So you want to go to Seattle for the now sold out match on 8/25/2013, but you want to know details. We've got it. We were trying to firm up buses for the trip and that's why it has taken so long. As it stands now there are 750 tickets available for the bus and the game and 750 tickets available for the game only.

When do tickets go on sale?

This Friday 8/9/2013 in the evening. Time is still being firmed up with Eventbrite as we don't want to crash their website but it's looking to be around 6:00-8:00pm.

How will I know when tickets are set to go live?

You will receive an email to the email address associated with your 107ist account containing information about the sale and the password in order to access the sale. THE LINK TO THE SALE WILL NOT WORK UNTIL THE SALE IS LIVE. PLEASE DO NOT EMAIL US ASKING WHY THE LINK IS NOT WORKING UNTIL THE TIME SPECIFIED THE SALE IS LIVE IN THE EMAIL.

Who can buy tickets?

107ist members can purchase 1 ticket per membership. If you need to join please do so before Friday 8/9/2013. Please don't give away the password to your non-membered friends. We double check and make sure everyone is a 107ist member and boot those who aren't.

Will you offer tickets to non-members?

As always members will have first crack at the tickets. Our membership is larger than it ever has been at well over 3,000 107ist members. Being able to have first chance at Seattle away tickets is a big benefit of that membership. This will be a sold out CenturyLink Field and Clint Dempsey's home debut in Seattle. We don't expect there to be many tickets left over after members have first chance. If there are we will open to non-members, but please do not think there are going to be a lot left. There is no firm date as to when we will open to non-members. We will monitor sales and announce once they have slowed to 107ist members. Monitor our website, Facebook and Twitter accounts for information.

If I buy a ticket without the bus ride do I have to meet the buses or can you mail me the ticket?

You have to meet the buses at the stadium to pick up your ticket. This is a security precaution and we all need to enter and exit the stadium in one group.

All the bus tickets are sold out and I don't have a ride to Seattle. What do I do?

We booked all the buses available and there aren't any left in the area. I have created a Facebook group for those looking to ride share. If you have a car and want passengers or are a passenger and looking for a ride you can join this group and start looking. It is nothing official but just a means to help some people out. We encourage carpooling. There are several other options such as Amtrak, Greyhound, or Bolt Bus.

I've heard CenturyLink has new security procedures. Is that true?

Yes it is. We anticipate longer entrance times. They wand people for metal and probably have pat downs. So you know that will slow down entrance a bit. We are going to need to be there a bit earlier than normal.

—by Chris Rifer

In many respects, Seattle’s signing of Clint Dempsey to a four-year, $32 million contract with a reported $9 million transfer fee on top is a sign of significant progress in MLS.  For years, Dempsey – fueled by a sour experience with the League’s structure in his first MLS go-round – has been one of the MLS’s iciest American spokesmen abroad.  Seven years and $41 million dollars after he left MLS, however, and Dempsey has been won over by progress in the League and the Seattle Sounders organization.[1]

While the signing of Dempsey marks another checkpoint on MLS’s path to international competitiveness on the field, it also exposes an institutional immaturity that poses perhaps the greatest obstacle to MLS standing alongside the footballing elite.

The MLS allocation rules provide a clear – if perhaps beef-headed – process for allocating returning former MLS players and U.S. Men’s National Team program players.  Currently, Portland stands first in the allocation order with Seattle sitting second.  As of August 3, 2013, the Allocation Ranking rules published in the Roster Rules provide, in full:

The allocation ranking is the mechanism used to determine which MLS club has first priority to acquire a U.S. National Team player who signs with MLS after playing abroad, or a former MLS player who returns to the League after having gone to a club abroad for a transfer fee. The allocation rankings may also be used in the event two or more clubs file a request for the same player on the same day when the discovery period opens in December. The allocations will be ranked in reverse order of finish for the 2012 season, taking playoff performance into account.

Once the club uses its allocation ranking to acquire a player, it drops to the bottom of the list.  A ranking can be traded, provided that part of the compensation received in return is the other club’s ranking. At all times, each club is assigned one ranking. The rankings reset at the end of each MLS League season.[2]

As a national teamer and former MLS player, Dempsey plainly fits within the class of players allocated through the Allocation Ranking provisions.  Yet, on Saturday, MLS released a statement indicating that the Timbers did not have the first right of refusal on Dempsey because, as a Designated Player, he was not subject to the allocation process.  Citing the signings of David Beckham, Thierry Henry, Robbie Keane, and Claudio Reyna,[3] MLS stated publicly for the first time that Designated Players are not subject to the allocation order rules, even if they otherwise qualify.[4]

The problem, however, is that neither the published Allocation Ranking rules nor the Designated Player rules[5] contemplate such an exception.  This is not a matter of ambiguity, as the published Rules are clear that Dempsey is subject to the allocation process.  There is simply no room for reasonable disagreement within the plain language of the provisions.

