To all the Tarheel fans, enjoy this year it could be special. If this years teams continues to improve, as per Anson's style, it will rival the 2003 team. Tonight I witness a good old fashion " beat down",.of the UCLA team. And UCLA was quite lucky, it could have been 10-2. Taheel's need to correct some defensive assignments slips, or just get in better game shape, cause this team can score. And Nikki did'nt get any goals tonight. Nice crowd, in spite of the rain.
The team w/ the most Tarheels. The Sol also had a Tarheel on the team. Keri Sanchez. I went to the game tonight. I was really shocked by the score. 7-2 was the final. UNC scored 2 goals before UCLA even realized the game had started (scored w/in the first 5 minutes). It was 3-0 at the half. The UNC passing was rather good in the first half but deteriorated as the game progress--toward the end of the game the passing wasn't that great. But at that point, the game was not in doubt. I also thought the players finished better than some times happens. I didn't check but was the UCLA defense young (ie was it their defenders that graduated)? UNC got open more than I thought they would. The 2nd half of the 1st half was a bit more even and UCLA seemed to wake up. For UCLA, Cheney was playing more of an attacking mid or "in the hole" behind two strikers--not up top. That surprised me, too. While she does have good passing skills, I think that position might keep her too far from goal. It did rain on and off (more "on" the first half and it had stopped completely by the end of the game). I was pleased with the performance of my new rain gear. I stayed very dry It was great to meet Charbs. Thanks for saying hi. Hope you had a safe drive back to DC. eta: Here is a quick write up from tarheelblue. The first goal was faster than I realized, in the 1st minute of the game.
Wow is right! The heels starting 11 has got to be the strongest team in the country. He started Givan, Engen, and Eveland in the back -- same as last year. The midfield was Hawkins and Heath from last year with Washington and Klingenberg back from their U-21 duties. The interesting thing was their alignment: Hawkins as defensive middie( what you'd expect), Kling as left flanker and Washington as right, but with Heath as the offensive middie and play maker -- which paid off with the opening goal 41 seconds into the game from dead center. The forwards were Jones, McDonald, and Nogueria, again same as last year. Harris was the keeper, until she was hurt (didn't appear serious) near the end. There are at least 5 legitimate all americans in this group. Major subs included Lubrano for Kling, with Heath going out on the flank and Maria taking her spot as playmaker. Both Lucy Bronze and Amber Brooks saw a fair amount of playing time in several defensive roles. Bartok, Alyssa Rich, and Sterling Smith saw time at forward. There were a number of other subs, but I lost track. Scoring by the heels game fast and furious at the start: three goals in the first 13 minutes. First (Heath) in 41 seconds, second by Hawkins under 4 minutes, and thrid by Casey in the 13th minute. The heels clearly dominated play, although UCLA remained dangerous on the counter attack throughout. Both of their scores came late and after UNC had substituted heavily. The first was an open net after Harris was taken out and injured on the play (apparently not seriously). One of the most notable aspects of the heels play was just how fast and relentless the Heels' forwards are on defnese. By pressuring the backs whenever there is a turnover, the UCLA backs were hurried throughoiut and seldom able to make an effective pass, at least for hte first 60 minutes. Heels' passing not as crisp as it will get, but they sure look advanced for this ealry in the season. They are an enormous squad -- 37 players listed -- and the depth is very high quality. They also have extraordinary speed all over the pitch. They are going to be something else to watch this year!
So you came a way ho hum? Beating a #3 team 7-2. Ho hum is your reaction... That was arse kicking. Call it what it was.The passing wasnt perfect all night because Anson was playing everyone.
My mistake my bad...forgot about her because she never really plays and was a late pickup in the season for SOL...but sky blue had 4 on the field that played awesome...
You forget the Notre Dame players on the team? As a fan of both teams I like that SBFC had a combo of UNC and ND players. Worked out for them. And as far as Branam is concerned, I was disappointed when Chicago released her. I remember watching her when she played for UNC and thought she was outstanding. Also got to talk to her on several occasions when she was briefly in Chicago and a very nice person. Chicago's loss but good for her. Oh yeah, Kerri Hanks can finally celebrate a Championship, along with and thanks to her teammates who she played against from UNC. Is this what they mean by if you can't beat em, join em?
Please let's not talk about Hanks on the Tar Heel thread. It makes me queasy. Klingenberg said after the game that she was out until recently with a shoulder dislocation. She and most of the starters had plenty of time to rest on the bench last night as we subbed wholesale. I think the subs held their own better than in past years although the second goal we gave up was poor defense. I couldn't believe the UCLA goalie. She is a sophomore and I guess hasn't seen much action in the past. She bobbled almost every ball that came her way and caught only the most feeble. The ball was wet and it hardly ever rains in LA but hey, you can buy a sprinkler at Walmart. If UCLA deserves their ranking then we will roll all year unopposed....
