Detroit Soccer Thread, Part III

Re: 2007 Premier Development League Michigan Bucks Schedule

I remember when the NPSL started, we had someone on the show from the league who explained their business model and I remember coming away with it thinking "hey, that's a great idea....it would be nice if other leagues encorporated some of those ideas."

Now that a few years have gone by, I've gotten the impression from people in the USL (as you would expect, when speaking about your competition) that the NPSL was rather "rinky dink". I heard stories about teams forfeiting games because they couldn't get enough players to play, and other things that just make a league look bad. I hope that doesn't happen as much as I heard that it does, and I hope that they got their act together (I don't follow the league that closely).

Maybe I should start a thread in the appropriate section of BS where someone can try to sell me on the business model and theory of the NPSL, so that I know whether I'm "hating" on them just out of the loyalty I have for the PDL, or if my perception of their league is off-base.

I don't think that competition is a good idea considering where soccer is at this point in time. I wish that the USL and MLS could work together, but I know that will probably never happen until MLS gets rid of the single entity system. I think it would be better for the game if the leagues worked together.

 

Re: 2007 Premier Development League Michigan Bucks Schedule

So what were some of those ideas?

 

Re: 2007 Premier Development League Michigan Bucks Schedule

I'm actually going to start a thread in the USL section about this, but the basic idea was (and forgive me, I don't remember all the details...Scott could probably shed some light, since he was part of the interview as well) that the league dues and the franchise fees were much less, and the money was put toward marketing the teams rather than going to the home office to pay salaries and to pay for league events and all the things that go into making a league work. (Maybe the money for those things came from somewhere else? I don't recall....)

If that didn't make sense, then that's the reason why I'm going to start the thread, because I want to make sense of it.

But recently I've learned (and hopefully this has changed) that the NPSL doesn't have strict rules about forfeits, game presentation, record keeping etc. Sure they have rules, but from what I gather they aren't as strict as the USL. I know from working in the USL that if you don't fax the match report within a few hours of the match, you get in trouble...if you forfeit a match, there is a major fine....there are SEVERAL gameday operation requirements...

I think having a strong central league office that enforces stuff like that more strictly, forces teams to have high standards for their team's presentation to fans/media etc. If teams aren't willing to comply, then in my opinion, I don't want them in the league.

Be on the lookout for that other thread, I'd like to get some insight from the NPSL people to see if my assumptions and what I've been told is way off base or not...

 

Re: 2007 Premier Development League Michigan Bucks Schedule

To tell you the truth, all I remember from that interview was that there were four teams in the league who had bolted from the USL, mostly because they didn't get any help with travel costs, and they had a lot of traveling to do (all were in California, IIRC, and had some league games in Texas or Arizona). They spent a lot of time bashing the USL and the money that they thought was being wasted on them.

They also had some ambitions of going nationwide, which I thought at the time was unlikely for a startup in a field where their main competition was already well-established.

I also remember asking if their teams would compete in the US Open Cup, at which there was considerable hemming and hawing. I thought at the time that it was because they didn't know what the thing was, or hadn't thought about it yet. It turns out that they had to qualify as part of the USASA, and not with its own path, as the PDL had. Whether or not they knew that and didn't want to say it on the air, or didn't know yet, is known only to them.

All these years later, all I know is, I'd love to see the Arsenal (Detroit, not Colorado...) have to play the Bucks in the LHUSOC, and get killed. But, that's just me.

 

RANDOM DETROIT-MICHIGAN SOCCER QUESTIONS (FROM THE WEST COAST)
1/ Have the PDL Bucks ever played the NPSL team from Detroit ?
2/ Or how about that other team in Grand Rapids?
3/ This would be a good example of a merged PDL+NPSL.. adding those teams would sure make a really solid Great Lakes area conference
4/ On the MLS side, any chance the Silverdome could be modified for soccer?
I think the NASL pretty much played the field the way it was.. Did they do anything for the World Cup? I seem to remember the players 'bench' was actually in the stands? (Very foggy now- 12 years ago!)
5/ What is the Silverdome current status? No basketball, no football.. What is going on there? Will it be imploded someday? If you took the roof off, or one of the upper decks, could this be modified to a soccer stadium, say cheaper than buidling a whole new stadium?
--Thanks !

