Crystal Palace USA 2008 Thread

CPFC is a major owner. Without the current other owners there would be no Baltimore team. So a better ownership group will never exist. The Medds invest large amounts of capital to keep the CP USA organization afloat.

Also Simon stated that CP USA was founded to find and develop youth talent for possible opportunities in the UK. Anything the Pro team produces as far as playoffs is a perk. This is a USL2 team and good place for 2 coaches to learn to coach pro soccer. If this is Jim's signoff game let him have it. It's tough for athletes to walk away from dreams. Especially a dream never fully realized.

They are going to have low years and high ones. At least you don't have to worry about the coaches changing all the time. If they do step back, the same owners will remain. Very few USL players will ever get the opporunities for trials in the UK. CP affords them that opportunity.

Some of you candy asses should relax a bit. Why would you get so worked up over a league where promotion and relegation are not even a risk. It's just a fun environment that offers learning and growth/developmental opportunites for it's players and youth academies

 

I agree that they are spread a bit thin and sometime wearing too many hats causes problems. I thought they had been really strong in Harford County. What happened up there? I used to live in Bel Air. Now I am in AA county and we work with them a bit with our soccer club.

 

Baltimore planning more soccer

From the article...

Dixon says she has hopes of one day putting a 7,000-seat soccer facility south of M&T Bank Stadium. Crystal Palace FC USA, a minor league soccer club that averages 1,200 fans for its matches at UMBC, wants to build a stadium and operate its soccer academy on accompanying fields in the city or in Baltimore County.

But organizers of the project said they have held only internal discussions and are not ready to present a formal proposal to the city.



I'm guessing you guys will be in USL-1 sooner than later. Hopefully there is a USL-1 to get promoted to by then.

 

Interesting article; the Camden yards/M&T bank complex would be the best place for a stadium. However, any ideas about an academy facility with training pitches would be out the window. Personally this is fine with me.

The question is would Palace be the team in the stadium. A capacity of 7000 would imply USL1 and the involvement of the Ravens ownership makes me question if this happened whether an entirely new team would be brought in.

The crowds at the Chelsea/Milan game and in Philly at the Gold Cup Quarters just confirmed to me everything I've said about Palace's current method of marketing to the suburban soccer mom crowd. It's a dead end strategy and it won't build up the club.

Palace needs to start marketing to adult soccer fans. These are the people who buy food/ beer/jerseys/scarves etc. They are the ones who come more than once and stay for the second half. It was shocking at the Chelsea/Milan game how few knew that Palace even existed.

 

Don't read to much into the crowd at M&T. A large number were there for the event. I had to be coaxed into attending since the price was kind of steep for a pre-season exhibition game. A lot of folks also came down from New Jersey and New York for the game. Baltimore has not had many international matches so it was a novelty. For some like the Ravens fans behind me "it was like watching paint dry". That is an exact quote from these D-Heads.

 

My point is more about the demographics of the fans than the specific people at the M&T game. If CPUSA could get 5% of the kind of crowd at M&T you have 3500 adult soccer fans actually watching the game, buying merch, and creating a real game-day atmosphere.

Currently we have about 1200 people per game 3/4 are disinterested parents or their kids who are dying to do just about anything other than sit in the stands and watch the game and support the club. I'm not asking for 1500 ultras or fanatics, far from it, just people who actually want to be there. Not people who feel obligated because their kids team has organized a club night.

 

Article about stadium?????? Great idea, but may never happen with Pete and Jim at the helm unless they find a way to make peace with the local (Baltimore) soccer community and stop alienating people. (The Baltimore Bays allegedly have an arrangement (?) with Chelsea) Also, working with the city or state will take forever to bring the stadium to fruition. If the city provides land and the park can be privately financed, then it might happen (in 2 years) about the time the team could be ready for USL-1 (assuming a new coach emerges too). Coaches bring in good players and good players bring success and fans.

http://baltimore.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2009/08/03/story5.html?b=1249272000^1870078

Interestingly, the time to build is now before the economy recovers and jobs start appearing. There will never be a cheaper moment in the foreseeable future then now to build.

 

Why aren't CP Baltimore at peace with the local community? What have they done to alienate people? I honestly have no idea what you're referring to so if you could elaborate I'd be interested in hearing it, specifics please.

 

I pointed this out in another thread. Here is the end of the article on the proposed stadium.

Alan Hammerschlag, a partner at Kodiak Properties (owners of the site in question), said he received an inquiry from the BDC regarding its interest in a potential soccer stadium at Port Covington.

The property is considered one of the city’s prime waterfront properties poised for redevelopment. The Sam’s Club closed on the site in 2007 and only a Wal-Mart remains open.

Hammerschlag said he would listen to any proposal from the BDC, but is “skeptical about the economics and timing.”

You can talk the talk but it's time to walk the walk.

