Another tournament option

I just saw this on the CCSL website. It's an 8 v 8 tournament. See my prior post for other tournament news.


POTOMAC CUP July 12/13
Potomac Lakes Park in Sterling, VA. Men's, Women's and Coed 8v8 tournament: Open, B and over 30's/ 40's divisions. Five 30 minute games over two days.
Great prizes include a complimentary trips to Vegas for our Aug 22/23 or Nov 28/29 tournaments for winning team captains, when your team travels. DC United will also be giving away freebies, and we'll have complimentary beer post tournament thanks to our friends at Carlsberg! Register by June 1 for the early bird discount.

The house always wins

You voted and the results are in. By a vote of 7-3 in our poll last week, the team thought I should bet on black. Here's a shot of the Rulette table at the Bellagio where it all went down.

Well, that didn't work out. It came up Red 23. Game over. No alternate jerseys for you.

All was not lost, however. Even though Vegas is not my destination of choice - talk about a waste of resources - it was a fun weekend. Here I am with some buds at the Hard Rock, playing Blackjack. Photo courtesy of the Pit Boss.

This chick and her friends joined us. I am told she was runner up on the Apprentice Season 4 and now a reporter for CNBC. If it were a blackjack challenge, I would have won fair and square. It wasn't quite like my last sighting at Hard Rock, some 6 years ago: I saw Jenny McCarthy. I'm not proud of these stories, I'm just telling 'em.

Spring season to conclude by June 29th; playoffs may be truncated

The Commish sent around a note about the spring schedule. With all the rainouts, they are having a hard time fitting in all the makeup games. We are likely to truncate the playoffs, meaning that they'll play only one round of playoffs. #1 plays #2, #3 plays #4, and #5 plays #6. Only the top two seeds get a chance to play in the title game. This matters because the winner of the playoffs gets promoted along with the winner of the regular season. We will probably need to end up #1 or #2 to have a chance at promotion.

See commissioner's note:

Rainouts

If you hadnt noticed, we've had a wee bit of rain
already this season. The rainouts wreak havoc on the schedule even with a
week built in for makeups. We are feverishly working to get last weeks
games rescheduled and adjust the playoffs accordingly. There may even by
an opportunity to for teams {that are able to}to play on Memorial Day. Lou
will be reaching out to you all. Its supposed to rain again this weekend
so keep your ears peeled to the weather line again. If there are any
more rainout weekends, we will likely have to truncate playoffs as per the bylaw
change last Spring. We cant push further into the summer as it will impact
the planning for a Summer session and also we start to come up on July 4th
weekend when people are unavailable for playoffs. So we need to get Spring in by
6/29.

Viva Las Vegas

I'm going to Las Vegas this weekend for a friend's bachelor party. One of my goals is to win enough to buy new alternate jerseys for the team - I'm thinking some nice white training tops.

I have a tradition with some of my friends. At the right time, we take some cash to the Rulette table and pick a color (Red or Black). You've got a 48.5% chance of doubling your money. This time, I'll play for the new jerseys. Make sure to vote in the poll above to help me pick a color.

Is this a good idea? No, it's not.

CCSL Night at the DC United game

First things first. This is the 300th post on this blog. It's an important milestone that will remembered forever and ever.

Now, a message from your league social chair, Tim Daly. He wants to let you know about the CCSL tailgate at this weekend's DCU game. I would have organized something in support, but I'm going to Las Vegas instead. I encourage folks to go. See message below:

I wanted to send aquick reminder that a week from today, next Saturday April
26th - wewill be having our first CCSL tailgate of the year before the DCUnited
game at RFK! This event is cosponsored by the Washington AreaWomen's Soccer
League - and should prove to be a lot of fun!The game starts at 7:30pm, and DCU
will be taking on Real Salt Lake.There will be food and drink at the tailgate
starting at 5:00pm, so besure to stop by before kickoff! To find our tailgate,
look for theCCSL/WAWSL sign in Parking Lot 8, by Light pole numbered"8i." Light
pole "8i" is on the opposite side of lot 8 as theScreaming Eagles and Barra
Brava tailgate.We have created the attached flyer, so please if you have a
second,share with your players at your game and by email. We are reallytrying to
turn out a crowd for the game.Don't forget – CCSL needs your help – if you or
any of your playersare going to come to the game, try and order your tickets at
thefollowing link:http://dcunited.mlsnet.com/t103/tickets/2008/groups/season/index.jsp?code=ccslLastly
-- let me know if you think you or any of your teammates mightbe able to make
the tailgate - we are trying to get a handle on howmuch food to get. Also - if
you want to help us out at the tailgate -let me know - we need some
volunteers.Thanks folks! In the event you have any questions or need to reachme,
please feel free to shoot me an email or call me at (518)542-6560.Thanks
folks,Tim Daly – CCSL Social Chair

By the way, do you know which player is pictured above? I met the guy at National Airport last year. I did a post on it.

