Who knows? I don't think it's a question of minutes for Conway. I just don't think Conway is very good. I'm very scared about our defense now with Barret and Cannon gone.
It would suck for Conway if everyone blames him when we give up a lot of goals next year, but since the defense is going to be weaker (no Barrett, Agoos and Dayak one year older) it may not really be his fault. I think Conway is a pretty good replacement for Cannon and can start in MLS, and I would rather not waste our precious salary cap dollars on Jonny Walker and instead divert them to the known quantities of Ekelund and Mulrooney.
I vote for Mbule M'Mmble, pronounced EM-boo-lay mm-UM-blay, the starting goalkeeper for the Angolan under 23's. He fecking rocks.
There's lots of talk of Johnny Walker but can anyone actually substantiate this? Is this feasible? Are their any keepers in the MLS (or A-league) for that matter who we can trade for a draft pick or something (god knows we can't afford to lose any more players to trade)
Jonny Walker is a known quantity. He has played on a championship team and has played in the Federation (?) Cup. Big Jon may just need some games under his belt to get the confidence, but I haven't liked his play so far. I agree to a certain extent with Mr. Reeves that money would be better spent towards field players. However, Columbus and NE did much better last year after GK changes. Sure, it wasn't solely because of the changes, but a solid keeper really gives a team some confidence. By the way, the chant should be...."You will never beat SKKKKKKY Walkerrrrrrr."
PLEASE: NO JON CONWAY AND NO TOM PRESTHUS. NO SOMMER, and I'd prefer no Jordan or Reis either. Kramer? eh. How about a DJ Countess?
With Jordan trying to land in Portugal? Not a chance. Well, come to think of it, if Jordan DOESN'T land in Portgual, I guess chances would go up about 5%. I think you get Walker in some sort of sleight of hand from the league. MLS Confidential or some such reported Walker made $100,000 in the Chilean League (very high by their standards) but would be making substantially less in MLS, so it's not like he would become a huge burden to the Quakes' cap.
Kramer? He's the worst one of the bunch. I doubt NE picked up Reis to get rid of him, Sommer is the likeliest candidate IMHO. I actually don't mind Presthus or Jordan. They both are way better than Conway, their footwork is good but they both seem to have lapses that end up on the scoreboard.
I wouldn't mind seeing Walker, at least not if he didn't come too heavily priced. However, I think the most likely, and the most viable solution is to give Jon Conway a chance.
He's been sitting down for the past few seasons. With the Joe gone to France it's his time to show what he's got. Conway should get his chance now. He won't be as great as Cannon the first year and with a much weaker defence it's best for him just to be himself and to play his own game. Don't try to be a hero but just get the job done. Better to get another young keeper to back him up instead of some recycled keeper who's over the hill (re: Cosmo Kramer, who was phased out of the team thanks to a certain keeper named Joe). Cheers!
I like Conway's distribution over Cannon's abaility to either boot it out or roll it out... Conway's arm is a serious weapon on the counter....which may just be our only way to stay competitive.....
I'll say this - watching Conway throw the ball is worth the price of admission. He once threw the ball and Cerritos was wistled offside trying to get to it! If he plays a season, I think he will get an assist or two from his arm.
Without knowing a whole lot about Josh Saunders (rookie, Cal) or Jonny Walker (apparently-sought-after-Chilean keeper,) I would have to think that Jon Conway will get first crack at the starting position, no matter what. Think about it...he has been a part of this team for years. He knows the system and the league--had the same training as Joe--been patient waiting for his turn. Seems to me that the team OWES him a chance. That only seems fair. Besides, with camp opening Monday, he is the only known commodity they have right now. I don't mean that to sound like a slight to Jon. Right now, Jon Conway is OUR GUY! We'd best GET BEHIND HIM. I like the idea of getting this Walker guy as a backup if the cost is not too steep. Maybe he will come in and look so good he wins the starter's job outright. Barring some wild trade in the coming days, I'm thinking of Jon Conway as our 'Keeper. Jon's a good guy. He doesn't deserve to hear a bunch of crap from us because we're mad that SuperJoe followed his dream.
What are you smoking? The only game I remember Conway was halfway decent in was the USOC quarterfinal game at Negoesco -- and we still lost it. The "he just needs playing time" schtick is of no consolation if we lose the first 11 games while he's finding his groove. Conway is not ready for prime time. We need to acquire someone of skill...fast.
      And how worried were we when some new GK picked up from the San Diego Flash had to take over in the middle of the '99 season (San Jose's only decent pre-Yallop MLS season) when David Kramer went down with a shoulder injury?       The answer is "lots".       GO EARTHQUAKES!!! -G
All We Are Saying is Give Jon a Chance... Well, Jon has to be the #1 keeper at this point. He's sat patiently, out of fairness he deserves a chance. A keeper of great experience would take up a lot of cap space, that of which can be used to hang on to Mulrooney and Ekelund. The team should try to get a keeper who could be an effective backup to Conway and like him, let him sit and watch. However, Jon can't be the keeper Joe was, he just has to go out there and get the job done. The defense is the bigger concern, especially with who's going to fill in for Barrett.
Go Long Ball! The only goalie that rivaled such as arm was Juergen Sommer when he threw a long lob at the WCQ game against El Salvador in 1997. One would think those guys were auditioning for quarterback jobs. George Blanda I presume? Cheers!
> What are you smoking? In his first year, he replaced Cannon for 6 games and had a similar GAA. He also got 2 shutouts. The problem with Yallop is that he does not play the subs anywhere near enough. You can count Conway's real games for the last 2 years on almost one hand. Because of that, he will certainly start out slow, just as Robinson, and even Donovan did (remember, he didn't get his first goal until the 6th game he played).