Windy City Soccer

Notes on Wednesday: Fire to Open in Dallas

Tue, 2 Dec 2008 23:24:50 -0600

Plus, they’ll host New York in the home opener

by Dan Gaichas

FIRE TO OPEN IN DALLAS: The Chicago Fire open the 2009 Major League Soccer on Saturday, March 21 at Pizza Hut Park against FC Dallas. Kickoff for that match will be at 7:30pm. The home opener for the Fire will be on Sunday, April 5 against the MLS Cup Runner-up New York Red Bulls at 2pm on TeleFutura (WXFT). It will be the first time ever that the Fire home opener will be in the afternoon.

The new Seattle Sounders FC will open MLS’s 14th season against the New York Red Bulls on Thursday, March 19 at 8pm on ESPN2.

STORM SIGN PATTERSON: On Tuesday, the Chicago Storm signed forward Randi Patterson. Patterson, 23, was selected by the Red Bulls in the 2007 MLS Supplemental Draft and spent last Summer with the Charleston Battery where he led the team in scoring with ten goals and 21 points.

“I think Randi is a quality young player, and I’m excited to see how he adapts to indoor,” said Storm head coach Steve Morris. “He seems to have the skill set, and he adds some pace to the team. He’s a goal scorer, obviously, leading the Charleston Battery this summer. He’s represented [Trinidad and Tobago] at the national team level. He’s got pace, quickness, and he’s willing to mix it up in the corners. He’s got a knack around the goal.”

XSL EARNS US SOCCER MEMBERSHIP: The Storm’s new league, the Xtreme Soccer League (XSL), received provisional membership into the US Soccer Federation. Benefits to the XSL include the licensing, insuring and assignment of US Soccer registered referees; a conduit for relationships with the IOC, USOC, FIFA, and CONCACAF; and continuing education for coaches and referees.

Northwestern Zips On While Flames Crash Out

Sun, 30 Nov 2008 20:29:33 -0600

[Update on Jovan Bubonja’s status below.]

Northwestern 1-0 Akron

by Don MacGregor and Dan Gaichas

EVANSTON, IL--Neither sleet turned to snow, goal kick-subverting wind, nor offensive onslaughts by the Akron Zips could keep Northwestern from the quarterfinal round of the NCAA tournament.

The Wildcats tried to gain an advantage by starting the first half on the North side, which allowed goalkeeper Misha Rosenthal to kick into the wind. However, Akron, MAC Conference Champions and the NCAA Tournament’s number 4 seed, had the majority of scoring chances forcing defenders such as Drew Ratner to make some timely tackles.

Akron continued the same intense offensive attack into the second half.   “Really flying for 15 minutes”, as Akron’s head coach Caleb Porter would describe it after the game. Northwestern had subbed in midfielder Jack Hillgard to help on defense. It was an important substitution. In the 62nd minute, Hillgard found a
gap between Akron’s central defenders, and sent a through ball to Geoff Fallon. Fallon took Hillgard’s pass and kicked a twenty yard strike past Akron keeper Evan Bush.

In spite of Fallon's goal, Akron kept the pressure on the Wildcats. They may have been down a goal, but they had the wind at their backs. Clearance kicks by Rosenthal and his defenders, which on a less windy day would have made it to midfield, were turned into rugby union-style up-‘n’-unders. Akron’s best chance came when midfielder Ben Zemanski let loose with a dipping shot that rattled the crossbar. Commenting on the shot, Northwestern’s head coach Tim Lenahan would say in the post-game press conference, “Maybe the soccer gods, or the weather gods were with us,”

Despite the wind and snow, Northwestern’s defense held firm. Afterwards, Geoff Fallon would note that “We’ve had so many 1-nil games that we’re confident of our defense.”

Well, this game makes it their sixth 1-0 victory, and this Northwestern advances to a quarter final match with the Tar Heels of North Carolina.

It didn’t take a cold day in (you know where) for the Wildcats to equal the success of the 2006 squad. A cold day in Evanston was enough.

