Great DCU 2007 Video

Well, no white Christmas, not even a Black and Red one as we still await word on possible gifts (a central defender and midfielder will do), maybe we can buy something with our xmas money from the Perkins transfer. But in lieu of players, here's a fabulous 2007 video recap put together by 'jade1mls' with a little help from the Barra Brava. March is a long way away!


A downloadable hi-fi version is available here:http://www.zshare.net/download/60151686f80452/

Veron says he's staying

"he could not fail the fans of Students"

On live TV Veron states he is not going to the United States. On Estudio Fútbol he stated he would be playing for Estudiantes next season. When asked specifically about the possibility of transferring in the June window he said "right now he was focused on the coming season."

Here is an article on TYC's website, the network carrying the interview.

Basically he says the money was good but he couldn't turn his back on the fans. He hopes to be telling the story of Students ten years from now to the newbies. In other words he has political aspirations at his club.

While Goff is on the road to Cary and hasn't confirmed, I call this one dead. Now let's find another number 10 and a center back

Veron -Done Deal? SI says yes, Argies say no

SI.com is reporting that Veron and DC United have agreed to terms and an official announcement will come next Wednesday.

SportingLife.com

SI reports the deal to be worth $3-4 million a year, which fits the 3 year, $10M, figures floating around.

The Argentinian press is reporting he is staying.
OLE has a couple of articles:

"I remain by my people and my companions"

http://www.ole.clarin.com/notas/2007/12/14/01564190.html

Of course until Steve Goff says its a done deal or he is staying, things are still up in the air.

Remember when there used to be a boring off season in MLS?

Veron and Lopez to DC? - (w/video compilation)

As DCenters illustrates it is impossible to judge or evaluate off season trades and aquisitions in a vacuum. The dust will have to settle before final appraisals can be made, but Veron(32yo) and Lopez(33yo) scare me. I guess Lopez more than Veron.

It looks like Gomez is gone and we'll be replacing him with Veron. Okay I get that.

The Lopez pick up worries me though. Moreno's future is up in the air and we need a striker. Lopez and Veron have played together before for Club and Country. The picture above is from the 2002 World Cup. Seventeen years ago they played in the sixth division of Estudiantes de la Plata for six months with Veron's father as the trainer. I don't think that really qualifies as a natural pairing.

So it looks like Moreno might go and if not he is aging and is best as a late minute sub. It looks like we'll be replacing him with an aging striker who is coming in as a late sub for Racing. I don't get that.

That's why I write a blog.

I really don't want to beat a dead horse with this but Veron has a much cooler nickname. Claudio Lopez is known as "El Piojo", the louse, hardly strikes fear in my heart. My wife teaches in an elementary school and it makes her a little uncomfortable. Oh well.

Hopefully Veron will help DC United add to their trophy case. He has seen his share of hardware during his storied career to this point. Veron has won:

UEFA Cup - 1999
European Super Cup - 1999
Italian Cup - 1999, 2000, 2005, 2006
Italian Serie A - 2000, 2006
Italian Super Cup - 2000, 2005
English Premier League : 2003
Argentine Division: Apertura 2006

Here is some video for your enjoyment. If you are short on time go to the 2:24 mark for a sweet free kick... or the pass at 4:05.

Boswell's Gone

NO WAY DUDE!

I don't mean just in this picture. Goff is reporting that Boswell has been traded to Houston for GK Zach Wells and a future draft pick. DC is in need of a keeper as Perkins may be heading to Norway. Keep up with all the wheeling and dealing at Soccer Insider.

Remembering the Customer

It seems the biggest problem with businesses today is delivering quality service. We hear and see the failures continually. It seems that the days of "the customer is always right" idiom has died. I actually think the problem is much deeper than that however, I believe the failures in delivering good service are a result of forgetting who the customer is. The Red Bulls provide a prime example today.



The press surrounding the newly redesigned Red Bull Park has been incredible (of course it is like a Bigfoot sighting).Today's SportsBusiness Journal has an article lauding Red Bull management's decision to move the press corp closer to the action.
Don Muret reports:

"The trend in sports is for teams to design press boxes in the upper regions of their new arenas and stadiums. In the NBA, clubs are moving beat writers farther from the court to free up space on the floor so they can sell $1,000 courtside seats.

