Hey guys. My little brothers from Maryland were down here in Tampa for the 4th and had a blast at the game on Sunday! One of my brothers got really excited when I told him there was a team that played in Catonsville, since it's only 15 mins from his place. Hopefully we find out soon where the team will be playing though. How have the crowds been? Do you guys have a standing/chanting supporters section?
A member of the front office replied to my e-mail yesterday that the announcement of the team's new home will come this week. I'm not really sure where it could be. I'm hoping it's not a high school stadium. What have you guys been hearing?
Like I suggested, we're going to a far away place: Germantown (see today's posting of P Rico match which sneaks in mention of new facility - great way to make a big announcement that will affect the future of the team). Great facility and grass - bad commute for B'more fans. Maybe some of the Real MD fans will come. Maybe some of the W-League Freedom fans will come. Maybe some of the internationals and soccer-crazies from DC/Rockville area will come (to see any kind of match). Maybe some of the Montgomery County Youth League fans will come. Maybe some fans from Howard County will trickle over. Maybe some DC United fans will come. Maybe the hard core Palace and B'more area fans will come - NOT! With the usual promotional and marketing skill of the club, more fans will turn up at UMBC then at the actual venue. I hope at least all the season ticket holders are notified. They'll draw better attendance at Calvert Hall HS for day games in 100 degree temps than at Germantown (most Baltimoreans don't even know where that is!). Maybe the idea of a fan club party bus to the game(s) is not such a bad idea. Any one interested - contact the team NOW! Have fun Palace, we hardly knew ye. I guess we can write off any kind of stadium in the City with that kind of loyalty.
Wow! That's quite a surprise! The SoccerPlex may be the only good option for a D-2 team in the state though. If this becomes a permanent thing, CP Baltimore would have to undergo another re-branding. The Baltimore label wouldn't make sense. This whole thing reminds me of the Major League Lacrosse Bayhawks. They played at Towson as Baltimore, then Georgetown as Washington and now Navy as Chesapeake. It really makes it confusing for the fanbase and those of you in Baltimore will probably become alienated. I'd say drop the Crystal Palace thing completely, come up with a new name and market to D.C. suburbs as a cheaper alterative to D.C. United. The thing is though, I think that's what Real Maryland was already doing and they played at the SoccerPlex. Best of luck to you guys no matter what happens. My brother has friends in Germantown so he'll probbaly check out a game or two, but it's a long way from his place.
Just googled the soccerplex to learn more about it. On the positive side it does look like a very nice facility and seems like infrastructure-wise it would be a perfect venue for a team like Palace. On the negative side that is really far away; it's practically in Virginia. So I guess Palace is basically a DC team now. There is no way I'm making that drive after work for Wednesday night games only to have to drive back to the city. And to be perfectly honest if I'm going to make that drive for soccer I'll go to DC and see United play for 15 bucks more. I don't know what to say, venues are always a big issue with teams at this level. They can't afford to build a suitable stadium themselves and few existing facilities are ideal. I wish they could have worked something out with one of the University venues in Baltimore.
I got an email and call from Palace about a 3v3 tournament prior to a match August 14th. The location is Calvert Hall so, they must be just looking game by game for locations. I know the soccer fans would support the team if they knew about them. They have burned bridges all over the place. Harford County was going to be the original location when they started, but something happened that left a bad taste in the mouths of HC government officials.
It is and has always been the Pete and Jim show. OK, they scored what, at the time, seemed like a great way to start a pro team under the umbrella of a team from the UK. Give them credit, but . . . . . . They run the business like they coach - lacking creativity, experience and foresight. They can't let go of anything and try to run everything which creates a lack of trust and loyalty. Mostly, they shoot from the hip and have easily pissed people off (including players) when things don't run their way. Whenever they bring in some management/marketing help, it flounders and quickly disappears (anybody remember the new assistant coach they brought in this year? what about the marketing guru who was going to turn things around?) Not only can't they walk the walk, they don't even what or where the walk is. Come on guys, find some investors, a coach and some fans. And, put your egos aside and re-build your relationships with the soccer rich area. The Blast draw 5,000 indoors - so can you outdoors if you market and run your "business" smartly. And, play matches in B'more, not DC. HOW ABOUT PLAYING AT CARDINAL GIBBONS HS - THE SCHOOL IS CLOSING - THEY'D LOVE TO RENT THEIR FIELD/STADIUM, ALTHOUGH IT PROBABLY DOES'NT HAVE A LOT OF SEATING. THEY PROBABLY HAVE LIGHTS TOO.
really,, the soccerplex in germantown!? i have season tix but haven't been able to go a lot, but now i want my money back. They have changed everything so much expect what they need to change - the coachand management. I said this a while back, they have really good guys running their academy and coaching in it. why can't Jim step aside for one of them? And good question about their former assistant coach - I had to look him up because I forgot who it was. (Todd Waurosek - who the players really liked.) This guy will just watch college soccer live now and maybe a DC united game once in a while. Not driving to soccerplex.
