Summary of our picks... 4. Hope Solo, GK, Washington 6. Deliah Arrington, F, Clemson 7. Mary McVeigh, M, Dartmouth (thanks for the correction...) 14. Erin Misaki, M, Portland No third-rounder. 30. Rachel Kruze, M, West Virginia, who wasn't even in the league-issued draft preview guide. Paul
The Aftermath... When I deleted the original post-draft thread, only my post was showing, so if anybody sent a note there, I'm sorry; I thought a poll, along with comments, would be better. You can't edit and insert a poll in an existing thread. My .02: Too many midfielders, and the ones taken will not make the same impact as the ones we snubbed (Withers and Orlandos). So instead we super-downsize, height-wise (Misaki) and let the new assistant influence the 6th pick (Arrington). Meanwhile, our opposition gets better. Why? Why no Withers; why no Orlandos? What possible reason could there have been to say no thanks to two people who could have helped out immediately. For a league which may embark on the final season of its existance in April, this was not a good way to begin the journey. Paul
The Charge are a team that 1- Plays a possession style of soccer 2- Has 3 of it's four starting defenders returning 3- Played last year with a single foward formation With these things in mind, it makes a lot of sense to me that more midfielders were drafted than back or front line players. With the way the Charge plays, it's the midfield that does the most running. Hence, one would expect more substitutions to occur in the midfield. The deeper the bench is the midfield the better. Why draft a ton of extra players in other positions if you're hoping you'll never need them. Having a "spark" to pull off the bench at forward in the sixtieth minute is great, and necessary. Having 4 or 5 forwards on a team that will never see more than two on the field is a waste of roster spots. On the defensive side, I would be more than happy to see one line that plays more than 90% of the minutes. Again, keeping too many extras is a waste. As far as the possibility of this being the last season, I just don't see it. The formation of this league was timed to capitalize on the new fans caught up by the 1999 Women's World Cup. To think that the league would close shop before seeing if the 2003 World Cup bolsters numbers is ludicrous. You only fold before the draw if you have nothing. This league is far from nothing. Scott
I agree. Hopefully, the numbers will rise this year and I see us having a 4th season, no matter what. We have the chance to see some incredible foreign talent in the WWC '03. That should lead to better foreign picks in '04. Any other news about the possibility of the chinese billionaire helping the league with some cash flow? Concerning the draft, I think Boston and SD came out well. I'm not sure about Bush in SD. SD will be a force to be reckoned with, that's for sure. The Charge has the potential of having one of the best midfields in the league. I was pretty happy with Atlanta's first three choices: Withers , Gaston (but, I preferred Orlandos) and Crumpton. It's going to be interesting to see what goes on during the next two weeks. I expect some of these people will be on different teams by then.
Post-Draft 2003, or, What *Is* With All the Midfielders? We needed help on the D. Erica is gone, and she'll make it official, no doubt by the end of the week. Are you honestly gonna sit there and tell me Mary McVeigh is a better player than a finalist for the M.A.C./Hermann (Orlandos)? You can only go off the beaten path and find a diamond so many times before the law of averages catches up with you. Mark it down and file it away for next August: we will regret not drafting Withers. Ditto Orlandos. Pollard's influence didn't take too long to reveal itself. Thing is, Arrington could have been had in the *second* round. Why draft her at 6? And Misaki... I don't think the league will go under during the season, and I'm sorry if that was the impression I gave. But unless things are fundamentally improved in terms of its promotion, TV situation and attendance, all bets are off as to whether or not there will be a 2004. It's not going to matter, I don't think, how well we do in China. If the WUSA goes under, it won't be until *after* the WWC. Point is, we've got *enough* middies. But if you're going to stockpile them, get folk will make a heck of a lot better difference than McVeigh and Misaki will. Paul
Paul - did you say the same thing last year with Tullock? i can't remember. why does every single thing have to be so negative? we are one of only two teams who made it to the playoffs for the first two years. that says something about the coach's ability to recognize talent. he has consistently surprised with his picks - Sissi/Katia vs. Smith/Fitschen, Tullock, Alfiler, Pichon, etc. And don't imply that the assistant coaches are the ones calling the shots - unless you have proof of that. Watching the Charge play should be fun. It is for me. I enjoy bigsoccer to discuss things, find out rumors, etc., but increasingly this is becoming such a bummer. If you don't like the picks, why don't you find another team to cheer for? let's give these kids a chance. Have you seen any of them play? The league didn't want him to pick up Pichon because she was an unknown, yet that worked out, didn't it? maybe these new kids will work out just fine. let's give them a chance. end of rant.
