After last week's abbreviated column I'm back with another installment on where we are at this point in the season. There have been controversies, rumors, success stories, and failures. Great stories abound around this A-League season and, thankfully, I can begin to cover them again properly. For those who miss the recap of league action that I spent most of the first half doing you can get something similar by checking out our fan match reports and Keith Kiedrowski's weekly wrap-up. Anyway, back to the point there's a lot of ground that needs to be covered about our season up to this point so I'd better get on with it.
There's hardly been a season in recent memory that's been as riveting as this one around the A-League. The case could be made for all of US Soccer to be included in that statement as well. Witness a decent Open Cup run by several underdogs, the success of the U.S. Men's squad as they try to lock up qualification for Japan/Korea 2002, the worst to first runs of Miami and San Jose in MLS, the surprising about face turned by the Connecticut Wolves in the A-League, and the inaugural season of the WUSA. There are also some negative surprises as well such as the nearly first to nearly worst drops of Kansas City and Tampa Bay in MLS and Minnesota in the A-League, the disappointing showing in the Under 20 World Championships by the an American squad that many held high hopes for, and the seemingly ongoing rebuilding/re-tooling of the U.S. Women's national squad.
One thing that can definitely be said at this point about this season is that it has indeed been interesting. After last year's almost anti-climactic meeting between Minnesota and Rochester some would have had us believe that we'd never escape this annual meeting for all the marbles. It was a situation most bemoaned as thoughts of dynastic rule zipped through the minds of many a fan but this year has shown that this just is not likely to be.
Minnesota looks to be struggling to get anywhere near the playoffs this season and may be on the way towards resigning this season to the status of a rebuilding year. Rochester has once again found itself in a divisional dogfight with their toughest competition this season coming from Hershey and Connecticut who replace Long Island and Toronto from last year. Yet, with this kind of change going on with what have been the two leading clubs in the league for the past few seasons there still remains a certain amount of consistency with other teams around the league.
In the Central Charleston and Richmond keep flip-flopping for top honors while the rest of the division battles it out for playoff spots. In the West parity is the key word with the lone exception being Minnesota. Milwaukee have looked strong while Portland and San Diego have provided a nice test to any Rampage superiority. The resurrected Flash and the newly minted Timbers have been a pair of surprises in the West as well.
And now without further ado here's a capsule look at where we are at the midpoint of our season.
Western Conference
1. Vancouver: The Whitecaps have surprised many by climbing to first in this conference. The most surprising aspect of their rise to power has been watching this club recover after stumbling quite badly in some exhibition matches a few weeks ago. Hard to say they'll be quite this high at the end of the season but it's hard to see them missing the playoffs at this point either.
2. Portland: The Timbers have been a mild surprise this season with many eyes on their high rent roster and the stands which many had hoped would be near capacity for their inaugural run out. So far all is well for the most part on both counts but an attendance spike and a playoff spot would round out their first year quite nicely.
3. Milwaukee: The Rampage seemed to be on the fast track to the conference title a few weeks ago but if that is to happen now they'll have a dogfight on their hands. They are now in the thick of things in the West and will need to get back to their early season form if they want to take the top spot.
4. San Diego: These guys were supposed to be dead in the water this season but have bravely fought their way into playoff contention. Unfortunately, next to no one has been there to see this miraculous return from the near dead. These guys are in with a shot but you have to figure they will fall short of the mark. Just a hunch but I think they'll get nipped at the end for one of the last playoff spots.
5. Seattle: The Sounders could be the team this season that is the toughest to beat at home. Nobody honestly likes to play on Astroturf but the Sounders have adapted and use it to their advantage every time someone pays them a visit. Either way, they have a shot at the playoffs as well but there are other teams who could easily slip past them.
6. El Paso: The Patriots came out firing early and often at the beginning of this season but now appear to nearing empty. The team plays with style and flair but if they don't pick up the pace they could be the first squad to suffer the ignominy of being caught by the moribund Minnesota Thunder.
7. Minnesota: As I said last week, insert your punchline here. No team came in with higher expectations this season than the Thunder and team has had quite as remarkable a collapse as these guys. Theoretically the playoff window is still open but unfortunately for the Thunder they'll likely get their fingers smashed as they try to make one last grab for the post-season.
