Blackburn
22 Jun 2008, 09:19 PM
Well it's been a quiet week in the PDL, my home league, out on the edge of organized soccer...
Well, not really. But there was good news to be had.
El Paso defeated Laredo in 2 straight matches to come tied at 18 points. With 7 games to go (and 2 in hand), Aztex are definitely in the drivers seat for the Mid South Division. El Paso, amazingly, avoided having any players sent off (though Laredo lost a player in each match - sign of the wheels coming off maybe?), so they should be at full strength against Aztex next Friday night.
In other news, Mississippi continued their dominant streak at home defeating DFW 2-0 and New Orleans 2-1. Aztex have Mississippi as their last home game. The Brilla can't lose at home, but they can't win away, so Aztex should come away from that with a result, if not a win. The Brilla are the only team to have given Aztex a loss this season, so hopefully the lads will be ready to repay them the favor.
DFW was only able to tie with New Orleans, neither of which seems likely to challenge for a playoff spot.
So, as it stands, Aztex have the next 4 teams in the standings over the next 4 games, but thankfully all at home. Given our home form, you would think that they're all winnable. El Paso are kinda thuggish, and we've beaten them here before, so we should be able to do it again. Still, they've changed managers since we last met, and haven't dropped a match since, going 3-0-1 in that stretch. If the new gaffer has taught them some finesse, they could be dangerous. Baton Rouge are an unknown quantity - we've never seen them, and I don't have any info on their style or how we match up. They are mid-table, below teams we've beaten before, so you'd think Aztex the favorites, but you never know. Laredo are looking for some revenge, and are probably the best squad in the division after Austin, so they worry me most. In addition, we play them merely 3 days after what's going to be a brutal game against Tigres, and a 3 games in 3 days stretch. We may not have enough gas in the tank to get past them then. Mississippi can't win away from home it seems, so they seem a lesser threat.
To finish out we have 3 straight road games at New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and El Paso. I wish I had a good read on how those will go, but we'll have to see how the next 4 go. It took a last minute penalty to beat New Orleans the last time, and El Paso haven't been defeated at home. It's a brutal stretch to close out the season to be sure.
Go you Aztex!
Well, not really. But there was good news to be had.
El Paso defeated Laredo in 2 straight matches to come tied at 18 points. With 7 games to go (and 2 in hand), Aztex are definitely in the drivers seat for the Mid South Division. El Paso, amazingly, avoided having any players sent off (though Laredo lost a player in each match - sign of the wheels coming off maybe?), so they should be at full strength against Aztex next Friday night.
In other news, Mississippi continued their dominant streak at home defeating DFW 2-0 and New Orleans 2-1. Aztex have Mississippi as their last home game. The Brilla can't lose at home, but they can't win away, so Aztex should come away from that with a result, if not a win. The Brilla are the only team to have given Aztex a loss this season, so hopefully the lads will be ready to repay them the favor.
DFW was only able to tie with New Orleans, neither of which seems likely to challenge for a playoff spot.
So, as it stands, Aztex have the next 4 teams in the standings over the next 4 games, but thankfully all at home. Given our home form, you would think that they're all winnable. El Paso are kinda thuggish, and we've beaten them here before, so we should be able to do it again. Still, they've changed managers since we last met, and haven't dropped a match since, going 3-0-1 in that stretch. If the new gaffer has taught them some finesse, they could be dangerous. Baton Rouge are an unknown quantity - we've never seen them, and I don't have any info on their style or how we match up. They are mid-table, below teams we've beaten before, so you'd think Aztex the favorites, but you never know. Laredo are looking for some revenge, and are probably the best squad in the division after Austin, so they worry me most. In addition, we play them merely 3 days after what's going to be a brutal game against Tigres, and a 3 games in 3 days stretch. We may not have enough gas in the tank to get past them then. Mississippi can't win away from home it seems, so they seem a lesser threat.
To finish out we have 3 straight road games at New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and El Paso. I wish I had a good read on how those will go, but we'll have to see how the next 4 go. It took a last minute penalty to beat New Orleans the last time, and El Paso haven't been defeated at home. It's a brutal stretch to close out the season to be sure.
Go you Aztex!