I'm more concerned with how long CP Baltimore can afford to lose money and as with all minor league teams, How long will they be around. Two seasons from now they could be distant memory. It's happened before which is why I am now a caual fan instead of a fanatic. After at least 5 soccer teams, 2 football teams and numerous hockey teams that I was dedicated to have folded/left Baltimore I refuse to invest much of myself in any team any more.

 

Well CP Baltimores in some trouble with their draw with harrisburg. they need to beat pittsburgh. anyway, im gonna be in baltimore in a couple weeks, ( i love the city, and duckpin bowling) but i started collecting scarves from a club in every city i visit when i was in europe in april ( my collection of sparta prague, cracovia krakow, ferencvarosi budapest, and dynamo dresden is pretty impressive id say ) but i was wondering if there was even a slim chance of acquiring a CP baltimore or charm city scarf while im there. i checked the team store thinking id have to get one online anyway, but everything on the site was strictly crystal palace fc, not usa/baltimore.

 

eintracht.19,

I might be wrong about this, but I don't think CP Baltimore sells much merchandise that's specific to their club. It's pretty much all the Crystal Palace brand. Their jerseys, t-shirts, etc. all mimic the parent club. I know they sell a flag that has the CP logo with both the US and UK flags on it, but I'm not sure what the scarf situation is. If you can't make a match, try contacting the club directly. I've had great success that way. Good luck!

 

You are correct. No merchandise is directly labeled for us. This year we have jerseys without the "GAC" logo on them, but that is about the only difference. The other stuff we have is all the same as the London Crystal Palace. Some of the other supporters I know won't buy jerseys BECAUSE they don't say Baltimore, or aren't at least Baltimore specific.

As far as a stadium is concerned it's nice to at least hear something is going on. On a lighter note I was at the Port Covington site the day before the announcement came out. I have thought it would be a good place to set-up shop for a while. It amuses me though listening to the developer's comments. The area is totally industrial right now so any residential going in would need real pioneers to take the plunge. That's part of the reason it took so long for Canton to really hit critical mass with new developments. I think it would be interesting to have the Covington site for a soccer/lacrosse stadium (US Lacrosse, currently located next to Homewood field at Hopkins, has outgrown their space and was looking to relocate a couple of years ago, including making an inquiry about the old Allied Chrominum site off Fell's Point for a small stadium and offices) as an anchor for housing and retail development to accompany already present park space at Swan Park and it's adjacent ball fields. The only real drawback for that site is access. No light rail or metro would go there though Hanover St., which runs by the area, does have it's own exit off I95. Now if the city fixed the old rail bridge from Westport to Covington as they have proposed for a promenade or walkway that would allow for greater use of the facility for other entertainment purposes as well. Just no football lines during the season, please.

As for playoff chances, we can still get in, with help. Though at this point everyone can, except Bermuda. If Bermuda can keep Real from taking all three points tonight we are still alive, if not, wait til next year. Of course the match in Pittsburgh is going to be a difficult one as they stopped us there last year at the end of the season as well.

 

Real Maryland defeats Bermuda, and our chances at the playoffs are gone Playing for pride this coming weekend at Pittsburgh, hope to end the season on a high note.

 

yea i actually read today about a potential stadium. are there any talks of trying to get cpusa in usl-1 sometime in the future?

and i was on the palace squires website, pretty impressed with some of the chants. i dont know how big you guys are, but even if you had 40-50 people, it would be a fun group to listen to. id actually like to come down and join you guys for a match next year.

 

I think CP USA still has a chance at the playoffs. If I read the standings correctly, if Real Maryland loses to Wilmington (a distinct possibility) and CPUSA defeats Pittsburgh, both Maryland teams would be level on points and CPUSA would have the better GD.

One possible problem with a field at Port Covington. M&T Bank stadium had to remove the natural turf there because of the water table. I set in the endzone several times for football when they had real grass, it smelt like raw sewage and the ground was always wet. Depending on how a stadium would be built at Port Covington they could have a similar problem with real grass which would mean it may not be acceptable as a practice site for a future WC which is the main thing that would generate funds for the project. If I remember correctly sports are banned from Swan Park because of contaminents in the soil. This was a heavy duty industrial area.

 

I think M&T changed to the artificial stuff for economic reasons. The water table shouldn't be much different between M&T and Camden yards which has a beautiful lawn. With appropriate grading and a proper drainage system natural grass would be fine. As for contaminants leeching into the grass I have no idea if that's an issue. Something to look into.

