—by Chris Rifer

Another day, another frustrating, ambivalent, and – no matter how much lipstick some put on it – disappointing result for the Portland Timbers.

Caleb Porter was upbeat after the Timbers’ 2-2 draw with L.A. Galaxy at the Stub Hub Center.   And there were a lot of reasons for his optimism.  Portland dominated extended stretches of the game, and through the middle of the match were clearly the more dangerous team.

The Timbers midfield terrorized the Galaxy’s for much of the match, limiting Los Angeles to a paltry 64% passing in the attacking half outside the attacking third.  Time and time again Diego Chara, Will Johnson, and company turned the Galaxy over and launched the Timbers back into the attack.

That attack created an abundance of chances in wide areas, especially on the right side where Robbie Rogers will wake up in cold sweats at the prospect of matching up with Diego Valeri again.

A first half in which the Timbers created a number of chances only to see crosses just miss their target and shots fly off frame, turned into a second half in which the Timbers’ only two shots that didn’t test Jaime Penedo were blocked.

Finally, the Timbers essentially split the ball with Galaxy, a statistic that undoubtedly would have skewed in Portland’s favor but for Galaxy’s predictable success holding the ball once they threw numbers forward in search of an equalizer.

And yet, for the umpteenth time this season, the Timbers didn’t get three points out of a game that was ripe for the picking.  The reason is both simple and well publicized:  The backline stinks.  Particularly the central defense.

But Friday’s draw with the Galaxy perfectly represents this problem – and the Timbers’ season – in a nutshell.

That excellent work the midfield put in to disrupt Galaxy in midfield?  It didn’t extend to the final third, where the Galaxy completed 74% of their passes – a pass completion rate 10% greater (!) than what L.A. mustered in the attacking half outside the final third.  Simply put, L.A. found it significantly easier to operate in and around the Timbers’ defensive box than they did in midfield.

And this isn’t an isolated incident.  Actually, it’s the seventh time this season the Timbers have allowed an opponent to have a higher pass completion percentage in the final third than they had in the attacking half at large.

The two goals conceded on Friday aren’t at all unrelated to this problem, as both came after extended periods of Galaxy possession in and around the Timbers box, where the Timbers had missed opportunities to clear the danger and push their lines back up.  The same inability to intervene and ultimately put a stop to Galaxy attacks that shows up in the boxscore directly led to the Timbers’ once again dropping otherwise deserved points.

Thus, while Porter is very appropriately optimistic about many aspects of this Timbers team, none of it matters – the disruptive midfield, the creative attack, and the net-popping finishing – as long as the backline can’t interrupt the opposing offense.

And that’s something all the optimism in the world can’t fix.

The Timbers need better defenders.

Onward, Rose City.

This is it!

The Cup match we've really been waiting for... Timbers vs Sounders in beautiful Tukwila, WA on Weds July 9th.

UPDATE: Tickets are now on sale for non-members: 

Non-member match ticket - $25

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/tukwila-away-non-members-match-ticket-only-tickets-12181213337

Non-member bus/match ticket combo - $60

 http://www.eventbrite.com/e/usoc-tukwila-away-busticket-combo-non-members-tickets-12181289565

Note: Members receive a discount - be sure to use the links emailed to you rather than the ones above!

Tickets will go on sale to 107ist members only on Wednesday, July 2 at 6:00pm. 

Not a member? Join before 4pm today (July 2nd) and we will email you a link to try for a ticket.

Members should have already received an email with a purchase link/password. If you are a paid-up member but have not received the email please first check your spam folder, if it's not there email us at membership@107ist.org ASAP and we'll look into it.

There are two options; one for ticket only ($23) or bus+ticket ($57).

• Buses will be leaving Winning Way promptly at 2:00, returning immediately after the match.
• Ticket-only distribution details are still TBD. You will receive an email closer to match day with more information.

Please note, due to Starfire configuration, this event is 21+ ONLY

YOU will be responsible for having proof of age upon arrival at Starfire. If you do not, you'll be sad and miss the match sitting on an empty bus.

Additionally, due to the size of Starfire, the Timbers Army was only allocated a scant 200 tickets. What does this mean for you? DON'T WAIT!

• 50 Match-only tickets are available
• 150 Match+Bus tickets are available

Sale is for members only! We will check. If you purchase a ticket and are not a current 107ist member, you will be refunded your money.