Re: Post-Draft 2003, or, What *Is* With All the Midfielders? B/c He figured given the chance Atlanta would have taken her IMHO.
Re: the draft: I, for one, am placing my confidence in Coach's ability to evaluate talent. Does the name "Pichon" ring anyone's bell?
Krikorian mentioned today that he saw 4 players in the draft pool that were must haves. 4 out of 90 or so. The fact that no one else picked Orlandos in the first round tells me that maybe they thought her overrated. More to the point, Krikorian obviously decided that Orlandos and anyone else that people feel "should have been drafted" by the Charge weren't right for the team that he is putting together. Being a "better" player doesn't make that person the right player for every team. No matter what anyone thinks, it is very tough to tell what impact a player would have had, if they had played on a different team. Unless a player scores tons of goals unassisted off of set plays, you can't actually look back and say that there are regrets. It's a team sport. To get more specific for a moment, Hermann award does not equal guaranteed fit. Has Clemens been gone that long. Granted, there may be teams that send Krikorian a Christmas card for a few years. I'm sure, however, that there's a good reason that he made the decisions he did. You don't coach on this level by making unplanned choices. You don't have the kind of success that he's had by making bad ones. Only time will tell, but my money's on the coach.
I know I come across as a spoilsport.... I didn't know who Tullock was. Nobody on here did. I was only concerned that we wouldn't have her full-time until mid-May. The reason I didn't say anything more than that was that he DID pick great talent in the inaugural season. I vent sometimes because I am that much of a Charge fan. I was only saying that since Pollard is from an ACC school, he had input on Arrington because he had seen her in action. I don't think that's an unreasonable assumption to make. Of course Mark has the absolute final say. For the record, I put my vote with 'jury still out'. A lineup which included both Withers and Orlandos would have put fear into the opposition. We'll just have to wait and see how it pans out. Paul
Here's a question for the group: Will the Charge field a better team on opening day than they did against Washington last August? I say absolutely yes!!! Dwight
Post-Draft 2003, or, What *Is* With All the Midfielders? Don't you run the risk, though, that Orlandos will feel so snubbed, and being on a national championship team that it will light a fire under her butt and work extra hard to prove every team which whiffed at the chance to draft her, pay for it? In one fell swoop, the Power got the best forward and the best defender of the draft. Melodramatic, yes, but there is precedent for it in any of the major sports... Paul
Re: Post-Draft 2003, or, What *Is* With All the Midfielders? Shouldn't we want every player to play at her best, irregardless as of why????????????? Players playing to beyond their expectations, "limits," and the views of others is what makes great stories... turns in fans by the droves..and pushes marketing out of the roof!!! I hope Orlandos has an incredible season. I hope that every player drafted makes wise decisions, stays healty, and contributes fully- and can continue to grow.... and to exceed all propsed thoughts/ideas.... Imagine the league.. if every player was healthy, succeeding on and off the field...and playing unbelievably...... Imagine the sponsorships..the fan base..the marketing..... wow!