Contribute to this blog

This blog ain't all about me. You can author your own posts and publish them. Maybe you want to get a practice scheduled. Maybe you want to meet people for beers.

Just send an email to golerosteam.publish@blogger.com. The subject line will become the title of the post and the text of the email will become the body.

Game canceled (again)

We got canceled again.

That's two cancellations due to rain. It was bound to happen at some point, because for the last several years, we've played with very few cancellations. We've been lucky.

Today's cancellation means that we have two games to play once the official season ends. The first is scheduled for June 8th already. The second may be scheduled for June 15th, same time same place, but be prepared for the league to try to fit in a game during the week sometime in the evening. Your June weekends are now full. We PLAN on making the playoffs so we'll go all the way through June now!

Finally, next week is a bye week. We'll have been off for two weeks, with a rain cancellation just a few weeks before that. We're going to be rusty. Let's plan on a couple of practices. Stay tuned.

What a difference

What a difference a season makes.  In the fall, some early attendance woes left us with a 0-2 record and zero points after the first two games.  This spring, we're 2-0, with 6 points in the bank.  Will this momentum last?

Hope so.

We played a great match last weekend versus Celtic, a team we had not previously beaten outright in two attempts.  Once we scored the first goal, we were never in danger of losing this time around.  We had a good attack and a steady defense led by Liam, who recorded his second shutout in a row.  The midfield was effective.

Two plays stand out in my mind.  The first was Nate's frantic turn on the near sideline that led to the first and winning goal.  Great effort!  The second was an uneventful play in which we were faced with a quick counter by Celtic.  Mike hustled back to the middle and simply put a body on their central midfielder.  The attack was disrupted and they had to pass back instead of advance.  We reset and regained possession.  When we do that, we usually win.

Jon, a.k.a. "Bubbles" scored two more goals this week, opening up a commanding lead in the prestigious Goleros Spring Season Scoring Title.  Please, someone give him some competition.

What did you think of the game?

Notes: 2-0 win versus Celtic on 4/12/08 at Trinity.  Goals by Jon (Mike), Jon (Jer). GK: Liam (shutout).

Pope Watch

The Pope is in town.  

My wife snapped this shot of His Holiness in the Popemobile on her phone yesterday on Pennsylvania Ave.

Maybe the Pope will make an appearance at our game on Sunday.

Not likely.

Meet your team

This week, I submitted our Spring 2008 roster to the league.  We're all set for the season. Meet your team!

Women: Ally, Bri, Carolyn, Deanna (Dee?), Jackal, Kate, Katya, Kristin, Heather, Megan

Men: Adrian, Bubbles, Chip, Chris, Grizzy, Jer, Liam, Mike, Nate, Pete (The Finisher?), Tom

Alternates: Anna, Ashley, Carlitos, Cat, Court, Ermy, Jen, John, Leslie

Did I miss any good nicknames?

Some thoughts...

Our roster of women is super strong. I'm really proud of it, but of course many of the additions are due to recruiting of fellow teammates. Katya and Heather seem like veterans but actually they're still pretty new, having less than a full season under their belts.  This season, we added Deanna, Bri, and Carolyn.  Dee and Bri are part of our large CUA Contingent that also includes Jackie, Kate, and Ally.

We've been full on guys for a while.  Mike and Liam were our last additions.

We have many faithful and skillful alternates who routinely bail us out. Ashley and Cat are two new players that we'll meet at various points this season. Cat (Catherine) is my neighbor. Court knows that she's coming back to the team when she can manage it!

This weekend on the Mall

Katya has a good tip.  This Sunday, after our 1:00 p.m. game, people can wander over to the Green Apple Festival, an environmental music festival.  There are some pretty decent acts there.

Here's a list:

The Roots & Friends

featuring Doug E. Fresh, Ne-Yo, Talib Kweli, will.i.am, Chrisette Michele and more

 

Gov't Mule

 

Umphrey's McGee

 

O.A.R. (special acoustic kickoff set)

 

Thievery Corporation (DJ Set)

Toots & The Maytals

Warren Haynes Solo Acoustic

 

Mambo Sauce

CityDance Ensemble

Joy of Motion: Urban Impact

DC Boys Choir

 

Special National Anthem performance by American Idol winner Jordin Sparks 

See anyone you like?