SCORING SUMMARY:
NU-Geoff Fallon (Hillgard) 62

BOOKING SUMMARY:
AKR-Chris Korb (caution) 74

NORTHWESTERN: #1-Misha Rosenthal, #3-Pat Coleman, #4-Drew Ratner, #5-Cody Stanley, #6-Tyler Voigt, #7-Mark Blades, #13-Geoff Fallon, #16-Piero Bellizzi, #20-Carl Pett, #23-Matt Eliason, #26-Brian Usinger

Subs: #8-Oliver Kupe, #9-Kevin Valenta, #10-Eamon O’Neill, #11-Jack Hillgard, #15-Peter O’Neill, #21-Drew Pavlovich

AKRON : #1-Evan Bush, #2-Aaron Henkle, #4-Kofi Sarkodie, #6-Darlington Nagbe, #7-Blair Gavin, #10-Anthony Ampaipitakwong, #11-Steve Zakuani, #13-Ben Zemanski, #14-Matt Tutich, #16-Chris Korb, #25-Matt Dagilis

Subs: #5-Ossie Michalsen, #12-Teal Bunbury, #19-Stefan Ostergren

TOTAL SHOTS: NU 7-14 AKR
SHOTS ON GOAL: NU 4-3 AKR
FOULS: NU 9-7 AKR
OFFSIDES: NU 3-2 AKR
CORNER KICKS: NU 4-6 AKR
SAVES: NU 3-3 AKR

North Carolina 3-2 UIC (golden goal)

CARY, NC--UIC’s run is over after falling, 3-2, in extra time to North Carolina. The match was moved to WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, NC after UNC’s Fetzer Field was made unplayable due to heavy rains.

The Flames were without Hermann Trophy Semifinalist goalkeeper Jovan Bubonja due to a clavicle injury sustained in training. Freshman Taylor Kelliher made his first collegiate start in this match making six saves.

Matt Spiess opened the scoring on 19 minutes heading in Charlie Trout’s corner. Almost 90 seconds later, the Tar Heels equalized through Kirk Urso. Baggio Husidic put the Flames 2-1 up with 19 minutes left and it appeared there would be a local derby next weekend for the right to go to Frisco, TX. But it was not to be as Michael Callahan equalized in the 87th minute to send the match into extra time.

Four minutes into the extra session, Brian Shriver’s shot would deflect off a defender and go in to send the Flames out of the NCAA Tournament. The Flames finish with a 12-4-6 record.

Storm Prepare for New Season

Sun, 30 Nov 2008 15:30:23 -0600

Storm begin their fifth season in a new league.

by John Schulz

MELROSE PARK, IL--On Friday and Saturday, the Chicago Storm held invitational tryouts. The tryouts consisted of players picked from the open tryouts from earlier in the month, players taken in the college draft, and players who could not make the open tryouts, but the team wanted to have a look at. Each team in the newly formed Xtreme Soccer League (XSL) will be allowed to carry five reserves to supplement the fifteen man full time roster.

“I think that people will be surprised by the fresh talent we are looking at.“ Storm Coach Steve Morris said. “We have to take that talent and make them think at a pro level.”

The full team starts practice on Monday. The Storm all ready have a number of players signed from last year’s squad including Stephen Armstrong, Fabinho, and Ian Bennet. Armstrong will be returning from England on Monday and will join the team on Tuesday. Argentinean Gabriel Cigliano will be joining the team in a week after receiving his work visa.

The team has some original members returning as well. Jeff Richey and Andy Rosenband are coming back after playing for the US in Futsal World Cup. Lazo Alavanja and Awadalla Morad return to the Storm as well. Alavanja spent last season with the New Jersey Ironmen while Morad did appear briefly with Storm last season will now be a full time player.

The Storm will be missing some players as well. Matthew Stewart is now with the Rockford Rampage of the National Indoor Soccer League (NISL). Mark Ughy joined the Monterrey La Raza of the NISL. Both players were in action when Monterrey played Rockford on Friday night in Rockford.

The Storm opens the XSL season on December 14th with an away game in New Jersey. The home opener is Saturday, December 20th at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates.

Storm Roster
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown
3 Kletzien, Will D 5-11 175 Kent, Ohio
4 Brisson, Chris D 5-9 160 Hugo, Minnesota
8 Fabinho D 6-0 160 Sao Paulo, Brazil
14 Cigliano, Gabriel D 5-9 167 Buenos Aires, Argentina
15 Rosenband, Andy MF 5-7 150 Hammond, Indiana
16 Armstrong, Stephen MF/F 5-10 170 Birkenhead, England
20 Morad, Awadalla F 5-10 155 West Bank, Palestine
21 Bennett, Ian MF/F 5-9 160 Hamilton, Ontario
23 Richey, Jeff GK 6-1 180 Fort Wayne, Indiana
66 Savic, Branko D 5-10 175 Belgrade, Serbia
-- Alavanja, Lazo D 5-11 180 Crown Point, Indiana
-- Cerroni, Chris F 6-0 170 Bexleyheath, England
-- Knezevic, Vladimir D 6-3 200 Serbia
-- Zebic, Zlatko F 6-1 185 Loznica, Serbia & Montenegro

