Our first trip to LA during the 2012 season was a roaring success with nearly 200 Timbers supporters in attendance. While not an official trip, we can’t help but expect the June 17 match to just as much fun. Here’s to 3 points on the road against those showboaters!

Tickets

Tickets are available for purchase at $32 each; please note that this price includes a small handling fee to cover 107ist’s printing and mailing costs. We do our best to keep prices as low as possible for you.

We’ll be in the Away Supporters area which is section 116 and will be considered General Admission.

LA Galaxy Away

Match Ticket Only$32.00 USD

Notes:

• Tickets purchased by June 1st will be mailed out during the week of June 4th
• Tickets purchased between June 2nd & June 14th will be available for collection at a local location (either stadium will-call or at our pre-match meeting point). We will provide additional information on a collection point after we have a better sense of numbers for this trip; please continue to check back to this website for information as it becomes available.
• After June 14th you will need to contact the LA Galaxy ticket office directly and may not be able to join us in the supporter section. Contact Aaron Arak at LA Galaxy: aarak@lagalaxy.com, 310.630.2246

Transportation to the match:

Depending on the numbers for this match 107ist Travel Committee may arrange a bus for transport to/from the Home Depot Center. What does that mean? Buy your tickets “early and often!”

Additional information to be announced, including potential car rental discounts.

Stadium notes

Parking: If you are not taking the bus to the Home Depot Center, visiting supporters parking is in Lot X and we believe the charge is $25. Please enter through gate A. Here’s the parking map.

Flag/Banner Check in: If you are planning on bringing any flags or banners you must check them in at the stadium.

Reminder: Our away supporter sections are treated as general admission areas even though there may be seat numbers on your tickets. Because standing, singing chanting and flag waving are to be expected in a supporters section, your view may be blocked at times.

Pre and Post-match TA Gatherings:

The Angel City Brigade rolled out the red carpet for Timbers Army during the April match. We hope to arrange similar events and tailgates for this match. On that note, if you have good local intel and would like to help organize an event please contact away travel@107ist.org with your ideas and how you plan to organize the event (thanks!). Stay tuned for more details.

One final note: Please read and familiarize yourself with the Timbers Army Travel Code of Conduct. You are solely responsible for your behaviors and actions, please be mindful of this and also look out for your fellow Timbers Army.

By any objective measure, a road draw at Houston is a perfectly respectable result. But when the point comes in the midst of a remarkable display of impotence from the offense and a match as tedious as Tuesday’s, it’s hard to find the positives.

The Timbers controlled much of the first half, but again failed to create anything truly dangerous from it. A Lovel Palmer strike from distance found the frame, but did little more than let Dynamo keeper Tally Hall touch the ball.

Time and again the Timbers’ strikeforce failed to present its wide players – namely Franck Songo’o – with viable options, and when they did find themselves in a dangerous position, they were offside.

As toothless as Portland looked up front, the Dynamo didn’t look substantially better.  Brad Davis pulled a 41^st minute shot well wide, and Macoumba Kandji’s 45^th minute shot from distance was right at Troy Perkins, but Houston never really caused the Timbers’ plastic man any trouble.

In the second half, the Dynamo – playing their third MLS match in seven days – began to shift to their front foot. Davis’ 54^th minute free kick from 25 yards sailed just wide of the near post.  Luiz Camargo found Mac Kandji in the box in the 58^th minute, but the former Rapid’s effort to turn and shoot skied well over the bar.

For the first hour Portland was lucky Houston couldn’t find the mark. For the final half hour Portland was lucky Troy Perkins is reemerging as one of the better goalkeepers in the MLS.

In the 67^th minute, Calen Carr found Camargo in a seam the size of the Gulf of Mexico in the Portland defense, but Perkins was very quick off his line to keep the Brazilian from turning toward goal.

The Timbers best chance of the second half came in the 69^th minute when 2012 debutante Sal Zizzo beat his man to the byline and found Darlington Nagbe 10 yards out. Nagbe’s shot, however, was blocked by Jermaine Taylor, appeared to take an incidental deflection off the Jamaican’s hand,[2] and was cleared away.

From there, it was one-way traffic in Perkins’ direction. In the 78^th minute Colin Clark turned the ball in a dangerous spot on the left wing, but shot right at Perkins. Four minutes later Carr settled on a deflected ball with nothing but green in front of him on the wing, but Futty got a toe on the ball and a body on Carr to end the danger in controversial fashion.

Try as they might, though, Houston couldn’t find the finishing touch either. In the 90^th minute Carr found space on the wing against a lame Futty, and picked out Brian Ching in the box, but Ching’s touch sailed embarrassingly off target. The Timbers weren’t out of the woods yet, though, as two minutes later young midfielder Alex Dixon took a go from the left wing, but, after an initial bobble, Perkins smothered the chance.

To be sure, the point in Houston is plenty satisfactory for a Timbers team that has struggled to earn results away from home. Nonetheless, the performance fell far short of inspiring confidence in the Timbers’ offense and setting the club back on track.

Match Observations

• If we’re always looking on the bright side of life, we should start out here with the play of the defense. Until Futty got hurt in the late stages, the defense was stellar; limiting Houston to a pretty meager helping of half chances.
• The offense, however, is completely disjointed. The reasons for this are numerous, but I’ll only address one here. The central attacking players are doing a very, very poor job of making runs and presenting targets. On Tuesday, the Timbers actually got some fairly handy play from the right wing tandem of Franck Songo’o and Sal Zizzo, but every time one of those guys turned to send a cross in or find somebody making a run into the box, they saw green grass and orange shirts. Kris Boyd couldn’t have been more anonymous. Darlington Nagbe wants to track back into the midfield to receive the ball, and seems allergic to work off of it. Diego Chara – well – Diego Chara couldn’t present a target to save his life, but that’s not really his fault.
• The solution, however, isn’t obvious. Some have called for Fucito or Perlaza up front with Nagbe at the top of a midfield diamond. This would be impossible with Diego Chara also manning the center of the pitch, and, considering he was the best Timber not wearing a mask on Tuesday, it would be unwise to move him. A central midfield of Nagbe and Chara – to say nothing of Fucito playing as a second striker – would be prohibitively vertically challenged. The only thing I can think of would be to replace Lovel Palmer with Eric Alexander in the center of the midfield, and let Diego sit back a little bit more. Alexander did play in the center with Dallas, but really hasn’t done much in his two relatively brief stints the past two weeks to change John Spencer’s mind about his spot on the bench.
• The Timbers are a mess on set pieces. Like, embarrassingly so.
• How is Kalif’s knee?

Timbers Grades

Troy Perkins, 7.5 – Didn’t have much to do until the final half hour, but then the Dynamo poured on the pressure. Troy was up to the task and then some, making several crucial saves look routine.

Steven Smith, 5.5 – Nice day defensively and sent some useful crosses and set pieces into the box. A few giveaways in the midfield, though, temper his rating a little bit.

Futty, 6.5 – A really nice day from Futty until he got hurt. The knee injury didn’t look good, however, so Sunday could see changes on the backline…again.

Hanyer Mosquera, 6 – Not Mosco’s best day in back, but still more than adequate. Has a tendency to get caught on the wrong side of his attacker from time to time, but does a great job of recovering, steering his man toward a post, and cutting off the angle from which to score.

Jack Jewsbury, 5.5 – Lost Brad Davis once on the right flank, but otherwise had a competent first half before coming out. Also showed some good quality sending crosses in. If his hip injury isn’t too bad, this experiment at right back might actually work.

Rodney Wallace, 3 – The only thing he was effective at on the wing was being called offside. If Rod wants to play in an attacking position, he needs to learn to not kill the attack like that.

Lovel Palmer, 3.5 – Wasteful going forward, barely passable defensively. Diego Chara was doing a lot of work, and that was primarily because Palmer was doing very little. Seeing him wearing the armband coming out of halftime was downright chilling. What, oh what has he done to earn John Spencer’s favor?

Diego Chara, 6.5 – Was the best player on the field for the first hour. Very good defensively and one of the Timbers’ few effective players going forward. Did a lot of running, though, so ran out of gas a little bit as the second half wore on. That’s when it showed how important he is to this team.

Franck Songo’o, 6 – Until he came out, Franck was by far the Timbers’ most dangerous player in the attack. Not that he didn’t get dispossessed a time or two, but Songo’o was really the only player finding space and looking to put the ball in dangerous areas – even if those areas were manned exclusively by Houston.

