2 Countries down, 2 to go

This past week, the Dynamo got two draws in the first two countries of their four-country, 12-day stretch.

The Panama game (recap) was a good result, I thought, given the lineup, the travel, and the field. The best part was that we got power in enough time to watch the game. The game seemed surreal though, after living in a dark, quiet house for 11 days. It was bizarre watching TV and seeing the world moving on as usual.

The Toronto game (recap, and another) was a disappointment, but not unexpected. When discussing the impending game with a coworker on Friday, I said it wouldn't be a surprise if we lost because: (1) we're playing on fake turf and (2) we're playing a struggling team and we seem to struggle against strugglers.

Toronto scored two great goals, one a header for us (thanks, Mr. Freeman!) the other a blistering RicoClark-style shot by Marvell Wynne. If the Dynamo had scored that, it wouldn't win goal of the week, but since a Toronto player scored it I bet it does win GOTW. Such is the worthlessness of fan-based democracy. I got a kick out of Onstad's smile after Wynne's goal, realizing he and his defense were bested in that one moment.

Wynne followed that goal up with a possible goal-saving on DeRo just afterwards, when DeRo found himself almost 1v1 with the Toronto GK after a fast break, until Wynne slid in. I think Wynne was the MOTM Saturday.

I appreciated the empathy shown by Onstad in his televised interview prior to the game, where he talked about the last of the players' families finally receiving power that week but that there thoughts are with the others in the area (about 25% of the residents, were his words) who were still doing without.

The draw and Columbus' continued form essentially knocks us out of contention for the Supporters' Shield, which is unfortunate. But we can still place first in the Western Conference for the first time in our short history, but with Chivas USA only 4 points back, we'll need to start getting 3 points.

Tomorrow we're in country #3, as we face UNAM Pumas in the altitude of Mexico City.

Go DYNAMO!

Between Quake events, and After the Hurricane

I hope Hurricane Ike has had as minimal of an impact as possible on you, your family, and your property. As for me and my household, we lost several tree limbs but had no property damage. We are still without power, but we have water and gas, so we can cook on our gas stove and take comfortable showers with our gas water heater. If the cool front hadn't come through, we'd be absolutely miserable without air conditioning, but the weather has complied to make for pleasant evenings. We count ourselves very lucky and hope you can do the same.

(One of my neighbors stated that God gives us these challenges to help us grow and to test us. I replied that God must have a low opinion of my character under duress, because He went easy on us this time. Or maybe He thought we already had our hurricane test since we lost everything to Hurricane Andrew when I was a newlywed young Ensign stationed on Homestead AFB. Either way, I'm grateful for the minor inconvenience we've experienced this time.)

Still no power at home, but at work we have power. You might surmise that this means that I'm spending work time on personal blogging. I will not confirm or deny that.

I missed the Dynamo-Earthquake match this past weekend. (Official Recap.) We had no power at the time, and while I could've listened to it on the radio, I was actually asleep on the couch having stayed up most of the night watching the storm and spent most of the morning keeping our street gutters free of debris to prevent street flooding. I watched the highlights, though, and they suggest that we were lucky to leave San Jose with a point. We may have had better possession (I can't tell from the highlights) and may have been unlucky to not convert a few more of our chances, but the Earthquakes had several 1-on-1 shots on goal that weren't converted. After a botched header by ERob, Onstad made two desperate point-blank saves in a row in the first half. Not long after, Onstad displayed more heroics on another point-blank shot. In the second half, a point-blank header found Barrett's chest at the goal line. In fact, Ronnie O'Brien's goal that opened up the scoring in the 50th minute -- a blistering shot from just outside our box, taken from Onstad's left and ending up in the far right netting -- was more difficult than these four shots that Onstad and Barrett saved.

Of course, we had our chances too. And how about the spunk shown by Ching after he scored the equalizer, when he ran over to remind the feisty Earthquake fans where their 2 stars came from? Reading Ives' blog, at least one Quake fan thought that was a classless display and has decided to instantly despise his former hero. I think Ching was merely responding in kind; it was defiance to counter spitefulness and it was only directed at the fans who were spouting vitriol, not to the fans who were merely supporting their (new) players.

ERob got ejected yet again, this time for getting two yellow cards. From what I could see, though, ERob's second yellow came when he was fouled from behind. Either I missed something or the ref completely blew the call. Or both.

We now have 39 points, 6 points away from the Supporters' Shield that I want so badly. We only have 6 games to make up the difference, and the next match is versus the very same Earthquakes this Saturday. With the generous post-Ike deal sponsored by the Dynamo and the University of Houston (free parking? free tickets for kids under 14? $10 adult tickets? Wow!) we hope to see a big turnout to root for the Dynamo, hope to equalize the Quake series (now at 0-1-1), and hope to get to 42 points (10 less than last year's final total, only 4 less than 2006's final total).

UPDATE: No game and no deal this Saturday, at the request of the City of Houston. This is going to really cram the Dynamo's remaining schedule, and the make up date falls on a FIFA World Cup Qualifier match day for the US and Canada. The media notes that the postponement could hurt the Earthquakes' momentum, but do we care?

Go Dynamo! (And take care out there, fellow Texans!)

Win vs Soca Warriors gives us 9 pts in 3 games

Nice game by the Americans, though I think our job was made easier by a timid (whether through mentality or personnel availability) T&T team. Recap.

Ives has a take on Brian Ching. He isn't a goal-machine, and he isn't making anybody forget Brian McBride, but he can still serve a purpose on this team. Some folks get caught up in him being a target forward and thinking that the current U.S. team isn't equipped to provide service from the flanks to make Ching effective. This ignores the fact that Ching is better with the ball at his feet that some realize, and he's great at holding up the ball for teammates to make runs off him. The job should eventually fall to a player like Jozy Altidore, but for now, Ching doesn't do a bad job.

Jeff Carlisle gives both of the Dynamo boys a "5" rating:
[Ching's] hold-up play was typically solid, and he deserves credit for being well-placed to score his goal. But for the most part, his play in the box was subpar, in that he either failed to convert some clear chances or wandered offside.
[Clark's] fresh legs were certainly needed, but his overall performance was erratic, as some sharp passes were mixed in with some careless giveaways.

I didn't see many of Clark's giveaways, maybe because I was doing other things at that point in the game, I guess. I did see his diving header that almost resulted in a goal.

As for Ching, I think Carlisle's rating was a little low (for Ching contributed greatly to the win through his holdup play), but it WAS irritating to see his missed opportunities and the lack of awareness that resulted in several inopportune offside calls.

And that reminds me that we might be lucky to have won 3-0. The replays of the first goal sure suggest that Ching and Bradley were still offside at the time that Donovan struck the free kick -- great outside of the foot volley by Bradley though. The replays of the second goal show that it began with a turnover when the ball hit off Gooch's arm -- great through ball by Beasley and strike by Dempsey though. The last goal was a gimme for Ching, but it may have been the only goal that wasn't tainted by a foul or offside. (John Harkes initially said that he thought Ching was offside, but replays show the Hawaiian clearly wasn't.)

