A Battle Between Youth Development & High School Soccer

I just yesterday read an article on OreonLive reviewing the upcoming season of Boys High School soccer here in Oregon, and how it will be affected by losing players to the Timbers academy.  If you want to find the article, click here, but in sum it breaks down how HS soccer programes are losing players to the u-16 and u-18 Timbers academy teams.  The Oregonian article claims 49 players will train with these Timber academy teams, and have to forgo playing the High School season as part of the commitment to the academy.  Here is where the discussion lays, some coaches are losing some of their better players and it will shake the balance of power for different teams.  Other coaches are un-phased by the academy and conclude the level of High School soccer will be unaffected.
             Now enough summarizing, its time to get bloggy and weigh in.  My immediate reaction to reading this article was that the Academy commitment is a good thing.  People often ask me why it is that the USA have a hard time competing on the international level.  They ask me why are we behind the top countries worldwide like your Brasils, Spains, Englands, etc.  Perhaps the most common answer I give is that it starts with, and is a problem with our youth system.  The way we handle youth talent and development of players from say 12 to 18 in the U.S is archaic compared to countries word wide. In most other countries, in most cases, if you havent been identified and scouted as a youth you are not going to be able to make it as a player.  Clubs have intricate youth systems set up, with a framework of coaches and facilities that identify and nurture young talent.  Really, until a couple years ago the United States hasn't had anything like this, outside of the National Team u-16's and u-18's taking a handful of players out to Florida.

(Top) Ajax Amsterdam, one of the top youth
clubs in Europe vs. (Bottom) Unkonwn, United States (Google Images)

            Some may argue that yes, the competitive Club soccer in America turns out some good players and send a lot of players to go play in college.  The Eastside club team I played for sent every single player to go play in a College Program, a credit to its development, coaching, and quality.  But thats a rarity.   Most kids who play for a club, are limited to kids who can pay for it, or have parents who can put up driving to Barlow for 45 minutes when its raining sideways every week.  This weeds out some of the talented players, hidden from say a Lake Oswego club team, that could easily be identified else where in the world regardless of class/status/income.  Our club soccer is so far from any form of youth team set up in say England, that finding a comparison between the two is as rare as Clint Dempsey smiling.
            The Timbers academy and it's players missing High School soccer is a step in the right direction for youth development.  Anything associated with a professional club like the Timbers is bound to have an infrastructure, a network of coaching and competition that will only benefit these players.  Yes, they may be the better players on their HS team, but anyone who honestly played High School ball will know that if a team has a handful of quality club players, the level slips of and plateaus behind them fr the rest of the team.  Having players identified by the liks of the Timbers and miss HS ball doesn't affect the integrity of the 4A 5A 6A level, rather it enhances the quality of the sport in America big picture.  Dont get me wrong, I still revel in my High School soccer days just like any good Friday Night Lights character.  Nothing like getting stuck-in in a cross town Portland Interscholastic League rivalry and playing with your schools name on the jersey with girls you have crushes on in the stand watching.  But I also remember continually beating Marshall and Roosevelt 8-0 and seeing High School as a time to relax and blow off some steam from Club ball.  The latter scenario,  for the handful of quality players, isnt whats going to catch up the United States to a high level in international soccer.  While the Timbers academy isnt the savior for the future of American soccer, having a nationwide trend in this fashion would be a huge step in the right direction, and who knows, maybe opposed to seeing the USA lose to Jamiaca 2-1 we could one day see a group of home-grown talent playing for our country that started at the youth level.

Any Point is a Good Point. Timbers 1 - Dallas 1. (Review)

Sometimes I have to remind myself that I come to Timbers games to have fun.  For the first 79 minutes of the home game against Dallas, I was constantly reminding myself this.  The Timbers were saved an embarrassing home defeat to a ten man Dallas side by a Jack Jewsbury strike about 10 minutes from full time.  Jewsbury hit home from outside the 18-yard box after a flurry of activity in the Dallas box for the Portland equalizer.  Earlier in the match, in which the first half finished 0-0 with very, (very) few chances, Scott Sealey put the away team ahead in the '51 minute of the 2nd half.  A probing pass unlocked winger Breck Shea behind the Portland defense, who crossed the ball first time into an on-rushing Sealey to finish past goalie Troy Perkins.  Effectively the Portland defense was dismantled by two quality passes and a finish.  About a minute after the goal however Dallas defender Zach Loyd saw a red card after receiving his second yellow.  Loyd, an outside back had been battling with Portland winger Franck Songo'o, both of whom received yellows earlier in the game.  This was the point in the game where I was sitting at the top of my section sweating all through my Timbers jersey thinking the red card would be a momentum change for Portland.   Guzzling down water through a refilled beer cup I assumed Portland would seize this opportunity to take control of the game and make Dallas pay.  Perhaps you can tell by my tone that this was not the case...really at times it became difficult to tell which team exactly had a man sent off and was down to 10 players.   

