Tag: Jessy Benet

MacKenzie Cup: February ’25

MacKenzie Cup: February ’25

by scruffyrube ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Let’s get at it again, with a short month (made shorter by my late post last time) there’s less to cover, but more to enjoy

Between Season Squads:

Rosenborg, Montana (and Legon Cities)

Legon Cities was schecduled to face Karela United, but the match was cancelled so there’s nothing new to report for the Royals.

Meanwhile, there was another round of expected rest for the snowier portions of our soccer world. The Loons fled for sunny California to train and then kick off their season. Rosenborg made their way to Portugal and had a fun time training with others in a mini-tournament. Meanwhile the Griz focused on classwork and enjoying their new bubble training dome.

Rosenborg will hit the ground running in the next month, but most matches will happen while we’re on spring break, thus after our next update goes to “print”

LEGON March: HOME v. Nsoatreman, AWAY v. Asante Kotoko, HOME v. Berekum Chelsea, AWAY v. Accra Lions

ROSENBORG March: (W): AWAY v. Brann

Alebrijes de Oaxaca– 1 W – 0 D – 1 L; GF: 3/GA: 2

Oaxaca came into the month struggling heavily, winless in the year. Heck they were winless since September. So it was a bit of a surprise to see that they got their first win in 12 tries against a top of the table side in Atalante (2-0). Perhaps Atalante overlooked Alebrijes, but whatever the reason, Midfielder Fernando Morelos notched a brace. And the squad celebrated (deservedly).

Things looked to be breaking their way again in the next match as the Oaxacans were a man up after just 11 minutes following a Venados red card. But…the squad somehow managed to give up two goals to their opponents and only scored a consolation goal AFTER they also got a red card. (1-2 L)

March: HOME v. Correcaminos, AWAY v. Jaibos, and UDG, HOME v. Tlaxcala

Punjab– 0 W – 0 D – 2 L; GF: 2/GA: 5

After getting used to Punjab De Sher reliably topping our table and challenging everyone, it’s become a little dispiriting to see them face consistent struggles. Another late defeat (2-1), this time in Chennai stung again as it undid another solid outing from Nikhil Prabhu and Ravi Kumar. Moreover, it looked like with a range of injuries the often reliable Luka Macjen and Filip Marzjlak were forced to share time rather than dominate as a duo.

With those limitations firmly in place the ensuing defeat to East Bengal (3-1) was largely predictable. As coach Panagiotis Dilmperis tries to McGyver together an attack from the remnants of what was a potent attack at the start of the year, another second choice defense really didn’t help things.

The only solace is that there is no relegation from the ISL, but it’s hard knowing that the recent dip collapse in form turned a season that started with Punjab competing for the top of the table has left them outside of the playoff spot with 8 points to make up in three matches. That would require three wins and quite a lot of help from 5 teams head of them in the standings. Having just bottled winnable games (given season-long form) in Chennai and Bengal, they can only hope things go better on the road against bottom of the table Hydrabad and Mohammedan.

March: HOME v. FC Goa, AWAY v. Hydrabad and Mohammedan SC

Freiburg–3 W – 0 D – 0 L; GF: 8/GA: 0

F: 1 W – 0 D – 0 L; GF: 2/GA: 0

The match against Carl Zeiss Jena was postponed, so the only match for die Frauen was their against Koln. In addition to Cora Zica continuing to be a strong attacker, 17-year-old center back Maj Schneider celebrated her first ever start with a goal and a clean sheet!

March: AWAY v Turbine Potsdam, HOME v. Eintracht Frankfurt

M: 2 W – 0 D- 0 L; GF: 6/GA: 0

Freiburg needed help from an Own Goal to win against St. Pauli (1-0) after Vincenzo Grifo surprisingly missed a penalty. Kilian Sidilla had the best outing of a great defensive group that stopped their opponents from ever getting their offense clicking, with the law firm back line of Ginter, Gunter and Leinhart holding strong as well.

Eren Dikcii and Ristu Doan on their
way to the polls!

With things moving along nicely, Freiburg absolutely trounced Werder Bremen 5-0 in their biggest offensive outpouring since November of 2023! Vincenzo Grifo (please contain your shock) and Ritsu Doan each knocked in two goals and Noah Atabolu stopped his fourth consecutive penalty to seal the clean sheet in a resounding win.

As an added cherry on top, Freiburg’s efforts to get out the vote in German elections remain a gold standard helping increase the voting to 86% turn out! YAY VOTING! YAY FREIBURG!

March: AWAY v. Augsburg, HOME v. Leipzig, AWAY v. Mainz,

Ross County– 2 W – 0 D – 0 L; GF: 6 /GA: 1

Ronan Hale has quietly become a superb striker ranking 2nd in the Scottish Goal Scorers race this season (in the non-Old Firm division). He was back at it again against Motherwell, notching two goals in the first half to grab all three points on the road (3-0).

Back on home turf in Dingwall, the Staggies picked up another big win (3-1) versus Dundee FC, with Akil Wright continuing to be an absolute terror down the right side and Kacper Lopata anchoring the defense (and even chipping in an assist this match as well)

March: AWAY v. St. Johnstone, HOME v. Kilmarnock, AWAY v. Hearts

Grenoble– 1 W – 2 D – 0 L; GF: 6 /GA: 3

Women 0 W – 1 D – 0 L; GF: 1 /GA: 1

Les femmes only managed to take a point from their home match against Colomiers (1-1), and while that small slip shouldn’t be a huge affair, it feels a little like one. After all, there’s already very little margin for error in the quest to top the table, so this was less than ideal.

March: AWAY v. Chasseau Decines, and Le Puy; HOME v. Montpelier II, AWAY v. Monaco

Men–1 W – 1 D – 0 L; GF: 5 /GA: 2

After Frederic Geugen’s brief tenure as an interim manager, Grenoble brought in Franck Rizzetto. But while Rizetto came in, Pape Meissa Ba (aka Grenoble’s largest attacking piece) completed his move to the Bundesliga. It could have been a fraught moment, but instead Grenoble managed one of their best offensive outings this season notching 4 goals for the first time since September in a win against Amiens (4-1). Help came from all over the pitch including the invigorated defensive midfielder Theo Valls, and outright defenders Loris Mouyokolo and Shaquil Delos. The ensuing home tie against Guingamp was a less inspiring 1-1 draw, but it did include a Jessy Benet goal, so really who needs to complain?

