retired_mallory08

So Far So Good

After finishing out the regular season top of the South, and second only to the indomitable Vancouver Lions in the race for the Supporter's Shield, Kentucky found themselves drawn against Nerdington Express in the Conference Semi Finals.

Three key players were either out, or nursing knocks, not the way Clark would have wanted to prepare. Reyna was definitely out for the opening round and perhaps not might return unless the Kaiser's made MLS Cup Final. Carlos Ruiz, and Christain Gomez made up the rest of the walking wounded. "If they can walk they'll be on the pitch" said Clark.

Nerdington proved to be a little more stubborn than perhpas Clark and the KK fans anticipated. Despite the boost of an early red card to the Express' Jim Curtain in the 14th minute, the Kaiser's failed to turn their dominance into a 1st Leg lead, running out 1-1 after the initial 90 minutes. A Ruiz penalty was the only breach of Jay Nolly's goal, despite a strong performance all over the pitch by the Kaisers. A sucker punch by Agouda robbed the lead from KK, but really they had noone to blame but themselves.

So, the tie would be decided at Commonwealth Stadium, the home of the Kaisers. The two lame players came through a pre-game fitness test and continued in their starting roles.

The game again started well for Kentucky - racing out to a 2-0 lead thanks to another Ruiz penalty and a goal by Brazillian Kai. A couple of knocks, forced some substitutions, but with 70 minutesd gone the game, and thus the tie, looked safe. Safe to say that the enevitable comeback would hit with full force. The game was square at 2-2 within 7 minutes with some good counter attacking play.

Still, the Kaiser's continued to dominate all over the field. A total of 3 goals were ruled out for offside, and Clark must have been beginning to get the jitters after Agouda almost stole the vistory in the 88th minute. In injury time Kentucky looked like it wasn't going to be their day after they missed two successive open goals after great work by Mapp and Leozinho respectively.

So, the game went to OT, thanks to the absence of away goals in MLS. The stalemate continued, although Kentucky had another goal disallowed for offisde - taking the total to three (all by Kai) in the game. On another day he would have had a hattrick, but the Asst Referee must have been paid off by a rich Nerdington fan.

So, to penalties. The soccer equivalent of russian roulette. The crap shoot began with Carlos Ruiz, who had clearly been in fine spot kick form of late. 1-0 KY.
Nerdington equalized before Kai put them up again 2-1. Again the tie was equalled. 3-2 thanks to Gomez. A MISS! 4-2 thanks to Mulrooney. And when Bobby Convey stepped up, he knew nothing less than a goal would see the Express instantly out. MISS. Kentucky ran out 4-2 winners, after making surprisingly hard work of the Express - a team they had finished more than 20 points ahead of in the regualr season.

"I would have taken more pride in the result if Jos3 C had been here himself. The assman just isn't on his level."

So, Kentucky would meet the winner of bitter Rival Marquette and newly appointed Texas Manager Ryan Thimpson II, after his predecessor had been ruthlessly ousted prior to the playoffs.

As it turned out RT II's AssMan, guided them through depriving Clark with an opprtunity to exact revenge on Marquette for last season's ousting in the 1st Round. "I would have liked the opportunity to lock horns with the AssMan, but it seems Ryan II will be back in time for the Conference Final".

retired_hellokity111

retired_hellokity111

For full stats see the latest edition of MLS Gazette.

MLS Gazette - Tables, Rosters and Stats

retired_hellokity111

No Suprises as Vancouver Progress to the Conference Finals

Facing the Toronto squad which was depleted in net due to injuries, Vancouver calmly disposed of the Syclones 9-3 on aggregate. The matches were actually much closer than the scoreline but Toronto paid heavily for carrying only two keepers all season long and had to resort to playing a local highschool standout in net.

It all started well for Toronto actually as they jumped to a 2-0 lead early in the first tie. But Vancouver soon took control and the scoreline was quickly overturned. In the end Vancouver practically their progress into the next round with a 5-3 win in Toronto.

The second leg witnessed more shaky goalkeeping as experienced Vancouver strikers made few mistakes to win 4-0.