Rather, it appears the League has withheld important roster rules from public knowledge for reasons that can charitably be described as baffling.[6]  This mindless secrecy, however, is the starkest example to date of a league that is desperately out of touch with its fanbase and its own influence.

The reality in MLS today is that its supporters no longer treat matches merely as a decent way to pass the time on a summer weekend evening.  Across the country, tens of thousands of MLS supporters browse blogs, listen to podcasts, and stalk the internet for transfer rumors on a daily basis.

The product the League is selling is no longer just ninety minutes of soccer, cheap beer, and bobblehead dolls.  Rather, MLS has grown to a point where its product is a year-round sporting experience that includes not only the matches themselves, but also a relationship between the supporters and the League involving everything its clubs do – from on-field performance, to personnel moves, to development academies.

An important part of MLS’s product, then, are the rules and regulations that govern roster transactions, as those rules are an inextricable part of the daily buzz the League ravenously craves, and ultimately are a significant aspect of what shapes supporters’ relationship with their respective clubs and MLS.

In that way, the Roster Rules are part of a sort of informal contract between the League and its supporters.  In exchange for supporters’ time, energy, and money, the Competition and Roster Rules serve as the baseline that guides supporters’ everyday following of the League and their clubs.  It’s understandable, then, that supporters feel duped when the League facilitates transactions that exist not in the grey areas of the Roster Rules,[7] but rather are contrary to the published rules.  Supporters invest a great deal into following and understanding the League, only to have MLS pull the carpet out from under their reasonable, well-informed expectations by invoking unwritten – or at least unpublished – rules at climactic moments.

For supporters, it feels like the difference between following competitive sport, where the playing field is more-or-less level and the drama is authentic, and watching made-for-TV entertainment where the rules, and ultimately outcomes, are subject to the whims of its promoters.  Put another way, it’s the difference between following the Harlem Globetrotters and the NCAA Tournament.  And if MLS chooses to follow the Globetrotters’ model, it will flounder.

There is little incentive for supporters to read the blogs, tune into the podcasts, or peruse the internet when the information and insight they seek can be rendered useless seemingly at the pleasure of the League office.  And in a soccer world with increasingly diverse options, with rapidly expanding access to television broadcasts of foreign leagues, and increasingly infinite sources of web-based information about overseas competition, the withering of such incentive could be devastating to MLS’s upward trajectory.

In a league in which the fans showed up to the gates – or not – just to have a nice Saturday evening, MLS could get away with the shell game that are the current Competition and Roster Rules.  Few knew better, or, even if they did, cared all that much.[8]

But that’s not the state of support in MLS today.  And if the League continues on its current path of keeping supporters in the dark and insulting their intelligence with patronizingly worded press releases explaining their most recent riff on the Roster Rules,[9] it may again be the state of MLS support tomorrow.

It’s time for MLS to grow up.

Onward, Rose City.

That time of year is upon us when we combine our community outreach efforts with the FO for the second annual Stand Together Week. As a part of this week long celebration of Team and Town involving 26 events, we have chosen 4 events throughout the week that align with the type of volunteer efforts the TA currently undertake. There is no charge to volunteer for these events this year, so come on out and join us. Let’s take these over and show Our Boys how we do what we do.

All volunteers need to sign up individually (even the kids) and all volunteers under the age of 18 will need to bring this signed waiver.

Link to waiver form

TA-PTFC Stand Together Schoolhouse Supplies, August 5th (16 Spots)

Eventbrite signup for Schoolhouse Supplies

Schoolhouse Supplies is an award-winning nonprofit that supports public education in Portland by giving students and teachers free classroom supplies. Their mission, “to serve classrooms in need by operating a volunteer-run Free Store for Teachers, which is stocked with supplies donated by the community,” is based on the belief that every child deserves school supplies and has the right to a quality education. From humble beginnings, Schoolhouse Supplies has grown to serve all 130 Portland Public Schools and has now distributed an estimated retail value of more than $15.4 million dollars in needed supplies. While they have strong contributors, they need help with what is our greatest asset, sweat equity.

Volunteers will work together to sort, tally and prep donated school supplies for the Free Store for Teachers. Volunteers that are 10 to 15 years of age will need to be accompanied by an adult.

TA-PTFC Stand Together Kateri Park, August 7th (10 Spots)

Eventbrite signup for Kateri Park

Wake up your inner artist and join us for an afternoon of fun! Help an art class for 20 kids - they work on individual and collective art projects like drawing, cut outs, and collages. We need some awesome volunteers to come and add your creativity and assistance to the class which will have a soccer theme! You will have a great time exploring art with kids from Somalia, Ethiopia, Burma and Nepal, and you'll really make a difference. Unfortunately, only those over 16 years of age are allowed for this event. Volunteers, please bring lots of used colored plastic bags!

