Not to agree or disagree, just to extend the conversation.... Who do you miss from the past that was that much better than what we have now? I would say DeRo and Stu for sure. Other than that, most of the ones I can think of were no better than the guys we have now. For the most part, they weren't the most skilled players, they just played well together and played for each other. I think this team could still do that, given the right harmonic convergence. Or something.
It's always nice to have guys with skill like OBG but I miss the guys with fight-like Mullan. The only guy that really has shown me that kind of fight recently was Moffat and Ownby and to some extent Davis.
I think Stu and DeRo and for myself, there was always that idea that Cameron was somehow going to be a STAR. There was expectation and hope about Landin (which of course faded pretty quickly. I was unhappy with the Moffat trade. Not because he was the best all around player but he had those big moments that lit us all up. I think also that part of the feeling of "40 degree days" comes from the fact that the team isn't new anymore. Those first few seasons were like the first few dates with a beautiful girl! Now it's like, I still love her but it's not the same zing!
Speaking of, did I tell you about my LGBT friend who's running for Congress? Yeah, he/she was in a minor car accident yesterday.
Stu, DeRo, and Ching back when he was Ching go without saying. But Metroag hit it on the nose: I really miss Mully and E-Rob. No part of Mully's game, apart from fitness, was something you could look at and say it was special, but that guy got more out of his ability than anyone could expect, just because he fought like hell for 90 minutes every game and he was smart about it. Eddie was similar with his fight, and you always knew there was the potential for fireworks because if he did get beaten, he was going to bust someone in the mouth (sometimes literally). Throw in flawed but sometimes special guys like Waibel and Ngwenya, and suckity suck sucks like Cochrane and Kelly Gray, and those teams just had a ton of personality. They took it personally when they lost - when did that team ever get thumped? The team now lays eggs all the time. They kept me on the edge of my seat all the time, and elicited all sorts of reactions that made me want to sit and talk soccer every chance I got. Apart from a couple guys, the team we have now is a bunch of guys with decent skill, decent vision, decent speed, decent tackling, decent positioning, decent fight, decent shooting, etc. etc. etc. When they play well they win, when they play poorly they lose, and I can say with some level of confidence I think they'll finish in 3rd or 4th place and Dom will have them ready for the playoffs and they'll make a decent run that will end when they run into a better team that isn't having a bad day. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with that, I'd certainly prefer it to just sucking, but it just doesn't keep me running to my computer to debate the intricacies of the game I just watched. I love the Dynamo, and will watch every game I can just like I always do, this just isn't my favorite collection of talent lately.
I find it hard to believe that OBG is under appreciated. Everyone I talk to, whether hard core or casual fan, absolutely loves that guy and always talk about how hard he works and how silky smooth he is and so forth.... Rico I do believe sadly...
You know what else we've lost? All those great villains that came through Robertson. Back when Dallas was still good, the Paco Palencia/Locito Garcia Chivas' s teams, Miguel Calero's finger wag, Eddie Robinson vs. the entire Rayados team, Taylor Twelman's New England, etc.
I don't know how I forgot Ching, duh. The other guys yall mentioned are the ones I was talking about. Eddie, Mulrooney, Mullan, etc, guys that weren't the best skill-wise, but they played really hard for each other. And they took it personally when they lost. I think they fought hard for the fans, too, and I think some of that interaction between player and fan is gone. They know us and talk to us, but I'm not sure they feel a lot of connection with us. Maybe those guys back then felt we were all in the new experience together. But my point sort of was maybe that same magic could be rekindled somehow. Hopefully. If not, hey, I'll still cheer....
I think the players now are actually more friendly to the fans - recall the first two years at times it felt to me that the guys were still bitter at having to move from San Jose. I didn't care too much if they interacted with us or not" but they left it all out on the field. The changes in the league and the type of player in the league (trending further away from college draftees) lends itself to a quicker turnover of personnel of guys being brought in from outside of MLS. The core unit of guys from San Jose to Houston who stayed together for 5-7 years from 2003-2009 is not going to be repeated. You almost can't do it under the new CBA. That's why Driver coming back is pretty cool, he actually wanted to be in Houston. But as far as nights like the 2007 Dallas playoff game at Robertson - just don't think we will see that again in the new stadium with the corporate crowd.
