It’s been quite a season for all of us in and around the Timbers Army. As your capos, we’d like to thank every single soul who joined us in the North End and helped the greatest football supporters the world has ever seen create a season full of magic.

Before it ends, we have one more request of you.

You may take it for granted that you’ll be at the next match, singing and chanting yourself hoarse. You’re from the North End and you’re there to make some noise, right?

But what if you couldn’t?

What if the joyful soundtrack of the Timbers Army was off-limits to you?

You wouldn’t be alone.

Every summer, the Meadowood Springs Speech and Hearing Camp, located in Pendleton, provides a mix of summer activities and intensive hearing and speech therapy for kids with communication difficulties. The camp is open to kids from 6-16. This summer, Meadowood launched additional programs focused on helping children and families affected with social learning issues, such as Autism Spectrum Disorders, Asperger’s Syndrome, ADD, ADHD and others.

Their increased capacity and continued work makes supporting them all the more important. Last year, during one match mind you, we collected enough to provide a generous donation of $1,166.58.

Going into the final month of the season, we capos are asking you – the Timbers faithful – to help us raise money so that others may raise their voices. We hope to handsomely best last year’s donation this Saturday as the PTFC takes on DC United.

Here’s how you can help: Instead of buying a pint or two in honor of another amazing season and your hard-workin’ capo, use that money to help all of us raise a fund for Meadowood Springs. Checks can be made out to the 107ist; just write either “Meadowood” or “Capo Pint” in the subject line. The107ist will total the amount collected, and pass it on to the camp, just like last year. Or, on match day 9/29, you can connect with your capo or a designated fund collector in each section of the North End. If you’re still not sure who you’re looking for, you can make your contribution with the Drum & Trumpet Corps in section 106. Or, alternatively, you can use this Paypal link if you are unable to donate at the match in person.

We hope that the Portland Timbers Football Club and the Timbers Army have made your spring and summer of 2012 something extraordinary and memorable. As it ends, please consider making a small investment toward offering a few, deserving children the prospect of an equally amazing summer in 2013.

Thank you very much,

Your Capos,

Pong, Timberista, Sunday, Bickle, Camm, Ice Funk, Timber Joe, Cowbell, Purple Cow, Patch and Grimm

And your Drum & Trumpet Corps:

Glenn, Frank, Daniel, Benjamin, Jamie, Kyle, Ben, Doug, and Durr

Final Score: Cascade Rangers FC 4 - 5 Northern Alliance FC

CRFC Starters:

(GK) Andrew Brawley, (D) Abram Goldman-Armstrong, Jason Young, Jamey Billig, Stephen Chen (MF), Davide Denike, Joseph Haebe, Justin Warber, Tom Harrison, (F) Andy Laursen, David Perez

CRFC Subs:

David Levine, Jerry Makare, Jesse Ritorto

CRFC Out:

Jeff Dunham (???), Tim Lemke (Kids), Joe Lewis (Fishing), Tyler Paris (???), Tom Dixon (???), Scott Van House (???), Daniel Castillo (???), Steve Keunzi (Injured)

CRFC Stats:

David Perez - Goals 4

Jamey Billig - Assist 1

Justin Warber - Assist 1

The oldest derby in D4 happened out in the middle of Nowhere, Sherwood on another amazing sunny day.

Both teams were ready for a well mannered fun game, which many of the NEU vs CRFC derbies have been.

Although, this one had a little extra spice, with recent NEU transfer Eben, playing against his old club, CRFC.

It started well with both teams settling right into the game. A few early wild shots from each team made both benches laugh, and GW wannabe Jamey B showed up in a suit to cheer on CRFC.

On the 20 minute mark, Kyle O threw the ball in to Eben C, who did what CRFC were dreading, a run from defense to the edge of the box and a great looping shot from outside the box sailed over the keeper and in. 1-0 NEU

On the 30 minute mark, Rob H made a run down the right and found an open Stevie J in the box, who steadied the ball and placed a shot into the bottom right corner, then drew a large '96' in the air as a tribute to his team from home.

