In their continuing efforts to include and provide information to the total Georgia soccer community on all aspects of soccer, including college soccer, Georgia Soccer has linked all the college soccer schedules in their web site - www.gasoccer.org
These college schedules can now be found at www.gasoccer.org, under the ‘STATE INFO’ by clicking on the ‘COLLEGE SOCCER LISTINGS’ drop-down menu item.
As they progress into more website enhancement, Georgia Soccer will continue to add more info and interactivity to their site.
In addition, Georgia Soccer plans to add the following, based on recent feedback they received from college soccer coaches throughout the state:
1. College soccer article of the month - short articles about the college recruiting process, what college coaches look for, what the life/schedule of a college soccer player is like, and more information that would be helpful to young players preparing for college.
2. National ‘D’ coaching courses exclusively for current college players at a few Georgia area college campuses exclusively for college soccer players. These courses will be instructed by Jacob Daniel, the State DOC (Director of Coaching), and will be offered for the student athletes at an incredible discount of $25 per player. These courses normally run $125 for members of GA Soccer and $500 for non-members of GA Soccer.
3. Regional Coaching Symposiums. Georgia Soccer is planning 3-4 regional coaching symposiums for our youth coaches to be held at area Georgia college facilities. These symposiums will offer coaching topics not covered by the standard coaching courses. Plans are for these to be one-day events on Sundays starting in spring/summer of 2010. College team players may be used for the clinics or also youth players from the local clubs or a combination of both. Selected sites will provide the ideal geographic coverage of the state.
These college schedules can now be found at www.gasoccer.org, under the ‘STATE INFO’ by clicking on the ‘COLLEGE SOCCER LISTINGS’ drop-down menu item.
As they progress into more website enhancement, Georgia Soccer will continue to add more info and interactivity to their site.
In addition, Georgia Soccer plans to add the following, based on recent feedback they received from college soccer coaches throughout the state:
1. College soccer article of the month - short articles about the college recruiting process, what college coaches look for, what the life/schedule of a college soccer player is like, and more information that would be helpful to young players preparing for college.
2. National ‘D’ coaching courses exclusively for current college players at a few Georgia area college campuses exclusively for college soccer players. These courses will be instructed by Jacob Daniel, the State DOC (Director of Coaching), and will be offered for the student athletes at an incredible discount of $25 per player. These courses normally run $125 for members of GA Soccer and $500 for non-members of GA Soccer.
3. Regional Coaching Symposiums. Georgia Soccer is planning 3-4 regional coaching symposiums for our youth coaches to be held at area Georgia college facilities. These symposiums will offer coaching topics not covered by the standard coaching courses. Plans are for these to be one-day events on Sundays starting in spring/summer of 2010. College team players may be used for the clinics or also youth players from the local clubs or a combination of both. Selected sites will provide the ideal geographic coverage of the state.
Tom DickinsonThe goal: to eat a pie at all 92 grounds in English league football. The results: in some cases, surprising...
It was a dismal rainy afternoon at the Reebok Stadium. Unfolding in front of my eyes was a meaningless end-of-season encounter between Hull City and my beloved Bolton Wanderers. The action on the pitch was dire. But this didn’t concern me. I brought the pie up to my mouth and paused in silent contemplation for a minute. A pie crafted with love and precision at Greenhalgh’s Bakery and reheated with zero love or precision in the Reebok Stadium microwaves.
This was the 92nd pie that I had consumed in the past nine months. I had just spent the 2008/09 season watching football and writing a book, 92 Pies, about my adventures along the way. I traveled across ghost-town England, spending a very large amount of money and driving vast distances in my ropey old Peugeot 206. I watched clubs play 92 matches in 92 different stadiums, from the Premier League down to League Two. And I ate a pie at every single one.
Food at the football, as any supporter will tell you, has a bit of a tricky reputation:the image of the grim grey slab of burger, or the barely edible phallic hotdog, the £2 Wembley Kit Kat or the cup of tea resembling dishwater.
But there is the holy grail of footy food, the culinary treat that could make even the most hardened Millwall fan go weak at the knees with stomach-grumbling desire: the pie, in all its majestic simplicity. The pie and football go together like strawberries and cream at Wimbledon, like popcorn at the cinema or like ten lagers and a kebab on a Friday night. It is a match made in heaven. The pie may as well have been hand-crafted by God for the sole purpose of cheering up 5,000 miserable Scunthorpe fans at a freezing-cold goalless evening match against Huddersfield. I had therefore made a vow to eat a pie at each of the 92 grounds; pies of all shapes and sizes, the good (see below) the bad (Walsall) and the ugly (Chester City).
The pies are the meaty glue that holds our football together. More than flags, replica shirts and ticket touts, they are the one specific thing linking all 92 clubs. I tried to vary my pie choice as often as possible. Steak pies are usually a safe bet, but the choice of champions is undoubtedly the chicken balti pie. It’s a British institution nowadays, but many dark moons ago the creation of such a curious spicy delight mystified the Midlands.
The best pie, the overwhelming victor, the Tiger Woods of football pastries, was whisked up at Morecambe FC by the small local bakery Potts’ Pies. Morecambe are a tiny club with rickety old terraces at their Christie Park home, but their food is second to none. The huge meaty pies (baked from pure lard, I have since been informed) came on a full plate with thick gravy and mushy peas. The plate, rather than the traditional pie box, was worth the relatively cheap £3 price alone. It was splendid. If this wasn’t enough, they also, quite spectacularly, served hefty portions of Lancashire hotpot. If you’re going to eat food at a football club, make it Morecambe.
