2011 Operation Enduring Streamers versus Toronto FC

 

—by Soda Popinski

It has been a while since my last post as I have been busy with appearances on Shed Culture and intermittently putting out my podcasts. Plus there was this whole thing about Seattle and being the King of Clubs, life is busy for Soda Popinski these days.

Now it is time to turn our attention towards the future and the Red Moose of Ontario. Remember those times when they ruined streamers for the whole league because they threw them at players during the run of play? Talk about stupidity.

This is What NOT to do with streamers

Well I couldn't think of a better team to continue the tradition and have the next installment of operation enduring streamers against.

Operation Enduring Streamers - 2008 - Allison Andrews

What: Buy every white streamer you can find in our beautiful city, when one place is sold out try another. This is our way to stimulate the economy!

Who: Everyone in the stadium can participate. Give them to your friends, buy more for your neighbors, spread the streamer love.

When: At the end of the national anthem let your streamers fly!

Don't: Don't bring any other color streamer, or throw them onto the pitch during the run of play. This is a display for prematch.

Operation Enduring Streamers - 2010 - Allison Andrews

HAHAHAHA...Soda Popinski

We Are Timbers Army, Who Are You?

After a successful opening venture, improving playing fields at Ed Benedict Park in SE Portland, Operation Pitch Invasion tackled its second project last Saturday. OPI teamed up with AC Portland, Depave and the107 Independent Supporters Trust to begin removing a 4,000 sq ft blacktop surface at James John Elementary School in North Portland. The ultimate goal is to install a mini soccer pitch, among new greenspace that will include trees and a grass berm-amphitheater.

Photo by Shawn Levy

About 60 volunteers from 107ist made it to St Johns on a sunny morning to join the fun; and by fun I mean swinging picks and sledgehammers, using prybars, and hauling chunks of asphalt away. These chunks have the charming euphemism "brownie", but I don't recommend trying to eat one (nor do I recommend dropping one on your finger, as I did roughly five minutes after starting work, thereby relegating me to clipboard duty for the rest of the day. Ow. So it goes.).

Photo by Shawn Levy

OPI wants to extend a huge thanks to all the volunteers who helped out, and to encourage everyone to sign up for next weekend, when we'll finish the job at James John.

Photo courtesy of Depave

—by Chris Rifer

The Timbers got back to their struggling ways on Saturday, as they again snatched defeat from the jaws of a positive result in Columbus, falling 1-0 to the Crew on a sticky evening in central Ohio.

As is not uncommon, the Timbers established themselves well in the first half hour of the match. Portland controlled much of the possession and seemingly found opportunities at will. Portland’s passing was crisp, and the Timbers’ midfield dominated the Crew.

Opportunities don’t win matches by themselves, however, and the Timbers couldn’t turn their opportunities into goals. A Lovel Palmer strike from distance was stopped by Crew keeper Andy Gruenebaum. A Jack Jewsbury shot sailed off target. A Darlington Nagbe go, set up by a dazzling run, was pulled wide.

Even if the offense couldn’t put a number on the scoreboard, in the first half the Timbers defense was ready to answer the few questions that Columbus asked of them. Eric Brunner and company held Columbus at bay, maintaining their shape much better than the previous several weeks and crisply clearing away any crosses that the Crew sent into the box.

The Timbers offense would go silent in the second half, however, as an early Jewsbury strike from distance would be virtually the only serious threat of the stanza. Instead it was the Crew that would dominate. The Timbers midfield that had controlled the first half hour suddenly couldn’t keep possession, and when they did they couldn’t take it anywhere.

Meanwhile, the Timbers defense found itself under siege. For a split second it appeared as though the Crew had broken thorough, as Chad Marshall bowled over Brunner to get a nod to a Columbus corner, only to have Darlington Nagbe volley it off the line. The ball was perilously close to breaking the plane of the goal, but the linesman and referee signaled to play on.

The Crew would continue to apply pressure, and their efforts would pay off in the 79^th minute. After Robbie Rodgers shed two Timbers defenders to send a cross to the far post the ball would pinball through the box before finding Eddie Gaven who would softly volley it past Futty for the winner.

As we have frequently seen, after conceding the goal Portland retreated into its shell. Absent was any sense of urgency or desperation. Instead, Portland looked a side that was exhausted and defeated. Probably because they were.

