USWNT v. England, 5/17/2003 in Birmingham Maybe they'll re-name the place Birminghamm. 24 player call-up
Roster/pre-game for the 5/17 England match Here ya' go... http://www.ussoccer.com/news/fullstory.sps?inewsid=35070 It's pretty much the same 24 player roster that Heinrichs called in for the RFK game last month. Lori Chalupny from UNC was added to the mix though. My guess is Abigail Wambach won't be named to the final 18 yet again.
Oops...sorry for the duplicate thread. We may as well start bitching about how this affects the clubs. There are three matches on Saturday and one on Sunday. 5/17 NY v Philly Washington v Carolina Atlanta v San Jose 5/18 San Diego v Boston I would assume that the San Diegans and Bostonians that made the final 18 for the England game will be able to play on Sunday.
Birmingham is about 2-2.5 hour drive to Atlanta, and they is a 1 hr time difference. So the SJ and ATL players could be back in time for kickoff at Herndon.
Will Kelly Smith be able to play after her last saturday slight injury ? i do hope so, she is one of interesting palyers to see
Who is Lori Chalupny but yet another in the long line of North Carolina players. Sometimes, it just seems like you might as well just let Anson have the team back. Do ya think April listens to him?
Well, let's see. Dorrance's assistant at UNC is Bill Palladino, and April's assistant on the Nats is...Bill Palladino. I'd think it's fair to say that given the long history of UNC-WNT connections, UNC players just might have an edge. Which isn't to say that Chalupny isn't a promising player. She certainly looked great in the U-19 World Championships. But is she better or more deserving of a WNT call up than, say, Joanna Lohman of PSU (also a midfielder), who was a first team NSCAA and Soccer Buzz All-American? Hmmm.
9 out of 24 to be asked to camp are from North Carolina. And considering they will all make the traveling squad then 9 out of 18 or 50% of the entire United States Women's National Team are from North Carolina. It that fair to the rest of the players --- NO!
After talking with Coach Pia, I'd be very surprised if she asked her WNT players to try to play back-to-back matches. She will use any players released prior to the match, but puts great faith in team preparation and trusts her bench players to step in to fill the spots on the field. Not to take this thread on a Boston tack, but their bigger problem will be if Canadian WNT 'keeper LeBlanc gets called to be in Montreal for the 19th. Would she be allowed to play for Boston on the 18th?
I read a SJ Cyberrays article, as well as talking to the players at the Atlanta game, and the USA players plan to drive straight to Atlanta following the game. They will still have two or three hours before they play again.
Supporter's Section? Anyone know if there will be a "Sam's Army" section or a tailgate for this game?
I have been watching the weather for this weekend the 17th. There are supposed to be thundershowers. Could be a low turnout. Warm but wet. As I am traveling from Tennnessee, they would only call the game off or delay the game if there was lightning in the area right?
if you haven't seen it yet.... Bend it Like Beckham is playing in Birmingham this weekend at: Regal Galleria 10 3200 Galleria Circle Birmingham, AL 35216 205-982-9417
Hope Powell England manager has a very young an inexperienced roster due to the withdrawals of Kelly Smith, Faye White, Katie Chapman and Fara Williams, these four players are Englands most important players. A player to look out for is Rachel Yankey usually played on the left wing or up front very quick great dribbler and a left foot as deadly as Kelly Smiths. Also lok out for Ellen Maggs if Hope Powell finally plays her very quick and skillful Arsenal's first choice striker. Hopefully Rachel Brown will get her chance in goal over Pauline Cope but i doubt Hope Powell will make the change. Rachel Unitt and Casey Stoney who play left back and right back are good players who are both excellent crossers of the ball. I expect USA to win comfortably England are very much understrengthed, I'd say a high scoring game because England don't play bunker defence, I'm goign for USA to win 5-3
Any idea if Danielle Murphy (Univ of Florida) will be playing for England? Looks like the chances of thunderstorms will be diminishing by Saturday. They've played the Iron Bowl during tornadic weather at Legion Field, but soccer people tend to be smarter than that. Hopefully, as the week goes on, the chance of rain will continue to lessen. Why is it that Bend It Like Beckham is still playing ONLY at the Galleria?
England squad Not sure how up to date this is but............ http://www.nationwide.co.uk/football/common/intsquad.asp?W=1&TeamID=4
From the 5/13 Birmingham Post-Herald: Birmingham, Nation poised for World Cup By JIMMY DeBUTTS Scroll down to the middle. The way the Post-Herald posts stories on their site is kinda stupid.
Had to laugh,,, The article said... A "friendly" with Great Britain on Saturday will pro_vide the backdrop as Alabama Sports Foundation offi_cials make their push to bring the Women's World Cup to Birmingham. Didn't know that Great Britain had a national team? The other Birmingham paper, the Birmingham News, had the same thing... http://www.al.com/search/index.ssf?/base/sports/1052817418151230.xml?birminghamnews?ssport Fans of women's soccer don't have to wait until the United States and Great Britain play one another in a friendly Saturday at Legion Field to see the stars of the game.
Don't know if she's a BigSoccer PTH or not Congratulations to Molly, age 10, of Niceville, Florida! She won the "Momma Mia" contest on the Rick and Bubba Show out of Birmingham, Alabama. She and her family will receive great seats (probably in front of me), get to spend the day with the team, get VIP privileges (no, I don't know what that includes), receive a soccer ball autographed by the team and a gift certificate for dinner at Nonna Rose Italian restaurant. Should be a fun day for Molly and her English dad and American mom!