By contrast, Red Bull Park, when it opens sometime in 2009 in Harrison, N.J., will position the media in the stadium’s sweetest spot, 100 seats at midpitch behind the team benches."

"In addition, stadium architect Rossetti is designing what project officials are calling the “Flash Zone,” a controlled space on the west side near the entrance of the tunnel leading to the locker rooms where reporters can get quick postgame interviews as the players leave the field.

The open-air interview area will be just a few steps from the media seats, McGowan said. Red Bull Park will also contain a traditional interview room beneath the stands and auxiliary press space on the second of two suite levels."

The article goes on:

"“We’ve got a great group of writers in New York, but they really can’t hear and fully capture the atmosphere of the game,” said Red Bulls spokesman Andrew McGowan. “This way, they will be close to the action and be able to better describe it.”"

"McGowan acknowledged that the Red Bulls could have generated significant revenue from selling the media seats as season tickets at a premium price."

So what's wrong with that? Nothing I guess, until you look at an organization that hasn't forgotten who the customer is. DC United has foregone revenue of their own in prime seats at RFK. Giving group rates to the Black and Red's supporter groups Barra Brava, The Screaming Eagles and La Norte, field level at mid field. Not only did they give up full ticket price the Front Office also decided to create a buffer zone behind the Barra Brava sections. The team does not sell tickets there so fans who want to sit and watch the game aren't disgruntled when they can't see over the standing supporters. In David Montgomery"s Post article, "United Force", he recounts how at first drums were banned from RFK.

"But Kevin Payne, president of D.C. United, did understand. "This is not other sports," says Payne. "Rather than have a band getting up occasionally to play a rehearsed song, our fans make their own music." Deny this urge, and the cost to a franchise in passion, atmosphere, noise and ticket sales is incalculable."

At DC United not only is the customer always right, the customer is always the customer.

BSA College Combine (pics)

I went over to Burke Soccer Association's college combine today because, as my wife informed when I left, I'm addicted. I got there in time to see 60 or 70 players warming up to start playing. I didn't have the benefit of seeing the morning training sessions but I knew the one player I'd take, if I was a coach, five minutes into the games.

Here is his picture:



Now let me tell you how I knew this was the 'guy' five minutes in.

At the beginning of the game he was sent off for improper equipment, no shin guards. He didn't have any with him. He steps off the field, looks up, sees a trash can and pulls a large coffee cup from the bottom. He pops the bottom out of the cup and carefully tears the cup in half. I watch as he grabs a pinnie and wipes the inside clean and slaps them to his shins. He rolls up his socks and is standing at the center line ready to go.

To me this showed: desire to play, creativity, and thinking on his feet, everything you could want in a player!

Turns out this kid is already playing for a college but I won't mention his name or school because his coach didn't think this story was quite as humorous as I did.




Here are a few more pics:

Veron Decision a week away

OLE is reporting that Veron will announce his decision between December 15th and 18th.
I think we should start a pool, on when Steve Goff will have a decision. I'll go with the 10th.

Burke Soccer Association College Combine

BSA has 66 Juniors and Seniors set to train and play in a College Combine this weekend.

Saturday and Sunday schedule:

10:00 - Training Session

12:00 - Lunch @ **Collett Street Recreation Center

2:00 - 11 v 11 Games

Coaches from the following schools will be in attendance:
1. Appalachian State University
2. UNC Asheville
3. Gardner-Webb University
4. Lenoir-Rhyne College
5. Lees-McRae College
6. Davis & Elkins College
7. Tusculum College
8. Methodist University
9. Tennessee Wesleyan
10. King College
11. Montreat College
12. Spartanburg Methodist
13. Coker College
14. Emory & Henry College
15. UNC Pembroke
16. Guilford College
17. Brevard College
18. Mars Hill College

Is Veron the way to go?

Dcenters has some good discussion on this and the economics of it. D's point is that if the price is $30M, DC United could not spend that money elsewhere.But as he points out we will have to make salary cap space for him meaning,someone's gotta go. As far as I am concerned, I'm not too excited, if it was Riquelme I'd be going nuts... but that's just me.