March: AWAY v Pau, HOME v. AC Ajaccio, AWAY v. Clermont Foot

Vozdovac–1 W – 1 D – 2 L; GF: 1/GA: 0

Filipovic intimidating the ball!

The best start for a team kicking off their 2025 undoubtedly went to Vozdovac as the Red Dragons got points in both their matches. Winning 1-0 at home v. Dubocia with a goal from Mihajlo Milosavic was a great start. They may well have wanted more points from their tie against Smederevo (0-0) but you should never look askance at points on the road. And the outing also allowed goalie Nenad Filipovic to post his 5th straight clean sheet giving him 458 minutes without allowing a goal! Well done Nenad!

March: HOME v Macva, AWAY v. Worker, HOME v. Borac, AWAY v Grafica, HOME v. Radniki, AWAY v. Vrsac

Emelec–0 W – 0 D – 2 L; GF: 0 /GA: 6

After what can only be described as a lousy end of their previous season, hopes were high that Los Bombillos would start fresh and return to the traditional powerhouse role that saw them become one of Ecuador’s greatest clubs.

…Or they could lose 4-0 to Universidad and 2-0 to Delfin.

They did the second one.

Worse, the defeats have left Emelec’s men side winless since September, and with Alebrijes winning (finally) they now have the longest losing streak of all our teams. Good luck to new coach Jorge Celico…you clearly need it.

March: HOME v. Macara; AWAY v. Vinotinto; HOME v. LDU

Minnesota– 0 W – 0 D – 1 L; GF: 0 /GA: 1

The Loons kicked off their season in Los Angeles as a dark horse contender for the Western Conference title against the most obvious of bright horses: LAFC. But the squad held their own for most of the match. Good pressure and strong passing showed Bongi and Kelvin Yeboah to be ready to continue on right as they had last season, and Dayne St. Clair was tough as always. But against the well-funded and expertly drilled Angels there’s little room for error and the Loons paid the price with a 1-0 defeat.

March: HOME v. Montreal, AWAY v. San Jose and Kansas City, HOME v. LA Galaxy

STANDINGS

(See the standings page for full updates)

Tune in for our next recap: March 26th right before we hit the sunny streets of Orlando!

MacKenzie Cup: January ’25

MacKenzie Cup: January ’25

by scruffyrube ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Kicking off the sixth year of this project, I’m happy to say that I still enjoy doing this. More over, now that you boys are playing and laughing and having a grand time in your own soccer matches, it truly feels like a family affair. While we feel good about the year to come, let’s see how our favorite teams fared this month. (Note, I was close to hitting my publishing goal this month, but ended up off target a bit…as a result, anything that’s after my prior deadline will simply be given as a score and one relevant name…sorry, but that’s the compromise that makes sense in my head)

Between Season Squads:

Vozdovac, Emelec, Rosenborg, Minnesota, Montana

These squads took some time to recover, and with good reason as Norway, Minnesota and Montana are not hospitable to outdoor sports that are played in shorts rather than heavily insulated parkas at this time of the year. Rosenborg’s men did get some preseason games down in Portugal though. I’m not sure what Vozdovac’s excuse is but I’m sure they have a good one.

Emelec has the biggest changes to face as their regular two-part season gets broken into a complicated jigsaw. Everyone still plays the other teams in the league twice, but instead of once in the spring and once in the fall, it’s all in one heavy rush. After the dust settles following 30 matches a piece, teams slot into one of three second rounds. The top 6 jockey for the title and position in Copas. The second 6 fight for the last spot in South American Tournaments. Bottom 4 fight to avoid relegation. Had this system been in place in 2024, the dreadful fall season would have dropped Emelec into the second sextet.

February:

Vozdovac HOME v. Dubocic; AWAY v. Smendrija; HOME v Macva Sabac

Minnesota (M): AWAY v. LAFC

Emelec (M): TBD

Alebrijes de Oaxaca–0 W – 0 D – 4 L; GF: 2/GA: 7

After a big overhaul Oaxaca might have had hopes that things would change….but it didn’t. They lost 0-1 to Mineros, 1-0 to Cancun, 1-3 to Tapatio and 2-1 to Atletico Moreila. Left side attacker Orlando Ballesteros is the only man to notch a goal, so he’ll be our notable player for the month.

Rest of February: HOME v. Atalante, AWAY v. Venados

Legon Cities–2 W – 0 D- 2 L; GF: 4/ GA: 3

After a great deal of loyalty the Royals parted ways with coach Paa Kwesi Fabian who joined the long list of coaches who never got Legon City over the hump. Yaw Acheampong has become the latest manager and another man recently relieved of duties with one club only to bounce back with Legon.

Unfortunately the outcomes were depressingly similar. In the Accra derby versus Hearts of Oak, Legon bowed 1-0 despite being up a man in the game’s last minutes. But the Royals actually managed to get cooking thereafter with 3-0 Wins at home versus Dreams FC and a 1-0 win against Bibiani Gold Stars that dropped their opponent off the top of the league. Frederik Akatuk seems to be personally committed to upending the old narrative, at least until the Royals lost their first February game (1-0 at Medema SC). Also cool, Legon brought on Elijiah Satekla brother of Afropop star Stonebwoy (Legon loves that celebrity spotlight)

February: AWAY v. Karela United

Ross County–2 W – 1 D-3 L; GF: 7 /GA: 13

Let’s all savor the special start to 2025 that the Staggies enjoyed. First came a 2-1 win in Aberdeen against the often difficult Dons in the even more difficult snow conditions. Akil Wright’s blast was a particularly pretty bit of skill. The team also gritted out a 1-0 win at Kilmarnock with Noah Chilvers working some midfield mastery to create the goal (just as he netted the winner in Aberdeen). And with the physical presence of Kacper Lopata anchoring the defense (he’s been putting in some grizzled shifts this year in keeping with the County backline).

Jordan Amissah

The good vibes were flowing against Celtic as well, with a strong defensive first half from in-form keeper in Jordan Amissah, and a well-placed penalty by Jordan White drawing the Staggies level. Not content to settle for a draw, Don Cowie urged his team on to find a late winner, and the Hoops made them pay with three transition goals to leave a lopsided 4-1 result.