This is the first time Portland will face Seattle in the USOC since 2010. If you were there, you know you'll want to be here.

So, are you ready?

---

FAQ

When will Seattle USOC tickets go on sale?

• Tickets go on sale Weds July 2nd at 6pm.
• Members should have already received an email with a purchase link/password.

  If you are a paid-up member but did not receive the email please first check your spam folder, if it's not there email us at membership@107ist.org ASAP and we'll look into it.

What is the cost?

• $23 ticket only.
• $57 bus/ticket

Do I HAVE to be a member to buy one?

• Yes.
• We will offer tickets to members first and as we only have 200 tickets to this match we are expecting it to sell out very quickly.
• Ticket purchases will be checked against our member database. If a non-member is somehow able to purchase a ticket, they will be refunded their money and suffer disapproving looks from Travel committee members.

Am I guaranteed a ticket by becoming a member?

• No, you are NOT guaranteed a ticket.
• You are guaranteed the chance to purchase a ticket.

Is this event all ages?

• NO
• Due to Starfire configuration this event is 21+ ONLY
• YOU will be responsible for having proof of age upon arrival at Starfire. If you do not, you'll be sad and miss the match sitting on an empty bus.

Does that mean only 107ist have access to this away game, or does that mean the 107ist have first access to tickets, then tickets would be available to anyone?

• 107ist members have first dibs.
• IF, and only IF, they do not sell out we will offer them to non-members at a slightly higher price. However, with only being allocated 200 tickets we doubt there will be any available for non-members.

How many tickets can I buy?

• One ticket per member.

Does my husband/wife/friend/sister/grandma/pet frog need to be a 107ist member too?

• Yes.

What's the fastest and easiest way to purchase the tickets when they go on sale?

• Be ready to go as soon as tickets go on sale. Create an Eventbrite account if you don't have one and be logged in.
• We recommend lightning fast internet and an actual computer rather than smartphone.
• If you will be taking the bus, know which bus you and your friends want to be on before you attempt to buy your ticket.
• Don't panic if  the bus you want appears to be sold out. Give it about 10 minutes. Oftentimes, in their rush to get a ticket, people will place multiple tickets in their "basket". If those transactions are not completed in 10 or so minutes, the tickets are put back into the available inventory.

I just joined, where is my email with the link in it?

• If you join AFTER the initial email was been sent out you will receive your email on Weds before the tickets go on sale.
• The absolute latest you can join and still be included is 4pm on Weds July 2nd.

Are the tickets general admission or assigned seats?

• Tickets may have a seat number printed on them. However, the section is general admission and you are free to stand anywhere within our designated area.

Will there be a ticket-only option this year?

• Yes

If I buy a ticket on the bus, can I later switch it for the ticket-only option? (or vice versa)

• Only in the case of a genuine personal emergency*
• Please send an email to awaytravel@107ist.org with your request and we will do our best to accommodate it. Please do not wait until the last minute.

All my friends are on X bus, but I'm on Y bus - can I switch to be with them?

• Only if there is an available spot on Y bus.
• You will need to find someone on Y bus to switch with as the travel committee can not find someone for you.
• If you do find someone to switch with, email awaytravel@107ist.org with your name, the other person's name, respective buses and contact numbers.

I can no longer attend, can I get a refund or sell my ticket to someone else?

• Refunds only given in the case of a genuine personal emergency*
• Tickets can only be sold to other 107ist members (unless purchase has been opened to all).
• Email awaytravel@107ist.org with the purchaser's name, email address and contact info

I bought a "ticket only" for the Seattle away game. Where do I get the real ticket?

• Tickets will be distributed in Seattle, exact details are still TBD. You will receive an email closer to match day with all the details on where and when.

What if I can't get to the ticket pick-up in time?

• It is imperative that you pick up your ticket on time.
• Due to security procedures mandated by Seattle front office and CenturyLink, we are required to enter the stadium as a group.
• If you cannot make it in time due to a genuine emergency**, please contact awaytravel@107ist.org AS SOON AS POSSIBLE and we will leave your ticket at Will Call.
• Please be aware that the travel committee has their hands full on match day and are not always available by email. An emergency contact number will be emailed to everyone closer to the match

What if I get to will-call and there's an error with my order?

• Call the emergency contact number (will be emailed to everyone closer to the match)

*Poor planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on our part.

**Staying at the bar to drink longer is NOT a true emergency.

—by Clifford Eiffler

Featured for May 17th, 2014 in the final match of a three game homestand against the Columbus Crew.