Rampage Has Some Chicago Flavor

Sun, 30 Nov 2008 12:36:59 -0600

Rockford move up a level to take on former Storm foes.

by John Schulz

The breakup of the Major Indoor Soccer League over the summer has brought us two new Indoor Soccer leagues: The Xtreme Soccer League (XSL) and the National Indoor Soccer League (NISL). While the Storm has chosen to join the XSL, their neighbors to the West, The Rockford Rampage, joined the NISL.

Last year, the Rampage played in the American Indoor Soccer League (AISL), a semi-pro circuit. The Rampage was league champions by beating the Mass Twisters (who joined the NISL at the last minute),18-5, in what could be the swan song of the AISL.

This year, the Rampage moved out the small indoor soccer facility they called home last year to the Rockford Metro Centre. The Metro Centre seats about 8,000 and was upgraded last year for the American Hockey League’s Rockford Ice Hogs.

OK, enough of the history and the alphabet soup of soccer leagues. On Friday night, the team opened their home season with a game versus La Raza de Monterrey. The game could have been billed a Chicago Storm reunion match. Rockford features seven players that used to play for the Storm--most notable are Matthew Stewart and Novi Marojevic.

La Raza had a few ex-Storm players as well in Mark Ughy, Mariano Bollela, and Byron Alvarez. Jamar Beasley, who played a season with the Fire, was on the Rampage roster as well. The most confusing player was Enrique Tovar who did sign with Storm for the upcoming season but jumped ship to the Rampage.

The Rampage was coached by Jeff Kraft, a Storm assistant in the 2004-2005 season. The General Manager for Rockford is Oscar Albuquerque who has been with the Chicago Sting, Chicago Power, and the Storm.

On the field that night, the LaRaza claimed a 12-10 overtime victory. Matthew Stewart had three goals for his new club, including the game tying goal with 2.5 seconds left in the game. Alvarez and Ughy both had goals for La Raza.

If you are an indoor soccer junkie (they are a few of us left) you might want the check out the Rampage some time this season. The Metro Centre is a great arena for Indoor Soccer.

The seats are all very close to the action and you will some familiar faces on the field.

Up for the College Cup

Thu, 27 Nov 2008 19:24:59 -0600

The Fire’s season may be over, but we still have two college teams to follow.

by Don MacGregor

OK, the Chicago Fire season ended weeks ago, the Crew won the MLS Cup. You’re either happy that Seattle didn’t get Marco Pappa, or you’re disappointed that they took Stephen King in the expansion draft. What’s
to look forward to besides football on the tube and the upcoming indoor season?

Well cheer up, because this Sunday at 1PM, you have one more chance to see a major outdoor game. Because of an unplayable pitch in Akron, Ohio, Northwestern University will play its third round contest against
the University of Akron at Lakeside Stadium on the Northwestern campus in Evanston. If you can’t get to Chapel Hill to see Illinois-Chicago against North Carolina, get to Evanston this Sunday. This year’s Northwestern Men’s team has the chance to equal or better the performance of the 2006 Wildcats, who made it as far the Final Four.

Allow me to give you some reasons to go, starting with the price. It’s $7.00, which is quite reasonable, considering these belt-tightening times. Here’s the link for driving directions to the stadium.(*) For
my fellow carless, take the CTA Purple line to the Noyes stop and start walking East.

Once you’re inside, you’ll find Lakeside a cozy venue with good sightlines, and a view of the Lake. Use your imagination, and you’ll think that you’re at a Scottish Division match. (Try to forget the FieldTurf, and the lack of Bovril at the tea bar. The illusion works.)

The supporters will be more sedate than Section 8ers at Toyota Park, but bet the house they’ll be cranked up as one can be without throwing streamers or setting off flares. This is the NCAA tournament. Two months from now, regardless who wins, you may be able to say “I saw (name of MLS draft pick) when he played in the tournament.” Yes, Sunday is your big chance to see the future. It’s true, not every forward graduates and goes on to host a fake news show the way Jon Stewart (William & Mary ’84) did. You may be looking at a future
accountant, TV sportscaster, or orthopedist.