TA-PTFC Stand Together Tryon Creek, August 7th (100 Spots)

Eventbrite signup for Tryon Creek

Oregon’s only state park within a major metropolitan area, Tryon Creek Natural Area is a jewel of our city and is a great place to explore with the coming summer heat. The many efforts of the Friends of Tryon Creek have actually seen the fish population return in recent years but, there is much more work to be done to return this phenomenal habitat to where it should be and they need our help. English ivy is the bane of any local naturalist and would choke every living thing in this town if left unchecked. Given the sensitive nature of this ecosystem, chemicals cannot be used thus; removing the ivy is a hands-on process.

TA-PTFC Stand Together Harrison Park SUN School, August 10th (50 Spots)

Eventbrite signup for Harrison Park

Come out and help beautify of the school grounds: New plantings and caring for the present gardens. Some highlights involve the more than 40 blueberry bushes that were planted last year that need to be tended to prepare the harvest later in the year. Adding this crop to the school will give us nutritious fruit for our families. The school garden is 2200 square feet of vegetable plantings and will need attention to be ready for the fall so volunteers will be helping with that. All around the school grounds we need to add bark chips and clean-up to make the facility ready for the start of school in September. Brighten up to school interior: Paint inside the school to make the hallways more attractive for the students.

—by Chris Rifer

Another Monday.  Another rumor about Jose Valencia debunked.  Another snarky rebuke from Timbers leadership.

Surer that the arrival of the train in “Coming ‘Round the Mountain,” the rumors of Trencito’s departure on loan took another cyclical turn on Monday, as the day came and went with the young Colombian still in the Rose City.

But the rumors won’t go away after another non-denial denial, and not just because Merritt Paulson previously implied they were considering making such a move.  The rumors of Valencia’s loan won’t go away for a more fundamental reason: loaning Valencia into the right situation makes sense.

Too often, those in tune with the soccer world see a loan spell as an impeachment of a player’s performance.  The player isn’t helping his team, the thinking goes, so they send him elsewhere with the possibility of bringing him back if he succeeds.

This doesn’t fit Valencia’s situation because Trencito is helping the Timbers.  Any realistic expectations for Trecito have been met, or perhaps exceeded, this year.  Without question, the prodigy has established himself as a nice MLS player and genuine late-game threat that is oozing with upside.[1]

Rather, the loan would be justified solely on the premise of getting the youngster some first team playing time while the Timbers are busy chasing the playoffs.  So justified, a loan would be about the opportunities the Timbers aren’t creating for Valencia rather than any lack of opportunities Valencia is creating for the Timbers.  Also, so justified, a loan makes a lot of sense.

What Valencia provides the Timbers right now is relatively easily replaceable.  He’s the third forward on a team that uses his athleticism late in games in which they’re chasing a goal.  For D.C. United, that player gets a good amount of run.[2]  For the Portland Timbers, less so.  Search the roster of just about any MLS team and you can find a reasonably priced player who can capably fill that role.

More important for the Timbers’ future, however, is that using Trencito in this way isn’t optimal for his development for two related reasons.  First, and most obviously, the lack of first team minutes limit competitive opportunities.  Despite the Timbers missing two forwards[3] for much of the summer, Jose has only logged 108 minutes over 9 appearances in 2013.  The reserves league is insignificant relief, as games are sporadic, shoddy, and tactically deficient.[4]

Second, the Timbers tactical usage of Valencia in the first team does not develop the skills that need developing, and may even reinforce some youthful bad habits.  Valencia has largely been coming on for Portland late in games in which the Timbers are chasing a goal.  The combination of tired midfield legs, tight defenses, and ticking clocks has meant that Portland has done a lot of searching for Trencito with long balls and very direct play.  Jose fills this role well, as his athleticism and finishing talent make him a danger to tired defenses.

But what will determine whether Valencia turns into a nice MLS player on one hand, or a top-class striker on the other, is whether he can learn to play 90 minutes within an offense, making clever combinations and incisive runs.  Repeatedly putting the youngster in situations in which he’s being asked to break down defenses by his lonesome does little to develop these skills and understanding.  If anything, it encourages him to rely on his talent to beat opponents one-on-one and make a play by himself.

If Portland can find a good fit for Jose, then, loaning Valencia out for nine months makes a lot of sense.  Finding such a fit is no small task.  Portland needs to find a taker that 1) wants Trencito; 2) will play him consistently in their first team starting eleven; 3) is willing to take him without an option to buy; 4) will take good care of him without said option; and 5) is a good systemic fit to develop the aspects of Valencia’s game that need work.  Simply put, there likely aren’t that many clubs that meet all five of those criteria.

Nonetheless, I think a suitable loan partner likely exists, and I would venture to guess the Timbers are in talks with at least one party of mutual interest.