RSVP here for April 20th game

We play Red Tape at 1:00 p.m. on the Mall.

Are you in?


We know that Jon, Brianne, and Mike are out. I may be out as well.

Indoor season ends on a high note

The Goleros Indoor Experiment is over. It was a success...unless you define success by wins and losses. We were 1-5-2!

Here are the results:

• WINTER 2008 INDOOR
• Feb. 6th - 11-4 win vs i2 iXvs
• Feb. 20th - 5-4 loss vs OTL
• Feb. 27th - 2-2 tie vs Gung Ho
• Mar. 5th - 6-2 loss vs Fairfax United
• Mar. 12th 4-2 loss vs Dirty Nellys
• Mar. 19th - 5-1 loss to Esso Tigers
• Mar. 26th - 7-3 loss to Dubliners FC
• April 2nd - 3-3 tie vs Yellow Snow

Overall, it was great for ball control and decision-making. Additionally, it's nice to play without stressing about lineups, etc. Indoor is a place to test your skills.

There were some memorable moments - mainly in the oops category. I would summarize the season by recalling my "eagle" or "cobra" save in goal.

We ended on a high note with a tie in which 3 goals were scored in the final two to three minutes.

We'll probably do it again next year. Thanks to everyone, especially Juan, Alfonso, Max, Erin, Jenny, and Tim who joined us from other teams.

Have any memories? Did you enjoy it?

Happy hour Thursday 7:00 p.m. at Rocketbar - sponsored by the Flirts

The Flirts are known as a pretty friendly team. They are sponsoring a happy hour this Thursday to which everyone in the league is invited. Here's the evite:

Host:
Patrick Delaney, Matt Bonness and Mark Hertko
Location:
RocketBar714 7th Street NW, Chinatown/Gallery Place Metro, DC 20001 USView Map
When:
Thursday, April 17,
7:00PM
Phone:
240-413-4215
Hey Flirts, and friends of
Flirts...Tax season is over, soccer season is rolling, what better excuse to
drink a few on a schoolnight? Join the Flirts for a happy hour this Thursday at
our sponsor, RocketBar in Chinatown.We'll celebrate this week's stunning
come-from-behind, short-handed 3-2 win, and try to nurse all of those injuries
back to health.METRO: Take Green/Red/Yellow to Chinatown/Gallery Place. PARKING:
Best option is the Central lot where the old Convention Center used to be at 9th
and I.RocketBar is a single door across from Clydes and between Comfort One
Shoes, Legal Sea Foods and Ruby Tuesday.Call or email if you get
lost!We look forward to seeing everyone out on Thursday.Thanks - Patrick, Matt
and Mark

DC United tickets

Remember folks, get your DC United tickets through CCSL. We have a dedicated ticket rep, and if we sell enough tickets, it means nice benefits for our league. See our social chair's note below:

In the meantime – I hope a good number of us were able to see DCUnited decimate
Toronto FC last night! It was great to see DC put up4 goals. Don't
forget – CCSL needs your help – if you are going to aDC United game, try and
order your tickets at the following link:http://dcunited.mlsnet.com/t103/tickets/2008/groups/season/index.jsp?code=ccslDon't
forget: on Saturday April 26th, we will be teaming up with theWashington Area
Women's Soccer League (WAWSL) to have a tailgatebefore United takes on Real Salt
Lake. The game starts at 7:30pm,with the tailgate before. Details
will be forthcoming in the next fewweeks but please save your afternoon on
Saturday April 26th!

BTW - I am headed to the game this Thursday night versus Columbus.

Gimme the money

The league is cashing my dues check. That means your money is past due. The following people are on my good side because they paid:

Ally, Nate, Deanna, Liam, Jackie, Griz, chip, Jer, Katya, Jon

The rest of you - please pay up at the game. It's $85 + $15.

There's a new blog out there...

It's early in the season and we don't have many accomplishments yet.  But we have one.  We inspired our friends at Far Post to start their own blog.  Check it out here.  Looks like the Far Post captain Jon, and honorary Goleros player, Tim, share some duties in running it.  Hey, blogging is cool!  I'm already getting some ideas by the way they do things over there.  Looks good!

April 13th game - RSVP here

Our second game of the season versus Celtic.  We've tied them twice, both times by a score of 2-2.  It's time to go up in this series.  10:00 a.m. Sunday at Trinity (don't forget to read about the special rules for the field here).