Then the special start to 2025 faded away as the bad news continued with a late added time goal conceded to Livingston to bow out of the cup (2-3), and a predictable shellacking from Rangers (4-0), but they at least managed a draw on my birthday (1-1 v. Hibs)

February: AWAY v. Motherwall, HOME v. Dundee FC

Freiburg–2 W – 0 D – 4 L; GF: 4/GA: 7

M: 2 W – 0 D- 2 L; GF: 7/GA: 12

Freiburg looked dangerous throughout the first half. Pressuring Holstein into an early own goal and celebrating as both Christian Gunter and Vincenzo Grifo found the net to build up an impressive lead. Then Holstein turned Phil Harres loose on Freiburg and the 22 year old wunderkind netted twice in stoppage time to bring about some mild cardial infarctions before walking away 3-2 winners.

Then things got rough, especially in defense losing 4-1 in Frankfurt and 4-0 in Stuttgart. Shockingly the defense’s best match came against the powerful (and Germany leading) Bayern Munich team where the Griffins only lost 2-1.

Then things turned around as a pair of 1-0 wins against Bochum and Heidenheim put the Breigsau boys back in the european league spots as of writing. The defense in general has worn pretty thin, especially in the defensive midfield pairings, but once again, if Vincenzo Grifo is on, Freiburg has a shot.

February: AWAY v. St. Pauli, HOME v. Werder Bremen

F: 0 W – 0 D – 2 L; GF: 1/GA: 5

There wasn’t a lot of positivity to find for die Frauen. A pair of losses (2-1 and 0-3) turned a fairly mediocre season into a very mediocre one (if such a thing is possible)

February: AWAY v Carl Zeiss Jena, HOME v. Koln

Punjab– 1 W – 2 D – 3 L; GF: 6/GA: 10

Mrzljak Must Have

As if determined to outshine Legon Cities, the Shers dropped their first game of the year 1-0 but they did it despite being two players up with even longer to play. Injuries forced the squad to push Nikhil Prabhu up into midfield and to run the offense without the Lion King: Luka Macjen (midfield talisman Filip Mrzljak started to work back into form with a short shift).

Sure enough, when Mrzljak increased his minutes to cover the entire second half of the next match against Northeast United, the result improved as well with Punjab earning a 1-1 draw, though it’s a little curious as to why goal scoring midfielder Khaiminthang Lhungdim felt the need to pick up two yellows within ten minutes of scoring his equalizer.

From there, inconsistency reigned. The Shers grabbed another draw (1-1) v. Mumbai City, a 1-2 defeat versus Jamshedpur, before finally notching their first win of the year (3-2 v. Bengaluru) and giving it right back in a loss to Mohun Bagan (3-0).

February: AWAY v. Odisha FC and Chennayin, East Bengal

Grenoble– 4 W – 2 D – 1 L; GF: 8 /GA: 4

Men–4 W – 1 D – 1 L; GF: 7 /GA: 3

Grenoble continues to churn through coaches at a rate that makes Legon Cities look thoroughly stable. Frederic Gueguen at least got the new manager bounce with the team’s 3-2 win versus Bastia at home. It was comforting to see substitutes Shaq Delios and Eddy Sylvestre collaborate on a goal, but the saving grace was (stop me if you’ve read this for the last 5 years) Jessy Benet! This time on a stoppage time penalty kick.

The defensive hallmarks of a usual Grenoble outing were on display again in Caen as a 5 man back line soaked up the pressure until Mattheo Xantippe found Theo Valls for the decisive goal (1-0). More dramatic was the more physically intense second half which saw three players sent packing including two straight red cards. The Alpiners won’t face Caen again this season…and that might be for the best.

From there it was a little less predictable as the offense sputtered and the defense continued to close down. A late winner from Eddy Sylvestre helped beat Martigues (1-0), a 3-0 defeat to Metz, and then switched it up and got a good win versus Rodez (2-1) and a hard fought 0-0 draw against Red Star Paris (with a classy banner to appreciate rivals rather than enemies). Tip the hat to Allan Tchaptchet and Gaetan Paquiez for emerging as the center back stalwarts.

February: AWAY at Amiens, HOME v. Guingamp

Women 0 W – 1 D – 0 L; GF: 1 /GA: 1

Grenoble’s lady side started off 2024 with a draw against fellow top of the table side Olympique Lyon II. (It reamins unclear if Lyon will be able to be promoted, or if Grenoble can hear the two sweetest words in the English language De-fault!)

February: AWAY v. Le Puy and then HOME v. Colomiers

January STANDINGS

(See the standings page for full updates)

Catching Up with the Kids: Grenoble

Catching Up with the Kids: Grenoble

by scruffyrube ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Ok, I’ve said it plenty of times by now: but I really struggled to keep up daily writing routines when I was teaching full time. That’s what happens to me when I spend most of the day supporting 70 other people’s writing, and the rest of it trying to be a parent. Now that I’m back to teaching, I’m back to struggling. But I remain determined that I keep up with a practice that I quite enjoy: writing about sports.

So even when it’s hard, and when it takes me a while to do, I’m going to write updates about the teams I love and their struggles and successes. This time, a trip to the French Alps and Grenoble

Match Results: 14 W – 4 D – 13 L; 47 GF / GA 34

Women’s Results: 9 W – 1 D – 2 L; GF 30 / GA 7

The women of Grenoble had high hopes that they could move up into the second tier of club soccer, and they did just about everything in their power to make that happen. Jade Decilap, Claudia Fabre, Romane Pilot and Melanie Chabrier were the top leaders for the scorers, and Julie Tissino was excellent in goal to give them a chance to win every time out.

Unfortunately, the two defeats came to the two top sides in their League 3 Pool: Toulouse and Clermont. Those defeats were what left them in third place when the season came to a close. But with the season about to kick off again, hopes are high that this year is THE year for Grenoble.

Men’s Results: 4 W – 3 D – 11 L; GF 17/ GA 27

There’s simply no way to sugar coat this…the Men of Grenoble collapsed. They were vying for promotion in the first half of the season. But as soon as the calendar turned to February they simply could not buy a win. Worse, one abysmal month saw them score 1 goal and give up 8 en route to 5 straight defeats. Suddenly promotion was a fantasy and survival was in question. Vincent Hognon was dumped (understandably so) and Laurent Peyane took over…with just enough change in results to keep the team afloat. Over the summer Oswald Tanchot was given the opportunity to turn things around, and so far things have been…fine. Not good, not bad, just…fine.