Finally, before any move is made, the Timbers need to have a replacement for Valencia on the line.  While this isn’t the tallest order, sending Jose out on loan without a suitable replacement would be reckless with Ryan Johnson and Rodney Wallace likely set to receive another call to international duty during a crucial part of the stretch run.

If these stars can align, however, expect Valencia to spend the fall and winter overseas on loan.  But don’t expect this because some foreign media source said so, or because Paulson implied via Twitter that he was considering it.

Expect it because it’s the smart thing to do.  And if the Timbers’ front office has been anything in 2013, it’s been smart.

For the second year in a row we are doing a blood drive in the Northern Alliance territory of SW Washington. In an effort to spread the love, the event will be at Salmon Creek Indoor this year which is just off I-5 on the north side of Vancouver. Time slots are available between 10am and 3:30pm and there is still plenty of room if you can make it out.

Visit the Red Cross sign up page and enter “timbersarmy” as the Sponsor Code.

As a bonus this year, anyone who attempts to donate will get a free ticket to the Clark County Fair on behalf of the Red Cross. Also, be sure to drink plenty of water the day prior to and the morning of your donation to get those veins nice and plump.

While we have volunteered as a group for these events in the past, it’s all hands on deck for the Timbers Army to staff McCoy Park with “Intersection Superheroes.” Located just around the corner from the future site of Bless Field, this is an excellent opportunity to show the residents of this enclave who we are and how much we care about and love our City of Roses. We need almost 100 volunteers in total between 2 shifts (9:45am-1:30pm or 12:30pm-4:00pm). If you’ve volunteered for or attended these events in the past, you know how much fun they are. If you haven’t, it’s time to join the party. So, sign up to hang out with some quality TA and let’s have a blast while we contribute to the success of this great neighborhood event. Be sure to select McCoy Park, which shift you’d like to cover, and enter “Timbers Army” when asked which group you’re volunteering with.

http://www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/article/449390

If you’re new to town or live under a rock, Portland Sunday Parkways promotes healthy active living through a series of free events opening the city's largest public space - its streets - to walk, bike, roll, and discover active transportation while fostering civic pride, stimulating economic development, and represents the community, business, and government investments in Portland's vitality, livability, and diversity.

See you up there!

—by Chris Rifer

Even elite teams don’t dominate every match.  Over the course of a 34-game season, every team will have a certain number of games where they come out flat, experience some bad luck, or match up against a good team playing well.

The latter happened to the Portland Timbers Saturday night, and in a good omen for playoff success, the Timbers made the plays they needed to win.

Los Angeles came out pressing from the opening whistle.  In the fifteenth minute, Robbie Keane picked up a cleared Robbie Rogers cross twenty yards out at the top of the box and fired on frame, but Donovan Ricketts was there to make a routine-for-him diving save.

Two minutes later, there was nothing Ricketts could do.  After Michael Harrington was caught upfield,[1] Sean Franklin set Hector Jimenez free on the right touchline.  Jimenez took a touch and lofted a pretty cross to Marcelo Sarvas alone in the center of the box, where the Brazilian midfielder nodded inside the far post.

Marcelo’s freedom was won by a pair of clever runs.  The first was by Gyasi Zardes, who ran as a dummy well short of the near post, pulling his marker—Andrew Jean-Baptiste—away from the goalmouth.  Simultaneously, Marcelo made a long run from a very deep position, where he’s difficult for the Timbers defense to pick up under the best of circumstances, right into the area that Jean-Baptiste vacated and where Diego Chara—the Timber half-covering Marcelo’s run—would look to pass him onto a central defender.  Because Zardes had just cleared Jean-Baptiste, however, there was nobody to pass him to, leaving Sarvas all alone in front of goal.  In the end, the defending mistakes the Timbers made were invited by clever attacking from Galaxy, leading to a well-earned goal.

If there was a defense truly caught napping, it was Galaxy’s ten minutes later.  After Rogers cut down Darlington Nagbe 30 yards from goal on the right wing, Diego Valeri took a quick free kick to set Nagbe free on the right side of the box.  Under pressure from Marcelo, Nagbe beat Carlo Cudicini with a rolled cross for Ryan Johnson, who easily tapped home.

Levelling the match did little to ease the pressure on Portland’s defense, however, as the usually counter-happy Galaxy offense built sustained pressure over the course of the first half.

In the 35^th minute, the Galaxy nearly scored on their own quickly taken free kick.  After Sean Franklin received the quick restart, he found Omar Gonzalez in the box, but the American international’s free header ricocheted off the near post.

Three minutes later, the Timbers needed Ricketts once again when Juninho hit a pretty free kick from straightaway just outside the box, only to have the big Jamaican palm it away from the top corner of the net.