 

1&2: No
4&5 Not likely, it was last used as a practice field for one of the Super Bowl teams last year. The FieldTurf they installed for the practice was removed after the Super Bowl and donated to a local High School. Yes the benches were in the stands for the WC and the players also had to open a gate and literally run out of the stands for corner kicks. Although I think that the mandatory minimum pitch size is smaller for league play than it is for international play, so this might not be a problem. I don't know about taking the roof off. There are no strucural issues as it is an inflated roof, but nothing inside was designed to be exposed to the elements, like the score boards and such. Also, there is no drainage so that would have to be installed. Also, if Detroit did get a team I would like it to play downtown. A more likely scenario would be playing at Ford Field until a SSS was built.

 

The West Michigan Edge in the PDL play in Holland, which is north of Grand Rapids.

 

It may be "North" when travelling from Detroit, i.e. "further away", but Holland is SW of Grand Rapids.

Do the Edge play in Holland now? I know the women's team (Firewomen) plays there, I thought the men's team played in GR?

 

They do. This year, they're playing at Forest Hills Central, which is actually on the East side of the GR area.

 

I took my sweet time getting around to it, but last night I sent Dan Duggan a short list of questions - call it a Bucks version of "Ask Peter Wilt". Dan sent answers this morning.

---------------------------------------------------------------

1) Will the public be allowed to watch the tryouts? Pretty please?

WE WON'T HAVE ANY PROBLEM WITH THE PUBLIC WATCHING THE TRYOUTS. WE NOT YET CONFIRMED DATES OR LOCATIONS FOR A MID-LATE APRIL TRYOT, BUT WILL SEND OUT TO THE INSIDER AND POST ON THE WEB SITE BY LATE MARCH.

2) Will there be a pre-season exhibition match like last season?

THE ONLY PRESEASON EXHIBITION MATCH WE ARE TALKING ABOUT TODAY WILL BE AGAINST THE D2 PRO TEAM FROM CLEVELAND, PROBABLY TO BE PLAYED IN TOLEDO IN EARLY MAY. THIS DOES NOT MEAN WE WON'T HAVE ANOTHER ONE, JUST THAT WE HAVEN'T STARTED TALKING TO TEAMS YET.

3) Season tix info: cost? Conditions(guests, etc)? On sale when?

I HAVE JUST HIRED A NEW GENERAL MANAGER FOR THIS SEASON, WHO IS IN THE PROCESS OF DESIGNING ALL THE SEASON TICKET INFORMATION. HE WILL BE ANNOUNCED NEXT WEEK AND THE SEASON TICKET INFO SHOULD FOLLOW BY THE END OF FEB.

4) Are we really back at Berkley?! If so, I think you'll see a few more
diehard fans. The reaction on BigSoccer was unanimously supportive.

WE HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO CONFIRM OUR HOME DATES BECAUSE SEVERAL OF THE HIGH SCHOOLS WE HAVE REQUESTED HAVE NOT RELEASED THEIR SPRING SCHEDULE. RATHER THAN ANNOUNCE GAME BY GAME, WE WILL WAIT UNTIL ALL ARE CONFIRMED. WE MAY PLAY A COUPLE OF GAMES AT BERKLEY THIS YEAR.

5) Our church is running a fund-raising auction in the spring(April, I
think). Any chance of getting a ticket or two donated? Our pastor actually
played goalie for Northern Iowa.


WE WILL BE ABLE TO HELP YOU OUT WITH THIS ONCE WE HAVE EVERYTHING SETTLED IN THE NEXT 30 DAYS.

6) Did you know Nate Jafta is on the Generation Adidas 2007 list? I know
this is a stretch, but South Africa doesn't exactly have much of a national
team. Does Nate have any aspirations to play for his country? Say in 2010?