There were some worthy runners-up. The best that the Premier League had to offer was at Wigan Athletic. People tend to associate Wigan with pies and pier; while the pier is nothing more than a dank slab of graffiti-covered wood (Orwell would have worded it more delicately, I suspect), the pies did not disappoint. I remember taking a bite of the hefty, sauce-filled pie and a thick splodge of brown gloop and indistinguishable meat fell on to my new white shoes. But I didn’t care about the birthmark stain slowly forming on my spanking-clean footwear, such was its quality.
Exeter City, as well as being one of the most charming clubs of the 92, is well known for its food. There was a wispy white-haired old man selling home-made carrot cake outside the ground. Get that at Old Trafford? I thought not. Inside the ground there was a Domino’s Pizza stall, possibly the only case of a fast-food chain in a football ground.
Darlington may be one of the Football League’s most troubled clubs, but they showed title-winning form with their pies. They set them out as at a bakery: freshly cooked and displayed at the front of the food counter. At £1.30, the meat and potato pie represented probably the best value for money anywhere I’ve been.
The pies at Delia Smith’s Norwich stuck in my mind. Along with the traditional pies that you would expect, there was the “pie of the week”, a regular special that’s a favourite of the Norwich elite. I wondered if Delia hand-crafted them herself before the match. The “pie of the week” for my trip was cauliflower cheese. Cauliflower cheese! That was ... unique. The week before, it had been beef in red wine gravy. Why couldn’t I have gone to Carrow Road that week?
One of the best things that happened to me on my nine-month tour was when I visited Yeovil Town. Queuing up to get my pie, I witnessed a majestic sign handwritten in Biro, Blu-Tacked to the wall next to the menu of the typical pies, burgers, drinks, etc. The sign boldly stated: “Soup — past sell-by date — clearance, 50p.” This was simply magnificent. Out-of-date soup for sale. Openly. Where else in the Football League could this happen?
Sometimes I just did not want to eat. A very hungover trip to Leyton Orient on my birthday presented an undesired and undercooked pie that didn’t say happy birthday quite as effectively as a cake with candles. But I always forced myself to get a pie no matter how ill I felt, and over the course of nine months I got lost in a football food-fueled adventure, culminating in a tour of a pie factory before my last match at Bolton.
It was surreal watching the pies being made — the way in which the pastry and the filling are magically combined to make a perfect package of hunger-destroying goodness. It was all a bit like Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, if Roald Dahl’s imagination had been more grimly realistic and Lancastrian. And with fewer Oompa-Loompas.
The entire trip had made me become slightly detached from reality. I would cancel evenings out with friends to stare at fixture lists, I would sleep nights in my car and obsess over the lower leagues that I had previously cared nothing about. I took my girlfriend a few times, but she hates pies and football in equal measure (what’s wrong with the girl?) so we had some problems, especially when I traveled to Swansea City by myself on Valentine’s Day.
Forgetting any odd obsession that I had developed with every last detail of the intricacies of pies, the football journey itself was full of highlights and low lights: goals, tears, fights, good times, bad times and many, many laughs. More than anything else, I just fell deeply in love with the Football League. For every scabby, undesirable, bland monstrosity of a ground, there is a stadium such as Exeter’s St James’ Park or Brentford’s Griffin Park that will take your breath away with its individuality and charm. And some decent grub always helps matters hugely.
Football fans have short memories, and over the summer break the supporters of all 92 teams will have reconvened with wide-eyed optimism about all the great things that their club can achieve in the forthcoming months. They will by now have arrived at their clubs to purchase their first pie (or out-of-date soup) and prepare themselves for whatever the next nine months will bring.
In a league of their own: Tom’s top five food stadiums
Christie Park, Morecambe
The daddy of all pie-makers, Potts’ Pies, provide the perfect mix of piping-hot meaty goodness and crisp pastry.
St James’ Park, Exeter
Huge pizzas, carrot cake and the best hot chocolate in the Football League at a beautiful old crumbling stadium. Oh, and the pies aren’t bad, either.
The Northern Echo Darlington Arena
A bakery-style set-up that defies the club’s financial woes. And some of the cheapest food in the Football League.
Carrow Road, Norwich City
Delia Smith-inspired grub baked with love. Keep your eyes peeled for the legendary “pie of the week”.
DW Stadium, Wigan
Thick and generous Pooles pies, a true chunk of Wigan in pastry form.
Article source: Times Online
Atlanta’s World Cup dreams are still intact. The city is on a pared-down list of potential host cities for the bid to bring the World Cup to the United States in 2018 or 2022, Atlanta Sports Council president Gary Stokan said.
Atlanta is one of 27 cities that made the cut from the list of 58 metropolitan areas that submitted proposals about three weeks ago. The list will be announced Thursday by the bid committee.
“It’s great news for the city of Atlanta,” Stokan said. “Certainly, it goes to show the credibility that the city has from its past hosting history.”
Atlanta’s candidacy was boosted by two international soccer exhibitions at the Georgia Dome this summer that both drew more than 50,000 fans, the second of which was attended by bid committee members.
The list will be trimmed down to 18 by the end of the year, and the committee will submit its proposal to FIFA, soccer’s world governing body, next May.
By Ken Sugiura - AJC
Atlanta is one of 27 cities that made the cut from the list of 58 metropolitan areas that submitted proposals about three weeks ago. The list will be announced Thursday by the bid committee.
“It’s great news for the city of Atlanta,” Stokan said. “Certainly, it goes to show the credibility that the city has from its past hosting history.”
Atlanta’s candidacy was boosted by two international soccer exhibitions at the Georgia Dome this summer that both drew more than 50,000 fans, the second of which was attended by bid committee members.
The list will be trimmed down to 18 by the end of the year, and the committee will submit its proposal to FIFA, soccer’s world governing body, next May.
