William Butler Yeats won the Nobel Prize in literature for his poetry in 1923. The committee noted “his always inspired poetry, which in a highly artistic form gives expression to the spirit of a whole nation”. The nation in question was Ireland, but the from and expression in question is something else.
Yeats was a part of an artistic family and carried on the family business quickly. He adopted the style of the time in his early years. He celebrated all things artistic, beautiful, and emotional while studying and employing references to otherworldly and the occult. As he aged, and as the country around him became a hotbed, first for revolution and then sectarian violence, he left behind some of the more philosophical studies and became more physical and combative, but remained just as artistic.
Works
Renoir’s The Umbrella’s (whose Irish owner partly inspired “To a friend…”)
To a friend whose work has come to nothing
NOW all the truth is out, Be secret and take defeat From any brazen throat, For how can you compete, Being honour bred, with one Who, were it proved he lies, Were neither shamed in his own Nor in his neighbours’ eyes? Bred to a harder thing Than Triumph, turn away And like a laughing string Whereon mad fingers play Amid a place of stone, Be secret and exult, Because of all things known That is most difficult.
–1913
Jacob Wrestling with an Angel (by Gustave Dore)
The Four Ages of Man
He with body waged a fight, But body won; it walks upright.
Then he struggled with the heart; Innocence and peace depart.
Then he struggled with the mind; His proud heart he left behind.
Now his wars on God begin; At stroke of midnight God shall win.
–1934
Message
In poetry, every work deserves to be judged on its own accord and its own merits. No poet adopts a single perspective or message, but their style often evokes a common trend. So it is with Yeats.
These works do a very good job of capturing the idea that one must be ever ready. It’s an aggressive defensiveness, and a robust reaction to the challenges of life. You should expect to face difficulty, and you should prepare to fight through it.
Position: #4
Yeats strikes me as a center back, but not your typical stout and serious center back. He’s more overeager, like someone who played striker as a kid, but kept being moved back on the pitch as they grew older. Now their job is to stop attacks, but they still yearn to be set loose at the spear of the attack. As time goes on he grows more blunt and aggressive than before. In short he’s both more physical than he needs to be and a little more confident in attack than he ought to be. It makes him a dangerous defender (both to the opponent and to his own side).
What do you think? Should Yeats end up somewhere else on the field? Did I critically misunderstand his style? Leave a comment below.
Second only to the despair of losing to a team in mauve, will be the defensive miscues that led them there. The Royals can’t seem to pick their jaws up off the floor after they concede, and it has put them perilously close to relegation.
Kolubara 1 – 0 FK Vozdovac
The dragons responded to the beat down they got from Red Star with 80 minutes of strong defense. And then they lost anyway. They also shipped Nikola Vujnovic down the road from Minneapolis to Kansas City. But at least they have some nice gear in the team store!
Vfl Bochum 0 – 2 Freiburg (M)
Freiburg seemed to get their legs back underneath them after last week’s win. As ever it helps to have Christian Gunter and Vincenzo Grifo delivering the crosses.
St. Mirren 1 – 0 Ross County (M)
In what might have been the most frustrating game of a frustrating year for County fans, the stags ceded an early goal and then were utterly ineffective at making opportunities to equalize the game. The loss dropped them further down the table and set up a big game against fellow cellar dwellers Dundee United.
Caen 2 – 1 Grenoble (M)
A tenth minute goal by Mathais Phaeton gave Grenoble the advantage and set up a series of defensive gambits to try to preserve that lead. However, Caen simply provided too many challenges for an overtired backline and a late header gave the hosts the edge in winning the game.
Neroca FC 0 – 1 Punjab FC
Ajay Chhetri got the go ahead goal, and while we’d love to break it down more, it seems that the I-League’s highlights stream has been deleted from the interwebs. 😦 Apparently Kiran Limbu stood strong during the second half, so we’ll appreciate that.
News & Notes
Haiti (and Grenoble’s) History.
While Freiburg had players in friendly national team action for Austria, Switzerland and Germany, the real story was down in New Zealand where Nicholas Delpine, coach of Grenoble Foot 38 had several of his charges on side for Haiti’s playoff campaign to make the World Cup.
In the first match Maudeline Moreyl had a spot in the back and Jennyfer Limage and Sherly Jeudy started together in the midfield, and while Chelsea Surpris remained on the bench throughout it is hard to be dissatisfied with a 4-0 win over Cameroon.
Wednesday saw them face Chile with a berth in the Cup on the line and again saw Melchie Dumornay make the difference and while Jeudy and Limage were pretty quiet, there is no denying the joy and exhilaration that you can see on their faces as the final whistle blows.
