Please enjoy another installment of match analysis by toddlers.
Nobel FC: Giorgios Seferis
Background
The winner of the 1963 Nobel Prize in Literature, Giorgios Seferis was often a stranger in a strange land (not unlike the wandering heroes of Greek legend). From a childhood in Smyrna that was marked by a Greek invasion of the Ottoman empire, Seferis moved to France to study law and poetry, then back to Greece to help the government. When World War II broke out, Seferis helped the government in exile and then continued a long career as a diplomat around Europe. The award gave particular citation to ” his eminent lyrical writing, inspired by a deep feeling for the Hellenic world of culture” (Nobel Prize site)
Works
From: “Erotikos Logos Pt. V”
On the stone of patience we wait for the miracle
that opens the heavens and makes all things possible
we wait for the herald as in the ancient drama
at the moment when the open roses of twilightdisappear…Red rose of the wind and of fate,
–1930
you remained in memory only, a heavy rhythm
rose of the night, you passed, undulating purple
undulation of the sea…The world is simple
From: “The Light”
As the years go by
–1946
the judges who condemn you grow in number;
as the years go by and you converse with fewer voices,
you see the sun with different eyes:
you know that those who stayed behind were deceiving you
the delirium of flesh, the lovely dance
that ends in nakedness.
Message
I had never heard of Seferis before, I found him for this project. So it was kind of amazing when I found a collection of his poems from Edmund Keely and Phillip Sherrard that included this line: “”The distinguishing attribute of Seferis’ genius–one that he shares with Yeats and Eliot–has always been his ability to make out of local politics, out of personal history or mythology, some sort of general statement or metaphor.”
I mean, how amazingly convenient that Seferis shares a stylistic trait with the other two poets I wrote about this year.
Also, how…uh…underwhelming it made this feel.
It’s certainly not bad poetry. Believe me, I write bad poetry, this ain’t it. It’s just very familiar. Reading all these poems gave me a sense that Seferis has a sense of history that justifies the modern sensibility of somber doom. Lots of poets allude to mythology and history, but few of them have the personal and cultural connection that Seferis has. The examples I gave above capture that whatever we feel now, will fade and vanish. He’s able to bring that out in other poems by evoking forgotten Kings in tossed off lines of the Iliad, or empires that crumbled. I didn’t see as much of the “genius [or] personal history” use that Keely and Sherrard did, but the overriding general statement of our present as an echo of our past certainly came through.
Position:
Given that Seferis has some clear comparisons with Yeats and Eliot, it was easy to see him as a defender. The common perception of Greek football as extremely defensive didn’t hurt matters either. But for me, there was something that didn’t quite fit with Seferis being an outfield player. Certainly, outside backs can get a little wild and wander through things (just as Seferis wanders through centuries of Greek history) but to me, he seemed less like an outfield player and more of a goalkeeper. He seems to alternate between letting his mind wander and suddenly feeling an impending sense of doom…as I expect goalkeepers far removed from action often would. And given his fondness for mythology and closeness to the Mediterranean I thought he fit best as part of FK Vozdovac (hence the red and white shield provided here).
What do you think? Greek scholars, I’m looking particularly at you as I’m a little out of my depth here. Do you have a different view of Greek soccer than I do, please bring on the corrections!
Not to give too much away, but after all these defensive writers, I’m excited for the next one to shake things up a bit…
Next Time: 1983 Honoree–William Golding
Week 26: Staycation the First
Recap
Rosenborg BK 2 – 0 Asane (F)
Rosenborg combined for two goals in the first half as the center of the attack was able to connect more effectively. The team held on for the rest of the match.
Real Salt Lake 2 – 2 Minnesota United (M)
The Loons combined for two goals in the first half with Emanuel Reynoso having an immediate impact in his return to the starting line up (and strong showings by both Hasani Dotson and Jeong Sang-Bin). But team was not able to hold on for the rest of the match, giving up two goals in the last 11 minutes (plus stoppage time) to turn an excellent road win into an acceptable road draw.
Bavarian United 0 – 2 Minnesota Aurora (F)
Aurora completed their biggest road trip of the year with another win, another pair of goals for Maya Hansen and another Heartland Division title (their second in as many years)
Rosenborg 0 – 3 Sarpsborg 08 (M)
The other team from Trondheim did not seem to have much of anything in this match as they defended as best they could, and saw Sarpsborg stride forward with purpose and intensity and Rosenborg was…there.
Emelec 2 – 1 Danubio (M-Copa Sudamericana)
Los Bombillos continue to save their best showings for the continental competition (though if they keep doing so, they may not qualify for next year’s competitions). They applied tremendous pressure throughout the match and it was a particularly great game for fullbacks as Bryan Carabali got a goal and Romario Caicedo notched an assist. They will move on to the knockout stages.
News & Notes
Weekly Kids Highlights
We were on a family staycation at your grandparents this week, so Alex was out of action for his regular Sunday practice. However both boys have taken to wrestling and punching…so…
Gold Cup-Date
Several Loons players are still on international duty (heh-heh, duty sounds like doody) at the Gold Cup, North America’s big international tournament. Dayne St. Clair didn’t start for Canada, but after Milan Borjan gave up two more goals to Guadaloupe, maybe it’s time for a change between the posts.
Joseph Rosales was on the struggling side of a 4-0 drubbing by Mexico. Kemar Lawrence came on for the second half for Jamaica against the United States, but the Reggae Boyz gave up a late equalizer to fall short of an epic upset.
Transfer Time
Every team is looking to upgrade in the summer season and ours have been impressively active.
Start with the Loons, whose offense I have bemoaned a fair few times. They responded by getting Robin Lod’s teammate and Norwich’s favorite Fin Teemu Puuki. So hopefully he and Bebelo are able to get together quickly to pull the Loons back into contention.
Freiburg has continued their routine of selling high and buying low, as long as the premier league continues to offer big sums, the Griffins will keep taking them and reinvesting in the next generation. As in addition to the Austrian Adamu they grabbed a replacement goalie in old pal Florian Muller.
Vozdovac and Ross County have trended to younger academy players, but the Dragons did bring in former Red Star defender Aleksandar Lukic, and the Stags grabbed recent thistle in their sides, Kyle Turner (because he played for Partick Thistle in the playoffs just a few weeks ago…get it?) and left back Josh Reid who just missed a trip to the Premier League with Coventry City. Unfortunately the Stags also said goodbye to stalwart defender Alex Iacovitti, so there will be some shoes to fill.
RBK’s Finances
I don’t much like writing about the business side of soccer, because (1) I don’t understand it and (2) I have no idea how to work it into life lessons for you boys. But it seems relevant at this point because, apparently Rosenborg’s women’s side has suffered financially in the last year, and the Norwegian Federation is worried about their ability to stay afloat. (I’m not quite sure why they’re struggling, they’ve been consistently one of the best teams in the country, the stands at Koateng arena are usually full, but like I said…I don’t understand a lot of the business stuff.) As a result they have been docked a point in the league dropping them further behind Valerenga…but I don’t have to do that, and I won’t.
Player of the Week
Her hat trick could have been rewarded last week, but there was a bigger point to make by standing with her fellow defender. But after another clean sheet boosting the best defense in our table, Sara Horte you are our player of the week.
