More cowbell!

This was a topic of discussion at the last happy hour:

http://www.funnyhub.com/videos/pages/snl-more-cowbell.html

Is it the funniest Saturday night live skit ever?

This one was pretty good too:

http://www.nbc.com/Saturday_Night_Live/video/clips/update-palin-rap/773781/

Weekend notes

Prepare for Goleros overload. We have a game Saturday, hopefully drinks Saturday early evening, and hopefully a game on Sunday, not to mention the championship next weekend. And let's not forget the birthday boy (Liam) and his soiree Saturday night at Whitlow's. What, you don't know Whitlow's? Shame on you, it's a great spot. Virginia yuppy-ville.

Weather is so-so for the weekend - great if you don't mind a little rain. Saturday the magical Internet is forcasting breezy conditions, with rain, about 65 degrees. Sunday is looking a little cooler but sunny. However, none of this matters as far as the game schedule goes. We're on turf both days so no cancellations. Plan to show up!

Don't forget to bring your photo ID's to both games. They will be doing a full roster check. Everyone is on the roster so we're fine there.

Last note, and this is important. Have fun!

The post-season begins now!

Have any thoughts about the post-season? Share them here.

The last chapter of the 2008 campaign begins this weekend. Going into the playoff tournament, there is one standout team, Hoover FC (7-0-1). The other five competitors – DC Divided (5-1-2), Flirts (5-3-0), Goleros (4-3-1), Armory (4-3-1), and DC Thunder (3-3-2) – had comparable seasons. Take a look at the final table. The numbers show regular season record, total points, goals for/goals against, goal differential, and goal differential average.

1. Hoover FC 7-0-1, 22, 22/6, +16, 2.0

2. DC Divided 5-1-2, 17, 21/9, +12, 1.5

3. Flirting with Sobriety 5-3-0, 15, 22/8, +14, 1.8

4. Goleros 4-3-1, 13, 17/14, +3, .4

5. Armory 4-3-1, 13, 17/15, +2, .3

6. DC Thunder 3-3-2, 11, 21/20, +1, .1

7. Lost Tourists 3-4-1, 10, 19/15, +4, .5

8. The Diplomats 2-4-2, 8, 19/20, -1, .1

9. Funky Town 1-6-1, 4, 6/35, -29, -3.6

10. Far Post 0-7-1, 1, 3/25, -22, -2.8

Here’s a few thoughts on the table. Hoover FC is alone at the top. The next six teams are separated by only 2 wins. The top 7 teams have a positive goal differential. Although it was close in the middle of the pack, DC Divided and the Flirts separated themselves from us in points and goals. Armory went on a late-season run, but we finish above them on several tie-breakers, including head-to-head. Lost Tourists and the Diplomats both miss the playoffs but they could have easily been there. Funky Town and Far Post weren’t competitive this season. Funky Town escaped the last place finish it probably deserved based on severe attendance problems at Far Post. Of all the teams, we had the second most difficult schedule, since we didn’t play Funky Town, but everyone else did. Of course, we didn’t have the play the Far Post game – we picked up a forfeit win, so these things tend to even out.

On Saturday, we face Armory, a team we defeated 3-1 in the only previous meeting of the teams. It was a costly match, no doubt. However, their captain, Kurt, is a friend of mine from way back so we will be both reminding players that we’re going to play hard but safe. I’m anticipating a fun match. If we should win, we’ll face the No. 1 seed, Hoover FC, on Sunday.

Let’s dig in and try to win it all. If we can string together 3 good performances, we’ll have a pretty good chance of taking home the famed CCSL Trophy.*

Go team!

* There is no trophy.

League happy hour next Thursday

Check out this note the captains got from the Commish:

Hey All,

We are going to have a league wide End of the
Season happy hour on Thursday Nov 20th starting at 7PM hosted by our friends
Clare and Dons. We didnt get a chance to have a tailgate this season, so I
hope that we can a really good turnout for this event. CCSL will use our
social budget buy a good portion of beers and appetizers plus there will be a
bunch of food/drink specials on top of this. So make sure you get there
early!!

