Damnit, HSG, you've thrown my world into turmoil. Everyday for as long as I can remember I had "Fire Andrulis!" posts to read. Now there's no need! Some people are going to have to re-invent their posting careers. I can only hope the new careers are as entertaining as the past careers.
I recommend the following for those who feel panic by the need to reinvent themselves: http://www.randsinrepose.com/archives/2004/07/10/what_to_do_when_youre_screwed.html
To be fair very little on this team is settled, going forward I think Busch/Walker is the direction you go at keeper, Woly seems a serviceable forward, Marshall is a lock. Apart from that are there any other players that aren't despensible? That's the way I see it.
I think you keep a lot of the younger guys, esp. Danny, Wingert, and Sutton. We should see a lot more shake out in the coming weeks as Warzycha starts putting his stamp on it. There may be a few players who really stand out, that were being hidden by Andrulis.
There is a solid young core to build around - Marshall, Wingert, Szetela, Buddle. There is a proven keeper in Busch. Mostly, there are MLS veterans who aren't going to be of much help to a team outside of the playoffs. I'd start conversations now about darn near everyone who might be of value to a team looking to plug a hole - Hejduk, Elliott, Fraser, Wolyniec, Henderson. Get young in return, get draft picks, etc.... The organizational focus needs to be on '06, not on trying to salvage '05, and I hope that's the approach taken in choosing a coach as well....
I hope the Dave Dir's and Octavio's of MLS past are not part of the search. Thank God Sampson already has a job and is not on a short list. Chicago has hired two of Bruce's assistants over the years and done very well. I'd take a chance on Mooch if it were to be. If not, it may be time for Jay Martin to come down from Ohio Weslyan. I wish my name-sake Warzycha all the best, but fear he is not the long term answer. A great day none-the-less, Greg needed to go a long time ago. It is worth saying he is a great guy and handled this with calss. Mike Clark last year, Andrulis this year. Next year, maybe we'll get rid of the dreadful PA announcer.
Good call, though I'd miss him. Honestly, would Crew games be the same without his mangling of, well, everything?
Well, if you're cleaning house, I have a hot tip on a crack office support team: Potential Crew Office Staff - Video of Tryout
I suggest you look at this Dispatch "thread": http://dispatch.com/issue.php?story=121177 Only about one or two sane people in it. The rest either are still pissed off that soccer gets covered, or use the injury excuse.
I love the guy who bothered to answer the poll as "Don't care" and then write how irrelevant soccer is and how it hasn't grown in 25 years, and he could care less. That's what I do about things I have no interest in, I respond to a poll, and then comment about how I have no interest. What a loser.
You forgot the group that is still pissed they "destroyed the sacred ground of Ohio Stadium." Most of them are probably just fed up there hasn't been a story on OSU football in a couple days.
That was my favorite until the $outsource$ comment. That guy was worse because he's ignorant but doesn't know it. The other guy is ignorant and proud of it.
Non-Crew follower here: I know Andrulis was a millstone around the club's neck, but are there also player problems? Or can respectable results come from the squad you've got now? It seems like Crew's problems were more in goal scoring than allowing goals (Hello, CDCUSA). What has to happen player-wise to change that? Curious for informed conjecture.
I'm always mildly amused by 1460 The Fan. Stop by on the day one of only two "Major League" sports teams in town fires their head coach, and what do you get? A couple stories, some pictures, maybe a copy of McCuller's statement or a retrospective on his five years at the helm? Please. They're offering to replay radio broadcasts of old Ohio State football games. Really moving with the times, that bunch.
All due respect, we're not rehashing five years of nightmares. It's over. It's a new day. The past is done. Let the dead bury the dead.
That's the million dollar question isn't it. I certainly think there is talent on this team. At least as much as most teams in MLS, excluding maybe NE. I also think that several players wouldn't or couldn't give their all for Andrulis. They just didn't look happy to be playing. I think it all depends on how the players respond to the change. Will they come out with a new intensity? I can see where they would because if they continue to lose then it kind of shows that it wasn't just Andrulis, that several of them need to be packing as well. Although on the other hand they could just continue to go down the drain like Dallas did in 2003. I imagine a good result in Chicago could do a lot for their confidence. Can Warzycha even get that out of them given that he's been the midfield coach these last few years and midfield has been the weakest area of this team?
Here's a segment from a random June or July Crew game: Dwight - "And Dougherty puts it over the bar for a corner kick. Let's take this time to pause ten seconds for radio station identification on the Columbus Crew Radio Network." Radio voice guy - "You're listening to 1460 The Fan. Home of the Buckeyes and Blue Jackets." Dwight - "Back now, as (fill in player) has the corner kick.. puts it in the box..." *fade out* Yes, even in JULY, during a CREW game, they had to remind their audience that they were the home of those two teams, currently on summer vacation. Not that it's related, but I heard 1460's ratings dropped during Crew games, compared to whatever else they had in the summer.
LOL. Except that the "W" is pronounced as a "V" ...VAR-ZEE-HA. No alliteration unless you make it Vhack VAR-ZEE-HA. Let's hope its doesn't come to that