http://blog.washingtonpost.com/soccerinsider/2008/01/live_from_training_camp.html Now Josh is at DC's training camp(which opened today) Makes me wish we would have resigned him last year he would work well on the either wing in our new speculated formation , still remember that screamer he hit two years ago, I think that caught everyone off gaurd
I liked Josh Gardner as a G, but if he ends up with DC, it really doesn't matter to me, he's just a lump of flesh to be brutally kicked at that point.
If DC's left side is manned by Burch and Gardner - both Galaxy players acquired for nothing, it is just another great example of how the Galaxy develop talent.
And gave him his shot, let's not forget. Promoting Gardner and Kirk was one of the first things Frank did, and it appeared at first to work pretty well. I think Gardner's effectiveness started to fade pretty quickly though. A fan in the Seattle forum told me that Gardner had a pretty good season with the Sounders last year so we might yet see him in MLS for Seattle if DC passes on him.
Gardner is a legit issue. Burch, to be fair, was very unhappy in LA for reasons having nothing to do with the team. He wanted out to get back closer to home. If anything, Burch is a GOOD example of LAG honoring a player's wishes rather than holding the player hostage. Its the kind of thing that helps when you are trying to attract players - that word gets around. Of course, then you get an Albright and wipe out all that good will...
As stated earlier Josh never had a chance in his time with L.A even though he played his position well and while not outstanding he patrolled that left flank with confidence. I would have prefered him over Martino but I wouldn't worry about playing against Gardner except for the dreaded Ex-G's curse where they score on us the first chance they get.
About Burch, it is true he left for reasons off the field, but don't you think that's part of player management? And don't you think if he'd been seeing a few minutes of first team action that excitement could have offset some of the off the field issues? Burch was a 2nd round superdraft pick who we traded for a 2nd round supplemental draft pick. I'm guessing we gave him away for nothing because Yallop figured he wasn't anything special (I mean Yallop didn't pick him or anything). Yallop hasn't really demonstrated he places any value on getting width on the field (I mean wide players don't seem a priority, and he was responsible for narrowing the field at the HDC). If the kid was homesick, then we could have given him a leave of absence, or a loan, or negotiated a more equitable deal with Columbus, or something. Last time I checked DC isn't that close to Cincinnati either. These little things just irk me - I'm glad we're a superclub, but do we have to be so charitable as to give away our players for nothing? It's especially disappointing when they end up in DC. Here's hoping Gardner ends up playing for MLS Sounders. EDIT: In fairness, Yallop wasn't the only one to undervalue Burch. Sigi shipped him out for nothing too.
No, but he went to college at the University of Maryland (Go Terps!) so DC is sort of a second home for him. And, no, homesickness is real. There is only so much babysitting a professional team should do for someone who is supposedly a professional. I'll give you Gardner as a legit example of failure to develop. But Burch is another story.