Understood, and the reason I said I wasn't running C38. You guys have more issues to consider than I do, which is largely just the play on the field.
They should play their best line-up in the Open cup, it is the best chance for glory this season. As for the league, it's not over yet, but soon they should just aim to entertain. Lose 7-2? Who cares, At least we see a Gerard hat-trick. Except for the games against RSL and Seattle, let's try to win those games, and if we can't damage their records, let's kick the crap out of them.
In other words leverage to give the Rapids a little less money for a crappy product then the average fan.
First, I want to thank you guys for making me laugh. There were a bunch of laugh out loud lines in this thread. As for the Rapids strategy, I'll make a baseball analogy. Near the All-Star break, there are buyers and sellers. Teams make a run for the playoffs or build for next year. The Rapids should be sellers. I know there aren't huge trades like baseball, but play the young guys to identify who might help in the future. Fans can handle rebuilding years--particularly in Denver. It's the years when a team just brings in different journeyman retreads that drives me crazy. And I'll agree with the team that O'Neill didn't set the world on fire his first couple of years. But to get down on a CB that early in his career makes no sense to me. Particularly on defense you have to have a little patience.
I also tend to forget that tha Rockies aren't owned by KSE. Dick Montfort seems like such an honorary Kroenke to me, I don't think any harm would be done by putting his team on a tifo.
At this point, I want to see a change in formation. Hard to be worse than what we've currently got. Admittedly, I have no idea what to replace it with, but this 4-2-3-1 just isn't working.
Refund all season tickets. Fire the RFO. Every last one of them. Apologize to Transamerica, and beg them to continue sponsoring the team. Unload the dead weight on the roster. Play the players who will be on the 2016 roster. Hire somebody for the new RFO who has both soccer knowledge and competence. (People like this aren't unicorns. They really do exist. Other teams have them.) Stop trolling the relegation brackets of second divisions for has-beens and never-will-be-anythings. Spend some money and get real players for 2016. Start acting like a professional sports team. Stop with the lame excuses. Get real. Stop whining about losses and draws and demand wins or else from the front office, coaches and players. Or else sell the team to somebody who cares.
1. Win the Rocky Mountain Cup. 2. Put an emphasis on U.S. Open Cup. 3. Try to get our new forwards to score goals.
Even in everything else happened, #6 is still going to be the problem. There is NOBODY at KSE who would know who to hire. They are business people NOT soccer people. I think the only hope is that they stumble onto a diamond in the rough somehow. They certainly hoped it would be Pablo. Maybe it will be Lopez or Mullen or they will give Dillon Powers a try in 10 years after he retires! Achieving #6 would just be dumb luck and I think KSE knows it.
I'm starting work on the Tifo design for the All Star tonight... Reaper with tombstones. I won't be at the game but I'll get it to someone who can handle getting into the stadium
What about making front office types in the stadium on game day VERY uncomfortable? For example: Me very loudly to FO person on concourse w/100s around: What are the Rapids doing to correct the garbage play and coaching? FO person: (whatever they say, interrupt) Me: Do you expect anyone to return and watch this garbage? FO person: (whatever they say, interrupt) Me: How does Hinchey sleep at night stealing our money? Do you enjoy working for KSE and Hinchey? etc...
St Louis Rams Colorado Avs Colorado Rapids Denver Nuggets Arsenal Four TERRIBLE franchises and Arsenal. How in the heck has Arsenal not tanked with KSE's terrible management. I just don't get it. I feel bad for all of us Rapids fans. We deserve better.
When the day comes. KSE's price point for a suitable Arsene Wenger replacement go very far in replicating the magic trick they performed on the Nuggets and Avs. Plus the involved media there helps, I recall when KSE took $50M out of team they screamed about lack of player buying, constant player selling and also that Stan just bought a house for exactly the same amount.
The real problem is that KSE defines "successful" differently than we do. I believe that KSE's bottom line is SUCCESSFUL!
My feelings over this have solidified and I think the only way forward, the only way this team can get on the ladder to where fans want to go, is to clean out the front office. Clearly, the front office will not resign or fire themselves. This must be done by the ownership. I don't believe it will be done by embarrassing them with a banner or tivo's. In fact that would probably cause them to dig in further. I think the appropriate title for this thread should now be, what should the fans do. We need to stop supporting a bad product. I've made this analogy in the past, a company will never change their product if people keep buying it. STOP BUYING.
@DavidJames is 100% correct. KSe only response to two things, embarrassment in the press and the bottom line. If the Hinchey-Bianchi debacle making national news like Olbermann wasn't enough to get a change then negative press is out (because not enough people care about the Rapids). So the only way to get a change is to hurt the bottom line. In other words, stop buying stuff from KSE. I made a pledge at the end of last season that I wouldn't buy any more Rapids merchandise, and I haven't (well I broke it once to buy a Rapids plush for my new nephew, but that only happens twice in my life). I only bought season tickets this year because C38 had already paid the Rapids for the section, me buying tickets or not wouldn't hurt KSE at that point. I'm not buying tickets to any Rapids activities put on by KSE. If we had another USOC match I wouldn't go. As we've seen the discussion on if C38 should renew their deal has already started. I think they shouldn't but I'm only one voice.
Pretty sure that the USSf keeps all ticket revenue from U.S. Nats matches. I know they bring in their own ticketing staff and everything. Now I'm sure the USSF is paying a rental fee to KSE for use of the stadium, but that's going to be paid regardless if I go or not.