The captain Jewsbury played one of his better games of the season.  He was mobile, taking good touches and spraying the ball around for the Timbers in the midfield.  When it really looked like Portland weren’t going to take advantage of having the extra man, Jewsbury was the one who came up big in the 79' with scoring the goal.  Youngster Brent Richards had another good game and validated his continuing run of being selected as a starter.  Next time Richards plays, its worth pointing out how many damn headers he wins.  Try and count if you can see how many he does because I did, and short of me missing one with my hands buried in my hands before the goal, he won them all, the kid can leap.  Defender Hanyer Mosquera played well, a presence in the back partnered with David Horst, and as always you can never question Diego Chara's work rate.  

Those were the good points.  Kris Boyd looked abysmal, and didn’t even touch the ball in the first 15 minutes; in sum he looked like a Scotsman in 90+ degree weather.  Stephen Smith also fit this description of the struggling Scot in heat, and he was continually exposed for his lack of pace down the wing.   Nagbe, who had one good shot on goal, was otherwise missing in the game and had little effect.  Songo'o was perhaps one of the more frustrating for the Timbers however.  Yes, he had the ball a lot and was taking players on, but if you break down his level of service to how much he was hanging on to the ball, his production was horrible.  Songo'o would take 6 or 7 touches where other players were taking 1 or 2.   His decision making was a little questionable as well, making some cynical and unnecessary fouls and it was probably just as possible him getting sent off as his man marking partner  Loyd was.  I was surprised Songo'o stayed on the field as long as he did.

While the Timbers didn’t have their worst game of the season (by far) really only half of the team showed up and the whole teams play suffered because of it.  Dallas play maker David Ferreira, albeit an unpopular player for his diving and antics, looked like the most skilled player on the field.  When seeing a player like Ferreira on the other team it shows how much the Timbers lack a creative midfielder or player for that matter to feed the forwards.   With the way the Timbers played the majority of this game they can consider themselves a little lucky to get a point.  However any point is a good point for the Timbers at this stage in the season.

Timbers: "The Lost Boys" and The Losing Boys

(Above) Diego Chara has his head in his hands just like all of us

After a Willamette Week article coined the term "The Lost Boys" when referring to the Timbers, I immediately found it quite fitting.  Compare the Timbers this season, dead last place in the Western Conference, still without an away win, conceding 5 goals in two separate games in the span of a week...and to rub salt on every Portland fans wounds, former abismal finishing forward Kenny Cooper cant seem to stop scoring goals for NY Red Bulls.  Now contrast this with last season, a team that was on paper really not any different than the one we have now, for the most part same core group of players (outside of the 1.5 million addition of Boyd and a couple Colombians) and a team that was chasing the last playoff spot...where does the problem between the two seasons lie for the Timbers?  


This is perhaps the hardest question for us to answer.  Bloggers, newspapers, reporters, talking to the guy next to you on TriMet wearing a Timbers t-shirt, all of us can only speculate what is happening behind closed doors at Jeld Wen.   When your not at practice, or in the locker room its sure hard to get a good grasp of whats going on within a team.  It has however become widely known that interim coach Gavin Wilkinson accused players of "quitting" in the Dallas game, and apparently players were called out in the dressing room.  My first thought after watching was that Gavin would be furious after the game.  Having been coached by Gavin during my time playing with Eastside in Portland I can tell you that the New Zealander has a unique skill of verbal abuse, and in so many words, letting a player know when hes having a bad game.  Getting chewed-out however is not the only answer to the Timbers problems and some changes need to be made, certainly for the long term.  I'd say wholesale changes.


I'm the last person to jump the gun and call for heads but the Timbers find themselves in a position where trying the same things, and playing the same players, will not get them any further out of trouble.  An unequivocally supportive Timbers fan base should be starting to feel a little short changed.  Despite there being a unifying feeling when your team is playing like shit and everybody knows they're playing like shit, its still more galvanizing when goals are going in and games are being won.  