Match Observations

• There were some moral victories out there, but at this point in the season those are worth the same in the team’s mentality as they are on the table. Nothing. Yes, there were some very positive moments from the wide midfielders. Yes, Lovel Palmer showed that he has the potential to be a good upgrade at right back. Still, a tough team would have earned a result out of that match. Right now, plain and simple, the Timbers aren’t a tough team.
• The forward situation is interesting. Neither Jorge Perlaza nor Kenny Cooper were effective on Saturday, but I think Perlaza brings a necessary element in the 4-5-1 that Cooper doesn’t—his pace. With Perlaza in the game it seemed that the Columbus defense and even midfield had to hold back a bit more, otherwise they would get burned by one of Jorge’s signature runs. When Cooper came into the game, it seemed that the Crew were able to pin their ears back with impunity because he doesn’t provide that same threat. On the whole, I am bit less curious about the 4-5-1 than I was before the match. I’m not saying it’s time to scrap it, but absent success over the next few matches it may be time to reinsert Kenny Cooper into the lineup in a 4-4-2. I am bracing myself for the comments on this that will be forthcoming.

Timbers Grades

Troy Perkins, 5 Didn’t have a ton of work to do, and can’t be faulted for such a strange goal. When he was called on he generally did well, but can’t really get a very positive grade for such a rather average outing.

Rodney Wallace, 5.5 Rod actually had a nice game at left back. Had a few timely tackles and was one of the players that acted as a catalyst when things were going well up front. Had a couple plays where he misplayed a ball forward or a pass back, but I think that comes with the territory with Rod. Overall a positive game for him.

Futty, 5 Can’t really be faulted for the goal, and didn’t have a poor game in back. Still, he had a couple nervous moments. He is very much Robin to Brunner’s Batman. I like the beard, though.

Eric Brunner, 6 I thought Brunner was just a hair short of fantastic. He came through with multiple saving tackles and always seemed to be in the right spot. Can’t be faulted for the Chad Marshall almost-goal, as he was blatantly fouled by Marshall coming way over the top. Had the referee signaled for a goal, that would have been the topic of discussion.

Lovel Palmer, 5 Had a couple sloppy moments in back, but considering he only had one training session with the team, it was a good debut. I do like how he fancies himself from distance.

James Marcelin, 4 Ranged between invisible and out of control. Gets the most responsibility for the concession, as when the ball falls to you like that in the box, you have to be able to clear it out. I’m not giving him the hook just yet, but if he is going to keep another striker off the pitch, he is going to have to justify it a bit better than he did on Saturday.

Darlington Nagbe, 5.5 Looked electric at times with the ball at his feet. I agree with Robbie Earle that he looks much healthier than he did a month ago. Still, he had two golden opportunities that he pulled wide.

Diego Chara, 5.5 A few people have alluded to this, but one of the most interesting developments has been the chemistry between Chara and Nagbe going forward. I also still love how Diego sidles up to opponents on defense. Or maybe I just like the word “sidle”. I don’t know.

Jack Jewsbury, 4.5 One of Jack’s poorer performances. Put one shot on frame that could have turned this frown upside down, but other than that had a rough day in the midfield as he got knocked around a lot and wasn’t especially effective.

Kalif Alhassan, 5.5 I think Kalif and Palmer are going to get along just fine. Alhassan looks to be getting his groove back a little bit.

Jorge Perlaza, 4 Needed to be a little bit more aggressive, but to be honest, against a good defensive team like Columbus he is going to have his work cut out for him all alone up front.

Kenny Cooper, 4 At one point John Strong said something to the effect of “Kenny Cooper would have had a free run if he hadn’t fallen down at the top of the box.” That, friends, is the season in a nutshell. That said, I wouldn’t be shocked to see him reinserted into the lineup in the next few weeks. Look, if there is one thing you can say about strikers it is that they are streaky. Kenny is in a really bad stretch of form right now, but there is an argument to be made that he just needs to play his way out of it. Again, don’t hate me for saying that.

Sal Zizzo, 5.5 His form over the last few weeks makes it awfully hard to keep him off the pitch. The only problem is that the guys in front of him are also in good form. Sallie was really the only guy in the last 15 minutes that looked like he had the legs and the will to try to find an equalizer. Maybe that’s his role – the closer. Sallie the Closer. It may not be that accurate, but it has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?

Peter Lowry, 4.5 I think everybody is sort of confused about what his role is on this team. He is a nice enough player – as he showed against West Brom – but I just don’t know where to put him.

Onward, Rose City!

—by Chris Rifer

Oh, hey there. How’s it going? Yeah, long time no see.