Photo Credit: Brian Gjurgevich (@gjurg on Twitter)	Photo Credit: Jamie Goldberg (@jamiebgoldberg on Twitter)
Photo Credit: @lulu_horn on Instagram	Photo Credit – Alice Vetter (@msalice72 on Twitter)

The following information was originally emailed out to all members. If you are a paid-up member but not receiving our emails please first check your spam folder, if it's not there email us at memberinfo@107ist.org and we'll look into it.

---

Buy Your Capo A Pint

During one match each season, the capos of the Timbers Army ask the greatest football supporters that the world has ever seen to buy them a pint without buying them alcohol. That cash, which would have purchased a drink, becomes a donation for Camp Meadowood Springs, a Pendleton summer camp for Oregon kids with a variety of speech, language and auditory disabilities.

Read the post to learn more about this event, including its origins and how to donate prior to the June 27th match against Sporting Kansas City, and thank you from the capos.

---

Soccer (Books) for All--107IST Donates over $5K in Books to PPS

The 107IST recently donated over five thousand dollars’ worth of soccer books to Portland Public School libraries. The books were delivered to all 26 elementary schools in PPS that are Title I schools, which are schools with a high percentage of students living in poverty. Many of the books are bilingual, and all of the titles feature soccer and soccer stars from around the world. Read more here

---

Get Your Adidas Company Store Shopping Pass

Our friends at Adidas have provided us with passes that will allow you shop at the Adidas company store where you will receive up to 50% off of retail prices

This offer is for members only, so if you're not a member sign up now!

---

Free Ultimate Frisbee Playoff Tickets!

Portland’s professional ultimate frisbee team, The Portland Stags, has home field advantage for the playoffs and will host the Vancouver Nighthawks in the MLU Western Conference Playoffs Saturday June 28, 2014 at 7pm Lincoln High School. As a special offer to the Timbers Army, the first 500 respondents will receive FREE admission to the playoff game on Saturday night.

Click here to get your name on the list for free admission.

This is the correct link - if you tried the one in the email and it didn't work for you, try this one instead!

---

Free Lane United v. PTFC U23s Tickets!

Interested in seeing the Timbers U23s square off against the mighty Lane United on July 1st at Willamette University in Salem? Capital Futbol Club, a youth soccer organization in Salem, OR, has generously offered the 107ist 15 free tickets to the match! If you are a card-carrying member and would like to attend, email Matt Talley at matt.talley@107ist.org for details and availability!

---

Fore the Animals

One of our great Providence Park ushers is involved with a non-profit for the Oregon Humane Society, and they are hosting a fun event.

If you love golf or pets. Join Fore The Animals on July 17, 2014 at the gorgeous Ghost Creek golf course to help Fore the Animals support Oregon Humane Society!

If you don’t golf, join them for dinner, wine tasting and auction!

Register here: http://foretheanimals.org/

---

Fanladen Office Hours

Friday, 6/27 4:30pm - 7:30pm The fanladen will be open before and after the Timbers match on Friday for member services, pickup of 107ist mugs and pre-orders of special fringe scarf sets, face-to-face ticket exchange, and ticket donations.

You may also donate Timbers tickets online by forwarding them to ticketdonation@107ist.org.

---

The Timbers Army Guide to the World Cup

We’ve collected a bunch of information about the World Cup, including where to watch the matches. If you haven’t already, check out our Guide to the World Cup

---

Timbers vs. Seattle Away tickets on open sale!

Don’t miss out on this epic Away Day! If you have not received your email with the links to purchase tickets, please email memberinfo@107ist.org. There are still plenty of ticket-only spots available. Purchase through us and join us at noon for the World Cup final viewing party!

Have friends who aren’t 107ist members? If you can’t convince them to become members, they’ll still be able to get tickets to Seattle Away, starting today at noon. Feel free to share this link. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/seattle-away-july-13-2014-non-member-ticket-only-tickets-12078959493

And then ask your friends why they hate freedom and puppies.

---

Featured Partner

Our featured non-bar partner this week is Portland Sound Society (2937 NE Glisan Street, Portland). Present your 107ist card for 10% off guitar and bass lessons at the Portland Sound Society. Offer is also available for 107ist family members. Check them out at http://portlandsoundsociety.com/.