By Ken Sugiura - AJC
There will be a memorial service this evening, Wednesday, August 19, at 7:00pm. for Father Joseph Caffrey. Father Caffrey, a beloved member of the Georgia Soccer Hall of Fame, was one of the pioneers of Georgia Soccer, an early Director of Coaching, as well as the first Executive Director of Georgia Soccer. Father Joe Caffrey, former Father and and teacher/coach at The Marist School, died Tuesday, July 21, in Dublin (Ireland) from a brain tumor, surrounded by his family.
Again, the service will be held at 7:00 p.m. this evening (Wednesday, August 19) at Our Lady of Assumption Church:
Our Lady of Assumption Church
1350 Hearst Dr NE
Atlanta, GA 30319
Again, the service will be held at 7:00 p.m. this evening (Wednesday, August 19) at Our Lady of Assumption Church:
Our Lady of Assumption Church
1350 Hearst Dr NE
Atlanta, GA 30319
How does this work? Each team will consist of 5 players and the standard rules apply. The catch? Tuxedos and ball gowns are required. Each player must wear their tops, tails and gowns. Style points will be awarded for the most creative evening wear. Aside from the best dressed award, the leading fundraiser will receive the MVP award. Let the fundraising begin!
Players are asked to commit $500 in sponsor pledges to benefit current and future programs. Sponsors can include friends, family, co-workers or local businesses. Each player participating will receive a free ticket to the event which includes a silent auction, various games, activities and a BBQ dinner at Park Tavern (Monroe & 10th Street).
Spots are still available to participate in the game, but space is limited. Soccer in the Streets' Executive Director, Jill Robbins, and Board Chairman, Phil Hill, are among the key participants in the upcoming game.
Atlanta F.C. Captain, Ramiro Canovas, will also be participating in the dynamic charity event. Canovas, an All-Conference player from Mercer University and native of Argentina, was the club's leading scorer last year.
"I'm really looking forward to participating in the 20th anniversary black-tie soccer game," said Ramiro Canovas, captain of the Atlanta F.C. "For the past 20 years, Soccer in the Streets has impacted the lives of thousands of children while engaging them in the sport of soccer. I'm happy to have the opportunity to support them."
Don't miss your chance to have a blast while supporting a great cause!
Registration Information
Prospective players can register by visiting http://www.soccerstreets.webs.com. Pledge forms, directions and additional information is also availale. Sponsor pledges can also be made by clicking here.
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About:
Soccer in the Streets
Soccer in the Streets, an Atlanta-based nationwide non-profit organization, is committed to teaching less advantaged kids how to make positive choices and be successful in life. Since the organization's inception in 1989, over 125,000 children have participated in programs in over 75 U.S. cities. Teaching kids skills for life... one goal at a time. For more information, please visit www.soccerstreets.org.
Soccer In The Streets
Jason Longshore
jason@soccerstreets.org
678.993.2113
You know the score. Or you think you do.
Predict the score, every game counts, is the simplest EPL prediction game on the web. Just put down what you think the score are going to be and see how you do.
With more EPL broadcased live on US television (as posted here first), international club championships just got more interesting.
Go ahead and join the Atlanta Soccer News Mini League.
League Code: 110940158
Bring the FIFA World Cup to the United States in 2018/2022http://www.gousabid.com/
...and support Atlanta's bid to be a Host City!
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Get Web and New Media Marketing with Panorama Press
Americans drop 2-1 decision in World Cup qualifier
MEXICO CITY — - The dream lasted all of 10 minutes plus a few seconds.
It began with Charlie Davies' goal for the United States 8:44 into its World Cup qualifying match against Mexico at Azteca Stadium on Wednesday afternoon.
It ended with Israel Castro's goal for Mexico 18:57 into the game that tied the score at 1-1.
In between those goals, the American players and coaches - if they had had time to catch their breath - might have contemplated the first U.S. victory in history over Mexico in Mexico.
As it was, it was the first time in the 43-year history of the stadium that the U.S. national soccer team had held a lead over Mexico at Azteca.
A victory by the Americans would have ended a 0-22-1 streak of futility stretching back to 1937, but it was not to be. Having tied the match, Mexico set out to win it and did so on a goal by Miguel Sabah in the 84th minute to prevail, 2-1.
By the time the final whistle sounded, fans in the sellout crowd of 105,000 were pelting American star Landon Donovan with beer cups when he went to take a corner kick.
It was that kind of day.
As Donovan said, "It is what it is."
Mexico's victory has revived its once-floundering chances of reaching the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, while the loss has done little harm to American chances.
The U.S. still holds second place in the six-nation qualifying group, two points behind Costa Rica, which lost to Honduras, 4-0, on Wednesday night.
Mexico remains in fourth place, one point behind Honduras.
"It wasn't a do-or-die game for us, it was for them," Donovan said in the chaos of the post-game news conference. "Now, it puts us in a little bit more difficult position, but our next game is at home against El Salvador [on Sept. 5 in Sandy, Utah], which we expect to win, and away against Trinidad [on Sept. 9], which we expect to win.
"I still feel if we win those two games we're going to qualify."
It was Donovan who created Davies' goal, sending a slide-rule pass out to him on the left flank. The forward cut in toward goal and then curled a shot past Mexico goalkeeper Guillermo "Memo" Ochoa and into the upper right corner of the net.
Davies' goal was only the second scored by an American player against Mexico in Mexico in the past quarter-century. The only other one was scored by Eddie Lewis in the 2005 qualifier at Azteca that the Americans also lost, 2-1.
"We played well in the opening part of the game and deserved it," Donovan said. "It was a good goal."
Mexico, looking smoother Wednesday and more polished than the Americans, carried the game to the U.S. and was rewarded a mere 10:13 after Davies had scored.
It was the Chicago Fire's Cuauhtemoc Blanco who set up Mexico's first goal. Blanco, the oldest player on the field at 36, spotted Mexico teammate Castro unmarked at midfield and passed the ball to him.
