Leeds.  After The Damn United establishes Revie's obsessive scouting and game preparation, the film portrays his former wards directly challenging Clough at Elland Road for his failure to brief them in advance of a match against Rangers.  Clough's response?

You're professional footballers.

Stop Stan Bowles.

That's all you need to know about QPR.

And I don't have justify myself to you . . . not how or when I conduct training . . .

Of course, things didn't exactly go swimmingly for Clough in West Yorkshire.  And there is a substantial risk that Klinsmann's revolution will leave the U.S. without an invitation to the party in Brazil. 

Straus's story ignited a national conversation.  Much of it is unhelpful -- it doesn't matter who talked or why they talked and, as Greg Seltzer notes, attacking Mr. Straus's journalistic integrity is completely inappropriate.  But all American soccer fans should be talking about the culture of domestic soccer.  Klinsmann, by both word and deed, is mounting a powerful challenge to conventional wisdom.  Let the kids play.  Let them have fun.  They'll figure it out.  It's ludicrously naive and impractical.  It's also thrilling.

You can get results by industry.  The athletic gifts and talent of the elite American footballer are enough to stay on the field with the globe's powers.  But discipline and execution do not create a platform for evolution.  Creation is reined in for the sake of cohesion.  It is also miserable to watch.

D.C. United drew over 17,000 for its opening home match against Real Salt Lake.  After managing a single goal in three matches played with a mind-numbingly tedious game plan of useless possession, only 11,000 showed up for home game number two against the Columbus Crew.   That's twenty percent below last year's average attendance during the regular season (13,846).  In fact, only three out of the seventeen home matches last season had less fans in the seats -- and everyone of those games was a midweek (Wednesday night) fixture.  I was out of town and could not attend, but found three takers in my absence.  The other four season tickets in our group went unused despite being offered to any taker gratis.

United supporters and the club can keep pretending that it is the decaying stadium, the weather, or a college basketball tournament that's keeping seats freely available, but the games have made for miserable viewing (whether live or on the television).  We can also continue to endure excuses about purported failures to execute, but that's not going to convince anyone that there is an interesting product at RFK.  It is particularly hard to argue against unleashing the talent on the roster when there is little functional difference between losing matches 2-1 or 2-0 and losing them 5-4 or 6-3.

We are, nevertheless, where we are.  U.S. soccer is rigid and mechanical.  Klinsmann's critique has not been met by supportive voices amongst the coaches of the MLS.

One of the other things that makes the story great is the identity of the person who penned it.  Because the story was authored by Brian Straus and not, say, Grant Wahl, the focus is more on football than on personalities.  It is not a gossip piece.  It is reporting.  And that bodes well for the future of the sport in this country as too much of what is written about the game is short on giving fans greater insight into what they are seeing or why things unfolded in a particular way on the pitch.

Well done Brian.  Good job out of you.  

Meh

On the way out of RFK last night, a father says to his son:  "D.C. United won!  Did you have a good time?"  The kid replies:  "I guess.  Nothing really happened.  It was boring."

Olsen's Army!

The club is going to ridiculous lengths to enhance fan experience -- including having representatives stand by the exits to thank supporters personally for coming out -- without having an on-field product that will build the next generation of season ticket holders.

United won.  They controlled large portions of the match and bottled up Real Salt Lake.  When needed, Bill Hamid was clutch, making at least one unreal reaction save to preserve the shutout.  Dejan Jakovic was terrific, putting in one of the most solid shifts I've seen him play in a United uniform.  The young Panamanian, Marcos Sanchez, was fun to watch with some creative flourish and quick turns.  And Nick DeLeon was run into the ground but still managed to play a great ball forward very late in the match.

I should focus on the positives.  It was a fun night out.  17,000 plus saw United earn three points.  United's staff is great.  I'm glad I went.

But a moment on the scorer of the game-winning goal:  Lionard Pajoy is being described as the polarizing figure on United's roster.  I can't imagine that he will be more polarizing than Carlos Ruiz, but Pajoy is unlikely to become a fan favorite even if he scores a dozen or so goals this season.  Pajoy's yellow card in the 28th minute was fully deserved for a dirty, entirely unnecessary kick at Kwame Watson-Siriboe.  And the caution failed to prevent Pajoy from chirping endlessly at Sorin Stoica for the rest of the half every time a call didn't go his way.  It is not exactly a privilege to have to cheer for a player that underscores the worst of Bennie bite ball.

