Okay. Unless there is actually coaching change please move all your Fire Hankinson to this thread. Scorpions news is starting to go off course. So have fun in this thread.
First, I'm not advocating the team should take this action. However, if Howard Cornfield is seriously considering it, he should do it sooner - possibly immediately. Here's why: Mathematically, the Scorpions can still close the gap on the front runners. If SA can get a good string of wins and the top teams drop points, it IS possible to get into the top 2 or 3. However, one more loss and the Scorpions are out for the Spring season. In that case, a new coach can use the remaining games in the spring season to introduce his style and game philosophy, and shake up the roster. You don't want to wait until the July break to do that; any games in July will be "friendlies" and won't be the best challenge to test the new coach's theories. When August arrives with the Fall season, the team could have up to 2 months of preparation with the new coach's personality. Half of that could be in real game conditions. To clarify: I'm not necessarily on the Fire Hankinson bandwagon..... yet. But if HC is looking to pull the plug, he should do it as soon as the team is fully out of contention.
I think you give Hank the rest of this year. After that, there is a pretty good coach in our own backyard. Paul McGinlay is the coach for Trinity University and has a pretty impressive record (albeit it is Division III college). http://trinitytigers.com/sports/msoc/coaches/Paul_McGinlay Perhaps even Vince Martinez at UIW. http://www.cardinalathletics.com/coaches.aspx?rc=408&path=msoc
Hankinson took the job when there wasn't any guarantee the Scorpions would be a success off the field. He brought the team credibility and was able to bring in a number of players through his contacts. For that he deserves a few rough patches.
I only started this thread to Bieber out of the News thread with his fire Hankinson. Right now I'm willing to see how we finish.
I don't really attribute the majority of blame on Hankinson. I believe that the problems stem from the player pool they have. Every team in NASL generally waits for the best players that they can aquire get rejected by MLS teams. But the Scorpions tried to get an edge by aquiring players outside this player pool. Their gamble didn't pay off and it is a wonder how much this strategy is Hankinson's or Cornfield's. It was an inventive strategy, however one that has obviously not paid off. The question at this point is, can the Scorpions afford to aquire the players they need this summer and dump the players they don't need, or will they have to wait until 2014 to repair the damage?
Pathetic posts. Coach Tim has had to build a new team in 2012 and had to start over in 2013. The Serbian players Cornfield stuck him with were not up to standard, not that they did not try. We have now won three our of the last four. Here is an idea. Keep the core of the team together next year and buy a striker who scares defenders and see what happens.
Not sure I agree with you. Last year we played attractive soccer, attacking. This year its like when they get in the final third they have no clue how to finish. Take last night vs Edmonton there were several chances to get a shot on target, yet they kept passing the ball around which usually ended up in the Eddies getting the turnover with no shot. Last year they would of put it on net and then see what happens. I am happy we got the win last night, but something is really missing from this club, they just don't play with the same fight as last year. Still a great team and one I follow and cheer for, but to say its Pathetic is just being blind.
Yeah, the striker is missing. Denisson will shoot, but Wagner - Jordan - Martinez - etc are all secondary guys. They aren't finishers and last night (I was there as well) illustrated that perfectly. Nobody was looking to take the shot other than the bad ass bald guy. However, you have that movement behind/with Denisson and then have a (I hate to say it) Campos type guy up top and all of a sudden things change. For all the shit we give him, Campos is a finisher and the difference shows. We need a clear cut finisher up top.
Of course we need a true striker. But there is something different on this team. It seems that they are a half a step behind which causes the to lose on the hustle stats like lose balls and such. but does that mean that the Coach needs to go. I don't think so, but if things do not improve they do need to tinker more with the team. That said I actually miss the atmosphere that was at Hero's. It seems that the crowd was more into it and not as laid back. But the Scorpions were also winning so that made a major difference.
Oh, the final 1/3 is atrocious right now .... but I think it has to do with the fact that all but one of the players out there (Denisson) aren't guys that do the work in the final 1/3. When Martinez came on he had LOADS of space several times but he never attacked it until the final 5 minutes when the entire team was pressing for a winning goal. Most of the time he just trapped the ball, took two steps and then waited ... when he had 10+ yds of space in some instances. Jordan did it as well when he came on. Wagner pressed but he never tried to use his space. He just tried to eat it up and then dish ... and I can think of 3 times off the top of my head he should have ripped a shot but didn't, he looked to pass. Not having that guy up top really affects the rest of the team. No, I'm totally with you on the "hustle" stuff. Edmonton was all over the 2nd chance balls. They had a 2nd and 3rd man on pretty much every opportunity. We looked like we all were playing an individual zone and couldn't step out of it.
Read the post. The suggestion that the coach should be sacked is pathetic. Coach H is one of the top coaches in NASL. The pan-slavic experiment was a mistake but that was not his call. Keep the core of the squad together, buy a striker and a suitable replacement for Cockrane and the silverware will forthcoming. Cheers!
You're seriously suggesting that the GM, who has no soccer experience whatsoever, forced the European players on Hankinson???? Love to know where you got that info and if true sounds like a job I would run from if I were Hankinson.
Nice for you to say it was pathetic for those that express concern when the team is winning, but when they were losing to a FC Tucson and most of every other NASL team. Coach H is a good coach, but to say that he has no choice in how the team is managed is crazy. Not saying he has the final choice, but he does have a lot of input..IMO
A legitimate complaint - I should have spoken up sooner. But doesn't it strike you funny that last years team was so talented and the GM was a real football man while many of this year's additions appear to have been selected by someone who does not know what he is doing?
well since Hank is out. Here is an interesting article about some targets to pursue. Personally, I think it would be interesting to have Dalglish as coach. http://soccernewsday.com/usa/a/1102/searching-for-hankinson-s-replacement
Good luck to my fellow Canadian Marcina, hope he does well with the Scorpions and eventually gets the permanent position as coach. http://www.examiner.com/article/int...-antonio-scorpions-interim-head-coach?cid=rss
His first game as head coach wasn't the best, but wasn't the worst. I wasn't expecting anything miraculous from him anyways.
I agree. Zahorski is a great addition to the team and Ramirez looked lively. I think Martin as a right midfielder is not so great -- he is fast but his reaction time to get the ball away from him is not there. Midfield is the great weakness 0f this team with no clear answer this season to fix it.
Yep, our midfield is killing us. Long ball soccer is just not very attractive and it's not very successful. If we could work the ball through our midfield it would be so much cleaner.