Castro took a shot from distance and saw his effort crash into the underside of the crossbar and then rebound down into the net. U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard stood no chance, but blame for the goal could be shared by defensive midfielders Ricardo Clark and Michael Bradley, who both were playing too deep and had no time to close Castro down.
The winning goal was a little bizarre, or at least fortunate.
Mexico was attacking down the right flank, seeking the game-winner, when Donovan and defender Jay DeMerit tried to tackle the ball away. It was DeMerit who swept it away, but the ball fell to Sabah and his shot flew straight and true over Howard and into the net.
By Grahame L. Jones Tribune Newspapers - Baltimore Sun
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Find local and State soccer info at www.gasoccer.org
MEXICO CITY — - The dream lasted all of 10 minutes plus a few seconds.It ended with Israel Castro's goal for Mexico 18:57 into the game that tied the score at 1-1.
In between those goals, the American players and coaches - if they had had time to catch their breath - might have contemplated the first U.S. victory in history over Mexico in Mexico.
As it was, it was the first time in the 43-year history of the stadium that the U.S. national soccer team had held a lead over Mexico at Azteca.
A victory by the Americans would have ended a 0-22-1 streak of futility stretching back to 1937, but it was not to be. Having tied the match, Mexico set out to win it and did so on a goal by Miguel Sabah in the 84th minute to prevail, 2-1.
By the time the final whistle sounded, fans in the sellout crowd of 105,000 were pelting American star Landon Donovan with beer cups when he went to take a corner kick.
It was that kind of day.
As Donovan said, "It is what it is."
Mexico's victory has revived its once-floundering chances of reaching the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, while the loss has done little harm to American chances.
The U.S. still holds second place in the six-nation qualifying group, two points behind Costa Rica, which lost to Honduras, 4-0, on Wednesday night.
Mexico remains in fourth place, one point behind Honduras.
"It wasn't a do-or-die game for us, it was for them," Donovan said in the chaos of the post-game news conference. "Now, it puts us in a little bit more difficult position, but our next game is at home against El Salvador [on Sept. 5 in Sandy, Utah], which we expect to win, and away against Trinidad [on Sept. 9], which we expect to win.
"I still feel if we win those two games we're going to qualify."
It was Donovan who created Davies' goal, sending a slide-rule pass out to him on the left flank. The forward cut in toward goal and then curled a shot past Mexico goalkeeper Guillermo "Memo" Ochoa and into the upper right corner of the net.
Davies' goal was only the second scored by an American player against Mexico in Mexico in the past quarter-century. The only other one was scored by Eddie Lewis in the 2005 qualifier at Azteca that the Americans also lost, 2-1.
"We played well in the opening part of the game and deserved it," Donovan said. "It was a good goal."
Mexico, looking smoother Wednesday and more polished than the Americans, carried the game to the U.S. and was rewarded a mere 10:13 after Davies had scored.
It was the Chicago Fire's Cuauhtemoc Blanco who set up Mexico's first goal. Blanco, the oldest player on the field at 36, spotted Mexico teammate Castro unmarked at midfield and passed the ball to him.
Castro took a shot from distance and saw his effort crash into the underside of the crossbar and then rebound down into the net. U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard stood no chance, but blame for the goal could be shared by defensive midfielders Ricardo Clark and Michael Bradley, who both were playing too deep and had no time to close Castro down.
The winning goal was a little bizarre, or at least fortunate.
Mexico was attacking down the right flank, seeking the game-winner, when Donovan and defender Jay DeMerit tried to tackle the ball away. It was DeMerit who swept it away, but the ball fell to Sabah and his shot flew straight and true over Howard and into the net.
By Grahame L. Jones Tribune Newspapers - Baltimore Sun
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Find local and State soccer info at www.gasoccer.org
This weekend signaled the beginning of the new season 
for many of the continental European leagues, with new 1860 Munich signing Kenny Cooper got his side off to a winning start in the 2. Bundesliga.
Aug 10, 2009 3:21:10 PM
for many of the continental European leagues, with new 1860 Munich signing Kenny Cooper got his side off to a winning start in the 2. Bundesliga.
Kenny Cooper - USA - Felipe Baloy -f Panama (Mexsport)
Following his summer signing for 2. Bundesliga side 1860 Munich, former Dallas Burn standout Kenny Cooper made his bow in the 1860 colors over the weekend. Starting brightly, Cooper was presented with his first chance for Die Lowen in the ninth minute, but was unable to get off the mark straightaway as his first attempt at goal was easily corralled by American goalkeeper David Yelldell.
Not to be denied, however, Kenny Cooper latched onto Romanian midfielder Florian Lovin’s cross just eight minutes later. Left free in the box, Cooper directed his headed effort off the bottom of the crossbar and past the helpless TuS Koblenz ‘keeper’s goal.
Staying in the thick of the action, Cooper was involved in a number of other chances before half, with only David Yelldell’s excellent work keeping the scoreline at 1-0.
The second half was much of the same, as Munich doubled the lead on 62 minutes when Kenny Cooper’s strike partner Benjamin Lauth received a deflected pass in the box and buried it with aplomb. Despite having a pair of chances after the 70th minute, Cooper was unable to add to his opening strike, but left the field in the 72th minute to a standing ovation from the 1860 supporters.
Kenny Cooper, 1860 Munich (Germany)
vs. TuS Koblenz, 2-0, 72 minutes, 1 Goal
See above.
Next up: Away to Hansa Rostock, Saturday, August 15
Michael Bradley, Borussia Monchengladbach (Germany)
Away to VfL Bochum, 3-3, 70 minutes, Yellow Card
Michael Bradley and Borussia Monchengladbach’s opening match nearly ended in disaster as lax defending and foolish mistakes allowed VfL Bochum the chance to snatch victory at home. M’Gladbach’s hero at last season’s end, Dante, who scored the goal that kept the Prussian club in the top flight was sent off, and Bradley was yellow carded as Die Fohlen allowed Bochum to return from 3-0 down to draw 3-3.