Standing
Emelec will get a much needed break after their Copa Sudamericana tie this week and then it’ll be a summer of Minnesota and Rosenborg! (And a summer where Punjab keeps looking over their shoulders)
| Team | W | D | L | PPG | GFA | GAA |
| Punjab–b | 12 | 2 | 3 | 2.24 | 2.29 | 0.94 |
| Minnesota | 16 | 5 | 7 | 1.89 | 2.39 | 1.14 |
| Rosenborg | 15 | 6 | 10 | 1.65 | 1.74 | 0.90 |
| Legon Cities–b | 9 | 7 | 8 | 1.42 | 1.25 | 1.29 |
| Grenoble–b | 15 | 6 | 17 | 1.34 | 1.16 | 1.13 |
| Emelec | 5 | 8 | 7 | 1.15 | 1.20 | 1.20 |
| Freiburg–b | 12 | 7 | 19 | 1.13 | 1.24 | 1.66 |
| Alebrijes–b | 5 | 5 | 8 | 1.11 | 1.33 | 1.39 |
| Ross County–b | 6 | 4 | 12 | 1.00 | 1.23 | 1.50 |
| Vozdovac–b | 4 | 3 | 11 | 0.83 | 0.67 | 1.65 |
| Montana–b | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — |
b–Team is between seasons
What’s Next
Thursday, June 29th
Green Bay Glory v. Minnesota Aurora (F)
Friday, June 30th
Saturday, July 1st
Roa v. Rosenborg BK (F)
Minnesota United v. Portland Timbers (M)
Minnesota Aurora v. Chicago City SC (F)
Sunday, July 2nd
Aalesund v. Rosenborg (M)
Monday, July 3rd
Tuesday, July 4th
Wednesday, July 5th
Plus tracking results for Gold Cup matches and the impending Women’s World Cup.
Week 25: Goals, Goals, Goals!
Recap
Minnesota Aurora 5 – 1 Bavarian United (F)
Aurora managed to balance their attack again with five different goal scorers (including the usual suspects of Cat Rapp, Mariah Nguyen, Hannah Adler, Maya Hansen, and Tiana Harris). These highlights do an excellent job of showcasing Abby Ostrem and Cat Rapp providing passes so dangerous they come with a surgeon general’s warning.
Lyn Football 2 – 0 Rosenborg (F)
Rosenborg took a third defeat this season, a sign that the Toppserien is much more equal than it has been in the past. Though it was a bit surprising that the loss came to Lynn who is currently just above the relegation zone, a rare occurrence as the TrollKvinner tend to drop points to others competing for the title instead. Perhaps this is a sign that the Toppserien has becomemore competitive, and a more competitive league means more fun for everyone
Deportiva Cuenca 3 – 2 Emelec
Los Bombillos wrapped up their spring season with another defeat. They got two goals back from their early goal by Cuenca, but despite Alejandro Cabeza’s best work, Deportiva came back again and Emelec settled into 13th place.
Arna Bjornar 0 – 5 Rosenborg (F–Cup)
Lyn may just have woken up the sleeping giants in Trondheim. Pouring 5 past the weakened Arna-Bjornar side gave them a much needed boost heading into the quarterfinals. The surprising star of the show: Defender Sara Horte, who notched a defender’s hattrick just a few days after being named to Norway’s World Cup team.
RKC Soccer Club 1 – 8 Minnesota (F)
After thumping Racine by ten the last time out, the Aurora might have taken their foot off the gas by falling behind early and only scoring two in the first half. And then came six in a row in the second half. Hannah Adler and Kenzie Langdock each got a brace and the team saw Addison Weichers and Arianna Del Moral get goals off the bench.
News & Notes
Weekly Alex Highlights
It seems that big A has discovered a taste for scoring goals (3 of them). It helps when your team wins the game and you finally get a reason to gloat.
I made a lot of fatherly comments about “if you’re happy with how you played then you can always win,” and “I’m just proud that you played well with your teammates and supported them”. Which led to Alex groaning, “ugggh…fine dad, whatever.” (If only there was professional sassing, you’d be a prodigy.)
International Update
Teams are still warming up for the North American Gold Cup, and while he didn’t get on the field in Nations League finals for Canada, Dayne St. Clair will be at the ready for the second tournament.
Fellow goalkeeper Mark Flekken also stayed on the bench for Holland and so did Mathias Ginter for Germany. Michael Gregoritsch and Phillip Lienhart did well in Austria’s Euro Championship qualifiers, getting a draw against Belgium and a win over with Sweden (they may also have made the final pitch to new Freiburg signee/Gregoritsch’s Austrian strike partner Junior Adamu). Roland Sallai wasn’t able to catch fire against Montenegro but did find the net to seal the win against Lithuana.
Beyond the west, Ritsu Doan got a goal in Japan’s drubbing of El Salvador, and Blongokhule Hlongwane put in a solid 15 minutes in South Africa’s win against Morocco, and Michael Boxall…well…
Standing with Boxy
The worst news that came out of this week of international soccer came from our favorite Minnesotan-Kiwi, Michael Boxall.
In the first half of a match against Qatar (yes, the same Qatar I snarked about all last December), Boxall reported being called a racial slur. When referees did nothing about it, the New Zealand team left the field and abandoned the match.
Qatar officials spent a couple days pretending that nothing happened, then claiming that it was just between two players, then claiming that the player in question (Yusuf Abdurisag) was actually the target of a slur from Boxall. Obviously, I’m not in a place to judge something that happened thousands of miles away, but given that New Zealand walked out when they were winning and that Boxall has never been accused of similar actions in six years within one of the most diverse leagues in the world…I have my doubts.
It doesn’t mean much, but we also stand with Boxy.
Player of the Week
As we look to honor often over looked talents, it’s worth saying that Boxy has helped lead the third best defense in MLS’ western conference (which would be even better if it didn’t have the 13th offense in the conference). But setting aside the field, Michael Boxall is imminently worthy of being saluted particularly because, in leading a protest, Michael Boxall did so much more than play a soccer game. He showed the kind of character I hope you boys do too.
Standing
Emelec will get a much needed break after their Copa Sudamericana tie this week and then it’ll be a summer of Minnesota and Rosenborg! (And a summer where Punjab keeps looking over their shoulders)
| Team | W | D | L | PPG | GFA | GAA |
| Punjab–b | 12 | 2 | 3 | 2.24 | 2.29 | 0.94 |
| Minnesota | 16 | 5 | 7 | 1.89 | 2.39 | 1.14 |
| Rosenborg | 15 | 6 | 10 | 1.65 | 1.74 | 0.90 |
| Legon Cities–b | 9 | 7 | 8 | 1.42 | 1.25 | 1.29 |
| Grenoble–b | 15 | 6 | 17 | 1.34 | 1.16 | 1.13 |
| Emelec | 5 | 8 | 7 | 1.15 | 1.20 | 1.20 |
| Freiburg–b | 12 | 7 | 19 | 1.13 | 1.24 | 1.66 |
| Alebrijes–b | 5 | 5 | 8 | 1.11 | 1.33 | 1.39 |
| Ross County–b | 6 | 4 | 12 | 1.00 | 1.23 | 1.50 |
| Vozdovac–b | 4 | 3 | 11 | 0.83 | 0.67 | 1.65 |
| Montana–b | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — |
b–Team is between seasons
What’s Next
Thursday, June 22nd
Friday, June 23rd
Saturday, June 24th
Rosenborg BK v. Asane (F)
Real Salt Lake v. Minnesota United (M)
Bavarian United v. Minnesota Aurora (F)
Sunday, June 25th
Rosenborg v. Sarpsborg 08 (M)
Monday, June 26th
Tuesday, June 27th
Wednesday, June 28th
Emelec v. Danubio (M-Copa Sudamericana)
Plus tracking results for Gold Cup matches and the impending Women’s World Cup.
