That may not be as crazy as it sounds. If the Revs make the playoffs and beat the Metros this weekend, doesn't Coach Nicol deserve consideration? I would think so. What is the Revs record before and after he took over? The team has improved immensley since he took over. It took a little while for his style to take hold - but now that they have it down, look at the results. Frank Yallop has a late season dip and his team has terrbile road record. Mike Jefferies is witnessing a team melting down or burning out and is powerless to stop it.
Do you have to be a good coach to get coach of the year? I think Octavio Zambrano should get coach of the year for having such beautifully sculptured hair. - Paul
You're forgetting the fatest man in the MLS, none other then Fat Sigi, he's got his team to the open cup final again, a tie away from winning the supporters shield, the only team to win 3 games in a row this mls season.
YES, the revs should sweep the awards. MVP & Bud: TnT Coach: Steve Nicol Ralston should get some award also.
If Nicol was so good, how'd the Revs get into such a mess in the first place? With a 22 goal scorer, and the leagues leading assist man, I would expect them to have run away with the Eastern Conference. Look at the talent they siphoned off in the postseason. I don't buy the "Nicol" as COY.
And you support the Revs? I'll wait for a more objective opinion. Thanks. Ruiz will win the MVP. Ralston will likely be in the MLS 11.
I think you're all jumping the gun here. After this Saturday when the Revs once again break the hearts of their supporters by losing to the Metros and missing the playoffs, you'll be singing a different tune. In between the curses over once again being led down the primrose path by your cursed franchise, I imagine we'll hear a few more "Fire Nicols!"
When do the reporters, players, coaches, and GM's vote for the MLS Coach of the Year? Is it immediately after the end of the regular season, or is it several weeks into the playoffs?
A coach's influence almost never takes hold right away. It's kinda like getting a new president. He might take credit for good stuff, but in reality there's not much a coach can do, except over TIME.
Lets add in 2001, when the Revs went 7-14-6. So, pre-Nicol they went 9-20-7 combined. Post Nicol 9-10-1 It took the Revs 36 games to win 9 before Nicol took over and only 20 once he took the helm. Will he win COY? I doubt it. But he is getting the potential out of that assembled talent .
The biggest problem Nicol had at the beginning of his tenure was fielding a healthy back line. He started out with the same type of system that he's using during his 4-0-1 run, but he was playing Hernandez, Cullen, and Nick Downing in central defense instead of Kante, Pierce, and Llamosa. As for the talent we siphined off, Diallo was traded for Serna (who was promptly injured) and Llamosa has been injured or busy with the WC for most of the year. Rooney had a big dropoff after the beginning of the season, and we're witnessing why the entire league passed on APC before we took him. Who would have thought that Adin Brown would be our biggest contributor from the Florida teams? I don't care who gets coach of the year, and I doubt that a coach with a .500 record will get it. However, Nicol went for quite a while with really bad defenders, and he's been winning with a pretty average squad. Here's a question, though. When figuring out MVP, do the Open Cup games get any consideration? That seems to be brought up a lot in the arguments of Ruiz over Twellman.
By the rules: no By the "background impression" left in the minds of the voters: no* (*-only because there is no proof that anyone, including players, coaches, and media are aware that the US Open Cup exists)
But COY is decided on this year. And anyone that wants to start comparing last year's New England roster with this year's needs help.
exactly. nicol has had a nice little run, but this isn't 'his' team, and he hasn't been coach all year. at best he gets a INCOMPLETE. please reapply next year.
You need to compare him to the other coaches in the league, not how crap his team was the year before. Plus the rev's aren't even the same team as they were last year.
