The U.S. Open Cup began this week and the A-League season continued on. With results rolling over the weekend many fans could tell that the storm clouds were gathering for the midweek Open Cup matches. Milwaukee built up momentum. Connecticut maintained the pace they've set since the start of the season. The Blast were brought back to Earth after a short respite from their usual doldrums. All of this happened as the anticipation built ahead of the latest round of the U.S. Open Cup where many fans looked forward to seeing some of the usual upsets that seemed to occur every year around this time.
Last year there were rumors of a possible termination of the long standing Open Cup but with the newfound popularity that the games enjoy with the fans of lower level squads the rumors have ceased. Not to mention that it gives the MLS clubs a chance to visit and possibly make fans in smaller communities that may have previously been passive about their view of MLS.
Several A-League teams geared up for their cup clashes with decent results over the weekend. Tops among those teams was the Milwaukee Rampage who pulled out two tight victories over Western Conference opposition. They paced themselves to a 4-3 win over San Diego and followed that with a 2-0 win over El Paso two days later.
San Diego took their narrow loss against the Rampage to Minnesota on Sunday and were able to even out their fortunes on their Midwestern swing with a 1-0 victory over the Thunder.
El Paso were twice unlucky in their losses against both Minnesota, which won 2-1 on Friday, and Milwaukee. With two consecutive losses it's hard to believe that the Patriots were feeling all that confident going into their clash with Chico in the Cup competition.
Milwaukee came into their meeting with Utah expecting a tough match but a win nonetheless. They were able to take away a 2-0 win against the Blitzz whom many had tipped as prime candidates to provide an upset in this round of the Cup. David Hayes once again proved his worth on the field despite his troubles off of it as the Rampage move into the next round.
The Patriots needed everything they had as the Rooks attempted to knock them out of the tournament but somehow El Paso managed to squeak out a 4-3 win to keep their Cup hopes alive. They'll need to do better on the defensive side of the ball if they want to go further in this tournament.
San Diego's new boys got their first taste of MLS competition in the Cup as they faced the Fire. There had been some controversy about Flash FC not hosting the match but in any event some of their home fans may not have wanted to see what happened to their team. The Fire put pain to the San Diego club's ambitions with a 3-0 win that often looked like the defending Open Cup champs were in cruise control with emphasis on the word control.
Pittsburgh warmed up for their encounter with the Colorado Rapids by beating Toronto 2-0 and traveling to Long Island to gain a draw 1-1. The 'Hounds were able to pick up five points toward the standings and got a nice warm up before the MLS boys came calling.
Tim Hankinson's men, though, found the going quite hostile in Western Pennsylvania as they discovered that there were at least 11 angry men waiting for them in Pittsburgh. Many of the 'Hounds players have been passed over or discarded by MLS clubs and it's easy to see that the Riverhounds came out to prove a point Wednesday night which they did with a sound 2-0 victory.
Nashville was able to prepare for their clash with the Los Angeles Galaxy with a Sunday game against Indiana, which they handily won 3-0. For the Blast it was their second defeat in as many games after a heartbreaking 3-2 overtime loss to the visiting Cincinnati Riverhawks. The Blast is beginning to show a bit more of last season's form as we get nearer the midway point in the season.
Unfortunately for the Metros they apparently didn't get enough practice against a team with an offense because when Wednesday rolled around the Galaxy made quick work of their A-League foes. Marvin Quijano, who was a bit of a pain for Nashville in the past, seemed to be on a mission for Los Angeles in leading them to a 5-0 victory. I guess L.A. didn't care for seeing the Fenger.
Both Charleston and Richmond prepared for their Open Cup contests with tough 1-0 wins on the road. Charleston went to Atlanta in a Southern Derby match and took four points home with them while Richmond traveled to the lunar pitch at Charlotte and took away four as well.
Both were able to use some of that experience and the joy of playing at home to full effect in thrashing their Cup opposition. Richmond drubbed Reading 7-2 in a match that saw Kevin Jeffrey strike for a pair while Charleston took their MLS opponents, the NY/NJ Metrostars, to task at Blackbaud Stadium. For the Battery this was the second time in three years that they were able to knock off MLS competition. This time it was the largely punchless Metrostars that fell victim to Charleston.
Rochester and Hershey were also preparing for an Open Cup clash that as of this moment is still yet to happen after a bit of a ruckus ensued when two of the A-League's top teams were drawn against each other in this round of the tournament. My advice? Let 'em play and worry about it next season. This is going to be great fun no matter which way you slice it and if the situation is fixed for next year then so be it.
At any rate, the Rhinos hosted Montreal who have heated up of late, unfortunately most of that fire's been spent on friendlies, while Rochester are still going consistently goal-less. This played out once again as these teams held each other to a 0-0 draw.
Meanwhile, in Hershey, the Connecticut Wolves came calling and showed the same consistent form they've been using so far this season to stand last year's results on it's collective head. The 0-0 draw out of Hershey has to be viewed as a success that probably seemed even sweeter after they victimized someone who was not Scott Garlick in the Tampa Bay Mutiny goal to knock out the MLSers 3-2.
On Thursday Toronto visited Long Island so they could commiserate over missing out on the Open Cup but the Rough Riders wanted none of it from the Canadian squad that knocked them out of last season's playoffs with a dominating 3-0 win.
Of course Seattle was a busy place to play soccer last week as both the Sounders and their Select squad were preparing for their respective matches against MLS opposition. The Sounders looked strong with a road win over the suddenly porous Whitecaps, 5-1. Unfortunately the goals dried up when they traveled to Kansas City where they dropped a 3-0 decision to the MLS champions.
The Sounders Select squad registered the biggest shock of the Cup so far with their stunning 3-2 overtime victory against the Dallas Burn. The victory gets the Select squad yet another game in the national spotlight and it will be interesting to see if their next opponents take them seriously as the Burn did.
Now we're coming off the Open Cup for a week or so and you're wondering what to do? Well, may I suggest trying to catch some of the marquee matches of the upcoming week of action?
Saturday sees several exciting matches occurring around the league starting off with Richmond hosting Atlanta. The Silverbacks are trying to climb back into the Central race and Richmond's trying to kick them out.
Charlotte pays a visit to Hershey this weekend as the Eagles get to see what they're made of as they face one of the top teams in the league on the road. Long Island also has some interesting action this weekend as they travel to Rochester and Pittsburgh. Those two clubs could make this trip quite a rough ride for the New Yorkers.
Seattle does the Midwestern double this week while Connecticut swings another Canadian double. The Sounders travel to Milwaukee and Minnesota which could mean trouble for Seattle as both the Rampage and Thunder seem to be heating up slowly but surely. Meanwhile, the Wolves host Toronto over the weekend with a midweek match against the Impact who finish their international friendly tournament against Cosines of the Italian Serie B this weekend.
In other matches this week you'll also have the option of seeing:
Friday, June 29th
Nashville @ Indiana
San Diego @ El Paso
Vancouver @ Portland
Saturday, June 30th
Charleston @ Cincinnati
Sunday, July 1st
San Diego @ Vancouver
Tuesday, July 3rd
San Diego @ Portland
Indiana @ Charleston
Wednesday, July 4th
Pittsburgh @ El Paso
Here's to a happy 4th of July for the American readership and a happy July 1st for all of our Canadian friends. Remember to cheer for your guys and gals this weekend as the USA plays Mexico in World Cup Qualifying on Sunday and the USA and Canada women's teams face each other this week. Have a safe celebration and I'll be back next week.
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