Nevertheless, we took the 3 points and it was well deserved. Bob Bradley may feel more comfortable now, so he might stop playing conservatively and starts looking at experimenting a little. Maybe the USMNT will feel loose enough to play joga bonito style soccer...

Good luck with Hurricane Ike, everyone!
And go Dynamo! (I hope we have power to watch your game vs San Jose on Saturday.)

KC withers and Dynamo soar

What a hot, miserable time to play a soccer game. The players and coaches will say that everyone has to play under the same conditions, but the fact is, it feels a lot hotter when you're behind than when you're ahead.

And, as B-Fall put it: Sunday's 3-1 home victory ... was as good as they come.

Pre-game guide.
Post-game recap.

Says one article: Entering Sunday's match against the Kansas City Wizards, Kamara, an MLS veteran of 54 matches, had never recorded a single assist in his career. Before the match he told a few friends of his that he wanted to get rid of that donut that, to some, makes him look like a selfish player.

The post-game quotes include this one from ERob: "We knew that mentally, if this beautiful weather today wouldn't get to them, just being down might." I'm sure that "beautiful weather" was said with sarcasm, not praise for the 12th man (or 13th man, if you count the fanbase as the 12th).

I remember The Dom complaining about a 3 o'clock game in summer of the 2006 season. That one was scheduled due to TV commitments; but surely this game wasn't played at this godforsaken hour because of Telefutura!?

My two favorite events of this game:

• In the first half: Brad Davis' one-touch rocket into the net from a Kei Kamara layoff.
  
• In the second half: Stuart Holden's unselfish and prescient touch off to Nate Jaqua to get the goal that effectively won the game. Stuie had a good look on goal with that ball, but his pass was pure class. And the goal, coupled with the heat, crushed all of KC's motivation.

I didn't even mind the consolation goal that Davy Arnaud (from nearby Nederland) earned in the 87th minute.

I do think Brad Davis may be practicing his attacking headers this week. Minutes after his first goal, he missed what should have been an easy header on goal from the back post. It was nearly identical to one he muffed in the previous game versus Chicago. My wife said he shouldn't be doing headers anyway, because his ears probably unbalance him. (She is actually a big fan of "Keebler".) Luckily, in both games Davis made up for his muffs with a dynamite assist in one game and a dynamite goal in the other.

So now we're solidly in the Western Conference lead, 7 points ahead of #2 RSL. Overall, we're behind only Columbus (which has 43 points) and tied with New England and Chicago. The Supporters' Shield is a longshot, but still a possibility. Taking the Western Conference and having homefield advantage through the MLS Cup tourney is something that is not only feasible, but had better be realized. I'm still holding out for the Supporters' Shield, even though our upcoming schedule congestion will make that a difficult feat.

In his weekly MLS recap, Steve Davis has this to say about Brian Mullan:

Because Brian Mullan is usually surrounded by more dynamic players (De Rosario, for instance), several internationals (Pat Onstad, Clark) and younger, emerging forces (Stuart Holden), it's easy to forget what a guy like that means to Houston. Manager Dominic Kinnear knows exactly what he'll get from Mullan every time on the pitch.

When opponents are in possession, Mullan tucks inside reliably when the ball is on the other side. When it's on his side, he's always in the right spot, helping the right fullback. On offense, Mullan consistently, effectively links with the man playing behind him and can be counted on to supply two or three good crosses a half.

Brad Davis, on the left, does some of the same. But where he's more of a goal-scoring threat with a tendency to drift inside often, Mullan is more of a classic flank attacker, always providing the width that stretches defenses.

You need guys like De Rosario and Clark to win championships. But you'll never get there without the dependable workadays such as Mullan.

USMNT
Solid showing by the USMNT in Cuba, I thought. Ching did well in his role holding up the ball, and got the assist on the goal, laying off the pass that Dempsely put away. I agree with Doug McIntyre that Ching was the field player that probably did his respective job the best. (Tim Howard being the best and most valuable player overall.) People clamoring for new faces up front will rip him for missing that sitter near the end, but the big Hawaiian played his role as a target forward to perfection. He was able to effectively body up with his back to goal from start to finish and set up the winning strike doing just that.

McIntyre also has an article that laments the lack of offensive umph from the USMNT. Although the U.S. team deserves full credit for winning two difficult road matches to begin this potentially treacherous round of qualifying, it has done so by using a combination of grit, good fortune and Howard. The Americans didn't create many quality chances against either Guatemala or Cuba, and with all due respect to Brian Ching, who next to Howard was the best player on the field Saturday, their forwards still simply cannot score.

Other Soccer Coaching News
After a 3 year hiatus, I've been pulled back into the soccer coaching ranks to coach my son's U16 team. The kids are older and more sarcastic since I last coached, so I'll have that obstacle to overcome.

I have a new philosophy that I'm instituting now that I'm running the zoo. My focus is to ensure every player has the individual dribbling skills to hold their own regardless of the team (whether club or school) they play for next year. I've always worked on passing exercises and taught positional play in past terms as coach, but now I want every person -- regardless of position -- to be an excellent First Attacker (or "guy with ball") and excellent First Defender (or "guy on the guy with the ball"). To work towards this, the first 30 minutes of each practice is on footwork and 1v1. In this first half hour I'm also working on receiving skills, since players with good footskills must be able to pluck the ball out of the air and get it to their feet for their footskills to work.

After the first 30 minutes, I am working on some tactics, mostly in 4v4 mini-matches. But the emphasis is individual development.

The most likely result is that we won't win a lot of games since I'm not focusing on masking weaknesses through teamwork. Hopefully another result is that the players do become more adept at individual play...but it remains to be seen if the kids will do their part to make this happen. It takes practice and discipline and patience, and I don't know if this group of teenagers has that. We'll see.

Good form keeps us on top

A great night for Dynamo soccer last night. With the creative Blanco in town and US international star (and one of my favorite players) Brian McBride, along with a solid Chicago defense, the Dynamo faced a formidable challenge. They were up to the task. Here's the recap, which points out: The Houston Dynamo have not lost back-to-back games all year, and they did not want Sunday night to be the first time against the high-powered Chicago Fire.

Yeah, we gifted the Fire an opening goal. Apparently it was McBride’s first in MLS since 10/26/2003, with Columbus. He's scored a few since then in some league called the EPL. In fact, the goal might not have been so much gifted as stolen, with Bobby Boswell pulled down in order to get the ball into the Fire's hands.

The Fire then reciprocated, gifting us a goal through poor marking on a set play, allowing DeRo to even the score a minute after the Dynamo conceded the opening goal.

The Fire played pretty poorly overall in the first half, with nothing organized in the center and little activity out wide. The Dynamo could have put several more into the net, notably a wide open header by Davis in the 35th minute from a cross by DeRo, but Davis, though unmarked and staring at an open goal, sent the ball into the side of the net. It was actually harder to miss than to score that time.

Minutes later, Davis started the chain that led to the winning goal. Davis passed to Nate Jaqua, who held onto the ball just long enough to feed a short pass to Davis in the center. Davis found some room just outside the box where he dished the ball to Mullan, who was alone and able to place the ball past Busch into the far corner netting. It was a bit of a redemption for Davis, who had missed the earlier header, and for Mullan, who had missed an almost identical shot earlier.

