http://soccernet.espn.go.com/feature?id=313891&cc=5739 If these are his prediction for the entire series (not just 1st game), he will be wrong 4 out of 4, IMO.
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... i'm giving him a 2 out of 4... I think LA will win... I hope New England will.
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... Who wants to bet the attendance in NE on Saturday night will be less than impressive. The Rapids did the smart thing by avoiding the world series conflict. I'm sure this was not on purpose.
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... And the MetroScum over DC. He doesnt even really give a reason why a team that is much hotter and has owned the season series would suddenly turn around and lose in the playoffs..
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... In a rare occurance, I actually agree with jri. Personally, I think that what Connolly did is to look at each team, count the number of players on each side that he likes and pick the winner based on which number is larger. Note that nowhere in there did I actually say anything about paying attention to the actual games. Which explains why he picks San Jose, a team that was winless in eight of their last nine, scored a paltry five goals in that stretch, and was one Burn goal away from watching the playoffs on TV, over Kansas City, who finished up the season unbeaten in who gave up the fewest goals in the league and finished up the season unbeaten in six of their last seven. He thinks that the "real" San Jose will show up for the playoffs. I think that we saw the "real" San Jose all season long on their way to a losing record and we saw the "real" San Jose last Saturday night at the Cotton Bowl. In what was essentially a playoff game, the Quakes were not terribly unimpressive in drawing with a mediocre Burn team. The "real" San Jose team is not very good.
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... Yeah, I don't really get his pick for Metro-DC. He basically gives every reason why DC should win this series, and then goes ahead picks the Metros. Weird.
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... Weird. I agree with both of you. Watching San Jose this year was similar to watching DCU in 2000. In both cases various media types kept saying that the real DCU/Quakes were gonna dominate any time now....just you wait...they play the best soccer...well maybe not this week, but next week for sure....really they're the best...there's nothing really wrong with them...
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... This analogy casts Landon Donovan in the role of Marco Etcheverry in 2000. I'm not sure that comparison holds. In 2001 and 2003, Donovan proved that he can pick up his game for the playoffs. (In 2002, he was apparently playing hurt, and the losses of Mulrooney and Ekelund were devastating). If LD brings his "A"-game, and Ching and Mullan are close to 100%, this Quakes team could easily made a run. That said, nothing is ever certain. Even last year, when they had a good coach, they needed a lot of luck.
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... Really, the only positive for San Jose at this point is that their toughest opponent is their first one - and they get to play half of the encounter at the friendly confines of Spartan Stadium. Kansas City would likely be the toughest team they'd have to play.
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... I'm not usually one for pre-game trash talk, but Kansas City doesn't scare me. Without Chris Klein, their offense is sputtering. They've only scored 11 goals in 12 games since the All-Star break. And yes, they have a good defense, but Donovan has done very well against them in the past.
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... Well, San Jose has scored 0 goals in the last 180 minutes against Kansas City, so I think the Wizards will take their chances, too. It's all relative. The Wizards may not be scoring much - but their opponents are doing worse.
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... I think that Connolly might have just made an error when he typed Metros as his pick because it just doesn't match what he wrote. Columbus has made an art out of not losing, I think they will tie in New England and then squeeze out a 1 goal victory in DC. As for SJ and KC match up, that is a real toss up. I think both will play deep and try to attack off the counter when they are at Spartan, and whoever converts their few chances will win that first matchup. If SJ goes to KC needing to score, I don't think they have much of a chance. As for Colorado and LA, with Joe Cannon in net, there is no way you can count out the rapids.
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... It's rather simple, actually. You see, Connolly... is a contrarian.
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... Bitter? Me? What do I have to be bitter at the Quakes about? The Burn were the reason that the Burn weren't in the playoffs. They could've taken care of business in the previous 29 games and that last game against the Quakes would've been irrelevant.
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... And oh how I wish they had finished off the Quakes anyway...
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... Connelly gets a reprieve of sorts... Colorado just doesn't show up in LA- LA deserved to advance. DC clearly better then NJ. KC was a better team during year then SJ- deserved to go on. NE could pack it in, and counter well (they've got the horses...) but I'm sticking w/Colombus... 3 out of 4 aint bad (revised Meatloaf)...we'll see..
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... I'm having a hard time recognizing the 2-2, given Andrulis just did the worst coaching job I've ever seen in MLS history, and 2 missed PKs...... If a coach should ever get fired after not losing 17 in a row (or whatever the streak was), it should be Andrulis...the dude is mental...
Re: Connolly will be wrong 4 out of 4... haha, dude just admit u r wrong with connolly's prediction and admit he's right 2 out of 4 times. that should settle it.