I personally get a pretty big kick out of the fact that Emilio was MVP and won the Golden Boot and is not a Designated Player. I enjoy that despite all of MLS's rule changes and advantages that DC United is the class of the League, not LA or NY. I also worry about signing a slow, aging player with niggling injuries already (you'd think I would have learned from the Blanco signing). I also cannot for the life of me figure out the economics of it. I get it with Becks and Blanco but Veron is a signing that isn't going to put more butts in the seats or spark ridiculous numbers of jersey sales. His play and drive could very well put us over the top for the MLS Cup, but that alone can't be worth $30M can it? Perhaps the payoff is the Argentine talent that would be more willing to sign for a club that Veron plays or had played for.

Another plus that should be posted is his nickname beats the hell out of "Fred" and could rival El Diablo's as United's coolest. La Brujita (Little Witch) could go down in Black and Red history, unless of course his play isn't up to par or he starts whining about the referees like "No-Neck" (then it becomes just too easy for the opponents Supporter Groups).

The bottom line is I'll be happy either way it goes because I've got great confidence in the DC United organization.

Waiting by the Veron

While I patiently wait for news on Juan Sebastian Veron I thought I would do a quick review of the 2007 campaign. (Actually patiently waiting was what I was doing a week ago, currently I probably account for half of Goff's 10,000 daily hits). While the end of the season was emotionally crushing let's take a look at accomplishments of the season that every one seemed so eager to throw away.

DC United brought home the Supporter's Shield for the second year running.
For those of you wishing for single table, I want you to honestly tell me, you would have rather the season ended with a loss to the Crew instead of the two intense games against the Fire.

United was the first team in the League to clinch a playoff spot.
(who would have bet on that at the end of April?)

Emilio wins MLS Honda Most Valuable Player.

Emilio wins Budweiser Golden Boot.

Emilio, Gomez, Olsen MLS Best Xl.

Gomez Al Star First Xl.

Tom Soehn in the running for Coach of the Year.
(Honestly even though I hated his line up decision for Columbus, he deserved it. If it hadn't been Preki he was up against he would have won.)


Moreno breaks all time scoring record.

Troy Perkins MLS Player of the Month in August.

Emilio MLS Player of the Month in September.

Emilio MLS Player of the Week twice.

Olsen Player of the Week once.

Fred Player of the Week once.

Ben Olsen MLS Goal of the Week (week 10)

Jaime Moreno MLS Goal of the Week (week 21)

Luciano Emilio MLS Goal of the Week (week 26)

And let's not forget the FO:

Account Executive of the Year (second consecutive year).

Team Public Relations Award (fourth straight year).

Operations Director of the Year.

Ticket Sales Director of the Year.

Athletic Trainer of the Year.

MLS Equipment Manager of the Year.

Would I have traded it all in for a fifth star this year at RFK?
Probably not, because with a quality organization like this the fifth star isn't that far away.

NC Region 11 Men's Soccer Team

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE 2007 REGION 11 TEAM
Catawba Valley Athletic Conference in red

Choua Lee Alexander Central
Alex Dzierzynski Bandys
Mark Bridges East Burke
Justin Walker East Burke
Chas Deal East Wilkes
Logan Clippard Fred T. Foard
Mackenzie Sherrill Fred T. Foard
Jon Teague Fred T. Foard
Stewart Wilkinson Fred T. Foard
Yee Lor Freedom
Frankie Pascual Freedom
Collin Taylor Freedom
Tito Vicente Freedom
Miguel Aguilar Hibriten
Nick Beeson Hickory
Tucker Broome Hickory
Drew Knapp Hickory
AJ Osbahr Hickory
Pablo Alzate Lake Norman
Matt Fox Lake Norman
Matt Gwilt Lake Norman
Ryan Mertes Lake Norman
Anthony Vega Lake Norman
Will Mack Mooresville
Sam Sackenheim Mooresville
Mark Comer Newton-Conover
Derek Filip Newton-Conover
Bryan George Newton-Conover
Zach Mellon Newton-Conover
Nathan Poteat North Wilkes
Arael Regino Patton
Jared Pyles South Caldwell
Chris Laws South Iredell
Josh Kerley St. Stephens
Jeff Schluter St. Stephens
Brent Daino Statesville
Doug Ryan Statesville
Jesus Cabello West Iredell
Eli Flores West Iredell
Michael Watkins West Iredell
Cory Garlock West Wilkes
David Andreski Wilkes Central
Doug Skidmore Wilkes Central
Drew Walker Wilkes Central

NC High School 4A & 2A Finals, recaps

George's second half goal lifts N-C over Cardinal Gibbons


Staff Photo by Jason Arthurs
Cardinal Gibbons' Patrick Donahue goes head and shoulders above Zach Melton of Newton-Conover.
Red Devils edge Crusaders for title


Raleigh N&O Photo Album N-C vs CG

Newton-Conover wins 2A boys' soccer title



Staff Photo by Jason Arthurs
Broughton's Ben Iiames, center, lets the crowd know his team is the best in the state.