Darlington Nagbe, 4 – This might be generous. Couldn’t help himself but take touches. Dribbled himself into nothing and when Zizzo found him in the box with space Darlington decided to take two touches rather than get a shot off.

Kris Boyd, 2 – Not only did he not score, but despite teammate(s) looking for him all day, Boyd wasn’t making himself available. His former supporters said there would be games where we would want to call him lazy and anonymous. Yep.

Mike Chabala, 5 – Decent effort from Chewy coming in at right back for the injured Captain Jack. Despite Houston being uniquely suited to do so, for the first time this season a team didn’t seem determined to exploit the Timbers’ right flank. That’s a testament to the competence Jack and Chewy brought to the position last night.

Sal Zizzo, 6.5 – The Timbers’ best player in the attack after he came on. Great to see him back in his first game since he was injured against the Dynamo last fall.

Eric Alexander, 5 – Had one nice shot from distance that caused Tally Hall a little trouble, but was otherwise lost in the late Dynamo flood.

Preseason Prediction – Dynamo 1, Timbers 0. Will Bruin.
Actual Result – Dynamo 0, Timbers 0. Again.

Onward, Rose City!

Join us at Paddy’s, SW Yamhill & 1st, on May 15th at 5:30 PM to see the mighty PTFC take on the Houston Dynamo in their new house.  The $5 suggested donation at the door will help raise crucial funds to make Harper’s Playground a reality, and help kids of all physical abilities play. 

A special viewing of Shed Culture Live! will air after the match, and DVDs of the hit stage performance will be available for $15, with all proceeds being donated to Harper’s Playground.

Paddy’s will be making a generous donation to Harper’s Playground from pint sales at this event.  Also, if you present your 107ist card, you will receive happy hour prices on food and drink all day. 

Lastly, the first 20 members who show their card on game days will receive their first draught beer for $1.07 in honor of the section that started it all.

We are awaiting updates from 101^st FC and Coat? FC after each team finished their first spring sessions in their respective futsal leagues and second session matches were scheduled to begin soon. While 101^st FC has been dealing with some unfortunate injuries, their competitive streak allowed them to finish the first term strong, while Coat? FC was finding their stride after some rough matches to start their session. We wish them both luck and hope we get some reports about how their next sessions are going.

AC Loco Moco also hasn’t submitted a match report since their loss to Team America, but they’ve been busy with their matches at Portland Indoor. After a match this coming weekend, they will have one fixture left on June 1 to finish out their current schedule and look towards playing in either the summer or fall terms.

There hasn’t been an official report submitted for Cascade Rangers FC since their loss to Rose City Athletic in mid month, but since then they’ve played two teams we’ve talked about in our weekly recaps, the very quick South VN and the oddly named Electric Dream Machine. While we await reports from these matches, our crack reporters can indicate that Cascade Rangers did indeed secure a win in a friendly versus Old Growth FC on May 12 at Willamette Park. Under gorgeous conditions, CRFC found their scoring touch in securing a 6 to 0 win that was extremely competitive and well played.

After achieving results to get them into a first place tie in GPSD Division 1, FC Dynamo met up with Team Awesome at Gladstone HS. Unfortunately, the lads fell behind by three goals before Perry Broderick scored from a corner kick from Scott McDowell to get them on the board. Unfortunately, the scoreline stayed at 3 to 1 for Team Awesome to give them the win. FC Dynamo did have a match this past weekend against County Cork FC before the highly anticipated derby match versus FC Portlandia.

I’m not used to the FC Portlandia being so quiet, as we haven’t had an official match report submitted in some time from them. In checking the GPSD website, FC Portlandia has lost their last three matches: a 5 to 2 defeat to Portland Internationals on April 28, a 1 to 0 loss to SDFC Eastburn on May 6 and a heartbreaking 3 to 2 loss to Concordia Ale House on May 12. We hope to have a report from both sides as the TAFC Division 1 derby takes place this weekend on May 19 at 6 PM out at Gladstone High School.

North End United had another TAFC derby match on May 6 when they battled the boys in red, Rose City Athletic.  We have perspectives from both sides as North End United won the battle 4 to 2. From the NEU perspective, it was an exceptional effort from Joel Weakland who scored two goals and avoided receiving a caution during this week’s match, while Ed Ramirez and Casey McLaughlin scored the two goals for RCA in manager Rob Jerand’s match report that was a tribute to a former Portland Trailblazer who had a way with words.

Northern Alliance FC got us caught up with their two last matches, a 9 to 0 loss at the hands of Mayday on April 29 and a 4 to 1 loss to Broken Arrow on May 6. The long break should give the Vancouver team some time to rebound from their rash of injuries before they battle North End United on June 6 when Division 4 resumes matches. In the Mayday match, NAFC had only 8 dressed players until reinforcements from CRFC showed up later in the first half to assist, but Mayday was too strong for the team on this day. The numbers were slightly better for the Broken Arrow match as they had 11 players dressed, which actually was the same as Broken Arrow, but Broken Arrow were able to put up three goals before responding with their own goal before a rather chaotic finish. NAFC hopes to use the time to regroup and rest up, while also playing a friendly against a new TAFC club joining in Fall 2012, Guerreros Verde FC on May 19.

Old Growth FC played a midweek match on May 9 against Nor’East FC, who seemed to delight in seeing the plight of their opponent when they absorbed a significant defeat earlier in the season. While they were a nice enough team, Nor’East FC seemed overly confident especially with OGFC only fielding 15 healthy players. It was a rather inspired effort, however, as OGFC held them to just three goals and limited chances in the first half before succumbing 6 to 0 in their best effort all year. While they didn’t score, they certainly had chances abound and played a tough defense that made Nor’East FC work for everything they had. OGFC gets a long break before resuming their schedule on June 3, but have a friendly against Pelada PDX on May 20 and hope to schedule a few more dates later this summer before their fall campaign.

Coming off a week where the team was publicly questioned in just about every possible regard, the Timbers were looking to set things back on course with three points. But for some poor finishing touches, they probably would have. As it is, however, the Timbers will have to be satisfied with moral victories rather than a real one.

The match opened up with some pretty riveting end-to-end action. In the 10^th minute, Darlington Nagbe seemed to be through on goal after a mistake by Crew center back Eric Gehrig, but Gehrig recovered nicely to harass Nagbe enough to give Andy Gruenebaum a chance to get the ball off Nagbe’s foot.

Ten minutes later, Rodney Wallace nearly put the Timbers on the board after taking a crack from 30 yards out on the left wing, but Gruenebaum dove to tap the ball just wide of the far post.

Columbus would take their turn on goal in the 27^th minute, as Mike Chabala and Jack Jewsbury cleared Milovan Mirosevic’s shot off the line, and Diego Chara similarly cleared Josh Williams’ effort to tap in the ensuing corner.

Whereas the first half hour was played in the respective attacking thirds, the remainder of the first half largely settled into the midfield, with Gruenebaum’s clearance of a dangerous-looking Franck Songo’o free kick in the 39^th minute being the only time either side truly threatened to break the deadlock.

In the second half the traffic would move largely in the Timbers direction, but despite a bevy of chances Portland couldn’t find the winner.

In the 58^th minute, Kris Boyd tried to bend a free kick from 20 yards out inside the near post, by the ball flew just wide of the target.

The Crew’s lone legitimate chance of the half came in the 66^th minute, when Troy Perkins tapped Williams’ header off of a corner kick just over the bar.

Portland’s best opportunity came just a minute later, when Songo’o sent a beautiful cross from the right wing toward the far post, but Boyd’s clear header flashed wide.

Boyd looked to redeem himself in the 82^nd minute, as his nodded ball angled toward the far post and an onrushing Hanyer Mosquera, but Gruenebaum snagged it before Mosco could facilitate the ball’s nestling into the side netting.

A minute later, Darlington Nagbe looked to have a go from distance after one of his signature runs on the ball, but the sure-handed Gruenebaum again extinguished the threat in the face of three Timbers waiting to put away any rebound.

Portland looked to have one final chance to snag a deserved winner in the 3^rd minute of stoppage time, but Jewsbury’s cross was just a little bit too high for Boyd, whose header again sailed wide of the far post.

There were certainly encouraging signs coming from the Timbers, but for all the chances they couldn’t find the net. Maybe it was just a spell of bad luck on Saturday, but the fact remains that the Timbers’ offense hasn’t scored in its last 337 minutes of soccer.

Match Observations

• John Spencer would hate me for saying this, but the Timbers really miss Kalif Alhassan. Kalif is really the only guy for Portland who is not only dynamic on the ball, but creative in setting others up. Boyd, obviously, is a true poacher. Nagbe’s strength is his magnificent ability to make runs on the ball. Diego Chara really isn’t a true attacking center midfielder, as his final third distribution is by far the weakest aspect of his game. Franck Songo’o thus far has looked more dangerous on the ball than in setting other up – although that could be more a matter of lack of playing time than anything else. The point is, there is nobody in the Timbers attack that has shown the ideas Kalif has. Portland could use a few more ideas right about now.
• I thought Spenny’s tactical changes worked pretty well on Saturday, and wouldn’t mind seeing something like that team again. Obviously, despite the lack of hard production, the Timbers were doing a much better job of creating chances than they have in the past several weeks.
• Opponents’ strategy against the Timbers has been to attack Portland’s right flank. It will be interesting to see if that changes one – maybe I should say “if” – the Timbers are able to fix the right back situation.
• The Timbers have yet to score in the south goal in MLS regular season play this year.
• In my opinion, the “Goals” song needs to become a permanent fixture. Loved it.

Timbers Grades

Troy Perkins, 6 – Probably should have done better on both efforts that were cleared off the line, but was otherwise solid. His save on Williams in the second half was one of his better saves of the year.

Mike Chabala, 5 – Decent outing for Chabala. Had some squirrely clearances and passes – including a giveaway that led to the Crew’s two efforts that were cleared off the line – but it was otherwise a pretty quiet day on the Timbers left flank.

Hanyer Mosquera, 7 – Mosco has one of the most hilariously ironic nicknames ever. There is absolutely nothing in his play that resembles a mosquito. The guy is just a monster. He is developing into a rock solid central defender, and could become downright scary if he keeps improving at the rate he has over the past six weeks or so.

Futty, 6 – Had a lights out first half, where he got to every ball that came anywhere near him. Wasn’t as influential in the second half, although he didn’t need to be. Spenny’s decision to bring him on in favor of Brunner is a little bit of a head scratcher considering Brunner has been fine, but Futty acquitted his coach well on Saturday.

Jack Jewsbury, 5.5 – Was solid, if unspectacular, at right back. After the last several weeks that’s a welcome development. I don’t think Jack is going to be the answer there long term, but he may just be effective enough duct tape to give Gavin Wilkinson and Spencer time to figure something out.[1]

Rodney Wallace, 6 – Rodney had a nice outing on the left wing, and combined with Mike Chabala pretty well going forward. I just don’t think Rod has the quality that the Timbers’ other options on the wings have, however, so I would be a little bit surprised to see him still there once the injury situation gets ironed out a bit.

Lovel Palmer, 5 – Defensively he has been fine as a central midfielder; much, much better than he was at right back. I still think Lovel is too wasteful with the ball, however, to be a solution here long term.

Diego Chara, 7 – This is the Diego we got used to seeing at the end of 2011. Was better launching the attack than he has been in the last few weeks, and is resuming the masterful job he does controlling the midfield. Even his fouls are good. If Diego can play like this on a regular basis, there will be much better things for Portland ahead.

Franck Songo’o, 5.5 – A little bit of a tale of two halves for Franck. Looked uncomfortable at the start, but got better and better as the game went along. It’s important to keep in mind that before arriving in Portland, Franck hadn’t played much competitive soccer in quite some time. I am very interested to see what he looks like come July and August. He needs playing time to make it happen, though, so I welcome his inclusion in the XI and hope it keeps up.

Darlington Nagbe, 6.5 – Another good outing for Darlington at the withdrawn striker spot. He’s much better utilized there, and the Timbers attack on the whole was a lot more width when he is at striker and somebody who doesn’t mind playing wide is on the wing.

Kris Boyd, 3.5 – Could he use better service? Yes. But he had three pretty good opportunities – his two headers and the free kick – and only put one on frame.[2] Boyd’s rating will depend mightily on whether he scores or not. He had chances to on Saturday and didn’t. So, his rating suffers accordingly.

Eric Alexander, 4.5 – Was pretty anonymous in his fifteen minute stint. Apparently he is in the doghouse for some reason, and he didn’t do anything on Saturday to change that.

Mike Fucito, 5 – I like how active he is. Based on his short shift, he looks to be exactly as advertised – a high-work rate, scrappy striker. That said, did he even touch the ball?

Preseason Prediction: Timbers 1, Crew 1. Jewsbury, Dilly Duka.
Actual Result: Timbers 0, Crew 0.

Onward, Rose City!

101^st FC finished session 1 of their spring futsal term with a loss to Urban Honking 9 to 6.  As team manager Owen put it in his official update, “With a loss this week we finished below .500 and in the bottom half of the table. This weeks action was much of the same as before… Inexperience at GK hurts and makes things difficult when you’re playing catch up in a fast paced game. We’re looking forward to the new session next week so that we can forget all about this one.”  We look forward to hearing more exploits as they move to session 2!

Cascade Rangers FC didn’t submit an official report, but through the TAFC Facebook page, they announced a loss to South VN 7 to 1 on April 28.  They play their next league fixture on May 6 at Gladstone HS against Electric Dream Machine before they have a four week break in matches, but they’ve already set up one friendly versus Old Growth FC on May 12.  The location was just announced as Willamette Park at 9 AM, so apparently for those teams, it’s on like donkey kong!

FC Dynamo used a strong start and a strong finish to beat Salsa Azul 4-2 and move into a tie for first place in GPSD Division I.  That’s the words from manager Dave Trausneck as Jon Bial scored a brace to assist his team to victory.  We also got a recap of the team’s last victory on April 15 3 to 1 over Abysinnia before they suffered a heartbreaking loss 1 to 0 over North End on April 22 in their last match.  If our information is correct, FC Dynamo will battle Team Awesome at 4 PM out at Gladstone HS, which is quickly becoming TAFC Central.

Old Growth FC played their third match, which was highlighted by the unveiling of their primary green kit , a change in formation and the team’s first official goal, a penalty kick by Sean Moran.  Unfortunately, OGFC lost 7 to 1 in a really competitive match where their defense was greatly improved, but was beaten by some exceptional shots on goal.  They get a bit of a break in the schedule, as their next league match is on May 9 versus FC Nor’East at Delta Park 1.

We didn’t get reports from AC Loco Moco, Coat? FC, FC Portlandia, North End United,  Northern Alliance FC or Rose City Athletic for this week, but we do know they have upcoming matches. AC Loco Moco has a match on May 5 just before the Timbers face Columbus at JWF, while we await details from Coat? FC about when they start their next session of futsal. FC Portlandia has a date with SDFC Eastburn at noon out at Gladstone HS. North End United has a date with Rose City Athletic at  9 AM out at LaSalle HS, which we hope is a fun, spirited and friendly affair.  Northern Alliance FC meets up with Broken Arrow out at Sherwood’s Snyder Park at 2 PM on May 6.  We will get you caught up with previous matches as soon as those reports are submitted.

Together with fellow MLS fans around the league, the ISC would like to express our severe disapproval of comments made about female MLS fans by MLSSoccer.com Senior Editor Simon Borg on the MLS podcast “Extra Time” this week. All supporter groups know the incredible value of the passion that supporters – regardless of their gender – bring to MLS. We applaud the actions MLS has taken in response to this situation. The ISC hopes that MLS and all their employees work to stay connected to all those who put so much time and effort into supporting the league.

Take this as a moment where I’m struck by something and I need to post about it type of thing.

Sometimes I wonder that there might be a misconception that some people make a profit off the Timbers Army. That idea couldn’t be further from the truth.

Years before the Portland Timbers had an owner willing to drop the words Major League Soccer there were people out there promoting the team on their own. At points during the USL stage of the Timbers the only way to get something with the name Timbers on it was to buy it from someone who designed and paid for it themselves because the team was owned by a bunch of people that thought AAA baseball was the path to big bucks in Portland.

Those days are over. You can get tons of awesome stuff from the team now. Get that amazing third kit while you still can. Their stuff is awesome and we encourage you to check it out.

Yes we do have our own independent merchandise store. You’ve probably purchased something from the No Pity Van. Do you like tifo? Were you a fan of the “King of Clubs” banner at the Seattle match or the “It Takes an Army to Raise a Club” banners for the opener last year?

To do things like this it costs tens of thousands of dollars. We aren’t given the tens of thousands of dollars it costs to make those banners from Major League Soccer or the Portland Timbers. It all comes through you, your memberships to 107ist or that t-shirt you bought at the No Pity Van. In addition 107ist uses the funds from the No Pity Van to fund things like Harper’s Playground.

The people that work on merchandise for the Timbers Army do it without much love. That’s why I’m posting this. Every single one of them does this on volunteer hours for no money so that we all can reap the benefits through awesome tifo displays in the stadium and amazing community outreach to our city through efforts like Harper’s Playground. The merch guys are often forgotten but their creativity and heartfelt donation of their time and energy to support the team, town and TA should be celebrated. So next time you’re out and about and see one of those guys you know designed something, stood in front of a van for hours for no money, or made an awesome video thank them. Those people are what makes Portland great and what makes supporting the Timbers amazing. If you see a shot of banners in the crowd that’s paid for by our merch fund. Videos of smoke…the smoke is paid for by our merch fund. Videos of awesome tifo banners…the tifo is paid for by our merch fund. Here’s an awesome video a bunch of people our merch team made that you should love. All of this is made for love of the club and support by people like YOU!

4 Worlds United Soccer Alliance (4WUSA) is announcing a coaching clinic and youth academy, and is putting out a call for quality volunteers. Volunteers should be able to pass a background check (handled by 4WUSA), attend the May 19 session, and 3 or more of the youth clinics. This is essentially a once a month commitment unless you can spare more time.

Contact:
All coaches who are interested in being part of the 4WUSA academy team should contact Delaney Miller at delaney@delaneymillerlaw.com, or call 971-344-1441.
Please include a bit about your soccer coaching and/or soccer experience.
Also, mention that you’re part of the Timbers Army! We want good representation! PM David Wagoner or post below if you have any questions, and post below if you sign up!

Dates:
Saturday, May 19, 10-10:45am – Mandatory coaches clinic/orientation (45min)
Saturdays, May 26 thru August 18 10:15-11:45am- Youth academy happens weekly. One week off Saturday July 7. Please plan on showing up to at least 3 of these sessions.
At least 2 days prior to the session, each coach will receive an email with an academy agenda outlining how the session will be run.

Location:
Kenilworth City Park, SE 34th Ave & Holgate Blvd, Across from Grout Elementary map

Academy Goals:
4WUSA’s youth academy is designed to prepare players in our program for club tryouts. We will be working primarily with children ages 9-12, although effort will be made to accommodate players outside of this age range who are interested in the program. The academy will primarily focus on developing basic soccer skills, then moving on to more advanced techniques and introducing players to team tactics.

Expectations:
Each coach is expected to attend a 45 minute coaches’ orientation/training on Saturday, May 19 at 10 am at Kenilworth Park and to attend at least 3 of the 12 academy sessions. 4WUSA plans on having a panel of 20 coaches, with at least 5 coaches at every academy session. With this system in place, each coach will only be required to attend once every 4 weeks. Coaches are encouraged to attend more academy sessions if they wish, but it is not required.

Background check:
As the 4WUSA youth academy obviously involves working with children, all coaches will need to submit to and pass a background check before they will be allowed to interact with 4WUSA players. 4WUSA will make arrangements to perform the background check.

4WUSA’s mission is to “Enhance the lives of 4th World Children by providing opportunities that improve soccer skills, build confidence, support their education, and unite communities and cultures.” The academy is part of this mission because it is the first step in building the skills that 4WUSA players will need.

Sign up deadline is May 17th Contact Delaney Miller at delaney@delaneymillerlaw.com and sign up today!

My Dearest Portland Timbers Football Club,

It’s funny sometimes how the silliest things can elicit the strangest reactions from people. On Tuesday, Geoffrey C. Arnold posted a story on Oregonlive about how it’s tough to play under the expectations here in Portland. The story featured several quotes from Lovel Palmer and Troy Perkins, as well as one from John Spencer. My immediate reaction was frustration. I didn’t read the story that carefully, but something about it struck a chord.[1]

Initially, I didn’t like a quote from Perkins which ended a story about his days in D.C. with “It is what it is and it doesn’t matter about [the fans].” After thinking about this, though, my first reaction was wrong. Those brackets are probably pretty important, and, in the context of a previous contradictory Perkins quote, this was probably either a matter of something coming out wrong or being reported wrong. So, that’s not really what struck the chord. Very clearly Troy Perkins doesn’t think the fans don’t matter.

Then there was this from John Spencer: “It’s a very difficult place to play. The fans think that just because you have a world-class atmosphere, you’re supposed to have a world-class team. But it takes time to build a quality team.” This is the one that got to me, but why?

Well, first off, it’s wrong. On a few levels. For one, Portland is absolutely, positively not a difficult place to play professional soccer. Yes, we have people on the internet who comment on the team, for better and for worse. We write on Twitter, and Facebook, and websites. And you know what? It’s all pretty tame stuff. Sure, it’s a lot compared to, say, Chivas USA, but it’s nothing compared to the rest of the world of soccer. Like, I mean, really nothing.

You want external pressure on playing professional soccer? Well, I seem to remember a story about a certain young boy whose family was threatened because he signed with what some thought was the wrong team. That’s pressure. The stuff that’s said on Twitter, or Stumptown Footy, or Timbers Insider, or – especially – here? That’s not pressure. Compared to the world of soccer, on a scale of one to ten, the pressure here is maybe a one-and-a-half.

Then there’s the whole being recognized out-on-the-town sort of pressure. Portlanders are known for our sheepish politeness. On Monday I met a friend at an all-too-swanky Pearl District coffee shop to watch City-United. The place had a dozen or so folks there to watch the match. Clearly soccer fans, and considering it was noon on a Monday, probably pretty big ones. At halftime Mike Chabala and Rod Wallace walked in. Guess how many autograph seekers interrupted them at their TV-side table. Guess how many people went up to talk to them about how the team was playing. You got it; not a one. Instead, the two of them sat there watching the match and sharing a pair of headphones. It was adorable. Not exactly a pressure cooker, either.

Then there’s the-fans-really-care-about-us sort of pressure. Yeah, we stand in the North End, 5,000 strong, and sing until we can’t anymore. Yeah, we sell out our beautiful downtown stadium. And yeah, we care about how the team does. If that’s the kind of thing that makes Portland a hard place to play, well, then I’m incredulous.

And here’s the other thing about Spenny’s quote there: I don’t think it accurately portrays the expectancy here in Portland. Spencer said the fans expect excellence. Don’t get me wrong, we all want excellence. We want MLS Cups, and U.S. Open Cups, and Cascadia Cups, and Champions League titles. But if we truly expected it – if we required that sort of payoff to keep us coming through the gates – let’s face it, you wouldn’t be reading this right now and I wouldn’t be writing it.

We do, however, expect that the club care as much about itself as we do about it. That’s why people like Ryan Pore and Mandjou Keita (the 2009 version) are good players who we appreciate, but folks like Ian Joy and Scot with one “T” are absolute legends. The former were good players who – at one point or another – demonstrated excellence in a Timbers uniform. The latter are guys who embodied the club and its supporters, and would give absolutely everything they had for our team, the mighty PTFC.

But Spencer being wrong isn’t what got to me, either. He’s been wrong before and I didn’t get as frustrated as I did about this quote.

Here’s what did: pity. If I had to choose one word to sum up the last couple months, that would be it. Pity.

Every time something goes awry on the field, that’s what we see. Against New England, when Saer Sene stunned the Timbers in the first minute? Pity.

Against RSL, when the Timbers conceded the equalizer in the 89^th minute? Heads dropped, and they conceded another goal. Pity.

Against Chivas USA, when the Timbers endured a rough start to the second half and Alejandro Moreno pulled the Goats level? Pity.

Against Los Angeles, when Kris Boyd was wrongfully disallowed a Goal of the Year candidate? Pity. When Juninho struck from distance? Pity. When Beckham put the nail in the coffin? Pity.

And then Saturday, when Perkins got kicked in the face and only a yellow card was issued? Pity. When Steven Smith was harshly whistled for a penalty? Pity.

So on Tuesday, when I saw John Spencer talking about how difficult it was to play in Portland, you know what I thought? Pity.

That’s what got to me. I’m tired of the pity party. I’m tired of something bad happening and the team going Eeyore on us.

Did you notice what L.A. did after Boyd scored that opener? They didn’t hang their heads. They went Lou Piniella on the linesman despite the fact Boyd was obviously onside. If you don’t think that had something to do with the flag going up three minutes later, I got a Sellwood Bridge I’d like to sell you. Point is, they did something about it. They fought back.

That’s what I want to see from the Timbers. That’s why the win against SKC felt so good. And that’s why my single favorite moment of last Saturday morning was Kris Boyd getting booked for dissent. For once I felt like somebody didn’t just feel sorry for himself.