Other Stories:

Really the bottoming out of the men’s side captures most of the drama of the year, but the women had to make a swap as well: elevating long standing assistant Nasreddine Behloul should provide some consistency for a strong team, but how much it pushes them to the next level will remain to be seen.

The other big story is the bittersweet departure of club icon Brice Mableu. It makes sense for one of the biggest difference makers on the club to look for a bigger stage to showcase his skills…and if Grenoble as a whole can’t go up to the top league, at least Brice can (with Saint Etienne). There were other changes too with Amine Sbai leaving for Saudi Arabia, Mathys Touraine going to Paris (FC), and Loic Nestor suffering a ligament tear that likely ends his 24-25 season before it began. Grenoble will have to do their best with a newer look.

Star Players:

The difference makers for les Femmes are the most noteworthy stars: Delicap, Fabre, Pilot and Chabrir are tried and true team leaders, just as Mableu, Nestor, and Jessy Benet have been for the men. While Mathys Touraine had a great season, he was less impressive during the downpour of defeats…but that’s true for everyone. The newest featured star is probably Julie Tissino who anchored the impressive defensive run for the women as well.

October (Part 1): Already off schedule

October (Part 1): Already off schedule

by scruffyrube ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

It was supposed by the 10th, it’s the 15th, this is life.

Recap

Griz Biz

I’m certainly not interested in a trip to Moscow (either Russia or Idaho) but Delanely Lou Schorr handled the Big Sky match with such grace and success maybe she could handle the Kremlin too (2-0).

On their return to the South Campus Stadium, the Griz kept the same determined focus. With Ashlyn Dvorak saving a penalty, Abby Gearheart, Sydney Haustein and Maddie Ditta finding the net and a welcome return for defender Ally Henricksen to notch wins against Weber State (2-1) and Idaho State (1-0)

But the real test came on the road with a visit to reigning conference champions Northern Arizona, and Northern Colorado. The NAU game did not disappoint, with the other top team in the Big Sky hitting the net within 15 minutes to take the lead. But the Griz answered with a sterling individual run from Skyleigh Thompson and a tremendous connection between Ava Samuelson and Delaney Lou Schorr before big time goalkeeping from Ashlyn Dvorak sealed the win (2-1). While the trip to Colorado could have been anti-climactic with a winless team trapping overconfident favorites, the Griz didn’t blink against their fellow Ursine warriors beating Northern Colorado handily (3-0)

Up next: v. Sacramento State, v. Portland State

Punjab Zindabad

Our favorite team in North India (who for some reason is playing in Delhi…NOT Punjab) is still yet to get a point in the highest level of subcontinent soccer. The defense left too many gaps and got punished by Goa (1-0). On their return “home” the Warriors had a great individual moment when goalie Ravi Kumar saved a penalty, only to see Northeast United scramble the ball in. But Punjab did not wilt and Juan Mera’s assist in the second half found defender Melroy Assissi to get the goal, and get the Shers their first Superleague point (1-1).

Up Next: @ Jamshedpur, @ Chennayin FC

What’s in Store at Rosenborg?

The women were able to grind out a win against Asane thanks to a goal from Camila Linberg in only her 5th start since joining the team from Italian side FCF Como 2000 (1-0). That win put the Trolljenta at the top of the Eliteserien. But that lofty perch was almost immediately at risk when the women dropped points for the first time since June, as Stabaek had them on the back foot from the start en route to a 1-1 draw.

The Midsummer boost for the men is fully forgotten as they gave up 5 goals to two players against Sarpsborg. Oh, defensive lapses, why must you lapse! (L 5-2)

Next: The Menn face Valerenga; the Kvinner face Brann

Minnesota a la Mode…ah

Hasani Dotson opened the game against LAFC with a shock goal that followed a shock playoff victory for another Minnesota Sports team (the Twins). But that was the last bit of good news the Loons got en route to a 5-1 shellacking (with Miguel Tapias netting a rare own goal).

The Loons responded to this hardship with something I honestly wasn’t sure they’d ever do. They fired manager Adrian Heath. Frankly, I don’t root for people to lose jobs, but my sympathy really only extended to Heath here. I think the players, club, and fans will all be well served with someone else in charge, as evidenced by the 5-2 smackdown executed by Teemu Puuki against the other LA team in the first match without Heath.

Up Next: @ Sporting Kansas City (Season finale…unless there’s some miracle playoff game)

Grenoble’s Games

It’s four in a row for the women with a 3-0 win over As Lattes including another goal from Candice Charbonnier, and then the biggest result so far, as Melanie Chabrier and wily veteran Claudia Fabre hit the net to beat rivals Clermont Foot 2-0 and take sole possession of first place in Poule B. Rather than rest there, they went back out and hit Marignier for a mercy rule (10-0) to move on to the 4th round of the League Cup

Meanwhile, Jessy Benet continued his resurgence with a goal against Guigngamp, in a 2-2 draw that required a fortunate bounce off of a Guingamp defender to rescue a point for the men and keep them as the only unbeaten side in Ligue 2 (though they do have fewer points than teams who have been beaten)

Next: Valenciennes and Pau for les hommes; Olympique Valence for les femmes

Live from Legon!

Nicholas Mensah stepped up again to help ground the defense against Aduana Stars, and score a goal to help them to a 2-1 win, and the defense held up for a draw against new foes Nations FC, before a couple of red cards and a Frank Antwi showcase got the same result against Bechem United (1-1).

Next @ Nsoatreman, v. Dreams FC

Take a Sec with Emelec

We have another champion in the year 2023! While Las Electricas were not able to beat 9 de Octubre during the regular season, there was one more match for the championship, and that’s the one they won (2-1) with Alison Ocho and Cinthia Bone finding the net, and total jubiliation surrounding your 2023 Guayas Region Champions!

The men managed to score not once, not twice, but THREE WHOLE TIMES against Cumbaya! The outburst almost doubled their goals for the season and grabbed them a much needed win (3-0). It’s not quite as cool as a trophy over your rivals, but…it’s not shabby.

Next: high profile Ecuador sides LDU Quito and Universidad Catolica are next for men, (The ladies should be bound for a playoff to make the women’s Premier Liga, but no word on timing for that yet).