 

I heard the tie breaker was head to head competition, and Maryland beat CPUSA 3 times this year i believe

 

M&T had problems with the grass rotting from bad drainage (300 mil doesn't go as far as it used to I guess plus by the end of NFL season the grassy was getting pretty dead from wear. The artificial turf makes for a better appearance and makes it more useful in all weather conditions. plus it doesn't get torn up as badly if they have concerts and the like. Swann park did have an arsenic problem, I believe, and is being corrected, http://www.baltimoreswannparkcleanup.com/. a lot of the issue depend on where the property fell in relation to the previous train yards as well as the nearby businesses. When walmart went in they had to do some remidiation work. the arsenic at the park came from a former plant that was by Swann Park. Since they are most interested in the walmart center that area should have already been corrected, though there may be a restriction how deep they can dig in relation to remaining chemicals and water table. since our playoff ship has sailed without us at least this gives us something fun to specualte about. I have a friend who lives in that legislative district who ran for City Council last time through, didn't win though, and I did some door to door stuff for him. Those in the area will be skeptical, as shown in some of the articles posted on teh Squires site, about people coming in to the area to develop land without their having a say. In the westport area they aren't real thrilled about having the plans for development there being rammed down their throats.

 

do most CP B. fans support dc united in MLS? I can see the 2 becoming rivals as Baltimore develops a fan base

 

eintracht.19,

I'm pretty sure CP-USA has never played DC United. Geographically it would make sense, but considering that they're in separate leagues, I don't know how they'd foster much of a rivalry. And even when USL-MLS teams square off the in US Open Cup, it's somewhat rare that a rivalry develops because matchups are so few and far between.

 

yea thats true, but i see it as somewhat of a derby that could develop if they ever met maybe 2 years in a row say. now im no baltimore guy but i always thought that the 2 have been rivals in other sports. Orioles ownership voted against washington even getting a team (i know that was a business decision, but if i was a nats fan, i wouldnt take kindly to the o's for that reason).

Now FCNY is getting there team next year and even though theyr gonna be in USL i think that there will be a rivalry there. but hey, different cities i guess

 

I don't know how many fans go both ways, DC United and CPB. There are a number of DCU fans in Baltimore, with a few going to CPB games. Most stick by DCU, which I can respect, because they were in existence first, and they are in a higher league. That being said, Baltimore and DC would have greater rivalries if they were in the same leagues. The Orioles-Nats thing has the most potential due to inter-league play, except they are both awful. The Ravens and Redskins don't play meaningful games very often. Traditionally Baltimore is viewed as blue-collar where DC is more white collar government, which could create some friction plus DC kept an NFL team from returning to Baltimore as long as they could. Similarly Angelos did fleece the new DC MLB team once he had no choice but to let them into the District. Now if we were to keep drawing DC in Open Cup play as we have the Ocean City Barons, two times in three years, that might change. Though we would have to be more consistent in that tournaments play. Adding a preseason friendly might also stir the pot a bit. Now if they could incorporate Real Maryland and maybe even Charm City FC (NPSL, a USASA League) into a preseason tourney each year that would definitely fuel the fire between all of us. I'd imagine DC wouldn't want to restrict their options that much though in terms of preseason matches.

On a side note a potential way to fill dates at a new field would be to invite Charm City FC and the Maryland TSC Pride (Women's Premier Soccer League, the sister league to the NPSL, both amateur leagues) to play there and potentially look for the return of the Bayhawks of Major League Lacrosse from DC where they are in the middle of the league pack for attendance drawing about 4,400 a game. Essentially making the stadium a rectangular sports, excluding American football, center for the city. During the fall you could have city high school soccer teams play there which might add extra importance to their matches and gain more interest from potential new soccer fans. You could use it for American football in the fall as well, just so long as the lines are gone by the time we start playing again.

 

haha ocean city. you guys can eliminate rbny no problem one year and lose to ocean city the next?
what are you gonna do, eh? but i better stop talking. dont want to get on your bad side

 

Well the season is over, save 1 match. Let's play for pride and not lose to awful Pittsburgh (like last year). The regulars are pretty beat up, the remaining subs ineffective (except possibly GK Chiles) and the injured have been injured all year long and had surgeries. A solid defense (as predicted pre-season and second best in league) couldn't make up for lack of scoring, especially late when matches were on the line.

The Real Maryland team (beat CP 3 times, twice in Baltimore) is led by ex-Palace players, Gary Brooks, Kevin King and Cecil Lewis. Brooks and Lewis scored 3 of the 4 goals against former team and King/Lewis were responsible for the win against Bermuda last week that iced the Palace club from play offs. One point against Real could have sent them to playoffs.

With Mbuta at NYRB, the team was largely decimated as all were forwards. The replacements were just not up to par. The coach/manager pair couldn't handle the lost players when they were in B'more and couldn't find suitable replacements (although Basso, Pierce and Flores did well on defense).

CP needs some "big-time" players next year, or their improving fan base will bolt to the beach on game days rather than stay around to watch another boring defeat.

 

I couldn't seem to find photos or videos of CP Baltimore fans. I was hoping they'd be in town when I was there but thats completely out of the question at this point.

Actually after searching a little more, I found a bunch of pictures of the 35ers. Is that what they're called?