If Portland comes out on Saturday, plays a lifeless 90 minutes, and concedes twice in the last ten minutes to lose, I’ll go home hoarse, hang my scarf over my closet door, write a critical match report, and get ready to watch the Houston game. And then Chicago. And then Vancouver.  You know what? So will everybody else reading this, because that’s who we are. We stand by our club through it all.

We’ll just be doing it more happily when the team is showing the same desire for the club that the Army does every match.

I hope that expectation doesn’t make it too difficult to play in Portland.

No Pity,
Chris

Promising the same lineup he played against Kansas City, John Spencer got exactly what he bargained for – disaster.

The usually meek Impact were on their front foot from the opening whistle. In the 14^th minute, Justin Mapp beat Steve Purdy and Darlington Nagbe to the byline before sending the ball to Davy Arnaud at the top of the six yard box. Arnaud’s skied his tap-in effort over the bar, however, sparing the Timbers an early concession.

For the most part the first half continued to be one-way traffic, as Montreal created a series of half chances past a Timbers defense that was competent, but far from certain.

The 38^th minute brought Portland’s only legitimate chance of the first half, as a long run from the left wing through the middle of the field by Nagbe set up Jack Jewsbury at the right corner of the box. Jewsbury’s first time effort with the wrong foot, however, was saved in the middle of the goal by Impact keeper Donovan Ricketts.

Ultimately, the Timbers were lucky to escape into halftime level. They came out of the locker room to more of the same. Montreal reestablished their control over the run of play in the first fifteen minutes of the second half; controlling the ball, and keeping the Timbers from any bona fide chances.

In the 61^st minute, however, the Timbers looked like they might be poised to turn the tide. After the ineffective Jorge Perlaza was lifted in favor of Franck Songo’o – moving Nagbe up front – Portland briefly looked like the more dangerous side on the pitch. Very briefly.

In the 63^rd minute, Troy Perkins – and the Timbers’ chances – took a kick to the face. Sanna Nyassi outran Hanyer Mosquera to a long ball, but Troy Perkins arrived just in time to gather the ball at the top of the box. He also arrived just in time to be struck in the face by Nyassi’s raised studs.

With Perkins out of the match, the Timbers were forced to turn to rookie Joe Bendik at keeper. His defense wouldn’t do him any favors.

After Bendik saved a corner with his face – a bit of a theme for Portland keepers on Saturday – a Matteo Ferrari goal off the second ball was called off for offside.

Three minutes later, Portland’s luck would run out. After former Portland Pilot Collen Warner struck a ball from 10 yards out, newly-signed left back Steven Smith slid to block the ball. The ball hit his leg, and bounced up and struck his left arm. The referee awarded a penalty, which Bernardo Corradi put away.

Portland made a couple half hearted efforts to equalize, but never seriously threatened to grind out a point. What little hope persisted was extinguished in the 84^th minute. After Corradi took a goal kick from Ricketts, he found Arnaud on the left wing. Arnaud skidded a ball across the top of the six, under an outstretched Bendik, to an unmarked Sinisa Ubiparipovic who tapped the ball home.

The script was all too familiar. Two goals conceded after the 75^th minute for the third time this season. That would be a bad statistic if it were written in a season recap in November. It’s April – although it’s feeling a little bit like Groundhog Day.

Match Observations

• The handball call was unfortunate, but ultimately not incorrect.[1] Generally, a handball in the box shouldn’t be awarded if it was purely incidental and did not affect the play. To be sure, Smith didn’t intend to handle the ball, but his arm dramatically changed the course of the play – likely to the Timbers benefit. Certainly worse handballs in the box have gone uncalled – indeed, some against the Timbers – but in the end the play was unfortunate, not unjust.
• The Timbers’ offensive impotence is no coincidence. Portland’s tactical shift against the Wiz was widely and correctly lauded as a cause of the Timbers’ upset victory. If it goes on for much longer, it will be the cause of the Timbers undoing. By taking Darlington Nagbe and, to a lesser extent, Diego Chara out of the center of the field, John Spencer has neutered the Timbers attack that scored six goals in its first four matches. While the combination of Jack Jewsbury and Lovel Palmer in the center of the pitch has marginally improved the defense, it leaves the Timbers attack completely devoid of ideas, and sets Kris Boyd on an island. The result is an offense that leaves a mistake-prone defense no room for error. In other words, near-certain failure.
• The pitch may have been poor, but the Timbers would have lost this game if it were played at Wembley. Not worth talking about.

Timbers Grades

Troy Perkins, 5.5 – Was fine until he got kicked in the face. Made a nice save on a Felipe strike from distance, but was otherwise untested by some wasteful finishing by Montreal.

Steven Smith, 5 – Had an up and down debut. Had some decent moments in defense – ironically including the play that led to the unlucky handball – and showed some quality on set pieces. Still, looked a step slow and got beat a couple times. The early verdict is that he’s a modest improvement over Chabala and Wallace.

Eric Brunner, 6 – After a little bit of a slow start to the season, Brunner is showing what made him one of the most underrated defenders in the league last year. It’s just hard not to feel bad for he and Mosco, as they’re repeatedly finding themselves having to clean up the fullbacks’ messes.

Hanyer Mosquera, 5.5 – Didn’t have quite the day Brunner had in the middle, but was still plenty effective. Everything that Montreal created came off a breakdown on the wing or a strike from distance. That’s indicative of some decent central defending.

Steve Purdy, 3.5 – His short-lived performance was pretty poor. Not only did he fail to bottle up Mapp, but he looks downright dodgy on the ball. Multiple times in the past three games he has received the ball and been absolutely deer in the headlights. Was the Lovel Palmer era worse than this? I immediately regret asking that question.

Lovel Palmer, 5 – Had moments on Saturday when he was the Timbers’ most composed and effective player in the center of the field.[2] Would have received a higher score but for his partial culpability on the second concession. That was classic Lovel; a very, very casual attempt to mark an attacker leading to an easy goal.

Diego Chara, 4.5 – Again, pretty good defensively. The Timbers don’t have anybody better – and there aren’t that many people in the League better – than Diego at winning possession back in the midfield. That said, Diego was almost completely ineffective going forward.

Jack Jewsbury, 3 – I was one of the last holdouts that thought Jack should stay in the XI. I would happily be wrong about this, but it looks like he’s done.

Darlington Nagbe, 6 – Got isolated on the wing at times, but when he was able to get central Darlington was pretty good. Nagbe was the Timbers’ most dangerous player on Saturday by miles.

Jorge Perlaza, 3 – Ineffective. Hard to justify his presence in the XI over Songo’o or Alexander.

Kris Boyd, 3.5 – Not entirely his fault, but he was also ineffective. When Boyd is having to consistently come deep into the midfield to receive the ball, you’re in trouble.

Freddie Braun, 3.5 – Simply in over his head defensively. He does provide much more going forward than Purdy or Palmer, although that’s not the highest standard in the world.

Franck Songo’o, 4.5 – Looked decent on the ball, but struggled to link up with his teammates. To be honest, he looks like a guy that struggles coming off the bench. At this point, I would like to see Franck in the XI. He needs more time on the field to develop chemistry in the attack. I’m not sure it’s going to work, but if moving Lovel Palmer into the midfield was worth a try, this certainly is, too.

Joe Bendik, 4 – Absolutely impossible situation for the youngster. Should have smothered the cross on the second concession, but was otherwise okay.

Preseason Prediction: Timbers 0, Impact 0.
Actual Result: Impact 2, Timbers 0.

Onward, Rose City.

101^st FC submitted match reports for their last two matches, a loss to Trick Pony with a large number on one side followed up by a thrilling 9 to 8 win over Grant Old Boyz.  The 101^st FC was struggling with a long layoff in the schedule similar to some of their outdoor brethren, but they mounted a wild comeback to get a win for the week.  They have their final fixture on May 3 versus Urban Honking FC in a late Sunday evening match.

We didn’t receive a report from AC Loco Moco on their matchup with Fridjes Refritos, so either they had a good match or those puppets from TeamAmerica finally got to them.  They also get a bit of a break in their fixtures, as they next play on May 5 at Portland Indoor Soccer. We hope to hear more from our indoor club next week in revisiting both matches.

Cascade Rangers FC had another TAFC derby on their schedule as they met up with Rose City Athletic at the now infamous Old Oregon City High School pitch.  We didn’t get a report from Jerry to give the CRFC perspective, but Rob from RCA reported a 5 to 0 win for RCA that apparently was much closer than the final score indicated.  The boys in red scored a single goal in the first half despite plenty of pressure, but CRFC showed some improved defense to keep the score at one.  Unfortunately, RCA scored four in the second half behind a hat trick for Ed Ramirez and goals from Bryan Boen and Zack Skinner.  Apparently, both clubs enjoyed some post match pints as a sign of sportsmanship, which was good to hear about.  Cascade Rangers FC face their old foes,South VN, at LaSalle HS in a rare Saturday night match on April 28 while RCA meets the Fiji Islanders at the same location earlier in the day.

Coat? FC finished their Futsal season for Spring with a 7 to 6 win over Calling Dinosaurs FC. I’m sorry that we didn’t get more reports from them about matches, but hope to share more as their adventures continue.  Based upon previous sessions, there could be a second session of matches forthcoming, so look to this page for more details.

Both Division 1 sides, FC Dynamo and FC Portlandia didn’t submit match reports in time for inclusion either, but we did get official scores from the league. FC Dynamo lost a heartbreaker to North End 1 to 0 while FC Portlandia absorbed a 3 to 1 loss to Abysinnia. Both clubs are in action on Saturday at Gladstone HS, as FC Dynamo meets Salsa Azul at 6 PM while FC Portlandia entertains Portland Internationals earlier in the day. We hope to have official recaps for you all with next week’s report.

North End United was unable to complete a report in time either, but they did list their score this week as a 2 to 1 loss to the Fiji Islanders atSynderPark.  While Rueben Wilson logged their only goal, the boys in black were unable to stop the Fijians on this day.  We hope to hear more about this match next time, while NEU prepares for their next match on April 29 at Gladstone HS when they meetBroken Arrow.

Northern Alliance FC met up with Electric Dream Machine at Old Oregon City High School, which apparently is now known as a field of horrors.  This week’s match didn’t feature any delays in the start, and NAFC got some great news that some of their players weren’t as injured as originally thought, but they were also without some key players unexpectedly.  Despite the challenges, NAFC fought to a well earned 3 all draw as Johnathon Davidson scored a brace and Jacob Morr notched a goal. Davidson now leads the team with 3 goals, and hopefully the offensive onslaught continues this weekend as they meet MayDay on April 29 at SnyderPark.

Old Growth FC finally resumed their schedule after a lengthy delay in matches.  After playing in soupy conditions on a rutted pitch, the team was pleased to arrive at LaSalle High School on April 22 under gorgeous conditions and a full compliment of players.  The optimism was tested as their orange clad opponents, Tug and Whistle, put on a dazzling display of give and go soccer that ran OGFC around quite a bit.  Yes, folks, the scoreline wasn’t pretty, but OGFC kept their composure and played well under the circumstances.  They play their next match on April 29 at the field of horrors against FC 77 Hiberian, and recently announced a May 12 scheduled friendly against Cascade Rangers FC at a location to be determined.

We know how much you love the Timbers, and how you’d love to have the opportunity to see them in person for a derby match at JELD WEN field. Well, now’s your chance.

If you live outside of Oregon and Washington, you have an opportunity to win a FREE round trip ticket to Portland from anywhere Alaska Airlines or Horizon Air flies for the May 26th match against the Vancouver Whitecaps.

Alaska Airlines has provided eight round trip travel vouchers; any 107IST member who lives outside of Oregon and Washington is invited to enter to win! Eight out-of-town 107IST folks will get FREE round trip airfare from anywhere Alaska Airlines or Horizon Air flies, along with a match ticket in the Timbers Army section. We’ll fly you in for the derby match on May 26th against the Vancouver Whitecaps. Accommodations are your responsibility, but if you can get to somewhere Alaska Airlines or Horizon Air flies, we’ll get you here for the match and back. NOTE: this contest is open to 107IST members only, and only those who live outside of Oregon and Washington.

Not a 107IST member yet? Well, now’s your chance to sign up. Become a part of the engine that drives the Timbers Army, and throw your name in the hat for a chance at a free round trip to Portland!

Click here to sign up or renew today.

Once you are a 107IST member, you are eligible to enter.

Entries are now closed; winners will be drawn May 9th and announced after their ability to use the vouchers and tickets has been confirmed.

Drawing will be held on May 9th. Note that the travel vouchers are good only from departure locations served by Alaska Airlines or Horizon Air.

We know you’re Rose City Til You Die, but you shouldn’t have to wait that long to actually VISIT the Rose City to cheer on the boys in green. Deadline for all entries is 11:00 PM May 8th. Enter to win today!

Reactions on my Twitter timeline ran the gamut: angered, excited, but most of all, confused. Don’t the Timbers already have enough forwards? (Obviously, this question was quickly answered by the soon-after announcement of Eddie Johnson’s retirement…the good one, but that’s another blog entry altogether.) Don’t the Timbers need more help on the back end? For a few hours on a Friday afternoon, Portland’s work production rate plummeted as they scratched their heads, completely distracted from the next day’s match against Sporting Kansas City. (Looking back, the distraction wasn’t completely unwelcomed.)

All of the sudden, both Timbers and Sounders fans found themselves dealing with the way-too-sudden reality of players playing on both teams during their MLS careers. This was one of the few times when both sets of fans were on mostly common ground with respect to dealing with such an ordeal.

NOTE: to the outsiders who might be reading this and thinking it’s completely ridiculous to make such a big deal about players moving between Portland and Seattle, I’d like to introduce you to something called sports. Some of them are even on TV, which you probably don’t even have. Go back to your scholarly journals and let us air this one out!

In order to come to grips with this, we should examine the individual player’s career performance, not just for the opposing team in question, but more specifically, their performance against our own team. Since I’m not the type to spend my free time sifting through sports statistics, I requested the help of local Timbers writer / podcaster Mike Donovan. Here’s what he found:

# of minutes played in MLS competitions: 1,071 (not including 129 playoff minutes)
# of goals scored in MLS competitions: 4

# of minutes played in Open Cup competitions: 193
# of goals scored in Open Cup competitions: 2

# of minutes played in CONCACAF competitions: 397
# of goals scored in CONCACAF competitions: 5

# of minutes played against the Timbers (regardless of MLS / USL / Open Cup, etc.): 0
# of goals scored against the Timbers: 0
# of fouls committed against the Timbers: 0
# of jerkwad goal celebrations in front of / toward the TA: 0

According to Donovan, “Fucito has never played against the Timbers in any official match. He did, however, play 73 minutes last year for the Sounder Reserves vs. the Timbers Reserves at Starfire. He also played 10 minutes in last year’s 2-0 Timbers win during the Cascadia Summit. He didn’t score or get a card in either appearance.”

Not bad on the stats, if I do say so myself. Looks to me like nothing but positives for the Timbers that could also help create negatives for the Sounders down the road. Let’s also examine a few other items of note:

Fucito was a fan favorite in Seattle. They were pissed when Montreal acquired Fucito and Lamar Neagle in exchange for Eddie Johnson (the bad one). Both were considered fan favorites before being shipped off. If Seattle fans were pissed then, they were irate on Friday afternoon when news of Fucito wearing a better shade of green hit the newswire. Seattle’s misery is Portland’s joy.

Also, as if the two Timbers-Sounders derby matches taking place at JELD-WEN Field in 2012 needed more heat this year, well…they got it. Can you imagine the scene if Fucito scores against his old team? Think about that for a second. Twitter timelines across Portland could be jammed for seconds…nay, dare I say, MINUTES!!

Fucito also attended Harvard University. We like smart people here in Portland (contrary to my statement above about scholarly journals. Apologies.).

Finally, reports came out over the weekend that Seattle couldn’t reach a deal to get Fucito back from Montreal. The way I understand it, the Timbers got Fucito in exchange for either the Timbers’ highest 2^nd round draft pick in 2013, or a 2013 international roster spot, depending on his 2012 performance. Call me crazy, but that looks to me like the Timbers got Fucito on the cheap. Am I to believe that Seattle couldn’t give up at least that much to acquire a fan favorite that would require next to zero time for re-acclimation to the city and the team’s playing style? If I were a Seattle fan (which, according to some people, I am), I would be furious about this part most of all.

This scenario reminds a bit of The Mighty Ducks, where the star player for the evil team of rich kids suddenly found himself playing for the good guys through no fault of his own. Over time, he triumphed over adversity and found his way into hearts of teammates and fans alike.

OK, so it might not be as dramatic as a Disney movie, but I think you see what I’m getting at here. Fucito’s a good player, and is clearly more than able to make solid contributions toward the Timbers’ overall aspirations. I see no valid reason for us to be questioning where his loyalties may lie, especially when his old team didn’t pony up for him. He’s now a Timber, and he should be respected and treated as one. Let’s put on the daddy pants and be a big boy about this, mmm-kay?

