Dan Loney
11 Aug 2006, 01:58 PM
I tried that line on someone at the office this morning, and I thought he was going to hit me.
Crucial games this weekend in MLS. No, seriously. You can tell a lot about a team by how they do in August. Like New England in recent years - they would always snooze through the beginning of summer, then turn it on with a third of the season left. New England's a bad example this year, since they're taking a nice long break until the 20th. Besides, they're not going to catch DC United. United has a game in hand, for God's sake.
I don't think I'm being premature in saying that, in the Kansas City-Columbus game, loser is out of the playoffs. (The winner won't be in such great shape either, but they can at least put off shopping for the You Suck allocation for a couple of more weeks.) The Wizards are coming off a 0-0 performance Wednesday at New England, while the Crew's last game was a 0-0 draw at Chicago. I think I just talked myself out of watching this game.
The West has more enticing showdowns. The Dynamo could really use a win against FC Dallas, because otherwise the Hoopy Toros take an eight or ten point lead in the West, and will effectively clinch home field advantage until 2007. Coming up empty-handed in a week like this is the sort of thing that brings a season to a standstill.
The Rapids are, if anything, in a worse spot if they choose to lose. Being drop-kicked by the Royals was probably one of the low points in franchise history. If they follow that up with a loss against Los Angeles, it's all over until the new stadium opens. The other non-Texan teams will fight for the remaining playoff spot, and the Rapids, like the sun, will sink slowly in the West. On the other hand, beating the incredibly beatable Galaxy turns five points clear into eight. The Galaxy's "unbeaten" streak is probably the biggest hoax in the league right now. It started at the now-legendary 0-0 "Apprentice" game at the Home Depot Center, and includes Wednesday's Houdini act. They might be on a roll, but so are sesame seeds.
Oh, and Real Salt Lake plays Real Madrid to save the franchise, sorta. They're also, apparently, playing for the XanGo Cup. According to this (http://real.saltlake.mlsnet.com/MLS/rsl/tickets/2006/real_madrid/) "XanGo is an international company based in Lehi that offers a delicious dietary mangosteen beverage, XanGo® Juice, to consumers worldwide." The mangosteen is not to be confused with the mango, according to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mangosteen). This is one clear instance where advertising a soccer game has worked, because I am now absolutely dying to try this stuff.
Crucial games this weekend in MLS. No, seriously. You can tell a lot about a team by how they do in August. Like New England in recent years - they would always snooze through the beginning of summer, then turn it on with a third of the season left. New England's a bad example this year, since they're taking a nice long break until the 20th. Besides, they're not going to catch DC United. United has a game in hand, for God's sake.
I don't think I'm being premature in saying that, in the Kansas City-Columbus game, loser is out of the playoffs. (The winner won't be in such great shape either, but they can at least put off shopping for the You Suck allocation for a couple of more weeks.) The Wizards are coming off a 0-0 performance Wednesday at New England, while the Crew's last game was a 0-0 draw at Chicago. I think I just talked myself out of watching this game.
The West has more enticing showdowns. The Dynamo could really use a win against FC Dallas, because otherwise the Hoopy Toros take an eight or ten point lead in the West, and will effectively clinch home field advantage until 2007. Coming up empty-handed in a week like this is the sort of thing that brings a season to a standstill.
The Rapids are, if anything, in a worse spot if they choose to lose. Being drop-kicked by the Royals was probably one of the low points in franchise history. If they follow that up with a loss against Los Angeles, it's all over until the new stadium opens. The other non-Texan teams will fight for the remaining playoff spot, and the Rapids, like the sun, will sink slowly in the West. On the other hand, beating the incredibly beatable Galaxy turns five points clear into eight. The Galaxy's "unbeaten" streak is probably the biggest hoax in the league right now. It started at the now-legendary 0-0 "Apprentice" game at the Home Depot Center, and includes Wednesday's Houdini act. They might be on a roll, but so are sesame seeds.
Oh, and Real Salt Lake plays Real Madrid to save the franchise, sorta. They're also, apparently, playing for the XanGo Cup. According to this (http://real.saltlake.mlsnet.com/MLS/rsl/tickets/2006/real_madrid/) "XanGo is an international company based in Lehi that offers a delicious dietary mangosteen beverage, XanGo® Juice, to consumers worldwide." The mangosteen is not to be confused with the mango, according to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mangosteen). This is one clear instance where advertising a soccer game has worked, because I am now absolutely dying to try this stuff.