With a couple of minutes left in the first half Brandon B found Marcus N who slotted home for a comfortable 3-0 halftime score line.

Half Time: NEU 3 - 0 CRFC

The second half kicked off, and Jamey B had changed from his GW costume into a CRFC uniform.

It was soon 4-0 when Sheridan H connected with Shiloh R who chipped the keeper.

Then CRFC had a well executed goal when TJ threw his body at the ball and 'thighed' the ball into the NEU net. 4-1 to NEU.

Then something interesting. Joel W from NEU landed a late tackle on a CRFC player, this caused a quick yellow from the young ref, CFRC gaffa Jerry M didn't like the tackle and chest bumped Joel, the ref wasn't impressed and threw out a straight red card to Jerry M. After a reassurance and some explaining from NEU gaffa Stevie J, the ref decided the red was harsh and rescinded it.

We are all friends here after all.

Then Rob H had two, almost identical golazos (not the drink), each sweet volleys from the corner of the box over the CRFC keeper, the first one assisted by Robin F, and the second from Kyle O.

Final Score: North End United 6 - 1 Cascade Ranger FC

Man of the Match Rob Hennis for his 2 incredible goals and 1 assist.

Honorable Mention Eben C for scoring his first NEU goal against his former team.

Cascade Rangers Line up:

Starters:

(GK) Andrew Brawley, (D) Tom Dixon, David Denike, Jason Young, Arjan Van de Ven, (MF), Daniel Castillo, Joseph Haebe, Justin Warber, Tom Harrison, (F) Jesse Ritorto, Andy Laursen

Subs:

Jamey Billig, Stephen Chen, Abram Goldman-Armstrong, Steve Keunzi, Tim Lemke, Jerry Makare

Out:

Jeff Dunham (???), David Levine (???), Joe Lewis (Fishing), Tyler Paris (???), David Perez (???), Scott Van House (???)

Stats:

Tom Harrison - Goal 1

Joseph Haebe - Assist 1

Jerry Makare - Card (Yellow)

Dear. Mr. and Mrs. Ultras,

I feel compelled to write you as it seems your kids have suffered from some unfortunate misguidance. I don’t want to raise any alarms, and am not looking to get anyone in trouble. I am merely concerned with their inability to play well with others.

It’s unfortunate that the kids are based in San Jose. Being commonly regarded as the “third-of-three” city in the Bay Area would be tough on most kids. Nobody remembers the bronze medalist at the Olympics, or the second runner-up at the Miss America pageant, so nobody can fault the kids for having an inferiority complex.

Also, your neighbors that do share their common interests aren’t really neighbors at all. The kids to the north (Portland, Seattle, Vancouver) tend to focus on each other, and have done so since the 70’s. The other two kids (Los Angeles and Chivas USA) are forced to focus on each other due to some kind of lame experiment being orchestrated from the east coast.

Basically, it’s not your fault that your kids are stuck with a label of “double outcast.” They’re just isolated by geography and cultural upbringing.

The real unfortunate part is that your kids have already got a good thing going right there in San Jose. Your kids get to watch a high-performing soccer team in their own back yard in a setting that allows them a level of access that your neighbors don’t have. Once the new stadium is completed, that level of access will be greatly reduced. I would implore them to appreciate it while they can.

After reviewing their tifo display from last night’s match against the Timbers, I think it may be in the best interest of your kids to seek help from professionals. Your so-called neighbors rarely go to great expense (in time, effort and money) to simply call out the opponent in a manner that doesn’t make much sense, regardless of whether it was intended to be serious or humorous. Instead, this display simply revealed the fact that your kids desperately want attention from someone (or some people) that really couldn’t be more indifferent about them. It made us feel sad for them.

Please do what you can to turn your kids’ attention back onto their own team, especially since that team is currently in first place, and is worthy of it. Their efforts would be better spent inspiring their own team rather than forcing the opponents’ fans to scratch their heads.