I thought last night's game had two segments; the first 15 minutes, then everything else. In the first 15 minutes, Heath took over the A-mid role from Averbuch, and Klingenberg and Washington took up the open flank spots. This allowed the Heels to field 11 "starters" from their National Championship team-- I felt that squad played as well as any performance I've ever seen from a UNC team, and I've been watching for a long time. I find that an amazing thing to be saying about an opening game! After 15 minutes, the game was over. After that, it was just a clinic. In fairness (under the watchful eye of the soccer gods), UCLA made us look somewhat better than we otherwise might, by playing in complete disarray, especially in the attack. They did not look like a number 3 team last night. However, the Heels opening line-up was exceptional, and if all stay healthy, other teams will be well advised to seek counseling... Other comments: Heath looked great at center mid. She did everything that we could hope for (and more) in that spot. I thought Lubrano had a particularly strong game off the bench, Pflankuch also made an impact. The depth and quality of the Carolina bench was quite impressive, though once we got a bunch of less experienced players on the pitch we looked more like a top-tier team trying to find its groove in an early season game (nothing wrong with that!). Field conditions were a little manky with the rain, but our players seemed to cope well. Freshmen including Brooks, Bonze and Rich all got significant playing time and look like they can be strong and early contributors. It should be one heck of a season. Go Heels!
I have been looking forward to our (FSU) first meeting with UNC for awhile. We have the most talent and depth WE have ever had. Be that as it may, it still isn't the same quantity of talent or experience you guys have. 7-2 over UCLA! WOW! Now I know you guys are great, but is UCLA over rated? If not, then I think this may be a long season. I'm still hopeful, but certainly not confident about beating you guys! Good L....., oh never mind, you don't need luck!
Unc/ucla Ok, I'm only half-way through looking at GoCourage's shots of last night's game (www.nc-soccer.com), and I just had to say thanks to him for year after year providing such great coverage of the Heels - these are spectacular! Not being able to drive up for a lot of the games, I feel like I'm getting intimately acquainted with the team (don't take that the wrong way folks...), and so great to get a look at our incoming players this year. Thanks for all the great posts you guys! A detail I noticed in a photo of Amber Brooks - her #22 jersey has Cindy Parlow's name on the sleeve to commemorate when she wore the number. Parlow is asst coaching this year as well. Very nice touch.
Re: Unc/ucla UNC..How do you stop a runaway train!... Anson is a living treasure as far as I'm concerned.
Re: Unc/ucla I noticed that too. I think the significance is that #22 is retired. I wonder what the reason was to allow her to wear it... err... to unretire it. Seems like there are lots of unused high numbers. Is it a soccer rule that they don't use more of the open high numbers?
Re: Unc/ucla Only in Olympic and WC competitions, then they must be numbered consecutively. Keepers can be 0 or 00, 1, or the last number on the roster. I sure hope the Parlow patch could be enclosed in a rectangle less than 2 1/2 square inches...
I was very gratified to hear Ali Hawkins get such high praise from Dorrance in his 8/22 comments on the UCLA game. Holding midfield is (IMHO) probably the hardest and most confusing position in the UNC system – its tough to understand and to execute well– it just requires such a complex awareness and so many different skills; I can’t recall anyone owning that position to the extent Hawkins does. When she’s on the field, the whole machine just runs better, and a lot of what she contributes is subtle stuff that doesn’t make a lot of flash. A tip of the hat to Anson for pointing out her exceptional contributions. She is definitely one of my personal favorites on this remarkable team. I was glad to see her get a look in the U23-WNT pool, and would be happy to see her show up down the road on the full WNT. Sometimes she seems to be slipping by almost under the radar, and I was very glad to see her get this recognition.
Tomeka totally owned the position and was a massive influence. And there are some others. But, Hawkins does play the position at a high level.
Point taken. I'm quite sure I don't want to find myself on the wrong side of a discussion about Dr. Tomecka! No argument; she was awesome for the Heels, and I was glad to see she was taking time to play with the Breakers. I'd point out she had 3" on Hawkins, so she was a more obvious choice as a target player, and add that there are some areas where I might argue Hawkins may be more polished, but hey, I have no quarrel with a comparison with the captain of our most successful team ever! I'm just pleased to see Hawkins getting the good press.
Wow. I'm trying to avoid hyperbole, but this team is really, really good! The most notable thing to me about Saturday was their shot efficiency: 7 goals from 24 shots. For the last several years, especially in the early part of the season, the Heels have been having trouble putting the ball in the net, despite having tons of shots. If they keep up that level of efficiency, they will score a ridiculous amount of goals. This could definitely be a special season. Now let me get back to checking airfares to Texas
While I agree that the finishing was a bit better than some years (particularly early on), let's not get too far ahead of ourselves. It will be a very long season.
Agreed. Saturday's game had something of the quality of a solar eclipse-- the planets were clearly aligned; but its something you shouldn't expect to see every day... I was happy for the squad, and I continue to think this year's team has the potential to have an exceptional season, but they (and we) need to take it one game at a time. It would be exceptional to have that kind of break-out game against a quality team more than once in a season. I've already got my tickets to TX, but then too, I was there in 2007 and didn't see many Heels around. One game at a time...
does anyone have the url for the site where they posted videos of unc games last year? and, does anyone know if they are going to do that again this year? thanks.