This thread now makes me recall a thread I created back in those days that went something like .... Enjoy this now because it is SPECIAL and rare. Having said that .. and I believe the 06-09 Dynamo run was special and rare -- I think we can see it again. The current team doesn't seem to inspire anyone to believe its around the corner -- but the thing is it is impossible to see it coming. The hope is what keeps us going -- and our own faith that it can and will happen again.
That 2007 FCD was one of the most epic events i have ever been to. Not sure I would be a Dynamo fan like i am without that game. Much less villains, cept they seem to all be concentrated all on SKC.
I miss the Western Conference. I'm old and was around these parts pre Dynamo days. It was kind of fun getting excited for some exhibition game played in a high school football stadium somewhere. Some good rumors like Club America Houston. There were some good posters back in those days as well. Quicksand, houstonmls, fordbfjord, Anderson, Celt, and some others I'm sure I'm forgetting.
She doesn't blow us as often as she used, and when she does, she's usually not very enthusiastic about it anymore.
Spot on. It is rare, in all sports (particularly in the US where parity rules and caps make it difficult to create dynasties). [rant]The turn this thread has taken saddens and angers me a bit. People wonder why Houston is not considered one of the great sports towns despite all the obvious advantages, this doesn't help. It is difficult to win. It is harder still to be in a position to win a championship in seven of eight years. Not inspired? Chivas doesn't inspire me. New England doesn't inspire me. A team that has two titles and four finals appearances in eight years of play, inspires me. A team that is built on cohesiveness and over achieving in the playoffs inspires me. A team that can knock out the Red Bulls and their 15 million roster inspires me. I am sorry that none of this is good enough. Frankly, trying growing up a Cleveland sports fan or a Cubs fan then come talk to me. "It has been six years since our title . . . try 100 years. [/rant]
^^^ Hmmm, we ain't run of the mill fans posting here. If they're losing some of the die hards then there is an issue. For me the football in the past couple of years has ranged from poor to merely adequate and part of that has to do with the quality of footballers of which we only truly have one and half (OBG and the occasional flash from Barnes). I mean you have to be able to tell the difference when we line up against a team like Santos. They start 10 footballers and have 5 more on the bench. You have to win trophies and you have to at least TRY to look good doing it otherwise you're just playing Rugby with your feet and coming in 2nd every year.
Great, I will let the rest of the team know they have no quality. I am not sure why you even watch them at all then; because I can legitimately argue that we have 6 starters that are better than anyone we ever had at those positions in the past. That would mean you have never found much quality on the team? Must have really hurt your viewing pleasure. Comparing the Dynamo to leagues where there are no parity rules or salary budgets makes no sense to me.
The style of football that the Houston Dynamo played last year right up to the loss in Torreon was what I like to see. I am frustrated that the way the Dynamo played football up to that point, and even in the first leg against Santos could not again be replicated during the rest of the season. They played with flash, confidence, and were effective at holding possession in the opposing teams half. That Dynamo side faded after the loss in Mexico, and were vanished by the time that SKC handed us that frustrating loss at BBVA. Where did the one-touch passing, movement, and combination between attackers go?
Sec 204, Row B if they wanna come say hi. There every game. I'm not trying to be any player's homeboy. It's my responsibility to be critical when I see sht play. Who else is going to do it in Houston? Besides I don't criticize to be critical and I'm well aware of MLS rules but that doesn't excuse not being able to build towards the opposing goal by coming out from the defensive end, properly clearing a ball or finishing your chances.
The bolded part is fundamentally different than this, "quality of footballers of which we only truly have one and half (OBG and the occasional flash from Barnes)." I am sorry Rey, but if you honestly think the only true footballers on the team are half of Barnes and OBG then my question remains, why do you watch MLS because we have never had more talent? I have no problem being critical, I have been on here plenty in the past. But when we start talking about fundamentally disliking the team despite their quantifiable results and "losing some of the die hards" because what? We finished fourth? How is that, by definition a hard core fan? We have a team that has been competitive in the playoffs every year save one, and so called hard core fans want to leave? Really?
If this happened last year, then this thread would have a completely different tune to it. Its that simple. Until the dropped home game to SKC that ended the streak, I think that this team was oozing confidence and playing well. I don't think this team is all that much different from then. Its a confidence thing.