Next up: vs. Hertha Berlin, Sunday, August 16
Steve Cherundolo, Hannover 96 (Germany)
Away to Hertha Berlin, 0-1, 90 minutes, Yellow Card
After a long injury layoff at the end of last season, Steve Cherundolo returned for Hannover 96 over the weekend, putting in a decent performance but unable to save his side from falling 1-0 away to Hertha Berlin. Hertha midfielder Gojko Kacar found himself on the end of substitute Valeri Domovchiyski’s pass in the 82nd minute, and he slotted clinically past Robert Enke for the winning goal.
Next up: vs. FSV Mainz
Charlie Davies, Sochaux (France)
Away to AJ Auxerre, 19 minutes
Charlie Davies made his Sochaux debut on the opening day of Ligue 1 play, looking dangerous as his new side beat Auxerre 1-0 away. Davies was brought on in the 71st minute for Czech striker and 39th minute goalscorer Vaclav Sverkos. The pacey forward immediately threatened the Auxerre defense, nearly notching a debut goal in the 82nd minute, but was unable to get off the mark so quickly.
Next up: vs. Bordeaux, Saturday, August 15
Carlos Bocanegra, Rennes (France)
vs. Boulogne, 3-0, 90 minutes
Carlos Bocanegra and his Rennes teammates dominated the match summarily against newly promoted Boulogne, as Bocanegra went the full 90 for Les Rouge et Noir. Goals from Ismael Bangoura in the seventh minute, Mangane in the 45th, and Jerome Leroy just before the death assured the comfortable win for the Brittany side.
Next up: at Nice, Sunday, August 16
Square Passes
Matt Taylor made his debut for FSV Frankfurt as a second-half substitute, but was unable to rescue them from falling 2-1 to MSV Duisburg.
Benny Feilhaber started in the midfield and went the full 90 as AGF Aarhus beat HB Koge 2-1. Jeremiah White played the last 20 minutes as a sub, helping Aarhus remain at the top of the Danish league.
Michael Parkhurst played the full 90 in FC Nordsjælland’s 3-0 win over Silkeborg.
Aaron West's feature "Americans On The Continent" appears every Monday on Goal.com.
The Community Shield is an annual match between the champions of the EPL and the winners of the FA Cup, though this tradition was only established twenty years into the fixture's existence. The Shield was first played for in 1908-09 replacing the Sheriff of London Charity Shield that had been introduced in 1898-99.
The match is contested at the beginning of the following season. If a team wins The Double (both the Premier League and the FA Cup), then the Double winner plays the Premier League runner-up.
The Shield plays a major role for the FA in its efforts to raise funds for various charities throughout England. The sources for the funds include the net profits from admission tickets and sales of match day programs. Parts of the fund are distributed to clubs who participated in the First Round Proper of the FA Cup, who are then in turn asked to nominate a charity or community-based organization which will receive the clubs' share of the fund. The remainder of the funds will then be donated to The FA Charity Partners.
The most recent Community Shield was played at Wembley Stadium between Manchester United and Portsmouth. This was the first time since 1996 that a team outside of the Big Four competed in the competition. Manchester United won 3-1 on penalties after a 0-0 draw in regular time.
The match is contested at the beginning of the following season. If a team wins The Double (both the Premier League and the FA Cup), then the Double winner plays the Premier League runner-up.
The Shield plays a major role for the FA in its efforts to raise funds for various charities throughout England. The sources for the funds include the net profits from admission tickets and sales of match day programs. Parts of the fund are distributed to clubs who participated in the First Round Proper of the FA Cup, who are then in turn asked to nominate a charity or community-based organization which will receive the clubs' share of the fund. The remainder of the funds will then be donated to The FA Charity Partners.
The most recent Community Shield was played at Wembley Stadium between Manchester United and Portsmouth. This was the first time since 1996 that a team outside of the Big Four competed in the competition. Manchester United won 3-1 on penalties after a 0-0 draw in regular time.
ESPN has picked up Santanta's US EPL rights for 2 games a week. Here is the current schedule for all games.
If you were waiting to buy your HDTV until January when FSC starts broadcasting in HD, you may want to go and get one now as ESPN will broadcast in HD 8/15.
Right off the bat you can watch USMNT striker Jozy Altidor and Hull take on J.T. and Chelsea.