What’s the Word in ol’ Freiburg?

Freiburg hasn’t quite been as fluid or high flying as recent season starts, but a comfortable and effective win against Augsburg (2-0) can go a long way. Vincenzo Grifo and Phillip Lienhart led the way and Lienhart’s defensive unit was back in form again.

Or it was until they had to run the gauntlet of Europa League Champions West Ham (losing 2-1), and perennial spoilsports Bayern Munich (losing 3-0). The team wrapped up a hectic week with a friendly against FC Basel…but they’re hopping right back in the frying pan next week.

Meanwhile Die Frauen will feel disappointed in giving up a very late equalizer to Duisburg (2-2), but should feel great about capitalizing on a few errors by Werder Bremen to snag 3 points (2-1)…and then can return to ruing their performances after a 3-0 thumping against Bayer Leverkusen

Next: Men v. VfL Bochum, (Europa League v. Serbia’s Backa Topola) and v. Leverkusen; Women v. Nurnburg

County’s Bounty

Actually there wasn’t any because lousy weather cancelled their game against Dundee. But at least they get to play St. Mirren, Dundee and Motherwell in a one week span.

Next: (See above…ooof boy this is gonna be a doozy)

Gotta see this, Alebrijes!

The Oaxacans were pumped up before their game against Atletico Morelia which made the draw (0-0) a little disappointing. But it’s worth remembering that the draw was only possible thanks to a stellar kick save by Octavio Paz on a Morelia penalty. So…as ever, thanks Octavio!

Unfortunately Octavio wasn’t able to hold down the fort against Cancun the very next match, with five goals pouring in and the Oxacans getting cited for 7 yellow cards (0-5). So, the frustrating dance of a step forward and three back remains

Next v. Tepatitalan and then Halloween special v. Atlante

What’s the haps at Vozdovac?

The dragons have been maddeningly inconsistent this year, but the inconsistency pays off when they follow lackluster defeats with solid wins. That was the result when Bogdan Vastsuk got the goal to beat Novi Pazar (1-0). The dragons followed that up with a valuable point on the raod against regular challengers Cukaricki (1-1) with Borisav Burmaz doing the honors.

Next: v. Backa Topolo (softening them up for Freiburg, I hope), v Partizan Belgrade (hopefully beating more facists)

News & Notes

Alex the Blackhawk

One of the biggest downsides to this rush of a new work life I have is that I didn’t get to talk much about Alex’s new soccer season with his first club team: the St. Paul Blackhawks. It was our first experience playing with MANY much bigger kids, and well, 2017 born kids are not all the same. (Our end of November kid was a little dwarfed by early January kids, which made for some mis-matches, some frustrating moments and more than a few tears).

But hard as it was to see those moments, it was great to see Alex get back up and try again. To watch him celebrate and cheer when teammates played well, and it was very nice to hear coaches take a beat to comfort him when he needed it. (As long as he’s having fun, I’m good)

Players Of the Month (so far)

It’s all too common to get sucked up in the thrill of scoring goals and forget that stopping them is a huge part of the game too. So with much sympathy to Teemu Puuki’s hat trick plus, we’re going with Griz goalie (fake gasp) Ashlyn Dvorak and Legon’s defender Nicholas Mensah.

Standings

Minnesota may be our first team to wrap up for the year unless they get some miraculous news this next weekend, but the drama is still building on our own table. The Griz are close to running away with their second title in four years, and Rosenborg has moved up into second place as Punjab falters in the Super League….add to that, a couple wins by the Loons and continued good runs by Grenoble might make North India’s finest slip all the way from first to the mid-table.

TeamWDLPPGGFAGAA
Montana11322.251.690.50
Rosenborg319181.761.831.16
Punjab12471.741.781.04
Minnesota2813151.732.181.27
Grenoble2511171.621.400.91
Legon Cities11991.451.241.24
Emelec1315121.351.800.90
Freiburg1710231.221.281.68
Ross County126171.201.461.63
Alebrijes89131.101.301.77
Vozdovac77121.080.811.38
Table Updated 10/15/23
b–Team is between seasons
Weeks 18: Turning Heads

Weeks 18: Turning Heads

by scruffyrube ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Recaps

Emelec 2 – 3 Independente del Valle (M)

Emelec had a lead against a dangerous rival in Ecuador’s Serie A early on in the second half, and then it all came undone. Goalscorer Jhon Sanchez drew a red card, and though it took them some time, Independente capitalized…scoring twice in the last 5 minutes of regular time to win the match.

Rosenborg BK 3 – 0 Lyn Football (F)

A week after their first slip of the season, the Trolljenta were back in action. Emilie Joramo opened the scoring (continuing to make defensive midfielders around our leagues look awesome on a great run in combination play), and Emilie Nauntes finally got on the scoresheet but the attack remains unsettled in Trondheim.

Koln 0 – 1 Freiburg (M)

Lucas Holer has been making magic happen with his boots lately, but in this showing he spread the wealth around connecting aon a bit of head to head ping pong with Ritsu Doan to net the winner. The excellent timing kept Freiburg squarely in the conversation for European soccer.

Grenoble 2 – 0 Niort (M)

Les Alpiners have solidified their spot in the middle of the Ligue 2 table (with this win they officially made it impossible to be demoted), but the real focus for this year now needs to be defining who will help lead the team going forward. Mathais Phaeton certainly seems to be Jessy Benet’s new midfield partner in crime and Abdoulie Sanyang threat on the right (complete with goal in this match) makes him a plus too. Keep an eye on the defense which has been stout, and still includes the ever amusing Loic Nestor back heel (setting up the second goal in this match).

Vojvodina 2 – 0 Vozdovac

Back-to-back wins didn’t become a winning streak for the dragons as they fell to Vojvodina (but as this result helped Vojvodina leapfrog the fascists at Partizan Belgrade in the race for European soccer…I’m okay with that.)

Dreams FC 5 – 1 Legon Cities

Welp, there went the Royals’ momentum. The social media team was NOT pleased with the ref, and I can see why: two red cards in the second half was a pretty rock road to hoe. But would it be spring of a Legon season if there wasn’t untoward drama?

