Kings Rue Missed Chances in 2-2 Draw with South Central PA Lions

The Baltimore Kings traveled to Gettysburg, PA yesterday to take on the South Central PA Lions, the same team they defeated 1-0 last week, and drew 2-2 after being down 2-0 at the half. This game, if anything, showed the mental fortitude that these players have to grab something out of a game that looked lost at halftime. However, that was not the full story.

The referee missed several fouls by the South Central PA team that could have turned the tide of the game in the Kings’ favor. For example, Chris White was tripped inside the penalty area by a South Central player and the referee waved play on. The opponents looked tired and lost after the Kings finally got their wits about them and started to tackle the Lions hard toward the 60th minute of play.

Communication, once again, was a key issue. In the Lions’ second goal, one of the centerbacks failed to clear the ball out of the penalty area, which resulted in a goal. However, when he got substituted off, he said that the goalkeeper said “Keeper”, which means that the centerbacks are to drop and allow the keeper to pick the ball up. The keeper failed to do so, and the goal was scored. If the keeper says that and fails to come out, that is a major communication issue and needs to be addressed immediately. Also, on the opponent’s first goal, the centerbacks both went up to attempt to clear the same ball out, and both missed, resulting in an open Lion and a goal. If the centerbacks are not talking to each other, it will cause the team lots of problems in the future, especially in 2017 if those particular two come back for the pro team. Also, on the free kick that was just outside the penalty area, the kick taker had time to do whatever he wanted to do, but everyone told him to shoot, so he did. This requires an amount of soccer IQ that is needed at the pro level.

Finally, the headline speaks the biggest issue at hand, and that is finishing the opportunities created by the crosses put into the penalty area. A striker’s finishing has to be clinical at the professional level, as most pro teams would not be giving the Kings the amount of opportunities this South Central team did in the second half. This game could have easily been 5-2 at least, had the Kings taken care of their chances.

The Kings next game is on July 10th at 6PM ET at Covenant Park in Howard County, MD against SAC Premier.

The Consequences of the UK Leaving the EU for US Soccer

In case you're just getting around to the news, the referendum has just been called and the British public have voted to leave the EU. This is a momentous day for all of us that study politics (for the obvious reasons), and it is also an important day for US soccer, as the path of least resistance for an American to play in Europe has officially closed for those without a British parent according to UK citizenship law. This means that for all future contracts and player signings, an American like Matt Mizaga, who does not have a British parent, would require a work permit to play for Chelsea. This would apply to all Americans who play for a professional club in the UK, which effectively closes out the door for Americans with EU passports access to British clubs. The knock-on effects will be outstanding, and I will list the approximate effects below:

- More US kids will be turned off by soccer. Yes, you read that right. They will turn away from soccer mostly because they (or their parents) do not have the time or money to pay for a tutor in another language, which would be a de facto requirement of the American soccer player in Europe... that is, if they possess that elusive EU eligibility.
- Those players that have been playing for British clubs (Zelalem, Cropper, et al) may have to move back to the US to salvage their careers as UK clubs will find Americans with EU passports less attractive due to the work permit issues. Zelalem may be an exception to this.
- More kids that do play soccer will be encouraged by pretty much everyone to learn Spanish, French, or German if they posses an EU passport to assimilate easier into a foreign country that does not speak their language, leading to more bi-lingual soccer players

I cannot stress enough how much of a blow this is for US soccer as a whole. Not only has a key development path been taken away from Americans who do not have the patience to learn a second language but possess an EU (not UK) eligible parent, this will only put more talented Americans in the hands of less-than-qualified coaches whose goals are to win State Cups and not to develop professional-grade players.