Vancouver are all set to face Rochester the team who dropped them out of the playoffs last season. Rochester were 2nd in the conference this season and have always givne trouble to the Lions. "Sand and EJ are good players but we don't plan to change our playingstyle drastically for them" said Roger Saint-Vil. With Alpay out injured, Vancouver will bring in Danny Califf to partner Clarance Goodson in defense while the rest of the Vancouver squad are expected to be fully fit against Rochester. Jorge Daniel Achucarro is especially on fire and should be a factor up front for Vancouver as super sub Felix Alexander Borja is once again expected to start the game on the sidelines.

retired_kcnoodle@cox.ne

COACH LUNG AND THE SYCLONES SURELY HAVE SOMETHING TO SHOW

Coach Lung sure has improved his managing skills a lot, I think his peers will at least agree to a certain extend if not totally agree. By leading Pizzighettone to a promotion; and winning the NA Cup and making a playoff appearance in his second season with the Syclones; surely it is a much better accomplishment compare to the old days with the Metros. The most important thing is that they have shown they have the potential to be a good team, they have the personnel to become a major force in the league, instead of hanging tight and just hope to steal a point or two every time they step on the field.

With the season on the line, the Syclones showed they have determination to win, and they can play with composure. Trailing the Arctic Wolves by 5 points with only 2 games to play in the regular season, it was hard to believe they can come back and grab the last spot in the east/north, the only good news was that they still had a game left with the Wolves. The Syclones dominated the Wolves in their encounter, Guevara and Occean got on the scoresheet, and the Syclones ran out with a deserved 2-0 win.

With the win, they were holding the tiebreaker advantage over the Wolves. With one game remaining, the Syclones need the Slingers to hold out a draw against the Wolves. The Syclones hosted the Express in their last match of the season. The Syclones ran out of regular keepers after the game with the Wolves, rookie Provan went down and will be out at least a couple of months. After some serious consideration, Lung decided to stay with the “grey” goalies instead of getting an emergency keeper from another team. Black was given the nod to start the last game. Despite being the better side during the first half against the Express, they found themselves trailing a goal with just seconds away from the first half whistle. This was surely a dagger on them when they were trying so hard to win a game, and had to score at least a pair with only 45 minutes to play. Lung told the team during the break that they can still win it. The players responded during the second half, they started out strong but still cannot find the equalizer after 15 minutes. Lung then pulled out his favourite formation, he will tell you that it is a 3-5-2, but others will say it is more like a 3-2-5. He had great success with this formation during the regular season. After the switch, Jazic scored his first goal of the season and tied the game up. The Syclones had many chances after that, but just cannot put the ball in the net. They were deep in the injury time, down to their last possession with a throw in deep in their own area. The Syclones executed the possession perfectly, and Thiago scored in front of the goal, everyone on the bench jumped up. It was then all depend on the score at Nashville. The Slingers did hold out a draw after the final whistle, and the Syclones were in the playoff. It will be one of the best last match day comeback that you can get.

The Toronto Syclones played the Vancouver Lions in the first round. It surely looked like they had a chance after half an hour of play at Air Canada Centre. The Syclones were up 2-0 with a Guevara’s penalty and a 35-yard strike by Donovan, but the playoff pressure was just too much for the “grey” guy, especially against coach Saint-Vil. The Lions scored 4 times in 15 minutes, it was 4-2 at the break. The Syclones even the possession during the second half, but they lost 5-3 in the first leg. The Lions pounded in 4 more in the second leg, and they won 9-3 on aggregate.
“…I have a lot of respect on coach Saint-Vil, but I think we showed that we can play with the big boy, we definitely had a chance if we had a healthy keeper behind the net, or at least not a scoreline as ugly as this. I don’t think coach Saint-Vil can deny that either. It was our mistake to carry only two keepers after we cut both regular squad goalies in order to make room for Rimando. Overall, it was a great series, and I am looking forward to play Roger and his Lions again next season….”

“…I think we are still underachieving. In terms of the plan for next season, we still need to work on our defense, I think I will switch my focus to more athletic defenders than technical ones. Pope, Robinson, and McKenna all are good defenders, but they seem to get beaten too easily with our style of play. Also, the young guys showed down the stretch that they have the ability to hold down a regular spot. We have to improve our road performance, it is definitely unacceptable with only 2 wins and 2 draws in 16 road games. There will be a lot of changes during the offseason, at least for backup players, I think we are not going to keep the high priced backups next season, we are leaning towards keeping Donovan and his max contract. Lucky the max cap for a player is $280,000, or else I think I have to surround Donovan with all rookies if we want to keep him…”

“…the starters will probably be the same next season, they have been together for a couple of years now, and they have good chemistry. Just like last offseason, I doubt we will make any big moves…”

retired_mallory08

"Profoundly Disappointed"

...those were the words from a dejected Kaiser's Head Coach. "Texas hadn't beaten us in 7 straight games. I had every reason to believe that we would have been challenging for MLS Cup Final against Vancouver."

