According to a recent article in the Washington Post, the Wilmington Hammerheads are considering a move to Baltimore, with some details including playing at Johnny Unitas Stadium, the home of Towson University football and lacrosse, and they would play in USL, the current 3rd division of US Soccer, which includes MLS teams. Currently, the Hammerheads have a relationship with Manchester City's NY affiliate in MLS, and I don't see that changing given the information available about the Hammerheads owner. I would love to sit and talk with the ownership group to discuss their plans and help them in any way possible with this transition.
Like I've said before, time and time again, Baltimore deserves a professional soccer team. However, I have major concerns about USL's structure and its allowance of MLS reserve teams (think Sounders 2, not Bethlehem Steel) and how that would impact how well the team can do here. I also think that the Bohemians are left out in the cold if the Hammerheads come up here as they will have built the framework for soccer branding here, despite the club's issues. I feel that a "merger" or a buying-out of the Bohs name and usage of their staff would be a great idea for the Baltimore USL group, but I can see how Bohs fans and ownership would be resistant to that. However, I don't think the Bohs can be as successful as they are with a pro team in town. They did not play at Bonvegna Field in Canton due to a sharp increase in rent. It had nothing to do with a lack of fan support.
Back to the point, though, if this is what it takes for Baltimore to get a professional soccer team, then I don't know if I can be completely happy with it, but I will come out to Towson to watch this team and cover it, either here or (hopefully) with a professional newspaper to where I could get paid to do it.
Wednesday, September 21, 2016
Tuesday, September 6, 2016
United States Secures Spot in Hex
The United States men's national team have won 4-0 against Trinidad and Tobago in front of a crowd just short of 20,000 in Jacksonville. Sacha Kljestan scored the opening goal late in the first half, but that was not the first chance the US had in front of goal as Hershey's Christian Pulisic hit the ball off the inside of both posts and away from the goal. He would not score, instead he would have two assists in his first start in a World Cup qualifier. Jozy Altidore scored a brace, and Paul Arriola had the fourth goal.
What struck me the most was Pulisic's movement on the ball and his creativity. He hit so many low crosses perfectly that I could see why Dortmund would not send him on loan. In fact, all four goals in some way or another were well-created team goals in which Pulisic was involved in one way or another. In my opinion, he was the man of the match by a mile.
In terms of defending, I thought the US played reasonably well until the latter stage when Trinidad and Tobago used all of their substitutions on attacking players to bring in fresh legs and to see if they could crawl back into the game. Bradley played his defensive midfield spot well enough, but Kljestan definitely played himself onto the field against New Zealand in October at RFK.
What I want to see more of: the patience in and around the attacking penalty area. The US took their time and carved the Trinidad and Tobago defense like a Thanksgiving turkey when they wanted to. I also want to see Pulisic get more starts for the national team.
What I want to see less of: the reliance on the goalkeeper to bail out the defense in certain situations. Howard played well tonight, but his defense was shaky at best when they truly had to put a shift in and challenge for the ball. Against better opposition like Mexico and Costa Rica, those opportunities go in more often than against the likes of Trinidad and Tobago.
What struck me the most was Pulisic's movement on the ball and his creativity. He hit so many low crosses perfectly that I could see why Dortmund would not send him on loan. In fact, all four goals in some way or another were well-created team goals in which Pulisic was involved in one way or another. In my opinion, he was the man of the match by a mile.
In terms of defending, I thought the US played reasonably well until the latter stage when Trinidad and Tobago used all of their substitutions on attacking players to bring in fresh legs and to see if they could crawl back into the game. Bradley played his defensive midfield spot well enough, but Kljestan definitely played himself onto the field against New Zealand in October at RFK.
What I want to see more of: the patience in and around the attacking penalty area. The US took their time and carved the Trinidad and Tobago defense like a Thanksgiving turkey when they wanted to. I also want to see Pulisic get more starts for the national team.
What I want to see less of: the reliance on the goalkeeper to bail out the defense in certain situations. Howard played well tonight, but his defense was shaky at best when they truly had to put a shift in and challenge for the ball. Against better opposition like Mexico and Costa Rica, those opportunities go in more often than against the likes of Trinidad and Tobago.
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