81. Rules Aren’t Rules
One of my personal pet peeves as a kid growing up was when teachers or classmates would explain why certain things had to happen by falling back on the old saw: “Rules are rules.”
As a kid it seemed basic, trite, and not very informative.
As an adult who uses it more often than I probably know, it usually comes up when I don’t particularly want to explain something (or actually can’t explain it well, but still want to control the situation).
Even as a kid, I understood that some rules helped and organized us. Both then, and now, I don’t want to live in a world without rules.
But the dirty little truth is, “rules aren’t always rules”, no matter what parents or teachers say. Every rule has an exception, and every exception can be expanded. You should be mindful of the fact that what we perceive as an iron clad rule, can still be studied, explored, experimented upon and finally: changed.
Or as put more simply in your mom’s favorite Cinematic masterpiece:
In the recently concluded soccer season, I had two difficult realizations that what I had long assumed were the permanent rules, were in reality…guidelines.
The women of Grenoble were the first to face the new rules, and they fell on the foul side of things.
I thought the rules for the final standings would be the rules I’ve always known:
- Of the 12 teams in Grenoble’s division, 1 would go up to Ligue 1, and two would go down to the national leagues.
Grenoble was 7th heading into the final match, so they should have been fine.
Except
The rules changed: Only six teams would be safe from relegation: the winners who went up to Ligue 1, and the five following sides. Everyone from seventh on down was heading to the national league.
Okay, I thought. That’s a big rule change, but if you’re going to make a single second division league, then this kind of cull will have to happen. So seventh isn’t good enough any more, but I know how they will move up in their spots past rival Albi Marsaac:
- Get more points than your rival, basically win when your opponents lose (in this case, Albi lost while Grenoble got a draw, but I assumed there was still hope because)
- Have a better goal difference than your rival…(in this case, Grenoble had a four goal cushion, and Albi’s loss made it even clearer, Grenoble wins!)
- Have a better head-to-head record than you rival….(in this case, Albi won both of the games back in November…but it should be moot because Grenoble has the goal difference…right?)
Wrong.
In addition to the change in relegation, France decided to alter the final positions so that it was decided by, points earned (wins and losses), then head-to-head record, then goal difference.
In theory, I would have to say: okay, that tracks. I’m used to things working the other way, but I suppose this would be kind of a naturally embedded playoff happening within the league each and every week, and direct competition beats an average.
In reality, now that head-to-head record trumped goal difference, what theoretically made sense was profoundly unfair because it cost my preferred team.
I still can’t quite believe that the French Federation didn’t ask me about this rule change. I mean. The nerve! I am the foremost French Women’s Second Division Blogger in the Upper Midwest! And they didn’t ask MOI?!?…sorry French Federation, that was sarcasm.
But in the highlands, another rule change served our team very well.
Again I thought the rules were the rules. Ross County had to play Partick Thistle both at home and the road, with the result being decided the way I always knew.
- Combine the scores over the two games and the team who is ahead overall wins. (In this case, it ended County 3, Thistle 3)
- If tied, the team that scores more away goals wins (Thistle 2, County 0…and pbbbt go the Staggies)
- If tied on away goals, there’s a final tiebreaker of penalty kicks (but as noted above…the Stags already went pbbbt)
I’ve already recapped the wildness of County’s final game, but I truly was despondent seeing them comeback to tie it up only to think…but that one Partick Thistle goal made all the difference.
But the rules weren’t the rules.
Scotland had chucked the away goals rule, which enabled all that followed, including the celebrations in a quiet corner of St. Paul, Minnesota.
(Again, on theoretical reflection: I can see why scoring on the road is harder than scoring at home and thus worth some extra credit, but it also feels like a pretty meager argument as opposed to say…winning games).
These may seem like silly little case studies, and they are. But they both highlight a truth: we want to protect rules that help us, and are ready to chuck the rules that don’t.
Protect the rule that would have spared Grenoble; chuck the rule that would have cost County.
After all, rules are rules, but I’d like them to be more like guidelines.
It comes up outside of soccer too:
At the start of this month, the rules changed for me, and for the dozens of people who work with me.
Dear Boys,
Our school, though its prone to bat infestations and crumbling…everything…has done well. Students have made major growth in their learning. Families have reported that the staff is engaged, caring, and committed to the community. You boys have been able to join in, and play merrily with colleagues and kids (as shown by the bouncy slide pictured here). Our school, despite some real problems, consistently rate as the best school in our little crew of four buildings. And the rules of schools make it pretty clear that you don’t close schools that do well.
But rules of schools also say, you have to make do with what little you have.
Rather than paying for us to stay in the ramshackle old school, our group of schools closed the building I worked in. To follow one rule, they had to break another. And so, the team of educators who worked so well together has been somewhat scattered. The emotions that get so tied up in a place were buffeted this way and that.
But my colleagues were still hurt. They wanted to protect the rule that would have kept us safe, and ignore the rule that broke us up.
Rules aren’t rules.
And hard as it is, when rules change, when they morph or adapt or turn into “guidelines” there’s not a whole lot you can do.
Grenoble will play in the lower league next year.
Ross County will stay in the top league no matter what Partick Thistle prefers.
My colleagues and I will teach in an odd little niche of another building come August.
I do believe that all will be well. You don’t need to be in one place to be a quality teacher. The place doesn’t make the school, the people do, and while I will miss those people who have moved on, I’m ready to help those who remain. (Just as I’m sure, Grenoble’s ladies will be motivated to get back to the upper league.)
Things change, and it’s important to be ready to change with it.
Changes happen and much as we predict perfection, or fear the unknown, we won’t know until we see it–it’s an experiment, and because rules aren’t rules…they’re more like…guidelines…we can change them and change them and change them again.
Week 24: The Quiet Season
Recap
Rosenborg BK 4 – 0 Arna-Bjornar (F)
It seems that Rosenborg’s ladies have found their full stride, four goals in the first half put them far ahead, and coach Steinar Lein chose to solidify the lead after half time. Familiar attackers Anna Joesendal and Emilie Nautnes each got a goal, and back-up goalie Lene Christensen returned for the first time this season with a clean sheet.
Montreal 4 – 0 Minnesota (M)
With your mom having a girls night, we celebrated boys night with thirty minutes of soccer watching. Well, I watched and Alex asked questions and Owen bounced around slamming Anna and Elsa into everyone and everything. Sadly, Anna and Elsa had more fun than the Loons who were over run by Montreal including former Loon/Sassy Librarian Mason Toye. Michael Boxall and Miguel Tapias couldn’t do everything and Montreal’s great passes made them too dangerous to stop. But the Loons attack looked better with Emanuel Reynoso involved (though, it may lead to the return of “hero-ball-starring El Rey”…)
Legon Cities 3 – 2 Samartex
The Royals raced out to a quick lead with Ahmed Rahman and Ebenezer Armegah hitting the net before 10 minutes had passed, the Royals repeatedly taking full advantage of some shaky Samartex defending. With the advantage, Legon was able to absorb a lot of Samartex’s attacks, and when Michael Otou got the third with nine minutes to play, the Royals were safe. (It should be noted that Michael received the most Man of the Match honors in the Bet Pawa league this season: cue the slow clap).
Stabek 2 – 2 Rosenborg (M)
Rosenborg fell behind early (an inverse of Legon’s game) but kept driving forward until Jayden Nelson got the first. The second half showed Rosenborg storming the Stabek goal, but coming up empty handed until Erlend Reitan set up Carlo Holse for a last minute equalizer.