Yeah I am not happy about the SoccerPlex either. I kind of look at this latest news about Calvert Hall as good news/bad news. On the positive it is not too far from my home so I can pretty much ride a bike to the games. On the downside I'm wondering if this kind of signals the beginning of the end for the club. Moving from one stadium to another doesn't help create a permanent fan base. By leaving UMBC and moving to Towson they have pretty much lost their fan base in Anne Arundel County. They need to get a stadium built that can serve as both a permanent home and a revenue stream. Otherwise this season could be the last.
They cant even afford player's salaries or marketing. I would be willing to bet that the reason for pulling out of UMBC was financial. They can barely afford travel costs, let alone that of a real head coach that has a clue about what is going on. How do you expect them to afford new stadium?
I can't say anything positive about the temporary move to Germantown other then it is a nice facility. It's not the first time we've played "home" games there, but it still isn't convenient. I have to wonder how many people showed at UMBC for the June 26 match held at Calvert Hall. Not getting the word out in a market where you play is bad, but expecting to generate fans all the way out in Germantown with no marketing is just being naive. Nevertheless, having the closing matches of the season at Calvert Hall will allow me to bring groups of about 15-20 on two or three seperate occasions. Taking the bad with the good isn't fun, but beggars can't be choosers. Still waiting on the feasibility study from the Maryland Stadium Authority and who knows how that will go either.
Another ho-hum loss on a brutal road match on a so-so pitch at another venue far-far away. And don't even talk about the expenses - a killer. Forget Marshall's OG and Santiago's pointless red card, the club played reasonably well at times and flat at other times. They just don't have the horses, desire or coaching right now to put in a full 90 every match. Wake up Jimbo! Play for the tie on the road. Win at home if that's possible. Let's hope playing on the grass in Germantown will be like an away match where the team plays with no fans, more heart and focus so maybe they'll have a better result. Wait til the injuries and tired legs set in for the second half of the season, that's when the quality teams pull away from the pretenders.
Stadium hopping is what dying teams do. Remember the Maryland Mania? They also did this in their one and only season. I believe they started by playing in Baltimore before ending up at Anne Arundel Community College. Was the move to NASL a poor one? It's easier to make ends meet in USL-2. I know Palace Baltimore modeled themselves after their parent club, but following them into bankruptcy is just ridiculous! Ugh.
I honestly think that the club miscalculated the amount of attention that the move to the NASL would bring. I think that they, much like the rest of the league, over-estimated the impact of the NASL name thinking it would be a much bigger cross-over sports story than it was. I think they over-estimated how much the world cup would drive local interest in soccer and I think they seriously under-estimated how poor a location UMBC was. I was a season ticket holder the last 2 seasons (not this year) and I could not drag friends out to that location. Many came for one game and would not come again even though they enjoyed the games. I know there are a lot of hard core fans who came no matter what but the team needs more than hard cores to survive. Just like every team in the region except probably the Ravens, Palace needs casual fans to fatten up those crowds. They weren't going to UMBC. Outside of the Red Bull open cup game the best crowd IMO was the Western high school crowd for the mayors cup against Bermuda. I thought Western was a more than suitable venue. It's in a safe neighborhood for all the county types who are scared of big bad Baltimore, it's right off the 83, it has a ton of parking, and for anyone who cares to do something afterwards the restaurants and bars in Hampden and on cold spring are right nearby. The crowd at Western was also one of the few that wasn't completely populated by kids coming to the game with their youth teams.
Most of the people who care about the difference between USL2 and the NASL are on this Thread. B'more has an inferiority complex. If it isn't Big League it's not worth there time. As far as stadium choices. Loyola is better then Poly and in the same location. We will continue to disagree about kids at games. Without the kids the team would have been gone two seasons ago.
Off the location topic, but how has Evan been doing this season? I haven't been following CPB that much, but from what I saw earlier, he wasn't doing badly.
