Who are ya? – San Jose Earthquakes

By: Bob Kellett | March 27th, 2008

Finally. After watching the Timbers come up short in penalties in the semifinals of the 2007 playoffs and after suffering through the always interminably long offseason, Portland Timbers soccer has finally returned to the Rose City. And not a second too soon.

Details: Portland Timbers v San Jose Earthquakes, Friday, March 28, 7:30 pm, Merlo Field. Does not look like there will be video or audio broadcasts so get your arse out to UP to watch and while you are at it watch the Earthquakes reserves play against UP at 5. Your mother asks me to remind you to bring your rain gear and to dress warmly. It is always colder on the Bluff (not as cold as being in the buff, mind you, but the wind does whip there).

Last season: The San Jose Earthquakes were a mere tremor in the minds of Bay Area fans the past couple of years after their owners took the team and moved them to Houston after the 2005 season. Like a bad case of the clap, the ~~Clash~~ Earthquakes are back for round 3 in San Jose.

Series history: Portland and San Jose used to meet regularly back in the NASL days but I’ll be dammed if I can actually find out how the teams did against one another. Since both teams were brought back to life, the sides have faced each other three times with San Jose winning twice and the Timbers once. The last time they met was in the US Open Cup in 2005 with the Quakes coming out on top 2-0. The result was similar in 2004 when San Jose beat the Timbers 3-0 in the US Open Cup. You might recall that was the game where Gavin Wilkinson was shown a ridiculous red card early on and the Timbers played 10 against 12 all night in front of 10,000 irate fans at PGE Park. Stupid refs. The Timbers burned, destroyed, wrecked and killed back in a friendly in 2001 when they beat San Jose 2-1 behind goals from Jesus Ochoa (who Bobby Howe never fucking played in real games, a fact that I will be pissed about until I go to my grave) and Kevin Legg (who was otherwise useless).

Familiar faces: - San Jose has a local lad, Ryan Cochrane, on its roster. They also have former Timbers forward Yuri Morales, former Timbers nemesis Preston Burpo (who looks like Screech when he has a beard), and former Charleston Battery forward Gavin Clinton, perhaps the greatest ever player from the Turks and Caicos.

Keep an eye on: - Everything, but especially a few key positions for the Timbers. Will we see Ray Burse in goal? Who is getting a look at left back? Who is getting minutes on the wings? What is the starting strike force? How do the new rose-colored kits look? Will there be an ambulance on hand for Burpo’s glass jaw?

Final thoughts – This is the final tune up for the Earthquakes before they kick off the MLS season against the LA Galaxy on Thursday. They captured the Carolina Challenge Cup last weekend with victories over the Battery, Toronto and New York. Their players should be in better physical condition than the Timbers, who have only played one scrimmage to this point. The Timbers won’t have Justin Thompson for this one so the backline will be thinner than normal. USL teams always play hard against MLS sides so expect Portland’s players to be motivated to put on a good show. I suspect we’ll see the veterans get minutes in this one (especially UP products Gregor, Brown and Guante) and the younger kids/trialists to get the playing time on Sunday against Gonzaga.

Simply the Best: Greatest Earthquakes highlight ever. Reminds me of Chugger Adair in his prime.