Portland kept things level going into halftime, however, and coming out the Timbers midfield looked much better prepared for Galaxy’s offerings in the middle.  As a result, Galaxy were forced to go much more direct, making for a much easier time for Portland’s defense.[2]

In the 61^st minute it was Portland’s turn to knock on the door when Valeri set Nagbe into the middle, where he crossed up Gonzalez and unleashed a right footed shot that Cudicini did well to get a diving palm to.  The rebound fell tantalizingly to Ryan Johnson, but the former Blues and Spurs keeper recovered brilliantly to get foot to Johnson’s netbound effort.

Genuine chances were at a premium, however, as the teams traded blows in the midfield throughout much of the second half.  In the 82^nd minute, the Timbers made a rare defensive misstep in losing track of Zardes at the top of the box, but Ricketts was more than capable of saving the rookie’s low strike.

As the clock ticked toward 90, however, it looked like the teams may have played each other to an exhausted stalemate.  In a tight match between two on-form teams, however, the difference is often one play.  And on Saturday, the Timbers made it.

Gifted a sloppy 94^th minute corner kick, Valeri found Jean-Baptiste in the box after the defender muscled himself away from Zardes’s mark.  Jean-Baptiste sprinted onto the end of Valeri’s ball at the top of the six and squirted his header between Cudicini and Marcelo at the near post for the rapturous winner.

The dramatic finish secured precisely the type of win the Timbers will have to master to navigate a difficult second half and succeed in the playoffs.  With a West-heavy schedule in the home stretch and a conference where only six points separate second and sixth, the Timbers are going to have to be able to find results against good teams playing their best.  That’s exactly what they did on Saturday night, and that’s exactly what makes the Timbers legitimate Shield and Cup contenders.

Notes & Observations

• On Saturday, the Timbers lost the possession battle for just the third time in 2013.  Remarkably, Portland is 3-0-0 in those games, having beaten Kansas City, D.C. United, and L.A. Galaxy. This speaks to the flexibility of Caleb Porter’s system.  While everybody talks about “Porterball,” the Timbers have shown that they don’t need to hold 60 percent of the ball to win. The Timbers aren’t just a good system.  They’re a good team.
• From start to finish, Saturday’s match was one of the most entertaining I’ve seen at Jeld-Wen Field, and was an example of how good soccer doesn’t necessarily lead to a plethora of chances. Rather, Saturday’s drama took place in the midfield, where Chara, Ben Zemanski, and Diego Valeri were locked in an epic duel with Marcelo, Juninho, and company. The Galaxy got the better of them in the first half, but Portland’s midfield asserted itself more and more as the match went along.
• When asked where Saturday night ranks in his time as a Timber, Futty – a master of understatement – said it was “definitely top-five.” Futty was somewhat guarded during his interview, however, as it was conducted under constant harassment from Pa Modou Kah, who was busy doing everything he could to distract the Gambian veteran from his talk with the assembled media.  Futty noted, however, that Kah’s hijinks were only part of the defenders’ daily routine for working on focus in the face of distraction.
• In my mind, it’s been since at least Ryan Pore’s sunflower goal that we’ve seen such drama, tension, and release at Jeld-Wen Field.
• It didn’t take longevity with the Timbers to appreciate the significance of Saturday night’s win.  After the match, Ryan Johnson noted that Saturday night was “up there, probably top-three for me. That’s huge, and for Drew to get that goal is going to be huge for his confidence.”

Timbers Grades

Donovan Ricketts, 8 Nothing he could do on the concession, and came up big for the Timbers on a number—though not a great number—of occasions.

Michael Harrington, 5 Was getting roughed up a bit by Jimenez in the first half hour, but Porter made some tactical adjustments to give Mikey some more cover, leading to a pretty good second stanza on the defensive end.

Futty, 6 Another solid game for Futty, who has been a rock in spite of his sporadic starts in 2013.  Futty is becoming one of the unsung heroes of this campaign.  Time and again he has been shuttled in and out of the lineup due to injuries and suspensions, and each time he’s called back Futty has been a calm, consistent presence.  There’s little question that without Futty, the Timbers aren’t in second place in the West right now.

Andrew Jean-Baptiste, 7 The work AJB has done on Robbie Keane this year has been remarkable.  The defense was under siege for periods on Saturday, but handled it capably.  What really makes Jean-Baptiste’s grade, however, is his goal that won’t be soon forgotten.

Jack Jewsbury, 6 Really did a nice job on Robbie Rogers, who was substantially more dangerous than the first time the Timbers saw him.  I expect Jack to continue at right back for the foreseeable future, but an Alvas Powell sighting in the postgame locker room and debut in the reserves match foreshadows life after Jack.  For the moment, however, life with Jack is pretty good.