---

Events and Volunteer opportunities

---

7/27 - Thorns Away vs. Seattle Reign

The first bus is sold out but a limited number of tickets for the second bus as well as individual match tickets are still available for July 27th’s #SpaceNeedleAway. Info on pricing, schedule and everything else can be found on the Rose City Riveters’ website.

---

8/2 & 8/3 - TAFC Futsal Tourney/TA-CPR Fundraiser - Play some footy and help save a life.

The exclusive 107ist registration phase is over, but you can still sign up through Rose City Futsal during public registration while space is still available.

Join us for a great weekend of futsal and fun with the TAFC at Rose City Futsal. Enjoy BBQ, CPR demonstrations, and a few surprises. More details here.

---

8/15 - 8/17 - Mt. Hood Campout

August 15-17 join the Govy brigade for a weekend of pub crawls, camping, and, of course, match viewing. PTFC will be away that weekend at New England, so why not make plans to spend a few days with fellow TA enjoying all that Mt. Hood has to offer.

More details can be found here.

It started with a simple request: would anyone in the Timbers Army be willing to volunteer a little time to help shelve books at Cesar Chavez K-8 in Portland?

It was 2013, and the school had only a half-time library assistant to maintain the library. Books needed to be shelved, new inventory needed to be catalogued; the library simply needed more hours of labor to take back and maintain.

Timbers Army members rose to the occasion. They came in afternoons and weekends, shelving carts full of books left out. They went through the stock room and cleaned and organized the shelves full of books, some of which librarian Linda Espinosa simply had been unable to process and get on the shelves. Volunteers could see their work pay off, as Linda was able to run the library as a functional resource for kids K-8.

As volunteers worked, they could see the need for additions to the collection. The 107IST prepared to donate money to purchase bilingual soccer books. Thanks to the over 150 volunteer hours the TA had donated, GEAR UP made a matching grant to double the number of books the 107IST was able to donate.

This year, we upped the ante.

Last year, we donated bilingual soccer books to one library. This year, The 107IST expanded the donation in scope and size, donating over five thousand dollars’ worth of soccer books to Portland Public School libraries. The books were delivered to all 26 elementary schools in PPS that are Title I schools, which are schools with a high percentage of students living in poverty. Many of the books are bilingual, and all of the titles feature soccer and soccer stars from around the world.

Linda Espinosa, library assistant at Cesar Chavez, shared how excited students were to receive book donations. She told of one boy who had refused to even look at a library book all year. After the soccer book donations arrived, "he sorted through the stack, looking at each title and muttering, 'I hate him and him and him' under his breath. Then he hit one he was excited about. He sat down and started reading! He still wouldn't check anything out, but he wouldn't leave for lunch until he finished the book!"

Diane Newton, library assistant at Sitton Elementary, writes:

THANK YOU to the 107ist for the bilingual books we received a couple months ago from your wonderful organization. I am the librarian here at Sitton in North Portland, and as I am finally getting to the end-of-year shelving, I see that most of the books you gave us were the last ones returned last week, meaning dead-on favorites that they did NOT want to return- in other words, a true success!

     

"These books, wonderfully chosen and right on target quality, skill and interest-wise, are a sincere treat to a low-income school such as ours- especially with our high hispanic population- I know many checked out the books and shared them with their whole family: SCORE!

A ticket-holder in section 109 myself, I love and appreciate all that TA in general does for the team, the fans, and our town; but today, I'm especially thankful that 107ist cares enough to share their passion with little kids who otherwise would not have access to THEIR passion in Spanish.

—posted on behalf of Patch Perryman, and the rest of your Capos

It started many years back with Tim Birr and a Stuttgart jersey. See, Uncle Birr has this three-level, Pint Rule. If he sees something that he thinks someone would like, he has a simple formula on whether or not he should buy it. First, how much does it cost? If it’s the price of a pint, then it goes on to the next round. Second, would I buy this person a pint? If so, then the item could act as a gift. Third, would the person prefer the pint? Well, for Uncle Birr that’s easy; but we capos have a request that doesn’t involving buying alcohol.

Back in 2010, a couple capos named Hermes and Pong started talking about ways we could get people to say, “Thanks for yellin’ at me all season,” in a positive manner when the idea of voice came up. We help this extremely passive-aggressive city find its voice and collectively just be aggressive (even if all we do is sing-song melodies now instead of taunts).

We wish to create something new in how we acknowledge our respect for other people by realizing that no matter how bad things are with the season – whether or not we yelled at you – it could be a lot worse.