Capitals make it back-to-back state titles

Raleigh N&O Photo Album


Whirlies come up short in overtime

Broughton Wins Soccer Championship in Overtime

NC High School State Final Updates

Broughton wins 4A Championship!
Broughton defeats Grimsley 3-2

Thanks Josh for picking up the trend:
Broughton Goal - 8th Minute
Grimsley Goal - 8 Minutes to go in Regulation
Broughton Goal - 8 Minutes into 1st OT Period
Broughton Goal with 8 Minutes left in 2nd OT Period
But Grimsley didn't cooperate and pull one back in the 98th minute choosing the 96th to score their second goal.

NC High School State Final Updates, 11/17

Newton-Conover wins 2A Championship!!
The "Gurley Boys" did a fine job representing the West and the CVAC tonight defeating Cardinal Gibbons 1-0 in Raleigh. Congratulations!

NC High School State finals pics and vids

North Carolina School of Science and Math
Photo Album on Local replay

Lake Norman's game winning goal

More video


Lake Norman Photo Album on Localreplay

NC High School News, 11/17

Lake Norman rallies for 2nd straight title

Foxx's clutch hat trick lifts Wildcats to second straight state title

Fike falls, 4-2, in OT at 3-A championship


Title computes for Science & Math

Lake Norman rallies to slip past Fike


Broughton will face familiar foe for 4-A title

Crusaders reach soccer final

Grimsley hopes to give Broughton the cold shoulder

NC High School State Championship Update

UNICORNS WIN 1A Championship
1A
North Carolina School of Math and Science 1
East Montgomery 0



WILDCATS WIN 2A CHAMPIONSHIP
3A
Lake Norman 4
Fike 2

LN down 2-0 with less than 10 minutes to play. Matt Foxx scores 2 to tie it. 1st OT Foxx gets the hattrick. Brantley makes it 4-2 with two minutes left in OT.

Emilio MVP

The Golden Boot and the MVP. Steve Goff is also reporting that Emilio, Olsen and Gomez have made the Best Xl.

The Myth of the Tahuichi Gold Mine

Paul Gardner, the NY Sun soccer writer, always seems to do a good job staying on message regarding MLS. His message, "you need a more attractive product on the field". That's hardly a controversial stance but I do take some exception to his article, "How MLS lost the Tahuichi gold mine", in October's Soccer America magazine.

Back in 1998 deputy commisioner of MLS, Sunil Gulati, recognized the quality of Jaime Moreno and Marco Etcheverry. Knowing they each came out of the Tahuichi youth club in Bolivia Gulati made a bold move. According to Gardner "He brokered a deal with Tahuichi, under which MLS paid Tahuichi $100,000 a year, in return for first refusal on any promising youngsters." After Gulati lost his job the following year "the deal continued for a couple of years and then was quietly abandoned."

This according to Paul Gardner is "a decision that now stands out as the most stupidly short-sighted gaffe the league has ever made." I'm sorry but we are talking MLS, I'm thinking taken in context this isn't even in the top ten of stupidly short-sighted gaffes the League has made.

At the time $100,000 annually to a struggling League bleeding losses was huge. The fact that MLS was seeing no return on that money was even worse. Only one player began a MLS career out of Tahuichi, Joselito Vaca was drafted by Dallas in 2001.

The decision was also tempered by the fact that the League had no infrastructure in place to handle youth players adequately, as Gardner points out "[Tahuichi has] consistently...produced technically skilled players - young players of considerable promise. No more than promise, of course - this is a youth setup, and the next step is the responsibility of pro clubs." The League wasn't in a position to develop players at the time.

The reality of the situation is that MLS has not lost sight of the need for flair or the talent South of the border. This year a dozen players were signed from Central and South America and only three used Designated Player slots, while all had immediate impact for their team (although Denilson's was negative).