Where: Clare and Dons Beach Shack
130 N Washington StreetFalls Church, VA http://www.clareanddons.com/

When: Thursday November 20th
7PM-10PM

Who: All CCSL players and friends of the
league PLEASE forward this to your teams so that they know about the happy
hour.

Its a great way to get to know some of your
fellow competitors off the pitch and its a good reason to celebrate another fun
CCSL season. And did I mention free booze and food??? Hope to see you
all there!

Sanjay

November Madness

The scheduler has released the playoff bracket.  We have the schedule for the Quarters and Semis, but not the Finals.  We play in the Quarters at 4:00 p.m. on Sat. the 15th.  If we win, we would play again at 3:30 on Sunday the 16th.  The championship will be sometime on Sunday the 23rd.

Here's the bracket in the Second Division:

Quarters                                       Semis                                           Finals

 #3 Flirts vs #6 DC Thunder    --->   Winner vs #2 DC Divided

                                                                                                       --->   TBD

 #4 Goleros vs #5 Armory         ----> Winner vs #1 Hoover FC

The path to victory is clear!

What do you think will happen in the division?  What are the odds of a Goleros vs. Flirts rematch?

Saturday game will be played at 4:00 p.m. at W&L

Here's the email I sent out.  RSVP is taking place by email this time.  I'll remind folks later too, but don't forget to bring a photo ID with you.

Hey everyone,

We have half the information now.  Our Saturday game is at 4:00 p.m. versus Armory at W&L High School in North Arlington.  Super convenient location and a pretty good time.  To speed things up, let's RSVP by email now.  I know the following so far for Saturday:

PI - in

Bri - in

Jackie - out

Carlos and Anna, join the party.

Salud!

Good times were had at Happy Hour this week.  Most people were there by 7:00 and many of us didn't leave until close to midnight.

Here, Kate and Alec are shown leading the group in a round of shots.  I think Jackie purchased this round.

I ordered the chicken philly.  Don't recommend it.  I think I'll try something else next time.

There was much talk about the next outing.  Will it be another happy hour? Something more crazy, like a club night? 

Possibly. 

Letter to fans

The following open letter was released to fans of the DC United today. Our fans won't be getting such a long letter. Of course, we did a lot better than DC United did in our respective league!

Dear D.C. United Fan,

As the season has come to a close, we want to
share a few decisions and update you, our fans - the very best fans and
supporters in major league sports.

"Win Championships and Serve the
Community" is D.C. United's mission statement. We strive everyday to achieve it.
It does not mean that we will win championships every year, but we will be
disappointed if we don't - and will work that much harder to make sure it
happens the following year. It also means that we will put on the field not only
quality soccer players, but quality human beings, who represent you and us in
the way we want to be represented.

The 2008 season was a disappointment. We
had high hopes entering the season, but success was not achieved to our level of
expectations. We did win the U.S. Open Cup, our 12th trophy, and the night of
the championship game at our home stadium was exciting and a wonderful
environment for the team and our fans.

Except for the U.S. Open Cup, we had
a down year on the field and there are a variety of reasons why we did not
succeed. For some time now, we have looked at those reasons and spoken in depth
with the individuals involved. As a result of that investigation, our historical
success, their past performance and our belief in these individuals, we have
made no changes to our team executives. Kevin Payne, Dave Kasper and Tommy Soehn
will return. There are also no changes anticipated on the business side of the
company.
However, we don't want you to assume that those reasons will be
excuses for our lack of success. Another repeat of last year's performance on
the pitch is not an acceptable outcome. And we don't expect it
again.

Accordingly, we are becoming more active in the overall management of
D.C. United, and have added the title of Co-Executive Chairman for each of us.
While day-to-day management will continue to reside in our executives, all "CEO"
level executive decisions will be made by us. As part of our new role the
business operations and team operations will report directly to us.
The
business reorganization will ensure responsibility, accountability and focus. We
are instituting enhanced management practices and have agreed upon clear
performance metrics and expectations for all of the above named
executives.

