I should have said, "One of the requirements . . . " This requirement explains how foreign players get in the US HOF.
A baseball hall of fame without Babe Ruth would be a travesty. Babe Ruth was, shall we say, at best a very mixed bag as role models go... Or Lawrence Taylor in football. Maurice Richard in hockey. Jerry Lee Lewis in rock and roll. Hank Williams in country music. One really shouldn't go trying to make unrelated things a necessary part of the selection process. Its already hard enough trying to sort high peaks and long careers without adding purity tests on other planes entirely.
Christine Endler not that impressed with Hope's accomplishments: 1232186325744308225 is not a valid tweet id
I would say Hope's on-field credentials are about as bone fide as Abby's. I know Abby was ATG goal scorer until recently. But, Hope carried out team for long stretches.
If it were Donovan or Dempsey that had spousal abuse issues, would you call that "poor choices"? I would argue that anyone who teaches their kids that *anyone* is a role mode for how to live life, is asking for trouble. *Everyone* is flawed. You never know how those flaws will manifest. I don't tell my kids that athletes are anything but athletes. Use an athlete (or anyone else) as an example of work ethic? yes Use an athlete (or anyone else) as an example of how to comport oneself in specific situations? yes But, to say "be like this person"? Nope. Be the best self you can be. I certainly point out my own flaws to my kids and say "do better." So, I take issue with expecting that HOF'ers will be role models. WRT Hope, would Donovan or Dempsey be in the HOF if they'd had the car issue that Hope did? If they had spousal abuse issues, it would certainly be a lonnnnnng time before they got in the HOF, if ever.
[ I know she's not the caliber of player of Wen, Marta, Sinclair - but if you're going to add foreign female players to the US soccer HOF, because of impact, I would submit Sisi. Or, Formiga.
I would put Heath a notch below the others that have been mentioned. I'm a huge Heath fan, but she hasn't done much other than be a starter on great teams. By way of comparison, it took Milbrett, who, imo was a way better player and did way more, a hellllll of a long time to get into the HOF. Call me crazy, but I'd say Kling did more in WC15 than Heath has done in WC's. I would have Dunn hot on Tobin's heals, and soon to pass her. Ertz for sure, is right up at the top of my list.
Had to google Endler, never heard of her. And, yes, there were many games in which Hope was not challenged, but she came up huge in WCs when the opposition was pelting the goal. Her jumping ability makes Naeher seem rooted to the ground by comparison.
Yes, Ertz is many times the player that Boxx was. They are probably equal defensively. And, Ertz is way better in every other means of evaluation. Another player that I think is wayyyyyyyy over-rated is Foudy. She benefitted hugely from being the social chairman. I will say, that I watched the 91? final against Norway recently, and Foudy was great in that game - she was very quick and fast. But, she slowed down. And, was a good, not great, DMid. Then, the worst, she transitioned to AMid and played there for a lonnnnng time. Ugh! Who would you want to play Amid for your team, Foudy or Rose? That CM pairing of Foudy and Boxx was as bad as it's ever been for the U.S. If a Foudy/Boxx mf was the alternative, I'd start any of Rose, Ertz, or Mewis over one of them, every time. And, to add, I'd start Mewis over either Foudy or Boxx.
Okay, you're crazy. Heath has been a tireless worker not a star. Doesn't mean she should get snubbed. I also put Heath above Boxx or Whitehill but not at the Milbrett or Ertz level. In NFL speak, Heath deserves the Mike Webster treatment instead of the Jesse Sapolu snub.
I like Solo. She may have issues but goalkeepers are very different animals. Her record speaks for itself and were she to be inducted I’d be fine with it. As an aside her commentary work with the BBC on the WC last year was wonderful.
I agree. She always sounded a little nervous. But, her commentary was super interesting and insightful. And, it was cool to hear how much respect and deference her colleagues at the BBC gave her.
I like Heath. I'm a fan. But, Milly waited for.ever. to get in. If I'm picking a winger for my team, I pick Milbrett over Tobin every time.
Fair enough. But, I feel that while Tobin's skill set is pretty spectacular, the way she's been deployed reduces her contribution to sort of yeoman's work. For fun, my all-time best 11, if I was picking players at their peak, would be ---------------------------------Akers -------Rapinoe--------------Hamm-----------------Milbrett -------------------------------------------Mewis* -------------------Ertz Kling-----------------Brunn---------Fawcett-------------Dunn** -------------------------------Solo *Ya, I'm saying it - Mewis is a better 8 than Foudy would have been/was. **I know, O'Hara is the current RB and Dunn is LB. But, I think Kling was incredible in 2015, and I think Dunn is currently a better FB than the awesome O'Hara, and she's right footed - not like she has to play on the left.
I think that would be a good lineup. Also I have said many times on these boards a truly good outside back can almost always switch sides fairly easily. In fact with Dunn I think it would be good to place her on the side the other team is the most dangerous on.
A good start, but I’d like to hear you rationale for including Hamm as a forward instead of Mary Abigail Wambach. Hamm never scored a goal in a knockout match, either in World cups or Olympics. She scored 1 in a consolation match. That’s pretty paltry for somebody expected to score. Abbie scored 11 goals in knockout matches or consolation matches, several of which were game winners or or gained a shootout. I shudder to think what our record would be without those goals. Plus there are 184 others you need to figure out what the USA record might have been without.
With my lineup, it's not a Hamm vs. MAW choice. Hamm is a 10. She leads the all time USWNT for assists by a wide margin. You're argument with my lineup is MAW vs. Akers. Make it: