Bar Dives: Fighting the Flop with the Casbah.

The Quakes have back to back games against teams with two of the most accomplished divers in MLS.  Last week we saw a well-executed, albeit a relatively low degree of difficulty dive by Alvaro Saborio.  On Saturday, Charlie Davies arrives with DC United, preceded by his reputation as one of the nation’s more gifted divers.  I’m anticipating a polished display, given the proximity of the USC’s Sullivan Aquatic center for his pre-game preparations. 

Saborio's dive has huge impact for the Quakes this week, with Bobby Burling and Brad Ring suspended.  Burling was red carded having been implicated in the ‘foul’ of Saborio and is due a $250 fine.  In the spirit of fighting the flop, The Casbah will be selling raffle tickets at their tailgate on Saturday to raise money to pay the fines of Burling, Ring (fined $250 for his fifth yellow card) and Jon Busch (fined $500 for showing Saborio his new one-fingered goalkeeper glove).  Please consider helping this worthy cause and join the increasingly popular movement among soccer fans to “Fight the flop”.

http://www.sjcasbah.com/

In the meantime, I wonder if with a little background knowledge of this esoteric sport, we might learn to appreciate the skill involved in diving.  Since Quakes fans are unaccustomed to watching diving, here are a few pointers to enhance our appreciation of its complex techniques.

In competition, divers perform a number of dives consisting of somersaults, pikes and twists etc. Judges consider the approach, the flight, and the entry of the entire dive, with the following factors taken into consideration:

http://www.fighttheflop.com/

• The height of the diver at the apex of the dive, with extra height resulting in a higher score.
• Properly defined body position of the diver, including pointed toes and feet touching at all times.
• The proper amounts of rotation and revolution upon completion of the dive.
• Angle of entry – a diver should enter the water with minimal splash.

A possible score out of ten for technique is multiplied by the degree of difficulty (DD) factor, which is derived from the number and combination of movements attempted. The most commonly performed dive in soccer has a DD of 1.2 (a forward dive in tuck position).  The maximum degree of difficulty (4.8) is awarded for a reverse 4½ somersaults in pike, and is considered by many as the unattainable holy grail in soccer (it requires a three-meter springboard).  Naturally the diver with the highest total score after a sequence of dives is declared the winner. Reviewing recent dives from Davies and Saborio using these criteria, it's possible to determine which diver has thus far achieved the greatest reputation: 

Charlie Davies: Davies’s diving performance against DC had a much higher degree of difficulty than that against RSL.  In this case, the increased distance between Davies’s feet and those of the defender, makes it a much harder sell on the referee, so warrants a DD of 1.9.  Notice, in the slow motion replay the pointed toes, neatly tucked arms during the 1½ somersault flight and minimal splash on the grass; consider also the elegant revolution and good height.  His final score was adjudged at 7.3, and multiplied by the DD of 1.9, his final score was 13.9.

Alvaro Saborio:  Saborio’s positioning in the box was key here: he used two Quakes defenders to block the view of both the referee and the assistant.  Although this was a relatively simple dive (pike with a 1½ twist) the difficulty of this approach earns a higher degree of difficulty – 2.4.  His overall execution was, however, not quite as refined as Davies: entry into the box was slow and his body position was compromised by a trailing left arm and dropped toes that gouged the grass.   However, the lower technical score was overcome by the greater DD, giving Saborio a final score of 16.8.

Saborio has thrown down the gauntlet – will Davies rise (or plummet gracefully) to the challenge to reclaim the diving championship in this weekend’s game against the Earthquakes?  I have to think that Davies's stock with the USMNT has risen significantly this week with the appointment of Jurgen Klinsmann as coach.

Go Quakes!

ABCs of MLS officiating - LOL

Appalling, Atrocious, Apoplectic. Referees have rarely had the respect of fans, but increasingly the current state of refereeing affairs in MLS is so appalling that they no longer have the respect of the players or the coaches.  This week’s result after the road trip to RSL was a tough one for Quakes fans to swallow after referee David Ganter awarded an atrocious game changing penalty for a dive, and initially red carded the wrong player (Brad Ring) for the ‘tackle’.  Quakes captain Chris Wondolowski went apoplectic, arguing the case for his men, but after consultation with his assistant after the initial call, Ganter then red carded Bobby Burling.  At this point replays had shown conclusively that neither Burling nor Ring had touched Saborio, and even the home newspaper agrees it was a dive, which opened the floodgates for the 4-0 victory to RSL. Sure, I would rather win than lose, but I’d much rather lose to RSL than to the referee.   

Believability, Burling, Blind (these are words with a B this time; kudos if you know which song this comes from).   This was David Ganter’s seventh game as an MLS referee; in the first six he had already awarded two red cards, so now he is three for seven – I guess we shouldn’t have been too surprised then.  His believability will surely be under scrutiny, and we can only hope that the MLS mentor program will show him how to improve his field positioning to make such crucial calls.  The assistant was in no position to make the call in this situation as Burling was hidden from his view by Saborio, and Ganter himself was blinded by Ring.  This is the sort of ineffectual officiating that recently led RSL’s coach, Jason Kreis, to propose to his Revs counterpart Stevie Nichol that they walk out of their game in protest at the officiating. 

Credibility, Consistency, Confidence. The biggest hurdle to credibility of MLS referees is consistency.  Not only does a referee need to apply the rules consistently throughout a game (absolutely my biggest exasperation) but I also perceive a lack of consistency from game to game.  MLS has the reputation among players who have played in Europe as a free for all, with only egregious fouls being called.  This results in a physical game and only serves to promote overly dramatic writhing on the grass in order to draw the call.  I also believe it might have been one reason the USMNT suffered a spate of red cards once they got to the Confederations and World Cups, where the international FIFA referees were more fastidious.  MLS will only become a truly professional league, when everyone's confident that the players don’t have to re-calibrate their game each time they play. 

So there you have the ABC of this week’s MLS game in RSL where the Quakes were SOL - not much LOL for this fan.  In the coming week we’ll see how the league addresses the letter D - for diving.  Bring your game jerseys next week Quakes fans, there might be a few spaces on the bench. I’ll bet Busch’s run in with Jason Kreis after the game, and his friendly wave to the referee after the penalty (not all fingers extended), will be rewarded with a day off.  

Bad ideas for soccer promotions.

Last night the San Jose Earthquakes celebrated David Bingham’s 90-yard wonder goal against West Bromwich Albion with its daring season ticket holders.  About 250 lined up to try their hand, or foot, at replicating Bingham’s goal for which they would be rewarded with free season tickets for the 2012 season.

Efforts were as varied as the fans that kicked them: some focused on accuracy, kicking low with the hope of trundling it in to the net; others booted high arcing powerful punts, and even one who picked up the ball, ran to the opposite 18 yard box and still missed (“you can still play for the Galaxy” sang the Ultras).  Everyone left happy and smiling – even those that overreached their ability and ended up on their backsides - and all got the chance to shake the hand of the Wonder Goalie himself. 

The Quakes front office has worked hard to reward the endurance of the fans while we wait for the new stadium.  The stadium isn’t likely to be ready for a season or two, so I’m sure there will be other similar events in the coming seasons.  If they are as much as fun as last night then the fans will be happy, but here are some ideas for promotions that would surely be rejected early in the planning process.

Running of the bulls: Here’s an obvious Pamplona tie in for the New York home game.  The 1906 Ultras are spirited enough to participate, though they would insist on wearing blue scarves instead of red neckerchiefs. OSHA regulations would permit the Ultras to participate with the necessary paperwork, but the SPCA considers that running with the Ultras might be dangerous for the bulls. 

Vuvuzela night:  I met a season ticket holder who had his vuvuzela confiscated on his way into Buck Shaw stadium; we tried to appear sympathetic but were secretly relieved.  This promotion only works if it’s “brought to you by Tylenol” or comes with a set of noise canceling ear phones.

Ampaipitakwong spelling bee: There's a small window of opportunity for this one. Once Joel the super-mini-fan learns to read everyone else is toast. Right now, the Quakes littlest season ticket holder is really good with numbers, but once he’s mastered letters and spelling then it's all over for the rest of us.

Steven Lenhart Wig night: Big blond wigs would be uncomfortable on hot summer nights and the copious curls would restrict view of fans behind (and I know my own complexion looks washed out as a blond).  A springtime promotion would result in Hitchcock-like flocks of starlings that would swoop down on the fans in spring as the birds search for nesting material – the dry cleaning bills would be astronomical, but a good opportunity for a tie-in with a local laundry service. 

And bring up the rear (ahem): “These bleachers brought to you by Preparation H”. Just a pain in the Buck…

Yallop has a plan...

...to field a the first ever squad of Rick Astley lookalikes.  And so it begins:

Peterson (L) and Leitch (R)

You heard it here first!


Welcome to Alan Gordon, Nana Attakora and Jacob Peterson from Toronto FC.

Real men wear pink

Photo credit: Joe Nuxoll
at centerlinesoccer.com

It was hard to miss Quakes rookie goal keeper David Bingham at last night’s friendly against WBA last night: his magenta\fuschia\hot pink kit (you make the call) stood out against the black of his team mates.  As the game kicked off, the fans were still settling in for a beautiful, if cool, evening and admiring the pink tinged clouds as the sun was setting.  All of a sudden the crowd stirred as we realized that the routine goal kick had gone long, taken a bounce at the 18-yard line, over the head of the WBA goalie Boaz Myhill, and dropped into the net for the opening goal.

A more conventional shot from distance from Khari Stephenson put the Quakes up 2-0 right as the clock ran out in the first half.  Bingham also made three good saves, including an impressive deflection of an 18-yard blast from Thomas in the 20th minute. The game finished 2-1 to the Quakes, after Jerome Thomas pulled a goal back in the 53^rd minute for WBA. 

David Bingham is a rookie goal keeper who came to the Earthquakes from the University of California in a weighted lottery after this January’s MLS SuperDraft.  It’s only the third time an MLS goalkeeper has scored from his own half of the field in recent years, and at 90 yards Bingham’s goal is now officially the longest goal scored by an Earthquakes player.

Yes indeed, real men wear pink.

P.S. Dear Quakes, Re: the team sheet - there's no 'h' in Wales.  There was some great Moby Dick banter when Ishmael Miller came on.

A grueling two weeks.

The Quakes are coming off a punishing schedule of four MLS games in two weeks with a friendly game against English Premier League team West Bromwich Albion coming up on Tuesday.  With a record of no wins, one loss and three ties it feels like a torrid time for the fans who want points and a playoff spot in the bag as early as possible. The Quakes have 22 points from 18 games - still in touch for a playoff spot, but with half the season played the fans are starting to get nervous.

All may not be lost - let’s review the Quakes' opposition during that time frame:

• LA Galaxy (39 points from 21 games): A 0-0 tie against the conference leaders that was mostly memorable for not getting any shots on goal that were challenging for a midget goalie in an oversized shirt – and he was a position player too.  Bruce Arena packed the LA defense tighter than Imodium – the failure to score left Quakes fans embarrassed, further compounded by the presence of Galaxative fans, who did not shirk their responsibility to rub salt in our wounds. 
• New York Red Bulls (28 points from 20 games). This was the ‘big’ game of the year in front of 41 thousand fans at Stanford stadium, most of whom were wearing Quakes gear.  The closely fought match, that finished 2-2, had a level of excitement not seen before at a Quakes 2.0 home game.  The as highlight of this game is that it proved to the organization that the fan base is there – more than enough fans to fill the proposed new stadium three times over. If you build it we will come, and it will be a tough ticket.
• Chivas USA (22 points from 19 games):  The only team salary lower than San Jose is Chivas, so yes, it’s ironic that we lost that one.  It was a truly forgettable midweek matchup that the Quakes lost 0-2 – Twitter feeds during the game used terms such as dull, mundane, tedium, lackluster, sleepwalk and ennui (my favorite, and a first for one  of my feeds I believe). 
• Philadelphia Union (28 points from 18 games):  The Union is hot on the heels of NYRB and they have two games in hand.  The Union team is challenging for the lead in their conference in only the second season in MLS; the club has great fans and one of the better stadiums in MLS (yes, more stadium envy).  The game was a scoreless tie, marred by another moronic referee who appeared to thrive on being the center of attention, rather than letting the play be the focus of the fans.   

So, if I asked myself at the beginning of this season: "would I be happy with ties against the top two teams in the Eastern Conference and the runaway leader of the West Conference?", then my answer would most likely have been "yes".  Also bear in mind, we have already played both matches against three of these teams - only the return Galaxy match remains on August 20th.

However, during this grueling part of the schedule we've picked up a number of injuries - Convey was absent for three of these games.  We've also been hampered by the suspensions of critical players during this demanding part of the schedule: Burling was missing for the Chivas game, and Lenhart for the Union game. A more positive reason we were shorthanded was Wondo's call up to the US men's national team.

Given the friendly nature of the West Brom game, I hope we can roll out some of the untested players and rest a few starters. Rafa Baca finally has the crucial immigration paperwork he needs to play; in the fifteen minutes he saw against the Union, the elevated crowd noise crowd noise he generated showed that the fans already anticipate much from him – fifteen minutes wasn’t much time to make an impact in his first outing.  The stalwarts of the reserve team: Morrow, Luzunaris, Ward, and Jasseh have yet to see any significant playing time in the first XI; the WBA game should be the perfect game to test their mettle.    

San Jose Dearthquakes

0-2 against Chivas.

Too depressed to blog - all I hear is crickets chirping...

Red, White and the Blue and Black - Quakes fans' Stanford experience.

I’ve always known that I’m not smart enough to get into Stanford.  I finally had tangible proof on Saturday when I failed to notice the difference between Campus Drive West and Campus Drive East, and ended up at the observatory.  I don’t have a clue how a helio-seismic magnetic imager works, but even with the high powered telescopic equipment up on the hill, I know that you can’t see the pitch from there, so I turned around and eventually found the stadium. 

More than 41,000 people had the same idea and turned up for the game at the home of the Stanford Cardinals: NYRB wore white, and the Quakes wore blue - all very appropriate for the Fourth of July weekend.  I’m sure that some fans had turned up for the fireworks, but most were wearing the blue and black of the Earthquakes.  The prospect of playing the stars of NYRB was a draw, but attending a game in a full sized stadium, with full-sized bathrooms, and fans on all sides of the pitch brought out even the most casual of Quakes fans for this game. 

Seated on the east side of the field, I found myself among fans I hadn’t met before, and as I introduced myself we discussed what features of this Stanford experience contributed most to the atmosphere.

• Enclosed stadium: Yes, there were four times as many fans as we get at Buck Shaw, but a stadium closed on all four sides reflects and magnifies the sound – there was definitely more than four times the atmosphere.  The Ultras made the most of the acoustics and their chants circulated around the field and they easily encouraged the other fans to join in with more than the usual gusto with the EARTH – QUAKES cheer. Before the game, the Ultras were also able to unfurl their huge tifo from the upper deck – an effect that could only be replicated at Buck Shaw by evading security and climbing to the top of the pine trees (which I am not advocating here, by the way!). 
• Tailgating: the eucalyptus groves on Stanford campus provide a shady, comfortable environment for pre-game food and drink.  It always feels a little contrived to set up a table in the Magellan parking lot, before navigating across El Camino Real to Buck Shaw for the game.  At Stanford, huge groups of fans were grilling, eating then getting indigestion and picking up minor knee injuries playing Frisbee. 
• Real seats: Did you know that it’s actually possible to put a seat in a stadium that is made from flexible plastic, and that seat can fold up to allow easy access to the seats in the middle of the row?  These seats also have what I shall call here ‘backs’ and these backs are contoured to your spine, and provide both support and protection from your neighbor’s knees.  Rapture.

Photo: Joe Nuxoll at Centerline Soccer.

From my seat I saw, heard and shouted with thousands of smiling fans – smiling even in spite of Edvin Jurisevic’s overzealous yellow card donation program to the Quakes cause.  The game ended in a 2-2 draw, and the fans exited en masse after the spectacular fireworks display - everyone was chatting, laughing. If they were unhappy with the result and officiating, it didn’t show. Some drove off straight away, but many others decided to linger a while and resumed their animated post -match discussions at the picnic table. 

My own conversation centered on why the Quakes don’t consider playing more, if not all, of their games at Stanford football stadium - the amount of blue and black I saw in the stadium showed me that the fan base is there.

For a full match report visit Centerline Soccer here.