Kevin Payne remains president and is directly responsible for the
business operations of D.C. United and as stated above will report directly to
us. Kevin will also assist in the oversight of the team operations, provide his
advice and be part of the decision-making process on player selection and other
aspects of that area of our business. However, the primary responsibility and
accountability will be with General Manager Dave Kasper, who will also report
directly to us. Tommy remains the coach of the team.

We have excellent
executives and, equally important, they are quality people. However, we are in a
very competitive business, and we have high standards for ourselves. Our job is
to ensure we achieve those standards by setting clear expectations and ensuring
that we hold everyone accountable for these agreed upon goals and objectives. If
these are not met to our satisfaction, we will take what ever action is
necessary to achieve those goals.

We want to thank you for your commitment
to the club. Your passion is unmatched.
Going into the future, we intend to
update you regularly to share with you our thoughts on D.C. United and the
decisions that we have made.

Sincerely,Victor MacFarlane and Will
Chang

Saturday Playoff Game

We are securely in 4th place. As such we play the 5th place team on
Saturday Nov. 15th. That team will either be Lost Tourists or Armory.
They play their final game against each other Sun. Nov. 9th. We play
the winner. In case of a tie, we will play Lost Tourists as they hold
the tie breaker of goal differential vs. DC Thunder and Armory (Tourists
also tied DC Thunder - so the tie breaker goes to goal diff.). We beat
Lost Tourists 2-0 and Armory 3-1, however we may not be sharp after the
bye weekend and I think we are missing some players.

Nate
(Hope to see you tonight if I can get away)

December tournament opportunity

Ally made me aware of the following tournament.  If you're interested, post a comment and we'll see where it goes.

Support our sponsor, Soccer Resort, and register a team in their 8v8 December tournament on turf fields in Fairfax.

About The Tournament Weekend

Fasten your seatbelts! The Soccer Resort is returning to the D.C. area - come play in our Beltway soccer tournament with our Men's and Women's divisions being the Saturday December 6 and the Coed divisions Sunday, December 7, 2008. We have great new artificial fields in Farifax County at Poplar Tree Park in Chantilly Virginia, so the tournament will go ahead rain or shine!!

Join teams from many leagues across DC such as NVSL, WISL, WAWSL, and CCSL - as well as teams from across the Northeast. We'll have the following 8v8 Soccer tournaments for Adults. Divisions include:

* Men's Soccer Tournaments (Three Divisions Plus 0 40's),
* Women's Soccer Tournaments (3 Divisions - A and B, and O30's)
* Coed Soccer Tournaments (Two Divisions - A and B) 

The tournament will be at a new location at Lake Fairfax on Artificial Turf.

* Four games guaranteed
* 30 minutes per game
* Soccer Travel Prizes Galore
* Trophies, Medals, and More

Early Bird Registration fee is $449 per team by November 8. $499 after November 8. (just for local teams in the MD, VA, DE, DC area).
Tournament Prizes

Click here for more information and to register your team.

Let's go to the bar

I couldn't pass up an opportunity to share this sweet photo.  I took it on a point-n-shoot in Baltimore a few weeks ago.  This classic joint is located 1 block off of Fells Point.

Speaking of bars, Jackie's email made it clear that you are supposed to come join us tomorrow night after work for happy hour.  We'll be at McFadden's.  Click on the link and hear Bubbles' favorite song.

See you there.

Kate steps in

Our goal in Week 8 was to come out and play well. Believe it or not, we did that.  Though we lost 4-2 to DC Divided, we closed the match with two unanswered goals.  From the sideline, it looked like we had busted loose on the offense.  Kate's save on the PK in the 90' was clutch.  I think it was a good statement of our toughness in the match.