Who even thought about the fact that kids in wheelchairs can’t have a treehouse before Harper’s Playground? Or realized that there was an Oregon-based summer camp specifically for kids with speech, language or auditory disabilities?

This is where Tim Birr’s Pint Rules fit in nicely.

We: The 107ist, TA, Cascadia, Portland, humanity, and so on, seek to create a realizable philosophy, one that actualizes our beliefs into actions.

We, as capos, help people find their voice during match day. “Buy Your Capo A Pint” is a chance for the people in our sections to say, “Thank you” to the conductors of Portland’s largest, sustained performance art actions by sending a few kids with speech and hearing issues to Camp Meadowood Springs (URL: http://meadowoodsprings.org/) so they can find their voices for everyday.

In 2010 we passed a hat to a crowd during a Portland Punk Rock Collective gig and also donated their share of the door/bar to the Camp Meadowood Springs cause. It sent one kid to the camp. Next season we sent the hat around the Timbers Army for one match with only a week’s notice. It sent another kid to camp. And so for the past four seasons the capos have sought donations from among the TA during only one match.

On Friday the 27^th of June, during the match against Sporting Kansas City, the Capos will have collection buckets at their nests and on the stage. And to donate online, you may use this Paypal link:

If at any point over the course of this season you might feel inclined to buy your capo a pint then please, instead of buying drinks and during Friday’s match, donate whatever you think a pint is worth to help us cover the tuition to send a few kids to a summer camp where they can develop the courage and skills to use their voices for a lifetime.

Thank you,

xoxo

Your friendly neighborhood capos

We eat children (clap clap clap clap clap) We eat children. By that I mean the Orlando City U-23s. Orlando City's kids had some good moments but for the most part the Timbers handled it like professionals. It was a nice showing for Orlando City's U-23s and they should feel good about their performance. The Lion Cubs could have likely grabbed at least one goal but were also lucky to not give up a few more.

I'm not here to write a match report. I leave those to our resident clown, Chris Rifer. I am just the resident curmudgeon/opinionated person. In the interest of keeping it cordial I'm just here to say a few things.

#1 Welcome back Rodney Wallace!!! Boy howdy do we need Warrior 22 back out there. #bangbang

FYI this was created by a group of us walking through the mean streets of Kansas City a day or two before our match down there last year. Pappy Van Winkle and the Caddyshack were not involved in anything that happened that night.

I don't know about you

But I'm feeling 22

Everything will be alright

With RodWall next to you

We'll fight for our team

The Warrior will too

Everything will be alright

If he just keeps playing like he's

22, ooh-ooh

22, ooh-ooh

#2 So the US Open Cup happened other places. Over the last little bit. Since the clowns at US Soccer don't actually have a website where you can get up to date results someone else made one. Here is the link. Since nobody pays them to update it daily here is another website with actual up to date results. Highlights DC United, the defending champs, getting knocked out by the Microsoft clip art badged Rochester Raging Rhinos, Atlanta besting Royal Salt Lake...oh sorry Real Salt Lake, the New York Cosmos making the New York Red Bulls look much like they will for the next few decades, an afterthought, and finally Colorado stomping on the actual Orlando City Lions. By that I mean the adult team that is paid to play not the college kids the Timbers beat.

#3 We get the winner of Kansas City/Minnesota tomorrow. We host KC if they come (damn the schedulers I want to go back to eat their delicious BBQ so bad) and the boys fly to Minnesota to play if Minnesota United wins. It would sort of be like USL days. We'll all spend half the match with a projector saying the computer is buffering. If you weren't around you have no idea what I'm talking about but if you were then you're nodding in acknowledgement. I fully expect #bufferingaway to be the trending hashtag if that happens.

#4 MLS teams are clearly again not taking this tournament seriously. This is a great opportunity for the team to grab some silverware. The Timbers are better than they have shown this year. Our offense is clicking and hopefully they have some fixes for the defensive lapses that have been our downfall shortly.

#5 I'm not Chris Rifer so I will offer no more insight. I'm just kind of like Canzano in that I just have an opinion and will share it regardless of qualifications to have an opinion on certain subjects. It's the American way and since the World Cup AMERICA FUCK YEAH!