Chicago City SC 1 – 3 Minnesota Aurora (F)
The Aurora gave up another goal, but it didn’t make much difference with Kenzie Langdok, Hannah Adler and Mariah Nguyen finding the net and Tianna Harris continuing to lock down the defense en route to being one of the players of the month in the whole USL-W
Emelec 0 – 0 Gualaceo SC (M)
Yup, I got nothing to say here. I do expect that Emelec won’t be overly disappointed to have the first half of the season end on Sunday. (They’ll have one more group match in the Copa Sudamericana, and a win should get them through to the knock-out stage, but a break would not be a bad thing.)
Minnesota Aurora 5 – 0 Green Bay Glory (F)
Rolling smoke from Canadian wildfires made it unsafe to play outside on Wednesday night, but even under a dome and without the normally raucous fans the Aurora continued to run roughshod over opponents, this time with Cat Rapp notching a brace and the steady defensive line once again pitching a shutout.
News & Notes
Overbearing Parent/Coach Update
Alex had another great week at soccer. He ran up and down the field a lot, and continued to love getting in the way of shots, which was convenient because his four man team was dwarfed by a pair of 5 year olds who looked 7 so there was a lot of running to do. And again he got his team’s only goal….but that’s not as much fun as defending. The best thing though: he found several chances to cheer on his team as they ran including little Jack (from Owen’s Pre-school class)
Let’s get Messi
You may remember that I wrote about the delights of watching a World Cup final with you both and seeing one of the greatest players of this generation reach the greatest pinnacle of this sport. Well, that same legendary player has decided to write the last chapter of his story here in the United States, including in Minnesota (eventually).
Messi turned down hundreds of millions from Saudi Arabia (literally the Saudi Arabian government owns four teams…) just for playing, to instead accept hundreds of millions from American companies who will pay him for existing and thereby selling more streaming services, shoes and tickets.
The Loons won’t see him until 2024 at the earliest…assuming he’s willing to play on an icy/sweltering Minnesota pitch in the first place. I’ll continue my internal debate: go watch him, or sell the tickets for much more than they are worth.
International Update
We’ve reached the time in the year where (most) soccer players finally, mercifully, have a break.
Unless you’re really good, in which case you need to play more…but this time for your country!
We don’t have exact names of which players will be going where so here’s a brief overview of possible places to look.
North American players will be gearing up for the Gold Cup, but we’re surprisingly light on those. Dayne St. Clair will likely be hanging around Team Canada’s bench, while Samuel Rogers of Rosenborg could line up again for the US. Kervin Arriaga and Joseph Rosales will look to team up in Honduras’ midfield.
In Europe, we have more players based, but just as many hanging around. Mark Flekken the (now former) Freiburg keeper will be hoping to play in the Nations League semif-finals after start Justin Biljow was smoked by Croatia’s attack). Phillip Leinheart and Michael Gregositch will be ready to go for Austria, and Rolland Sallai will be on hand for Hungary in their Euro Tournament qualifiers, and Mathias Ginter will be the lone Freiburg representing Germany.
Finally, Asian/African teams will simply be getting their work outs in preparing for games ahead with Woo-Yeong Jeong joining South Korea, and Ritsu Doan suiting up for Japan, and Bongokhule Hlongwane aims to help South Africa.
Bet Pawa’s Final Update
And that, as they say, is that.
Medema SC held on to claim the title they were driving for. Their win over Tamale City also doomed the northerners to relegation, when Great Olympics got a big win over Nsoatreman to save their bacon…or fried plantain if you prefer. And unless I’m much mistaken Legon Cities’ 9th place finish equaled their best ever showing.
Player of the Week
As we enter the stage of the season where we only have a few teams playing each week, we’ll be able to reward some players who do extremely well and a few who had good years but weren’t able to be the best player on a given week. This week, it’s time to give an overdue shout out to Tiana Harris. As Alex continues to admire defenders, Ms. Harris is a heckuva role model.
Standing
The quiet season means we’re not real likely to see much movement in the standings, but with Minnesota and Rosenborg the only two sides still clicking along after this week (sorry for my pessimism Emelec), we should still have the race to pressure Punjab in full swing.
| Team | W | D | L | PPG | GFA | GAA |
| Punjab–b | 12 | 2 | 3 | 2.24 | 2.29 | 0.94 |
| Minnesota | 14 | 5 | 7 | 1.81 | 2.08 | 1.15 |
| Rosenborg | 14 | 6 | 9 | 1.66 | 1.69 | 0.90 |
| Legon Cities–b | 9 | 7 | 8 | 1.42 | 1.25 | 1.29 |
| Grenoble–b | 15 | 6 | 17 | 1.34 | 1.16 | 1.13 |
| Emelec | 5 | 8 | 6 | 1.21 | 1.16 | 1.11 |
| Freiburg–b | 12 | 7 | 19 | 1.13 | 1.24 | 1.66 |
| Alebrijes–b | 5 | 5 | 8 | 1.11 | 1.33 | 1.39 |
| Ross County–b | 6 | 4 | 12 | 1.00 | 1.23 | 1.50 |
| Vozdovac–b | 4 | 3 | 11 | 0.83 | 0.67 | 1.65 |
| Montana–b | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — |
b–Team is between seasons
What’s Next
Thursday, June 15th
Friday, June 16th
Saturday, June 17th
Minnesota Aurora v. Bavarian United (F)
Sunday, June 18th
Lyn Football v. Rosenborg (F)
Deportiva Cuenca v. Emelec
Monday, June 19th
Tuesday, June 20th
Wednesday, June 21st
Arna Bjornar v. Rosenborg (F)
RKC Soccer Club v. Minnesota (F)
Week 23: A Highland Miracle
Recap
Stjorsdals Blink 2 – 1 Rosenborg (M–Cup)
Rosenborg had never lost to Stjorsdal before…but they sure lost here marking an unexpectedly early exit from the League Cup…again.
Partick Thistle 2 – 0 Ross County (Premiership Playoff)
It’s hard to imagine the first leg of Ross County’s do or die playoff game going any worse than it did. They were behind within ten minutes. Teenage defender Dylan Smith committed a foolish foul and was sent off the field (forcing the Stags to play down a man when they needed to score–and putting Smith on the bench for the return leg). Partick’s second goal was utterly predictable and the Stags left a lot for themselves to do on Sunday. (TO BE CONTINUED)
Grenoble 0 – 2 Guingamp (M)
The men of Grenoble wrapped up their season with a pretty disinterested showing at home. The defensive corps rested, Brice Mableu let in an own goal, and Amine Sbai missed a penalty.
Rosenborg BK 2 – 0 Brann (F)
It took a while for Rosenborg to find their footing in the game. But once they did they jumped in head first (sorry, that’s my overly complicated metaphor for the week). Within one minute Emilie Joramo and Synne Hansen both scored to turn the tide decisively toward Trondheim’s favorite daughters.
Barcelona SC 1 – 3 Emelec (M)
As maddeningly flat as Emelec has been this year, they do have a habit of turning up when the moment requires it. Rarely has that been more true than last weekend in the passionate feud with fellow Guayquil side Barcelona, where Emelec ran the show for most of the first sixty minutes, including a stellar penalty stop by Pedro Ortiz. But when Barcelona got a goal, Emelec came right back. Miller Bolanos converted two penalties (albeit one on a rebound) and Samuel Sosa’s stoppage time dagger to steal a win.
