And in her twitter she mentions time to go back home when she announces the signing pending league approval.
Leslie Osborne: http://www.nwslnews.com/leslie-osborne-announces-she-is-signing-with-the-chicago-red-stars/
Odd signing given the allocations. CRS now has 3 central mids who do the same thing. I like Osborne but her signing didn't fill any holes.
And here I'm hoping they will sign Brittany Bock. That would be one crowded center circle.Of course Bock can play central defense as well like she did for the SOL. I don't know, I still think it's a good signing not just for on the field but she is a good ambassador of the game and will represent the CRS in the community as well I feel. They may get some fans from across the border in Wisconsin as well. That's one reason I am pushing for Bock. She will bring 50 family members and friends to every home game.
I would love to see Casey N. in a Red stars uniform again. When she is in the mood to play, she can be one of the most exciting players to watch. However, she won't be able to take time off on the field under Rory Dames.
Carmelina Moscato tweeted a question about trades in the league. Hmm... Boxx, Osborne, Winters ... think she might be wondering about PT?
Doubt it. Probably just a general question. She's a CB. The other three are all CDM/CM's. She shouldn't have to worry.
Let's have some opinions - Who should the Red Stars take with the #1 pick? Here's my pick - Caroline Miller (University of Virginia)
It would address their biggest need although Mewis can score as an AM too. I wouldn't mind it just to befuddle the experts and throw the teams behind them off a bit not expecting either Mewis or Nairn to fall their way. She was listed in many places as a mid so that threw me.
Her husband plays for FC Dallas but yes, she's close friends with Heath & Long. We'll see what happens.
Zakiya Bywaters of UCLA Rachel Quon (Stanford?) Taylor Vancil (Louisville?) - She is from Elgin, IL (if I have the right Taylor Vancil) Jennifer Hoy of Princeton
The first two picks are nice pickups that fill holes. Quon (yes, Stanford) has long been praised by many for her technical and attacking ability as an outside back.
Chicago Red Stars 1 CM; Shannon Boxx (USA) 2 CB; Amy LePeilbet (USA) 3 CM; Keelin Winters (USA) 4 GK; Erin McLeod (CAN) 5 MF; Carmelina Moscato (CAN) 6 FW; Maribel Dominguez (MEX) 7 MF; Dinora Garza (MEX) 8 CM; Leslie Osborne (USA) (pending approval) 9 FW; Ella Masar (USA) (not signed yet but is 99% sure) 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Draft pick; Zakiya Bywaters FW? Draft pick; Rachel Quon FB Draft pick; Taylor Vancil GK? Draft pick; Jennifer Hoy FW Trialist Trialist Trialist Trialist
Looks like I have the wrong Taylor Vancil From twitter it looks like they drafted someone from Florida State.
Zakiya Bywaters of UCLA http://equalizersoccer.com/2013/01/18/bywaters-selected-first-overall-by-chicago-red-stars/
Very surprised. I saw Zakiya Bywaters this fall when UCLA played U- Washington in Seattle. Very good, fast player - but IMO, not a number #1 "over-all" pick. Maybe between 5-8, IMO. There is a lot that goes into these picks I imagine. You pick a player that fits your style of coaching, a player that wants to be in Chicago, a need, etc.
And she played for who at the Club level??You guessed it, Rory Dames (Red Stars Head Coach) on Eclipse Select
I just thought of something.... (unrelated to current discussion) Since the total roster is expected to be only 20 players, is Chicago going to even attempt to defend their national cup title? There's no way they can split their team to do league and cup at the same time like they did last year. I would love to see NWSL give a competition break for teams to participate in the national cup if they wanted to, but I'd guess there's only an 0.2% chance of that happening.
It could be done if they wanted to (the league/USSF). I believe the Red Stars only played over 2 or 3 weekends; but back to back double headers in one weekend can be tough with only 20 people in the squad and could lead to injuries. As far as I can tell the Regional quals were done June 17th and June 19th (4 total games) Then the finals at Toyota Park were on July 20th and July 22nd (semifinals and final). 22 game schedule that start in April, I imagine there would be enough time to take off 2 weekends to play the Cup.