Sorry for the absence last week, I was in the mountains of Idaho attending a buddy’s bachelor party and wedding. Accordingly, I wasn’t able to tune into the game, which hampered my ability to write about it. I should give a shout out to my buddy Mike, however, whose text updates kept me well informed of the progress of the match and off the dance floor for a period of the reception. Anyway, on to business.

Fire Observations

• My thinking on Troy Perkins has gone back and forth a little bit this season. There is no question that the trade to get him was a good deal. As much of a Cronin fan as I have been, Troy Perkins is a definite upgrade at keeper. Saturday night he was absolutely fantastic. Not only was he well-deserving of his second Save of the Week award in a row, but he logged his best complete effort of the season, earning the Timbers their win on the road. The challenge for the Timbers is that when he isn’t out-of-his-head good, the defense hasn’t been stout enough to pick up the slack. Even on Saturday, he bailed out a fair few defensive mistakes. You can’t expect you keeper to save your bacon every week, and the fear here is that matches like Saturday in Chicago are more the exception than the rule.
• Jorge Perlaza looks much more comfortable up front as – effectively – a lone striker. Between the Seattle and Chicago matches, he has been as effective up front as he has during any other two week stretch of the season. He still needs to put more of his efforts on goal, as he only has seven shots on frame, but notably four of those have hit the net.
• I’ve heard a couple people sort of question Jack Jewsbury’s inclusion on the All-Star team because a lot of his statistical production comes off of set pieces. I only have two words to respond to that: David Beckham. Without Beckham’s prowess on set pieces he never would have been the global icon that he was in the early part of the decade. Sure, he still would have been a starter on the English national team, and probably even one of their better players. But what made him special was his free kick magic. Now, Jewsbury is no David Beckham, but the point remains. Free kicks are part of the game, and an important part of the game at that. Without Jack the Timbers likely don’t tie New England, Seattle or New York, nor do they beat FC Dallas, Philadelphia or Columbus. If somebody can show me another player in the league that is responsible for that many points and not on the All-Star team, I will stand corrected. Hint: It's not gonna happen.

West Brom Observations

• I agree with John Spencer’s assessment of Darlington Nagbe’s play. He was fantastic. One major difference – he was roaming the central part of the field a lot more. I think that suits his ability to break opponents down on the dribble – to steal a basketball term – a bit more and find seams between the central mids and backs. I have liked what I have seen from the 4-5-1, but if things don’t work out I would be interested to see the team go to a 4-4-1-1 with Zizzo coming on at right wing, Kalif on the left, Perlaza up top, and Darlington withdrawn.
• I’m pretty sure Jonas Olsson is the reincarnation of Ichabod Crane.
• Boy, Eric Brunner is important to the Timbers defense. Portland’s defense was pretty good in the first half, with Brunner as its anchor. Once he left, well, we all saw what happened.
• For the first hour or so Freddie Braun showed me again why I stubbornly think he has an MLS future. It may not be this year, but I think the kid has the talent to contribute at this level. After about the hour mark, though, it was clear that he was not used to playing at that pace. I’m not sure I recall ever having seen many players as tired as he was at the end of 90 minutes.
• I had a similar reaction to the play of Chris Taylor. He hasn’t been as interesting in his few appearances as Braun, but I thought he had a respectable showing in the first hour or so of the match. If I had to choose between the two I would go with Braun, but I think Taylor may be worth the roster spot for another year to see if he can develop a bit more.

Personnel Observations

• In case you haven’t heard, on Thursday the Timbers sent Adam Moffat and a rumored $150,000 in allocation money to Houston Dynamo in exchange for defensive players Lovel Palmer and former Timber Mike Chabala. Palmer seems slated to step in fairly quickly at right back, while Chabala will probably back up, and potentially challenge, Rod Wallace at left back.
• The long and short of the deal is that it seems to be a slam dunk. Palmer will likely be better than anything that the Timbers have put at right back to date, and Chabala provides depth at the Timbers’ thinnest position. Considering Merritt and Gavin have said that another major international signing this year is unlikely, losing the allocation money is of marginal immediate significance. Adam Moffat, in spite of being an all around good guy and a decent player, had essentially fallen to fourth on the depth chart at center mid behind Chara, Jack, and Marcelin. So, the Timbers got a likely starting right back and a backup left back for their #4 center mid and change. Yes, please.
• Merritt has suggested that perhaps the dealmaking isn’t done yet. By filling needs with this early deal, I think the Timbers have given themselves a lot of options going forward. The biggest trade piece, even if some insist he isn’t on the block, is obviously Kenny Cooper. The Timbers do have a couple other pieces that they can dangle as well, however. With the addition of Palmer, it seems that either Steve Purdy or Jeremy Hall are expendable – perhaps Hall more so because of Purdy’s ability to shift to the left or the center in a pinch.
• The priorities at this point have to be finding more attacking talent and perhaps another piece to plug in at center back. To be honest, though, I’m not desperate for either. I’m kind of curious to see how Perlaza can do up front by himself, and I’m not in love with the Timbers’ ability to find something that will improve the Brunner-Futty combo in back on the trade market. If somebody like the Revs or Fire offered me a first round SuperDraft pick or a hefty sum of allocation for Coop, I would have to think long and hard about that.
• Props to Chicago Dan for alerting me to this, but one of the first people to break the trade news on Wednesday night was Ian Joy. I heart him.
• Oh, and to Adam Moffat, thanks for your service as a Timber. Hopefully one day we’ll meet again on the bonnie, bonnie banks of Loch Lomond. Or maybe October 14^th when you are on the ticket for the Timbers-Dynamo match. Awkward.