Your Captain didn't organize the troops very well at the opening whistle.  But the players on the field organized and probably possessed the ball the majority of the time.  Some quick transitions and confusion on defense spelled our doom.  We had some good sustained pressure on offense, no doubt.  Ermy made some runs.  Griz had a few good shots from distance.  Bri supported the attack like a pro.  And so on.  We played well - dare I say...respectable?

Despite the loss, we finish the regular season with a winning record (4-3-1).  There have been a lot of positives.  For now, though, it's time to look forward to the playoffs.  I think it's an accomplishment to come to a new division and make the playoffs right away.  More on that later.

Scoring summary:

75' - Griz accepts a pass and hits Jon, who was posted up like a target forward, in the center of the box.  Jon turns, makes a nice move past two defenders and puts it in the back of the net.

85' - Jon dribbles from the left side into the box, shoots, collects his own rebound and kicks a rising shot into the net.

So, what do you think we should focus on for the playoffs?

Notes: 4-2 loss to DC Divided, 11/2/08, Trinity. GK: Kate (saved PK followed Nate's slide tackle in the box).

 

More details on playoff schedule

Note that we will almost surely play our first game on Saturday Nov. 15th.  If we win, we would play again on Sunday Nov. 16th.

Have any scheduling requests?  Post them here today.

From the commissioner:

Playoffs

 

Playoffs are scheduled to begin the weekend of Nov 15th and 16th.  The top 6 teams of each division make the playoffs with the two top seeds getting a first round bye.  As always, we will have quarterfinals on a Saturday (15th) with the Semifinals on Sunday (16th).  Finals will be Sunday Nov 23rd at GMHS starting at 3:30 in the afternoon.  If you think you will likely make the playoffs and have schedule requests for Lou please let him know asap and we will try and accomodate wherever possible.  Please note, these requests can only be time of day and not actual day of the game.  Also remember that ID checks will be done at playoff games and no players that are not on the official submitted roster from Week 4 will be alllowed to play.

 

For the next 2 weeks, please be sure to update results on the web site as soon as possible after each game so that we can start to plan playoff matchups.

Turn back the clock

Thanks to a tip from an anonymous poster, we know to turn back our clocks.  Daylight Savings Time ends at midnight on Saturday night.  We'll "fall back" one hour.  Call it payback for getting up so early last weekend.  

See you at 9:45 a.m. Sunday at Trinity.

We're in!

Assessing the standings in the Second Division is a complicated exercise.  We’re currently in 3^rd place on tie-breakers and we've made the playoffs. It’s difficult to see how the dust settles in the division because there are so many makeup games, and some teams have not entered their results.  We probably won’t see a lot of movement in the standings for our team because we’ve played the most games and have the fewest points left to gain.  Right now, here's what we're looking at:

 

1. Flirts, 5-1-0, 15 pts

2. Hoover FC, 4-0-1, 13 pts

3. Goleros, 4-2-1, 13 pts

4. DC Divided, 3-1-2, 11 pts

5. Lost Tourists, 3-2-1, 10 pts

6. Armory, 2-2-1, 7 pts

7. DC Thunder, 1-3-2, 5 pts

8. Dips, 0-4-2, 2 pts

9. Far Post, 0-4-1, 1 pt

10. Funky Town, 0-3-1, 1 pt

 

View the full table here.

 

As we go through scenarios, I call upon Nate and other fellow bloggers to set me straight if I make mistakes.  Let’s get started.

 

Going into the final game, the best we will finish is 2^nd; the worst, 5^th.  We finish in 2^nd with 16 points if we beat DC Divided, while the Flirts lose to Armory and tie Hoover FC, while Hoover FC picks up only 1 point in three games.  Those scenarios are very unlikely, but they are the only way we are guaranteed to play for the championship.  We can drop to 5^th with 13 points if we lose to DC Divided, who would leapfrog us in the standings, while Lost Tourists win out versus Hoover FC and Armory and also leapfrog us.