Sincerely,

Andrew Brawley

Treasurer/Secretary, Neighborhood Watch

 

This is an opinion piece and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the 107ist or the TA.

I have to admit I enjoyed getting back in touch with the various Timbers Army Football Clubs and hearing how the start of their fall campaigns is going.  As one of the original members of the former Timbers Army FC side that eventually came to become Cascade Rangers FC, I know many of the players from the adventures of Division 4 personally and have a great deal of respect for everyone I’ve encountered, even that Jerry guy that is still running Cascade Rangers FC after all these years.

At latest check, the website updates to get the fall schedules and match reports is still being worked upon, so there are no official reports to link to for this week. However, once that occurs, this should be a great way to keep track of what’s going on with your favorite club in terms of who are the leading scorers, which keeper is setting the mark for TAFC teams, or who might have the misfortune of being the subject of a weird or wacky play during a match.  For those of you keeping track at home, visit the Timbers Army FC main page for a complete list of club happenings and news for 101^st FC, Cascade Rangers FC, FC Dynamo, FC Portlandia, North End United, Northern Alliance FC, Old Growth FC, Rose City Athletic, Guerreros Verde, and Multnomah Forest FC. So until those are added, I’m relying upon the match reports that were provided by email or by the TAFC HQ Facebook page.

FC Dynamo reported a 3 to 1 loss to County Cork FC in week 2. After taking the early lead on a goal from Nathan Pogue, County Cork FC took advantage of some miscommunication on the backline in the 35^th minute to tie the score, and they took the lead behind two second half goals. FC Dynamo applied plenty of pressure, but couldn’t put anything past goal in suffering their second straight loss. The boys hope for a rebound against their fellow TAFC members in GPSD Division 1, FC Portlandia, as the two clubs meet out at Gladstone High on September 23 at 6 PM.  FC Portlandia goes into that match with two wins, although the last result was a forfeit win when Abyssinai Soccer didn’t have enough players to field a team.

In GPSD Division 4 action, Guerreros Verde met up with the lads in red, Rose City Athletic and reported a score of 7 to 1. The official reported score to GPSD was 8 to 1, and since I don’t have a report from RCA to confirm it, I’ll go with the official GPSD score.  For Guerreros Verde, Brenden Luworo scored his first goal with an assist going to Ben Abiles, but they took it on the chin for a second straight week. They play Clinton City Wanderers this weekend to get a weekend off from TAFC derbies.  Owen from 101^st FC reported a 3 to 2 win over Multnomah Forest AFC, but there were some challenges getting the match played.  Because of a scheduling conflict at the original field for the match, both teams found an alternate site to stage their meeting.  MFAFC took a 2 to 1 lead into the halftime break, but 101^st FC used two goals in the second half to stage a comeback win.

North End United and Cascade Rangers FC staged their regular derby as well. There was some extra spice to this one, as CRFC Captain Jamey Billig showed up in a suit to be in pure gaffer mode while Eben Crawford was making his first appearance for North End United after being a member of CRFC for many seasons. The match also had one of the more unusual occurrences with a rescinded red card for CRFC Manager Jerry Makare after tempers had escalated after a late challenge. However, emotions were held in check and NEU went on for the 6 to 1 win over CRFC; Rob Hennis notched a brace for NEU while Crawford scored for his new side, while T.J. Harrison scored the lone CRFC goal.

Northern Alliance FC didn’t file a report for their match with the Onetouchables and GPSD doesn’t list a score either, so we don’t know the outcome of that match, so we hope to get information on that affair as soon as possible.  In the current table in Division 4, NEU and 101^st FC lead the standings, but as we all know, it’s very early in the season.

