Freedom are up 2-0 at the half with a pk goal by Mia (Jacqui Little was taken down by Keri Sanchez) and a goal by Lori Lindsey with a J Little assist. Pretty lucky for me considering I picked up Lindsey this week in a trade in the fantasy league and Jac is on my team. WAR FREEDOM
yay so, good for the freedom! and good for Lsquared (once again i ask, is this reallllly her nickname?!?!) who was at the game/saw it on tv and could give us a feeling of team cohesion, our possession and ALL THE FOULS!!!! thanks! and yeah 3-0-0!!!
Possession? Forget it! Particularly in the second half - I don't think the Freedom had three consecutive touches on the ball until about minute 70. They seemed to bunker in almost with the start of the half, content just to punt the ball rather than to try to attack. Their best couple of series came in second-half stoppage time. The first half was a bit more even, with sloppy midfield play on both sides. The Freedom had one good attack with Jacqui Little getting the ball down the right sideline and crossing it in to L2 that led to the goal in first half stoppage time. Siri had a big game, with 7 saves (I think) and directing a defense that withstood 19 corner kicks without giving up a goal. The CyberRays had a lot of possession close in, but the defense kept swarming and usually keeping them from getting off a good shot. Even when they got off a shot, either it went wide or Siri was right there. Part of the CyberRays' game plan seemed to be to do whatever it took to shut down Abby Wambach. She got fouled a bunch of times, including one by FearM9's dear, sweet Ann Cook, who showed no mercy to her former teammate.
Short note... And I might be wrong... I think they credited Siri with eight goals. Nice game by Siri and the defense. Pretty sloppy game by the offense. They are going to have to really shape up if they want to have a chance against the Beat next weekend. Right now all I feel is nervous anticipation.
Yikes...the Freedom did not look good. The ball was on their half of the field for much of the game and San Jose had a lot more chances. This was one of those days that reminded me of how much we should appreciate Siri. She had a few incredible reaction saves and some nice catches. The defenders were pretty solid overall, but they had a tendency to panic and clear it over the end line...hence the NINETEEN SJ corner kicks. Good thing their corner kicks were completely ineffective. The whole offense just wasn't clicking. A lot of times Jones and Stoecker kept trying to work one side of the field without much success. Mia seemed to be passing back a lot. She had a few nice give-and-gos with Emmy (who was playing really far forward at times) and served some balls that Abby was able to connect with. But other than that she was pretty quiet until the last ten minutes or so, when she finally got some shots off. Such a waste to keep her in the midfield. She can accelerate like crazy but once she gets to the ball she seems kind of hesitant to take it upfield by herself. SJ was having major issues with finishing. I think Katia was getting frustrated...like in the second half she unnecessarily chopped Mia down right near where I was sitting on Washington's end of the field. Washington was pretty lucky to win; they only had a few real chances but put them away. Plus the ref missed a blatant Washington handball in the box and Katia got taken down in the second half just barely outside the box. So it could have been a lot closer. Oh yeah...anyone who still questions Abby's fitness can stop now. She was running like a maniac all game long.
Re: yay She picked that up in San Diego. P.S. DID ANYONE TAPE THIS GAME?? I'D SURE LOVE TO HAVE A COPY OF IT AND AM MORE THAN HAPPY TO PAY FOR IT. IF YOU HAVE A TAPE YET CAN'T COPY IT, WOULD YOU TRUST ME TO COPY IT AND RETURN IT TO YOU? PLEEEEASSSSE!!!!
This looks like an in-game/post-game thread to me. Thanks for starting one, Beth. articles... CyberRays feel off-field loss Chastain family death clouds game by Michelle Smith San Francisco Chronicle CyberRays' shots go awry in 2-0 loss WASHINGTON WINS 2-0 WITH HELP FROM HAMM By Dylan Hernandez Mercury News Siri article: Freedom's Mullinix blanks CyberRays By Fernando Brum
Well that was the worst roadtrip I've ever been on. --------- From CyberSoccerNews: Two Steps Back The CyberRays Fail to Put Any Points on the Board, Lose 2-0 by Inge Bond ---------- Agreed. I drove down there for THAT!?! My dear old mother who doesn't know squat about soccer even commented on the fact that Mia wasn't really doing much in the match. Me thinks playing on the left flank in the midfield really ain't her cup of tea.
I am assuming this is the post game thread. 13 corners conceded against NY and 19 conceded against SJ! Does this trend bother anyone else?
grendel had posted this in the WUSA forum...here is Beulah's report on the match... http://www.beulahsports.com/wusaarch_4_19_03.html
yes...... but then again NY and SJ didn't do much with em. I wont go into panic mode until we start giving up soft goals like in year 1. This season I much prefer to be a positive fan. We done seen what the top of the mountain looks like! I refuse to go back.
‘tis true we have only allowed one goal from thirty two corners in the two most recent games……but when you allow that many set plays into the box, bad things can begin to happen (exceptional plays, weird bounces, dumb luck, etc.). I’m not pressing the panic button….yet. But what I’ve seen and heard so far, granted I have only been witness to the one home game vs. NY, it seems the Freedom are playing a defense driven style of play (boring but effective IMHO). If this is true then the opposing offense is penetrating way too deep for that style of play. If it is not true then we are playing way too much in our defensive third of the field, which means we are losing the battles for control of mid-field….not good. Just my observations, but the most important observation is that we are 3-0-0.