Lots of Injuries, Lots of Questions, Still Gonna Win the League

By: Bob Kellett | June 4th, 2008

Some of those uneasy rumblings about Ray Burse’s future in Portland might be mollified a bit by news that the guy who starts ahead of him in Dallas looks good to go for their game in New England Friday.

However, the news is much better for goalkeeper Dario Sala, who missed Sunday’s 2-1 loss at Colorado because of a hip injury. The Argentinean suffered the injury in the waning moments of a 2-2 draw with Houston last Wednesday in Frisco but should be ready to make his return between the posts in New England.

Remember a few weeks ago when I mentioned that Dallas’ manager was canned and that could have consequences for Ray-J’s future here? Even with Sala returning between the posts I am starting to think that is becoming more and more of a reality. Dallas is heading south in the table and they might want to see what our temporary keeper can do in MLS sooner rather than later. One thing I do know for a fact is that Bayard Elfvin is not currently playing anywhere. Just a thought.

Speaking of Injuries
Every forward on the roster not named Chris Bagley (the guy who played the least against Rochester) is battling an injury. Benjamin Totori won’t play against Minnesota and Vancouver. Lawrence Olum is dinged up. That garbage can that Gavin Wilkinson kicked is still experiencing terrible pains in its side. My fingers are sore from typing this paragraph. All is not lost, my friends. Tom Taylor, Steve Reese, Vardan Adzemian, and Scott Bolkan are all fit as a fiddle, well rested since they haven’t played a minute this season and ready to go. On a serious note, whatever happened to Troy Ready? I don’t think he is the solution, but his pace on the left side might be worth a look.

A new player in training?
Don’t know his name, don’t know if this is even true, but I’ve been told that there might be a new face in training this week. Someone moving in, someone moving on? Truth, rumor, something in between? Can anyone out there fill us all in on the details?

Defensive downer
Justin Thompson talks to the Trib about the defensive breakdowns in Rochester.

Guante is TOTW; Wilkinson not so much
The folks at USL headquarters selected Miguel Guante for Team of the Week honors for his efforts against Montreal. Question for you. If Guante played so well against the Impact (and he did play well), why did he only get twenty minutes against Rochester? Can’t blame it on age. The guy is as old as some mustard in my fridge. I’m still trying to figure out what Gavin Wilkinson was trying to do in that game.

The National Media takes notice
From USA Today:

Going Hollywood:

About 10 years ago, a handful of rock stars from the Cult, Def Leppard and the Sex Pistols had a hand in starting a Los Angeles soccer club. Along the way, actors (Anthony LaPaglia, Jimmy Jean-Louis) and retired soccer players (Alexi Lalas, Eric Wynalda) joined in.

Today, that club has expanded to several teams at various age levels. And the top-level team has qualified for the U.S. Open Cup.

Don’t look for LaPaglia or Ian Astbury at the Open Cup, unless they make the trip up the coast to see the team take on the USL’s Portland Timbers on Tuesday. The biggest star on the Open Cup squad is retired MLS player Brian Dunseth, now a broadcaster, blogger and businessman as well as a defensive midfielder for the Coast Soccer League champions.

“It’s a bunch of guys who used to play that are still around and still playing at a pretty competitive level, (and) a bunch of D-II and D-I guys that never really got a shot back in the day when MLS was coming out,” Dunseth says.

Ian Carrington, a longtime coach and manager with the club, says the team entered the Open Cup last year with a few older players such as Frank Leboeuf, a World Cup winner with France in 1998. This year, the Open Cup version of Hollywood United is younger, playing at a level Dunseth compares favorably to the MLS reserve division.

The team knows Portland well. Several Hollywood United players spent some time playing with or against the Timbers in the USL.

“For us, it’s a win-win situation,” Dunseth says. “For Portland, it’s a lose-lose. They’re going to be expected to win.”

Since we last met
It seems like a lifetime ago that the Timbers started the season with a pair of wins thanks in part to a 2-1 victory over the Minnesota Thunder at PGE Park. That lifetime occurred on April 24. Since then, the Timbers have gone 2-3-4 and have scored a whopping six goals. The Thunder have gone 4-2-1 with seven goals to their credit. Teams in USL-1 really seem to be struggling to score this year.

Photo: Allison Andrews/Soccer City USA