The best sequence of the match came late in the second half when Marcelo Saragosa, subbed on for an injured John Thorrington, received the ball fifteen or so yards from midfield, watched his teammates launch forward, and dribbled backwards toward four RSL players so as to make a bizarre back pass to Hamid that left little room for error.  That one pass would have erased roughly eighty minutes of conservative, sleep inducing soccer.

Still, maybe everything changes when Dwayne DeRosario is back in the lineup.  I watched DeRo for a bit this afternoon at Ludwig and he's ready to step right back in.

In terms of soccer, the scrimmage today with Maryland was more compelling than the home opener last night.

Patrick Mullins can more than hold his own against professionals, showing once again that he's ready whenever he wants to make the jump.

Mullins saw several familiar faces in the DC United side, with Casey Townsend getting time up top and Ethan White anchoring the back line (along with Daniel Woolard, Henry Kalungi, and Robbie Russell).  After Russell pulled himself out of the game with a leg injury, he was spelled by another Maryland alum, Alex Lee.

I had hoped to have seen the last of Kurt Morsink chewing out teammates for perceived failings after Kurt retired but, alas, Morsink played alongside Conor Shanosky in the midfield.  True to form, late in the scrimmage, Morsink lit into Ethan for something that neither I nor Mr. White appeared to think had been a mistake.  Kurt continued to press the point, whatever it was, after the final whistle.  The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Baseball & Snow Flurries

I know next to nothing about college baseball.  After attending and enjoying a couple of Maryland baseball games last year, I bought season tickets this year and filed away the intent to check out games when possible.  With our kids otherwise engaged on Saturday, the first opportunity this season corresponded with a double header against Princeton.

Although bitterly cold (and snowing (?)), it was several hours well worth spent.  The opening game was a rout, with K.J. Hockaday, Kyle Convissar, and Charlie White going a combined 10 for 13 to put more than enough runs on the board for Brady Kirkpatrick's second win of the year.

I had to leave early in the second game, but stayed long enough to see why freshman Kevin Mooney was Maryland's high school player of the year.  It was also apparent, from both games, why Maryland's last coaching regime was so high on the pair of Brooklyn recruits out of Grand Street, Kevin Martir (C) and Jose Cuas (2B/SS).  Cuas let a routine grounder that should have been a double play eat him up late in the first game, but otherwise looked solid in the field and at the plate.  Martir's a solid backstop who looks like he can carry his own with the bat as well.

The lasting impression from the games, however, was the incredible bloodlines on display for Princeton.  I should have recognized head coach Scott Bradley from his time with the Mariners (as Randy Johnson's personal catcher, no less), but when any American soccer fan sees him the first connection drawn is how much he looks like his older brother, Bob. 

Scott has pulled together an impressive pedigree of catchers.  The starting backstop for game one happens to look and play very much like his father, former Chicago Cub and current assistant General Manager of the Angels, Scott Servais.  The starting backstop for game two looks quite a bit like his major league father and current Mets' bench coach, Bob Geren.  Princeton has both Geren boys, with older brother Bobby spelling Brett late in the game.  As famous as Tyler, Bobby, and Bret's respective fathers are, they pale in (current) comparison to the patriarch of another catcher on the roster, Andrew Christie.

I would hazard a guess that few of the several Princeton supporters that made it out to College Park for the series enjoyed the games much.  It was cold, Princeton was overmatched, and it was a brutal way to start the season.  Nevertheless, despite the rough conditions, they were great.  They will, with luck, get much more pleasure out of the trip to Georgetown in two weeks.           

Popular

This afternoon, we joined 15,849 others at Comcast to watch the Maryland women lose their fifth game of a season to a Duke squad that was rolling.

It is always a bummer to watch the women lose, but the game itself was not a disappointment.  Although fairly well beaten, the Terrapins did not roll over and Alyssa Thomas led a fiery comeback that sputtered and fell apart with poor shooting.