Clark can't be accused of complacency, he took all the appropriate measures to ensure victory, but perhaps the omens were there when Carlos Ruiz, the teams leading scorer, was knocked out of the starting line up with a severly bruised toe. The shock injury happened when his french maid/concubine dropped a heavy steam iron on his toe during some kinky shennanigans after the 1st Round win against Nerdington. "Carlos was way out of line". Sitting at 64% fitness, it was simply not an option to start him. With Knox Cameron just returning from an injury himself, the Kaiser's looked a little lightweight upfront.

And so it proved. Despite some good creativity in midfield, the striekrs failed to hit the mark and a nice counter attack by Texas - and hitman Bruno - ended the Kaiser's Cup dreams prematurely.

"I can't help but think this was going to be our year. Sure, Vancouver proved to be formidable, but we did win against them last season and it would have been a hulluva game. I think the fans would have liked to see the two top teams from the regular season do battle. I guess that's the issue with the playoff format."

So it was a 1-2 for the Vancouver Lions as they locked up both the Supporter's Shield and MLS Cup. Texas scored a spot to defend their CONCACAF Champions Cup as a consequence, and Kentucky went home empty handed, with nothing to show for their solid season.

"Close, but no banana."

With the offseason upon him, Clark took a good look at his squad and surmised that a couple of tweaks would be necessary.

With this in mind he set up a trademark blockbuster with conference rival Marquette. Both teams had needs, both teams had issues and both managers walked away happy with the deal.

KK Inbound:
DeMarkus Beasley AM RL
Jon Busch GK
2nd Round Superdraft Pick (MARQ)

MARQ Inbound:
Joe Cannon GK
Chris Greer SC
Mike Dombrowski ML
3rd Round Superdraft Pick (KK)

DMB, a national team superstar, was unhappy at Marquette and had been looking to move. His contract is a lofty $800k a year, but the Kaiser's are in an excellent position with over $20m in the bank. The original 1st rounder will perhaps oust Justin Mapp from the team, or maybe Christian Gomez, should a need for a SI spot become a priority. Despite some solid scoring from the AMR position, Gomez was inconsistent all season and Clark would consider offers for the league vet. His contract (a manageable $60k) makes him a solid trade asset.

Jon Busch's addition, a GK capped by the USA, is to take over back up duties from Cannon who was anxious to find more regular starting work. "Big Joe is an excellent keeper, but Kev Hartman has done enough over the last two years to earn the starting role again in 2007. I wish Joe well - except when he plays us! Busch is a solid keeper, in the Top 10 American goalies in MLS. The competition should be good. He's also relatively affordable at $80k a year.

Clark's goalscoring issues weren't helped by the loss of the promising Chris Greer. The 18 year old clearly has a massive future. But this wasn't Clark's #1 issue in the short time since the season ended. Carlos Ruiz, upset by the lack of continental competition for 2007 after the early exit, stated his desire to leave and rebuffed several attempts by Clark to lock him up to an improved long term deal. "We offered him the max we could - $300k a year, a 50% pay rise, with a good sign on bonus and $1k a goal. Carlos wasn't interested."

Ruiz's stubborness backed Clark into a corner. "I wasn't interested in trading him to a rival MLS club who could use him to hurt me, so I had no choice but to sell him to a foreign club. Hanover made the player the best offer and he will move in January to Germany for $7m. Transfer money was the last thing we needed - we already had $15m in the bank for new players - but Ruiz's morale was very poor and with his contract out in a year, now was the time to move him. "

So, instead of looking for a third striekr to really push competition, Clark now had to find a #1 marksman for the team. "Having scouted Brazil for the last two years and having had some great success with the addition of Gabrinho, we have come to terms with a great looking young striker called Samuel. The fee? Could be as high as $6m depending on future performance. We have approached several top strikers in the Brazillian leagues, unfortunately, not qualifying for the CONCACAF Cup hurt our chances to add a couple of really excellent talents. Should they still be in Brazil next year, and if we can challenge again in 2007, I will try and pick up at least one of them to bolster the squad."

So, DMB on board and Samuel replacing Ruiz, it looks like the Kaiser's are showing a net gain in the 2007 preseason thus far. "Biglia will be in town soon, it seems like a lifetime since we agreed the deal with his Argentine club. He's going to have to really fight for a starting berth, with Reyna - the club captain - the current occupant of the holding role. Ricardo Clark is also in the fray. We certainly have strength throughout the team.

Clark was pressed as to what he might look for in the upcoming draft.

"We picked a DL in RD1 last year, and we're still a bit thin there. We also have a young goalie that is yet to convince us that he has a future here at COmmonwealth Stadium. I will be looking for an AM R, D LR and a striker, but chances are we will take the best available player. That goes for any free agents too. Our starting XI will again be very stable in 2007 with likely only DMB and Samuel moving in. The other 8 will return as we look to take another step."