Odd 0 – 0 Rosenborg (M)

And that happened. (Seriously though, Rosenborg’s 3 goals in 4 matches is worryingly poor. Isak Thorvaldsen was pulled after one half and Oscar Aga had more chances but was similarly ineffective. Erlend Reiten and Samuel Rogers have been vital in defense, but they can’t do everything.

Minnesota 0 – 0 Dallas (M)

Speaking of defenders we’re grateful for, in our first match at Allianz field this season we were impressed by Kemar Lawrence. The defender was an absolute bulldozer both with and without the ball, and we know how you boys like bulldozers. Bongokhule Hlongwane and Luis Amarilla tried to be, but found that kicking while falling over doesn’t provide enough power to score.

Avaldsnes 1 – 1 Rosenborg BK (W)

The search for a reliable goal scorer continues. With Celine Nergård netting her first goal of the season, but then leaving with 30 minutes to play. Mixing and matching strikers hasn’t worked yet…but don’t bet against the Trolljenta.

From Dfb.de (Freiburg Falls Down)

Freiburg 1 – 4 RB Leipzig (M-Cup)

Hopes were high for revenge on Red Bull and a return to the dfb Pokal Final. In about twenty minutes hopes were dashed and there was no joy in Freiburg. The two teams play again this weekend…more reason for revenge.

Rosenborg 0 – 2 Brann (M)

Rosenborg’s best work this year has come when the defense is able to be themselves and hold down the fort (thanks again Sam Rogers). So when they drew two yellow cards before the first ten minutes, they were set up to struggle. Sure enough Brann ran straight at them and picked up two goals against the Rosenborg side with 5 yellows before the match was done and dusted.

Guarani 1 -1 Emelec (M-South American Cup)

Alejandro Cabeza consistently appears when Emelec needs him most. Like Batman, only without the dark and brooding backstory. So it was here when he struck late in the second half to salvage a road point in Paraguay.

News & Notes

Emelec turns 94!

94 Years ago, American George Capwell started a baseball team with his electrical company. Soon the workers asked to start a football team too, almost a century later, here we are with both men and women playing and exciting people who’ve never even been to Ecuador itself. A testament to what happens when you listen to your workers (this may or may not be thinly veiled suggestion for my employers)

I turn heads of random drivers on Lexington Avenue

A couple of months ago, Alex was sick and throwing up all over the place. On our drive to the Urgent Care, I was stunned to see a Red Chevy with an SC Freiburg Decal. In part because Freiburg isn’t exactly a world renowned side, and also in part because seeing them endorsed on a road firmly within our little corner of St. Paul seemed extremely odd. Eventually Alex felt better, we cleaned the puke out of the car, and I saw the Red Freiburg Chevy a few more times. Finally, this last week, I managed to actually be stopped at a light next to them, urged them to roll down the window and shouted “Freiburg Uber Alles” to a great laugh from the family inside. Love of a favorite team man, it connects people in weird ways and unforeseen places.

Player of the Week

It’s hard to find a lot of comprehensive statistics for defenders. But I generally trust FootMob’s point of view when it comes to overall quality of play. In that regard it’s hard to argue against giving overdue recognition to a new right back (because at some point we come to expect Gaspar, Monfray and Nestor to be awesome). So hat’s off to Mathys Tourraine who certainly fits the mold of Grenoble’s new Dartagnan

Standings

As we come into May we’ve got a lot of teams getting ready for their big final pushes in their domestic seasons. But in the year long MacKenzie Cup we’re not yet half-way through. Grenoble’s improvement for both the men and the women made them the biggest gainers in this week’s standings, while more slips have continued Emelec’s tumble (obligatory reference to Miller Bolanos goes here).

TeamWDLPPGGFAGAA
Punjab–b12232.242.290.94
Rosenborg6431.691.150.54
Minnesota4331.501.100.90
Grenoble134131.431.101.17
Legon Cities6761.321.161.16
Freiburg115131.311.241.66
Emelec4251.271.181.27
Alebrijes–b5581.111.331.39
Vozdovac4281.000.711.64
Ross County3390.801.001.47
Montana–b000———
Table Updated 5/3/22
b–Team is between seasons

What’s Next

Thursday, May 4th

Friday, May 5th

Saturday, May 6th

Freiburg v. RB Leipzig

Ross County v. Livingston

Rosenborg v. Valerenga (M)

Rosenborg BK v. Lyn Football (F)

Paris FC v. Grenoble (M)

Vancouver v. Minnesota

Sunday, May 7th

SC Freiburg v. Werder Bremen (F)

Legon Cities v. Nsoatreman

Rosenborg v. Valerenga (F)

Vozdovac v. Red Star Belgrade

Cumbaya v. Emelec (M)

Nimes Metropole Gard v. Grenoble Foot (F)

Monday, May 8th

Tuesday, May 9th

Minnesota v. Philadelphia (M-Cup)

Wednesday, May 10th

Week 9: Pouring Goals

Week 9: Pouring Goals

by scruffyrube ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Recaps

Vozdovac 1 – 1 Mladost Lucani

The Dragons staged an impressive comeback thanks in part to a great goal from youngster Mihajlo Neskovic who netted after a perfectly placed headed pass from Borisav Burmaz.

Alebrijes 4 – 0 Correcaminos

Oaxaca found their scoring shoes at last! A full 40% of their goals this term came from the second 45 minutes of play, their best showing since the first half against Dorados a little under a month ago. The best of the bunch was probably Ernesto Reyes’ volley smash, but that might leave out the sensational play of Cristian Canozales who notched the first goal and two assists on absurd little fakes that seemed to break ankles and hearts in equal measure. (We’ll post Reyes’ goal below, but enjoy Canozales’ celebration as well)

Grenoble 0 – 0 Le Havre (M)

Ordinarily I make a “and that happened” joke, but this was a pretty fraught nil-nil. Le Havre tops Ligue 2 and hadn’t lost since August. But they couldn’t get past Brice Maubleu even on a penalty chance.

Dallas 0 – 1 Minnesota United

Coming into this season there was plenty of talk about how the Loons were so dependent on Emmanuel Reynoso that the Argentine’s absence would be the death knell of any Minnesota opportunities. Enter: Mender Garcia. The Colombian rampaged around Dallas’ area, providing a trap that set up one blast and hitting the rebound even harder. He might have had a second if not for a late tackle that truly looked dangerous to me. Add in Kervin Arriaga’s free kick blasts and the Loons were showing strong shots even without their talisman.

