Week 4 Notes:

• Freddy got a yellow card. He is soooooo grounded.

• Henry Ring! Three shutouts in four games. Are you kiddn’ me?

• Man, the Earthquakes are a big ol’ bag of can’t finish.

• Nobody in the league screams at a ref quite like Tony Meola.

• Robin Fraser got a yellow card for colliding with Carlos Ruiz on a 50/50 ball. Ruiz flopped and fell like Warren Beatty in the final scene of Bonnie and Clyde. Give me a break.

Let me just reiterate the fact that Yahoo! Sports SoccerPass is the greatest thing in the history of mankind. As long as it stays free, that is.

Stream of Consciousness Match Report
Dallas Burn v Kansas City Wizards 24 April, 2004

Rematch of the Exhibition match in Edmond, America two weeks ago.

Diego Walsh with a good shot in the second minute. Good start for KC.

The grass at the Cotton Bowl looks like pool felt as usual. Greatest field in the league.

Eddie Johnson got pulled down in the box in the seventh, but got no call. Eddie took it like a pro. He’s grown a lot under Colin Clarke. Or maybe he’s just growing up in general. Either way, you can see a much more mature young man. He’s more of a team player, much more at ease with himself and his peers. It’s a great thing to observe.

I know I sound like the proverbial broken record when I say this week after week, but having Ronnie O’Brien back is wonderful. This team is not the same without him. He got a knock on the ankle around the 15th minute.

Pretty slow, midfield oriented play for most of the first quarter hour. Scott Garlick very calm on the ball, again making tough tasks look easy, very much in command of his defense.

I’m starting to think Alex Zotinca is a thug. He sucker punched Frankie Hejduk in the back last week, and just now took down Corey Gibbs for no apparent reason and with no apparent result. Zotinca, be on notice, I’ve got my eye on you, boy!

Good releasing pass by Behncke; Nhleko turns his defender and loses him. Streaks to goal with two guys on him and beats both defenders and Meola on a slow roller which wrong footed all three. Burn 1-0 in the 17th!

Eddie just misses after another good long pass by Ronnie just a minute after the goal.

Ronnie went to the sideline after that to get his ankle looked at. I don’t like this. Of course, it’ll take a little more than a knock to get Ronnie out.

Wizards getting porous in their own half. Eric Quill picks off a bad pass and shoots long on Meola, but not quite enough mustard on it.

The Wizards are calming down and putting together a little possession now, around minute 23.

Quill takes a long shot again in the 26th. Not too far off. Resulting corner muffed by KC, but to no avail for Dallas. Nhleko takes a whack on the shin, but he’s ok. I like Tony for not writhing and rolling and taking fifteen minutes to get back up.

Chris Klein nearly scores on a counter following the Dallas corner. Wizards again showing the ability to possess in midfield on occasion. Dallas, though, has obviously been working on counter-attacking, because it’s really not taking them long to get the ball forward tonight.


Nhleko got a run on goal from a long pass in the 33rd. I had no idea he had such wheels! He outran Garcia and forced Tony to make a save to his left.

Josh Wolff to Chris Klein on the left side of the box in the 37th. Klein scared me to death with a nice outside of the foot swerving shot that went just wide. KC starts to pressure. They seems to put together some possession and dangerous chances every 10 minutes of so.

Dallas gets a corner in the 40th. Jolley hits side netting. I like that he gets forward once in a while.

Second week in a row we go into halftime leading 1-0. I can get used to this.

Diego Walsh opens the second half by missing an open goal in the 4th minute. Well, open but for the charging Scott Garlick taking away all the angle possible. The pass by Wolff to release Walsh was top-shelf.

The Burn look really dangerous in the first 20 minutes. I can’t see them not scoring again in this match. The actually put the ball in the net in the 21st, but a dubious foul call on EJ nullified it.

Nobody in Major League Soccer screams at a ref quite like Tony Meola.

Rhine in for Nhleko in the 73rd. I predict a goal within 10 minutes.