If Nicol was so good, how'd the Revs get into such a mess in the first place? * Lack of continuity in defense, both in terms of personel and quality of play. With a 22 goal scorer, and the leagues leading assist man, I would expect them to have run away with the Eastern Conference. * Not when you're playing musical chairs on defense, and not when you don't have a consistently effective keeper in goal. Oh yeah, it also doesn't help when Diallo doesn't produce, Clavijo's tactical alignments didn't work, and Chacon when played is ineffectual. Look at the talent they siphoned off in the postseason.[/] I'm sorry, post-season or off-season? If they're one in the same, let's look at how these players are doing: 1. Matt Okoh: Last seen riding the pine for SC Campomaiorense in the Portuguese 2nd Division. 2. Johnny Torres: Turned out to be what he always was, a good A-League player. 3. William Sunsing: 3 goals and 1 assist for the Revs in 2001. Currently playing for Herediano, although getting a look by Molde in Norway thanks to his agent's connections there. Nice ground, doing well in the domestic league, great jazz festival there so I hear. We get Winston Griffiths who can dribble just as well, and we Kamler who can actually play with both feet. 4. Cate: Has been lighting it up for Chongqing Lifan in the Chinese First Division. Well, at least the last half of that statement's been confirmed. Revs get Steve Ralston though to take over distribution. 5. Mauricio Wright: God Bless him, he gets a goal in the World Cup and he's playing for AEK Athens. Too bad he was an absolute cancer in the locker room in New England. Daouda Kante's done the job well, he's respected by his teammates and he knows what it means to be a team player. 6. Leonel Alvarez: Back playing in Colombia. We get Daniel Hernandez, maybe as fast as Alvarez, but we get his cannon of a leg and an attitude that Leonel used to have. 7. Yari Allnutt: Great guy, bad luck with injuries. 8. Alan Woods: Back to the A-League 9. John Harkes: I'm sorry, who? 10. Eric Wynalda: Leg healed yet? 11. Roland Aguilera: Wait, he's not John Harkes? 12. Brian Dunseth: Still hitting on high school girls I expect. 13. Jeff Causey: Gonna be a good coach at Maryland. I don't buy the "Nicol" as COY Neither do I, but he's finally brought a measure of stability, the team's on a roll, there's been a complete attitude adjustment with the departure of Big Mama, and we've got a player who could be the league-scoring leader. COY? Who knows, who cares... The Magpie
what might give SN a couple of votes is the last 6 games of the season. Revs need to win 5 out of their last 6, and they are almost there. Do I think he will get it, no, for the reason that he hasnt been a coach for a full year. Next year, very possible. I also expect next year that Kante will be in contention for Defender of the Year, another blockbuster performance by Twellman and Ralston, and Brown will be one of the best GK's in the league, stats wise. Next year the west wont rule the table, Revs will be up there. I know its a bold statement, but Nicol is a good coach, and with his players, Revs will be contenders. (FYI, Nicol is the only winning coach in Revolution History.
Not this season. Not enough evidence. Next season would be his chance to prove it. Sigi Schmid has to be the favorite in my opinion. He was involved in the recruitment of Ruiz who has turned out to be a likely MVP. He plugged in one player into his team and they have been more than solid for most of the season. In fact they stand a pretty good shot of winning both the USOC and the MLS Cup. If they pulled that off there would be no question about him getting it. As a runner up I would nominate Greg Andrulis. The Crew have been fairly solid all season, even without McBride, but lately they have been playing very well even with an injured McBride.
I dont think a coach from the East will be getting COY. It took the second to last week of the season to finally have an East team clinch a playoff spot.
Nichol for coach of the stretch I vote for Steve Nichol for the "coach of the last 6 weeks of the season." The Revs are 4-0-1 in that time so that's good. Before that period, Nichol actually had a lower winning pct. that Clavijo did during his brief period. Even as a Revs fan, I vote for LA's Sigi Schmid. They were at least decent the whole year.
I disagree Coach of the year should go to Jeffery's or LA ziggy. Nicol's has the boring euro stlye and has the mvp from last year on the bench. He should trade him for a keeper if he isn't going to play 90. Jeffery's has done a great job this year. Ziggy is ziggy he just gets the best out of everyone. If Chicago makes it to the playoff's you have to think about Bradly come on with all the injury's this season and still has a chance to make it in the playoff's hes done wonders.
Re: I disagree That's right. He should just go out and trade a player who the other 9 teams refused to choose in the dispersal draft for a starting keeper. If he could do that, he should be coach of the year.