So, all this to say, we have our new adopted team at the Women’s World Cup. Congratulations to Jeudy, Limage, Supris and coach Nicholas Delpine!
$17 and 90 minutes on the TGV?
Speaking of Grenoble, we want to plug the excellent deal that’s available for their next cup matches. That’s all it’s going to take for Grenoble fans who want to go to their side’s next matches in the Coupe de France. Both the Men and the Women have drawn Lyon (just a short ride northwest). The club that is a traditional power in French football (for both male and female divisions) will not be short of confidence heading into the matches, which will make an upset all the sweeter…even if it may come at the cost of Melchie Dumornay, who was recently signed to Lyon)
I-League Update
So, I can’t keep track of my own schedules. I’m not sure when I get tripped up on the timing of skating practice how I’ll be able to manage a whole league of balancing, but clearly I couldn’t.
What I said last week about Punjab and Sreenidi Deccan having three more matches was partly correct. They had three matches, and then they had two more that needed to be rescheduled. After each team played one this weekend, they have 4 left. One of those has yet to be rescheduled. So perhaps we should just focus on how the race is going rather than how it will go.
In that regard, not great for the guys in Orange. Their win over Neroca was good, but Deccan’s win gave them an extra goal cushion in the goal difference category. Squeaky bum time forthcoming.
Player of the Week
Tempting as it is to acknowledge Melchie Dumornay and all the historic success for Haiti, if we set the expectations that we will reward one of our 11 teams, it has to go to someone whose deserved it for a couple weeks…and years…and forever: Vincenzo Grifo!
Standings
Freiburg’s consistency has buoyed them up the standings again (Grenoble and Vozdovac’s slip-ups helped a bit) but right now Punjab continues to set a very lofty standard for everyone involved, though it’s yet to be seen if they get some hardware to go with it.
This is a time set aside each year to be extra intentional in how we consider and study the lessons of Black History Month in our nation.
There is no wrong time to study this, and this is certainly not the only time to study this, but it’s good to bring some intention to the work we do and how we do it.
At first glance, you might not see the effect of Black History in our lives. We are white men. We can, if we so choose, read stories and learn histories that emphasize people who look and think like us. We can blinker ourselves to the belief that we are here because people like us have done everything of importance.
But we choose not to make things that simple.
Dear Boys,
That’s Briana Scurry. Specifically, it’s young Briana Scurry from her time playing youth soccer (like you) in the Twin Cities (like you). Arguably, the greatest goalkeeper in the history of the United States. Certainly, one of the most impactful athletes of my life time.
I could teach you about Scurry’s superb play. She controlled the goal for the Women’s National Team en route to a World Cup title and two Gold Medals. She was the quintessential American keeper: poised under pressure and fiery in her leadership. But playing very well isn’t where the impact comes from.
I could talk to you about how she broke new ground. She helped to start the agitation for equal pay between the women’s and men’s team. She was a woman of color and an openly gay athlete at a time where it was difficult to be either, let alone both. But if we simply celebrate the accomplishments you miss out on the context that surrounds them.
I could discuss the challenges that complicated her life: the concussion that ended her career: the depression that endangered her life and her livelihood. But, fixation with someone’s problems can create a simplified view that makes someone little more than a victim of circumstances.
From OutSports.com
The truth is that Briana Scurry has handled all of those issues and more. She has gone through trials and tribulations and emerged the other side with a full sense of who she is and who she wants to be. Briana’s play created one of my most lasting memories of soccer, one that influences my work with it even now. Her historic legacy shows us there’s progress to be made and celebrations that go far beyond winning and losing. Her perseverance reminds us that there is much more humanity in our heroes than we acknowledge when we fret over wins and losses.
Briana Scurry’s story is much more than one post, or one game, or one lesson. She shows that there’s so much to see and to learn and to accept and to do if we open ourselves to everyone else. That’s what serves us best during these months of special celebration: it’s not a single lesson, or a particular inspiration. The lives don’t have meaning because they touch us, they are important because they are so complex, and remind us that we are all complex.
We contain multitudes. And everyone is better for it.
It took a little help from Gokulam’s defender Pawan Kumar (who likely thought Luka Macjen was offsides), but help isn’t the worst thing in the world. Macjen’s late rebound was all they needed for Punjab to get a win. And more importantly, keep pace with Sreenidi Deccan.
FK Vozdovac 0 – 6 Red Star Belgrade
Early red card to Mateja Djordjevic didn’t make it easy for Vozdovac. It did make it easy for Red Star.
Freiburg 2 – 1 Vfb Stuttgart (M)
We got a chance to watch this game on tape delay on Sunday. Owen was supremely uninterested, and Alex was so invested that he begged to know the result so that he could feel better after Stuttgart got the lead. Two penalties against Dan-Axel Zangadou (who deserves first place in the name game) gave them a valuable lifeline, but Vincenzo Grifo was the one who grabbed it with both hands and carried them to a valuable derby win.