Gbandi in for Gibbs in the 79th. Corey Gibbs looks to have hurt his leg on Taylor’s shot on goal. He’s taken a lot of knocks since coming home to MLS. He walked of on his own, and it looks to be ok.

Ronnie is just slicing through KC right now. Corner in the 81st off Ronnie’s near miss. And now another. KC hasn’t had 40% of the possession this half, I’d guess.

It’s raining shots right now on Meola. I just can’t tell you how much I love a team that protects a 1-0 lead by trying to double it. That is football, friends.

Talley in for Quill in the 83rd. Didn’t get the goal I predicted, but Dallas dominated that 10 minutes nonetheless.

Jolley takes down Arnaud 20 yards from goal in the 87th. This is a dangerous moment. Jolley gets a card for his troubles. I‘d bite my nails, but I don’t have any left after last week’s game, plus I believe we’ll hold.

Annnnnnnd we do. Whew.

Four minutes of stoppage time? Are they tryin’ to kill me?

OK, Chris Klein IS trying to kill me. He just missed from 20 yards out in the second minute of stoppage time. I’d like to hook myself up to a heart monitor for one of these games just to watch the squiggly lines go haywire at moments like these.

So, when’s the last time you heard this: THE DALLAS BURN LEAD THE WESTERN DIVISION!!

Good night, and drive safely!

Week 3 MLS Notes:

• New England’s Rusty Pierce has improved his game. He’s playing defense instead of just whackin’ folks.

• The best part about this time of the season is the utter absence of football lines on the fields.

• DeWayne DeRosario with an early “Goal of the Year” candidate for San Jose. Flying side volley; very fancy. Adin Brown with an uncharacteriscally weak clearance which bounced DeRsario’s way.

• Taylor Twellman scored for NE, but will not be happy with himself, as he could have easily had a hat trick had he finished just a tiny bit better.

• Frankie Hejduk was sent off in Kansas City. He took an elbow to the back of his neck from Alex Zotinca. Frankie swings his arm around and catches Zotinca on the side of the face. What happened next was entirely predictable, and stupid: First, Hejduk’s retaliation was seen and he, not Zotinca, was given a red card. Second, Zotinca, like most foreign players, went down like he’d been felled by a sniper rifle. However, the red card has magical healing powers, it seems, because the second Frankie left the field, Zotinca rose up like Lazarus of old. This is why so many Americans hate soccer.

Stream of Consciousness Match Report
Chicago Burn v Dallas Burn 17 April, 2004

Good save early on by Scott Garlick. I’ve always liked Garlick, but it took me a while to get used to him in Dallas, especially since I considered D.J. Countess one of the best young keepers in the league. Garlick has tons of experience, especially in big games, and I’m now comfortable with him in goal.

Burn back on their heels early, two good chances on goal for Chicago in the first five minutes. Razov looking very dangerous, as well as Andy Williams.

Dallas settles down after 10 minutes or so. Left wing play looks strong. Behncke is a good pickup for us.

Eddie Johnson and Tony Nhleko (pronounced ‘klekko’, of course) can’t get out of each others way in the 12th minute, spoiling a good buildup. Nhleko, to look at him, has a weekend park league player’s build, and doesn’t seem to be in great shape. To pull that off, you have to score 20 goals a season. If you do, you’re “colorful” and a “free spirit”. Anything less than that, you’re unprofessional, and probably unemployed.

I like the way Dallas will not be pushed around this year. A much tougher, much more physical team this year. Not thuggish, just good hard-nosed soccer. Very American.

Good pressure and ball control for approximately 8 minutes, starting at about minute 13. Nhleko with a scorcher of a shot in the 23rd that Ring spilled, but recovered. Good run right after that by Eric Quill, but Ring came smartly of his line and smothered Eric before he could finish.

Gorgeous goal by Eddie Johnson in the 27th minute! Quick release by Garlick to Ronnie on the right wing, long pass into the box which EJ hits on the half-volley while being covered close by two defenders. A true thing of beauty.