Minnesota United 1 – 1 Toronto FC (M)
The Loons also left it late to make their comeback against Toronto FC. With the team relying on substitute Kervin Arriaga’s blast in the 89th minute to get a point from their match, there have to be sincere hopes that the first game time for Emanuel Reynoso this year will start setting up more of an attack for the Loons…goodness knows they need it.
King Faisal 3 – 1 Legon Cities
After arguably their most high profile victory in the club’s history (finally besting Hearts of Oak), the Royals were outmanuevered and totally deflated against an on-life-support King Faisal. Ebenezer Armagah’s consolation goal won’t mean a lot if the team is relegated next weekend.
Rosenborg 4 – 0 HamKam (M)
A lackluster season for Rosenborg looks a lot better now (4-0 victories tend to have that effect). The Trolls looked great with Olaus Jair Skansen getting two goals, Erlend Dahl Reitan looking the best we’ve seen in his new midfield role with two assists, and Canadian youngster Jayden Nelson getting a goal and an assist. Now we just cross our fingers and hope this wasn’t all the offense they can muster for the month of June.
Rochester FC 0 – 1 Minnesota Aurora (F)
Several line-up shifts for Aurora resulted in an unusually low-scoring outing for them as guests as Rochester held them to just one goal. But it came from Iron-Woman Tianna Harris who has two goals, and has played every minute in defense for the still unbeaten (and unscored-on) Aurora.
Ross County 3 – 1 Partick Thistle (Premiership Playoff)
I do not recommend watching the most vital game of a team’s season in the boiling heat and oppressive crowds that flocked our neighborhood party (Grand Ol’ Day). With Thistle in front and an away goal advantage at half-time I was feeling totally doomed. And then we saw the most remarkable thing…
of County’s game (from the Economist)
County came back…all the way back. Back enough to tie the game and send it to penalty kicks (as, apparently the away goal rule was conveniently chucked just in time for County’s moment of need). Yan Dandha got the first, Simon Murray the second and George Harmon’s miracle in stoppage time saved the season. But not my stress levels.
After stoppage time clangers and cringes, it went to Penalty Kicks, and though County had an early advantage, the game went through seven rounds (including goals for Dandha, Murray and Harmon) before Ross Laidlaw stopped his second pk of the shoot out and Josh Sims converted his to win the day.
LSK Kvinner 1 – 2 Rosenborg (F)
Somewhere your great-great-grandma Synne might be wondering why we’re shouting her name with such glee, but when Synne Hansen (no relation to our family…I think) scores twice more to get a win over arguably the greatest rival Rosenborg has in the Toppserien, well, Bra, Synne! Bra!!
Emelec 1 – 1 Guarani (M-Confederation Cup)
It was not ideal to drop points at home, but Emelec still had a fine showing against the Paraguayan side. Diego Garcia made a great slashing shot from outside the box to open the scoring, but the defense was caught out by a cleverly quick free kick. (Pedro Ortiz can’t beat them all)
Minnesota Aurora 6 – 1 Chicago Dutch Lions (F)
The Aurora remain unbeaten, but finally conceded a goal this season. Hannah Adler picked up the team’s second hat trick of the season, and Mariah Nguyen picked up a brace with some great footwork.
News & Notes
“STOPPING GOALS!”
I got to watch Alex playing “competitive” soccer for the first time (note that in this case, “competitive” means wildly chaotic and unconventional mob ball with frequent water breaks.) He got transferred part way through the game when his first team was far ahead (they also had 5 players to the other side’s three), but Alex took it in stride and made it his mission to get between any shot and goal, he seemed to love running down the field to do exactly that. Afterwards, even though he had also given a beautiful run for the losing side’s only goal, he said he really liked stopping goals.
I can relate, as this week saw my return to the competitive pitch for the first time since I was seven. Playing against my students (25 years younger than me) I was grateful to get in the way and stop one student…just don’t ask me to head anything…another chance, another whiff.
Der Umzug
Just as I can set my calendar by the return and departure of Canadian Geese in their beautiful flying V, I can reliably expect that after the season wraps, Freiburg will have to say sincere farewells to talented players who are being picked up by more prestigious (and wealthier) clubs. This year is no different. Already in the week since the team played, goalie Mark Flekken is bound for Brentford in the Premier League where he seems likely to join Kevin Schade (already on the cusp of making his loan permanent
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New Jersey Alert
Ross County seems to have opted for a less is more approach with lots of blue and a little white striping though I appreciate that they did it in Gaelic. Meanwhile, I appreciate the stylish risk that Grenoble has adopted, any thing Mountainy is right up my alley.
Bet Pawa Update
Finally we have some clarity in Ghana’s Bet Pawa league as we head into the final match.
The title will either go to Medeama SC or Bechem United (if Bechem beats third place Aduana and Medeama loses a shocker to Tamale City).
But Tamale has some serious motivation of their own as they are one of seven teams facing relegation. They have the goal difference advantage (for now) but lopsided results could let both Great Olympics and King Faisal pass them up. Meanwhile, Legon faces Smartex knowing that a win will see them safely through. (Especially as they have a better goal difference than the three teams above them in the escape from doom: Accra Lions, Karela United, and Hearts of Oak–all of whom also are deseprate for a win). But a loss and Both Olympics and Tamale could pass them by.
Player of the Week
Unlike last week there are a great many candidates to choose from. Hanna Adler’s hat-trick, Synne Hansen’s offensive jolt, Tianna Harris’ tremendous defense, Erlend Reitan and Jadyn Nelson’s combination play, Pedro Ortiz’s saves. But we’ll go with someone who had a great game and made a crucial contribution to the context of the match: Ross Laidlaw, whose two Penalty saves rescued Ross County when they needed it most.
Standing
Well, our teams came back with aplomb, and we got to see Aurora’s continued strength pushing them closer to that 2.00 Points Per Game mark that should confirm a strong challenge to Punjab’s leadership. Rosenborg isn’t far behind, despite some frequent scuffles a few rounds with the same kind of offense could make this year’s race for the cup quite compelling. Meanwhile Grenoble and County hit the end of their seasons in some solid but not superlative settings.
| Team | W | D | L | PPG | GFA | GAA |
| Punjab–b | 12 | 2 | 3 | 2.24 | 2.29 | 0.94 |
| Minnesota | 12 | 5 | 6 | 1.78 | 2.00 | 1.09 |
| Rosenborg | 13 | 5 | 9 | 1.63 | 1.59 | 0.89 |
| Legon Cities | 8 | 7 | 8 | 1.35 | 1.17 | 1.26 |
| Grenoble–b | 15 | 6 | 17 | 1.34 | 1.16 | 1.13 |
| Emelec | 5 | 7 | 6 | 1.22 | 1.22 | 1.17 |
| Freiburg–b | 12 | 7 | 19 | 1.13 | 1.24 | 1.66 |
| Alebrijes–b | 5 | 5 | 8 | 1.11 | 1.33 | 1.39 |
| Ross County–b | 6 | 4 | 12 | 1.00 | 1.23 | 1.50 |
| Vozdovac–b | 4 | 3 | 11 | 0.83 | 0.67 | 1.65 |
| Montana–b | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — |
b–Team is between seasons
What’s Next
Thursday, June 8th
Friday, June 9th
Saturday, June 10th
Rosenborg BK v. Arna-Bjornar (F)
Montreal v. Minnesota (M)
Sunday, June 11th
Legon Cities v. Samartex
Stabek v. Rosenborg (M)
Chicago City SC v. Minnesota Aurora (F)
Monday, June 12th
Emelec v. Gualaceo SC (M)
Tuesday, June 13th
Wednesday, June 14th
Minnesota v. Green Bay Glory (F)
Week 22: Cue the Crying
Recaps
Huracan 2 – 2 Emelec (M–Confederation Cup)
Emelec is in an odd spot, floundering in the league but competitive in the confederation cup. Few things show that better than making a trip to Buenos Aires and walking out with points despite an absolutely staggering gaffe to give Huracan an early goal. But they fought back with a great volley from Alejandro Cabeza on Bryan Carabali’s cross and Miller Bolanos’ late goal saved the day. But the last fifteen minutes were extra painful, especially for Cabeza who went from winning the match to being sent off after a pair of VAR checks found him both offside and aggressive with the elbows.