Over in the Over 40 Division 2 action, Old Growth FC played their second match on September 15 still basking in the glory of the non-loss by the Timbers to that unfortunately colored side earlier in the day.  The magic of the afternoon led OGFC to put a shot off the post within seconds of the opening whistle, but the blinding sun and deceptive quickness from some of the Inter United wing’s let the other side put up four goals on OGFC in the first 45.  They held together with an improved defensive effort in half two, but ended up losing 6 to 0. They will play their next match in Vancouver out at Devereaux Field on September 22 at high noon.

We also have a report for Coat? FC, one of the TAFC futsal teams, as they posted a 5 to 2 win in their most recent match behind braces from Reid Storm and Rob Day-Reynolds.  I’m always happy to include news from the indoor and futsal sides of TAFC as this is very much an all inclusive soccer update. I hope to hear more from them in the coming weeks! That’s all we have for this week, we’ll chat with you all next week!!

The Portland Timbers went a goal down on a great strike from Fredy Montero, lost Donovan Ricketts and Diego Chara to injury, and were again denied a clear penalty by an erroneously unsympathetic referee. Basically, everything that could have gone wrong on Saturday, went wrong.

And the Timbers still came within inches of a legendary Cascadia Cup-clinching victory over the Seattle Sounders.

The game never hid its identity, as the teams came out with the tackles flying, but Seattle had the better of the chances in the early going. Ozzie Alonso got the opportunities going in the tenth and fourteenth minute, but couldn’t steer a pair of strikes from distance on frame.

The Sounders’ best chance came in the seventeenth minute, however, after Steve Zakuani burned Kosuke Kimura on the Sounders’ left side and sent a cross in that was punched away by Ricketts. Portland couldn’t clear the danger, however, until the ball bounced around the box before Brad Evans steered his shot from a tight angle well wide.

As the half went along, however, the Timbers found their footing. In the thirty-eighth minute, Franck Songo’o took a crack from twenty-five yards out at the top of the circle, but Michael Gspurning turned the effort away with a diving save.

Jack Jewsbury similarly found space in the center of the Sounders defensive midfield in the forty-third minute, but the captain’s strike sailed just wide.

Coming out of the half at a scoreless draw, the Sounders again tried to establish themselves on the front foot. After Andy Rose took his turn on Kimura’s turnstile defense, he found Brad Evans at the back post, but the mouthy winger couldn’t steer his volley on frame.

The game changed moments later, however, after Rose again found space down the Timbers’ right flank. The youngster sent a cross into the box, but Ricketts came to punch away despite a hard collision with Eddie Johnson. Ricketts was forced off with a separated shoulder, bringing young Joe Bendik into goal for the Timbers.

Seattle would take advantage of the substitution moments later when Fredy Montero let a long ball bounce twice and took a spinning volley, which, much to the supposedly neutral Arlo White’s delight, sailed over Bendik and under the bar. Some goals are bad defense. Some goals are just a great play. Regrettably, this was the latter.

This was the Timbers’ cue to fold, right? Goalkeeper knocked out of the game and a goal conceded. Surely, the day was done. If it didn’t look that way after Montero’s goal, it certainly would eight minutes later in the sixty-fifth minute.

After Rod Wallace overhit his cross and Sal Zizzo collected, the quiet winger sent the ball toward the sideline where Andy Rose looked to clear. Rather than hit the ball, however, Rose caught the heel of Diego Chara who had sidled in front of him to collect the loose ball and reset the Timbers’ offense. Chara, understandably, went down. The ball, understandably, went out. But the call, unconscionably, was for a goal kick.[1] Surely, with a goalkeeper out, a goal down, and clear penalty denied, the Timbers were done.

Nope. After a run of positive play, the boys in green pulled level in the seventy-eighth minute in vintage 2011 fashion. After Jewbsury sculpted a perfect corner to the top of the six at the near post, Rodney Wallace got head to the service and headed in the direction of the far post. The ball bounced around the line, but eventually nestled into the side netting for the equalizer.