So while Gardner takes jabs at MLS for its short sightedness, Steve Goff reports that DC United is doing what it does best, finding and signing talent.

"United Coach Tom Soehn and General Manager Dave Kasper are in South America this week on a scouting mission. One source tells me they are attempting to finalize a deal with Argentina's Juan Sebastian Veron. Another source tells me they are looking at Veron as well as others."

Back in June when it was announced that Etcheverry would be working for DC United again I had posted a link to an article about El Diablo's visit to San Lorenzo. Who knows maybe another youth academy agreement is afoot. But I gotta tell ya, I'm pretty happy with the job United does identifying and signing talent.

NC High School Soccer News, 11/15

REGAN HILL
Lake Norman's Pablo Alzate (21) tries to shake off a Charlotte Catholic defender during the Wildcats' 3-0 win over the Cougars in the 3A state playoffs Wednesday. Lake Norman will defend its state title against Wilson Fike.
Wildcats clinch another trip to state title game

North Meck eliminated from 4A soccer playoffs


Grimsley advances to play Broughton for title

Newton-Conover denies Shelby a trip to State soccer finals

Red Devils win the West in 2A, will play for title

Crusaders reach soccer final

NC High School Updates

4a Finals

Broughton will face Grimsley

Grimsley defeated Lake Norman 1-0.
Lake Norman went down a man late in the first half.
Grimsley scored off a corner with about 15 minutes left in the game.

3A Finals

Fike will play Lake Norman.

Lake Norman defeated Charlotte Catholic

2A Finals

Newton-Conover will go up against Cardinal Gibbons

N-C beat Shelby 1-0.
Newton-Conover scores on a PK in the final minutes of regulation

Swansboro and Cardinal Gibbons goes to PKs, tied 4-4 after first five, CG wins 2-1 in the second round

NC High School Playoff Updates, 11/14

4A STATE FINALS

Broughton will face the winner of:

Grimsley @ North Meck, 7:00pm, 11/14

Greensboro Grimsley Whirlies at North Mecklenburg Vikings


The Caps Capitalize in the Blink of an Eye

Haynes lifts Caps into state final

News & Observer photo gallery

Falcons fall in regional final

Grimsley reaches state semifinals in boys soccer


3A STATE FINALS

Fike will face the winner of:

Charlotte Catholic @ Lake Norman, 7:00pm, 11/14

Charlotte Catholic Cougars at Lake Norman Wildcats

Lake Norman ends season for Fred T. Foard soccer

Fike beats Jacksonville, 1-0, to advance to first soccer state championship


2A STATE FINALS

The winner of:

Cardinal Gibbons @ Swansboro, 7:00pm, 11/14

will face the winner of:

Newton-Conover @ Shelby, 7:00pm, 11/14

Shelby seeks first trip to 2A State finals

Golden Lions advance to 2A Western finals

Red Devils take out Brevard with penalty kicks

1A STATE FINALS

NCSSM versus East Montgomery, 5:00 PM, 11/16, WRAL Stadium

NCSSM photos

East Montgomery photos

Ray Hudson would have a stroke..,

...working the booth with Dave O'Brien!


Everyone who knows me knows my love of Ray Hudson (as a commentator not a coach!). Finally someone has started a blog dedicated to the wisdom of Ray Hudson named Hudsonia. The blog is a running list of Hudsonisms and is a must to bookmark.

Here are a few of my favorites:

"There's more flair in this team, in this club, than a nineteen-seventies high-school reunion."

"They're looking as nervous as a Beirut grocery-run here in the opening going."

"Their defence was tighter than a camel's backside in a sandstorm ..."

"Ah, Phil, if he cannot hit this, there's something wrong with his hammer."

"They started off like a cup of Sanka and ended up like a double-shot espresso, cappuccino."

NC High School 2A Final Four

Swansboro versus Cardinal Gibbons

Montero powers Crusaders to win


Shelby versus Newton-Conover

Golden Lions advance to 2A Western finals

Red Devils soccer team advances on penalty kicks

Newton-Conover @ Brevard, 6pm, 11/10

Who will carry their team to the 2A West Final; Bryan George, senior with Newton-Conover, 22 goals and 8 assists or Jake Hagedorn who hit his 40th goal versus Owen?