Saturday, August 15:
- Chelsea v Hull City, 7:45am, ESPN2
- Aston Villa v Wigan, 10am, Fox Soccer Channel
- Blackburn Rovers v Manchester City, 10am, Setanta US
- Wolves v West Ham, 10am, Setanta Xtra
- Everton v Arsenal, 12:30pm, Fox Soccer Channel
- Stoke City v Burnley, 2:30pm [delayed], Fox Soccer Channel
- Portsmouth v Fulham, 6:45pm [delayed], Setanta US
Sunday, August 16:
- Manchester United v Birmingham City, 8:30am, Setanta US
- Tottenham v Liverpool, 11am, Fox Soccer Channel
Tuesday, August 18:
- Sunderland v Chelsea, 2:40pm, Setanta US
- Wigan v Wolves, 2:40pm, Setanta Xtra
Wednesday, August 19:
- Burnley v Man United, 2:40pm, Setanta US
- Hull v Tottenham, 2:40pm, Setanta Xtra
Saturday, August 22:
- Arsenal v Portsmouth, 10am, Fox Soccer Channel
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Setanta US
- TBD v TBD, 10am, ESPN2
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Setanta Xtra
- Birmingham v Stoke City, Noon, Fox Soccer Channel
- Hull City v Bolton, 5pm [delayed], Fox Soccer Channel
Sunday, August 23:
- West Ham United v Tottenham, 8:30am, Setanta US
- Fulham v Chelsea, 11am, Fox Soccer Channel
Monday, August 24:
- Liverpool v Aston Villa, 3pm, ESPN2
Saturday, August 29:
- Chelsea v Burnley, 7:45am, ESPN2
- Tottenham Hotspur v Birmingham City, 10am, Fox Soccer Channel
- Bolton v Liverpool, 10am, Setanta US
- Blackburn v West Ham, 10am, Setanta Xtra
- Manchester United v Arsenal, 12:15pm, Fox Soccer Channel
- Stoke City v Sunderland, 5pm [delayed], Fox Soccer Channel
Sunday, August 30:
- Portsmouth v Manchester City, 8:30am, Setanta US
- Aston Villa v Fulham, 11am, Fox Soccer Channel
Saturday, September 12:
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Setanta US
- TBD v TBD, 10am, ESPN2
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Fox Soccer Channel
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Setanta Xtra
- Tottenham v Manchester United, 12:15pm, Fox Soccer Channel
Sunday, September 13:
- Birmingham City v Aston Villa, 7am, Setanta US
- Fulham v Everton, 11:15am, Fox Soccer Channel
Saturday, September 19:
- Burnley v Sunderland, 7:45am, ESPN2
- Arsenal v Wigan Athletic, 10am, Setanta US
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Fox Soccer Channel
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Setanta Xtra
- West Ham United v Liverpool, 12:15pm, Fox Soccer Channel
Sunday, September 20:
- Manchester United v Manchester City, 8:30am, Setanta US
- Chelsea v Tottenham, 11am, Fox Soccer Channel
Saturday, September 26:
- Portsmouth v Everton, 7:45am, ESPN2
- Stoke v Man United, 10am, Setanta US
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Fox Soccer Channel
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Setanta Xtra
- Fulham v Arsenal, 12:15pm, Fox Soccer Channel
Sunday, September 27:
- Sunderland v Wolves, 11am, Fox Soccer Channel
Monday, September 28:
- Manchester City v West Ham United, ESPN2
Saturday, October 3:
- TBD v TBD, 10am, ESPN2
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Fox Soccer Channel
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Setanta US
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Setanta Xtra
- Manchester United v Sunderland, 12:15pm, Fox Soccer Channel
Sunday, October 4:
- Arsenal v Blackburn Rovers, 8:30am, Setanta US
- Chelsea v Liverpool, 11am, Fox Soccer Channel
Monday, October 5:
- Aston Villa v Manchester City, 3pm, ESPN2
Saturday, October 17:
- Aston Villa v Chelsea, 7:45am, ESPN2
- Man United v Bolton, 10am, Setanta US
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Fox Soccer Channel
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Setanta Xtra
Sunday, October 18:
- Blackburn Rovers v Burnley, 8am, Setanta US
- Wigan v Manchester City, 11am, Fox Soccer Channel
Monday, October 19:
- Fulham v Hull City, 3pm, ESPN2
Saturday, October 24:
- Wolves v Aston Villa, 7:45am, ESPN2
- Man City v Fulham, 10am, Setanta US
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Fox Soccer Channel
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Setanta Xtra
- Chelsea v Blackburn Rovers, 12:15pm, Fox Soccer Channel
Sunday, October 25:
- Liverpool v Manchester United, 10am, Setanta US
- West Ham United v Arsenal, 11:15am, Fox Soccer Channel
Saturday, October 31:
- Arsenal v Tottenham, 8:45am, ESPN2
- Fulham v Liverpool, 11am, Setanta US
- TBD v TBD, 11am, Fox Soccer Channel
- TBD v TBD, 11am, Setanta Xtra
- Manchester United v Blackburn Rovers, 1:15pm, Fox Soccer Channel
Sunday, November 1:
- Birmingham City v Manchester City, 11am, Fox Soccer Channel
Saturday, November 7:
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Setanta US
- TBD v TBD, 10am, ESPN2
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Fox Soccer Channel
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Setanta Xtra
- Wolves v Arsenal, 12:15pm, Fox Soccer Channel
Sunday, November 8:
- Hull City v Stoke City, 8:30am, Setanta US
- Chelsea v Manchester United, 11am, Fox Soccer Channel
Monday, November 9:
- Liverpool v Birmingham City, 3pm, ESPN2
Saturday, November 21:
- Liverpool v Manchester City, 7:45am, ESPN2
- Chelsea v Wolves, 10am, Setanta US
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Fox Soccer Channel
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Setanta Xtra
- Manchester United v Everton, 12:15pm, Fox Soccer Channel
Sunday, November 22:
- Bolton v Blackburn, 8:30am, Setanta US
- Stoke City v Portsmouth, 11am, Fox Soccer Channel
Saturday, November 28:
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Setanta US
- TBD v TBD, 10am, ESPN2
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Fox Soccer Channel
- TBD v TBD, 10am, Setanta Xtra
- Aston Villa v Tottenham, 12:15pm, Fox Soccer Channel
Sunday, November 29:
- Everton v Liverpool, 8:30am, Setanta US
- Arsenal v Chelsea, 11am, Fox Soccer Channel
Having watched Manchester City take on SPL Champions Glasgow Rangers this afternoon via the internet. One thing is abundently clear. MCFC will be a potent offensive force. Adebeyor's ability to play off to Robinho and Petrov will be sure to provide plenty of excitement.
Whether former Cletic Shay Given is forced to throw up the flag of surrendder is another question that will be put to the test. Rangers appeared an offensive juggernaut at times agains the Light Light Blues.
Exciting times ahead for the other club of Manchester this season.
Mon the Gers!
Whether former Cletic Shay Given is forced to throw up the flag of surrendder is another question that will be put to the test. Rangers appeared an offensive juggernaut at times agains the Light Light Blues.