The second half saw more of the same, with neither team able to put away their chances. Chicago realized it was positioned to steal a point and amped up its attack in the final 15 minutes, with Blanco counting on his fingers as best he could whenever Onstad got the ball -- even when Blanco himself was delaying Onstad's release of the ball. As Bill and Ted would say: Egregious.

In the end, we defended our lead unspectacularly, we maintained sniping distance on the Supporters' Shield, and virtually guaranteed our playoff slot. It would be nice to lock up home field advantage for the conference championship game, and with 24 points left on the table, we still could pull a surprise and sneak off with the Supporters' Shield.

THAT would be nice.

Here are some more articles:
Dynamo show mettle. A quick look at the MLS standings shows that the Eastern Conference has the upper hand when it comes to overall league play. Four teams in the East have at least 10 wins and the fifth-place New York Red Bulls have more points than every team in the West, save for the conference-leading Houston Dynamo. But the two-time defending champions have played well against the superior conference this year. Counting Sunday's come-from-behind, 2-1 win over the Chicago Fire, the Dynamo are now 6-4-1 against the East, better than any other team in the West.

Houston Having No Problems. The Dynamo are back to their big, bad selves...and the rest of the league better be afraid, very afraid.

Coach, do we have to play on Field Turf?

I don't speak Spanish well at all, but watching the Dynamo-RBNY game on Telefutura today, it looked like we lost 0-3. That sure looked like non-orange players shooting into the net. Was that Ashe scoring a speedy strike? Oh, that's Dane Richards. (Ives Galarcep said Barrett shouldn't feel bad being smoked by Richards; about 20 American have been smoked by Jamaicans this week.)

Actually, the game stunk in any language. Here's a nice (well, maybe "nice" isn't the word) recap here.

Strange thing is that I didn't feel that we were outplayed by the Toros Rojos today, but we certainly were out hustled on about 6 occasions, 3 of which resulted in goals. It was very uncharacteristic of the MIO to be out-worked by an opponent. Can we chalk it up to 3 games in one week? (Two of which being in the taxing humid climate of Houston.)

The Dynamo offense frequently goes through dry spells. It's like Houston weather: monsoon one day, drought the next. So I wasn't completely surprised by the lack of scoring production. Technically we got 4 shots on goal, but none were particularly memorable. We didn't test Conway much at all.

We didn't have much creativity on the attack, but it was on the other end where the Dynamo were really out worked and out hustled -- and that WAS a surprise. On the first goal ERob ball-watches and stands flat-footed, not realizing someone might run into the box to do something with a cross. Too late he sees JP Angel's blur. The only thing ERob does is try to collar JPA at the last minute, but it was too late and was a poor tactic anyway. I have trouble faulting Barrett too much on the second goal. Richards out paced him and when Barrett saw Richards pulling away at the end, he tried a last ditch slide tackle that didn't go too well on the turf. Barrett possibly could have positioned himself better before the footrace began, but it really came down to the fact that Richards is blazing fast. The final goal was another ERob flub, where he just lackadaisically let Magee fly through for a 1-on-1 with Pat Onstad.

So that is 2 goals from being outworked, and one from being out paced. The Dynamo of old would have kept this to a respectable 0-1 loss. I wonder, does ERob sit next week? Or does he get the message this week that he let his team down?

Besides ERob, another AWOL player was DeRo. The difference is that DeRo looked like he was trying, he just couldn't get into the game. He and his fellow middies did do well enough that the Dynamo held their own in the middle, but there were still too many give-aways and too few coordinated passing plays.

Maybe Dom should have pulled Kei Kamara (who also seemed off, and was definitely off target), pushed DeRo to forward, and inserted Stuie as Attacking Mid earlier. Maybe Ashe could have gone in earlier to provide speed to counter Richards speed. Or maybe Dom expected ERob to show up and try a little harder.

Actually, the whole team seemed out of sync.

If there's any solace in this 0-3 loss (the second 0-3 loss of the season), it's that we weren't outclassed on the pitch. We were definitely out-hustled, out of ideas, and out of focus though. This happens too often when the Dynamo see the proverbial brass ring before them. It seems they crumble whenever there's an opportunity to position themselves for easy times. Maybe they just enjoy the hard road.

The embarrassment of today should ensure a better result on Labor Day weekend, when the Fire comes to town.

"The better team won"

Well, that was easy.

With most of Chivas USA back home nursing injuries, there was no surprise that the Dynamo got 3 points last night. We knew there'd be goals scored even without Ching and DeRo, but there was the worry that Chivas would get one or two past Caig as well. The surprise was that by halftime we had amassed a 4-nil scoreline (and we could have scored more). The second half saw a more conservative Dynamo come out, but even then we had some great opportunities and Kei Kamara was terribly unlucky to not get his hat trick. It was a great night for the Sierra Leone native (Sierra Leonean?). Could Caraccio have had the same night?

Nate Jaqua also had a big night. I don't know what he did in Austria, but he is twice the player he used to be in the buildup.

Stuart Holden is looking more and more like the franchise player he could be. After a solid Olympic showing, he had a great run and a confident game-winning goal to start things off. He also does so well in the midfield. The Dom has got to find a way to keep Stuie on the field with DeRo, Mullan, and Davis. But where?

And Caig got a shutout, doing well on the three or so dangerous opportunities generated by Chivas, and also not turning otherwise tame Chivas opportunities into dangerous opportunities.

In all, I think the only complaint I have is that The Dom didn't substitute earlier. With a game on Sunday in New Jersey, he could have given some of his tender starters some rest.

As of last Friday, the Dynamo had never scored four goals in one half. As of Wednesday night, the Dynamo have accomplished that feat twice.

And we're only 4 points from the once-distant Supporters' Shield. We have 32 points (as does Chicago), the Crew have 34 points, and the Revs are at the top with 36 points. Can we catch them? That would be a first for the club and would gain us entry into all of the international tournaments of 2009.

Game recap

Another article: Four goals in the first half hasn't happened in the MLS since the Galaxy did it 10 years ago in 1998. Kamara said. "I am playing with -- every game now -- the best players in the league. This is my third year now and I have been around a lot of good players, but now, being around these guys, they are making me better every time I step on the field."

Article focusing on Chivas. Preki, "The better team won, they were sharp from the first minute, and that's the end of that."

Other Quotes.

USMNT
I saw only the last half of the USMNT match in Guatemala. (Game recap.) From what I saw, the US couldn't match Guatemala's passion and zeal. The US couldn't maintain possession for long on the attack and looked flustered on defense. They were lucky to get all three points, which is a fantastic result for the US in a hostile stadium in Central America. The fact that we got a goal off a free kick isn't all that surprising, but the way Guatemala was torching our defense, it was surprising they didn't get a goal (or three) of their own. Tim Howard, MOTM.

Ives has a good recounting of the post-match sentiments. Tim Howard had a few choice words about El Pescadito (or "Peccadillo" as I deem more appropriate).