Grenoble 1 – 1 Pau (M)
Abdoulie Sanyang had to leave early and Pau capitalized before Grenoble could reorganize. But Jessy Bennet continued to thread the vital passes to challenge and also connected on the equalizer to salvage a draw
Albi Marsacc 1 – 0 Grenoble Foot (F)
Social media gave us more insight than usual before the match kicked off but it was still terribly short of highlights (as the score shows).
SC Frieburg 3 – 1 Meppen (F)
Janina Minge got die Frauen off to a fast start inside of two minutes. After a sloppy corner kick defense let Meppen tie the game up again, Meppen got a questionable call against Samantha Steuerwald, but Lena Nuding turned it aside to prove that the ball don’t lie. Freiburg finished it off with some great connections through the air including a lashed cross from striker Giovanna Hoffman, and a well spotted corner from Janina Minge.
Samartex 2 – 1 Legon Cities FC
The Royals weren’t able to get anything going offensively against a team that I 100% will call Smart-X well past the point of it being an honest mistake. Kofi Kordzi netted a late consolation goal, but the defeat dropped Legon to just one point above relegation. After building some consistency in recent years, trouble is brewing again on the Gold Coast.
Aizawal 0 – 1 Punjab FC
It took a while and Aizawal finally coming out of their shell but Chencho Gyeltsen made the difference, just as we had always hoped he would. The win on a typical Chencho impossible angle helped the Warriors keep pace with the Delhi side, but the title increasingly looks like it will depend on goal difference. (But after Kiran Limbu’s performance, there may still be a chance)
Alacranes 1 – 1 Alebrijes
After back to back losses, Alebrijes got a result, their first road point of the season. Armando Gonzalez got the vital goal to equalize and salvage the points
News & Notes
Looking ahead
Punjab and Sreenidi Deccan both have 3 matches left. In theory, both teams have winnable games against lower level teams and one final match against a top five opponent (Churchill Brothers for Punjab and Aizawal for Deccan).
At present Sreenidi Deccan has the lead on goal difference. That difference is four goals…which is the same number the Delhi-wallahs won by when they hosted Punjab earlier on in 2023. There’s plenty of pressure on Punjab who will need a big result to catch up and earn promotion to the top of India’s league system.
Losing a Loon
Emanuel Reynoso has been instrumental in the Loons trips to the playoffs…he has led the team on the field and occasionally been the only functioning part of the midfield. He has a nice new contract, but he still hasn’t shown up to train for the next season despite the fact that Minnesota has been in both Florida and California to prepare (not exactly dealing with the sleet). Some are suggesting that this has to do with some nasty business a few years ago when Reynoso was accused of assaulting a teenager. Whatever the case, the team and the league aren’t having it and Reynoso (and that nice new salary) have been suspended.
On the plus side, Minnesota did add a veteran attacker from Liga MX in Miguel Tapias!
Player of the Week
It was a very good week for Freiburg, with the Cup win right before we published last week, the comeback win for the men and the dominant showing for the women. It makes sense to reward a Freiburg player, and we feel like Janina Minge is the most worthy. Wunderbar Janina!
From dfb.de (The German Federation Website)
Standings
Both Grenoble and Vozdovac settled down a bit this week allowing the consistently strong Punjab to build their lead at the top of this table.
It is my habit to take on foolish and ill advised ideas blending things I love. It’s why there’s a collage of Economist covers in my classroom, and why I use my old baseball card collection as bookmarks.
That’s my way of introducing a new and extremely niche idea of sharing lessons that connect classic literature to football and football to classic literature.
Here’s how it will work: I’ll read some of the works of a writer who has won the Nobel Prize in Literature (it may seem arbitrary, but it’s a short hand of world-wide writers who inspire people the same way soccer stars can).
We’ll meet the writer and see what connection–if any–they have to soccer
We’ll look at one or two of their famous pieces and write a bit about their lessons and themes.
We’ll connect the themes from the work to our lives and to the things we’ve been seeing on the pitch.
And finally we’ll slot the writer into a spot on the pitch 1-Goalkeeper to 11-Striker to create a silly little team (possibly even with photoshop if I can figure it out). Hopefully we’ll see enough to create a full squad (maybe more given the long history of the award).
For now I’m just aiming to do this six times a year (writing about the winners 100, 80, 60, 40, and 20 years ago, as well as this year’s honoree when they are announced in October). If time allows I’ll work on the ones from before 100 years ago, but I’m trying to do a lot of writing and reading, so let’s just settle down our expectations eh?