Exciting times ahead for the other club of Manchester this season.
Mon the Gers!
| Bear Foot Sports Soccer Sixes, 6v6 Adult Atlanta Cup | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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A DULL but dry afternoon on Saturday 30 November, 1872, saw sporting history made on the West of Scotland cricket ground – rather soft from the previous night's rain – at Partick, but the two teams confronting each other, clad respectively in navy blue and white, were not cricketers. That day's contest is now regarded as the first football international, when more than 2,000 people saw Scotland play England.
The game was a no-score draw, but it was significant, not just in being the first international, but in the way it pointed up the different playing styles of the auld enemies. Reporting on the match, the Graphic newspaper observed: "Individual skill was generally on England's side. The Southrons, however, did not play to each other so well as their opponents, who seem to be adept in passing the ball."The Scotsman, meanwhile, reported Ottway, the English captain, "standing conspicuous, and astonishing the spectators by some very pretty 'dribbling'". But it added how "the Scotch team, though not comprising so many brilliant players, worked from first to last well together, through knowing each other's play."
At a time when brutally aggressive charges down the field by big, heavy – and public-school educated – players was the template of the English game, in Scotland a more nimble and sophisticated "passing game" was developing. It would ultimately make the individualistic English tactics as defunct as dinosaurs and shape modern football the world over.
Now a new book, Beastly Fury, is arguing against the received wisdom that football was an unruly and violent ball game civilised by public-school players during the 19th century. The author and film-maker Richard Sanders argues it was, in fact, the ordinary classes – and particularly the Scots – who civilised and sophisticated the brutal game cultivated by the English public schools, ultimately revolutionising football. The Battle of Waterloo may have been won on the playing fields of Eton, but the triumph of the refined "passing game" in modern football certainly wasn't. That first Scottish national side was essentially Queen's Park, founded in 1867 and named for the Glasgow park in which its founders played casually – many of them from north-east Scotland, suggests Sanders, rather than the YMCA members who also played there and are often credited with establishing the team.
Beastly Fury (the title drawn from a condemnation of the game dating from 1531) traces the development of the sport from medieval times, with the kind of riotous street games involving hundreds that we still see in the Eton Wall Game or, in Orkney, the Ba' Game played every Christmas and Ne'erday in Kirkwall.
Unlike some who believe this was the universal form of "folk football" – which effectively died out with the Industrial Revolution while a new "civilised" game emerged, developed by the public schools – Sanders argues that, "in short, it was not the upper class that civilised the people's game, it was the common people that civilised the upper-class game".
Not only that, he adds, but "it was in the mines and mill towns of Renfrewshire, Lanarkshire and Ayrshire that football acquired refinement, rather than on the playing fields of Eton and Harrow."
Essentially, argues Sanders, the traditional view is that folk football was barbaric and effectively died out during the Industrial Revolution, to be created in the public schools as an entirely new game, from which today's sport is descended. "But if you think about it," he tells me, "the idea that a sport that has been going for 700 years should stop altogether, and then 40 years later an entirely different sport that has no connection to it whatsoever but is also football should survive… doesn't really make sense.
"It's common sense that a thread of folk football survives and feeds into modern football. The reason why we've always thought that wasn't the case is because all the early histories were written by public schoolboys and they see it from their point of view."
Sanders is a writer and documentary film-maker, whose films have included two on football controversies РEscobar's Own Goal, concerning the shooting of the Colombian star Andr̩s Escobar, after he had scored against his own side during the 1994 Fifa World Cup, and Maradona: Kicking the Habit, which peers behind the extravagant fa̤ade of arguably the world's greatest footballer. He's also a Tottenham Hotspur fan. "It's a family thing, a bit of a burden for the past 20 years," he confesses dolorously.
"But I'm always interested in tracing things right back to their origins, and it's surprising that no-one's written this book before, on the origins of football. Most of the book is original research, but I'm also piggy-backing on some other people, in particular John Goulstone and Adrian Harvey, who have done a lot of work resurrecting folk football." Sanders's book may appeal even to non-fans of "the beautiful game", with its insights into British society and its attitudes. "It's a great window on late-Victorian Britain," he says.
It was only with the development of the fast-flowing, more sophisticated passing game developed by the boys from Queen's Park and others like them that football would become the sport we recognise today. As far back as 1870, Scotland was being described – and by English enthusiasts – as "the land of football". Until the First World War, nearly a quarter of all English First Division players were Scots and, as late as the 1950s, English professionals still referred to the short-passing game as "the Scottish style".
Football as conducted by the products of the English public schools of the 19th century was ferociously individualistic and aggressive. These, after all, were young men being cultivated as empire-builders. "What's so extraordinary when you look at the old public-school football games is that they're so much closer to the old mock-battle thing, and the key thing that makes them like that is their very strict offside rules. At Eton, for instance, you effectively couldn't pass at all. A player couldn't go upfield and call for a pass; that was against the rules and was known as "sneaking". Instead, you had to try and force your way through the opposition by sheer force."
It can be suggested that, to these budding captains of empire, the very concept of passing the ball to someone else could be interpreted as almost an abnegation of responsibility. "You can come up with all sorts of sociological explanations," says Sanders. "(That] game was certainly rabidly individualistic and extremely aggressive." And much of it, he reckons, boils down to the old Victorian obsessions with anything smacking remotely of undesirable practices in the dorm. "It's clear that sport and athleticism are very, very popular in the late 19th century public schools, in part because they're so terrified of all the sexual impulses teenage boys have and – and I'm hazarding a guess, really – that the slightly manic atmosphere of public school football is in part to do with sexual sublimation."