Everybody in Dallas has known that EJ was due to be big in this league, and hopefully this will be the night we all look back on and say, “Yep, that was the night Eddie showed up”.

Leading 1-0 at halftime. Oh my. This is the way it should be. I’m nervous. A win against Chicago means we’re back baby.

Dallas comes out strong at the beginning of the second half, creating a couple of chances. Substitute Dipsy Selowanne almost levels in the 52nd with a long shot that just misses wide right.

Valakari got another yellow. Two in two games. I kinda like that, though. He’s not dirty by any means, but he plays a hard defensive midfield. We’ve lacked that. I like the guy.

Jim Curtin tried to stomp Tony Nhleko like a narc at a biker rally. Ronnie immediately came in and got in some faces. This team is taking no nonsense this year. And they’re playing as a team, not a group of individuals. It’s good to see.

Razov missed a sitter in the 69th.

2-0 in the 70th minute!! Great run by EJ up the left side, he stops, because he’s got three men on him, he plays it square over to Rhine, who shoots from the 18, catches a fortunate deflection, and poor Henry Ring again doesn’t get a sniff at it. Two goals in two games for Bobby Rhine. He showed such great promise his first year in Dallas, it is great to see him coming into his own.

Man this feels good.

Pareja came in late and looked healthy. When he gets back in form it will be tough for Clarke to keep out of the starting lineup.

Damani Ralph missed a good header chance in the 92nd minute. It would have helped my fantasy team, but I’m glad he missed, nonetheless.

And that is it my friends! The Burn are back.

Freddy Watch 17 April, 1 af

The kid is getting better each week. His growth is exponential, not arithmetic (I don't really know what that means, but it sounds really smart).

Things he did better today:

1. Won important 50/50 balls in midfield
2. Beat defenders one-on-one to make the cross.
3. Played more physically. Actually, that consisted of knocking the Assistant Referee flat on his back. But hey, you gotta start somewhere.
4. Oh yeah, scored his first professional goal at the age of 14.

Unfortunately, DC United as a whole really folded in the second half. They played much better than Metrostars for the first 45, then for some reason took their collective foot off the gas pedal.

Fabian Taylor! Never even heard of this guy before this season. Two goals. Quality goals. John Wolyniec continues to play way above his head. Those who've spent so much energy bashing him will soon have to 'fess up and admit he's the real thing.

In other news, I'm very excited about this year's first Brimstone Cup matchup. Chicago have yet to score this year, and are ripe to take a beatin' from the resurgent, new and improved, springtime fresh, jumbo-economy-sized Dallas Burn.

I'll have a match report later. My prediction: Dallas 2, Chicago 1.

Henry Ring now has two shutouts in two games for Chicago.

D.J. Countess is probably the best second string keeper in the league, and looks to be staying that way.

Now if the Fire would just, you know, SCORE . . .


In other news, I went to the Dallas/KC exhibition in Edmond, Oklahoma today. They played to a 1-1 draw, with Bobby Rhine scoring for Dallas, and Diego Gutierrez scoring for Kansas City. The weather was abysmal; cold and rainy and windy, but still 6,738 people showed up, which is about what the Burn drew last weekend at the Cotton Bowl in nice weather. I think it bodes well for MLS awarding us a franchise either this season or the next. A dream come true for a soccer geek like yours truly.

Opening Day Notes:

• Joselito Vaca (“Little Joe Cow” to those in the know) had a terrific game for Metrostars tonight. He never really hit his stride with Dallas, but it was clear that he had tons of talent. I’m glad to see he’s found a better fit in New York.

• Jon Busch kept the Crew from getting drubbed in the first half of their game with Metrostars. Not with great saves so much as good positioning that kept him from having to make great saves. He got little help in the second half and ended up losing. He’s got Matt Jordan behind him on the bench, so he has very little room for error this year. Jordan, back from a stint in Denmark, has unquestionable first-team talent.

• Soooo nice to see Dallas Burn back in the Cotton Bowl. Ditto for seeing Ronnie O’Brien back from getting his leg broken by Dema Kovalenko.