USSoccerplayers.com has a good summary of the obstacles the USMNT faced off field and how it affected the on field performance. Sometimes the challenge is more than just matching the skill of the opposition.

A Robertson Goalfest

As I was out of town this weekend on a final summer fling before the kids go back to school, I didn't get to watch the game live (neither in person nor on The Tube). B-Fall's blog kept me in the loop Saturday night, and I got to watch the match a few days late when I returned home to my DVR.

What an exciting match. Even an American would have to love the volume of scoring. Six goals in one half, and one being a rocket from Ricardo Clark. Other goals came from Mullan with some moves, Ching with his foot, and Jaqua with the game winner. I think the only Man In Orange unhappy with the match would be Onstad, who had to pick the ball out of his net 3 times. I would imagine he feels the same as The Dom, who said: "It was an exciting game for the fans, with some great attacking play, some loose defending, and a lot of goals. The results were the most important thing to come out of tonight. We won, we are on top of the conference, and we are happy about that."

Official recap. Another MLS article. A third party recap of the game. (There's a joke that goes something like: Houston has two seasons, summer and August. It's not a particularly good joke, but it makes the point.)

Interesting quotes...
from Beckerman: "I don't even know if you should really be allowed to play in this type of heat."
from Beckerman again: "We definitely wanted to come get three points and make a statement that we're for real. We felt like we weren't getting respect from them, from some of the statements about us, what they felt about us, so we really wanted to come down and really put it to them. But they're a good team, and they play really well in Houston in all this heat." I wonder what comments the Dynamo made that "dissed" the RSL squad. That doesn't sound like the MIO.
from Findley: "They were champions a couple of years ago, but I look at them like any other team." A few years ago? How about the previous two years, and still the reigning champion.

Things get dicey now. Wednesday has Chivas USA coming to town. Due to international call ups, we'll be without Ching (ouch), DeRo (ouch), and Onstad (OUCH). Chivas will be without Guzan (the GK has left the MLS to ply his trade with Aston Villa) and Kljestan (who is with the USMNT). They'll also be without a boatload of starters due to injury (Eskadarian, Marsch, Vaughn, Zotinca and maybe Bornstein, Razov, Galindo, and Suarez). It's always a testy match with Chivas Jr, but with Caig in the goal it could be really interesting too.

Other news: Dynamo Reserves roll to first place with a 4-1 defeat of RSL Reserves.

Holden and Ianni are coming home

Good news from the Glass-Half-Full Department, we don't have to miss any more sleep watching early morning men's soccer and Holden and Ianni are set to return to Houston.


A red card 3 minutes in and a Nigerian team playing loose and aggressive combined to deny the US the draw it needed, and ended a promising Olympic campaign by the Americans. (Official recap.) The Nigerians were a fun team to watch. It would be nice to see how we'd fare 11 v11 for 90 minutes. The match was a microcosm of the troubles faced by the US in the tourney: poor decision-making at inopportune times, making worthless fouls that gain us little and cost us much, and not being able to mentally adapt to the changing dynamic on the field. It also showed that the US players are better technically than their forbears, can maintain possession and create chances against their international opponents, and are just a few tweaks away from making great strides on the international stage.

Overall the US did much better than I thought they would, and showed promise for the future of the full USMNT. They overcame listlessness to win their opening game, were seconds away from clinching their group in their second game, and held up well down a man when facing a relentless Nigerian attack. The coaching was adequate, but I think there are better choices for this age group.

As for the hometown connection, Stuart Holden was one of the bright spots of the team, showing composure defensively and creativity offensively. He looked like the guy McBride wanted to work with the most on field. His singular moments were the winning goal versus Japan, the dangerous run late versus the Netherlands that nearly got us the clinching insurance goal, and the unfortunate foul outside the box that gave the Netherlands the free kick in the dying moments that would deny us the win. At least he wasn't the one who jumped in the wall.

Ianni didn't see any field time, unfortunately. We only saw him in the post-goal celebrations.

And best of all, both players are uninjured and ready to return to help the commented on the Olympic Village, and his thoughts turned to the dining situation: Although we weren't able to sit together, it did give us a chance to mingle with some of the other athletes from other countries, which was pretty cool. I don't remember the names of the people I spoke with, but they were French track athletes and I was able to speak French with them. It went actually pretty well, and they obviously were big soccer fans. I also talked to a few Russian wrestlers, who I'm pretty sure I could take (kidding guys...good luck on a medal!).

He also mentioned that heroomed with Charles Davies, who subbed in for Stu in the 77th minute of the Nigerian match today.

In the same blog, Brad Guzan talked about the opening ceremonies and how POTUS recognized Stuie. Then we got to meet President Bush. I had never met him before but apparently Stuart is best friends with him. He walked down and took a group photo and met with all the athletes, which was pretty cool. He got to our team and Peter introduced him first to Brian and then to some of the other guys. He got to Stuart and President Bush did kind of a double-take and said "we've met before!" Oh, sorry Stu. I didn't know you and the President were so close!

Ives had some nice reflections on the pivotal draw with the Netherlands:

No, the U.S. team's comeback and 2-1 lead were no fluke, the Americans outplayed the Dutch for 65 of minutes. There was no bunkering, no hitting and hoping. The U.S. team moved the ball around, created quality chances and defended well for a majority of the game. It was a quality performance made more impressive by the fact that it came a Dutch team regarded as a medal favorite, and a Dutch team that came into the match needing a result...

What the Americans were guilty of on Sunday was not being used to a situation like that, beating a high-level opponent and knowing how to finish them off. The Dutch were a beaten team and ripe to be finished off, but the U.S. team didn't have the experience to do it. You only develop that killer instinct by putting yourself in those situations regularly, something we just might see if this young and strong generation of American talent continues to develop.

Grant Wahl loves the Olympics and he loves soccer, but he doesn't like Olympic soccer. That's mainly due to the ruling that clubs can hold onto their stars who would otherwise represent their countries. If the clubs can reject Olympic call-ups for their players, I think that should apply only to players who are older than U-23. I think clubs should be forced to release players who are U-23.

In US Open Cup news, the Charlestown Battery, the USL team that knocked the Dynamo out of the Cup, won their semifinal match versus Seattle in PKs. They'll face DC United in the final. DC is the presumed favorite, of course, but it would be kind of cool if the Battery capped off their Cinderella run by earning the trophy. That'd earn them some CONCACAF Champions League matches too, I believe. I'm just glad New England isn't going to repeat. They've got their SuperLiga trophy, that's enough for them this season.

Holden helps US beat Japan

This morning, I woke up early enough to catch the 2nd half of the US Men's Olympic team's match versus Japan. It was great to see the Houston Dynamo represented well, with our very own Stuart Holden scoring the winning (and only) goal for the US Team.

So our own Hometown Holden is the scoring leader for the US team. Okay, so that's a weak stat at this point. I won't mind if another teammate (McBride? Adu? Altidore?) passes him up this tournament, as long as Holden continues to contribute and the US continues to win.