However, players from Midwestern universities do make it into the pros. Last year, Northwestern’s David Roth was picked by the New York Red Bulls. Injuries have slowed his progress, but one day, he’ll get a start.

Also, if you had gone to the 2005 Men’s Big Ten tournament in Evanston, you would have seen Ray Burse, (Ohio State, now with FC Dallas) Jacob Peterson, (Indiana, now with Colorado) and Josh Tudela (Indiana, now with LA Galaxy). These players would go on to have starts with their teams.

The U.S. does have an emerging development academy system, and one MLS team, Los Angeles, has signed an academy graduate named Tristan Bowen. One day, a majority of U.S. pro players may skip college, in favor of the academy system, in the same way players do in Europe. Until that day comes, college soccer still matters. Now that the pro outdoor season is over, the successful campaigns of UIC and Northwestern still
matter.

Frankowski and Herron Waived, King Drafted by Sounders

Wed, 26 Nov 2008 18:00:32 -0600

Midfielder King goes ninth in Expansion Draft.

by Dan Gaichas

BRIDGEVIEW, IL--The Chicago Fire have waived forwards Tomasz Frankowski and Andy Herron while midfielder Stephen King was picked up by Seattle Sounders FC in the MLS Expansion Draft.

Frankowski, a Polish international, made an immediate impact scoring two goals in the home opener on April 3 against New England. But he would not score again in a Fire shirt with the first team as he would be stuck in the Reserves for the second half of the year. He did himself no favors after the Fire were eliminated last week by blasting coach Denis Hamlett in an interview with the Chicago Tribune. In all, Frankowski made 17 appearances for the Fire starting in seven of those matches.

Andy Herron’s second stint with the Fire never really got off the ground. Re-acquired in February, Herron made 18 appearances this past season starting in four matches, but failing to find the net in league play. His only significant contribution was to score two goals in a US Open Cup play-in against the Columbus Crew in a 3-2 victory in Peoria back on June 10. Herron scored 15 goals and three assists in 61 league matches overall for the Fire.

Both these moves, however, will free up some significant cap space for the 2009 season for the Fire. Herron was making $102,500 a season while Frankowski was making $214,250.

Meanwhile, Seattle Sounders FC did pluck a midfielder from the Fire in the MLS Expansion Draft, but it was not Marco Pappa. It is Stephen King who will be going to the Emerald City after going ninth in the draft. King played the most minutes amongst Fire rookies this season playing in 20 matches and scoring two goals and an assist this past season.

King has never been to Seattle, and he admitted mixed feelings to the Tribune’s Luis Arroyave.

"I'm excited to have this opportunity for a fresh start, but at the same time I was enjoying my time in Chicago," said King. "I'm sad my time ended here so quickly."

King will be joined by a former Fire striker in Nate Jaqua. Jaqua was selected first in the Expansion Draft on Wednesday afternoon. Below is the full list of players taken by the Sounders in the Expansion Draft

1. Nate Jaqua (Houston Dynamo)
2. Nathan Sturgis (Real Salt Lake)
3. Jeff Parke (New York Red Bulls)
4. Jarrod Smith (Toronto FC)
5. Khano Smith (New England Revolution)
6. Peter Vagenas (Los Angeles Galaxy)
7. Tyson Wahl (Kansas City Wizards)
8. James Riley (San Jose Earthquakes)
9. Stephen King (Chicago Fire)
10. Brad Evans (Columbus Crew)

UIC, Northwestern Move On in NCAA Tournament

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 23:11:15 -0600

by Dan Gaichas

Michigan State 0-0 UIC (UIC advance 3-2 on penalties)

EAST LANSING, MI--Two matches, two goalless draws, two triumphs on penalties for the UIC Flames. This time, the Flames downed #4-seed Michigan State, 3-2, on penalties. Flames keeper Jovan Bubonja again made good on his attempt and then saved the attempts by the Spartans’ Doug DeMartin and Zak Scaffidi. Ian Sarachan and Charlie Trout also scored for the Flames. The clincher came when MSU’s Josh Rogers shot wide left.

The Flames are now 3-0 in tournament penalty shootouts winning last year in the first round against St. Louis and then Dayton this year in the first round.

The Flames next take on #13-seed North Carolina (1-0 winners over Jacksonville) at Fetzer Field in Chapel Hill on Sunday at noon CT.

Notre Dame 1-2 Northwestern

NOTRE DAME, IN--Freshman Oliver Kupe scored his first two goals of his collegiate career in the match including the winner with just 74 seconds left on the clock to give the Wildcats a come-from-behind 2-1 win over #12-seed Notre Dame.