I’ll drop our first installment on the first of March.
All hail the conquering hero of Jessy Benet whose return to the Alps has bolstered Matthais Phaeton in the midfield led to a more organized Grenoble side. With new confidence in their approach, the Alpiners are 3 points off of promotion to the top flight of French football again.
FK Radnicki 1923 0 – 1 FK Vozdovac
Our boys in Belgrade made their return to the field this weekend, and despite a shift in their defensive corps, they remained solid at the back in pushing back an insistent and aggressive Radnicki. The dragons didn’t have many chances, but Milos Pantovic converted the penalty after a foolish foul and that was all they needed.
SC Freiburg 0 – 4 VfL Wolfsburg (F)
Ouch…well hopefully the men did…
Dortmund 5 – 1 Freiburg (M)
Ooof….never mind. There are still only 6 points between Freiburg and the top of the table, but they’ll need to get some things sorted out (particularly in the defense) if they’re going to challenge instead of fade away.
Rangers 2 – 1 Ross County
Jordan White gave the Staggies a glimmer of hope against the mighty ‘Gers in Glasgow, but it was snuffed out in the end. The Stags have a promising spine in White, Dhanda and Kenneh, but where the rest of the midfield goes remains a question (especially after Eamonn Brophy was dropped after a miserable first half).
Sudeva FC 1 – 1 Punjab FC
It was a heart breaker, with Luka Macjen putting the warriors ahead courtesy of Chenchyo Geltsyen’s incisive pass it took a last second goal from Sudeva to drop the points. Worse, the tense and chippy atmosphere led to a post whistle red card for defender Huidrom Singh. With 5 matches left, Punjab is in a dead heat with Sreenidi Deccan, and promotion will be on the line.
Legon Cities FC 3 – 1 King Faisal
We have to say, there are few things as fun as Legon Cities in fine form, and that’s what we finally got to see against King Faisal this last weekend. Jonah Attaquye got the first from a solid free kick opportunity just outside the box. The Royals kept the pressure high through the next half until the frenetic final 10 minutes including a Felix Hammond chip and a mammoth free kick from Nasiru Moro. It was a wild but joyous pile on for the Royals, and while it might be expected against a relegation area side in King Faisal, they’re all valuable.
Jade Decilap (from GF 38)
Grenoble Foot 3 – 3 Montauban (F)
The ladies of Grenoble got back in business as well. The were strong right out of the gate with a goal from Jade Decilap straight away after kick off. They held firm and added two more to have a 3-1 lead with 15 minutes to play. Then a poor challenge from defender Elsa Domenjoud gifted Montauban a penalty and reduced the ladies to 10 players. It still took a desperation shot at the end of the match for Montauban to get the draw and spoil the return. Still, hope is high for further progress among the Grenobloises
Sandhausen 0 – 2 Freiburg (M-Cup)
Sandhausen opted to bunker down and absorb everything that Freiburg could throw their way, and it almost paid off with a big cup win. Notice, I said “almost”.
Despite the long defensive slog thrown up by the second division side, Freiburg finally broke through with Phillip Leinhart’s goal that bounced off a Sandhausen defender. After a great block by Lucas Holer, they got another from super sub Nils Peterson to put it beyond doubt, and so, for the second time in two years: Freiburg is headed to the quarterfinals of the Cup.
Vierzon FC 0 – 1 Grenoble (M-Cup)
More surprising, the same can be said about the Alpiners! Grenoble has reached the final 8 of the Coupe de France (albeit by beating the underdog darlings of Vierzon FC…not to be confused with Verizon FC…which has marginally less coverage than the third division French side). Loic Nestor delivered the winner after Grenoble besieged their opponent’s goal, and the triumph will put them into a conflict with slightly more prestigious sides.
Alebrijes 0 – 3 CD Tepatitlan de Morelos
An early red card was enough to put Oaxaca at a disadvantage, but two more in stoppage time is true commitment to recklessness.
This result is not reflected in the standings
News & Notes
Uncle Simon celebrating
Your Uncle Simon bests me in golf (both real and imaginary)
Your Uncle Simon is about to be a dad in his own right, so he and I had our own brother bonding time, not unlike yourselves…only with less headlocks that lead to someone running into their room and slamming the door.
An accomplished video game player and golfer, he had a clear advantage in Mario Golf. Still, it was good fun just to joke with him in a game. And I even beat him (on one hole…by one stroke…because the game had a glitch)
Jet-Setting
The biggest club competitions in the world are kicking off again. The Club World Cup in Morocco pits the continental champions from each part of the world against one another. And given that Minnesota United lost to Seattle twice last year, I think it’s fair to say that we’ probably have lost in the Semi-finals just like Seattle did.
