I've been working hard on writing about DCU's history . . .

by attempting to do a season by season summary. However, because I did not see a match in the '96 and '97 seasons until the '97 MLS Cup, me writing about those seasons is out of the question. Same goes for '98, '99, and '00, because, while I followed the team, I didn't do so nearly to the degree I have since 2001. Therefore, I can do a summary from 2001 on, but if anyone wants to follow my lead and do one for the first five seasons, please do so. My intention is to put them all together on some sort of website highlighting the history of DCU, which is short, but great. The first and only season I've done so far is the 2002 season. A couple things I tried to keep in mind while doing this -

1. Support with some statistics.
2. Write a lot of it based on memory to avoid producing something that looks like it was copied from a newspaper report.
3. Write seriously, in particular, call them the Metrostars instead of scum, tards, etc. as hard as that is to do.
4. Highlight key matches in the season while skimming over the rest. Also focus on players with strong seasons or breakthrough performances.

So now, I'll copy and paste what I just spent an hour and a half working on.

BTW, its kind of long. Let me know what you think.

 

2002 Season D.C. United

D.C. United came into the 2002 season with a new coach, Ray Hudson, following the sacking of Thomas Rongen. There were high hopes for Englishman Ray Hudson following his tremendous season in charge of the Miami Fusion in 2001, which was characterized by flowing, dynamic soccer and the capture of the Supporter’s Shield. The Miami Fusion as well as the Tampa Bay Mutiny were unfortunately contracted following the 2001 season however, and from the 2001 to 2002 season the league went from twelve to ten teams. This did however give United the chance to bring in some new faces from the two teams, and as it turned out, a new head coach. United picked up goalkeeper Nick Rimando in the first round of the draft, and midfielder Lazo Alavanja in the latter rounds. Despite Nick Rimando’s small frame (5-9) and rather unconventional goalkeeping style, he was known for his amazing athletic ability and great reflexes. His ability can be summed up by the ever-quotable Ray Hudson’s description of Nick as similar to “a cat on a hot tin roof”.

The first game of the season was against former MLS Cup rivals, the Los Angeles Galaxy. United struck in the 78th minute with a terrific goal from new acquisition striker Ali Curtis, picked up from the now defunct Tampa Bay Mutiny, to give hope to the United faithful watching from the other side of the country. However, it wasn’t to be, as the Los Angeles Galaxy’s newest acquisition Guatemalan striker Carlos Ruiz would tie the game in the 85th after beating Eddie Pope. And with the then MLS overtime system (two five minute periods if the match is level after 90 minutes, used in the 2000-2003 seasons), it wasn’t over yet. Another of our new acquisitions, Honduran National team fullback Milton Reyes, fouled the Galaxy’s Gavin Glinton in the box and Carlos Ruiz would put away the spot kick clinically to send the disappointed United home with nothing. This game did provide hope for the season however, particularly with Marco Etcheverry looking sharp and apparently back to his old best, as well as good games from many of the rest of the team, including Bobby Convey who was disappointingly sent off.

The following week featured United playing against Bob Bradley’s Chicago Fire at RFK. The team again gave hope to United fans in a game where Marco Etcheverry struck first with a stunning free kick, followed by passionate celebrations that can only be characterized as an absolute love and passion for D.C. United by the legendary Bolivian. Abdul Thompson Conteh sent United fans into the half ecstatic as he buried a cross to put the home team up 2-0. It was smooth sailing from there, and United finished out the game 2-0, once again looking promising, following good games from several players, including defender Brandon Prideaux brought in from the Kansas City Wizards in the off-season.

It was not smooth sailing following that game however. United went the next six games with a record of 1-4-1, before meeting up with the fierce rival NY/NJ Metrostars. This game offered the first chance for two former United players, fullback Craig Ziadie and midfielder Mark Lisi who were traded to the Metrostars earlier in the season for Peter Villegas and ?, to show United what they lost in trading the two away. Mark Lisi did just that, and scored in the 62nd minute. He celebrated the goal by kissing the Metrostars’ team patch on the jersey while looking at the United fans. Needless to say, they weren’t appreciative, and he would be subject to the scorn and boos of the United faithful for the rest of the match. He would not be the star of the show however. That would go to United’s Jaime Moreno who chipped in with easily his best game of the season featuring two goals and an assist to fellow Bolivian Marco Etcheverry. United went on to get the three points with a 4-2 win, and got the first ever win after the not-so-prestigious “Atlantic Cup” was created as a trophy given to the team that wins the series in all matches played between D.C. United and the Metrostars. The “Atlantic Cup” was basically an idea copied from the “Brimstone Cup”, which was created by the fans of the Dallas Burn and Chicago Fire, rather than the teams’ organizations.

United took the victory over the Metrostars and won three of their next four games beating the New England Revolution, Colorado Rapids, and then the Los Angeles Galaxy with a beautiful overtime header from Bobby Convey, his own form of revenge for his unfortunate first half sending off in the previous meeting between the two clubs. That however, was followed by a ten game winless streak featuring six losses, four ties, and a measly four goals, with a remarkable five consecutive games without a goal, which was eventually broken by new signing Eliseo Quintanilla, who netted two goals against the San Jose Earthquakes. This disappointing stretch highlighted the team’s most glaring problem - a weak, feeble offense lacking a player that could score goals.