• It took Simo Valakari all of 15 minutes to get his first yellow card here in the good ol’ U.S. of A. Valakari, a Finnish international, came to Dallas from Derby County in the English 1st Division.

• I don’t have a life, to speak of. I proved that tonight while watching DAL/COL on DirecTV, while simultaneously watching KC/CHI, CMB/NY and later LA/NER on Yahoo. I gots to get me a girlfriend.

• Never in the world would I have expected Henry Ring to start over D.J. Countess in Chicago. Is Countess injured and we don’t know about it? Or is Ring being rewarded for his time as an understudy to Zach Thornton? Either way, he shut out Kansas City, so he must be doing something right.

• The handbags came out in the KC/CHI game. Chris Klein and C.J. Brown sent off for an ugly little slapfight in the second half. They’re teammates for the U.S. side, ironically enough.

• I thought Dallas outplayed Colorado. I can say with no doubt they look like a whole new team. Which they are, in fact, if you look at the roster. Rhine played well, Gibbs is a great addition, E.J. is going to have his breakout season (I hope). I am encouraged.

• On an aesthetic note, I like the Revs away uniforms. Simple, clean, elegant. Contrast that with the Galaxy’s green shorts combined with yellow jerseys with the diagonal stripe. I’m not too sure about that. At least they’ve given up teal.

• I do believe Fox Sports World added canned crowd noise to their telecast of the Galaxy/Revolution game. I love FSW, don’t get me wrong, but that is absolutely pathetic and uncalled for.

It seems that Yahoo has free live video broadcasts of MLS this year.

They rule.

DC United 2:1 San Jose Earthquakes

3 April 2004 AF (anno freddy)

The big story, as it turned out, was the return of Jaime Moreno, rather than the debut of Freddy Adu.

The 30 year old Moreno, United's all-time leading scorer, spent last year with Metrostars and a bum back. Signed only 24 hours before the game, Moreno promptly picked up where he left off with DC, scoring in the 12 minute on a header from Earnie Stewart's cross. He still has his speed too, showing excellent pace on several runs in the midfield.

I have to believe a healthy, in form Moreno is way more important to the team's chances than the presence of young Freddy. But as to that, Moreno's professionalism will be a key to Freddy's learning experience. He's class, and always has been.

The defending champions leveled the score on a 19th minute Ronnie Ekelund penalty kick, stemming from Nick Rimando's clumsy challenge on Brian Mullan. Alecko Eskandarian started of his season with the best goal of the game, a left footed volley in the 39th to regain the lead for DC.

The second half was ugly. Waibel, gone. Dema, gone. An ugly tackle and an elbow to the face, respectively, brought out straight reds from Brian Stott. 10 on 10 action did little to open up the game, however, even when Freddy finally got his chance in the 60th minute.

It was a quiet, unspectacular debut. Exactly the kind of debut a 14 year old kid should have. He made a very nice pass to Kovalenko, took Agoos on and promptly got dumped inside the box (Kevin Stott stood in front of him and gave the international symbol for "get up, rook", which was great), and that was about it. His off the ball movement was slow and lacked confidence or conviction. He never really looked dangerous.

But hey, when I was 14, I showed up for soccer tryouts in dress shoes because I left my cleats at home, so far be it from me to give the kid grief. He's going to be good, probably great, and it's going to be fun to see the game in which the lightbulb goes off and he rips some poor team for a hat trick.

Bobby Convey looked a little tired, and missed an empty goal that I could have hit, but he's still going to be as important as Moreno this year to DC, and will probably be in Europe this time next year.

Good crowd in DC, competent coverage by ABC, and three goals. Not bad for opening day.

Tonight, I'm putting on my red scarf, firing up the DirectTV satellite, and watching the Burn beat the snot out of Colorado. At the Cotton Bowl. On grass. With Ronnie O'Brien in the lineup. The way it should be.

Soccer Haiku #8

Freddy did not start.
Nowak is the man in charge.
Good news for DC.