Portland would continue to stay on its front foot in search of the Cup-winning winner, but despite a nice collection of half chances couldn’t find the golden goal before stoppage time. Everything positive seemed to come to a screeching halt in the eighty-ninth minute, however, when Diego Chara crumpled to the field with a strained groin, then limped off.

Surely, the Timbers couldn’t find the winner playing a man down and missing their best player. But after yet another brilliant Jewsbury corner two minutes into stoppage, the ball fell to Bright Dike at the far post. It couldn’t be. It might be. It may just be the most legendary goal in modern Timbers history. Or so it may have been. Dike’s smash deflected off the inside of the near post to keep things level.

The Timbers had to weather one more nervous moment, however. After David Horst did very well to deny Montero a chance in the box, Alonso sent a low shot in from twenty-five, but Bendik was there to smother the trouble.

Oh, what might have been. The draw keeps the Timbers three points clear of the Sounders in the race for Cascadian dominance, but Portland has to win it on the road now. A draw in Seattle would do the trick, but, as Timbers fans know, that means the Cup is far from secure.

Match Observations

• Obviously, it’s a bittersweet result. There were lots of things to like from the Timbers, including the fact that they had the better of the chances and fixed a defense that conceded three goals to lowly Colorado last week. Still, what could have been leaves me with a bit of an empty feeling, as the Timbers were inches from an “I was there when…” victory.
• He doesn’t get into the ratings because he may or may not have a soul, but Ozzie Alonso was fantastic on Saturday. I mean, really fantastic. Portland had a hard time moving the ball through the center of the field, especially through Darlington Nagbe, which is entirely attributable to the Cuban’s influence.
• The reserves match on Sunday also provided an opportunity to get a look at a number of guys we haven’t had much opportunity to see for a while. Most notably, Sunday brought the debut of Trencito. He looked, well, like he hadn’t played much soccer in a while. The talent was apparent, but he was clearly out of synch. Kalif Alhassan backed up a neat substitute shift on Saturday with a good one on Sunday. Sebastian Rincon continues to impress me with his instincts to cut inside and go at goal. The quality is undeniably there, and he’s developing a nice little work ethic, too. He still struggles a little bit linking up with other players in the offense, but that’s largely to be expected at this point in his development. Finally, it was my first chance to really see Ian Hogg. I was impressed with some of his defense – he looks like he might be one of the better cross-blockers on the team – but he really struggled getting forward and concerned me a little bit in possession.
• Don’t be shocked to see Gavin find a way to work Kalif back into the lineup in short order. After looking disjointed in returning from injury, he had a good weekend, especially when he floated central. With Chara out for the next few weeks, I expect to see some experimentation in non-Cascadia matches with Kalif.

Timbers Grades

Donovan Ricketts, 6 – Really wasn’t called upon until that fateful cross, but sacrificed his body to save a sure concession.

Rodney Wallace, 7 – I was really concerned about Rodney coming in, but he was passable defensively and eager to overlap. With the middle shut down, that provided a good chunk of the offense, even if his crosses frequently weren’t where you would like them. Oh, and he equalized, which was cool.

Hanyer Mosquera, 6 – On the whole, a good game for Mosco. The center backs were getting hung out to dry by one fullback in particular, and they generally did very well to keep the Sounders attack under control.

David Horst, 7 – Basically the same as Mosco, except may have saved the game by denying Montero in stoppage time.

Kosuke Kimura, 2 – The MLS highlight set is basically a mash up of the Timbers almost scoring and Kosuke getting abused. Brutal.

Jack Jewsbury, 6.5 – As usual, good in the field, but can somebody remind me why he stopped taking set pieces?

Diego Chara, 7 – Classic Diego stuff again. The Timbers’ most influential player in the midfield. Hopefully he’s fit for the trip to Seattle.

Darlington Nagbe, 4.5 – None of this is Darlington’s fault. Nagbe was paid the biggest compliment of his career when Seattle decided it needed to essentially man-mark him with Ozzie Alonso.