Ross County 4 – 0 Dundee United

Eamonn Brophy hasn’t exactly set Dingwall alight since he arrived on a loan in January, but this might have changed that, as two goals, an assist, and some absolute blasted attempts made the Stags look better than they have in ages over fellow relegation battlers Dundee United.

Punjab FC 8 – 0 Sudeva FC

Not to be out done, Punjab FC utterly smoked lowly Sudeva FC featuring a Juan Mera hat trick and five other goals to boost their point total and their goal difference.

Grenoble Foot 0 -2 Nice (F)

It might have been a bit of a hangover for Nicholas Delpine and his Haitian contingent coming back to a hard grinding league match after clinching World Cup qualification.

Freiburg 1 – 1 Bayern Leverkusen (M)

The Griffins always seem to struggle against Leverkusen, and with Vincenzo Grifo’s early goal to back them, they were quite happy to hunker down and soak up the pressure. Still, Bayern worked their way back into the match and split the points.

Volta Rangers 1 – 2 Legon Cities FC (CUP)

The Royals took the early lead thanks to Adu Medier, but sloppy defending gave Volta a life line in the second half. As is the way when tournament games end in a tie, they turned to Penalty Kicks and Legon got the results they needed to advance on to the next round.

Emelec 2 – 0 Libertad (M)

Miller Bolanos returned to Emelec and swiftly notched his first assist and his first goal for Los Bombillos since February 2016 (he had gotten 42 goals across Brazil, Mexico, and China in the interim.) The cheeky heel flick and the confident goal in stride made it clear, we’re going to like this going forward.

Lyon 2 – 1 Grenoble (M-Cup)

Les Grenobloises had an uphill climb to knock out the Lions of Lyon including a number of world class players. Matthais Phaeton and Jessy Benet didn’t look intimidated, but they also didn’t run the back line, and Lyon capitalized with two first half goals that led to a rare goalkeeping substitution in the second half for Grenoble. A consolation goal for Amine Sbai gave Grenoble a small lifeline, but even biased folks like me have to acknowledge the better team won.

FK Radnik Surdulica 2 – 0 FK Vozdovac

Borisav Burmaz’s second half red card turned the tide and gave Radnik the advantage it needed to push up and get not just one, but two goals to tame the dragons.

Carl Zeiss Jena FC 0 – 4 SC Freiburg (F-Cup)

The Frauen brought their A game to Jena and spread the wealth around ensuring that three different scorers (and one very ugly own goal) notched some credit in the Quarter final victory. The team’s incisive passing and clear communication gave them a big advantage on the unsteady and unsafe hands of Jena’s defense.

Punjab FC 3 – 1 Churchill Brothers

The Warriors rolled through the toughest match remaining on their schedule. Again the dynamic attack of Macjen, Mera, and Gyeltshen was formidable. Each one netted a goal, and the win vaulted Punjab even farther up the standings.

Legon Cities 1 – 1 Tamale United

Kofi Kordzi continues to have the best form of anyone on the Royals roster, but after years with with one of the best defenses in Ghana, Legon’s suspect back line has let them down. There’s nothing wrong with getting a point in a match, but it’s also disappointing after what they wanted to get.

News & Notes

Soccer Shots Shoot-out

For the first time MacKenzie boys took the field for the first time. Okay, the field was a gym and, by Owen’s account, Alex played and he hung out on the sideline dancing around. But still! You had fun, and that alone is celebration!

Immediately after that we got bombarded with snow and over the ensuing 5 day mini-vacation you discovered lots of other ways to play together, in particular fighting mummies (me) and throwing snowballs (at me). I’m awfully proud.

I-League Update

The biggest shift in the I-League didn’t come in a Punjab match. Instead, Deccan’s loss to Mohamadan SC in an absolute wild match, created a vital opening that Punjab promptly capitalized on. The monstrous 8-0 completely erased the goal difference deficit and put them firmly in the driver seat. As if that wasn’t enough, Deccan dropped more points by only getting a draw against 10 man Aizawl FC, and another win puts Punjab up by 5 points with two matches to play.

A win against Rajasthan, and Punjab can be sure of taking home this year’s trophy…set your alarms!

Electric Loons!

Emelec and Minnesota both kicked off this week, giving us 9 of the 11 teams in action. Both teams are in an unusual position to start the year. Emelec, having spent last season outside of the top tier of challengers, they have brought in a host of veterans to bolster their claim to the crown. Meanwhile Minnesota, operating without Emmanuel Reynoso, will need to try to find a way to win without having one man run the show.

Player of the Week

Jiminy Christmas! When it rains it absolutely pours great performances. Cristian Canozales, Kervin Arriaga, Eomon Brophy. But the huge week for Punjab puts them in the pole position for the award, and while I’d like to give it to Kiran Limbu’s dominance in goal, you can’t ignore the fact that Juan Mera scored as many goals ON HIS OWN, as every other team in our competition scored TOGETHER. So, Juan Mera, take a bow, and a plethora of points!

Standings

The early going of the season can often flatter folks. Emelec and Minnesota shouldn’t get too fond of their top of the table position, just ask Vozdovac who went from the top to the bottom in a few short weeks. After all, Punjab is clearly determined to top their own league, and maybe ours too.

TeamWDLPPGGFAGAA
Emelec1003.002.000.00
Minnesota1003.001.000.00
Punjab9212.422.580.92
Freiburg5231.701.902.00
Grenoble6461.381.131.00
Legon Cities2431.110.891.11
Ross County2341.001.221.00
Alebrijes2150.881.251.50
Vozdovac1130.800.402.00
Rosenborg–b000———
Montana–b000———
Table Updated 3/1/22
b–Team is between seasons

What’s Next

Thursday, March 2nd

Tapatio v. Alebrijes

Friday, March 3rd

Eintracht Frankfurt v. SC Freiburg (F)

Saturday, March 4th

Rajastan United v. Punjab FC

Borussia Munchen Gladbach v. Freiburg (M)

Ross County v. Motherwell

Dijon v. Grenoble

Sunday, March 5th

Legon Cities v. Real Tamale

Vozdovac v. Vojvodina

Monday, March 6th

Tuesday, March 7th

Wednesday, March 8th

Raya2Expansion v. Alebrijes

Week 7: Starting to Click

Week 7: Starting to Click

by scruffyrube ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Recaps

Gokulam FC 1 – 2 Punjab FC

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.