 

What does this mean?  Well, if we win this weekend, we will probably secure 3^rd place.  If we lose or tie, we will probably drop in the standings – I’m guessing to 4^th – as DC Divided gets another chance to jump us in a makeup game plus they would probably hold the tie-breaker.  Lost Tourists would also get a chance to jump us, although they’d have to win out because we hold the tie-breaker against them due to last week’s win. At the bottom of the table, four teams are fighting off relegation. DC Thunder is probably out of the playoffs, but they’re otherwise safe.  The Diplomats, Far Post, and Funky Town are in the worst shape.

 

Let’s have a good game this weekend and see what happens.

Saturday game tentatively scheduled

Take a look at the tentative scheduled posted at the top of the blog.  We may play our first playoff game on Saturday Nov. 15th.  I thought for sure the commish would truncate the playoffs after this weekend's cancellations at Kenmore and the Marina.  However, they're fitting those makeups into another Saturday fixture.  So, as far as I know, we're still on track for a 2-weekend playoff beginning in three weeks.

I'll let you know more when I get word.

Zzzzzz...

Most of us got up at 6:30 on Sunday morning to play.  It was brutal.  We conducted a poll to see what everyone did following the game to catch up on sleep.

1 person, or 9% of respondents, went back to bed.  That had to be Ally, who reportedly pulled an all-nighter Saturday.  I'm sure she was going over our game plan.  It paid off, she set up the second goal.

The rests of the respondents were split.  5 persons, or 45%, took a nap later in the day.  The other 5 persons, also 45%, wanted to sleep but didn't.  I'm guessing those are the people with kids and what-not.  No time for sleep.

RSVP for the last regular season game

We face the Commissioner's team for the last regular season game.  DC Divided is looking pretty good in the standings, putting up better numbers than we are.  I've been told that Sanjay is not a guy you want to have a lot of time on the ball.

Game's at 9:45 a.m. at Trinity.  The only slacker I know of is Alec - he's headed up to New York.

What's your status?

Thumbs up!

Post your thoughts on the game now.  As always, feel free to add details or correct my faltering memory!

Here's my thoughts: we're on a roll.  On our home turf, we managed a 2-0 win versus the Lost Tourists, which only a few months ago was a First Division team.

I think we were impressive.  Let's start with the fact that the game started at 8:00 a.m.  History teaches that I should be quite worried when games start that early.  But this time around, we had a full squad before the whistle - and I was the last one to get to the field!  I think it says a lot that we can rally at that ungodly hour.

One key to the match was the play of Carlitos, who we called up from the alternates list along with Anna.  He anchored our defense for the Full 90.

As a team, we executed a good game plan.  We capitalized on a shaky Lost Tourists defense by exerting pressure up top - at least for the first half.  That was a key factor in preventing their strikers from developing attacks and taking the lead before the midpoint.  We did face the occasional counterattack.  We dodged bullets twice in that regard.  Once, a striker got behind our defense but Alec was there to meet him outside the box with what can best be described as the spider-man maneuver.  Although he was carded for contact, it was an impressive play.  Another time, their diminutive striker created a 2-on-1 but Kristin's persistent footsteps forced a bad decision to pass, which Alec was able to shut down with excellent positioning.

Meanwhile, Adrian had his best game in an orange jersey, and not simply for the goals.  Here's the scoring summary:

30' - Nate streaks from the near side to the middle and flicks a pass, which lands at Chip's feet.  Chip finds Adrian deep in the box, and Adrian pokes it to the near post past the goalie.

50' - Ally wins the ball and passes it up the wing to Anna, who quickly sends a through ball to Adrian.  Adrian makes a long run around the last defender and placed a brilliant, bending strike to the far post.  Very impressive goal against the run of play.  The entire counter-attack, from start to finish, took about 15 seconds.

Congrats to our opponent as well.

Notes: 2-0 win vs Lost Tourists, 10/26/08, Trinity. Goals: Adrian (Chip), Adrian (Anna). GK: Alec (Liam during a 2-minute sub), shutout. Discipline: Alec (yellow: contact as last man).

[Photo: Carlos and his lovely daughter, Alexandra, at the U.S. vs. Cuba match]

Fallfest tournament?

