Why SKC should win the Supporters Shield

I dont believe we have lost a regular season game since September.

Real Madrid had a 13 point lead in La Liga about a month ago. Even Barca fans thought the league was over. Since then, they've blown it to 4 points, with a trip to the Camp Nou awaiting. Form changes, teams change. This game is cray. It's a loooong season. Can't get too excited.

As much as I hate this thread, it seems like the best place for this...

2012: 5 games, 15 points

For comparison: In both 2010 and 2011, it took *15* games for KC to earn 15 points.

To emphasize the too early for this point, on the ESPN broadcast they talked about all the teams that had gotten off to good unbeaten starts (we're the 4th), DC 97 is the only one that's won the cup.

Yes, but three of the four previous 4-0-0 teams made it to the MLS Cup final. In any case, the cup goes to the winner of the season-ending tournament. More relevant to early-season success (and this thread) is the Supporters Shield. DC 97, LA 98, and LA 10 all won it, while LA 96 finished second.

All of that said--yes, it is still too early to get too worked up about this. For one thing, RSL also has 15 points (albeit with an extra game) and is coming to LSP this weekend.

This season feels a lot like the beginning of our 2000 season, imo. Magical is an apt word I think.

The Shin Guardian has a good idea of why SKC does as well as it does,, because they have an identity:

http://theshinguardian.com/2012/04/09/the-great-intangible-tangible-identity/

I like that hypothesis, you guys r after all an MLS original correct??

I was looking at MLS Stats page and it says that we have allowed 9 total shots on goal in 6 full matches now......

That is roughly one shot on goal for every 60 minutes played.....I've never heard of anything like that before

points possible
KC 102
RSL 96
NY 94
SJ 97
SEA 97
DAL 94
HOU 99
CHI 95
.....
TOR 87

Yes. KC has been here since the beginning.

This thread still makes me sick.

My illness(es):

1. Its freaking April.

2. NYRB (who we must visit twice) have 10 points in 6 games.

3. Seattle (who doesn't visit LSP this year) has 10 points in just 5 matches.

4. Houston (who visits LSP twice this year) has 7 points in 4 games played *and has yet to play a home game this season.*

5. We have a game in hand on RSL, but they are merely a single game off our point total.

6. Style + depth. Run like hell works now, but how will it look in late August.

Don't let this thread make you sick- enjoy

Interesting thing about that - 3 of the 9 are from free kicks (either directly, like FCD, or indirectly, like RSL).

The other 6? Those were from NER AFTER they went down to 10 men... Though one was from well within NE's own half, and another from almost 40 yards. The one from 85-90 yards was the only before our first goal, and there was another before our second, so we gave up the other 4 (including the ~40yd one) after we were up at least 2-0.

So we've allowed zero SOG from the run of play in 5 of 6 matches and allowed 6 SOG, 4 'legitimate' SOG from the other game, while we were up a man.

...

That being said, we have gotten lucky on a number of occasions. Chivas off the post, LA's first shot (Magee breakaway), etc. So it all should be taken with a grain of salt, but still, it is impressive even if you consider the luck aspect.

Yes, and yet we have 6 wins... we didn't get our 6th win last season until July 23rd last year, 20 games into the season. We didn't get our 18th point until July 2nd, 16 games in.

LA, the last Shield winner, didn't win 6 games until May 21st, 13 games in and didn't get 18 points until May 14th, 12 games in.

"It's freaking April" goes both ways.

And drew @DC, a game we won, and the other 4 games were at home.

Valid points - NY is going to be pretty good it seems (though I think that we have better coaching, from what I know of the two).

Houston is going to have a hard time winning the shield b/c their schedule will be so congested.

Doesn't take into account we hold the tie breaker... so they are really 3.5 pts back with one more game, and on a PPG average they are almost a full point behind per game (2.14).

Valid points, but I also feel that we are under-estimated in terms of depth. There's a number of players biding their time or learning PV's system right now who may surprise people when they get their chance.

Not saying we should get 'points' for the promise of unknown players playing well, but in the same respects - we haven't had to use any depth so far so it also seems inappropriate to count against us in that regard as well.

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Does all of that mean that we are locks for the SS? No, we still have a lot of proving to do.. but we sure-the-hell are making a case for ourselves better than anyone else in the league at this point.

Don't jinx it!

Kennedy Kennedy Kennedy

7. August. Let's get through the annual August suck.

8. 1996. After Los Angeles's 12-0 start (10 regulation, 2 SO), they lost 5 of the next 6 in regulation and only won 5 more regulation games the rest of the way, finishing 11 points behind Tampa Bay.

We did pick up 9 of 15 points last August but the points loss were the only two regular season losses we took at LSP

And all the games were at home...

well, maybe if things break the right way we can eke out a point from our two August home games (DCU, RBNY) and another one from the two away games (NER, TFC). Is that too optimistic?

The schedule congestion isn't as much as a "definitely going to cause problems" as much as just increasing risk that problems will happen and likewise doubling the impact of problems if they do arise.

More games = higher chance of injury, games happening at a faster pace = injured players missing more games than normal.

Don't count them out, by any means, but we also have 9 points in 3 road games too, though this next week really shows where we are at with road game expectations.

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Honestly, I think that NER are a better team than many are giving them credit for. Don't know if they have it in them to win the Shield, but they could mess some people up who are vying for it (including us).

Definitely agree. I actually think the whole 'WEST >>>>>> EAST!!!' thing some how got much more momentum than it deserves. While maybe not as loaded with talent as LA or RSL or even Seattle, Houston, DC, and New England aren't weak teams by any stretch.

I personally think that Houston is going to be our biggest challenege to win the conference, and that whichever of us wins the matchups against DC and NE will have an edge on the other. Of course the head to head us against Houston matches will be some big six point games too.

One thing in our favor is losing the Conference Final last season. Houston, Salt Lake, Seattle, and Los Angeles will all have CCL games this fall.

I don't think DC will be in the mix for the SS, but I do think NY has the potentials. Like us, they've got to show consistency over the long haul - something that has eluded both the Red Bulls and us over the last number of years.

East vs west is a bit overblown, but thus far it looks like everyone in the west is atleast capable of competing. toronto and montreal...not so much.