Can someone remind me what the playoff format is this year. If I remember correctly, a playoff series will be 2 games, decided on aggregate, with away goals not having extra value. Is that correct? If so, is there any advantage to winning the division other than playing the 4th place team?
First round of the playoffs is 2 games, home and home series, aggregate goals, with golden goal (I think) overtime followed by PKs if the aggregate score is tied after the second game. The advantage of being first is that you get to play the 4th place team, and you get the second game at home so you get the overtime and/or PKs at home if it comes to that. The second round of the playoffs is one game, at the higher seed's home field. So the advantage for being first here is HUGE. The third round of the playoffs is MLS Cup.
Will those three games (2 quarters, 1 semi) be played on the November 1st, 8th, and 15th?? (if so, hallelujah!! no more Wed night playoff games...)
The three games will be played on the three weekends leading up to MLS Cup on Sunday November 23, but the exact date depends on where the game is, and whether there is a stadium conflict. San Jose State has a football game at Spartan Stadium on 11/1, so if the Quakes are hosting a game that weekend, it will probably be moved to Sunday 11/2 -- but it is more likely that the Quakes will be hosting games on 11/8 and (hopefully) 11/15 and there is no stadium conflict on those dates. (At least with football, I didn't check the SJSU soccer schedules.)
Much of SJSU soccer is "off-site" this season...out of the stadium and onto the new (and hastily thrown up) soccer fields behind Bud Winter Field. So those matches (if they exist) should not be a problem.
      And MLS Cup 2003 will be on November 23rd.       GO EARTHQUAKES!!! -G
does anyone think this format suits the style of play shown by the quakes? in all liklihood we face either kc or la over two games...so i'm curious to see what the general thoughts are on the format.
IMO...we'd dispatch KC in an aggregate goals, 2 game series...no problem. L.A. would be another matter. I have this chilling feeling the officials would have a lot to say about that outcome. I think they are clearly not the team they were last year, yet they have guys that just have a way of wrecking things for us when we are poised for our finest hour. My gut tells me that would go to PKs and that shakes me up. After the Waterstealers have stunk it up all year, I'd hate to see them slither into the playoffs and push us to the limit. That would be depressing.
So I'm not sure if this is right, but is this the format for the home/away game? Nov 1: away Nov 9: home Nov 15: pending on who is the higher seed Can someone correct me cuz I'm probably wrong. thanks