Ben Zemanski, 5.5 No, he’s not Will Johnson.  But Ben Zemanski’s fill-in job has been admirable.  He covered a ridiculous amount of ground on Saturday, and turned up in a number of important spots.  When it comes to spelling Johnson or Diego Chara for a match or two here and there, Zemanski has solidified himself as a pretty good option.  There is a reason both Ryan Johnson and Caleb Porter talked extensively about him after the game.

Diego Chara, 6 Bears some culpability on the concession, as—likely thinking he had help—Chara didn’t cover Marcelo’s run.  Otherwise, however, the smiling assassin more than held his own in an intense midfield fight.

Kalif Alhassan, 4 A little bit of an anonymous outing for Kalif, who hasn’t taken his opportunity to break in a little bit more in Rodney Wallace’s absence.  With Piquionne and Will Johnson back for good, Kalif’s chances may be sporadic from here on out.

Diego Valeri, 6.5 He’s been on a streak of good set piece service recently, which came up huge in the dying moments.  Valeri was otherwise the most effective passer in a midfield that struggled at times to get their foot on the game.

Darlington Nagbe, 5.5 Made his presence known in assisting the first goal and forcing a great save, but the Galaxy did a nice job of keeping Darlington otherwise relatively quiet.  Still, this is the type of game in which Darlington would have been invisible a year ago, providing perhaps the best measure of his development.

Ryan Johnson, 6.5 Had one set up beautifully by Nagbe and Valeri, and almost found a poacher’s goal by stalking Cudicini’s far post.  Johnson had a tough task on Saturday with the midfield being so clogged, and performed nicely.  Also adjusted well to a new role on the left wing after Piquionne came on.

Frederic Piquionne, 5 His overall effect was positive, as the Timbers had a lot more final third potency after he came on.  Still, Frederic’s grade is depressed a little bit for wasting a couple promising chances by being a half step offside.

Jose Valencia, 5 Decent outing for Trencito, who did a fine job of providing fresh legs.  Notable that it was his pressure on A.J. DeLaGarza that led to the crucial corner kick.

Sal Zizzo, INC. Used up just enough time in coming on at the end of the game to rankle Bruce Arena when the referee, from his perspective, cut stoppage time short.  So that’s a contribution.

Preseason Prediction: Timbers 1, Galaxy 0.  David Horst.

Actual Result: Timbers 2, Galaxy 1.  Ryan Johnson, Andrew Jean-Baptiste.

Onward, Rose City!

—by Chris Rifer

Several times in 2013, the Portland Timbers have used pluck, opportunism, and a little luck to climb out of holes they’ve dug on the road.  On Sunday in Columbus, the Timbers summoned the pluck again, but ran out of opportunism and luck in a 1-0 defeat to the Columbus Crew.

The first twelve minutes undid the Timbers in Columbus.  After conceding an early corner, Federico Higuain found Bernardo Anor a yard outside the six-yard box—with the Timbers defense sitting a yard inside the six-yard box—and the Venezuelan nodded the ball between Donovan Ricketts and Kalif Alhassan for the opener.

Things went from bad to worse six minutes later when Pa Modou Kah—who had already been booked in the sixth minute for taking down Dominic Oduro from behind—lost track of a ball in the box and kicked Aaron Schoenfeld in the head trying to recover.  The referee whistled for a clear penalty and issued Kah a red card for his clumsiness.  With the Timbers down to ten, Pipa breathed life into Portland by pulling his penalty wide in the face of a correctly guessing Donovan Ricketts.

Portland responded well, and over the course of the first half slowly regained control of the match.

If much of the ball belonged to Portland, the chances belonged to Columbus.  After a Crew half chance was cleared as far as Higuain 25 yards from goal, the Argentinian found Josh Williams on the right side of the box.  Ricketts came out, but couldn’t reach the ball before the young right back, who chipped in front of goal only to have Futty clear.

The Crew nearly opened Portland up again in the 32^nd minute when Pipa set Oduro free in the box, but this time Futty cut him off and forced him to lay it back to Schoenfeld whose chip sailed high and wide.

As the half went along, however, the Timbers shifted onto their front foot.  In the 42^nd minute Darlington Nagbe made a great run into the box to have a shot blocked, but regained control and played to Jack Jewsbury on the right.  The captain sent the ball to Ben Zemanski in the middle, but the back-leaning midfielder skied his free effort form 20 yards.

If the chances were lacking in the first half, they weren’t in the second.  After the Timbers had Columbus pinned in their own end for extended stretches early on, Diego Valeri found Andrew Jean-Baptiste free at the back post on a corner kick, but the nearly fledged defender’s header sailed just wide of the far post.

Oduro nearly put the Timbers away in the 65^th minute when Portland turned the ball over in midfield and Higuain fed the Ghanaian at the top of the box, but his shot skidded just wide of the far post.