Calling all soccer heads, stat nerds, and Anglophiles: the English Premier League season begins in just over three weeks. This makes you as happy as Bolo Zenden during a 3-0 win at Stamford Bridge, and it also means you have three weeks to build your fantasy team.

If you're like me, by now your MLS fantasy team is probably a shambles; if you've even bothered to keep up with it, you're probably still a hundred points or more behind that bastard Camm (for example). So turn your short attention span toward the land of Excalibur and fish'n'chips, and get your Fantasy Premier League on!

Once you've created a team, you'll need a league to join. mao and Nevets have both got leagues going (mao's is a classic table and Nevets' is a head-to-head style, both of which are very much fun to play), and now there's a Timbers Army league too. If you've played in the SCUSA Free League during the past few years, you'll already be enrolled in the TA league (I've maintained the SCUSA league and decided to change the name this season to accurately reflect the fact that ULTRAS NO SCUSA BRO! Or something like that.).

Create your team here: http://fantasy.premierleague.com; then use the code 58432-22317 to join the Timbers Army EPL fantasy league; and follow the links above to join mao's and Nevets' leagues (they're all on the same site and it's easy to enter your team in multiple leagues).

—by Andrew Brawley

Columbus, Ohio. I’ve never been there. In fact, I don’t know many people who have. Even friends of mine from Cleveland and Cincinnati don’t have much of an opinion on it. It’s just one of those anonymous towns. I think I know more about the town of Sandusky, and that’s only because the film Tommy Boy took place there.

However, we Timbers fans are lucky to have quite the resource for this week’s away game travel guide in Timbers defender Eric Brunner. Not only was he born in Ohio (Dublin, Ohio to be exact), but he played his last two seasons for this week’s villains, the Columbus Crew.

So without further ado, take it away Mr. Brunner!

Short North has a bunch of boutiques and restaurants.  Also a lot of bars around the area.  Bodega's has a bunch of beers on tap and bottle. Most eclectic for beers.

My favorite restaurant is Marcella's in the Short North.  It's Italian and it has the best calamari I've ever had.  I always order it when I go.  Also they have amazing meatballs.

Not too far from the Short North is the Park Street district.  There is a lineup of bars ranging from a Mexican Style Cantina, called Park Street Cantina, a tequila bar type thing.  Great for the outdoor patio.  Also there is a place called Patio, which is right down from it.  There is a bar for whatever you're looking for. Gaswerks is in the same area, and it has pool tables and good deals on drinks.

If you enjoy a good steak, there is a place called Hyde Park, and it has unreal steak.  Great wine selection too.

A little further on the south side of the city is German Village and Brewery District.  This is where I lived for two years and there are some pubs around there.  A cool little place is called Club 185, and they have the best 'pigs in a blanket' that they hand-make to order.

If you want to check out shopping or anything there are two big malls.  The first is Easton, which is out by the airport.  They have everything you can imagine in there.  It's a Town Centre kind of mall, where shops are outside and inside.  It's great to walk around outside if it's nice.

If there is a chance to grab lunch, check out the North Market.  It's right in the park street area and it has shops that sell all sorts of foods.

And if you want to check out the Ohio State campus, there are plenty of bars to take in. South Gateway is home to a few of those places. McFadden's, Ugly Tuna Saloona, Mad Mex and there is new bar that was just opened there.  I will say Ugly Tuna has a very addicting game, where it's a buck or two to play, but it's filled with live lobsters.  If you catch one, they will cook it for you on the spot for free.  I have gotten two in one night, so that's a record to try and beat.

