I would have until I looked at the syllabus and realized I have a paper due Thursday. To make things worse, he is going over info. that isn't in the book but will be on the test so he made it impossible for me to skip.
You're right, this was part of the Power Point presentation at the meeting. Very cool. I've missed the weekly Inside Soccer show. Also they discussed trying to get local TV coverage of all away games that aren't nationally televised.
And happy birthday to you, too Wow, there sure are a lot of November birthdays. Is that because it's cold in February?
Okay, so for those of us too tired to do the math (and those of us too old to remember 18 for that matter ) which day in December is your birthday?
WHOA... Jeff Cassar is a finalist for The Bachelor? are you serious? ROFL... thats awesome! I really wish I could've been there tonight... I need a car!!! Thanks to those who took notes- tho. 7th... I'm a Pearl Harbor baby! I think TA can back me up here when I say that I want The OC on DVD as a present...
Either that, or people are "trying again" after an unsuccessful New Year's resolution to have a kid. The most common birthday is Oct 5th, which just happens to be equal to Dec. 31st + 274 days (the avg. gestation period for folks).
Cool, I wasn't sure if anybody would get it. October 5th, huh? That's pretty interesting. I love trivia.
The radio news is great. I suppose this is heresy amongst the Inferno-ites, but I enjoy plopping in my earphones during sporting events and listening to the play-by-play while I watch the action. To the annoyance of whatever companion I bring along.
I think the biggest news concerned the draft. I expect next Monday to be chaotic as teams scramble to gain the players they want and sacrifice others to make room. This next week will certainly keep everybody on their toes. Thanks for the info, Buzz!
Good reports and nice to see FC Dallas doing this. In a way it seems like they are trying to be accountable to the people that keep comign week in and week out.
In response to Buzz's notes..... It certainly "sounds" like they have some good ideas. Unfortuately they seem to drop the ball before they are able to get it to the table. I am not sure if they are double speaking as politicians do, or they have simply been inept. Bringing back Pareja and Kreis? Why? Too old, too expensive. HSG is still years away from sniffing any kind of success. Why not give those minutes, practice reps to guys who might be in uniform if/when this team can challenge? Rather than sending the gringo's to Spanish classes, what about getting some personnel that already habla the lingo? (I do credit theindividual staff for trying.) If they are truly serious about regaining the Hispanic segment, you will see a front office hire that is one. (not holding my breath.) --So, is it HSG double-speak or do they really want the Hispanic market back? The business of not using the allocation, is plain and simple-- Prepare for the rote drill of put off, lower expectations, and go cheap. That is the official HSG slogan. As for targeting a marquee Hispanic name to draw-- I will have to see it to believe it. Remember CC's trip to CA and SA? He didn't see one player in a whole hemisphere? I don't see how the man finds his arse to clean himself with such limited vision. As for the adding 3-4 guys they saw from the local league games, I think that they are truly spouting BS strictly for the sake of appearing to say the right things. As for their takeover of FC Dallas and their upcomming involvement in youth soccer. The club soccer community tends to be a little more soccer savvy than your average Joe soccer fan. Even the whitebreads in that group know the stylistic differences of the game. The Euro-retread direction that HSG wish to propogate, is going to sabotoge them before they even get out of the gate. If they cannot hear the loud and clear message that the empty seats send. If they cannot read the frequent posts by regular customers complaining of this style of play. If they are so out of touch with the whitebreads that shell out major bucks for club soccer. If they cannot see where even their beloved Euro teams go to sign new talent. Then this venture is fatally flawed. CC's soccer vision, GE's lack of experience , HSG's cheapness and stubborn inclination to an archaic style of soccer leave me with confidence that we are setting up a dynasty of underperformance. But at least they will "say" the right things. Let's see the "action".
This is one of the main weaknesses in their plan to attract the Hispanic fan back to Dallas matches too. Having more Spanish-speaking front office staff is a nice step forward, but I'm afraid the Latino fans will still stay away as long as unattractive soccer reigns in Dallas.
Not trying to restart the Euro Vs Latino debate, but how is the Latino style(SA and CA in particuler) any more attractive? My thinking is it depends on each person and what they like. Theo, I believe Clarke had found a player or two when he did the trip to SA last yr, but right as he was boarding the plane, the phone call came in that Gibbs was comign to Dallas. Plus with only 3 SI spots, 2 which were filled made things a bit difficult. You are right, HSG are a bunch of cheap skates, but then again, there might be a gem that is considered cheap and becomes franchise player. Ideally this is not the best approach, but spending millions isn't the best idea either. Theo, did i understand you correctly that you don't mind watching the Dutch league? If so, what would you think if Dallas could get someone from the Ajax reserves/youth staff to come and help out with the youth academy for Dallas? The thinking behind this is Ajax has been able to pull out a few gems. With that said, the idea of a Euro youth academy(the U-whatevers) and reserves in theory is a sound idea. Now what remains to be seen is how the coaching staff works out. This is where I think it is a make or break area. Now a question pops to mind: What if Clarke or someone finds a 15 yr who is not from the USA, will there be a restriction that prevents them from coming? if there isn't, then this could open the doors to make just about everyone happy.
In my opinion there was only one disappointing aspect of last night THM and that was the resounding dissmissal of the move to the Eastern Conference. As Buzz posted on http://www.3rddegree.net/ It is not up to the GMs; thus, there might still be some hope. As for the many other bullet points, the radio coverage, the hour show, the road TV package, the Latino "outreach" program et al. It all SOUNDS great. It was almost "evangelical". FC Dallas has declared some very ambitious benchmarks that in my opinion is up to us, that support the club, to be the custodians of their word. Go FC Dallas. I can hardly wait...
Thanks for the re-cap Buzz. Us out of towner types appreciate it greatly. I wish I could have made it but I am trying to save up some vacation time.