Valenciennes 1 – 0 Grenoble (M)
The Alpiners did a fine job of building up out of the back and connecting their attack, but couldn’t get anything across the goal line.
Frankfurt 2 – 1 Freiburg
Freiburg dropped only their second game to teams outside the top 4. Frankfurt came in motivated for a short at the Europa Conference League if they got a strong result and Leverkusen didn’t but this wasn’t enough.
Valerenga 3 – 1Rosenborg BK (F)
The top of the Toppserien turned into a less competitive match than you might expect with the Oslo side beating our girls from Trondheim, and using a five player midfield to overwhelm Rosenborg. It’s already a nine point gap between the top two teams who won’t meet again until November.
Partizan Belgrade 2 – 1 Vozdovac
The Red Dragons wrapped up their season with a predictable loss to one of the bigger Belgrade clubs. Partizan will have to settle for playoffs into the Europa Conference league, but at least Vozdovac don’t serve as a front for facists….yeah, I said it.
Minnesota 1 – 1 Real Salt Lake (M)
The Loons got some help from Real Salt Lake with an own goal only moments after Salt Lake took the lead. Again, they should feel unlucky as they had enough quality to probably score twice on their own, rather than relying on good fortune just to snatch a draw. Bongokhule Hlongwane was dangerous again, Will Trapp and Hasani Dotson boosted the midfield, and Minnesota rejoiced at the news that Emanuel Reynoso was nearing match fitness again.
Minnesota 4 – 0 Chicago Dutch Lions (F)
The Aurora came out with a fury in Chicago, pestering the goal until Kennedy Faulknor notched a gorgeous goal from a long distance shot. From there Maya Hansen and Cat Rapp continued their impressive double act to add another couple goals and put Minnesota in position to run away with their USL-W division again.
Vfl Wolfsburg 2 – 1 SC Freiburg (F)
Wolfsburg continued to be Freiburg’s bete-noir with another win at the griffin’s expense. Judith Steinert got a consolation goal, and the defense again showed some strong skills to keep things pretty close, as the Frauen of the Black Forest settled in their comfortable 6th place position.
Kilmarnock 3 – 1 Ross County
County needed a victory to ensure they’d stay up, there was pressure and intensity galore. And Kilmarnock scored. Then Alex Iacovitti committed a penalty that Kilmarnock converted. With a thoroughly deflated feeling, County did grab a consolation goal through Yan Dhanda’s penalty, but gave another one up shortly after. So, the loss was settled.
Legon Cities 1 – 0 Hearts of Oak
While Hearts of Oak has long been a dominant force in Ghanaian soccer, the upstarts of Legon have often seemed like the little brothers in the greater Accra landscape. But Legon looked great throughout the game, pushing Hearts of Oak around until Kofi Kordzi’s goal slipped through (it was probably the least likely to go in in). The “Phobians” grew into the match in the second half, but Legon’s defense held firm for their first ever win against one of the local league’s giants. (To be fair, Hearts have dropped five of their last six, so it’s maybe not that shocking, but a win is always welcome).
Le Puy Foot 1 – 1 Grenoble Foot (F)
Les Iseroises had a lot of confidence coming into play Le Puy on an excellent winning streak and facing a team who trailed in the table and had lost by two in their prior meeting. But Le Puy did well, the Grenoble side was frustrated and in the end it was only a point…a very…very painful point (see note below)
Brann 3 – 1 Rosenborg (M)
The Trollguter lost again as Carlo Holse has not been able to find the attacking vim he had in the past and Rosenborg’s anemic offense has them down in the unfamiliar territory of 11th place (the same rank as their goals for). This time, only a penalty saved them from getting blanked.
Emelec 0 – 0 Guayaquil City (M)
An unremarkable Guayaquil face off for Emelec has left the side down just one point off the absolute bottom of the table…yeesh.
Austin FC 2 – 1 Minnesota United (M)
Down in the heart of Texas, the Loons have had some strong showings and some suspect ones. They held their own against Austin and (again) could feel unlucky not to have more balls bounce their way (their expected goals were 3, their total goals were 1…that’s unfortunate. Mender Garcia did do an excellent job setting up Joseph Rosales equalizer, but for the first time in a while the defense looked taxed and unable to keep up.
Minnesota Aurora 10 – 0 RKC FC (F)
Honestly, I was a little frustrated preparing for this because I could not figure out RKC FC’s alphabet soup of a name. Turns out the team is from Racine (R) in Kenosha County (KC) and it is a football club (FC). They also have yet to win this season, and facing last year’s finalists…they were not in a good position to change that. Maya Hansen got a hat trick with the help of Cat Rapp’s assists and took over as the club’s all-time leading scorer (though that is only a two year record)
News & Notes
So…how did it go?
Last time we talked through all the permutations and possibilities. Now things are settled, and here’s where we stand
Grenoble: The men have one last game left, but are firmly grounded in the mid table. I thought the ladies were firmly placed in the mid-table, but ended up getting relegated due to a change in the French leagues set-up (see next news).
Vozdovac: The dragons were in the unusual position of knowing as soon as they landed in the top half of the table that they weren’t going to be relegated and they had no chance of topping the league. Still, it was more fun than being constantly afraid.
Freiburg: the women were settled in the mid-table, but the men had an outside chance to join the top sides going to the prestigious Champions’ League. But Eintracht Frankfurt’s victory spoiled those plans and the Griffins are going back to the Europa League (where they looked great until running in to Juventus).
Ross County: The good news, the Staggies aren’t relegated! Bad news…yet…After their loss County will have to take a two leg tie against Partick Thistle to keep their spot in the Premiership.
Wait, wait…what happened to the Grenoble ladies?
I’ll be honest, I was stumped when the Grenoble social media accounts were upset at a 1-1 draw to end the season against Le Puy. Because (silly me) I had neglected to read a memo from the French Football Federation a year ago announcing a change to the league. Instead of two divisions in Ligue 2, there will be only one next year. Grenoble was right on the cusp of qualifying for the redesigned Ligue 2…but the draw left them level with Albi Marsac…but ahead on goals…which didn’t matter as much as the fact that back in September and December they lost to Albi by a total of 3-0.
So…having a better goal difference, a similar offense, a better defense, and a run of six unbeaten…Grenoble is going down to Ligue 3 because of two games in the last calendar year.
Sometimes the rules around this game are dumb. But we can make the best of the bad situation and hope that Grenoble comes out to win Ligue 3 and jump up a level next year.
Bet Pawa Update
The impossible to expect Bet Pawa league in Ghana is two matches away from it’s conclusion and things are becoming much clearer.
