Author Archives: Ridge Mahoney

[MLS] The already snug Eastern Conference standings were drawn tighter Wednesday when host Kansas City tied D.C. United, 1-1, to bunch the top four teams within two points of each other.

Precious few games pack more action and drama into stoppage time than the rest of the match, but by such a remarkable scenario Real Salt Lake and Los Angeles wound up tied, 2-2, Wednesday at Rio Tinto Stadium.

[MLS PREDICTIONS] Another week of nine games kicks off with a pair of intraconference matches on Wednesday, when Kansas City can leap-frong into first place in the East with a win over D.C United and Los Angeles aims for its second win of the season, at Salt Lake.. All four teams playing Wednesday will also be in action during the weekend. For Soccer America’s predictions for Wednesday’s game, as well as TV viewing information, and to see how we’ve fared so far …

[TEAM OF THE WEEK] Two players in their mid-30s, Jaime Moreno and Cuauhtemoc Blanco were among the attacking stars last weekend, and Gregg Berhalter had a good outing after debuting in MLS with a red card.

The four-time MLS runner-up Revs aren’t what they used to be, but still Houston can take confidence from beating New England, 2-0, at Gillette Stadium Saturday night. That game marked the first time in 2009 the Dynamo played Dynamo soccer for nearly, if not all, of the 90 minutes, and perhaps clearly demonstrated how, and how well, it can play without Dwayne De Rosario, Nate Jaqua and Eddie Robinson, who have formed the spine of numerous championship teams. Since 2001, when the team was in San Jose, the Quakes/Dynamo have won four titles in five MLS Cup appearances.

[MLS] It took a more than a year longer than Frank Yallop thought it would, but finally a tall, rugged FC Dallas defender has been acquired to solidify the heart of the Quakes’ back line.

[MLS PREDICTIONS] Seattle’s trip to undefeated Chicago promises to be one of the weekend’s most intriguing matchups. Toronto aims for its first win in club history over Columbus, the defending champ that hasn’t won yet this season. D.C. United hosts FC Dallas, which has yet to win on the road. Colorado hosts Real Salt Lake in the “Rocky Mountain Cup.” Coach Bruce Arena‘s Galaxy has a home game opportunity to get its first win of the season when it hosts struggling New York.  For all of Soccer America’s predictions, as well as TV viewing information, and to see how we fared last week …

[MLS] How far down the list of prospective All-Star Game candidates Everton may have been is no longer relevant, for the English Premier League team is headed to Salt Lake City to play in the annual exhibition July 29 at Rio Tinto Stadium.

[U.S. OPEN CUP] They had to cross the country to do it, but the Red Bulls ended their winless road run of 2009 on Wednesday. It won’t count in the league standings, but a 2-1 U.S. Open Cup victory against San Jose at Buck Shaw Stadium does count for something.

[MLS] Toronto FC has hired as head coach former first assistant coach John Cummins to replace fellow Englishman John Carver, who resigned despite TFC being an East Conference leader.

[MLS] Real Salt Lake has parlayed its five percent chance of landing U-20 midfielder Kyle Davies in a weighted lottery into a future draft pick. Davies, captain of the U.S. U-20 team that will compete for the world championship in Egypt later this year, is now a member of FC Dallas, which traded one of its three second-round picks in the 2010 SuperDraft.

[U.S. OPEN CUP] Seattle Sounders FC has yet to enter its third month of official competition, yet already it has twice beaten its nearest league rival. Sebastian Le Toux, the leading U.S. Open Cup scorer the past two seasons as a USL-1 Sounder, scored two goals and assisted on two others in a 4-1 drilling of Real Salt Lake, which Seattle had beaten, 2-0, in MLS play a month ago. LeToux, normally a midfielder this season, moved up front as Seattle dismantled a RSL team featuring many regulars at the Starfire Sports Complex, the team’s training site.

[MLS] Jason Kreis called the strike a “wonder goal,” and while it conjured up memories of a colorful, swashbuckling, occasionally troublesome goalscorer, that player no longer exists. Clint Mathis hammered a left-footed volley off a corner kick past New England keeper Brad Knighton during a record-setting 6-0 romp at Rio Tinto Stadium Saturday night.

[MLS PREDICTIONS] Defending champ Columbus aims for its first win of the season when it hosts undefeated Chicago. New England defends an undefeated record in Salt Lake. Los Angeles, the only other winless team besides the Crew, hopes to break the futility run in Colorado. For all of Soccer America’s predictions, as well as TV viewing information, and to see how we fared last week …

[MLS] Ahead by a goal and up a man for nearly the entire match, host Kansas City squandered several chances to put the game away yet maintained the status quo and beat New York, 1-0, Thursday at CommunityAmerica Ballpark in front of 10,385 fans. The Red Bulls’ Carlos Johnson‘s red card in the second minute was the fastest in MLS history and the second in two games for the Costa Rican MLS newcomer.

[CONCACAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE] Atlante is on course to its Concacaf title since 1983 and a place in the 2009 Club World Cup  in the United Arab Emirates thanks to a 2-0 win over Mexican rival Cruz Azul on the road in the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions League final.

[MLS] In cold, blustery conditions at Toronto’s BMO Field, and with both teams a bit fatigued from playing the previous weekend, neither Toronto FC nor Chivas USA had much good soccer in them, yet the host did get enough luck to win, 1-0, in front of 19,915 fans.