Hey folks, the fall season is winding down. We've been talking about indoor in the offseason. I'm going to postpone indoor until January, when I hope to be able to put a team together. I want us to focus on the remaining games in outdoor and look at some possible socials.

However, I've been talking to the Columbia Soccer tournament president, and he's still thinking of doing the Fallfest tournament in Columbia, MD. He doesn't have any turf fields available so that would leave us with relatively hard grass (bummer). At this point, I would guess he would schedule it on one of the following Saturdays: Nov. 22nd (we might have a playoff game the next day), Nov. 29th (T-giving weekend), Dec. 6th, or Dec. 13th.

Playoff schedules aside, are you interested in doing the Fallfest tournament?

I say, yes, let's at least be open to the idea!

Weather report

I am predicting that tomorrow's game is played as scheduled.

We're experiencing some showers today, but they should clear up tonight, according to the weather forecast.  By tomorrow morning, it should be clear and cool.  I'm guessing the league will play the  game if at possible.

You can call the inclement weather line tomorrow, but don't expect it to be updated until after you've left for the game.

Soccer boots

Monica made these booties for Cooper, Griz's new baby boy. Note the soccer motif. I'm thinking he'll be a midfielder like his father. It's never too early to introduce him to the Beautiful Game.

Griz, how's Coop doing?  And Mary?

[Photo by Author]

All clear of the relegation zone

Aside from the injuries, we've had a good season.  Going into Week 7, let's enjoy the last games. Here are the standings:

Flirts              5-1-0, 15 pts

Hoover FC    4-0-1, 13 pts

Lost Tourists  3-1-1, 10 pts

DC Divided   3-1-1, 10 pts

Goleros          3-2-1, 10 pts

Armory          3-2-1, 10 pts

DC Thunder  1-3-2, 5 pts

Diplomats      0-4-1, 1 pt

Far Post         0-4-1, 1 pt

Funky Town  0-3-0, 0 pts

You can view the full table here.

Thanks to our win last weekend, we are now clear of the relegation zone. As you may know, we have a promotion and relegation system in this league. At the end of the regular season, the top finisher is offered promotion to the next level, along with the winner of the playoffs. To the extent that lower division teams are promoted, the bottom finishers are relegated. So you don’t want to be in the bottom two spots. We’re clear of that now, for sure.

In fact, we’re making a playoff run. We are currently in 5th place, although note that three of the teams above us have a game in hand.  That means two things.  First, we probably won't reach the top of the table like we did last season.  The top teams will play each other and someone above us will continue to pick up points.  Second, we haven't made the playoffs yet. We probably need one more win to keep control of our fate.  

The playoffs are currently scheduled over two weekends in mid November. The six top finishers will play in a traditional bracket to determine the winner. However, if we have more cancelations, the Commissioner will truncate the playoffs per league rules so we don't play past Thanksgiving.  In that event, there would be a one-weekend playoff. The top six teams would each have a playoff game, but only the #1 and #2 seeds would play for the playoff championship. The other games would be exhibitions.

Two more regular season games. Let’s just keep doing what we’re doing.

Run, Cat, Run

Only a few weeks after competing in the Army 10-miler, after which she allegedly planned to play in our game (it got cancelled), Cat is running the Marine Corps!

That's quite a commitment and a feat. 26.2, wow. While we are running on the field, she will be running on the streets. Who runs more - a marathon racer or a Goleros midfielder? That's a tough one.

Best of luck!

Cat, make sure to let us know how everything went.

Traffic alert: Marine Corps Marathon

The Marine Corps Marathon conflicts with our game, so we're going to have to deal with traffic closures. Click here to see the full list. Make sure to leave EARLY. The course goes through Arlington, Georgetown, and the National Mall this year. See the course map here. Basically, on your way to the game, you want to avoid the GW Parkway across from Georgetown, the Key Bridge, and Wisconsin Ave in Georgetown.

[Updated 4:43 p.m.]