Only three teams can win the title (down from 12 two weeks ago), Medeama SC is in the lead with Aduana Stars and Bechem United needing things to break their way. The relegation battle is still wild. Everyone from sixth place Berekum Chelsea down to King Faisal could still be knocked out (including the Royals of Legon). Things should be clearer after the coming weekend when King Faisal must win against the Royals to have a chance of survival, but a win for Legon might make them safe (provided one team ranked 14-16 also loses)
Player of the Week
Maya Hansen has had one heck of a run this past week. With five goals in two matches this week, she’s been vital in making Aurora the familiar indomitable selves. The question may not be: can they win, the question may be “who is going to stop them?”
Standing
Oof , that was a rough…rough…ROUGH week. There were 15 matches, and our favorite teams got 3 wins, 3 draws and 9 defeats. That’s 10 points from a possible 45. If not for Maya Hansen’s dominance and a superb showing by Legon this would have been utterly miserable.
| Team | W | D | L | PPG | GFA | GAA |
| Punjab–b | 12 | 2 | 3 | 2.24 | 2.29 | 0.94 |
| Rosenborg | 10 | 5 | 5 | 1.75 | 1.50 | 0.70 |
| Minnesota | 8 | 3 | 6 | 1.59 | 1.35 | 1.29 |
| Grenoble | 15 | 5 | 15 | 1.43 | 1.23 | 1.11 |
| Legon Cities | 7 | 7 | 7 | 1.33 | 1.19 | 1.24 |
| Freiburg | 12 | 7 | 17 | 1.19 | 1.22 | 1.67 |
| Emelec | 4 | 4 | 6 | 1.14 | 1.14 | 1.21 |
| Alebrijes–b | 5 | 5 | 8 | 1.11 | 1.33 | 1.39 |
| Ross County | 5 | 4 | 10 | 1.00 | 1.21 | 1.42 |
| Vozdovac | 4 | 3 | 10 | 0.88 | 0.65 | 1.65 |
| Montana–b | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — |
b–Team is between seasons
What’s Next
Thursday, June 1st
Stojorsdals Blink v. Rosenborg (M)
Partick Thistle v. Ross County (Premiership Playoff)
Friday, June 2nd
Grenoble v. Guingamp (M)
Saturday, June 3rd
Rosenborg BK v. Brann (F)
Barcelona SC v. Emelec (M)
Minnesota v. Toronto FC (M)
Sunday, June 4th
King Faisal v. Legon Cities
Rosenborg v. HamKam (M)
Rochester FC v. Minnesota (F)
Ross County v. Partick Thistle (Premiership Playoff)
Monday, June 5th
Tuesday, June 6th
LSK Kvinner v. Rosenborg (F)
Wednesday, June 7th
Emelec v. Guarani (M-Confederation Cup)
Minnesota v. Chicago Dutch Lions (F)
Week 21: The End is Nigh
Recaps
Vfl Wolfsburg 4 – 1 SC Freiburg (F–Cup FINAL)
It was not a great start for the Freiburg frauen, but Janina Minge struck an excellent header before the half time whistle to give Freiburg something to dream about. Then Wolfburg did a lot of Wolfburg things all throughout the second half….but thanks for the 20+ minutes of dreaming Janina
Grenoble 1 – 1 Rodez (M)
While Rodez got the first goal, 22 year-old midfielder Baptiste Isola got the equalizer and the Grenoble defensive juggernaut of Mathys Tourraine and Adrien Monfray contained the action there after.
Freiburg 2 – 0 Wolfsburg (M)
Der Herr von Freiburg got revenge on Wolfsburg the day after the cup final. Roland Sallai delivered both assists, and Nils Peterson scored an emotionally charged goal in the strong showing from Freiburg continuing to put pressure on opponents to seal their spot in Europe.
Motherwell 1 – 0 Ross County
The Staggies were in fine shape throughout the match, holding off a Motherwell side that’s the class of the relegation league. Then a late red card and an ugly penalty gave Motherwell the opening they needed to take all three points and arrest the Ross County momentum.
Bechem United 2 – 0 Legon Cities
Bechem United’s two strikes in the first half were more than William Essu could handle. We’ll see how Legon does with the pressure going forward
Universidad Catolica 3 – 2 Emelec
Los Bomillos have not had their usual swagger this spring, as again is evidenced by the penalty ceded to Universidad early on. From there, chasing the matchdid not work out well, and though Alejandro Cabeza and Jhon Sanchez got consolations later on, it wasn’t particularly close.
Portland Timbers 0 – 1 Minnesota (M)
Add another verse to the legend of Bongokhule Hlongwane! Most of this match featured strong defense (thanks again Michael Boxall) and midfield action limiting quality chances. It took until stoppage time to get a goal on the board, and when it came it came from the man who has been at the center of the action for seemingly months: The one they call Bongi.
SC Freiburg 1 – 3 FC Koln (F)
Die Frauen had a hard go of it against Koln (after having an unpleasant experience in Koln during the final earlier in the week). Falling behind quickly led to a four player swap out at half time. And while that did again reward one of our favorite players in Hasret Kayici (who scored in her appearance), it was an underwhelming outing to say the least.
Rosenborg 6 – 0 Avaldsnes (F)
Sometimes, it seems like Rosenborg is working overtime to keep up with the growing intensity of the Toppseiren. Sometimes, it looks like they’re toying with kids. This was a time to toy with others. The Jo-Jos (which is a nickname that looks like a Trader Joe’s cookie, but would be pronounced like one of your favorite spinning toys), Emilie Joramo and Anna Joesendal each scored, and there was a brace from defender Sara Horte to close out the scoring (which seems a little unfair as Horte is approximately 12 feet taller than everyone else…okay that’s a bad approximation, but I’m serious, she dominated).
Vozdovac 1 – 1 Cukaricki
This was a wild one. The opening goal for Cukaricki wasn’t terribly shocking, but then came the second half. It started two goals awarded, and then drawn back for very narrow offsides calls. A series of aggressive tackles led to a red card for Cukaricki (that even I as a Vozdovac supporter, don’t fully believe). And then came a 90th minute equalizer from Danilo Teodorovic that slipped through the other side’s packed back line. Until the final touch: an empty net opportunity for Vozdovac….that they whiffed on.
The score doesn’t tell the whole story.
Grenoble Foot 3 – 1 Yzeure Allier (F)
Melanie Charber and Florsie Joseph struck again to let les Iserois close out their home schedule with a strong win. That makes it 5 in a row for the ladies of the mountains, and with one match left, they can hold their heads high however it turns out
Houston Dynamo 4 – 0 Minnesota United (M-Cup)
The Loons had an ugly outing in the last sixteen of the US Open Cup. After beating Philadelphia in a thrilling match, going to Houston might have been a let down, but maybe not a Kervin-Arriaga-gets-a-first-half-red-card-and-the-team-is-too-short-handed-to-stop-Houston’s attack, sized let down.
Trygg Lade 0 – 1 Rosenborg (M–Cup)
Agon Sadiku struck early and Rosenborg had everything they needed to beat the little neighbor kids from down the road in Trondhiem. Would have been nice if they’d taught that to the bigger kids (including Uncle Matt) who whooped me in every competition imaginable.
Ross County 3 – 3 St. Johnstone
It sure seemed like Ross County saw how wild Vozdovac’s game got and promptly decided, “hey, hold my dram”. The match started out with a St. Johnstone taking advantage of some miscues and opening up a two goal lead. When suddenly, shockingly, County roared back. A penalty of their own opened the scoring, then Jordan White equalized and then, in the 90th minute, Jack Baldwin got the glorious go-ahead goal for joyous celebrations from the Jail End supporters, and then…after five minutes of stoppage time, St. Johnstone leveled it up again!