Now if Levesque ever becomes a Timber (again), all bets are off. Cuz seriously, screw that guy!

Mike Donovan writes for OregonSports.com, and co-hosts No Pity City. He’s also pretty good on Twitter.

This is an opinion piece and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the 107ist or the TA.

Northern Alliance Blog

The Northern Alliance is putting on a viewing party/fundraiser at Mill Creek Pub in Battle Ground, WA for the May 15th match vs. Houston to benefit youth in Peru. The “Support a Soccer Ball” drive will be supporting fundraising efforts put on by the students at Orchards Elementary in NE Vancouver.

To summarize this March 29th article in the Columbian, the students from Orchards, one of the most impoverished schools in Clark County according to the State, have raised over $1,500 through two penny drives in the past year; this money has gone towards paying a month’s rent for a school in Peru, buying books, and helping to feed the Peruvian youths, who often don’t have a meal at home after school.

Want to know how to contribute? There are two ways: First, you can support the drive by sponsoring a soccer ball for $10, which will be given to the students at Orchards to send to Peru. Our goal is to sponsor 24 balls. Second, there will be a penny drive held during the viewing. Everybody has extra pennies laying around (heck, I have a ton in my car, where they have absolutely no use!), so why not donate them to a great cause: education and food for needy children. 12 cents will pay for a single meal for these students.

All the details for this event are available on the event page here. The Northern Alliance invites you to come early and have dinner before the match! Mill Creek Pub offers a 15% discount to 107ist members, and also is providing 15% of sales to the Northern Alliance General Fund, which supports various causes north of the river.

Because of this unfortunate situation, I’ve deferred all input for this travel guide to someone who knows the city well. He’s Canadian. He speaks French (as most Canadians do, thanks to socialist education and dual-language laws). While born in Vancouver, he spent many years (including the formative college ones) back east among the Québécois. Oh yeah, he produced a few records you might’ve heard.

Here’s punk rock producer superstar Steve Kravac’s guide to Montreal.

Best dive bar: St-Laurent Bifteck
This is the formerly-punk-rock-now-hipster hangout on what we call “the main,” or St. Laurent Street. Always cheap. Be sure to try a pitcher of the local (not so micro) brew Boreale. It’s a mainly English speaking hang.

Best Smoked Meat Sandwiches: Schwartz’s Montreal Hebrew Delicatessen
The smoked meat on rye sandwich is the cornerstone of Montreal dining. Schwartz’s deli serves the quintessential version. Celine Dion is buying the place. Hopefully she leaves everything as is and goes back to Vegas.

Best Cheap Breakfast: Dusty’s
Dusty’s serves up the amazing breakfast and the fresh squeezed orange juice is awesome. Love the home fries! Perfect to nurse your hangover.

Best Bagel: St-Viateur Bagel
Bagels fresh from a wood fired oven 24 hours a day, 7 days week. What could be better? These may be the best in North America.

On Saturday night the Portland Timbers kicked, scratched, and gouged their way to one of the most significant – if ugliest – wins since promotion to MLS a year ago.

The Timbers opened the match with a nice spell of possession in the first few minutes, but ultimately couldn’t make anything noteworthy of it.

Sporting looked to have what Portland lacked in danger in the final third, as in the 9^th minute C.J. Sapong beat Hanyer Mosquera on the byline, and sent a ball to Kai Kamara 10 yards out from the mouth of the goal. Troy Perkins was perfectly positioned, however, to smother Kamara’s shot and end the danger.

From there the chances were scarce, as the side started kicking the ball – and each other – around the midfield. The Wiz managed to put Troy Perkins to work once, as Graham Zusi sent a nicely placed 23^rd minute set piece toward the far upper 90, but Perkins calmly tapped over the bar.

In a tight match like Saturday, though, 90 minutes of labor can be undone by one moment of fleeting concentration. For once, it wasn’t the Timbers learning that lesson.

After Diego Chara found Kris Boyd on a run down the right wing, the Timbers’ talisman sent a ball to the far post to nobody in particular. As the ball floated through the air, the North End could see Chance Myers and Julio Cesar closing down the ball with no Timber within 10 yards. Surely they were just going to let the ball run through. There was no danger. Instead they converged with each other and the ball at the same time, knocking a harmless cross into the back of their own net.

The defense that had been stalwart for 40 minutes, and would be similarly dominant for 49 more, had suddenly made a mess of things in blooper reel fashion.

Coming out of the half, Portland – for the only time on Saturday night – looked poised to make a run at a second goal. After Darlington Nagbe and Diego Chara played a little give and go down the right side, the little Colombian sent an early ball into the box for Perlaza and Boyd. The ball ran by Perlaza, but Boyd got foot to it, only for Jimmy Neilsen to close down the shot and send it out for a corner.

For nearly 45 minutes, that was the end of the serious chances. Roger Espinoza and Kamara had efforts from distance, but neither seriously troubled the Timbers defense.

Then, in stoppage time, as the Army desperately sang the Timbers through the last ten minutes, the Portland defense looked for a split second like it was going to fumble away another result. A routine play was bobbled in the box, the ball bounded perilously toward the near post, but Hanyer Mosquera was there to clear off the line.

That was the moment for Portland to let this one slip away. And for the first time in 2012, the Timbers survived it.

The result – though aesthetically bankrupt – is of the kind that can turn a season around. For the first month of the 2012 campaign, Portland looked talented, but mentally weak. At times the soccer was beautiful stuff, but at the end of the day the Timbers would let the result slip away.

Not on Saturday. Portland ground out three massive points, and will take some desperately needed confidence on the road to Montreal.

Match Observations

• Where has that been? If Portland had shown a tenth of the grit they showed on Saturday in the matches against RSL, Chivas, New England, and Galaxy, Saturday would have been a matchup between two unbeatens.
• The talk before the match was about an XI that seemed to make no sense. Lovel Palmer started in the center of the midfield, Diego Chara and Darlington Nagbe manned the wings, and Eric Alexander and Franck Songo’o held down the bench. What seemed to be the workings of a madman ended up fitting the game perfectly. It was a lineup designed to ugly up the game by getting physical in the midfield and hoping the attacking talent left on the field could find one moment of magic. The strategy was bold, but it worked on Saturday. That said, never, ever do that again, Spenny.
• Take a look at the table today. Portland still sits in last place in the West on seven points, but is only three points out of fifth and four points out of third. The West is, and will stay, a huddled cluster of a conference. Portland’s bad start dug them a hole, but as the table shows, it’s far from insurmountable. Good results the next two weeks and Portland could very easily find itself sitting in playoff position by the first weekend in May. Now look at the East. Gracious.

Timbers Grades

Troy Perkins, 7 – His defense was great in front of him, but Troy’s leadership and positioning kept things organized and kept SKC from making a serious bid at goal. Great save on Kamara early. The only criticism is that Perkins has had a little case of the dropsies in the early stages this year. Hopefully he gets that straightened out before it costs the Timbers a goal.

Mike Chabala, 8 – I’m going to have to dust off the archives to find a gutsier performance from a Timber. His ankle was thoroughly messed up. He gimped his way through his halftime fitness test to the point that I was incredulous he was going back in.[1] Then he was very good defensively in the second half. Was his play itself worth an 8? No, probably not. But as supporters we ask the players to bleed for the shirt, and Chewie put in a historic performance in that regard. You can wear your pink pants to your heart’s content this week, Chewie. You’ve earned it. And would somebody buy this guy an appletini or something?

Eric Brunner, 7 – Boy, oh boy this guy is happy to see Hanyer Mosquera back. Brunner – and the entire backline – looked light-years better than they have at any time in the season.

Hanyer Mosquera, 8 – Mosco got turned around once in the 9^th minute, and it nearly cost Portland. From there he was flawless, including the match-saving clearance in second half stoppage. Gavin hasn’t hit on every foreign discovery, but this one looks like a home run.

Steve Purdy, 5 – Purdy was fine, although not a whole lot more than that. Sometimes looked a little bit lost on defense, but the Timbers weren’t really punished for it. A few more crosses coming in from that right side than I would like to see, but overall a passable performance.

Diego Chara, 6.5 – When I saw him lined up on the wing, I about blew a gasket. In his forays out wide this year Diego has looked terribly uncomfortable. He seemed to have it figured a little bit on Saturday, as he was typically nifty defensively and much, much better in the attack on the wing.

