1. The Silver Knights seem incapable of reaching the next level. Watching the game, I thought about how often Syracuse has been in games with the Blast. I thought about how the two teams have had two exciting playoff series against one another. However, the Blast pull away with the games and the season series and have gone way further in the playoffs. I do not believe it is simply bad luck on the part of Syracuse as being in the same division as the Blast. I do not believe that there is a division that they would have won during the prior three seasons nor do I believe they would have gone further as a result of being in another division. The team seems to be in a holding pattern that they cannot break. Throw in that Harrisburg has improved and that Florida has been one of the better expansion teams, and this team could have it rough. 2. The Attendance - Yikes! Much is going to be made about each home game's attendance on account of the move. So far, the narrative is not looking good. The team could not sell out opening night. Game 2 had a lot of empty seats. Like Scott brought up in the attendance thread, this year and next year are going to be very telling about the long-term future of the Blast. The team has done a good job selling playoff dates on short notice, but this new location is really going to test that, I feel. 3. The Blast are more entertaining than the Baltimore Orioles and Baltimore Ravens. 4. Those Boards - Yikes! There was a boarding incident where a Syracuse player boarded a Blast player. I thought for sure the boarding was going to come apart. It bent in a way that stable boards never would have bent. The boards are definitely minor league. I do question how they are going to make it through a season. 5. Sixth Attacker Blues. The Silver Knights impressively scored two goals while the sixth attacker was on the field. However, after the first goal, the team had trouble getting Andrew Coughlin off the field. Syracuse was not able to control the ball enough to where Couglin could get off the field. One Syracuse player did bark to Coughlin, "You got to get off the field." In all fairness to Coughlin, the team was not able to put him in that position. 6. Patrick Thompson touches an official. During an argument with an official, Syracuse's Patrick Thompson's hands did make contact with an official. I did not catch the whole thing. From the reaction of the crowd, I thought that Thompson would get a red card, but he did not. 7. Another come from behind victory. The Blast overcame being down again (this time by 2 goals) to win again. One has to think that Milwaukee, San Diego and Monterrey will not be so forgiving.
I typed #3, moving onto other things and not completing it. 3. The Blast are more entertaining than the Baltimore Orioles and Baltimore Ravens. Over the last several years (2017 notwithstanding), the Orioles and Blast have both been winners. However, I found the Orioles to be boring. They have a one dimensional offense that can only hit home runs. When they are not hitting home runs, they are striking out. Talk about hit or miss. The Baltimore Ravens offense has been putrid for a number of years. The Blast, though, have kept me enthralled with competitive games and lots of offensive excitement.
Excellent game to watch. I was impressed with how the players handle the small confines. The skill and quickness is awesome. I found myself falling for some of the fakes as I watched on my computer. From both teams. I wouldn't want any of those forwards facing me up and taking me on. Im fine with the cheap look of the boards, but the small field really kills the game. A pass that barely goes off the ground can be a 3 line violation. The spacing sucks. I saw the push coming from the player on the ref. I have gone back and forth on this one. Was it great reffing to stay composed and not overreact? Did that contact warrant something? I've come to the conclusion that it needed to be something. A 2 minute penalty, a straight red, something.... I know its early, but I give the edge to the Wave so far. San Diego next, and then the Blast. Need to see them on a bigger field.
2. The Attendance - Baltimore is used to high attendance numbers but SECU is a smaller arena, they will be fine if they average 3,000 to 3,500 per game. Remember ticket prices increased by 50%. 4. Those Boards - Yikes! There was a boarding incident where a Syracuse player boarded a Blast player. I thought for sure the boarding was going to come apart. It bent in a way that stable boards never would have bent. Of course, if it's the hit I'm thinking of, with less give in the boards they may have had to cart the Blast player off the field. 5. Sixth Attacker Blues. Let's look at this from the Blast perspective, 4 sixth attacker goals allowed in the first 2 games. 6. Patrick Thompson touches an official. The referee made a good call. Thompson was showing the official how hard he had pushed the Blast player, he should not have touched the ref, but I think it was a good no call. Thompson was implying the Blast Player took a dive.
I do not believe that there were 3,000 people there. There were a lot of empties there. Admittedly, it is tough to prove an eye test when it comes to attendance, and who knows how many ticket buyers no-showed.
Basically there are 3,500 seats and 1/3 of them were empty. To be fair, if you look at Ticketmaster 96% of the seats were accounted for (whether they were paid, free, or stacked in a rubber band on someone's desk). Even at the opener there were a startling amount of empty seats.
Not sure why he did not get ejected either, but he did receive a one game suspension. Details and a video of the incident below. http://www.maslsoccer.com/discipline/suspensions