Minnesota Aurora 5 – 0 Rochester FC (F)
This was much more comfortable than the wildness of Dingwall earlier in the day. Cat Rapp found the net twice and Maya Hansen continued to show strong form at the top of the attack. Rochester’s new to this, but it was a pretty impressive day none the less.
News & Notes
Our Boy is a Number 10!
After his first soccer practice, Alex came home with a number 10 jersey. I immediately imagined him becoming the American Messi, or better still an American Attaquaye. In reality, he grabbed a shirt from a pile, and he was much happier revealing his shin guards than anything else. So, everybody wins. (He also just graduated from Pre-school, or as he put it “I’m going to Kindergarten and then on and on and on and on”).
Griz Soccer Schedule
Most teams just look at the schedule to see when they play their fiercest rivals, and how the sequence of matches could play out. But college sports are a special (strange) beast. In addition to playing the teams in your league (or conference) you have to fill out your schedule by playing other sides. So a team like Montana, which consistently challenges for the top of the conference can go one of three routes: book a bunch of fairly easy games to have an even better record and show off, book a bunch of hard games against teams to raise your level, or mix the two approaches together.
Coach Chris Citowicki consistently chooses the third option, but has leaned more and more on the harder games. To wit, this year sees the Griz taking on some of the top teams in the Big Ten conference (which actually has like 14 members, but…I digress). This season the Griz will host both Ohio State and the University of Maryland, and go on the road against Oregon State and Oklahoma. There are also matches in the blood feud against North Dakota schools (our dinosaur sites are better than your dinosaur sites!) and the Brawl of the Wild substitute against MSU-Billings near the end of August.
Vielen Dank, Nils!
Nils Peterson is something of a cult hero in Freiburg. He has an uncanny knack for scoring vital goals in the limited time he spends on the pitch. But Peterson’s decided to retire at the end of the season. So, in the final home match of this season, playing in front of the fans who love him, scoring one more time, was a special way to end a career. We only started watching comparatively recently, but we can’t help but agree: thank you Nils!
Down to the wire
As May comes to a close, so too do most of the leagues we follow. This weekend will see the end of the Bundesliga and French Ligue-2s (both for men and women), the Scottish Premiership, and Serbian Premier League. There’s not a lot of drama in these for our sides as both Grenoble teams, and Vozdovac are set for solid but not superb mid-table finishes. Freiburg is guaranteed more European football next year, but doesn’t know yet if they’ll be in the top dog Champion’s League or the Best of the Rest Europa League (given how they performed against the top four in Germany and Juventus, another year in the Europa league feels right). The greatest drama lies in Dingwall, where the Staggies will face Kilmarnock, and after the action on Wednesday, it will mean that a Staggies win will see them safe and Killie into the relegation playoff. A draw or a loss by itself would put County in the relegation playoffs. And a loss coupled with a Dundee United win over Motherwell might (depending on goal totals) push County down to the second tier of Scottish soccer.
The Tightest League no one is talking about
While things are pretty calm in the leagues that end this weekend, that’s not he case in Ghana’s Bet Pawa Premier League. Coming into this weekend’s slate of games, 16 of 18 teams were still at risk of relegation, and 12 teams were still in mathematical contention for the title….which means seven teams could have either won or been knocked out with a month to play. (These numbers will adjust a bit with each week, so we’ll keep an eye on it to see if the drama holds to the very end)
UPDATE: After this weekend’s matches, 9 teams can win the league (not Legon *tear*), and 14 teams can join Kotoku Royals in going down (including the Royals *eep*)…3 matches to go!
Player of the Week
Anna Josensdal was in complete control for Rosenborg this weekend. Though the Kvinner ran out winners with a lot of excellent performances, Josensdal running the show from midfield was a huge factor (and the two goals didn’t hurt either).
Standing
I’m sneaking in this writing after everyone else has gone to bed…tabulating points per game seems a little farther than I’m willing to go…this will be updated in the morning.
Okay, Update time: With another win, the ladies of Grenoble have kept the good times rollingand moved themselves comfortably into fourth place for the moment. The United Minnesota force of the Loons and Aurora nearly caught up with Rosenborg, but then the cup ties happened and the Trolls inched up closer to Punjab.
| Team | W | D | L | PPG | GFA | GAA |
| Punjab–b | 12 | 2 | 3 | 2.24 | 2.29 | 0.94 |
| Rosenborg | 10 | 5 | 5 | 1.75 | 1.50 | 0.70 |
| Minnesota | 8 | 3 | 6 | 1.59 | 1.35 | 1.29 |
| Grenoble | 15 | 5 | 15 | 1.43 | 1.23 | 1.11 |
| Legon Cities | 7 | 7 | 7 | 1.33 | 1.19 | 1.24 |
| Freiburg | 12 | 7 | 17 | 1.19 | 1.22 | 1.67 |
| Emelec | 4 | 4 | 6 | 1.14 | 1.14 | 1.21 |
| Alebrijes–b | 5 | 5 | 8 | 1.11 | 1.33 | 1.39 |
| Ross County | 5 | 4 | 10 | 1.00 | 1.21 | 1.42 |
| Vozdovac | 4 | 3 | 10 | 0.88 | 0.65 | 1.65 |
| Montana–b | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — |
b–Team is between seasons
What’s Next
Thursday, May 25th
Huruacan v. Emelec (M–Confederation Cup)
Friday, May 26th
Valenciennes v. Grenoble (M)
Saturday, May 27th
Frankfurt v. Freiburg
Valerenga v. Rosenborg BK (F)
Partizan Belgrade v. Vozdovac
Minnesota v. Real Salt Lake (M)
Sunday, May 28th
Vfl Wolfsburg v. SC Freiburg (F)
Kilmarnock v. Ross County
Legon Cities v. Hearts of Oak
Vozdovac v. Cukaricki
Le Puy Foot v. Grenoble Foot (F)
Monday, May 29th
Brann v. Rosenborg (M)
Emelec v. Guayaquil City (M)
Tuesday, May 30th
Wednesday, May 24th
Austin FC v. Minnesota (M)
Ross County v. St. Johnstone
Minnesota Aurora v. Rochester FC (F)
4-For-2: Nicole Lukic
I introduced this feature last year and was working on a second installment when I hit the dark period (aka that six month stretch of not posting where we focused on moving into a house). A lot happened after that including a run to the Championship game and recognition as the coach of the year in the Women’s USL. As our interviewee is about to start their second season it seems appropriate to post it here (along with a sincere apology for being so late in sharing it).
With that, here’s our interview with Nicole Lukic, head coach of our Minnesota Aurora
1. How did you first get interested in soccer, and what did you like about it?
I started playing soccer at age 10. I liked playing with my friends and being competitive.
2. What have you learned about how to live from your career playing/coaching soccer?
Do not take anything for granted. Always give your best. Help others as much as you can.
3. How has preparing for Minnesota Aurora’s first season specifically shown you something (about yourself, about the game, about life) that you didn’t know before?
No major surprises so far. But I will say that I have never had the opportunity to work with so many inspiring and powerful women at the same time and it is something I am enjoying.
*Bonus* What’s your favorite Kid friendly sing-along-song?
Baby shark! Not because the words are brilliant but because of how happy it makes kids. My niece just started singing this song!
MacKenzie's Boot Room 