As the half went along, the extra miles put in by the ten-man Timbers began to take their toll.  In the 75^th minute, that fatigue almost ended Portland’s day, but Ricketts came up huge to keep the Timbers in the game.  After Higuain[1] set yet another Crewmate through on goal, Ethan Finlay nodded toward the top, but a jumping Ricketts caught just enough of the ball with his trailing hand to knock it over the bar.

Two minutes later, things should have been level.  After Jose Valencia tracked a ball down six yards out on the right side, he cut it back to Valeri open at the top of the box, but the Argentine talisman sent it uncharacteristically high.

The Timbers’ third big chance came by way of a one-man show from Darlington Nagbe.  After making a 60-yard run down the left sideline, Nagbe cut back toward the center near the top of the box and unleashed a right-footed shot that looked like a candidate to find the far side netting, but fill-in Columbus keeper Matt Lampson dove well to his left to parry away.

The Timbers heavy legs ultimately kept them from making a concerted push for the point.  Despite controlling much of the match while being a man down, Portland had three good chances to find an equalizer and keep their 15-match streak alive.  Unlike the previous times they’ve faced deficits away from the Rose City, each time on Sunday the Timbers came up short.

Notes & Observations

• Make no mistake, the Timbers probably win that game with eleven men, early concession or no early concession. Portland employed a similar tactical set up to that which they showed in Chicago, where the Timbers pushed both fullbacks forward, split the centerbacks wide and dropped a defensive central midfielder—usually Diego Chara—back into the gap. The result was a fair amount of space in the Columbus midfield, but Portland was unable to take full advantage due to Kalif Alhassan’s absence after Kah’s sending off. In trying to utilize this space, the Timbers desperately needed one more player to combine with to try to bend Columbus’s backline out of shape. That guy would have been Kalif, but he was necessarily sacrificed to bring Futty on.
• Given his druthers, I think Caleb Porter would have liked to bring Frederic Piquionne on for Ben Zemanski[2] at halftime and shift to a diamond 4-4-1 look with Piquionne up top as a direct threat, Ryan Johnson sitting underneath as almost a second forward, Valeri on the right, Nagbe on the left, and Chara in the hole. In this scheme, the Timbers would have held the ball a little bit deeper, but had much more potency playing direct—something they should have been fairly effective in doing with both fullbacks being aggressive, retaining plenty of central-leaning midfield talent in Nagbe and Valeri, and the center back tandem of Futty and Jean-Baptiste looking up to the task of keeping the back on lockdown. Unfortunately, Piquionne was busy trying to make sure Will Johnson returned to the Timbers fold in short order, so Porter found himself with a very depleted set of options off the bench.
• In this respect, while much of the punditry has latched onto the absence of Will Johnson as a reason Portland couldn’t find their way back, I think Piquionne’s preoccupation at the Rose Bowl was even more significant.

Timbers Grades 

Donovan Ricketts, 7.5 To be honest, Donovan didn’t nearly as much to do as you’d expect after playing with ten men for 80 minutes.  His 75^th minute robbery of Finlay was maybe his best save of the year, though.

Michael Harrington, 5.5 Wasn’t a target defensively and wasn’t the focus offensively—other than his role in opening space centrally.  It was a fine performance for Mikey, who has now strung a series of them together.

Pa Modou Kah, 1 Hard to imagine a worse ten minutes for Kah.  He’s shown a knack for risky defending in the past, and it really came back to bite him against Columbus.  Still, ten minutes a player does not break, so don’t quit on Kah just yet.

Andrew Jean-Baptiste, 5.5 His grade is flattened just a little bit because he was in charge of the set piece defense on the near side that was overwhelmed on the concession.  Also needs to put his 55^th minute header on frame, as that was a pretty juicy ball from Valeri.  Other than that, however, AJB did a lot more right than wrong.

Jack Jewsbury, 5.5 Spent a lot of time forward on Sunday and had a few nice balls into the box.  Maybe a little bit upset Zemanski didn’t put his 42^nd minute pass on frame, as it would have been a just assist for Jewsbury.

Diego Chara, 4.5 A little bit flat from Chara.  Zemanski was taking the primary box-to-box responsibilities, while Chara spent an awful lot of time hanging back between the two center backs.  As a result, Diego wasn’t really his sidling, tackling, and distributing self.[3]

Ben Zemanski, 6 Should have done better in the 42^nd minute,[4] but did a pretty darn good Will Johnson impression for much of the game—working his way all over the field.

Darlington Nagbe, 4.5 Bears some culpability on the concession, as he did a poor job of fighting from the top to contest the ball coming in at the near post.

Diego Valeri, 6.5 Needed to do better on his big chance, but was the Timbers’ most dangerous player going forward.  The biggest boon to his grade, however, was his set piece delivery, which was nothing short of expert on Sunday.

Kalif Alhassan, INC. Never really got a chance to work his way into the game before he was sacrificed in favor of Futty.