Many histories of the game, he argues, "ignore the blindingly obvious fact that the various public-school games were staggeringly violent". Cold showers apart, in the inner sanctum of the Scottish Football Museum at Hampden, curator Richard McBrearty agrees on the uncompromising nature of the English game: "If we could transport ourselves back to 1872 and watch some of the charges and heavy tackles that were allowed then, you'd be surprised.
"Queen's Park realised they couldn't compete man for man with the England team, because the England players were heavier and faster in many respects. So you could see them in the build-up to that first international match, thinking about how they were going to play the game, and they pair up – that was a big thing."
In his museum, McBrearty, who regards Sanders's approach as refreshingly objective, displays the edition of the Graphic that covered that first Scotland-England game of 1872. "What's important, he says, "is that the report mentions that the Scotland team were adept at passing the ball, and that's the first time passing is recorded in the annals of association football."
Tellingly, in one game against England in 1873, the Scots team recruited a few "exiles" from English public-school teams. Their different playing tactics broke the rhythm of the Scottish scoring machine and they lost 4-2. "Thereafter," comments Sanders, "the Scottish team was dominated by Queen's Park men. Between 1874 and 1886 they lost just once – 5-4 at the Oval – in 1879." As late as 1882 the English player, Charlie Alcock, commented that England's "disinclination to pass settled England's chances as effectively as it had done from the first of these international contests".
As English football spread beyond the public schools, the "Scottish professors", as they were known, became much in demand. An advertisement in this newspaper in October 1882 for a good full-back for a club in north-east Lancashire promises: "To a really good man… who can teach well, liberal wages will be given." A month before that, the Athletic News had suggested Bolton Wanderers should start wearing kilts and change their name to "Caledonians".
By Jim Gilchrist
Georgia Soccer Park http://www.georgiasoccerpark.com
Georgia Soccer Park
3895 Ben Hill Road
Atlanta, GA 30349Map thisThe Georgia Soccer Park is a 501(c)(3) community-based organization developed to integrate the game of soccer and other team sports with education, leadership and the individual development of its users. Georgia Soccer Park (GSP) was established to serve the entire Metro Atlanta area and, in particular, the City of East Point and South Fulton County. Our facility is a demonstration of the bringing together of diverse groups of people in an underserved and economically dis-advantaged area with a clear purpose of improving attitudes about healthy lifestyles, character, education, and responsible citizenship within our youth.
The Georgia Soccer Park project is the culmination of 10 years of work. It currently has 5 fields, with a sixth scheduled to open in August 2009. All of the land necessary for the construction and completion of the 16 field complex has been purchased. The concept originally began with funds delegated from the 1996 Olympic ticket sales based on the need for more soccer fields in the Metro Atlanta area. Already, with only five of the sixteen fields constructed, the Park has added a significant boost to the East Point and South Fulton economy. The economic impact of the Park will only continue to grow as we expand and are able to host larger events.
Since inception, the main focus of GSP has been helping the youth in the local community not only in a sports setting, but also in an educational setting. GSP strives to not only become a major venue for the over 100,000 youth and 30,000 adults that play soccer in the State of Georgia, but to provide a safe facility for after-school programs for local disadvantaged and â??at-riskâ?? youth in the community and for programs that serve individuals with both mental and physical disabilities. Building relationships with other non-profit organizations that can benefit from using our facility is one of Georgia Soccer Parks main goals and the involvement of these outreach programs in our Park is sought out, encouraged, and welcomed. GSP donates field and classroom space to several non-profit organizations.
GSP currently works with over 25 organizations, including recreational, competitive and adult amateur teams. We want to be able to provide even more opportunities to a greater number of individuals and provide a wider range of programs in the community. It is with great enthusiasm that the Park continues to expand and improve on both its facility and its programs.
Georgia High School Championships
If anybody missed it...here you go:
The Parkview Panthers won their third consecutive Class AAAAA girls state championship in a penalty kick shootout, and Collins Hill HS won the AAAAA boys title 1-0 over Centennial.
Marist and St. Pius X swept the boys and girls Class AAAA and Class AAA state championships, while the Walker School girls successfully defended their Class AA/A title.
Greater Atlanta Christian won its second Class AA/A boys championship with a 4-1 win over Westminster in a showdown between the state’s co-#1 teams in that classification.
North Atlanta Soccer Association U-19 team makes in to the National finals
July 26, 2009 Under-19 Boys - Baltimore Casa Mia Bays (MD) 2, NASA 08 Elite (GA) 0
Although the NASA team fell short, they had a great run and represented themselves and the club very well. NASA's Goal Keeper, Alec Kann, earned the tournament’s Golden Glove award as the top Goal Keeper while NASA's Chris Klute was awarded the Golden Boot as the tournament’s Most Valuable Player! Well done to the boys and their outstanding Coach Todd Gispert. July 23, 2009 Coming off of a day one scoreless tie with the Baltimore Bays, Georgia’s North Atlanta Soccer (NASA) 08 Elite was looking to get the offense going in today’s game against Colorado Rush. Christopher Klute had a 3rd minute goal for the early NASA lead. The Rush stayed poised, but was unable to finish any of their five shots on goal. NASA won 1-0 and are set to play Pike Indy Burn of Indiana in the final day of round robin games tomorrow. Win or a tie for NASA tomorrow and they are playing for the National Championship Sunday. The following players comprise the U19 team: Alec Kann, Furman |
What a goal Beckham scored against Barca...30 yard free kick in the upper left corner!! I hope Capello is watching. He shuts up all the boo birds. Player haters. The Galaxy do not pay him enough....Beckham was brilliant duringthe Galaxy's 2-1 international friendly loss to FC Barcelona in front of a crowd of 93,137 at the Rose Bowl stadium. It was the largest crowd to watch a football match in America in 15 years since the United States hosted the World Cup.
Beckham scored the lone goal for the Galaxy against the Spanish powerhouse Barcelona.
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