Franck Songo’o, 6 – A little bit quiet at the outset, but became more influential as the match went along. Seriously, though, the dude needs to get 90 minutes fit.

Sal Zizzo, 5 – Had an active first half, but the Sounders made the necessary defensive adjustments to limit him as the game went along. That’s when Franck stepped up.

Bright Dike, 5 – Okay outing for Bright. Denied beatification by the post.

Joe Bendik, 5.5 – Not much he could do about the concession, especially coming in cold. Otherwise was pretty good, including looking confident in making the final save.

Kalif Alhassan, 6 – Put in a pretty darn good shift coming on for Songo’o. His touch has improved through the course of his comeback, as Kalif looked close to the form he has flashed when healthy this year.

Danny Mwanga, 6 – A more active shift than we have seen from Danny in the past, as he floated back into the midfield a bit more. Showed nicely on a couple good runs, and had an on-frame looking shot deflected out.

Preseason Prediction: Timbers 2, Sounders 1. Montero, Mosquera, Boyd.

Actual Result: Timbers 1, Sounders 1. Montero, Wallace.

Onward, Rose City!

—by Andrew Brawley

With the recent (and upcoming…again) hoopla over Saturday’s Cascadia Cup match vs. Seattle now subsided for the time being, I’ve noticed a wide array of opinions on how to address and/or respond to the national TV exposure.

Some fans were excited about the Timbers being on NBC. They called their friends and family outside of the Portland market and told them to watch the game so they can finally see first-hand the excitement that is a Timbers match. They might have also been excited to see a proper Major League Soccer match have a shot at growing the sport in the United States, a country where soccer is currently awesome…until youth players enter high school and start playing other sports.

The other group of fans felt the exposure was unnecessary. There’s already too many people clamoring for Timbers tickets, empowering scalpers, and making the temptation for Merritt Paulson to raise prices on tickets and concessions too great. Hardcore fans would prefer to see NBC air a game worthy of a quality team on the pitch, rather than constantly cutting to what’s going on the North End, zooming in on the face-painted juggalo n00b instead of the guy with the hand-screened TA shirt he made in 2002.

All valid arguments.

What seems to be lost in this debate is that having MLS matches air on a national network channel that does not require a paid cable subscription will only help grow the league, as well as the sport in this country.

We here in Portland are spoiled when it comes to our home game experience. Did I say spoiled? Sorry, I meant SPOILED!!! We have a situation that all other teams in the league would go to extreme lengths to have. We have consecutive sellouts despite a team that has been hovering around wooden spoon territory for most of the season. We have multiple capos. We have quality local beers in our concession stands. We now have different local food carts offering their unique dishes at each match. We have a downtown stadium with quality public transit options. We have bike parking…the kind you can actually ride your bike to and from. We have lines of communication between the 107ist Board of Directors and the Timbers front office staff (I’ll let the readers comment on the openness of those lines).

Is it perfect? No! There will always be room for improvement. But when you compare it to other teams in the league, you can see why the powers that be would want a match in Portland to be put on display for a national audience for the first time in four years. Having that match be against Seattle was an obvious option. Having that match serve as a potential clinching of the Cascadia Cup for the Timbers was a nice bonus. Basically, MLS wanted Portland to serve as the model for its introduction to the non-soccer-knowing portion of America, which is much larger than we can comprehend here in Portland.

We seem to forget that Major League Soccer is still not part of the “big 4” of American sports. While the league has been somewhat successful in recent years, it’s still fragile. One wild month of petty cash expense reports out of the MLS corporate office covering a bender weekend of hookers-and-blow could undo the whole thing in the hot flash. Even if the current NHL lockout results in a full season cancellation, there are valid arguments to be made that MLS is still not enough of a "major" league to take their place in the big 4 because it doesn’t have the star power of European leagues.

If the league were to go belly up, this whole thing we’ve got going disappears. POOF! GONE! The quality players go elsewhere, leaving the scraps behind to play in some ramshackle last minute minor league that’s being held together with scotch tape and screen doors. Also, the growth of the sport we love in our own country suffers. (For reference, see Women’s Professional League…a tragedy of tragedies.)