And Europe’s elite club competitions (The Champions, Europa, and Conference Leagues) will also kick back into gear this month. Freiburg is our only side still in the hunt (as they have been since last fall) so let’s all knock on some wood.
Player of the Week
At the risk of making this space a Grenoble Appreciation segment, the truth is les Grenobloises are in a groove and its hard to ignore their strong work. This week, we’ve got to tip the hat to Matthaias Phaeton for leading the attack both with distribution and delivery.
Standings
Vozdovac is at the top! (Well they only have 1 match under their belts, so there’s a limited sample size) but even though Punjab has faltered, Grenoble has tied them and has to hope that the ladies give them an added boost.
We don’t take enough time to appreciate Brandon Vanlalremdika the little magician who manages to make a whole heap of Punjab’s surging attack possible. He got a goal and continued to thread expert passes throughout Punjab’s latest win, all the more impressive when you see how physically manhandled he was by their north-western rivals.
Legon Cities 1 – 3 Bechem United
Things started out well for the Royals with Alex Aso’s first goal for the club, but the normally formidable back line became too leaky and Bechem capitalized
Freiburg 3 – 1 Augsburg (M)
Freiburg got back on track with a stirring showing at home, and they were led by a strong showing from their Austrian contingent. Michael Gregoritsch scored the opener, and Phillip Leinhart offerd both lock down defense and a strong head to convert the finishing goal in the 85th minute.
Ross County 3 – 0 Kilmarnock
The Staggies found their scoring shoes before this game and suddenly looked like a team transformed. They developed a clearer game plan built on break aways and crosses (boosted by a slightly staggered Killie defense). It also helped that Nohan Kenneh, newly arrived from Hibernian managed to connect the dots for two different goals as Jordan White and Yan Dhanda started to synch up in their attack.
Grenoble 0 – 1 SC Bastia (M)
Grenoble will rue their missed opportunities on the day, as their nine shots produced nothing of note, and a late winner from SC Bastia cost them very winnable points.
Grenoble 1 – 0 Quevilly (M)
Which is why it is so gratifying to see them come back and get all the credit against Quevilly. While the shorthanded squad fielded a lot of reserves, they did send out returning favorite Jessy Benet and (quelle surprise) he scored the winner. As the rest of the attacking force comes out there will be high hopes to keep climbing the table.
Ross County 1 – 1 Hibernian
The Staggies got another positive result against the surging Hibs in Dingwall. Hibs controlled much of the game and at times the County midfield and defense looked over run (particularly when the back line made a particularly poor decision that gifted Hibs their goal). But all it takes is one sterling moment, and that’s exactly what they got when Yan Dhanda lashed a gorgeous corner kick that befuddled everyone and levelled the score.
Kenkre FC 3 – 3 Punjab FC
It wasn’t looking brilliant for the Punjabi Warriors against lowly Kenkre. They gave up two early goals and were suddenly chasing the game. But then, they absolutely ran their opponents down into the dirt with Chenchyo Geltshen and Luka Macjen in fine flow together at the top. An own goal gave them the lead…but then they promptly gave it back and played out the rest of the match in a stale mate.
Hearts of Oak 0 – 0 Legon Cities
The Royals can count this as a moral victory after playing much of the second half down to 10 men. But moral victories aren’t quite as valuable in the table as actual ones (Legon only has 1 in their last 8 matches)
Tlaxcala 3 – 1Alebrijes
Julio Cesar Cruz got the lone goal after Tlaxcala got out to a fast start. It’s shaping up to be another arduous campaign for Oaxaca.
News & Notes
Your Dad is getting Old
I turned 40 last week. And I felt great. Then, while arranging a fight between Captain America (Alex), Moana (Owen), and a dragon (me) I slipped on the stairs and crashed down a whole flight of them. So, I feel lots of pain, and suddenly 40 isn’t quite so great.
USA-USA-USA Update
Samuel Rogers got 18 minutes worth of time with the US Men’s National Team, which is 18 more than almost everyone else in the country. He connected all ten of his passes, but wasn’t able to take the ball away from Colombian opponents. It wasn’t quite announcing his presence with authority, but he can keep working himself into the conversation as time goes on.
Transfer Tips
The transfer window closed for the winter on Tuesday, with only a few more minor moves of note: County added another pair of strikers in Eamon Brophy and Simon Murray (both of whom are quite familiar with the Scottish league) and brought on two less familiar faces in loan deals with Wigan Athletic with attacker Josh Stones and defender Gwion Edwards respectively.
Damjan is in the Details
The Loons also brought in a new player in Sweden’s Mikael Marques, a young defender. I’m not sure how much he’ll actually play having made the jump from the second tier of Sweden into the top US League, but we’ll be happy to see him all the same.
