If there was any remaining doubt about who the premier soccer columnist in America is right now, it's just been erased. Bill Urban has it down. I'm not citing any grafs for you - just go there and read it: http://www.ussoccerplayers.com/exclusives/482168.html
Thanks for the link. Just because someone is an "internet nut" doesn't mean they are wrong. It's easy to use dismissive labels on someone telling truths you don't want to hear.
This article (sadly) reinforces what has been running through my head over the last few weeks. "Why am I supporting this club? It's become so dismal that no-one seems to care. Most of the players don't care enough to give 100% effort, the coaching staff doesn't care enough to change tactics, and the FO and ownership don't care enough to make a coaching move. Of course, there's no way in hell I'd support another MLS club - but my support for this one is wavering, as well. What kind of moron supports something that doesn't give two fvcks about them? The same kind of moron who stays in a crap relationship, or drives a crap brand of car - just because they're too stubborn to realise what's going on." Yes, I talk to myself. Yes, I'm frustrated. This article should make me feel better, but it doesn't. FVCK.
Sad but true, thanks for the link........ Are we still leading the league in biggest attendance drop? I'm not buying the cheapness excuse. At $12 a ticket, the team would only have to score an aggregate 9,000 fans over the remaining games to cover Greg's approximate salary.
I have no idea what Urban is referring - you'd have to ask him. But there is plenty of evidence that it's true AFAIC. The latest was Simon Elliott's post-game comments, which essentially said that the players were not doing what they were being told to do. If the players tuning out the coach is not "losing the locker room" then perhaps there's another definition I'm not aware of.
I sent a copy of the article to Mark McCullers. Maybe if everybody floods him with it, along with a request that he forward it to the Hunts... at least we'll be annoying someone.
Yes, that was a fascinating comment. I'd love to know what he was referring to. As for not respecting the coach, I think there is signficant circumstantial evidence that the opinion of top experienced players like Elliott, Fraser, Henderson, Warzycha, and now Walker is highly respected and that the management of the Crew is not an autocratic what-one-man-thinks operation. I'm not sure where Dude Martino and Dude Hejduk fit in. And I don't have any hard evidence.
None of us do, Paul. And one good reason for this is that very early this season they sent all the players a memo instructing them in no uncertain terms to keep any and all comments to the press "positive". ISTM that the players have handled this in different ways, one of which is to avoid reporters altogether. Many post-game reports have noted that the vast majority of the guys were long gone by the time the writers were given access. As for guys like Elliott and Fraser, they are professionals in every sense of the word. They are never, ever going to run to the press after a game and say "Boy, that Andrulis: what a jackass; if only they'd can his stupid ass, maybe we'd have a chance" If that is the kind of proof you're looking for, then you're never going to be satisfied. There'll be snow on the hills of hell a good two weeks before either of them, or any of the other guys you mentioned (I can't believe you included Warzycha) starts in whining to reporters. Barring that, and with HSG's corporate penchant for secrecy, reading between the lines and extrapolating from a distance is all we have. It's possible that we're all way wrong about this, and Greg is admired, respected and even loved by every last manjack of them. But I doubt it, and I bet you do too.
This is also a prime example of a team "not buying into a coach's system". I me, come on, we hear that all the time in every sport in the world, and he you have prime evidence of that. So like Bill said, this quote set should show how Greg has lost the locker room.
Craig Merz's column in today's (7/4) Dispatch lays it on the line: http://www.dispatch.com/crew/crew.php?story=dispatch/2005/07/04/20050704-C8-00.html&chck=t Sorry, but I don't have a Big Soccer link. It's a great review of all we've discussed on these boards and some additional stats. The SJ team losing players to injury and still being second in the West is a pretty decisive cut vs. some of the excuses around Crewdom. GA is a wonderful man in WAY over his head and now EVERYONE knows -- "Patience is no excuse for Parsimony".... HSG is letting in him dangle from the gallows in a stubborn attempt to rationalize their 2004 & '05 contract decisions. I have NO respect for HSG - take your rock and haul ass Lamar.
Plus, San Jose lost about half its team in the offseason, but they're not complaining. San Jose is the perfect example of what Columbus SHOULD have been.
Only by about 750 average. And that's paid tickets, not actual attendance. I would wager that there are more physical bodies in the stands in S.J. than in Crewville right now.