I realize it’s not really “cool” or “hip” or “with it” (as the kids say) to be in the mainstream. Portland is a counter-culture city. Soccer (in America) is a counter-culture sport. That’s two layers of by-default-coolness right there. But anyone going out of their way to discourage the growth of this sport we love throughout the rest of this country…well, they're just being a dick.

Just accept the fact that Timbers matches will be on ESPN, NBC Sports, and even NBC, from time to time. You don’t have to roll out the red carpet for them, or even make a larger-than-life tifo display specifically because they’re going to air it. But on the flip side, you don’t have to flip off the camera, drop an f-bomb, and point at your “F*ck ESPN” two-stick as your form of protest every time you see the red light above the lens. Just focus on supporting the Timbers with your fellow fans. That’s the main reason you started doing this in the first place, right?

 

This is an opinion piece and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the 107ist or the TA.

FC Dynamo could not sustain the momentum of a strong start, and fell in a hard-fought match to County Cork FC 3-1.

Dynamo got on the board first about 10 minutes into the first half. Off a long throw-in from forward Jon Bial, the ball fell to Nathan Pogue who was able to get free in the box and fired home a shot to make it 1-0.

Throughout most of the first half, the game went back and forth, but County Cork was able to get on the board through a little bit of luck. Off a corner kick around the 35th minute, a County Cork player hit a shot toward the far post. Dynamo midfielder Perry Broderick and goalkeeper Russ Israelov got their signals crossed as to who would play the ball, and it rolled into the net to tie the score at 1 going into the half.

County Cork would take the lead in about 10 minutes into the second half. Dynamo defender Dave Trausneck tried to chest trap a long ball off a bounce, but the awkward angle led to a bad trap, and the ball fell to a hard-charging County Cork forward who sprinted toward goal and beat Israelov at the near post to make it 2-1.

Dynamo had several chances at goal to equalize, but couldn't find the back of the net. They were punished about 10 minutes from time, when a soft clearance and a weak push from their defence allowed a County Cork attacker to stay onside. He collected the ball off an entrance pass and slotted it home to make it 3-1.

Dynamo heads into Derby Week 0-2 on the season and plays fellow Timbers Army FC squad and undefeated FC Portlandia at 6pm at Gladstone High School.

Final score:

FC Dynamo 1 – County Cork FC 3

Scoring Summary:

FC Dynamo Starting XI

GK - Israelov

D - Trausneck, Hardt, McCarthy, McDowell

MF - Reid, Gutierrez, Gomez, Von Rabenau

F - Bial, Pogue

Subs

Broderick, Kelly, Kochendorfer, Nottingham, Rodriguez, Sitz

There was no game played, as Abyssinia did not have enough players to field a team. The forfeit goes on the books as a 1-0 win for FC Portlandia. We face Abyssinia again on November 4th; hopefully they will bring enough people to get a game going!

Final Score:

FC Portlandia 1 - Abyssinia 0 (Forfeit)

The lads and lass of Old Growth FC have begun their next campaign in the fall term with an infusion of new players to combine with many of the core players from the spring. This has led to an unusual phenomenon in TAFC circles known as a deep bench, as OGFC had a total of 25 players available for selection versus one of the new teams joining the Over 40 set, Inter United.

In some unusual scheduling by GPSD, the match on September 15 was staged for 6 PM, hours after the big Portland Timbers match versus their arch nemesis from up the way, the team that shall remain nameless FC. As someone who has played on Timbers Army clubs since the inception of the team, it was simply amazing that the OGFC match was scheduled at a time that didn’t conflict with a Timbers match because that has been an issue in the past. There were a few OGFC players upset they were missing out on post match celebrations, however, but it was a small complaint in the grand scheme as OGFC was basking in the glow of the Timbers draw.