The unbelievable thing to me, is everyone knows Hagedorn is Brevard's go to guy, yet he still manages to find ways to score.

Bryan George has the same knack. As the season has progressed both players have seen their goals coming more from set plays and less from the run of play.

Here are some of the news about the teams over the course of the season:



Brothers connect on lone goal in Brevard win
Confident Brevard, Owen squads meet in rematch
Brevard drops Panthers in overtime
Hibriten looks to avoid loss to Brevard
Hagedorn scores twice as Brevard stays unbeaten in WAC
Soccer Best of the West: Brevard gets off to hot start


Red Devils advance to third round in soccer playoffs
Fred T. Foard defeats Newton-Conover 2-0 in soccer
Newton-Conover defeats Bandys in soccer action

Rob Stone & The Red Hot Chili Peppers

"It was like somebody Tasered my mouth"

NC High School 2A East Bracket, 11/08

22-0 First Flight (#1 NEC)faces 22-1-2 Swansboro (#1 ECENT)

First Flight beat Croatan 4-0

Swansboro dropped Richlands 3-0

The winner plays the winner of:

22-2-2 Cardinal Gibbons (#1MIDS) against 17-5-3 Northwood (#3 MIDS)

CG embarassed West Stokes 8-0

Northwood slips by Cedar Ridge 3-2 in OT

High School 2A West Bracket, 11/8

14-5-3, Shelby (#1 SWRN) versus 15-4-2 Lincolnton (#1 SNRP)

Shelby blanked E lincoln 5-0 to advance

Lincolton won 4-3 on penalties to knock out Mt Pleasant

The winner will play the winner of:

18-6-1 Newton Conover (#1 CVAC) faces 19-3-1 Brevard (#1 WATH)

N-C beat Wilkes Central 2-1

Brevard defeated Owen 1-0

Bruce Arena Unemployed

"Citing the need for stronger progress, Red Bulls Managing Director Marc de Grandpre announced on Monday that Sporting Director and head coach Bruce Arena has resigned."

As usual Steve Goff at Soccer Insider had the news first.

NC High School News, 11/05

JOHN FLETCHER
Owen's Clark Uhlenhopp battles for the ball against Starmount's Drew Cain during the Warhorses' 3-0 win Saturday.
Owen shuts out Starmount in soccer playoffs

Reynolds, Roberson eliminated

Asheboro HS comes out ‘flat’ against Marvin Ridge


Watauga handles Alexander Central Cougars


photo by Chris Seward
Panther Creek's Gabe Latigue (7) jumps all over teammate Nate Latigue after he scored the winning goal during the state playoff second round game played at Chapel Hill Friday night.

Panther Creek defeats Chapel Hill

Camden rallies to beat Louisburg in soccer

Terry Sanford soccer team eliminated by Green Hope

West Brunswick eliminates Eastern Wayne

C.B. Aycock advances to third round for first time ever

Leesville Road gets best of Rose in 4-A soccer


N.M. LEWIS
Hibriten looks to avoid loss


N.M. LEWIS
Hibriten falls to Brevard in OT


East Burke fall in soccer playoffs

Broughton ousts Athens Drive

Shelby advances in 2A soccer playoffs

NC HS 2A WEST Bracket and news, 11/04

11/07
13-5-3, Shelby (#1 SWRN) faces, 9-11-2, E Lincoln (#2 SRNP)

Shelby had a first round bye and defeated Monroe 3-1 in the second round.

E Lincoln defeated wild card N Wilkes 4-0 in the first round and
Central Carolina's #1 seed Salisbury 1-0

The winner plays the winner of:

13-2-2 Mt Pleasant (#1 RRIV) versus, 14-4-2 Lincolnton (#1 SNRP)

Mt Pleasant had a first round bye and defeated Central Carolina's #2 seed, W Davidson, 2-1 in OT.

Lincolnton also had a first round bye then beat Ledford 4-2 in the second round.

The lower half of the bracket features:

17-6-1 Newton Conover (#1 CVAC) squares off against 14-2-2 Wilkes Central(#1 MTNV)

This is the game alot felt would determine the winner of the 2A West bracket. I'm not so sure after Smoky Mtn took Wilkes Central to OT.

N-C won their second round match 4-1 over Forbush.