Central Conference
1. Richmond: The Kickers have engaged in their annual battle for supremacy with Charleston but this year they appear to be one of the strongest candidates in the league who could possibly dethrone the Rhinos. Their two lone losses in sixteen matches this season has helped to build their confidence and should help them as they make a push for the playoffs.
2. Charleston: The Battery are beginning to lose sight of the Kickers at the wrong time and it's beginning to look like they'll need all they have to maintain their current position. Once again they could be the best team in either of the other conferences unfortunately the Kickers have been on a tear of late. The Battery now need to play consistently and put their chances away to maintain some form of home-field advantage until the late rounds as we head for the stretch run.
3. Atlanta: The Silverbacks looked very good on paper and have only recently begun to show enough consistency to win week in and week out. It also helps to have a stretch of games against Cincinnati, Indiana, Charlotte, and Nashville when you're feeling down. Either way, they are looming large in Charleston's rearview mirror as they get set to face off several times in coming weeks.
4. Nashville: They lead the pack of clubs that includes Indiana and Charlotte that will be fighting it out for a possible playoff shot and fourth place in their conference. The Metros should be able to pull it off but if nothing else the Blast have proven that teams need to be careful with them.
5. Indiana: The Blast have played surprisingly better than most, especially myself, thought they would do. Thanks in large part to Rodrigo Costa and David Winner the Blast have been respectable and a thorn in the side for other clubs in the Central.
6. Charlotte: The Eagles are in the thick of the fourth place fight but probably don't figure to be too much of a hindrance for the rest of the league in the home stretch. An injury to Dustin Swinehart has taken the teeth out of their attack even though they have played tenaciously. They have the opportunity to be a spoiler as they hardly ever show any quit.
7. Cincinnati: No team has been quite as disappointing in the Central as the Riverhawks. Many, including myself, thought this club could quite possibly begin to turn things around. Not so and it appears all is downhill from here. One thing is certain, though, this team needs offense like a vampire needs a coffin at sunrise.
Northern Conference
1. Hershey: The Wildcats have turned it on and pulled out to a nice lead in the North but will need to keep an eye on Connecticut. Many discounted their chances after they lost Jamel Mitchell but they have proven the naysayers wrong with their success so far. The bad news: Rochester has three games in hand on their rivals from chocolate-land which could result in up to a fifteen point swing once all is said and done.
2. Connecticut: The Wolves have done extremely well this year by anyone's standards and will be hoping to lock up a playoff spot in the next few weeks. Regardless of that, though, I do expect them to slip behind the Rhinos and fall further back of the 'Cats. Who woulda thunk it?
3. Rochester: The Rhinos aren't quite raging yet this year but with their three games in hand they will prove menacing to the rest of their conference. While it seems they have fallen off the pace of previous seasons things still look good. If they can finally get someone to score consistently they will be the favorites once again.
4. Pittsburgh: The best thing about their season is what could have and maybe should have been against the Chicago Fire in the Open Cup. Aside from that there's not much to smile about in Steel Town. The league performances of this club are hard to fathom for anyone who witnessed their match against Chicago. Also hard to imagine is how anyone in their organization is going to be remotely happy after splashing out for several former MLS players that almost certainly didn't come cheap by A-League standards.
5. Montreal: What can you say about the Impact? Anyone who thinks this club is going to draw upwards of ten thousand a game is dreaming. Obviously, someone up there was wishing a bit too hard as the Impact are now being run by the league. Other than that they're having a solid yet unspectacular season.
6. Long Island: I thought losing Buddle would be a bit much for them in the offensive department but I didn't expect them to struggle quite this much. Definitely not the biggest disappointment so far but if they don't climb a little higher or win a few more matches before season's end it could be an extremely rough ride, slight pun intended, during the off-season.
7. Toronto: Their season so far ranks slightly below that of Minnesota considering I and many others considered these guys strong contenders this year. Who really knows what went wrong with the Lynx? There's been a lot of solid speculation but we may not find out until November or December at the earliest. Either way don't look for the Lynx to make the playoffs.
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