This was the first time the club was playing at the newly renovated Buckman Field in NE Portland, which is a very nice complex of turf fields just south of Benson High School. Unfortunately, some GPS systems and Google Maps confuse this fact as some of the players were sent over the river into NW Portland for directions, but the slightly late arrivals didn’t affect the bench numbers as the whistle blew at 6 PM. Inter United, clad in light blue, tried to attack OGFC from the start, but in the opening minute of the match, OGFC struck the post on the attack sending the bench into a frenzy. Could OGFC stake out to a big lead?

Normalcy took over moments later when Inter United started to pressure the OGFC defense with some quick passing and attempted crosses. With OGFC losing the coin toss, they were defending the east end of the turf putting OGFC goalkeeper Brad Ashton at a disadvantage with the setting sun directly in his eyesight. This situation contributed to at least two of the first half goals by Inter United as Ashton

simply couldn’t see the ball. OGFC tried to pressure things as much as they could, but the passing in the midfield was slightly off kilter as passes just missed cutting players. Perhaps it was nerves, perhaps it was new players and old players trying to gel on the fly, perhaps it was the absence of Rex Forkner, we don’t know, but OGFC fell behind by 4 goals at the half.

The second half saw the teams switch sides, but the sun had set enough that it was no longer a factor, but that didn’t stop OGFC from trying to attack anyway. As the substitution plan brought fresh players off the bench repeatedly, OGFC was starting to find space to work as they were able to generate shots on goal regularly. One player in particular that had a great half for shots was Josh Barrett, who was on the shooting end of two very quality looks. Unfortunately for Barrett, he did his best “insert Timbers player name who is famous for skying the ball” impression and launched them high of goal. The resulting buildup, however, was amazing as OGFC started to look comfortable in the attack. Unfortunately, Inter United added two to their lead off counter attacks as the OGFC defense was unable to get back on a few key runs, but there were some brilliant stops as well, too. Sean Pope had one of the best stops in the second half when Ashton was pulled out of goal, and Pope blocked a couple of attempts with his quick feet and composure. As far as a team effort, the second half was moving things along in the right direction, but as is put to the team from the coaches, there’s always more to be done to improve.

OGFC now sits at 0 wins, 0 draws and 2 losses and plays Fat Tuesday’s FC on September 23 at Vancouver’s Devereaux Field at noon. I’ve had their drinks on my adventures in Vegas, so if the team is anything like that, it could be an adventure for the OGFC folks, but with this group, we’re never boring.

Final Score: OGFC 0, Inter United 6

Goals: None

Assists: None

Cautions: None

Ejections: None

OGFC Starters: G Brad Ashton; D Sean Moran, D Sean Pope, D Jamey Billig, D Fred Henning; M Rustam Kocher, M Jason Hall, M Lee Tyler, M Rich Meneghello; F Todd

Diskin, F Mike Montague.

OGFC Reserves: Dale Montgomery, Dean Vancheresse, Eric Berg, Eric Kilgore, Josh Barrett, Kip Kesgard, Lane Scheideman, Lee Tyler, Lindsey “Hoss” Burdett, Nikki Suydam, Paul Atkinson, Rich Sheals, Steve Kuenzi, Thomas Augst.

OGFC Injured List: Jonathan Drews (knee/ribs): TBD; Michael Blake (ankle): 2 weeks;

Thomas Augst (groin): unavailable for 9/22 match; Jamey Billig (calf strain): TBD.

OGFC Unavailable: Rex Forkner (travel), Dave Petterson (schedule conflict)

Goals in GPSD Fall 2012 (5): Lane Scheideman (1)

Assists in GPSD Spring 2012 (2): Rich Recker (1)

Historical Records:

Goals for OGFC (6): Lane Scheideman (2); Brad Ashton (1), Rich Recker (1),

Sean Moran (1), Sean Pope (1),

Assists for OGFC (3): Eric Berg (1), Rich Recker (1), Todd Diskin (1)