—by Andrew Brawley
The number of story lines you’re going to read leading up to the Timbers home match against the rave green trash neighbors to the North on September 15th is a bit staggering. Here’s my attempt at listing all of them in bullet point form:
- Briefly-hot-but-now-cool Timbers take on disgustingly-hotter Cascadian arch rivals
- Timbers can win the Cascadia Cup with a win
- Winning the Cascadia Cup is likely the last shot at partial redemption of a poor 2012 season
- Timbers defensive line coming off one of 2012’s worst performances
- Defender Steven Smith suspended on yellow card accumulation
- Three Timbers players (Purdy, Palmer, Wallace) will have JUST returned from International duty
- Timbers playing on nine days rest, vs. six days for Sounders
- Sounders have a CONCACAF match in Honduras four days later
- General Manager / interim coach continues to operate from the hot seat as fans keep the flames ablaze
- Newly-announced coach will be watching this game closely, yet from afar
- Timbers players under pressure of auditioning for new coach to keep their jobs
- Fans seeking tickets while fighting scalpers
- Tifo
- MLS trade deadline approaches, and Timbers are likely participants
- What will happen with Timbers million dollar man Kris Boyd?
- Timbers front office pushing season ticket renewals as on-field performance fails to improve
- Oh yeah…this game will be on NBC. Not NBC Sports, the actual NBC, the one with the single digit channel number (unless you want to watch in HD).
(I’m very certain I missed a few. Feel free to add your own in the Comments section below.)
To say this match is a big one for the Timbers would be the understatement of the year. This is the type of game that has the power to transform mocked n00bs into storied veterans in a single whistle blow.
I don’t think the importance of this match will be lost on the players. I don’t think I have to beg and plead for the Timbers Army section to bring every ounce of energy they can to this game. I don’t think I have to remind the South Deck’ers to prepare for the obligatory rogue/obnoxious Sounders fan(s) sitting amongst them. I don’t think I have to remind Key Club ticket holders to not pass their tickets on to their valued clients/customers, and to actually use those tickets on themselves. Nope, I think the hype machine won’t have to work too hard in reminding people about this next match.
I think everyone has a pretty good idea by now that this game has the potential to be one of the sweetest victories in Timbers history. It could also rival the travesty that was the Cal FC match, which is still too fresh in most memory banks. The potential for the highest high or the lowest low to occur is beyond great.
If I’ve learned anything this season, it’s that you have to experience the lows in order to be able to truly appreciate the highs.
So c’mon everyone…let’s get high!
This is an opinion piece and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the 107ist or the TA.