Good comments. Here are a couple of replies: 1. CPUSA starting playing at USNA Stadium in Annapolis before crowds of 500-600 fans. And yes, stadium hopping doesn't bode well for teams without strong sponsorship, decent fan base and solid marketing, all of which CP lack. They had actually talked about leaving UMBC last year, but seemingly struck a deal for this season that didn't work out. 2. After next 4 fixtures at Germantown, it seems like team may make another appearance at Calvert Hall Aug. 14 (see Palace web site and mention of 3X3 tourney before game). However, word is out that Calvert Hall may rennovating stadium - any one live close by to do a drive by and check???? 3. A lot of the success at Poly-Western stadium was that each of the 2 years, there was a cultural festival going on that included amateur soccer tourney - thus picking up some casual fans from that activity. Location won't work every game and will further discourage AA County fans who have supported the team since day 1. 4. Evan has played very well in goal most of the time, making a few mistakes and bad decisions (some costly) like every young but promising GK. His best qualities: not intimidated by opponents and willing to challenge for balls in the air. He also seems to have built a rapport with key players on his back line. 5. Team morale is again declining primarily due to coaching but amidst all the changes and uncertainty, as well. C'MON LADS, SUCK IT UP AND PLAY FOR EACH OTHER AND YOUR FANS - PLAY TO WIN AND FORGET ABOUT THE NON-COACHING. Fans come to see you , not the stadium or Jim & Pete!
pete's "letter" to season ticket holders, et. al regarding fields: http://www.usldiscussions.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/263023/Re_Change_of_Venues
This will sound like a "pollyanna" post. It's not meant to be. Buzz99 is on target with his assessment of the team's woes. I particularly agree with his points about the team's poor marketing and the need for more professional coaching. That said, I remember going through the stadium hopping routine with a local PDL team before I moved to Baltimore. It was discouraging, and the constant changes of venue hurt the team's confidence as well as the fan's enthusiasm. The situation continued until the PDL team arranged with the local Youth Soccer Association to construct an SSS, that the two agencies then shared. The YSA used the stadium for money-raising tournaments, whilst the PDL team had a permanent home base. Yes, CPB needs a stadium of their "own". Someone pointed out that Cardinal Gibbons stadium should be coming available. Maybe the team could just buy that? How would that work as a home venue?
On the field tonight we were treated to lots of possession from our side but not many goal-scoring opportunities. We were able to control play, for the most part, but only got the one point to show for it in a scoreless draw. The facility is fine, but the drive is long and not many people came out. I'm sure the fact that it was a week night didn't help either. Hopefully the field renovations stay on schedule at Calvert Hall. The CH field did look a bit threadbare, especially where the creases were for lacrosse. In so far as the team is always in pursuit of the "right" place to play, the group they should get in bed with is US Lacrosse. US Lacrosse took a flyer on getting the old Allied Chrominum plant site at the end of Fells Point for a 10k stadium several years ago but the city wasn't interested. Lacrosse is the state team sport and US Lacrosse has outgrown their offices at Homewood. They would dearly love a stadium more suited to their needs without having to beg the local colleges or play at M&T. Now if they could refit the Cardinal Gibbons campus as their offices, and Crystal Palace's, and then use the pre-existing field and grounds for matches and practice areas then that would be something they should both consider. Not really knowing anything about Cardinal Gibbons other then its closed and was a Cathoilc High School I'm not sure how easy access is to it by car or what neighbors would think of adding night time activities to their area. Plus there is always the persistent rumor that St. Agnes Hospital REALLY wants the site.
First: Palace did OK yesterday (few fans as expected) - and handled the heat/humidity better than Rhinos who always seem content to play with the ball in the back but seem to struggle breaking down other defenses. Yet their record speaks well of their strategy. Palace doesn't match up with them physically very well but solid midfield play and intelligent defense keep them in game last nite. Kudos to Yoshi, Dan, Kory, Brooksie and Randi for hard work. Kory, Sean, Andrew and Paul held together in the back - Evan was hardly tested except to come off his line a few times to snare some high balls. Also, thanks bro - the Cardinal Gibbons HS has promise as I suggested previously. Want to get together and put a deal on the table. Lord knows Pete and Jim would screw it up! Besides, who wants to build on a site where they had CHROMIUM, or on a downtown site more valuable as a parking lot for Ravens rather than for soccer. And, USL might partner but they would definitely want to run the show and who wants all those stupid lines painted all over the pitch. And lax season overlaps USSF soccer season. It's adjacent to St Agnes Hospital - was the old St MArys School where Babe Ruth went to school - neighbors a girls Catholic School (Seton Keough??), has a small stadium that could be enhanced, lights should not be a problem, there is area for a practice field, it's just inside the Balt Beltway and I-95 for easy access (including those coming from AA County on I-97), a short hop from Inner Harbor and I-395. Closer to Harf. County than UMBC and easy commute from Howard County, Catonsville, Dundalk, Canton, etc. Because it's a historic building, the Archdiocese probably doesn't want it razed (by the hospital even though St Agnes is Catholic). They might even be able to have a chapel and operate some day care there. Good idea to retrofit the school, move some physician offices in, Palace use as HQ and training facility, couple of ortho-rehab-training offices, etc, and you got a plan for everyone. There might even be some space for St Agnes to construct a small building. The downside: it's sure to be pricey unless the Archdicese can retain some ownership and rights as well as get some use out of it; the hospital can use its huge endowment to capture some of the property and, importantly, security is upgraded. The facility and hospital are on the edge of a somewhat tough neighborhood (who isn't in Baltimore), so security is important to make parents feel comfortable bringing their kids in from the 'burbs.