TeamWDLPPGGFAGAA
Punjab6212.222.111.11
Grenoble6331.751.330.92
Vozdovac1011.500.503.00
Freiburg3131.431.172.83
Legon Cities1321.000.831.00
Ross County1330.860.861.00
Alebrijes1150.570.861.71
Rosenborg–b000———
Minnesota–b000———
Montana–b000———
Emelec–b000———
Table Updated 2/15/22
b–Team is between seasons

What’s Next

Thursday, February 16th

Friday, February 17th

Medeama SC v. Legon Cities FC

Saturday, February 18th

Vfl Bochum v. Freiburg (M)

St. Mirren v. Ross County (M)

Kolubara v. FK Vozdovac

Caen v. Grenoble (M)

Sunday, February 19th

Monday, February 20th

Neroca FC v. Punjab FC

Tuesday, February 21st

Wednesday, February 22nd

Week 5: Clicking or Sputtering

Week 5: Clicking or Sputtering

by scruffyrube ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Recaps

Nimes 0 – 2 Grenoble (M)

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.

https://youtu.be/bBJgCs4dG1k

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.

TeamWDLPPGGFAGAA
Vozdovac1003.001.000.00
Punjab4212.002.291.29
Grenoble6222.001.500.90
Legon Cities1311.200.800.80
Freiburg2131.171.172.83
Ross County1330.860.861.00
Alebrijes1040.501.001.60
Rosenborg–b000———
Minnesota–b000———
Montana–b000———
Emelec–b000———
Table Updated 2/8/22
b–Team is between seasons

What’s Next

Thursday, February 9th

Golukam FC v. Punjab FC

Friday, February 10th

Saturday, February 11th

FK Vozdovac v. Red Star Belgrade

Freiburg v. Vfb Stuttgart (M)

Grenoble v. Pau (M)

Sunday, February 12th

SC Frieburg v. Meppen (F)

Samartex v. Legon Cities FC

Albi Marsacc v. Grenoble Foot (F)

Monday, February 13th

Aizawal v. Punjab FC

Tuesday, February 14th

Wednesday, February 15th

Alacranes v. Alebrijes

Week 4: The Big 4 – 0

Week 4: The Big 4 – 0

by scruffyrube ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Recaps

Punjab FC 2 – 0 Real Kashmir

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)

TeamWDLPPGGFAGAA
Punjab4112.172.501.33
Grenoble4121.861.290.86
Freiburg1111.331.332.67
Ross County1321.000.830.83
Legon Cities0310.750.750.75
Alebrijes1040.501.001.60
Rosenborg–b000———
Minnesota–b000———
Vozdovac–b000———
Montana–b000———
Emelec–b000———
Table Updated 1/12/22
b–Team is between seasons

What’s Next

Thursday, February 2nd

Friday, February 3rd

Nimes v. Grenoble (M)

Saturday, February 4th

FK Radnicki 1923 v. FK Vozdovac

SC Freiburg v. VfL Wolfsburg (F)

Dortmund v. Freiburg (M)

Rangers v. Ross County

Sunday, February 5th

Sudeva FC v. Punjab FC

Legon Cities FC v. King Faisal

Grenoble Foot v. Montauban (F)

Monday, February 6th

Tuesday, February 7th

Sandhausen v. Freiburg (M-Cup)

Wednesday, February 8th

Vierzon FC v. Grenoble (M-Cup)

Alebrijes v. CD Tepatitlan de Morelos

64. Forces of Change, Changing your Force

64. Forces of Change, Changing your Force

by scruffyrube ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

A few weeks ago, while driving into work, I heard a summary of political philosophy that neatly captured what I see in society, soccer, and myself.

Put simply: everyone wants to act in response to problems we see. Progressives want to do something while conservatives want to stop something in progress or undo something that’s been done.

Dear Boys,

I’m not about to pretend which point of view I prefer (particularly in politics–hint it starts with a P and ends with “rogressive”.) But as the pundits pointed out both instincts can lead to unintended consequences.

Je pense le meme Adrien (from the Athletic)

Start with my progressive view. Like a lot of folks I want to see my teams make some changes when they struggle. That’s when I start begging for Alebrijes to switch their system, or for the Loons to sign a big striker, or for Ross County to bring in a new coach.

But those changes that many in fan bases yearn for don’t yield immediate results and fail as often as they succeed. Alebrijes might not have the players to make any system work. Adrien Hunou might not find the goal for a couple months. Your team may hire a racist…etc. etc.

The conservative approach is no less fraught. The glory days are so enticing that it’s natural to want to go back. Bring back Jessy Benet in Grenoble, increase the focus on the men’s team at Rosenborg, or undo the appointment of the manager with a few weeks under his belt (see: Tottenham Hotspur).

These too assume that everything can return to the way they were (despite the fact that context, and surroundings, and everything else has changed around them). Jessy’s got a new club. Rosenborg aren’t the league titans they once were. Tottenham’s squad isn’t the fresh faced world beaters they were a few years ago.

This is not possible

The same is true at a personal level.

The more I try to make things the way that I want them to be, the more I struggle, grapple, and grow frustrated.

Whether it’s control in the classroom, or getting you boys to brush your teeth when I want you to, the more I try to do/undo something, the less likely I am to do anything differently.

But, when I accept that things are the way they are, and my role is to bring my full self to them, the more I add to the space, add to the experience, and change it for the better.

Being present with you is so much more meaningful for all of us (and makes brushing fun). Sending love and concern into my classroom yields much more than exerting control over the situation.

On the pitch too, bringing your full self into a space can create a better, more valuable experience for everyone. Think of Coach Citowicki in Missoula, whose manners and approach have given kids at a smaller school professional opportunities and enabled a transition from one generation to the next (see Claire Howard and Camila Xu).

When you are fully present rather than distracted by what you want to make happen, you find a pleasure in what is. The Griz can see that Big Sky titles are beautiful themselves. Freiburg’s loyalty and appreciation of the understated Christian Streich has built the environment for their best season in years.

We get caught up talking about and fixating on the forces of change: how the world ought to be and what tools to make it so. We want to be a force for change in the world. But hard as it is, I believe we ought to resist that temptation, and instead of being a force for change, change your force to quiet grace.