As for the game itself, it seemed that the US tried to sit back on the lead. The US has a pretty good (if very shallow) defense, but that tactic won't work in the next match, versus the Netherlands. A draw versus the Oranje would help our chances quite a bit overall, particularly after their draw with Nigeria. I'm looking forward to watching my recording of the whole Japan match tonight; I heard we did well in the first half, although we conceded several golden opportunities to the Japanese.

Here's a preview of the Japan match. It doesn't bother to mention anything about Holden, choosing to stick to the easy subjects: Adu, Altidore, and McBride.

Here's the US Soccer recap of the match. Holden was the "Sierra Mist Man of the Match." And here's the AP recap of the match. (It's from the Chron, so the link will only be good for a few weeks.)

Here's an old article about both Dynamo players, Ianni and Holden, after they first joined the Olympic team.

Oh, and for minor laughs, here's Jamie Trecker's preview of the US Men's Olympic team. His schtick is to have a cynical perspective on the US soccer culture in general, and US soccer players specifically. (He seems to have a personal vendetta against Ching; being almost childish -- and definitely rudimentary -- in his criticism of the Hawaiian prior to World Cup 2006.) His counter-culture approach would be better served if he was better at analysis and if he didn't rely on media handouts as the basis for his opinions (even if his opinions are only to counter those handouts). For instance, he obviously hasn't watched any Dynamo games, because he says in the above-linked article "Holden looks to be a journeyman at Houston" and could be on the 2014 US World Cup team "if at all." No one who is considered a solid understudy for DeRo at attacking midfield could be considered merely a journeyman. And no one who has seen Holden's touch, powerful shot, and dribbling skills would consider him a journeyman. Research is perhaps the most difficult job for writers, and so Trecker often skimps on this aspect. If you see facts in his writing, don't take them as accurate. His opinions can be amusing, as I've said, or even interesting at times; but they are often based on a weak foundation of factual errors, on poor analysis, or simply on a hope that a negative perspective will sound insightful.

Sometimes I really hate this game

How painful is it to not be able to win in regulation + extra time when you have 25 shots, 14 on goal, to the opponent's 15 shots, 7 on goal! And those 14 on goal don't even count the two off the left post! Arrgh! (Game preview. Game review.)

I've written before that this is not the Dynamo of yesteryear. This one loses to the Revs in a Championship game. This one has ginormous defensive gaffes -- and more than one! -- that allow goals. The usually stalwart Captain Barrett lets a ball drop into the box and doesn't stay with it, thus giving Ralston the ball, the space, the angle, and the first equalizer; while Bobby Boswell, who was B-Swell all match, reverted to BoBo on one play in overtime to give Shalrie Joseph the second equalizer. And that second goal was on a set play; Dynamo-Houston of yesteryear was golden on set plays.

On the other hand, this Dynamo team did other things that were uncharacteristic, like getting 14 shots on goal, taking the first lead in a final, and getting to a non-MLS Cup final in the first place. And how about Ching being the provider, sending in the cross for another player to head for a goal?

This has been the season of ties. Because we settled for yet another draw tonight, we had to go to a virtual coin flip to determine who gets to pick up the trophy. PKs are always a gamble. Excellent kick by The Waibel to set the tone. I had a bad feeling about DeRo (he seemed off all night, despite the countless opportunities he had on goal) and that proved correct. I then was hoping Ching would (1) not do the stutter step and (2) change his routine by shooting to the left. Well, he didn't do the stutter, but he went to the right, just like the last time he faced Reis. Onstad gave his side the saves they needed to win, only his buddies couldn't get the ball into the net every time. Just like in the game.

Can't complain about the PK result though. Those are really just crapshoots. I really can't complain about the offensive production either. We should have had more goals, sure; but if you said before the game that we'd get 2 past Reis, I'd take that straight up. My complaint is really with the lapses that gave the Revs their two goals. It should never have gone to PKs.

Take away the awful gifts by the defenses and we win 1-0 in overtime. As it is, we do continue the traditions of yesteryear by not winning a non-MLS Cup trophy. After ending our chances with the Pan-Pacific Cup, the CONCACAF Champions Cup, the Open Cup, and the SuperLiga Cup, and drawing our way out of contention for the Supporters' Shield (my favorite of the awards), only the MLS Cup remains. Frankly, that's the most important one as that's the only one that gives us the unprecented "three-peat". It's also the one that gives one an automatic berth into all of the tournaments that add spice to the season.

But maybe, just maybe, this is the season where we learn what it's like to be a true supporter of a soccer club. Instead of rating the team based on the awards won and the accolades bestowed by the soccer literati; maybe this is the season where we appreciate the team for what it is: a solid, hard-working, talented team that plays an attractive style of soccer, with players that give their all for us each match. And maybe next year we get to see how the team fares when it has only MLS league games to squeeze into the schedule.

Maybe. But I'm not sure I'm mature enough for that sort of character growth, so let's just get the three-peat, 'kay? We can deal with not getting the MLS Cup in some future season when we've gotten something else, say a CONCACAF Champions League Cup or at least an Open Cup. We need the MLS Cup this season. Grab the unprecedented three-peat, then we'll negotiate on what trophies must be earned next season...

Go DYNAMO!

Keeping the points a-coming

Two sweet goals in the first half, and another stellar performance by Onstad (among others), gave the Dynamo their first win over the Crew at Robertson. (Game recap. More on the win.)

First, know that it was hot. Mostly that was thanks to the humidity. I don't think the heat and humidity helped us as much last night though; it seemed that being a goal behind got the Crew motivated. They had some very good stretches of play once we scored, and they would have scored had Onstad not been his uber-goalkeeping self. The "Hardhats" looked particularly good in the second half, but the humidity (and the Crew's early subs mandated by injuries) probably did help late in that they didn't look dangerous after the 80th minute or so.

The first goal by Davis in the 13th minute came from a nice feed from Mullan. The ball bounced a bit on Davis' first touch (blame the uneven turf on that one), giving Davis the perfect opportunity to turn and blast a blistering half-volley into the upper left net. "It was good to be able to come out tonight and contribute with a goal. That was a great pass from Brian (Mullan) and the team got three points. That is the most important thing right now. I have had some chances recently with posts and crossbars, but it went my tonight."

In the 43rd, Ching hit a low rocket after Clark sent a through ball to Nate Jaqua in the box. Jaqua was closed down quickly and couldn't turn, but left a nice step-over layoff to Ching who sent his shot low and to the left, through the defender's legs, and into the net as the GK, Will Ferrell Hesmer, dove the wrong way.

As with the Pachuca match, there was some controversy on the field: what's with the new Dynamo Girl uniforms? They looked almost modest! My wife approves.

