No US Open Cup run... again

Well- as expected, the crowd was tiny for this "play-in" match for the Quakes and RSL. The weather was clear, but a bit chilly out at Buck Shaw. I was happily surprised with the starting lineup for the Q's. We had some guys that were not perenial bench warmers out there so maybe we were going to try to win this one (Leitch, Corrales, Sanchez, and Alvarez coming off of the bench). The Q's fought back from a nil-2 defecit to equalize at 2-2 at the end of regulation. OT was two - 15 minute halves. The Quakes took a 3-2 lead late in the 2nd OT period, but gave up an equilizer late and OT ended 3-3. RSL took the victory in PKs 5-3.

Mistakes on defense didn't give Jon Busch a chance to help us win this game. But there were some good things that I saw (1) team has a fighting spirit (2) Omar Jasseh looked great - he is only 17 yrs old! (3) I like Justin Morrow alot - great hustle, and (4) Eduardo seemed to have sparked the comeback when he entered the game, but after only a few minutes on the pitch - he left the field with some sort of injury (UGH).

The Cup.US article

SHOUT OUT to our section 108 buddy Lisa! She is our walking, talking, and beautiful SJ Quakes media guide!

NEXT HOME GAME: NE Revolution this coming Saturday at the SB San Siro

U.S. Open Cup

Every year about this time, I have to say something about the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. This year the Quakes are playing RSL (oh boy) in a play-in game on April 14th. Last season we played in a play-in game also - but we fielded a bunch of reserves against the NY Red Bulls - and lost.

Why don't the Quakes (and other MLS teams) take this competition seriously? The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup is the oldest cup competition in the U.S. (established 1914) and is equivalent to the FA Cup in England and other domestic cups around the world. The unique competition includes teams from all amateur and professional levels in the U.S.

I understand that most MLS teams do not field their starters in fear that an injury could occur and have a negative impact on the team for the entire MLS season. The MLS Cup is the primary goal for MLS teams and it is understandable. It is the league title.

Let's look at teams in Europe - they play in multiple cup competitions during their regular season. For example: English Premier League team Manchester United played in the UEFA Champions League, Carling Cup, and FA Cup competitions while still pursuing the Premiership title. Yes - some star players do get rested in some of the cup games, but the teams do field teams with the goal to win these multiple competitions.

For the Earthquakes, I unfortunately think that we are still several years away from competing for a MLS Cup. So why not play a team that can at least givce us a chance for the US Open Cup? The Seattle Sounders FC won the US Open Cup in their first MLS season - at least they have something in their trophy case. We have 2 MLS Cups, but they were won by the now Houston Dynamos.

C'mon Quakes - the US Open Cup would be a great boost to supporters as well as to the team. At least don't field a team that shows you could care less. Winning a US Open Cup will provide that taste of winning a championship that our current team only dreams about. It certainly would help shift the momentum towards winning. The Heritage Cup is nice, but not really something to brag about.

C'MOM QUAKES - LET'S GO AFTER THE U.S. OPEN CUP!

Starting Right Where We Left Off

Despite the large crows (10,589 - a SB San Siro record) - the Q's dropped their opener with RSL 3-nil. A whole slew of new players, but the result is the same. Really didn't see much from anyone tonight. Joe Cannon had a difficult night - not so much because of him - but rather the lack of defense and a ton of unforced turnovers.

I wore all of my Villa gear - leaving all the Q's gear at home in protest of all the restrictions that are being placed on supporters. H got his drums taken at the gate - although we saw others not in the supporters sections with drums. Wonderful consistency in enforcing the rules Quakes staff. Geeeez. I commented that it still felt like we did towards the end of last season. Ugggh. Already looking like a looooooooooooooooooooong season ahead.

Real Salt Lake - 2009 MLS Cup Champions

I watched the 2009 MLS Cup match last night and was rooting for RSL to upset LA Galaxy. The quality of the game was typical MLS standard - not quite as exquisite as European football, but the game was exciting. LA took the lead, but RSL came back with an equilizer in the 70th+ minute. They remained tied and went into OT. After OT didn't break the tie, the MLS Cup came down to PK's. The difference I think was Zazoo's version of a "Baggio" - Donovan sent his PK attempt over the crossbar!

A Sub-.500 team winning the MLS Cup: It is a nice story, but should never happen in a top flight league of any kind. Period.