Dragons Take Wing Again
This weekend sees the kick off of the Serbian Primere League’s season. There will be three more months of matches and then, hopefully, Vozdovac will be in the championship play off looking towards the next stage of qualification for a European tournament. But to get there they’ll need to grow more as a team and learn to live without iron man defenders Stefan Hajdin, and Milos Milovic. In their wake has come former local starlet Damjan Danicic, back to his roots, and younger attacker Haris Kadric
Player of the Week
We might have been open to some debate before, but the corner kick sealed it beyond any doubt: Yan Dhanda, take a bow!
Standings
Much as we admire Freiburg, this was not the ideal week to kick off their 2023, as they slide in below even the equally unsteady Ross County and Oaxaca. Meanwhile, despite their defeat, Punjab continues to show serious strength at the top of the table (even if they are no loner perfect)
It was a barn burner for the Alpiners, who fell behind on an ugly give away, came back, took the lead, lost it, and then scored twice in the last ten minutes to win the game. Jordan Tell had two goals but substitute Pape Meissa Ba assisted on the last two goals to ensure the victory.
Punjab FC 3 – 0 Kenkre FC
Juan Mera scored twice and Luka Macjen had the last one to break Kenkre pressure as Punjab cruised to the top of the table before their big match with Sreenidi Deccan.
Motherwell 1 – 1 Ross County
It’s good that a team comes alive when they have to, but unfortunate they wait that long. Once County fell behind they pushed hard for an equalizer. Jordy Hiluwa got it for them, but the Stags need more wins more quickly.
Nsoatreman 0 – 0 Legon Cities
The Royals have nothing but draws so far this year…and have no goals in the last 197 minutes. (Oof)
Sreenidi Deccan 4 – 0 Punjab FC
We’ll that didn’t go as planned.
Punjab was in prime position to expand their lead over their closest rivals, only to get punched in the kisser. worse, the potentially formidable front line duo of Macjen and Gyeltsen got nothing going…still with a game in hand they may be able to take the top of the table yet.
Venados 2 – 1 Alebrijes
Alebrijes got their first goal of the campaign, but it was small consolation in a losing effort.
Wolfsburg 6 – 0 Freiburg (M)
Let us never speak of this again
Hamilton Academical 1 – 0 Ross County
The Scottish FA Cup match ended in a shootout, and it was unfortunate that Jordan White, the Staggies most consistent striker was the first to falter (in the opening kick of the shootout no less).
Mohammedan SC 0 – 4 Punjab FC
Punjab came roaring back into action on the weekend with Juan Mera and Luka Macjen each scoring twice. Better still, seeing a fully integrated Chenchyo Geltsen getting in on the action is mouthwatering to say the least. (Well, it is in Punjab; other teams would be excused if things are more pants-wetting)
Stade Plabennec 0 – 1 Grenoble (Cup)
Granted, Stade Plabennec is not exactly a mighty rival for Grenoble (they are currently eighth in the Bretagne section of the fourth division), but still Grenoble should be proud to get the win they need when they need it, with Amine Sbai getting the winner early and the defense and midfield standing strong the rest of the match.
Freiburg 1 – 1 Frankfurt (M)
Freiburg continues to scuffle in 2023. The draw dropped them from 2nd to 5th, and while there’s still plenty of season to show off and reclaim their dream campaign momentum is not on their side. Things don’t get much easier with Borussia Dortmund and a DFB Pokal Octa-final to come.
Alebrijes 3 – 0 Dorados
Alebrijes’ 3 goal explosion, tripled their goal total for the season so far and finally got them some points. Julio Cesar Cruz struck twice with a pair of absolutely mind-boggling goals and the team blitzed Dorados for all their goals within a scant 15 minutes. Now they challenge will be to do it again.
Splashing Contest…
News & Notes
50th to the MacKs Fun in the Sun
We had a wonderful time at your Grandparents 50th Wedding Anniversary, though it was a little short on soccer time (it didn’t seem right to skip a dinner to see if I could figure out how to watch Alebrijes on tv). But there was still a lot of great competition.
Alex learned the ropes of Mario Kart and boosted himself from consistent 12th place finishes on easy mode, to consistent 3rd place finishes on easy mode! He also became a dunk machine in water basketball (though it might have helped to be standing outside the pool rather than swimming in it). And Owen learned that twirling constantly isn’t exactly the best strategy in hot potato.
Setting aside all the competition things. Just being yourselves was a beautiful thing to behold.