RSVP now by adding a comment.  

We already know that Carolyn and Jackie are out.

League sponsored happy hour this week

Check out the message sent around by the league's social chair.  There is a happy hour scheduled for Thursday night at Madam's Organ.  I would ordinarily get everyone ginned up to go, but I'm kind of slammed this week at work.  Since I'll be at work events each night, I am a "maybe" at best.  But by all means, go, it looks fun.

A quick reminder that this coming Thursday, April 10th, there will be
a CCSL happy hour at Madam's Organ in Adam's Morgan.  The happy hour
will help raise money for "City FC," a local small non profit soccer
program that CCSL's own Dan Driscoll created in 2007 for DC public
high school students.  This program provides District youth with a
free chance to play competitive soccer combined with first-rate
mentorship and college preparation.  Happy Hour starts at 5:30 - feel
free to stop by anytime after that.

As an added benefit, CCSL player and musician Jessica Wdowiarz and her
band "Straight Steel and Wire" will be providing live entertainment at
the happy hour.  To get a taste of their great music, check out their
myspace page at:

http://www.myspace.com/straightsteelandwire

Put June 8th on your calendars

This year, the league built in a rain-out date: June 8th.  Expect our match that was canceled last weekend to be rescheduled for June 8th. Since all matches at the Lincoln Mall fields were canceled, I'm guessing they'll just run them in order on that day.  So expect a 1pm match versus Tsunami on June 8th on the Mall.  To be confirmed...

Sunday's game canceled

The field conditions on the mall are really bad due to several days of sustained rain. All games on the mall are canceled. We'll have to look to next week - our game is 10:00 a.m. versus Celtic at Trinity.

April birthdays

Two of our teammates are celebrating their birthdays this week. We're going to miss each of them because they're traveling to celebrate. Travel safely. And happy birthday - you're older and slower, but hopefully wiser too.

Reminders: weather and parking

Two reminders for this weekend's 1:00 p.m. game on the Mall.

We are expecting continued rain that may make the fields unplayable, even if it's clear come Sunday. Make sure to call the new inclement weather line before you leave (703.229.1705).

If the game is on, leave early. There will be no parking on the mall. To me, Metro makes a lot more sense. Just park near a metro station and ride/walk to the field. It's the national mall in the spring - why not? Here is what the league says about parking:

With the Cherry Blossom Race, parking will be especially bad this weekend. The best place to park is on the north side of Constitution Ave.NW or East of 7th St. There will be no parking in East or West Potomac Parks along the river where we usually park for these fields.

At last...the schedule

Our friend Lou, the league scheduler, finally nailed everything down for the spring schedule. It ain't easy to find premium field space for 36 teams, which is why we had to go day-to-day for a while. Many thanks for getting it out and for taking care of Goleros!

Our schedule is as follows:

3/30 11:30 a.m. vs Flirts at Trinity (DC)
4/6 1:00 p.m. vs Tsunami at Lincoln Mall field #1 (DC)
4/13 10:00 a.m. vs Celtic at Trinity (DC)
4/20 1:00 p.m. vs Red Tape at Lincoln Mall field #2 (DC)
4/27 BYE
5/4 12:00 p.m. vs Capital Crew at Kenmore MS (Arlington)
5/11 8:00 p.m. vs Two Left Feet at George Mason HS (Falls Church)
5/18 11:30 a.m. vs Quicksilver FC at Lincoln Mall field #1 (DC)
6/1 4:00 p.m. vs Clare and Dons at George Mason HS (Falls Church)
6/8 RAIN OUT DATE

Field locations are found on the CCSL website. Additionally, I link their locations/directions on our schedule module at the top of the blog.

A couple notes on the sked. We've got one night game on May 11th. Also, let's keep in mind how competitive the division is. Last season, most teams were within a few points. There was a traffic jam for second place. It was ours to lose, but because of a single point, we fell all the way to 7th! We've got a .500 record versus most of the teams so each game will be a challenge. Clare and Dons are a wildcard. Frankly, I'm circling our next two matches versus Tsunami and Celtic, two teams that will likely finish high in the table. If we can pick up points early on, we'll be in good shape.

April 6th game - RSVP here

Our outdoor game this weekend is Sunday, 1:00 p.m., on the Mall (Lincoln #1). We're playing one of our closest rivals, Tsunami. We are 1-1-1 versus Tsunami (see game reports here, here, and here). They always show up ready to play.

Are you in?