Went by Cardinal Gibbons High School today, and it would make an excellent site for a new facility since the school is closed. In fact, we probably wouldn't need more then 2/3 of the site. The main school building and the grounds closest to the Wilkens Ave.-Caton Ave. intersection wouldn't even be required. The existing stands and lights would have to be replaced, but if the wiring for the present lights is up to par you could just put in new standards (posts) and new lights on top and then just connect to the exisiting lines. By eliminating the track and stands you could regrade the field to get rid of the drainage crown and move the field slightly closer to Caton Ave. This would allow for a parallel practice field to be built on the other side. You would have to add concessions, restrooms, locker rooms, and stands (obviously) but there is plenty of space to do so. If you wanted to hold off on locker rooms for a while you could include the gymnasium in the deal as well as the classroom structure next to it and then you have offices, indoor practice space during inclement weather, and locker rooms that presently exist under the gym. The locker rooms would most likely have to be upgraded but with already present power and water they could provide a good start without having to eat all of the costs of construction at once. This policy of delaying some costs til later also includes stands. Instead of building a whole bowl or U at once do it in stages. Put 3500 seats along the one sideline that would back to Caton Ave. then put 1500 seats on the end of the field closest to Seton Keough High School (the two schools are seperated by a stand of trees). By going with aluminum stands (like Crew stadium in Columbus or Marina Auto Stadium in Rochester) instead of concrete with aluminum benches you could also speed construction and lessen cost. If you include the gym and the aforementioned classroom building you could include the baseball field as well that would give you room for one or two more fields side by side. The baseball field, named for Babe Ruth, is adjacent to the gym/classroom building. By doing this you could also have the academy fields they are looking for. The parking lots on site would probably be sufficient as they are, at least for our present attendance. However, St. Agnes appears to lease these lots for employee parking. This relationship could continue as most employees will have left by 5-6 PM on weekdays and the lot, which is overflow for other St. Agnes parking, would probably not be needed by the hospital on weekends when most of our matches would occur. The main stake holders in the process, feel free to include others, would appear to be CP Baltimore, The Archdiocese, St. Agnes, Baltimore City, and maybe the State Highway Administration as the ramp from I 95 south to Caton Ave. currently turns away from the property requiring a U turn to get to the site. If the ramp could be changed to include a left turn option without traffic backing up onto the highway that alteration would be optimal. On the bright side little demolition would be required to prepare the site, reducing overall cost. The access is easy from I 95 and the exit going south immediately meets 695. From the city I came across Lombard to Monroe to Wilkens. It makes you travel through neighborhoods, but there aren't a great many traffic lights along that route and it isn't any worse then what we used to do going to Memorial Stadium when we were kids. When the Archdiocese closed the school, along with other facilities, it was an effort to solidify the finances of the entire Catholic school system in Baltimore. If a correct sum could be negotiated for the desired parts of the site it would further serve the ambitions of Archbishop O'Brien as the accumulated fee could be used to support educational efforts and offset some of the church's previous losses. I know, it's beyond a long shot and we still haven't heard from the Maryland Stadium Authority on the feasibility study for the stadiums in Pigtown and Westport or from DC United or MLS if they would even be interested in moving DC United to Baltimore, but it never hurts to dream. Its always nice to have your own place to call home, and if it can be done in a way that doesn't weaken the finances of the team so much the better. BTW, the field at Calvert Hall is currently stripped down to the gravel/sand base awaiting the new fiber layers and then the pelletized rubber has to be added. At least that's what I saw on my drive past after going to Cardinal Gibbons with a screaming baby in the car