The winner will play the winner of:

18-3-1 Brevard (#1 WATH) versus 9-7-2 Owen (#1 WRNH)

Brevard beat Hibriten 4-3 in OT while Owen defeated Starmount 3-0 in their second round match ups.

NC HS SOCCER NEWS, Nov 2

Watauga handles Cougars


Justin Falls/The Daily Advance
Currituck'sZach Story dribbles a ball against the defense of a Kinston defenderduring the Knights' 1-0 overtime win at Currituck County High School on Wednesday
Currituck seals it in overtime

Starmount, Forbush advance in soccer playoffs


Credit: News & Record
Eduardo Alvarez has found soccer to be a different game in the states from the one he learned on the rock-strewn streets of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, as a child.
Unscripted: Eduardo Alvarez

Hickory earns first-round win over SW Randolph

Freedom ready for Round 2

Patton falls in playoffs

The New Bern boys soccer team’s postseason ended with a thud on Thursday night as Hoggard handed the Bears a 3-0 loss

Caps' run continues

Kings Mountain suffered a 9-0 loss at Olympic


DEAN PARZIALE/Special to The Pilo
Bengals Bounce Pinecrest

The Union Pines Vikings boys' soccer team lost in the first round of the state 3-A playoffs 2-1 to the Western Guilford Hornets in Greensboro Wednesday.


South Iredell’s soccer team saw its season end with a 1-0 loss to West Davidson


Hoggard blanks Bears, now waits

Gut Wrenching-DC loses 3-2 on aggregate

Somehow this was much, much worse than last year. Banner ads will be going up to cover the psycho therapy. Soccer is a cruel mistress. We were a handball call away from finishing this season the way it was scripted. If Gomez's goal stands we would have been a "team of destiny". I felt sorry for Kevin Payne, I haven't had a cigarette in 23 years and I could have lit up tonight.

Beside the obvious off season need to solidify the central defense, Moreno's reaction after the game leads me to believe that his heir will be needed sooner rather than later.

DC - Fire, second leg preview

There are only two things you need to know; Jaime is healthy and he's pissed.

Okay if that's not enough Dan Loney says Ben Olsen is going to go caveman.

"If Emilio comes back on Thursday, this so-called curse the Fire have over United won’t matter. (And if he doesn’t, it probably still won’t matter, because Ben Olsen will go australopithecus afarensis on their asses.)"

So I've got the Guiness and the Brats ready, ESPN2, 7:30pm.

Remember wear black. (I think I'll wear my signed Ben Olsen Jersey, thanks Patrick!)

Breaking the Silence

I haven't posted anything on DC United since before the Columbus game. There are several reasons for my silence. There are of course underlying psychological issues as we get to this point in any sport season (I have been a Chicago Cubs fan all of my life). There are of course the usual blogger's issues of family life and paying jobs keeping me from the keyboard. The biggest reason though,is sheer anger.

Here I am pimping Tom Soehn as COY primarily based on his great rotation work with the roster and he makes a bone-headed decision to run out the starting line up in a game that had no meaning, saying we needed momentum going into the playoffs! HELLOO!!! MY GOD we sent the reserves to USOC games and there was hardware involved!

There seemed to be an uproar over Soehn's decision and tactics in the first game in Chicago. As a stand alone game I thought they were great, very smart. Give a couple of injured, key players some rest and try to play for the draw. Everyone felt the 4-5-1 was a huge mistake(the bright side:he didn't give a 3-5-2 a thought!), but Kpene looked better versus the Crew than he had all season, possibly on the verge of a break-out performance. When we dropped a goal he put the key players in and we just couldn't do anything in the final third. Again, I thought the tactics were sound.

But there was absolutely no reason we should have had two key players injured on the sideline!

So after two weeks of pyscho therapy working through my post season issues and my anger, along with guilt from DCenters I'll try to post again.