AT THIS POINT, NATE HAS VARIOUS OPTIONS AS TO WHERE HIS FUTURE LIES. MLS IS VERY INTERESTED, AS ARE SEVERAL EUROPEAN CLUBS. NATE IS A SPECIAL PLAYER BUT WE ARE NOT IN ANY HURRY TO MAKE ANY DECISIONS ON NATE'S FUTURE (OR IS NATE).

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The news that Berkley is NOT the lone 2007 venue is disheartening, to say the least.

 

Yeah, it is. So is the new GM. I hope the new guy doesn't want a new PA announcer....

 

And if so, there's always hope...maybe he's pro-webcast

 

Arsenal out of the NPSL?

The NPSL web site seems updated with the 2007 teams and schedule. The Detroit Arsenal are not on it. The six Midwest teams all list a 10-game schedule. (Now that doesn't mean that a Detroit team could be added later, with each of the six teams scheduling two more games, making 12 for everybody.)

More could come, as the promised Eastern Conference teams haven't been listed yet. Only by a stretch could a Detroit team be put into the East.

 

OK Detroit area football fans (uh I mean soccer), if this weekend's St Patrick's Day celebrations are not enough for you, come join us March 24/25 at the Patrick O'Ryans pub in downtown Windsor (just through the tunnel) for a weekend of international Subbuteo table football. It should be a great event with some top class players. If you're planning on attending a certain event, check the schedule at http://motowngp.subbuteo.ca at the end of next week as registration will be closed next Wednesday and the schedule will be finalised the next day. Any questions, drop me a PM or e-mail bigsoccer@mistfa.org!

 

It seems that the Ignition will be hosting the MISL playoff first round, and the champoinship game. They've kept promoting this during the match tonight. It might mean that Compuware Arena will host the championship even if the Ignition don't win their semi-final round. (The MISL has had neutral-site championships, I beleive last year or the year before that.) [The team has been saying, that if you put down a deposit on season tickets for next year, you'll get the playoff game and the Final for free.]

 

If you want to watch some high school girl's and college women's soccer (offically designated as "scrimmages"), the Lakes Area Showcase is March 16-17 at five western Detroit high school fields. Schedule at http://www.lakesareashowcase.com/

This is a large lineup of schools: 6 Michigan Woman’s College teams, 31 Michigan High School girls Varsity teams and 20 JV teams.

 

I reposted this here because it actually mentions Detroit as a possible location for one of the next 3 expansion teams. You don't often hear anyone outside of Detroit mention Detroit as a location for MLS expansion.

http://www.oregonlive.com/sports/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/sports/1175054138185400.xml&coll=7

 

author must be from detroit or something....

 

Great news about Portland....it was only a matter of time before the Timbers (and they're fantastic fanbase) got the attention of MLS...and some investors

 

It seems like every year or so Detroit gets thrown a bone in an article somewhere and then we hear nothing again until the next year when Detroit pops up again, mentioned among other cities who have actually been discussed by the league.

We're never getting a team.

 

While it looks that way at the moment, all it takes is the opening of one checkbook for all that to change, and I don't think that it needs to be a huge checkbook. Of course I can't prove it, but I really do feel that there are several parties who would be interested in being minor owners, but who balk at the idea of being the lead investor. Once the ball is set to rolling, it could pick up speed fast.

And no, I'm not going to name names.

 

As much as I love spending other people's money, I wouldn't encourage any high roller in the Detroit market to invest in anything frivolous like an MLS team at this moment. We need real jobs in real industries to help revitalize this area. An MLS team is the last thing on my mind for this area.

At this point, I'm struggling to see how I can even afford to stick around, much less anyone else. This is especially true if you're in the auto industry as anything other than a senior executive, whom can't seem to stop giving themselves performance bonuses regardless of how awful a job they do.

 

They can't help it. The lousy economy is all the fault of the unions and Jennifer Granholm.

Signed,
Too many idiots.

 

thank you.

 

Let's not get political on this thread, cos I can tell you the fault doesn't lie with JG. Look up the hierarchy. Wayyyy up.