Ryan Johnson, 4 This was a tough spot for Ryan, as he’s not the type of lone target Piquionne is.  Ryan is best when he can combine in the midfield a bit and make a late run, but—for the reasons discussed above—the Timbers were destined to struggle at that game given the personnel available.

Futty, 7.5 Great game from Futty.  Was tasked with bottling up the Dominic Oduro that was way too much for Kah, and did so seemingly with ease.

Jose Valencia, 5.5 By the time he’d come on, the legs were going and the team was settling for sending long balls forward to him.  Didn’t have many chances from which to make hay, but did nicely in the 77^th minute to set up Valeri.

Michael Nanchoff, INC. Even more than Valencia, by the time Nanchoff came on the rest of the team had run out of gas.

Preseason Prediction: Timbers 2, Crew 1.  Ryan Johnson, Jose Valencia.

Actual Result: Crew 1, Timbers 0.

Onward, Rose City!

Portland, OR, Vancouver, B.C., Seattle, WA — Ahead of this weekend's Cascadia Cup match between the Sounders and the Whitecaps, the supporters groups in Seattle, Portland and Vancouver and Major League Soccer are pleased to announce we have reached an agreement in principle regarding the Cascadia Cup Trademark Issue. The agreement in principle was the result of a transparent and productive dialogue between the league and the Cascadia Cup Council (CCC) representatives.

While final ratification of the agreement is pending legal approval, both parties have agreed to a general framework that includes important provisions regarding trademark and sponsorship. The Cascadia Cup Council will own the name, logo and likeness of the trophy and no party may sell, trade, nor barter any sponsorship to the Cascadia Cup without the unanimous approval of all parties (i.e., CCC, Portland Timbers, Seattle Sounders, Vancouver Whitecaps and MLS).

More details regarding the agreement will be released upon legal ratification.

The Cascadia Cup Council is pleased with the agreement in principle with Major League Soccer and is encouraged by the fact that Major League Soccer recognizes the importance of the supporter-owned Cascadia Cup for the growth of soccer in the Cascadia Region. The CCC believes this agreement in principle ensures that the Cascadia Cup will remain a supporter-created and supporter-owned cup.

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About the Cascadia Cup Council: The Cascadia Cup Council is a recognized non-profit entrusted with the management of the Cascadia Cup. The Council is made up of one representative from each of the three founding Cascadia Cup supporters groups. The current representatives are Jeremy Wright - Timbers Army, Greg Mockos - Emerald City Supporters, and Brett Graham - Vancouver Southsiders.

—by Chris Rifer

In light of the Timbers’ successful six-game, eighteen-day stretch over the past few weeks, it is understandable that Wednesday’s friendly match-up with Monarcas Morelia has not been on the receiving end of much of the perpetual buzz following the Timbers this season.  Nonetheless, on Wednesday, the Timbers will inaugurate the Copa Verde – an annual friendly between the Timbers and a Liga MX side.

The Copa Verde provides the Timbers the opportunity to benefit the Mexican Consulate of Portland’s IME Becas Program.  But while friendlies that go to benefit good causes are nothing new, the Timbers and a local woodworker collaborated to create a very sharp looking, locally sourced, Tarascan-inspired trophy for the competition.

After the Timbers were referred to him by a colleague at ADX, a community woodworking shop in southeast Portland, local woodturner Alain Bally and the club settled on a design that was inspired by Las Yacatas pyramids in Mexico and crafted entirely out of salvaged Oregon wood.

The Yacatas pyramids are located in the ruins of Tzinzuntan, the capital of the Tarascan Empire, and completed sometime around 1450.[1]  The rounded, stepped pyramids inspired the top section of the Copa Verde trophy, which sits atop a shaft of Oregon maple and inverts the pyramids’ design to crown the cup.

But the trophy’s inspiration isn’t the only thing that ties it to the community.  Rather than turn to a major manufacturer, the Timbers found their way to Bally, a local retiree who passes the time giving back to the community and turning wood.  His workshop, ADX, isn’t the sort of place that churns out wood products for Cost Plus, but rather is a local community workshop open to wood- and metalworkers of all skill levels to join, ply their passion, and take classes.  And the wood used to fabricate the Cup wasn’t offloaded from a logging truck of freshly felled Oregon forests; instead, Bally found it at The ReBuilding Center, a Portland sustainability nonprofit that reclaims and salvages building materials and flips them back into use.

The design and crafting of the Copa Verde, then, appropriately represent the budding connection between the Timbers and the LigaMX clubs that come to Portland to participate in the Copa Verde, and serves as a symbolic centerpiece for the club’s outreach to the local Hispanic community through the Somos Timbers initiative, and the community at large through Stand Together.  Oh, and it’s pretty cool looking.

Not too bad for a trophy given to the winner of a friendly.