Cool article alert! Richard Justice must've been at the game, or maybe he attended the Pachuca game, because he has a great article on the Men In Orange. It's a great soccer article from a non-soccer sports journalist. Links to newspaper articles sometimes break over time, so here are a few quotes for posterity:

• The Dom, talking about the overwhelming support in the final home game last season: "To this day, I've never witnessed a club atmosphere in America better than that one," the Dynamo coach said. "You looked up and there was orange everywhere. There were no gimmicks, no giveaways. It was just fans that wanted to see the Houston Dynamo advance to the final. I still get chills talking about it."
• There's more emotion in one Dynamo game than the Texans, Astros and Rockets have in an entire season. Cynicism takes a day off when the Dynamo play. And it's all about the soccer. It's not about the creature comforts at Robertson Stadium or the chance to see an international star. It's about the team.
• Now into their third season, the Dynamo have done almost everything right. They moved into the right market. They won back-to-back championships. Robertson Stadium offers a closeness to the players, an intimacy rare in professional sports. It helps that players spend hours in the community visiting hospitals, holding clinics, being the best ambassadors a sport can have. It helps to have players who care, who always play with hustle and energy, who appreciate the fan base. It's all those things and more. It's our amazing little success story.
• They have great leadership beginning with team president Oliver Luck, an accomplished coach in Kinnear and an interesting locker room mix. Barrett, the captain, is quiet. So is Mullan. Onstad, the old guy, has seen it all. Robinson and Craig Waibel are talkative and emotional. It's the kind of mix of players for which every franchise strives. And the crowd support, the emotion and noise and all the rest, is irreplaceable.

Good stuff.

Now let's hope we can take care of business this Tuesday versus New England and bring home our first international trophy. The Revs can't beat us THREE games in one season, can they? CAN THEY?

(Meanwhile, a New England fan is thinking "The Dynamo can't beat us THREE championships in a row, can they? CAN THEY?" Lords of Destiny hear me out: Each season sees a slightly different group wearing the jersey of a club, so a Dynamo win wouldn't have the same players beating the same players three times in a row, even if there are quite a few returning core players. However, a Revolution win would (basically) have the same players beating the same players thrice in a row. We can't have that, okay?)

Go Dynamo!

Crew's in town

Back to the MLS for one game before we face off for the SuperLiga championship versus New England, which WE BETTER WIN.

Here is the official preview for tonight's game. No ERob or Mulrooney (injury) or DeRo (too much yeller). The Crew will be without "Hey, Duck!"

For the Dynamo formation, I'm thinking something like:

Ching--Jaqua

Ashe-Davis-Mullan

Clark

Barrett-Boswell-Cameron-Waibel

Onstad

With Cameron able to move to midfield if we switch to a 3-5-2 and Kamara able to come in for Jaqua around the 70th minute.

The Crew-Mo series has each team with one win and three draws. It's pretty uninspiring, really. The matches are boring on average and Alejandro Moreno gets a goal each time. He can have his goal tonight, as long as WE GET MORE.

I'm going with ALLCAPS today to express an intense fervor that can only be controlled by heavy use of the CAPS LOCK key.

And now for something completely different: the Dynamo open ties with local Chinese officials.

Adios Pachuca!-SuperLiga

What a night! What a result! (Game recap.)

I should no longer refer to Bobby Boswell as BoBo. My wife suggests B-Swell has a more positive ring to it. And B-Swell's game winner comes a day or so after he says "For me, the goal is definitely to beat Pachuca, a team that [the Dynamo] played a lot last year. And if I can be a catalyst to help the team get past them and get into the finals, then that's a big step for me and the team." Congrats on your big step, Catalyst!

And I wonder how many more games I'll have to watch before I see Corey Ashe get another goal off a header. He's the smallest guy on the pitch, isn't he?

I thought there was a lot of energy in the crowd tonight. The two supporters' groups did well stirring up noise and fervor. We also were introduced to our newest player: Kei Kamara. He looked good, though he did not seem to have gelled with the team yet. No surprise there at this point.

My family tried a new seating position this time: Section 124. From that section we were looking over DeRo's shoulder when he made the two dangerous shots on goal from the left flank in the first half. The first shot looked like he was trying to bend it as a cross, only the ball didn't bend and it became a shot that was easily snuffed by Calero. The second shot looked like he swiveled to fake a cross, then attempted a clever flick that Calero deflected. Had a middie timed his run right, the deflection would have led to an easy follow-up shot on goal. (When I rewatched the play on Telemundo, it looked like Jaqua and Mullan actually were trailing the play, but the ball didn't get near them unfortunately.) DeRo's best shot was around the 8th minute. It was a spinning left-footed volley from about 25 yards out that Calero had to stretch to deflect over the ball. That shot, had it been a goal, would have been on the highlight reel.

From our seats, we were also in line with the play in the second half when Pachuca had a goal called back due to offside. We didn't see the infraction at the time, and watching the replay on Telemundo, it appears there wasn't one.

Before this divine/referee intervention, we also saw some excellent saves by Onstad in the first 5 minutes of the second half. The veteran saved our skin tonight.

I'd give Dynamo-H the edge in the first half. They had the better possesion and the better threats on goal. Pachuca completely dominated the first 5 minutes of the second half, and after that the game evened out (except for that fast break non-offside non-goal that we were gifted).

As the game wore on, I worried that we would head into extra time. If the Tuzos were able to sneak past the Dynamo yet again, who would I root for in the final, I wondered? Well, regardless of who wins the New England-Atlante match, I'd have to root for Pachuca. They're a quality team, and I won't root for the Revs as long as Steve Nicol is killing the game for them.

Then a bit of magic in the 77th minute when a DeRo corner is headed on by Waibel for a timely tap-in with B-Swell's side foot. After that, the game opened up as Pachuca sought the equalizer and the Dynamo had more opportunities to counter. Ashe's header 10 minutes later ensured that the non-offside gift wouldn't taint the Dynamo's victory.

Pachuca played a solid game, until their emotions got the best of them as time wore down. Then there was a fracas after the game. It seems Pachuca is only a class act when they're on top; they don't have the emotional maturity to face disappointment like men. Hats off to Calero (surprisingly, particularly after his antics with Dom at halftime) and Torres to show class and sportsmanship in their respective post-game interviews. They need to do some remedial training for some of their teammates.

Wednesday night, I guess I'll root for Atlante so we get the final at home. Either opponent would be difficult. We beat Atlante 4-0 in the group stage, so they'll be gunning for us -- plus they appear to have their edge back. Also, it's difficult to beat the same team twice in one tournament. New England would be difficult because they know how to frustrate the Dynamo, beating us for a combined 5-0 tally in our two matches this year. We've beaten them the past two MLS Cup championships, but that only makes the odds for a third consecutive championship victory seem that much more difficult to attain over the same opponent. Plus, we'd be on their home field with their fake turf. So, it's go Atlante.

But, Go Dynamo! even more.

Pachuca tonight

It's Tuzos vs Dynamo tonight. Here is the game preview. An essay by a fan. Another essay: It is the stuff of which movies are made. Pachuca will have to face the Dynamo at Robertson Stadium, in front of a crowd that bleeds orange. It will be impossible for Pachuca players to ignore their nerves for the game in Houston, because the Dynamo will be at home, the crowd will go crazy, and the team will shine. It will be a game for the history books, and it will be painted orange.