Jack Traynor put the Fighting Irish ahead 23 minutes into the match. Twenty minutes into the second half though, Brian Usinger fed a through ball to Kupe who rounded Irish keeper Phillip Tuttle and scored the equalizer. Just as the match appeared heading for extra time, Usinger and Kupe came through again as Usinger chipped a ball into the area that Kupe would head in for the winner in the 89th minute.

“Oliver really stepped up and made two big plays,” said NU head coach Tim Lenahan. “He gave [Notre Dame] some problems with his athleticism.

“This is a great win for us and a great win for this program.”

Northwestern will play the winner of the Akron-Ohio State match which was postponed due to unplayable field conditions at Lee Jackson Field in Akron. The match has been rescheduled for Wednesday at St. Vincent-St. Mary’s HS at 1pm CT. Date, time, and venue for NU’s Round of 16 match will be announced shortly thereafter.

Time to Stand and Deliver

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 19:37:03 -0600

Fire have a team built to win a title, but need to play and act like they can win one.

by Dan Gaichas

It gets tired after a while. For the third time in four years, the Chicago Fire’s season ended in the Eastern Conference Final. This time, it was the eventual MLS Champion Columbus Crew who eliminated them. Several factors made this one more frustrating than the two conference finals lost to the Revolution.

The Fire led in all three matches, including the Eastern Conference final, against the Crew only to see those leads disappear. A “six-minute lapse” as Fire coach Denis Hamlett put it did the Fire in as the Crew turned a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 win.

Another factor is the perception that this team was built to win a title. How could you not think that with the Goalkeeper of the Year in Jon Busch, Cuauhtémoc Blanco, Brian McBride, Chris Rolfe, and the best back four in the league for most of the year in your ranks?

Many supporters on the message boards place the blame squarely on Hamlett. There is some justification in that as the Fire did indeed appear uninspired at times especially back in September when the Fire struggled against teams fighting to make the playoffs.

But perhaps the most irksome feature was when it appeared the Fire were playing just one player up front. They claimed a 4-4-2 formation, but it really was Blanco playing behind a lone forward--usually not Chris Rolfe who was being played in midfield. It worked a couple times in 2007, but how do you expect to go places with a formation that features just one forward? Clearly, the Fire are not short of talent up front, but it is not being utilized to where the Fire can truly succeed.

So what to do for 2009? Busch and the defensive back four is fine as it is just as long as they are able to convince Conde to stay with the Fire.

As for the midfield, Justin Mapp needs to perform to what he is capable of, or he should be let go. You can only hope Blanco does not get hurt during his loan spell at Santos Laguna because odds are he will be back in a Fire shirt next season. The Fire should sign Marco Pappa to a permanent deal. Leaving him unprotected in the Expansion Draft is a mistake. Logan Pause has quietly filled in the role made famous by Chris Armas while John Thorrington is a trooper on both ends of the ball.

Up front, the Fire must have two up front. Whether that be McBride and Rolfe (or even Patrick Nyarko), they need speed up front--something McBride cannot provide in his advanced age. I’m not going to say that the Fire need to get a 20-goal scorer simply because Rolfe could be that player and that Columbus’s top scorer in the regular season, Alejandro Moreno, score as many goals as Rolfe (nine).

The sooner the Fire can get rid of Tomasz Frankowski and Andy Herron, the better. Frankowski had that one brace against the Revolution in the home opener and was rarely to be heard from again. Herron only had that US Open Cup match against the Crew in Peoria to hang his hat on. Other than that, he produced nothing. After fighting tooth and nail with the Red Bulls to acquire Lider Marmol, Marmol only made two appearances. That may be because of the four defenders ahead of him, but he should have been played more.

I repeat: The Fire must sign Marco Pappa! He should have played more. Who knows what would’ve happened if he was brought on sooner against Columbus? Leaving him unprotected in the Expansion Draft is a mistake.

In 2006 and 2007, I mentioned that the Fire had the talent to go far and that it was a matter of whether it could be properly managed. It was proven that Dave Sarachan could not properly manage the talent. Now, that burden falls on Denis Hamlett and, to a lesser extent, Technical Director Frank Klopas.

For as much as owner Andrew Hauptman speaks of building a winner in Chicago, it is time for both the front office and the technical staff to make the moves necessary to make that a reality. It is time for the Fire to stand and deliver.