After this disappointing stretch, United came on strong in the last five games, and came oh so close to clinching a playoff spot, despite their dismal season. The run started with a convincing 4-2 home win over the San Jose Earthquakes, which breathed a sigh of relief into all United fans, lifting them after one of the worst runs in the club’s history. It was unfortunately followed however, with a 3-0 road loss to the New England Revolution. But United would not give up, and in the next two games, both against the Metrostars, United would win 1-0 at home, and 2-1 on the road to bring themselves with reaching distance of the playoffs.

The match that would determine United’s fate was the last regular season match and it was a must-win at home to the Dallas Burn. The players really seemed up for the challenge, and hit the ground running, playing some of the best soccer United fans had seen in years. Marco Etcheverry’s passing was excellent, but Bobby Convey stole the show, running things in the middle of the field in arguably his best ever game for United in the midst of his best ever string of games for the club, scoring a hand-full of goals at the very end of the season. His powerful shot early in the second half nearly pierced the net, and brought United ahead 2-1. Mid-season pick up Henry Zambrano also scored, and Ali Curtis did as well deep into stoppage time to bring United level at 3-3, prompting joyous celebrations from the United fans and Curtis himself, as they knew they now had a chance. United could get nothing less than a win, and also had to look at other results to be assured of a playoff spot, and luckily for them, this was one of four seasons to feature the two five minute periods of sudden death overtime following a draw. Unfortunately, it was not to be, as Dallas’ young striker Eddie Johnson would control a ball with his chest and rifle it into the net in overtime to end United’s season once and for all. Despite the loss and now third straight season outside of the post-season in a league where the majority of the teams do qualify, United fans valiantly cheered their team who played with a hunger, desire, pride, and quality that was not present during the season. Although there were only 13,000 plus at RFK that night, the fans were phenomenal, singing so loudly and clearly that over the t.v., the national audience could depict every word. Despite the unfortunate result, this match remains one of the best ever United games, and was easily the best of the season.

The season was a disappointment, but United fans were willing to give coach Ray Hudson another chance, understanding that he inherited the players, and his hands were tied in terms of shaping the roster due to limited time in the off-season, money, and stringent MLS rules. On a positive note, United’s defense was consistent and a vast improvement over the 2001 version, featuring the breakthrough of Ryan Nelsen, who would become one of United’s greatest defenders and players. The tough tackling Kiwi’s breakthrough would allow the club to dispense its finest defender Eddie Pope in the offseason. Also on a positive note, Bobby Convey ended the season in amazing form, bringing much hope to the fans for the future of the player who entered the league at the age of 16. Goalkeeper Nick Rimando had a consistent season producing countless spectacular saves. And finally, new acquisition, Honduran fullback Milton Reyes proved to be a very good player for United, and quite possibly the fastest player to feature for the club. He tore up and down the right side of the field like it was nobody’s business, and the fans were appreciative of his good, albeit sometimes reckless play. United did however finish the season with a dismal 9-14-5 record and 32 points, certainly not good enough for a playoff spot. The pressure was now place squarely on the shoulders of Ray Hudson to bring some results in the upcoming season, or else no progress had been made, and the United fans would once again, be left disappointed. After three straight seasons outside of the playoffs for a team that dominated the league each year, winning every possible trophy, simply was not satisfactory. And the frustration was beginning to mount.

 

The inspiration for this random project came from me reading www.toffeeweb.com

Go to History, then Consise History and you'll see where I got the idea. They do it by era instead of season, but that's understandable considering Everton's been around since 1878.

If there are any problems, falsehoods, etc. in my above post, please correct me. The only one I can think of is the mention of the Atlantic Cup being formed by our organization"s", when it was really just ours on our website. Also I couldn't remember who else came with Peter Villegas to United in that trade.

I may also shrink it down some so the reader doesn't fall asleep.

 

As for United needing other results to go through, in my piece I say -

"United could get nothing less than a win, and also had to look at other results to be assured of a playoff spot, and luckily for them, this was one of four seasons to feature the two five minute periods of sudden death overtime following a draw."

As I remember, United had to win AND I believe the Chicago Fire had to lose.

Thanks for the responses guys. What I worked on is not the final product. I'm awaiting corrections, tips, suggestions, etc. from other United fans like all of you.

As for the controversial part where I say United fans were willing to give him a chance, I was going to say "While some wanted Hudson fired immediately, others were willing to give him a chance . . . ." Perhaps I should make that correction.

 

I've been trying to create a geocities site to put all of these on, but as I do it, I'm having a lot of trouble, and have come to realize that I have a serious case of technological impairment. I'm especially having trouble creating links. There is a link option to use to type in the URL after you select the text. For example, I type "Official Website" in a text box. In the link option I type "www.dcunited.com". However, anytime I create more than one link and go to the link option for each one, it always links to the same thing. If the last website I typed in was www.barra-brava.com, then it says that with all of them. Its frustrating and I'm asking those of you who have created sites to point me in the right direction with any tips, suggestions, etc. Thank you very much.

 

I remember your DC United stadium site, and I was going to PM you and ask you a couple questions about geocities like -

A) How do you go back and edit without using the HTML script editor, I couldn't figure it out, as easy as it seems?

and

B) How do you create links? I had trouble with this even though it seems easy.

 

If there's interest from people that want to see this kind of stuff, I'll definitely keep working on it. I'm really discouraged I've had so much trouble working with geocities because I wanted to do this without bothering other people about it, then show everyone when it was complete. I've fiddled around with it daily and keep figuring more things out, but I'm still struggling. So, like I said, if there's interest, I'll keep working on the writing, and we can get this going.