Merz States in his Crew review: "It's a gloomy Monday with the realization that this could be one of the worst Crew seasons ever." "WHAT WENT WRONG: A missed penalty by Mario Rodriguez. A red card to Kyle Martino. An own goal. All in one game. You can't make this stuff up. If the Crew had a better offensive scheme than knocking the ball downfield, none of those problems would have mattered. D.C. was primed to be beaten." "PESSIMIST VIEW: The Crew had better hope it doesn't face a Wilmington, Del., minor-league club in the U.S. Open Cup on Aug. 3. How ridiculous would it be to lost to it?" "TICK TOCK: Kicking someone when he's down is easy. Standing up for Andrulis is not. He's an extremely nice man with a great personality who cares deeply for his players. He has shown far more class than the fans who berate him wherever he goes. But, as the saying goes, "nice guys finish last." It's apparent the GM Mark McCullers will have to do something by the end of the month if there isn't a turn-around. The Crew plays three of the next four at home, all but the San Jose game are against conference opponents. There's no magic number, but a good guess is that the Crew must win at least two for Andrulis to stay on. It's a shame it has come to this because he didn't miss the penalty kick or make a dumb tackle at midfield for a red card. It is his team, so Andrulis will be the fall guy." "DIGITAL: 1 - Point out of a possible 12 in the last four games, all agains the Eastern Conference. 0 - Times the Crew has had consecutive winning seasons. It has only been above .500 in 1999, 2001 and 2004. Everyone should have seen the team's problems coming this season." Those are the big points. My take on them: At this rate, we WOULD lose to Wilmington. Merz calls out Andrulis' offensive theories on one hand, but then defends him with the other. You can't have it both ways. Either it's his fault, or it's not. It's a professional sport, not Girl Scouts. Enough of this "Nice Guys Finish Last" Crap. I expect more out of a "major" newspaper. And, as far as "Everyone should have seen the team's problems coming this year." I believe that a lot of us DID, and WERE VERY VOCAL ABOUT IT LAST YEAR!
One thing that was interesting to me was that NBC 4 ran a story about the fans getting vocal against Andrulis. It wasn't an interview with fans or anything, but it was good to see the television stations starting to plant the question in the casual fan who doens't realize how poorly they're playing.
This is the most dissappointing offering that Merz has ever offered us. I can't for the life of me understand how one week he can be highly critical of Andrulis and then follow it up with the trite offering we got today. I'm starting to think that he has a split personality.
That's all good and well if he were the manager down at Home Depot. But did everyone in the FO forget that this is a fvcking professional sports team???? Getting results IS your job! Where's Trump when you need him?
After rereading the article, I have another point of contention with Merz as well. Is he calling Crew fans "classless"? In seriousness, apart from some papers being thrown at him as he exits the field after the game (which has been discussed ad nauseum), where have Crew fans acted classlessly? I am not saying one thing or another about the pink slips, but what else can Merz referring to? As Zak said, this is one of the worst offerings. I keep waiting for some truly insightful questions, or articles beyond the typical "spoonfed" stuff. Perhaps that's my fault.
I would image, much like the infamous memo that found its way around the players this season, that if CBC did anything of the sort he would suddenly find himself without all his "juicy inside information."
A great article - and great post by Bill...there are two issues I'd like to add... First is, the Crew and Wizards are losing dollars like we're running up large water bills keeping our grass green...HSG, and MLS, cannot afford it when a guy like Andro gets the sack, and leaves, along with Maize, Pauley, etc. with money in the bank...if they sack Andro they eat the salary, and go further in the red...for the 10th season (weren't we supposed to have some momentum), this league looks like it's on its last legs if you ask me...watching the game Saturday night I thought the Crew looked like a Sunday pub team out for a kick-a-about, only they looked like my Irish Terrier chasing fire flies... Second, this team is sorely lacking in professionalism. If our two most professional players are Elliott and Fraser, we're in deep trouble lads...neither of them is a scorer or playmaker...I've not seen either take a bite out of any of the lads on the pitch... I'd rather see a Bowyer - Dyer bust up than the listless bunch of punch drunk players we have... Oh for old Judge Brown - it might be time to trade the franchises, just as the old Buffalo Braves and Boston Celtics did...hell, I'd take Chivas USA...maybe not Chivas, but atleast their kits are better...
This guy's defense of Andrulis is that "he's a nice guy?" you'd better hope though that higer-ups don't see this one and stubbornly decide that they want to do the tough thing and "stand-up" for Andrulis. Hell Hudson is a heck of a nice guy and a great personality, but he wasn't kept around here (DC).