View Full Version : Notes From The MLS Combine - DC United Edition
Knave
14 Jan 2006, 04:17 AM
I couldn't keep this a secret (http://brucesbelly.blogsome.com/) forever.
I'll be posting updates there each day.
sckrmom
14 Jan 2006, 08:10 AM
Here's some more from 3rd degree:
http://www.3rddegree.net/thirdindex.cfm?page=article&show=1095
Dave Brother
14 Jan 2006, 09:38 AM
I couldn't keep this a secret (http://brucesbelly.blogsome.com/) forever.
I'll be posting updates there each day.
"Peter Nowak, with a very annoyed look on his face, marched down from the “official” bleachers during the first game and plopped himself down on the team bench for a close-up and unobstructed view of the field. Of course, Peter Nowak always looks annoyed with something."
:D
Knave
14 Jan 2006, 10:42 AM
Keep an eye on this thread too: http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=151
And this one: http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=289463
Lowecifer
14 Jan 2006, 10:28 PM
Benjamin, you dog. Nice work with the blog.
Knave
15 Jan 2006, 02:25 AM
Notes from day two. (http://brucesbelly.blogsome.com/2006/01/14/notes-from-the-mls-combine-day-2/)
Colonial717
15 Jan 2006, 04:35 AM
Is there any way that Held will drop to our third round spot? Or is he just too impressive? If so we could be very close to getting Altidore, Held, Noreiga, Dello-Russo (hoping one of the last two become a servicable defender in the MLS). That would be cool, though I doubt it will happen.
ursula
15 Jan 2006, 10:20 AM
Justin Moose, eh? Okay, let's see if your eyes caught something whe we draft.
Or maybe Carroll 2.0.
WFU03
15 Jan 2006, 12:05 PM
On the bright side, Moose did go to the best university in the US (as did B. Carroll). ;)
sckrmom
15 Jan 2006, 06:29 PM
On the bright side, Moose did go to the best university in the US (as did B. Carroll). ;)
No prejudicial thinking on your part though, right?;)
WFU03
15 Jan 2006, 07:07 PM
No prejudicial thinking on your part though, right?;)
Of course not. It was a purely objective comment based solely on quantitative criteria. ;)
owendylan
15 Jan 2006, 07:54 PM
Justin Moose, eh? Okay, let's see if your eyes caught something whe we draft.
Or maybe Carroll 2.0.
Kevin Ara 2.0 :)
Knave
15 Jan 2006, 10:25 PM
Kevin Ara 2.0 :)
The "Kevin Ara Award" will be handed out in the next day or two.
Here's my report from Day 3. (http://brucesbelly.blogsome.com/2006/01/15/notes-from-the-mls-combine-day-3/)
Winoman
16 Jan 2006, 10:47 AM
Thanks for the updates, Knave. I get to see very few of the college matches, during the season, and only a few more when the NCAA tournament rolls around. It's good hearing from you, as well as some of the others on the different boards, about who's who.
odg78
16 Jan 2006, 12:53 PM
On the bright side, Moose did go to the best university in the US (as did B. Carroll). ;)
--This man speaks the truth.
owendylan
17 Jan 2006, 11:36 AM
Knave,
Since you've been to these and I/we only get the benefits of your postings. Can you try and answer this question? Does the MLS Combine serve a purpose as a real tool for evaluating talent? It really seems that it's nigh impossible to really learn anything meaningful about a player in 3 days. So a team basing their draft picks on just the combine are in a world of trouble. I'm thinking that the combine is an anachronism, stolen from the NFL, that really doesn't provide any insight to the invited players and should be abolished. Let the draft be any player who wants to enter and leave it up to the teams to track and scout players. MLS could help in becoming a central repository of information and maybe game film of players who want to enter the draft, but holding this combine really seems like such a joke. They throw together a bunch of players who have had no time to really get to know each other and then they play games in which layers are more interested in themselves playing well in order to be noticed instead of the team playing well. I think this probably leads players to do things that wouldn't normally do in order to get noticed and increase their draft chance or even worse lower their draft position because they played so out of their normal game, they sucked and turned coaches off of them. Thoughts?
If all college soccer programs/conferences/etc were created equal, what you say might be true. I've been to the last 3 combines. It offers coaches the chance to observe all of the draftees in competition with one another. What does a CUSA player look like next to an ACC player? How about a DII player or DIII player among DI players? Or how does a 16 year old look when asked to play among men? The combine is a great opportunity for lower profile players to demonstrate that they can compete with highly touted players. Certainly no coach should base his decision entirely on combine performance, but it does serve a purpose.
Colonial717
17 Jan 2006, 12:14 PM
From Knave's blog. (http://brucesbelly.blogsome.com/2006/01/12/unnatural-combine-ations/) (at least I think it is Knave's blog)
Knave
17 Jan 2006, 12:41 PM
From Knave's blog. (http://brucesbelly.blogsome.com/2006/01/12/unnatural-combine-ations/) (at least I think it is Knave's blog)
Yeah, that basically covers it. And what DCU said.
While it doesn't do squat for the top few guys because they're such known quantities, I do think it helps coaches decide between less known players they've already scouted. An MLS coach probably should have done 90% of the scouting before the combine, but that last 10% that helps decide between this guy and that guy? The combine can help you there.
I'd also point out that the combine works for guys like Moose this year who arrived in LA on Thursday a 4th round pick and used the combine to make himself into a second round pick. Or at least I wouldn't be surprised if that happened. It also works for guys like Yura Movsisyan who are virtual unknowns in real small programs.
Also, the combine is where deals start being made. There's a lot of talking amongst the teams during the combine and I'm sure much of the discussion is of the "what do you think" variety. They're feeling each out, trying to figure out what the other teams are thinking and many are seeing if there are any trade possibilties worth pursuing. I think the combine serves an important function in that respect too.
uniteo
17 Jan 2006, 12:52 PM
From Knave's blog. (http://brucesbelly.blogsome.com/2006/01/12/unnatural-combine-ations/) (at least I think it is Knave's blog)
The RSL camp was notably insular. While everyone else was chatting and back-slapping and deal-making, Ellinger and company were all alone watching the games in the stands. Tell you the truth, the RSL staff seemed particularly insular throughout the combine.
ah, life in Utah...