1 "friendly" and 1 "must win"

There will be 2 Quakes games this week at the SB San Siro. The first one is tomorrow night vs CD FAS - an international friendly. Don't expect the first team out there on the pitch for this one. CD FAS is a top club from El Salvador. The big game will be on Saturday when we take on Chivas USA - a must win as I see it if we are going maintain an outside chance to get into post season play. Chivas is one of the teams that is also fighting for a playoff spot in the Western Conference. Currently they have 39 points (2nd to Houston with 43). The Q's only have 30. RSL, Colorado, and FC Dallas are the teams we are trying to catch (this is why the FC Dallas tie last week really hurt us). This week: NY @ RSL, Toronto @ Dallas, and Colorado @ LA. (The Galaxy is behind the Q's with 29 pts. Ideally - Quakes win, RSL and Dallas lose, and Colorado and LA tie).

...One day

Real Salt Lake is moving into their new stadium mid-season. They must be grateful to get off of that astro turf. I can't wait until the Quakes get to put together their own "new home" video promo. I do have to say, the SB San Siro has grown on me. The field is always in perfect shape and the home supporters are filling the stands.




We also got our email saying that it is time to renew our season tickets for 2009. I am not ready to think about that just yet - I want our 2008 season to go on a little longer (all the way to the MLS Cup). One can dream, right?

Quakes downed by RSL (and Refs) + Double report

Just a quick report on today's sports "double". We stayed at the Cal gridiron game until the end of the 3rd Quarter (Cal ahead of Colorado St. by a score of 28-nil). We figured the lead was safe (Cal ended up winning 42-7). Met H in Berkeley and we jammed to the SB San Siro. We missed kickoff by about 15 minutes and when we saw that RSL had already scored (we later heard it happened in the first 3 minutes). Darren Huckerby made his contribution - scoring twice tonight, but the Quakes went down 3-2 to the visiting RSL team. The Q's did have a 2-1 lead at one point, but gave up 2 goals in the 2nd half. RSL is a very physical team and there were several skirmishes on the pitch. The refs didn't help the Quakes at all by missing/choosing not to make several obvious calls. I think the refs lost control of the game and RSl took advantage of it by ramping up their physical play. We come out with 0 pts and it certainly puts a damper on our playoff hopes. We gotta come back and hit these final games hard. Next up is FC Dallas on 10.2 (in Texas).

Missed "PK"

A PK (penalty kick) was taken tonight, but it wasn't a Quakes or RSL player that took it. It was me! We park in the parking structure for each game - the lot next door to Buck Shaw (see photo 1 below; P=Parking Lot; BS = Buck Shaw). Tonight we parked on the top floor of the garage.

After the game, there was alot of traffic - so we decided to hang out on the garage roof and kick the ball around (quite a few other fans had the same idea). H brought out his handy dandy, ever present Adidas Europass Glider out of his car.

It was a beautiful night - still warm, and we were just passing the ball back and forth. Then H took his position as goalie next to the wall of the parking lot and begged me to go for the PK (try to get the ball past him and hit the wall). How could I pass that opportunity up. I placed the ball down and had my mind set on going to my left (his right) and go for the imaginary "upper corner" of the net. I glided up to the ball with out hesitation, struck the ball cleanly - and got the shot past H and......also the top of the wall! My shot sailed off the 3rd floor roof of the parking structure into the night. (see photo 2 showing ball flight). Keep in mind it was dark and at night.

The story ended ok as we were able to recover the ball with the help of a kid that saw where the ball flew. H kept saying I did a "Baggio". I am going to need to look this up (but I have no doubt it is in reference to somebody blowing a PK in some World Cup moment and losing it for his team!). Thanks H.

Double-Double Today

Well - the decision was made a week or so ago that I'd go for the double today (Cal gridiron in Berkeley and then Quakes football later in Santa Clara). It is all going to be done "on the fly" as cell phone contact with H will determine transportation logistics. Go Bears! (3pm kick0ff vs. Colorado State)) Go Quakes! (7pm kickoff vs. Real Salt Lake)

Approx 47 miles between Memorial Stadium in Berkeley and the South Bay San Siro (Buck Shaw Stadium) in Santa Clara.

May 31.2008 Loss to RSL

Well, the Quakes lost again. This time 3-1 to Real Salt Lake. After watching the game (that was hosted in Utah) I just can't figure out why any soccer game should be played on artificial turf. It is not the same game (ball becomes too bouncy and players have to adjust to the what seems like increased ball speeds). Plus - it is plain ugly (or maybe it had more to do with the fact that you could still see the American football lines on the field - University of Utah's football field). It looks horrible, especially on tv. If games have to be played on turf, at least completely get rid of the American football field markings.

Next game: 6/7/08 vs. Columbus (away)