Teston Scores First Goal in Kings History in 1-0 Win

Joel Teston etched his name in the history books of Baltimore pro soccer as he scored the first goal in Baltimore Kings history in a 1-0 win over the South Central PA Lions at John Carroll. The visitors were down to 10 men as one of their players was injured after some contact to his knee as he slid in to recover a ball and they had no substitutes available to them. There was a lot to analyze from this game, both positives and a large negative. The first mention I would like to make is that John Carroll did not have any extra water dispensers available to the team when they ran out of water, but that is a venue issue, not an on-the-field issue. The first on-field comment from me today was the amount of passing done and the improvements made within the span of a week to address some key possession issues. The Kings played the ball very well and made that small field theirs from the start. There wasn’t a single thing South Central could have done to stop them, with the exception of reacting quicker to Baltimore’s possession.

The second take away from me with regard to this game was the amount of chances created by turnovers for the Kings, which was lacking last week because SAC never let go of the ball. They were very incisive with their passing, which led to some goal-scoring opportunities. This could have (and should have) been a wider score margin with the amount of chances the Kings got throughout the game.

There can also be an argument made that South Central deserved something out of this game due to the amount of pressure they put the Kings under from about the 75th minute on. It looked like South Central, a team with just the 11 players required to play a game, was fitter than the Kings, who had a whole 18 players with them, and that is flat out unacceptable. It seemed that they collectively got a second wind at the same time to mount a continuous attack for the last 15 minutes of the game, and it looked like South Central were the ones with 18 players. It also must be said that the Kings were just waiting out the time at that point, but if those players wish to move up to the professional ranks, they have to take every minute as seriously as any other -- in other words, do not let up when you are up late because that lead can disappear in a flash. That is the most important thing the Kings need to work on in practice: fitness. They closed this one out… barely. Had that game gone on for another 5 minutes, I could see South Central scoring due to the momentum shift that occurred.

Next Sunday, the Kings travel to Lancaster, PA to play the same team. Time and venue to be confirmed.

Kings Fall in Club Debut to SAC Premier 1-0

The Baltimore Kings U23 men’s team lost to SAC Premier 1-0 in a closely-contested affair at Covenant Park in Howard County, MD. The Kings showed some positives, with Carlos Caro picking up some key saves toward the end to keep the boys in the game. Some other observations are that they had most of the ball throughout the game, but they could not capitalize on that possession with a goal. Another key factor in determining the outcome of this game was the turnovers in the defensive part of midfield. One of those led to their goal, scored on a quick counterattack. The game started off with a bang, as the Kings played their style and did not let SAC have much possession of the ball as the Kings knocked the ball in and penned SAC deep. The problem was that they could not maintain that style of play for the whole 90 minutes, but that can be addressed with practice playing together. Another observation was that they did not use the width of the pitch to full effect. In one play in the second half, the left winger had the ball at his feet and there was no supporting run down the left side, so he cut into the middle and gave the ball away. The wind was swirling today, so it is sort of understandable that the winger did not go out to the sideline to attempt a cross into the penalty area, but that should be the goal of that play. That was just one example of how playing together can fix an issue that can be resolved before their next game. Another more tactical flaw is the lack of a “fulcrum” in the midfield to connect the forwards with the midfielders, as the midfielders had a lot of ground to cover to get to the forwards, also causing some turnovers and negative play.

Also apparent to me watching that game was that there was more talking on the bench than on the field, and that is a major issue with a team that has just started playing together. Communication is key not just in soccer but in life, as with just a simple phrase or wording from teammates out there, balls can be played better than what were played. Also important is that the team act as one when communicating, as when people talked to one another on the field, they were telling the player on the ball to do different things. While it is OK to disagree with what a player should do in any given situation, the player has to have the intelligence to look up and assess the situation for himself, especially if that player wants to move up to the professional level, so that he can make his own decisions.

Overall, I think the Kings played well in the defensive third of the pitch, marking well enough for this level but not for a professional level. Their wingers were open all day long if SAC wanted to use them, and use them they did, as their tactical strategy was to go toward the outside of the penalty area and lob in crosses. That is generally the play style of every team that the Kings will face, so they will have to practice defending that, which they clearly have done.

The next game is next Sunday at home to South Central PA Lions. The venue and time are to be determined.