The Chron has a its own preview as well as various notes about the Pachuca match and other MLS news. Our newest player, Kei Kamara, might be on the bench. E-Rob is unlikely, Mulrooney is still out (but could be back for our next MLS match). Good news: Pachuca's Christian Gimenez (The Orange Slayer) is out due to card accumulation. "I don't know if it's a rivalry; they beat us out of every competition," Dynamo forward Brian Ching said. "It's more of a frustration for us. But they're a good team, and we consider ourselves a good team."

An article on Waibel's charity-driven field goal attempts. "You have the best job in the world!" Waibel told Brown, before admitting that on-rushing NFL defenders might make a slight difference. B-Fall mentions it in his blog as well.

All-Stars was entertaining ... Who'd've guessed?

I wasn't really looking forward to the MLS All-Star game ... like most people, I'm sure. I wasn't sure if I would watch. Turns out I did, and I'm glad I did. The match was fun from beginning to end; and I even found it relaxing since I didn't care who won or lost.

West Ham played well, but the players weren't going to hurt themselves in the process. That, and the fact that the Hammers probably aren't match fit yet, was really the factor that led to the MLSers controlling possession and territory so well.

But what was cool was watching Blanco and Beckham play together. Blanco actually was off with his passing and had several give-aways, but started getting into the groove and ended the half with a clever, skillful goal curving so nicely into the net. His earlier assist was even sweeter: picking up a pass from Beckham, Blanco popped the ball up then heel-flicked it to Christian Gomez, who slotted the ball clinically into the far netting. Becks-Blanco-Gomez-goal: That play right there made the All-Stars worth it.

B-Fall's blog has a good summary of the game. Here is a good article talking about DeRo and Onstad playing two MLS games the same day and in different countries. DeRo is capping off his day with a party benefiting Nothing But Nets.

Beckham played all 90 and looked very strong, particularly since no one cared if he helped with the defending.

DeRo, had some good flashes as a late sub, including a dangerous run that won a PK. I was surprised that he took the PK, and it was tense seeing his blast ping-ponging off the crossbar and into the net. With the goal, DeRo has another game winner for the All-Stars. The Creative Canuck made some nice runs and passing combos, which was all the more surprising since he had just wrapped up his MLS match in DC that morning. He was certainly pumped to be in front of his hometown fans. He had a solid free kick late in the game (Becks kindly let DeRo take the kick, I wager).

Onstad wasn't tested much, but did well with what he faced. I was very surprised to see him inserted in (just after DeRo's PK), but it was good to see him playing in this honorary game, as he is still one of the best in the league.

Landon Donovan was off his game and didn't seem to do anything.

And what was the formation there at the end, when Hejduk and Bornstein came off for Buddle and Ralston? Was it a 2 5 3? Ralston must've been playing as a back. It would be nice if the announcers would, you know, cover the game and instead of laughing over inside jokes or commenting on the obvious ("So-and-so would like to have that one back"). THEY can see the entire field. THEY should tell us how the formation is morphing as the game plays out and especially as subs come in.

Speaking of announcers, I have got my whole family to detest the "as wells" that Harkes includes in every other sentence regardless of whether the phrase is relevant. In the off-season, maybe Harksie can go to a speaking coach. I complain because I care.

I thought it was laughable towards the beginning of the game when JP Dellacamera thought the Toronto fans would even consider chanting "We want Landon." No, Harkes was right: they were chanting "We want Brennan." And while it was cool that JPD mentioned DeRo played a 4 hour game last night, it'd be even cooler if he pointed out that DeRo actually finished playing that match THIS MORNING.

Finally, I don't know if it started to drizzle during the game, but the turf looked matted and slick by the end of the match. I didn't see a lot of sliding and falling, but the field sure looked worn. Was that an optical illusion or does that brand of turf have issues with heavy use?

All in all, great energy in the game. Good performance by the Dynamo reps. The MLS "super stars" (Becks, Blanco, and Angel, who looked onside when scored what would've been the 4th goal for the MLSers and would've been an assist for DeRo) all played up to the moment for the spectators. West Ham acquitted themselves well too.

I'd have to say that, other than my gripe about the announcers, the only negative of the whole night is that sad trophy presentation. Why is the MLS giving a trophy to itself in what is basically a friendly exhibition match? Who keeps it? Does the trophy go into the MLS headquarters' trophy case? This is a festival of soccer, not a meaningful competition. Invite both teams onto a stage. Let them swap jerseys. Pick an MVP, maybe even one from both teams. Thank everyone for coming. Then let the music blare and the confetti canons fire away. Having a "hooray for us" ceremony is just sad.

Speaking of shirt-swapping: did you see DeRo wearing (Anton) Ferdinand's shirt? With those cornrows, DeRo looked a bit like Anton's brother, Rio Ferdinand. Cool.

In Other news:
Check out Garber's "State of the MLS" speech. We'll have two more teams come 2011 it seems. Where will we get the quality players? Cannibalization? In the halftime interview, Garber said that the McBride situation has been resolved. It looks like he's going to Chicago. ("I hope he ends up in Chicago, yuk, yuk, yuk," Garber guffawed in the interview.)

In Toronto, Dynamo-Houston make the moves necessary to pick up the speedy forward they've been wanting: Kei Kamara. He has scored only 2 goals this year (so far!) and one of them was against us back in May. Here is B-Fall's take.

Do you ever feel that the Dynamo's 2nd striker position (Ching's partner) is kind of like the percussionist situation with Spinal Tap? The band could never keep a drummer due to all sorts of bizarre events, including spontaneous combustion. We've had Alejandro Moreno, Ronald Cerritos (kind of), Paul Dalglish, Nate Jaqua, Joseph Ngwenya, Franco Caraccio, Nate Jaqua again, and now Kei Kamara. That's not even considering the Reserves and midfielders that have played up there as band-aid approaches. Here's hoping that Kamara is the piece needed by the Dynamo to finish the season strong.

Three points from the four-day match

Well, THAT was probably the strangest match of the season. (Game recap. Quotes.) Dynamo-Houston went to DC on June 4 to begin the match (abandoned after 15 minutes), then was hours away from restarting the match on July 22, then finally began the replayed match on July 23 and finished it in the wee hours of July 24.

I worried when I read on B-Fall's blog that the officials were going to restart the match at 10:40 after the 3 hour rain delay. At that point, up 1-0 and having dominated the match, Dynamo-H had nowhere to go but down. Three points in hand couldn't get any better. The break could have broken their rhythm. The puddles could ruin their passing game.

Luckily, the Dynamo still were the better team. DCU had two (three?) extremely scary, possibly game-changing shots on goal that Onstad managed to snuff out, but other than that, it was all Dynamo.

Dude: 23 shots to 4. That is total domination. Yet, if Ching hadn't gotten that insurance goal, or if Onstad hadn't been clutch, all those shots wouldn't have given us the points we deserved. Hats off to Onstad, Cameron, Mullan, Davis, and Ching for earning us the points. Others were able to create the domination on the field of course, but it was those five that managed to turn our advantage to points. DeRo was instrumental in the game, the midfield completely shut down the passing lanes and managed the transitions extremely well, and our defense were the aggressors on the ball. Nice job all around, but a special tip o' the hat to those who saved goals and made or assisted on goals.