#6 Tetris is for closers. Please don't complain about this chant not being done anymore. It happens when we win. I shouldn't have to explain how stupid it is when we're down or how it is when we do it and the team promptly surrenders a goal. Tetris is for closers. This will also get me blasted but honestly I can't begin to explain how dumb it looks after the end of this chant when people start applauding themselves for the performance they've just put on. You aren't there for you. You're there for what is going on on the field. The focus is what happens on the pitch.

Good talk again. I'm out.

So this thing happens every year. It's called the US Open Cup. The Timbers are playing in it. If you don't know what it is here is the skinny. Every team professional or kind of plays in it in the US from top to bottom. Tomorrow the Timbers play Orlando Lions U-23s. They got here after beating the Charleston Battery after 14 rounds of penalty kicks. Yes you read that right. 14 rounds of penalty kicks. It's the oldest soccer tournament in the US.

This is one of the premier tournaments in the US. It's crazy fun. Typically MLS clubs half ass it. They see it as a secondary tournament until they're the joke of the league and then go all in because they're still standing. I normally wouldn't mention clicking on all those links I just provided but I just provided 3 teams that trotted out the C team and got whooped along with an example of a team playing for nothing else that decided to actually care.

In 2009 and 2010 the Timbers cared a lot about this tournament. They played the Sounders in Portland both times in the run up to MLS. And it's still true that real fans hate Lavesque. It may be uncouth to say but fuck that guy. Any Sounder that suits up for the Timbers had better kiss the badge in front of the Timbers Army. **Drop down to the bottom for me to explain this to you** hashtag Any coach or FO person that doesn't understand this can just suck their own thumb. Fans don't exist in your realm. hashtag I don't care about Akron.

We have an interesting history with the US Open Cup. Former Timber Matt Taylor did this to us. I took one of my best friends to this match for her first one. Honestly I have no idea why she keeps going after this unless she really likes self flagellation. Somehow she's been a season ticket holder since (you're welcome Dan, Chris and the rest of the ticket team).

Then there was this. This was the only match I've ever been angry about a loss. Like...I was mad...I can't explain it. It was anger boiling over into hate. That pretty much sums up the 2012 season though. No matter what you've heard the team out there jogged out and that was it. Jack Jewsbury got a bloody nose and million dollar man Kris Boyd shanked a PK like he was Preston Burpo headhunting before a match. (In the USL years Sounders Players used to "shoot wide" during warm ups and aim for the stands") (That is true or they were really horrible soccer players)

So show up. US Open Cups are almost as fun as USL games were. They also mean a lot more. Winning the whole thing will keep us in the CONCACAF Champions League and honestly at this point I doubt our regular season record is going to do that barring the Timbers going on a run and winning MLS Cup, which could happen, but I've watched a lot of leagues over the years and I kind of doubt that will happen.

**Flat out explanation of fandom. If you wear the nuclear goat piss colored kit of the Seattle Sounders I hate you. This isn't just me. It is much more than me. I realize that some people in the FO think this is like the NBA or something to that nature where these sorts of things aren't personal. They're wrong. If they wear the Sounders badge I flat out hate them. I despise Mike Fucito. I despised him even more after wearing a Timbers badge and clapping off ECS after getting beat to hell at Qwest Field or whatever the hell they're calling it now. Earn the badge. If you played in Seattle and come to Portland work 5X harder. Many may think that's tough but honestly it isn't. The Timbers Army will remember any player, but here's the deal...Play for the name on the front of the shirt, and they’ll remember the name on the back.**

Also as a final rant. I'm really sick of this crap where the club says a player has 60 appearances with the club and ignores the other 40 with the USL side. Futty Danso has 100 appearances with the club and should have been honored as such. Byron Alvarez has still scored 42 goals for the Portland Timbers. Until someone in MLS breaks that Byron Alvarez is the all-time leading scorer for the Portland Timbers. That's counting NASL, USL and MLS. The beauty of our club is the fans honor the past. The FO needs to get on the boat in some regards as well and quit hugging to this MLS only crap. There are only a few teams in MLS that can actually trace their past all the way to the NASL and they should absolutely hold on to all of that history. Just because we got a new car doesn't mean we forget those 2, 3 or 4 other awesome cars that took us on amazing road trips. OK...good talk. Go team!

107ist president Scott Van Swearingen speaks

When the 107ist was formed in 2009, one of the first things to come out of it was a desire, or some say a mandate, for the Timbers Army to build, restore, and maintain soccer pitches throughout the Portland area.  From that mission Operation Pitch Invasion (OPI) was born.