NC High School First Round Play Off News, Nov 1

Steve Dixon
Roberson’s Pablo Souza crosses over in front of Hunter Huss’s Trey Ferry during Wednesday’s match.
Roberson knocks out Hunter Huss



Patriots’ Darcy strikes quick in Southern Alamance soccer victory

Corner kicks find mark as Williams routs Nash

Apex, Green Hope, Athens Drive, Panther Creek all through to 2nd round

Morehead Panthers end season with 4-1 loss to Southern Lee

Elks roll in soccer playoff opener

RS Cental's Hilltoppers slip past Mooresville

N.C. 4A soccer playoffs: Sebastian Zuluaga's goal lifts Ashbrook in overtime


Jenni Farrow/The Daily Reflector
Members of the J.H. Rose soccer team follow the ball during their first-round playoff match with Fayetteville Jack Britt on Wednesday.
JH Rose advance in playoffs

D.H. Conley boys’ soccer come up short versus West Brunswick


PATRICK SULLIVAN/TIMES-NEWS
West Henderson's Tim Finotti throws the ball in during Wednesday's playoff game against Forbush at West Henderson.
Forbush shuts out Falcons in first round


Photo N.M. LEWIS
Hibriten celebrates Tanner Sinclair's goal

Stamey 'tricks' in Panther win


The Lumberton High season came to an end losing 1-0 at Durham Jordan

Havelock soccer eliminated by Vikings


Central ousted by Monroe in double overtime

Broughton 2 SE Raleigh 0 Photo Journal

Rocky Mount shuts out South Granville in first round

East Rowan Mustangs fall to Asheboro

Hopewell downs Crest in 4A soccer playoff contest


Asheboro High School victorious in opener
REGAN HILL
Lake Norman's Parker Cromie (7) leaps to head the ball to a teammate in the Wildcats' game against Trinity on Wednesday in the first round of the 3A state playoffs. Lake Norman won 3-0.
Alzate comes through with three goals as Wildcats cruise in first round

NC High School News, 10/31

John Coutlakis
Brevard High’s Jacob Hagedorn rises to score a goal against Polk County this season. The Blue Devils are ranked fourth in the Best of the West and have a first-round bye in the NCHSAA playoffs.
‘Defensive’ Hagedorn turns on the offense

Soccer Best of the West

NCHSAA soccer playoffs

WNC high school soccer leaders



Photo by Rob Moore
When Watauga lines up for its first state 4-A playoff game Wednesday at Jack Groce Stadium, the Pioneers will see familiar faces across the midfield line.
Watauga begins playoffs vs. Northwestern 4-A rival


Photo by Jeffrey A. Camarati for The Cary News
Panther Creek's Lester Nare (14) tackles Middle Creek's Robert Castro (23) as he goes for the ball.
Panther Creek clinches playoff appearance in second-ever season.
Cats clinch first playoff berth


Bye week good for two Blue Ridge wins

Chapel Hill falls on final day

First-round soccer games involving Mecklenburg County teams

East Burke's speed trips Mallard Creek


Harnett Central At Home For First Round Of Soccer Playoffs


Morehead HS looking for win this time around

Elkin and Starmount will be at home for first round action, while Forbush, Surry Central and North Wilkes will travel.


MIKE DIRKS/TIMES-NEWS
Hendersonville's Eddie Hernandez and Polk County's Angel Mondragon fight for the ball during their match on Oct. 1.
Polk advances as playoffs begin


The Daily News / Don Bryan
Jacksonville Zach Odum (right) fights for the ball during Tuesday's 6-1 victory over Washington in the first round of the NCHSAA 3-A playoffs
Jacksonville HS soccer rolls in first round

Lumberton Pirates hope to ground Jordan Falcons in state playoffs


Bill Bailey (The News Herald)
East Burke High School's Mark Bridges and Tripp Garrou pose Tuesday after shutting out the Mallard Creek High School Mavericks in soccer, 2-0.
East Burke Cavs off to Round 2 in soccer playoffs

First Flight ranks No. 1 in division

New Bern Bears advance to second round

Richmond's season comes to an end


Falls Road Baptist soccer wins state title

Three Cleveland County teams qualified for the playoffs.

Union Pine's Boys Start Soccer Playoffs Tonight

Canales brings loves for soccer to Bulldogs


Photo | Briana Brough
Hoggard's Jamie Jefferson (4) dribbles the ball while being pursued by East Chapel Hill's Farai Sikipa (7) during Hoggard's 1-0 win Tuesday.
Hoggard pulls out 1-0 victory

Greenfield claims 9th boys soccer state title

Forsyth Country Day wins NCISAA 3-A soccer title
Everything jelled at right time for FCD soccer


Prep-playoffs scoreboard(W-S Journal)