The skinny on the Charge website.. Comments from the principals: Coach K: "I think we filled a number of needs today. The players we drafted have the ability to come in and compete for positions right away, while the players we acquired through trades bring experience and leadership to the club." On the acquisition of Makinen: "I have always been a fan of Anne's. I recruited her when I was coaching at Hartford and she brings veteran leadership to our squad." On choosing Solo #4: "We felt we needed to take the best player available with the fourth pick, and Hope was that player. We now have a good tandem of goalkeepers with Melissa Moore and Hope." Solo: "The players that the Charge have are great. The defense is amazing. Melissa did a great job in goal last year. In know it's going to be tough, but I look forward to coming in and giving it my best shot at earning a starting position." Arrington: "Ever since the league started, it has been a goal of mine to make it in the WUSA. I don't know much about Philadelphia, but from what I’ve heard Mark and all the players are really great." McVeigh: "I am feeling nothing but 100 percent excitement right now. I have spent a great deal of time in the Philadelphia area throughout my life and I couldn't have asked for a better place to be drafted." http://philadelphiacharge.com/338388.html Paul
Mary McVeigh... Some more on the 'Who dat' pick. Finished her Dartmouth career with 25 goals, 16 assists. Last year: 11 goals, 4 assists. NSCAA 2nd-team All-American. 1st team all-Ivy League. 2001: 6 goals, 9 assists. 1st team all-Ivy, 2nd team All-Northeast. Three gamewinning goals. 2000: Foot injury. Missed the season save for 6 games (3 goals, assist). 1999: 19 games, 9 starts (5 goals, 2 assists) So it's at least something (from the Dartmouth athletics website) Paul
Krikorian keeps true to form. LOL. Solo with the 4th pick. Since ATL picks 5th, w/ PHL at 6th, & with no indication that ATL has plans for drafting Solo, would Solo still have been available later in the 1st? Someone correctly predicted Arrington will go in the 1st. I was told back in Nov Stone was interested in Arrington. Maybe Stone would have picked her at # 10? Obviously Krikorian liked her more. Whoa!! McVeigh with the 7th. My Ivy source has seen McVeigh play & her impression was that McVeigh was a decent mid, & that BOS may be interested in the later rounds. Way off base. She deserves a spanking. I wonder what other teams would have taken these players in the 1st round. Could Krikorian have traded down to the 2nd round, stock up with later or future draft picks, and still have drafted these three? Was no one interested in trading up? Or maybe the asking price for a 1st-rounder was steep? I think the trade for Makinen was a good deal for both sides. Mak's potential was unfulfilled @ DC, & maybe she'll do better in a new environment. Same thing w/ McDowell. It seems that trading Connors for Kraus & SD's '04 2nd-rounder was also a good deal for both sides. I thought Connors play was timid, & she was a play-killer in the final third. Maybe Connors will do better in SD. Kraus may be the answer to Iverson's spot, plus you get a future pick. I'm surprised Orlandos was snubbed by both PHL & CAR. I think NY got a steal. Withers in ATL is very bad news to the rest of the league. At the end of the season, I think BOS & PHL will regret not taking her. I thought Gregg pulled her name out of the draft. A lot of personnel shuffling. Old faces gone & new ones in. Will Arrington & Fair play wide? Mak at d-mid? Kraus starting in central defense? And Paul, who's gonna be the starting GK?
Damned straight she would have. You weren't way off base. Like I said in the live draft thread, you're as good as it gets in scouting talent from a fan's POV. You didn't have McVeigh until post-second round. Why wait until the end of the season? Non-issue. Moore is the starter. Solo is #2. The job is Moore's until she loses it. And not one nanosecond before. Wow, that was settled in Guinness world record time, wasn't it? Paul
If Krikorian didn't pick Solo 4th, what's the likelihood that maybe someone would have traded up to ATL's # 5, & taken Solo? But would have ATL been interested in trading down? I think # 4 could have been used for someone else, or traded for, & Solo would have still been available at # 6.
It's probably what you said; folks were just too stubborn to give up their first-rounders. No one wanted to trade up. Paul
Don't worry, be happy! It would've made a differents without the San Jose trade anyway, so it all comes down to this. Mandy Clemens for Hope Solo I'll take that trade off!
Comcast SportsNet, quick.... A quickie blurb on today's draft on its SportsNite show in the next minute or two... Paul
Re: Comcast SportsNet, quick.... A 15-second interview with Solo. She said she wants to come to the east coast, which flies in the face of what was reported on the WOOSA website where she was quoted thusly: "I've wanted to stay on the West Coast, but looking at the teams in the league, that's not likely to happen. I don't know that much about the East Coast. It's pretty wide open." Another story on her is now posted http://philadelphiacharge.com/338425.html Paul
Question.... Would a player combine event have made a difference in who we picked? Since there wasn't one, that is... Paul
Women's Soccer Speed Juggling Champ Mary McVeigh: the Unofficial Women's World Record Holder for Speed Juggling Mary McVeigh, above, en route to setting the women's world record for speed juggling. She recorded 92 touches in 30 seconds.