The substitution patterns were off from what might have been planned by Conrad's injury and the potential and reality of extra time. Rogers was subbed at 110 minutes and his sub was a defender/defensive tactical change. But then I don't and very few other people seem to 'get' Bob Bradley's substitution thought process or more specifically apparent lack of same ... Clark probably couldn't have made enough difference to get us a point in DC. And he is probably training with better players while he is called up and maybe getting some coaching, experience and polish that he might not get at present with his Club.
For those not playing the home version of the game (i.e. watching on FSC) Clark is again sitting and watching rather than being available for our next effort at gathering 3 points. Rogers just subbed off for Quaranta .. 77th minute.
Can't complain about the win. It would be nice to have Colin back if Bob isn't planning on using him. At least there's no reason for him to come back with an injury.
I like Colin Clark and therefore it pains me to post that his one game with the Nats was a debacle. Now, he is totally out of favor with Bradley. Being on the bench is meaningless as he is the only L footed back-up for Rogers, who has had 1 good game and 3 lackluster to poor ones in tis tournament. In the semi-final against Honduras, when Bradley removed Rogers he moved Holden to the L-mid and brought on Quaranta. Clark, a true L-mid, was left on the bench. Clark is a much better player than he appeared. Hopefully, another chance will come for him!
Status quo for Bob Bradley. He has never convinced me he has any logical idea of how to tactically arrange players on the field.
I'm not sure it is Bradley's goal in this tourney to do anything other than find those 2-4 players that really need to be competing for a spot on next summers roster. Clearly Holden is one of the guys, so in my mind it makes perfect sense to see how he reacts to a few minutes on the left side. Rogers has been pretty disappointing though. I would have really liked to see Clark in there as opposed to Rogers for the start. Neither guy will be a part of next summers plans unless something really out of the ordinary happens. I hope Colin has grown from this experience, but we sure have missed him. If nothing else, his absence has really made me realize how one sided we are without him.
Whether he (Clark) makes the match day roster and doesn't play or doesn't make it but isn't released -- both have the same impact for the Rapids. One way he gets a shirt for his collection and I would guess the other way he doesn't, that would be a big deal to me, for him maybe not so much (when what he really wants is to play). Injury is still possible in training and I would guess that matches are more intense but training is more frequent so the odds for injury in one or the other may be 50/50 so not playing only cuts the chances in half, it doesn't eliminate the possibility although there are only two probably soft training days left). On to a more important (to the Rapids) topic, Cooper's goal should insure that Casey does not get a last minute panic call-up. Good for the Rapids and good for him. (In this case it also clears his card trouble.) If he can continue with good club form he can probably make his case here better than in a few late match Nats appearances. I for one am anxious to see what he can do in the All-Star match as it is analogous to a Nats appearance in that he will be with 'better' players but ones that don't train with him daily. The big difference is that he should start and get at least 45 minutes (and find some flow) not just 5-10 with weak/absent service at the end of the match.
I'm not overly surprised that Clark is on the bench. I had hoped for more sub minutes. Bob is pretty conservative. Rogers has been in the US program for a long time. He's represented the U.S. at every level now. Those guys have tended to be on the inside track. Maybe for good reason? So far I haven't seen much out of Rogers that I didn't think Clark capable of, but I also haven's seen enough out of Clark to make me say, "he's better than Rogers." My guess is that Bob sees much the same thing, and will continue to lean towards Rogers as the safer choice. I hope Colin returns in shape and healthy. My biggest fear is that he returns with his confidence having taken a hit. We need him to return as a Rapids player looking to help the Rapids, not as a player wondering how he needs to change his game to suit Bob.
But Bob is also on a very short list of coaches with a chance to win a sanctioned tournament with his 3rd team. Along the way, he's accomplished several things: -given Ching a chance to play himself back into shape. -given several others (Holden, Beckerman...) a chance to show they may be able to help the squad and push the 1st team. -given others (Clark) a taste of what it takes to get to what will probably be a very hotly contested final v. El Tri. As additional incentive, Colin, who's already put in 75 minutes vs. Haiti, is picking up a nice check for being called up, and at least a partial share of the built-in bonuses for the team's advancement in a sanctioned tourney. It's clear Clark will not be a part of 2010. But Bradley has reached this final with part of his 2014 squad. Colin has plenty to play- or even sit, for.
Well barring a great run in South Africa (ala J/K 2002) it probably won't be his squad in 2014. Very few National Team coaches take the same team to back-to-back World Cups these days.
i told you guys gregory richardson is better than omar but the coach never gave him playong time do you know hwat he is doing now and how much he is scoring if you saw what he is doing you would fire your coach right away him and casey would have created havoc up in front the coach you get fired.so guys i was just wondering if you guys know where GREGORY RICHARDSON HAS GONE AND HOW IS HE DOING .. why did he get waived from the team?..I PERSONALLY THINK THE COACH IS NO GOOD he has alot of good players on colorado team but don"tknow how to use them the coach should get fired!!!!!!!!!!
FIRST match he played last week Richardson, Bundu goals lift Carolina over Vancouver Second match he played today july/26/09 Richardson's hat trick propels Carolina to 4-0 win over Miami
know you guys tell me what the hell was the coach thinking when he let RICHARDSON go??? that coach is shit fire him he is going to make colorado rapids fall lower than expected ..richardson and casey would have done well together but he does not know how to use people fire him NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted 7-17 in the former Rapids thread: Also re. Richardson, as above I saw his first goal with the Railhawks on FSC and he looked good in that match. Some coaches work with a mixed group of players and maximize what they get out of them and create synergy where they can (this can obviously be very difficult). Others seem to have a formula that they want certain ingredients for and all other potential inputs are considered surplus to needs. Clavijo(ke) and Smith both seem to be that type -- they expect blind loyalty and players as means of production with a low value placed on intangibles such as creativity. At the same time yes-men, hustle and hard work probably get over-valued simply because they are so tangible. Fabrice Noel comes to mind from the Clavijo era as does Beckerman as victims of that approach. Christian Gomez and maybe Richardson from Smiths reign thus far ... I'm sure I'm forgetting others. I'm not specifically saying either approach is wrong or right if it gets results but my preferance by way of full disclosure is the former one. One last example, I suspect Clavijo and Smith would both send Shalarie Joseph packing in less than a month, Steve Nichol finds a way to fit a system to him and his strengths. Back on topic, can we please, please, please(!) un-stick this thread, close it, burn it, shred the ashes, scatter the ashes, sell the land the ashes are on to a green NGO that will never re-sell or develop it ... and then move on as if the Gold Cup Final never happened? :>(
Really? Shalrie doesn't seem like a player that's difficult to fit into a system. I can only unstick it. That'll have to do.