Phase One of the AC Portland project kicked off Friday morning with a breakfast ceremony at the St. Johns Pub and a brief excursion to James John Elementary School, where the first Advantage Centers site will begin taking shape this weekend.

Work parties will be held at the North Portland school over the next three Saturdays, with volunteers from the Timbers Army and Operation Pitch Invasion helping to put a small, artificial turf soccer field in the midst of the expansion blacktop now in place at James John.

The field will become the hub of the AC Portland program at the school, which includes fundamental soccer, literacy instruction, mentoring, coaching and nutritional information.

Friday’s breakfast concluded a first-wave fund-raising campaign that should enable AC Portland centers to open in at least six Portland-area schools stretching from St. Johns to Beaverton.

Friday’s breakfast concluded a first-wave fund-raising campaign that should enable AC Portland centers to open in at least six Portland-area schools stretching from St. Johns to Beaverton.

As a founding partner, the Timbers Army has pledged to contribute at least 1,000 volunteer hours to the ACs;  other founding partners include Adidas, the Portland Timbers, the Oregon Sports Authority and the United States Soccer Federation.

About 15 TA volunteers spent late Thursday and early Friday converting the pub and the playground into a temporary Timbers Wonderland.

107ist President Dave Hoyt and capo and TA pioneer Shawn Levy were among the speakers at the event, while Timbers play-by-play man John Strong served as master of ceremonies.

Portland Mayor Sam Adams pledged a civic contribution of $10,000 to program, while Bill Heuffner, director of development and professional relations for Jeld-Wen, issued a challenge pledge that could raise up to $18,647 in a single night.

L-R: Patrik Nilsson - adidas; Mike Golub - Portland Timbers, Kevin Palau - Season Of Service, Joanne Couchman - 107ist/Timbers Army

Across the street, golden pick axes were distributed to a select group of VIPs that included 107ist Board member and James John neighbor Joanne Couchman.

A fresh supply of soccer balls was distributed, courtesy of Adidas,  and quickly found a collection of young soccer players who picked up a few tips on the fine art of digging deep from ex-Timber midfielder Tony McManus.

To volunteer for one of the three Saturday morning construction parties, contact Board Secretary Roger Anthony.  More info on the work parties can be found here.

(All photos taken by Scott Hartley)

The first of three work parties at James John Elementary School will be held this weekend starting at 10 a.m. Saturday.

All three events, which will transform part of the school's blacktop playground into a small soccer field as part of the AC Portland program, will be held on Saturdays beginning at 10 a.m.  Equipment and supplies will be provided at each event.  You will need to bring your own work gloves. 

Here is a breakdown of the work schedule:

July 16 (10 a.m.):  Cutting asphalt in preparation for removal.  We are seeking six to 10 TA volunteers.  Lunch will be provided by the St. Johns Farmers market, and participants receive a voucher redeemable at a North Portland market.

July 23 (10 a.m.):  Removal and disposal of asphalt.  We will need 50 or so volunteers for this.  There is no lunch provided but there will be a post-work viewing party at the St. Johns Pub just across the street when the Timbers play Columbus at 5 p.m.

July 30 (10 a.m.):  Finishing touches on the field and playground.  Need 40-50 volunteers.  Picnic lunches provided.  For this date, we will need rakes, wheelbarrows and other yard-cleaning tools.

To volunteer, contact 107ist Board Secretary Roger Anthony;  please include email and telephone contact information.

James John Elementary is located at 7439 N. Charleston Ave.;  the St. Johns Pub is located at 8203 N. Ivanhoe St.

You marveled at the display before the match, you've shared the photos and videos of it with your family and friends, and it's made you proud to be a supporter of the Portland Timbers, a.k.a. the King of Clubs. Now you may be wondering how something like this gets done, and how you can get involved with producing future tifo displays.

Photo by Steven Lenhart

Timbers Army tifo has always been conceived, funded and produced independently of the team; we use the sweat equity and creativity of our members, who do this out of love for the club and nothing more. For the two weekends prior to the ill-fated Cascadia Cup match, dozens of Timbers Army members gathered in super-secret locations in and around Portland, putting their time and energy into helping create our latest display of love and support for our boys in green.

It takes an Army to paint something that big.

If you want to help with the next display, there are a couple of ways you can do so:

1) Donate directly to the tifo fund: producing a display of this size is a costly venture, and elbow grease alone doesn't cover the costs of fabric, paint, and other materials.

2) Join 107ist: not only will your membership dues add revenue to the tifo fund, but as a member you'll be able to volunteer to help paint and construct future displays.