I'm looking forward to Maryland's enrollment in the Big Ten and have no qualms about the departure from the ACC.  The annual Maryland-Duke women's basketball game will, nevertheless, be missed.  The environment is unparalleled at Comcast.  While the men's game is an outpouring of fear and loathing, the women's game is a genuine rivalry teeming with energy.  Beating Maryland at Comcast means something to the Duke women.

The game obviously means something special to the community around here.  Today's attendance was nearly four times the average game attendance for the season (~4,379).  Before this afternoon, there hadn't been more than 5,153 people at a game for the season.

Even more remarkable:  the attendance for the game was higher than for all but one of the Georgetown men's home games at Verizon this season (they drew 17,474 for the game against Louisville in January).

The women's basketball program will thrive in the Big Ten, but there's not likely to be anything to this event.   

Maybe You Might Try Coaching

In nearly twenty years of living in the Washington DC area, I've managed to develop an affinity for all of two local professional franchises:  the Washington Mystics and D.C. United.

Like many Mystics supporters, we dropped our season tickets many years ago and only rarely make it to games.

D.C. United has been an automatic call.  Even with two young kids, there's never been a question as to whether we would renew our seats each season.

Not anymore.

The season begins next Saturday with the first home game a week after and we've let friends know that our seats are available, gratis, for anyone wants to use them.  Thus far, there is even less interest from our small circle of soccer supporters.

There were many great things about United's off-season:  acquiring Casey Townsend through trade, drafting Taylor Kemp and Evan Raynr, and signing Michael Seaton to a professional contract.  Add the return of Lance Rozeboom to full health, plus the two Brazilian Rafaels, and United was rolling into a new season stocked with quality young talent.

But from the very beginning, storm clouds loomed overheard.  United acquired a 33-year old John Thorrington as their only addition from the MLS re-entry draft in December.  Raynr, a talented passer with a good feel for the game, was set adrift after a brief look.  More recently, the team has added a 30-year old James Riley and 33-year old Carlos Ruiz to the roster.

The move for Ruiz has drawn the most ire from supporters, but the Riley acquisition was in the same vein.  The D.C. United that will take the field in 2013 is a cynical side led by a cynical coach that will play cynical soccer, measuring its value through "bite."

Ben Olsen is very charismatic.  I thoroughly enjoyed listening to the coach discuss his take on last season and his philosophy at a season ticket holder event this month.  I think that Andy Najar became a better player under his regime, and that the same is true for Chris Pontius, Perry Kitchen, and Nick DeLeon.   

But, like with Najar, I'd prefer to see Pontius and DeLeon move on and play somewhere else.

The attacking options available to complement Dwayne DeRosario, Pontius, and DeLeon are incredible:  both Rafaels are insanely skilled, Casey Townsend is an accomplished striker and a tireless worker, and Michael Seaton's shown that he's not intimidated by being in the first team side.  We've got as much a chance of seeing these guys as we did watching  Branko Boskovic and Hamdi Salihi last year.

What we will "enjoy" instead is more Lionard Pajoy spelled by Carlos Ruiz, all the while being lectured on the unseen, unrecognized importance of these two veteran strikers and the purportedly unassailable truth of the physical demands of the M-L-S.

No matter how well Lance Rozeboom has played thus far, Marcelo Saragosa is going to get more time in the center of the midfield.

And it will all be in the service of wins; of returning D.C. United to the glory long left behind.  Maybe they make the playoffs again by being the hard team.  And maybe the club can build up its attendance with the new-found buzz borne from victories.  If so, my complaints and concerns are parochial and of no moment to D.C. United's management.

But if it doesn't work... if you lose while putting crap on the field while simultaneously pissing away young talent?

This year should mark the resurgence of a franchise that has cemented itself as part of the District of Columbia.  Absent the addition of a big-name designated player, the way United will build long-term excitement in the community is through its young stars supported by DeRo.

But why waste time coaching the kids if you can just wind up the old warhorses and claim one-nil glories?

I hope I'm made to eat these words as the season progresses.  But I doubt it.  And in the interim, if I want to see D.C. United's good young talent in action, we'll have to venture down to Richmond.