While I dont have the answers, even though the last time I got a call from my season ticket rep and TIMBERS flashed across the caller I.D, I was certain they were calling to offer the head coaching position... 
A simple change would be to start trying to include some younger players.  Blooding some of the fringe players on the squad, is a good way to simply get match experience, set themselves up for next season, and really see if a player is down for the cause.  This idea itself is nothing extreme, and as example the player that jumps to mind for me is Freddie Braun.  Braun, a fantastic player during his collegiate career at Louisville and a product of one of the Timbers early PDL U-23 teams, has featured as a substitute coming in on the wings or at right back, but is naturally more of a holding midfielder.  He is the type of player to cover all types of ground on the field and not leave anything in the tank after the game.  Including a player like Freddie could send the message to some players on the team that if you cant do the job with passion and attitude we expect, then we'll bring in somebody who can.  I'm certainly not claiming that Braun is the answer to the Timbers problems, but a change in the line-up, a change of demeanor on the field, and a change of the sheer amount of goals being let in, needs to be addressed somehow.

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Blazers: Joel Freeland & Great Britain Olympics

Previously drafted and recently signed big man Joel Freeland will arguably have one of the biggest games of his career tomorrow night.  Team Great Britain take on the USA in Manchester, England in a friendly to help prep both teams for their olympic campaigns, which start July 27th.   While theres been a particular SportsCenter induced buzz around team USA, comparing them to the dream team of 1992 and all, theres a specific Blazers angle here tomorrow night.   Portland, who drafted Freeland in '06, have recently decided to bring him over from Spain where hes played for the last 6 seasons.  He reportedly signed a 3 year 9 million dollar deal with the Blazers after agreeing to leave Unicaja Malaga, where he averaged 13pts and 7reb last season.   While YouTube videos of Freeland playing certainly exist, albeit with questionable soundtracks, the game tomorrow will be a good opportunity for Blazers fans to see what he is about.   If youre curius to see a little more about Freeland, the game should be on at 12:00 noon in Pacific Time (hopefully I did my time difference right) and youll have to try and stream it on your computer unless you have a dream cable package.  In case you miss the game though, this video here is worth checking out courtesy of BBC Sport.   While its only an interview, the video shows a glimpse of Freeland who comes across level headed, humble and ready for the NBA.   His Olympic performances will be a good indicator of where the 25 year old big man is at, lets not forget we wont know how he translates into the Blazers set-up until after training camp.

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Portland Timbers v Chivas USA Preveiw

The Timbers have a quick turn around after being defeated by the L.A Galaxy at home 5-3 just a few days ago.   This time they travel down to L.A to take on the team from the other side of the city, Chivas USA.  Chivas themselves are coming off a 4-1 defeat to Seattle in the U.S Open Cup and with that blip on the radar they'll be looking to get back to league play.  Currently they sit only one two spaces and one point above the Timbers in the West...unfortunately Portland do sit in dead last.  In their last two games these teams have combined to allow 9 goals, but I wouldn't expect as many fireworks.  The last time these two met Chivas won 2-1 and it came around the stretch when Portland was making fun out of letting in late goals that would cost them the game.    Much has changed in the meantime for the Timbers but similar to Portland, Chivas USA have struggled to find their identity, and wins.   Chivas forward Juan Pablo Angel is a player I have always liked, but he hasn't performed particularly well this season with only 3 goals on the campaign so far.  Angel is a player similar to Boyd in the sense they both share that poachers instinct.  He's the type that could be quiet all game and then pop up and score a goal out of nothing.  While Juan Pablo is certainly getting up there in years, you can see glimpses of the player he was when he used to do a job for Aston Villa in the premier league (44 goals in 173 games for Villa).  All being said Angel has only started 6 games so its still in doubt whether he will get the nod or not.   Also of note, former Sounders outside back James Riley has adjusted well since being moved to L.A and has started in a team high 17 games.

Even with their poor away record, who am I kidding, their awful away record, the Timbers shouldn't over-rate Chivas at home.   Especially in the MLS where really anybody can beat anybody on any given day.  The short space in between games wont necessarily be harmful to Portland either.  The quicker they get back on the field the quicker they can move beyond all the talk surrounding the "8 goal game" against the Galaxy.  While the Timbers have plenty of questions to answer, captain Jack Jewsbury looked re-invigorated after being returned to his favored center midfield role.   Darlington Nagbe, despite working hard, struggled to find much room in the Galaxy game but it's a mistake to overlook his obvious technical skill and ability to make something happen on a dime.   Portland Forward Kris Boyd got on the score sheet twice against L.A and should be expected to start tomorrow.  Hopefully Boyd can capitalize on adding some more goals to his name, and get on the type form Timbers fans have been yearning for.  Confidence plays a huge part of scoring goals for any forward.  Kick off is slated for 1:00 P.M at the Home Depot Center in Los Angeles and you can catch the game on Root Sports.