Transfer Tips
JESSY BENNET IS BACK!! Our favorite Grenoblois midfielder has rejoined the Alpiners for the last stretch of the season, and I’m utterly delighted. He chipped in the assist to put them over Plabennec and we can only hope that he brings additional strength to a midfield that could use it. And what’s more…
CHENCHO GYELTSEN IS BACK!! The Bhutanese master striker has returned to Roundglass Punjab for the stretch run of the I-League campaign. Promotion is in the offing and Chencho is out to get it done! Double dragon fire power ahead for Punjab!! (I mean if you ignore the 4-0 drubbing against Sreenidi Deccan)
In less fun news Bikash Yumnam, the highly touted 19 year old defense prospect has left Punjab for the greener fields of the Indian Super League. We’re still excited to follow his journey on major news site the Athletic, and will never forget his roots.
USA-USA-USA
While we certainly invested in the American’s performance during December’s World Cup, it wasn’t exactly memorable or thrilling to see. But we have new found reasons to watch with the National Team Call Up of Rosenborg’s Samuel Rogers! Rogers will be the first American player we follow to have a run out for the national team (assuming he doesn’t get stuck on the bench during matches of little consequence…which, frankly, sounds kind of rude).
Players of the Week
We get to give out two awards this week and there’s no doubt that one has to go to Luka Macjen, who has been threatening to break through for a while but with three goals and multiple assists he left no doubt this round.
For the other recognition, we’re going to turn to someone we haven’t talked a lot about, but who comes highly recommmended: Yves-Franck Bambock from Grenoble’s Midfield. Bambock was a pivotal cog in both of les Alpiners wins providing strong defense and consistent support in the attack and we’ll gladly take the opportunity to shout his praises (especially alongside Jessy Bennet)
Standings
Much as we admire Freiburg, this was not the ideal week to kick off their 2023, as they slide in below even the equally unsteady Ross County and Oaxaca. Meanwhile, despite their defeat, Punjab continues to show serious strength at the top of the table (even if they are no loner perfect)
Perhaps the biggest soccer news story of the last month was the death of Edson Arantes de Nasciemento. Better known to the world as Pele.
Dear Boys,
I can’t add much to the memories, testimonials, and tributes to one of the most transformative players in the history of the game. I never met him or saw him in person. My appreciation of his game is limited to grainy clips on the internet and the regular opining of books and talking heads.
But, just as we did when his fellow legendary player, Diego Maradona, passed away, I wanted to take a minute and listen to Pele to share some of his advice with you as well.
As easy as it is to classify a player or a talent as other worldly and magical, Pele made no mistake what accounted for his records and his reputation
“Success is no accident. It is hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice and most of all, love of what you are doing or learning to do.”
Pele
I’ve said all those things to you, but rarely as succinctly and clearly as Pele (or possibly his ghostwriter) did there.
You don’t luck in to doing things well. You have to work at them, struggle through them, let go of little things to make another better, and all of that happens when you care about what you do and enjoy the art of mastering it.
I noticed that same skill on display at the other end of the pitch in the first match of our year. As Ross County blunted wave after wave of Aberdeen attack, Alex Iacovitti was in the center of it. A leg here. A head there. He successfully spurned attack after attack. Though County didn’t win the game, it’s hard not to appreciate Iacovitti’s success.
As Pele points out, success isn’t simply victories, records, or trophies. It’s improvement, development, and growth, it’s an individual doing what they set out to do.
We give a lot of time and attention to athletes accomplishing big things, but it applies to every one and at every age.
Before the holidays, we had a serious job to do: writing a letter to Santa. Alex made his requests and then went to sign his name. It didn’t turn out how he had planned, and there was a sudden shift. Alex suggested again and again that someone else do it for him. That he couldn’t do it. That it was never right.
But he kept trying, kept working and ended up signing his name twice (he really wanted to make sure Santa knew who was asking). After seeing the frustration, the fear, and the anxiety of doing it wrong, it was a wonderful gift to see you celebrate learning to do something new.
There will never be another Pele, but there will be many other successful moments. I hope you boys relish those moments, and also appreciate all that went in to making them happen.
It was a forgettable start to the spring campaign for Alebrijes. Without a number of their attacking options and defensive veterans, they struggled to contain the fall champions and ended up with the very fuzzy end of the lollipop.
From Midilibre (Stephane Pillaud)
Grenoble 1 – 0 Nimes (M–Cup)
Loic Nestor jammed up the defense and delivered a crucial assist in the 88th minute to Abdoulie Sanyang in a tightly contested match that Grenoble will proud to win. The victory moves them on the final sixteen of the international club tournament La Coupe de France (which ties in teams from every sector of the country)
Accra Lions 3 – 1 Legon Cities
The Royals were under heavy pressure from Accra throughout the match, but managed to hold strong until the dam burst. The Lions went ahead in the 77th minute and added two more leaving Legon Cities reeling.