Clark also confirmed the release of former USMNT vet Richard Mulrooney. "We tried to trade him after he made it known that warming the bench wasn't working for him. Despite obvious talent, he went untended and ended up signing with the Vancouver Whitecaps. A shame, because he's certainly better than that. His $170k contract - and his refusal to renegotiate it to something more appropriate for his status on the squad - forced his release. I guess he'll be back in MLS soon enough. He could help several teams in this league and being cut will likely have brought him back down to earth with a bump. I expect him to be very affordable at some point in the near future."

Kentucky Chairman Tubby Smith, who left the UK Wildcats to try something new, said that the baord were delighted with Clark, "He's proven that he can build a very strong squad, has finished top of his conference both the last 2 years, and some shrew transfer dealings has made this a very rich club. However, we were disappointed that we didn't make MLS Cup Final last year, and although we advanced further than 2005, anything less than a Final appearance (or the NA Cup) will be considered a failure. We've put our money where our mouth is, now it's time for Coach Clark to deliver."

Wowsers! Could Clark be the next high profile managerial casualty in MLS. 2006 showed no respect for reputation as both the manager of the MLS Cup Winner (Russ) and CONCACAF Cup Winner (Ryan) were axed. "The stakes are high in MLS" said Tubby, "but even I think the axing of Thompson was harsh. His silverware and the qualification for the World Club Championships is a credit to the whole of North America. Never before has an American side represented the continent. He did enough work on the squad to see that texas made two consecutive MLS Cup Finals. Coach Clark could do worse than emulate that success."

retired_mallory08

retired_mallory08

Iron Rangers end a season a possibly end a Era
The Marquette Iron Rangers sputtered when it came plaoff time losing the advantage of 2-1 in overtime to Texas. After a game which saw it end 2-1 at the end of extra time it was 3-3 then in the extra frame, Texas scored. One of the key losses though out the game was young MLS goal leader Emad Moteb who was injured toward the beginning of the game. It was disappointing I think when Emad went out we lost a bit of our will to play in the end I think that is what killed us. Emad has became a big part of the team. It did not help that 3rd in the team in goal scoring was already out.

The restructuring of the team

It has became apparent at the superior dome that major changes are about to happen to the team. As manager E.T. Acknowledge that this was the last time they could afford a run with the current team they have. One player that is being shopped around is United States striker Conor Casey. Casey who has been put on the back burner because of the recent rise of Conor Casey. The other one is DaMarcus Beasley who wants to go, The former #1 draft pick DaMarcus Beasley, he has became unhappy. Really I want to ship him some where else and let him be some one else’s problem. Another one that might go is Edgar Davids but I am unwilling to get rid of him unless the price is good. The other rumors might have to go is Ramiero Corrales. E.T. is unhappy with the performance of the players.

The New Logo

retired_mallory08

Texas Longhorns in US Open Cup 2006

Texas continued a fine vein of form by adding the Dewar Trophy to their cabinet. Playing against an upstart New Liskeard North side, it took a couple of the key Texas players to win the tie.

Goals from JP Garcia and Brzillian Legend and former FIFA World Player of the Year, Rivaldo to put the tie away. Rivaldo's 90th minute strike sealed the deal after a tense finish.

So the first domestic trophy of the year headed down to Texas.

Well done Ryan!

Official Result:
Texas Longhorns 2 : New Liskeard North 0
HT: 1:0
J.P Garcia, 12
Rivaldo, 90+


2006 US Open Cup Champions : Texas Longhorns [Ryan]

retired_mallory08

Texas Longhorns Win CONCACAF Champion's Cup!

Ryan Thompson won two trophies this year, along with the a second consecutive MLS Cup Final appearance.

Last year's MLS Cup runners up, went one (or perhpas two better) than winner's Alaska by continuing all the way through to the regions' premier continental competition - the CONCACAF Champion's Cup.

The competition, a minnow compared to the more illustrious Copa Liberatodores and UEFA Champion's League, still represents the best this region has to offer and included several tough teams, none more so than losing finalists Pumas. The Mexican powerhouse failed to overturn a 2-0 road loss in the first leg and the mighty Longhorns ran out Champs.

Best of all, the victory seals a place at FIFA's World Club Championships. Ryan Thompson must be the most indispensible manager in all of MLS ( to Texas Board).

Congratulations Ryan and good luck in the WCC's !

Official Result:
Texas Longhorns (USA) 2 : Pumas (MEX) 1 on Aggregate.


2006 CONCACAF Champion's Cup Winners : Texas Longhorns [Ryan]