And, what started as a group of dedicated volunteers armed only with shovels and work gloves, reached its highest point yet on Saturday, June 14th when Operation Pitch Invasion held a ribbon cutting ceremony for Bless Field in North Portland’s New Columbia neighborhood. In three short years, OPI went from replacing sprinkler heads to successfully completing its first capital project.

OPI’s beginnings were humble, but their aspirations were not. The original four member board received a $2,000 grant from the 107ist in order to purchase some hand tools and other supplies. From there, they began working with Portland Parks and Rec to find soccer fields that needed work.

Over the course of a given summer OPI would round up anywhere from 30 to 50 Timbers Army members, and they’d descend onto a pitch in disrepair, and do work. The work ranged from filling in holes to replacing sprinkler heads to repainting goal posts.

But the desire was always to lead bigger, more impactful project. So from day one the group was looking for the right opportunity. And, they found it in the form of Bless Field (named after early TA member Hartmut “Howie” Bless). The goal was to raise $200,000 to build an all-weather soccer pitch in Portland’s most diverse neighborhood, New Columbia.

While the Timbers Army was the single largest contributor (donating $50,000), what really made this project special was the way the entire community came together. OPI needed to work with numerous public and private entities to not only raise the funds, but also work its way through the red tape that any project of this scale entails.

When it was all said and done they had assembled a formidable group of partners including the Portland Timbers, Providence Health and Services, Adidas, Home Forward, The City of Portland, the Portland Development Commission, Widmer, Rosa Parks Elementary, AC Portland and the Boys and Girls Club. But, it wasn’t just the ‘big names’ who helped make Bless Field a reality. Individuals took up the cause and did everything from stuffing a few bucks in a jar to creating special scarf runs.

Anyone who’s been around the TA longer than a minute knows that the group is not without its squabbles and conflicts. But it’s also widely known that when push comes to shove, we pull together.

 

Neighborhood kids gather to kick the ball around

On Saturday over 200 people gathered at the new field, and while city commissioners and CEO’s gave heartfelt speeches about what this project means to the City of Portland we watched over our shoulders as dozens of children from different cultures played a game that unifies us all. Their laughter and cheers often drowning out the PA.

This is why we do what we do: Team, Town, TA.

Thanks to Olivia Schelly of Yah Yah Photography for the images from this weekend.

Gather together a group of 8 or 9 players and join the field of 32 teams that will be taking part in history on August 2nd and 3rd as the Timbers Army Football Club holds its very first Tournament to raise money for the TA-CPR initiative.

The Cause

Rose City Futsal has generously pledged 25% of the registration fees to the TA-CPR initiative. This initiative offers free CPR/AED training to 107ist members, however there are ongoing costs associated with this such as simulation equipment, the American Heart Association "Heart Saver" books, and the cost of certification cards which all attendees receive upon completion of the course.

CPR demonstrations will be run at the tournament to show attendees why we are raising money.

The Venue

Rose City Futsal (5010 NE Oregon St, Portland, OR 97213) is a premium facility centrally located on the east side of Portland right off of I-84. Two artificial turf courts and one large hard surface court serve the matches. Enjoy a pint ($1 off for 107ist members) and a meal with the family as you all watch the replay of your match on one of the many flat screens in Clive’s Pub directly above the playing floor or visit the newly opened Far Post Soccer Supply store on site. You’ll love this freshly minted Timber’s Army partner business.

The Format

The tournament will be held on August 2nd and 3rd. You’ll get a minimum of 4 games in. Your team will play twice on Saturday (either in the morning or the afternoon) and twice on Sunday with the possibility of an additional Championship bracket match on Sunday afternoon.

The Process

• This will be first come first served, so you should jump on it quick.
• 107ist members will have a presale open to them until June 23rd.
• All you need to do is get 8 or 9 players together (names and emails), identify a team contact leader and team name (don’t worry, we’ll do all the work for the team leader)
• Send all this information to Steven Joinson at NEU@107ist.org.
• We will generate a paypal link for your players ($35 each for a 9 player roster and $40 for an 8 player) and send it to each of the contacts your roster.
• You will need to have your roster paid in full by June 30 or risk losing your spot to a team on the waiting list.
• After June 23rd any remaining registration spots in the 32 team field will be opened up to the public and there is already strong interest AND TEAMS WAITING.
• Registration after June 23rd will be administered through Rose City Futsal exclusively.