Proximity

 As a kid, the name of nearly every player on the sports teams I followed was imprinted in my brain.  Yet the relationship with those players was, with few blessed exceptions, entirely remote.  Meeting a Chicago Bear at a promotional meet and greet at a Sears in the western suburbs was worth every minute of the interminable wait.  My cousins and I would spend hours standing outside a chain link fence in a parking lot at Jack Murphy just for the chance to get Mark Parent’s signature on a baseball.

As I’ve grown older, the distance between fan and athlete has narrowed.  But I still feel an intense sense of privilege at being able to meet, however briefly, an athlete I root for as a spectator.

I doubt it will be the same for my daughters.  

 In the last week, our eldest was at Maryland women’s basketball game on Sunday, a D.C. United season ticket holder event on Tuesday, and a college gymnastics meet last night.  At each, the highlight for her was the chance to interact with players or coaches.

At RFK Tuesday night, our four-year old found Coach Olsen mingling with fans before the questions and answers session, peppering him with non sequiturs that Bennie looked eager to escape.  But before he did, she learned that the coach had a four-year old kid and pondered when, exactly, it would be appropriate to share with him what happened when the frog’s car broke down.  A couple of days earlier at Comcast, she shared her plans to celebrate her fifth birthday at Chuck E. Cheese’s with Maryland’s Katie Rutan and Chloe Pavlech after the women’s impressive win over Boston College.

Last night was the best of the week.  Maryland’s gymnastics team has adopted the practice of granting kids autographs from everyone on the roster after every home meet/match.  It is not a minor commitment.  There are scores of children – overwhelmingly girls – at Comcast for these events.     Attendance last night was announced at over a thousand. 

And the gymnasts don’t just sign autographs.  They really seem to love interacting with the kids.  After walking through the line, our daughter has decided that maybe gymnastics is something that she can do and she’s been practicing her tumbling throughout the day.  It was and is amazing.

Almost as impressive for me were the number of football and basketball players at the meet last night that came out to support the team.  Watching Dez Wells earnestly hand out flowers as the final scores were announced it seemed, to me, as a genuine gesture of respect for fellow athletes.  For our daughters, we make a big deal out of going to see the men’s basketball team and the football team play.  Seeing Seth Allen and Dexter McDougle (among several others) in the stands supporting the team signaled how big a deal the meet was as well.  

Not that it was necessary.  The event spoke for itself.  The perfect ten that Katy Dodds netted from one judge followed an electrifying floor exercise.  Stephanie Giameo's beam routine drew audible gasps.  

Beisbol

I am going to miss Maryland's return to the College Cup Final Four and the Georgetown derby sited in Alabama on Friday.  I also missed Maryland's game against George Mason Sunday, missed our first home game tonight (against UMES), and will miss the South Carolina State game Saturday.

But even on vacation I cannot stop trying to find a sporting event to attend.  Thanks largely to a useful post on Puerto Rico Day Trips, we made it out to the Carolina Gigantes/Cangrejeros de Santucre game tonight at Roberto Clemente Stadium.

The stadium is, indeed, big, beautiful, and well-maintained.  We got ourselves a bit turned around getting out to Roberto Clemente, as (coming from the west) we needed to take a U-turn at the intersection of PR-3 and PR-857, then missed the turn to the parking lot (north on PR-853) and ended up back on PR-3 heading west.  Correcting the mistake was easy, parking cost only $2, and admission was free.  Scott Kazmir was on the mound for Carolina with Kyle Blanks in left field, the opposition featured Neftali Soto, former Nat/Oriole Luis Matos, and former Nat Felipe Lopez, and the stadium was gorgeous, so I kept looking for reasons to spend money to even out the experience.

Because Kazmir was on the mound, a number of scouts were in the stand.  At the game, I did not realize that he was back on the radar of major league clubs and, from tonight's performance, I do not think you would have reasonably guessed that this was the case.  Kyle Blanks, on the other hand, is striking.  I had not seen him play before.  At 6'6" and 270 pounds, he stands out without having to swing a bat.  He hammered a couple of balls tonight.  Given the level of talent there, I hope Blanks will finally be able to string together a full season of good health.

I did not expect to enjoy going to a winter league baseball game as much as we did tonight.  Definitely a family-friendly environment, with the added benefit of very easy access by car to Carolina's stadium from San Juan.