Player to Watch: David Horst
While Kris Boyd is the obvious choice here, after the Galaxy game I wanted to pick a defender to watch for some improvement.  Coach Gavin Wilkinson, a former center back himself, will have put an emphasis on firming up a back line that leaked 5 goals at Jeld Wen last game.  If Wilkinson sticks with defender David Horst look for him to  have a "tackle-with-his-head" type performance, throwing his sizable 6-4 body all around the field.  Horst has put in solid performances since returning from some fairly serious hip problems.  His desire to chase down a tackle, or put himself in front of a shot could set the tone for the Timbers from the back line up to the rest of the team.

NBA Summer League: POR 85 - NOLA 82

(From Left to Right) Damian Lillard, Meyers Leonard, and Nolan Smith 

It was a tale of two halves for the Trail Blazers summer league team in Las Vegas last night.  Battling a New Orleans Hornets squad led by rookie Austin Rivers of Duke at point guard, the Blazers found themselves down by nearly 30 points at the end of the second quarter.  Call it a quick learning curve however as they rallied around 6th overall Draft pick Damian Lillard (25pts 4ast 4reb) to cut the Hornets huge lead.  Lillard hit a step back three pointer over Rivers with 24 seconds left in the game and despite missing both his free throws in the next possession, Portland hung on for an eventual 85-82 victory.  Two Blazers recorded double doubles, Luke Babbitt (19pts 10reb) and the other was rookie Meyers Leonard (14pts 11reb).  Leonard received the praise of announcer Chris Webber and despite his limited touches was able to put up good numbers.

While its difficult to break down the summer league games without over analyzing them, there was plenty of positives and negatives.  The first half was nearly comical in how dis-organized the Blazers looked.  Babbitt showed very little hesitation in hoisting up three's (he shot 4-9) and Will Barton out of Memphis looked as skinny as he sounded at 175 lbs.   Meyers Leonard however is a physical specimen on the court.  His 7-1 245 lb frame showed athleticism but at times, he committed some silly fouls and displayed some awkward play.  The real high light was Damian Lillard.   I knew he had the ability to penetrate but was curious to see how his finishing at the rim translated outside of the Big Sky Conference.   So far he proved his ability to score the ball.   One sequence sticks out in which he hit a corner three followed by a finish and a foul at the hoop.  He produced a few more "and 1's" and showed an extremely high energy level.  Lillard was the player of the game without a doubt.  All being said its important to note that the summer league is a long way away from an actual NBA game.    However the Blazers walked away with a win, shook off some nerves, got some pro debuts out of the way and got solid performances from both their lottery picks.

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Timbers 3 - Galaxy 5

A bad thing for the Timbers but not such a bad thing for the MLS.


The Timbers fell to L.A on national television, in front a rocking Jeld Wen field.  Struggling Timbers Forward Kris Boyd opened the scoring early before the PDX Sports Report player to watch, David Beckham, answered with two spectacular goals.  After L.A took the lead through Beckham's second, it sparked a flurry of finishes.  Landon Donovan scored a penalty and Irish international Robbie Keane had a tap-in two minutes later.  That wasn't all for goals however.  Newly acquired Timbers outside back Kosuke Kimura was in the right place at the right time to capitalize when former USL Timbers goalie Josh Saunders bobbled a Boyd free kick, making the score 4-2.   Robbie Keane scored his second of the game in the 64' and Boyd scored his brace in the 70' (making the score 5-3 at this point, in case you had as hard of a time as I did keeping track of all 8 goals).  Despite Boyd's second, a well struck free kick, it accomplished little besides making the last 20 minutes quite entertaining, teasing all viewers with the chance of more goals.

(Above) Beckham celebrating his first goal, with Timbers fans offering
savory comments in the background

Anytime 5 goals go in at home is a tough pill to swallow for Portland fans.  Nonetheless this 8 goal game was a thriller for any neutral watching.   Broadcast to a national audience, it is games like these that lift the reputation of the MLS, both nationally and globally.  Jeld Wen was as we Portlanders have to come to expect it.  While we have become accustomed to a sell out crowd, overflowing with noise and expression, imagine if this was one of the first MLS games you had watched, it may have changed some opinions on what this league is like.  Regardless of the Timbers becoming ambassadors for the league, after losing to L.A it's hard to stress the greater good factor.   However when you can hear Portland fans booing the Galaxy roster being announced over the pre game introduction, it is quite a nice feeling.

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