Ross County 0 – 2 Livingston
The midfield was overrun for the Staggies and the Defense didn’t stand as stout as it had against Aberdeen the week before. The loss was County’s 7th at home this season…which is an awfully sad sentence to write.
Punjab 3 – 1 Neroca
Lucka Macjen and Brandon Vanlalremdika connected within three minutes of each other to give Punjab a strong lead in that beautifully cold north Indian winter. They held fast for the rest of the match to keep themselves just two points off the top of the Hero League leader board (though they’ve played one fewer match than current leaders–and next Tuesday’s opponent–Sreenidi Deccan).
Grenoble 2 – 3 Thonon Evian (F–Cup)
Les Alpines made a solid attempt at a come back, but couldn’t match the men’s advancement in the Coupe De France.
Pau 0 – 0 Grenoble (M)
After the rush of the Cup, Grenoble was wiped out and mustered a very lackluster showing against Pau, making a mere two points from their last four matches.
Legon Cities 0 – 0 Dreams FC
This game also happened. From the summaries I see, Legon Keeper Sylvester Sackey made several solid saves to preserve the point.
Alebrijes 0 – 1 Celaya
Despite being down to ten men for most of the match (Luis Moret’s early double booking takes the blame for that), Oaxaca held on gamely until finally conceding in the last 7 minutes of regular time.
News & Notes
Soccer Shots remains dominant in the basement
At Alex’s request we have been playing frequent soccer matches in the basement, each time with Alex representing himself and his friends on The Soccer Shots team, while I play as various people that amuse me. For a good v. evil battle Alex has had me play as Russia’s national team, and since I don’t know many Russian players I have been name checking Russian writers, poets, philosophers and the occasional educational psychologist (all of whom perform well but sneer at coach Vladmir Putin’s machinations).
And yet, Alex has won the last two games 15-13 and 15-8 (shooting directly at goal while I’m putting a point on the scoreboard may have an effect on that–also Alex insists that games must be played to 15 rather than for a specific length of time…)
Transfer Tips
Literally as I was writing this, Casper Tengsedt, fresh off his record setting run at Rosenborg made a move to the much more prestigious Portuguese club of Benfica. Hard to blame him taking a shot at a Champions League level squad, but it will be a darn shame for the Norwegian league. Replacing Tengsedt (possibly) is Isak Snaer Thorvaldsson who joins from Icelandic side Breidablik.
While there weren’t many other notable moves made we thought we’d take a minute and profile the winter changes we do know about for the other teams that are in action right now: Punjab, Grenoble, Legon Cities, and Ross County…or rather, I would but they haven’t made any real moves of note
Adios, Muchachos
This Sunday we are heading out on a vacation to Puerto Vallarta to celebrate Grandma and Grandpa MacKenzie’s 40th anniversary. As such we’re going to try to leave the technology behind a bit and focus in on the people at hand. Rest assured we’ll summarize the matches we missed (and hopefully, in the case of Alebrijes, watched on local tele) and even see if we can capture something of the magic of you boys playing against your uncles
Player of the Week
While Punjab got more of the goals (and Lucka Macjen’s hair and beard combo have me feeling like I’ve found a lost brother–hence his spot at the top of this post) Loic Nestor provided more of the heroics. Let’s make it four years running of appreciating Loic Nestor!
Standings
After several more teams took the field in 2023, Ross County slid down the table. Alebrijes’ awful week sees them at the bottom, and Punjab’s big win takes them to the top.
Team
W
D
L
PPG
GFA
GAA
Punjab
1
0
0
3.00
3.00
1.00
Grenoble
1
1
1
1.33
1.00
0.00
Legon Cities
0
1
0
1.00
0.00
0.00
Ross County
0
1
1
0.50
0.00
1.00
Alebrijes
0
0
2
0.00
0.00
2.50
Rosenborg–b
0
0
0
—
—
—
Minnesota–b
0
0
0
—
—
—
Freiburg–b
0
0
0
—
—
—
Vozdovac–b
0
0
0
—
—
—
Montana–b
0
0
0
—
—
—
Emelec–b
0
0
0
—
—
—
Table Updated 1/12/22 b–Team is between seasons
What’s Next
Thursday, January 12th
Friday, January 13th
Guingamp v. Grenoble (M)
Saturday, January 14th
Punjab FC v. Kenkre FC
Motherwell v Ross County
Sunday, January 15th
Monday, January 16th
Nsoatreman v. Legon Cities
Tuesday, January 17th
Sreenidi Deccan v. Punjab FC (Top of the table on the line!)
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MacKenzie's Boot Room 