STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS: SAN JOSE v FCD 9/24/05

The first minute almost gave me a heart attack. An early goal would be a disaster. Ok, not a disaster . . . I don't want to bandy that word about lightly given the events of the last few weeks.

We'll see this week if the absence of EJ and The Lil' Fish is still a good luck charm for us. Well, to be realistic, luck doesn't enter into it, I know; it's just a turn of phrase. It has more to do with that elusive quality called chemistry. I can't explain it, but I think it's analogous to those stories you hear about people lifting up automobiles in emergency situations. I think the young guns of FCD have realized it's them or no one, and they've lifted the car, so to speak, to get us from under one of the worst slumps in the history of the franchise.

Alex Yi sighting! After being on loan to Atlanta of the A-League all year, Alex is home and getting a start. As is Honest Abe Thompson, the Great Emancipator. Colin Clarke is trying to rest certain players for the all-important US Open Cup final on Wednesday against the dirty dirty Galaxy, but at the same time is trying not to make this game a throwaway. I like the balance he's struck tonight. He's fielded a team that can win, but is also keeping Wednesday in mind. Colin is getting smarter and smarter every week; in the same way as your parents get smarter and smarter as you get older and realize you were an idiot for most of your youth. Fire Clarke, indeed. Apologies are in order.

Twelve minutes in and the game is even-steven, momentum-wise. Don't you hate it when people use the -wise suffix? I do. I did it just now only to call attention to it. It smacks of prose written by Alexander Haig, which is really NOT what I'm going for here.

I'm surprised Pat Onstad can even play soccer after the abuse he suffered at the hands of the Inferno just a week or so ago. I'm sure he's been making daily trips to his therapist in the interim, trying to exorcise the memory of the taunting he endured in Frisco. Poor slob; he never knew what hit him.

Well, okay, Pat's in good enough to shape to stone Abe Thompson in the 15th minute. He gave up a rebound though. We know who's responsible for that, don't we kids. . .

You know I've seen bowling lanes wider than the field at Spartan Stadium. Have you ever wondered what that little line is for, the one that is about a foot long, and is drawn between the edge of the 18 yard box and the touchline? It's the 10 yard marker for corner kicks. Defenders can't go past it because of the 10 yard rule. In most stadia, it's a good five or six yards away from the edge of the box. At Spartan, it's nearly coterminous with the box. Come on . . . get a field, people. Maybe Club America will take care of that problem when they . . . oh, sorry, Quakes fans . . . didn't mean to bring up a sore subject.

Moving right along.

Scotty Garlick stones DeWayne DeRosario, the all-time MLS leader in "capitalized letters in the first and last names". Scotty hasn't had the greatest D behind him this year, but has been solid nonetheless. The Defense is coming around finally, so I don't imagine Scotty will be giving up multiple goal games from here on in.

Man, Alex Yi is playing hard-nosed defense. It's like a little Valakari clone out there. I mean that in the best way.

Good free kick opportunity in the 27th minute. OH! Nunez just misses. Curls it around the wall and only misses slipping inside the near post by inches. Has this kid been eating his Wheaties or what? He is the brandy-bearing St. Bernard of FC Dallas. He's come to save us just in time.

Carey Talley just misses with the header right after the free kick. Boy, we're putting it to the EarthQlash here at the half hour mark. Good aggressive football. Just like the old days. You know, way back in April and May.

You can see the renewed spirit of this team in the way they're playing defense. Tough, hard defense. Defense with a purpose. Defense with intent. I likes it.

Okay, nil-nil at halftime. I'll take that. We're the better team from where I'm sitting. Of course, I'm sitting on my couch surrounded by empty Newcastle bottles, so my judgement may be a bit off.

But I digress.

Yeah! Way to go Mr. Geiger! DeRosario dives in the box and the baby-faced referee gives him what can only be called a contemptuous 'play on' call. He may look like he's studying for his driving test, but Mr. G is one of the best young refs in MLS.

OH!!!!! Mr. Geiger comes through again with the clear PK call on Pat Onstad, who took down Honest Abe in the box. Can't blame Pat for trying, though, because he didn't have any other option. Nunez steps up (I LOVE that leadership!!!) and absolutely BURIES the penalty. No keeper in the world stops that shot. One-nil to the good guys.

Carey Talley puts the smackdwon on Eddie Robinson after a hard foul on Nunez. I LOVE the attitude this team is playing with. This is a completely different team than three weeks ago. It's incredible the change they've undergone.

Nice job, San Jose fans; way to throw stuff on the field. I hope Club America buys your team and moves it to the Distrito Federal. Talley and Robinson both get sent off. I love it. I. LOVE. IT.

This is a new team. It's incredible.

Oh, excrement. Alex Yi goes off on a stretcher. I can't believe the bad luck. I hope the kid's okay. That's just too awful to think about. Clarence Goodson comes on.

Double excrement. San Jose levels in the 58th minute. The Quakes were so offside it wasn't even funny. It's okay. We're winning this game. I just feel it.

Not that my feelings have always worked out this season. It's funny, because in non-soccer matters, I'm a rock-solid pessimist. You know the old saying that goes "is the glass half-empty, or half full"? I've always believed the glass was half full, but saturated with strychnine. But when it comes to soccer, I'm a Pollyanna optimist. Go figure.

Clarence Goodson is getting all up in Brian Ching's grill. I love it. Did I mention I love it?

Everything is in our half of the field right now, with 15 minutes to go. But if I know my team, we're going to start taking to the Qlash and pull this thing out.

Alvarez comes off for Wagenfuhr with seven minutes to go. Colin's playing for the tie. That's okay with me. We've gotten a point on the road, at the very least. I still hold out hope for a win. But I don't blame Colin for playing to preserve the tie. We're in the playoffs, we've got a HUGE game coming up on Wednesday, and we just need to get the heck out of San Jose and get ready for the Cup Final.

Five minutes to go. I feel no anxiety. We're back, and ready for the Cup and ready for the playoffs. I'm happy with the world.

Ooh. Gbandi and Mullan gettin' in to it. More proof of our new attitude. Gbandi doesn't take no Gbullshi . . . oops, this is a family column. Never mind.

Full time. A draw for the boys tonight. Only a fluky, offside goal from Brian Ching keeps us from a win.

But so what? We're going to LaLa Land on Wednesday to win the oldest, most prestigious trophy in American soccer. YEAH!

I'll see you Wednesday for the Cup Final. I can't wait.