DeRo had some near-gimmees in the first half, but Zach Wells or a defender's ill-placed extremity seemed to always deny the Canadian Creator. We need DeRo to unleash the dogs of war and net these opportunities when they arise in our upcoming SuperLiga matches and the remaining MLS league games. DeRo will create those opportunities -- he's a master at that -- we just need him to get his finishing mojo back.

The bad news from the match: our next game will be without our two attacking mids: DeRo (card accumulation) and Holden (Olympics). We will also be without ERob most likely (injury) and his understudy, Ianni (Olympics). We will have Rico back. Kinnear has a lot of options, thankfully, but he will have to be creative. And he won't have his first choices at several key positions.

Tonight Onstad and DeRo are to play in the All-Star Game, the same day that they finished their match in DC. I won't be surprised if we don't see either player on the field tonight.

Now it's back to SuperLiga for a bit. I want to beat Pachuca so badly and I want that SuperLiga trophy. Why? Mainly because the odds of winning the MLS Cup are slim so you want to take the silverware that's immediately available. Also because I do not want the plodding Revolution to take it. I'm rooting against them in the US Open Cup too. It grates on me that they're the leader for the Supporters' Shield -- I don't want their style of play to be rewarded. They have too much talent to play the crappy game they play. Yet that talent is compensating for -- and, more irritatingly, justifying -- Stevie Nicols' unimaginative leadership.

Go Dynamo!

SuperLiga - On to the Semis

A nice win yesterday in DC puts us into the Semis of the SuperLiga. (Game recap.) DC looked to be saving their effort for the MLS matchup on Tuesday, and started subbing players early. The odd part was that once their key players were pulled, DC began to look more dangerous and get more opportunities on our goal. I don't know if this was due to us easing up a bit once we realized that DC was capitulating, or if the effort was doubled by DC as players fought hard to make an impression on the coach so that one day THEY'd be the starters.

After Doe halved the deficit, I felt quite nervous that they'd at least tie up the game. Onstad wasn't as crisp as he usually was, although he made the saves when he had to. Our attack had dwindled as well.

Then the beautiful combination of a steal by Waibel, forward pass across the halfway line to Wondo, one-touch drop to Ching, through ball to a running Holden who touches the ball once with the outside of his right foot, then uses his right instep to slam the ball past Zach Wells from about 18 yards out. When I grow up, I want to be Stuart Holden.

Another match versus DC comes this Tuesday. I imagine it'll be difficult to beat the same team twice in a row at their home field, but that's what we need to do to make headway in the league. At least there's no travel in between games. Afterwards, Onstad and DeRo will have to trek to Toronto for the All-Star match up on Thursday, then it's back to SuperLiga. We should know who we face (and where) after tonight's matches.

Go Dynamo!

SuperLiga-Final Group Stage Match

Tonight the Dynamo face DC United in a do-or-go-home match. The good news is that we have DeRo, Ching, and ERob back in the lineup; but will Ching and ERob be match fit after their injury? We also have Ianni and (most importantly) Holden for the two DCU matches before they traipse off to the Olympics in search of honor and glory. We also have Nate Jaqua, though I doubt he sees action. Maybe in our Tuesday DCU replay.

We won't have Caraccio anymore. That's a shame, but understandable given the limitations on salaries and personnel set by the League. Buena suerte, Caraccio! (I took French, not Spanish, in school, so forgive any solecism.) I know you'll find a club that suits you well.

(The same day, LA released Abel Xavier.)

Winning tonight's match is vital, but B-Fall has all of the different scenarios of winners and losers mapped out in his blog.

There's been more coverage of the Dynamo's fight on behalf of all MLS players to get better compensation from tournament purses. Or at least to allow clubs to decide what is fair for their own players. Sounds reasonable. B-Fall has an article on the imbroglio. That MLS would prevent a team from voluntary striking bonus deals with players for this type of tournament can also hurt a team like the Dynamo, who could use the incentive to entice a player to sign with the team. ESPN has an article as well.The Dynamo case could set a precedent. If an arbitrator rules in favor of Dynamo players, each MLS team could be allowed to determine payouts to players for tournaments. This certainly challenges the single-entity system and could become a milestone decision.

In other soccer news, some of the New England Revs' staff are keeping the skies safe. Certainly a timely move by the MLS club members. Even off the field the club can effectively kill any offensive environment; sometimes it is not only easier, but better, to destroy than to create.

SuperLiga-Beaten by the Bimbos

They're back! After a one-game respite, the 2008 Dynamo returned in full force. The two telling traits were there for all to see:
1. Solid defense except for a costly moment of confusion
2. Chances aplenty up front but no goals

That's the 2008 Dynamo, love 'em or leave 'em. And in a season of unpleasant firsts, we added a new one: losing in an international competition at home for the first time.

The 1-0 loss to Chivas-Guadalajara answered the questions I posed earlier:

Was the domination of Atlante a fluke?
Probably. The fact that Atlante beat DC United handily does suggest that we didn't beat a pansy team. And the fact that we were missing so many starters does make it hard to say we couldn't beat Chivas-Bimbo with the lineup that beat Atlante, particularly since we were oh-so-close with the lineup we threw together. But in the absence of a different result, we have to say at this point that it was a fluke. We need some more data points (positive ones, A.K.A "victories") if we want to say that this side can be consistently good. Can you provide us with some more positive data points this year, dear Dynamo?

Can the Dynamo be creative and effective without DeRo?
Not really. Especially not when Holden is gone too.

We will be missing some regulars; Who will step up tonight?
No one. Try back again this weekend and we'll see what we can do for you.

Will Houstonians go to a game that begins at 9PM on a weeknight?
Apparently yes. But they won't necessarily be rooting for the Dynamo. Good crowd though.

Will the field still be crappy?
Ugh, yes.

This game was a "a microcosm of the Dynamo's 2008 season."

In all fairness, the Dynamo were missing four key starters (DeRo, Holden, Ching, and ERob) plus a fifth usual starter (Mulrooney, who is a very useful journeyman, but his lack of specialization means he's not an essential cog in the Orange Machine). That wasn't our A-Team that was out there, although they looked like our A-Team often does, given that they maintained some solid possession, demonstrated an indefatigable work rate, and clung to those two nasty traits I mentioned at the beginning of this blog. This patched-up team, but for a lousy 5 seconds, earned themselves a draw. But 5 bad seconds can kill you in this game.

The team also had three or so point blank shots that were saved by Luis Michel, the Chivas keeper. Good goalkeeping. Dreadful finishing.

Needing only a tie to get into the semifinals, the Dynamo took their usual rocky road and are essentially forced to win this weekend versus DC at DC. That's not an easy task. We then need to beat them on July 22 to help our MLS standings. (We could move on to the semis if we tie DCU and Chivas-Bimbo beats or ties Atlante, but we want a victory. Two of them. Both in DC.)

Another tough road ahead. That's the 2008 Dynamo for you.

PS: Check out Lark's blog. Good summary of the game, recap of the atmosphere, and analysis of Caraccio.