Lovel Palmer, 5 – Okay, so he was fine. He took some maddening touches, but was properly positioned defensively and never screwed the pooch. If this was a situational placement in the lineup for John Spencer, I’ll go along reluctantly. But I can’t for the life of me figure out what Palmer has done to earn a spot in the XI over Eric Alexander or Franck Songo’o.

Jack Jewsbury, 6 – It’s been a rough go for Captain Jack early on this season, but he was useful defensively and in disrupting things in the midfield. He looks a little bit more comfortable playing higher in the thick of things rather than sitting at the back of a diamond waiting for the opposing offense to come to him.

Darlington Nagbe, 6 – Nice outing for Darlington. Had some nice moments in the first half combining with Jorge Perlaza that, but for a very good Sporting defense, could have led to some good chances.

Jorge Perlaza, 5 – Made several good runs, and did some nice things for the offense, but clearly has no confidence going toward goal right now. He had a few opportunities to pull the trigger, but Jorge simply refused. I still think he’s getting traded.

Kris Boyd, 6.5 – Normally if he doesn’t score a goal he’ll get graded down here, as that is virtually his sole purpose on the field. Aside from his cross that Myers and Julio Cesar made a mess of, Boyd had some nice moments winning balls in the midfield and even in defense – namely a huge block of a dangerous Sapong cross in the dying moments of the first half.

Freddie Braun, 5.5 – Very interesting introduction at right back when Lovel Palmer was in the game at Braun’s natural central midfield position. Took on a monumental challenge in trying to handle a front line of Teal Bunbury, Kamara, and Sapong. While Freddie couldn’t shut that down – show me a right back in the league that could – he did well to harass Kamara enough to keep him from getting comfortable.

Eric Alexander, 5 – Came on in the 84^th minute and didn’t really have much of a chance to make an impact. Shocked not to see him in the starting lineup.

Franck Songo’o, 6 – In a very, very brief spell, did nicely to relieve the pressure on the Timbers defense by taking the ball into the attacking third. Didn’t make anything of it, but in second half stoppage, relieving that pressure is vital.

Preseason Prediction: Timbers 1, SKC 0. Perlaza (Songo’o).[2]
Actual Result: Timbers 1, SKC 0. Myers (OG).

Onward, Rose City!

If you’re not yet familiar, Sunday Parkways has become a Portland summer tradition. The city shuts down an 8-mile or so loop of neighborhood streets to motor vehicles and the surrounding community takes to the streets to party. This happens in a different neighborhood each month.

People ride bikes, walk, run, skateboard, eat, drink, and dance. There’s live music, games for kids in the parks…everyone has a smile on their face.

However, doing something like this requires large amounts of volunteers!

We had such a great time when we took the TA trailer and van to some of the Sunday Parkways events over the last two years that we decided to do it again! So, who wants to help us?

We are looking to get 10-15 people to help us with both shifts.

What: North Portland Sunday Parkways
When: May 13th, 11am-4pm
Where: NE Portland map

Your task (if you choose to volunteer) will be:
To stand at an intersection – we’ll have a few in a row so you can mingle with fellow supporters – and wave to kids and other passersby. You’ll also help route car traffic around/through the event. I’ve been told we are highly encouraged to “Timbers up” these intersections; i.e. crest chalked on the ground, music, flags, scarves, noise makers, etc… make it yours and have fun!

What’s in it for you?

• A free t-shirt (WoopWoop!)
• Free snacks and drinks on the day of the event provided by sponsors
• The chance to rep the TA, the 107ist and the Timbers
• You get to hang out with new Timbers friends
• The warm glow of doing something good in and for your community!

How to register to volunteer:

• You’ll want to go to the Sunday Parkways Website.
• Then click on the VOLUNTEER button on the left side of the page.
• Then click on the NORTHEAST MAY 13 button to get to the Volunteer Ticket Information page. Please choose the Mobile Superhero or Intersection Superhero at Rigler Elementary for the morning or afternoon shift (Mobile Superhero and the afternoon shifts are in greatest need).
• We plan to be there all day so the choice is yours!
• Click on Register to get to the next page, which is an Eventbrite form, and complete all the info required.
• At the very bottom of the Eventbrite form, it asks ‘If you are volunteering with a Company or Organization, which one?’ enter Timbers Army here to ensure that you get to hang out near other TA whilst volunteering.

How to come hang out and look cool and not have to volunteer:
If you don’t have time for the whole event, just want to hang out, are planning on riding the route with your family, etc., come anyway! It should be a great day to go for a bike ride with your mom. You can stay for as long as you like, and leave when you like. The more, the merrier. Spread the love, and all.

If you want to volunteer, please do, but if you don’t have time or are unable to commit, don’t let that keep you from coming along to see what it’s all about on the day.

SERIOUS BUSINESS ALCOHOL POLICY

The official policy we have been asked to pass along is that alcohol consumption while volunteering is forbidden. We were also definitely not> told anything about consuming before the shift starts, or about only drinking what appeared to be a coke while hanging out in the warm sun… not told anything like that at all. But seriously, think of the children.

Questions are welcomed. Please post them in the 107ist forum thread and we will answer them as quickly as possible.

Hope to see you there!

If you live in this neighborhood please come help us out… Represent!

Portland sent either a 2013 second round pick or a 2013 international roster spot[1] to Montreal for former Sounder Mike Fucito. After being left unprotected in the expansion draft, Fucito went to Montreal along with Lamar Neagle in a trade bringing Eddie Johnson to Seattle.[2]

At first glance, the trade for Portland is a curious one. Why another striker?

The answer must be that a striker is about to be shipped out via trade. With the Timbers already three-deep at striker with Kris Boyd, Darlington Nagbe, and Jorge Perlaza,[3] a trade for another attacking player of the quality who demands playing time would make no sense unless somebody was on the way out.

In other words, it’s been fun, Jorge. With Boyd and Nagbe being the Timbers primary source of goals this year, it’s inconceivable that either of them could be setting sail. The logical choice, then, in for Perlaza to go.  But where? And for what?

Glad you asked. Let’s speculate.[4]

The first step is to look at who might be interested. There are several teams that have been struggling to produce goals early on. You would have to think that any trade partner would be one of them.

The table suggests Vancouver might be interested, having only scored 5 goals in six matches, but if anybody has more of a logjam at striker than PTFC it’s the Caps. So, it won’t be Vancouver. Montreal can be similarly dismissed. If Perlaza were to be going to Impact it probably would have happened already – you know, like today.

So we leave Canada – for the moment – and head to New England. Between Saer Sene and Jose Moreno they, too, seem to have the striker position tenuously locked down. Our next stop takes us to Houston, where the options are plenty but not terribly good. Perlaza really isn’t the solution to that problem, and PTFC should be a little wary of the Dynamo after the last bill of goods they bought from them,[5] so we’ll two step out of Texas.

Chivas USA can’t be the destination as geriatrics Juan Pablo Angel and Alejandro Moreno, along with youngsters Casey Townsend and Cesar Romero would seemingly put the Goats out of the market. Similarly, Chicago’s recent signing of Chris Rolfe would seem to put out the Fire.

So that leaves three legitimate options; Philadelphia, Columbus, and Toronto.

Of those three, Philly is the first to be eliminated. If Peter Nowak wanted a quick striker who struggled with his first touch and was an inconsistent finisher, he would play Danny Mwanga more. Plus, they have more than a half dozen other semi-options at striker. So, there will be no brotherly love for Jorge.

Alright, then how about Toronto? They have a dearth of offense at the moment and a load of allocation money from making CCL. Indeed, Toronto would seem like a bona fide option for Jorge. But does Perlaza really fit in Aaron Winter’s system? And when Danny Kovermans is healthy they have the Dutchman, the unspectacular Ryan Johnson, and Joao Plata up front – two of whom they have been eagerly selling to their desperately frustrated fanbase. So, while Toronto has some specious allure, I would be slightly surprised to see Jorge end up there.

Which leads us to my prediction for Jorge’s next home. Jorge, welcome to beautiful Columbus, Ohio.[6] Let’s face it, the clean-shaven crew are just a mess up front. They have a couple interesting pieces for the future in Ethan Finlay and Ben Speas, but really nobody that can reliably open up space for Emilio Renteria. And Tommy Heinemann is just a vastly inappropriate player to feature on a club sponsored by Barbasol. Last week they threw out a strikeforce of  Aaron Schoenfeld and Olman Vargas. So they have a need.

Perlaza is also a great fit for Columbus’s system,[7] where they like to play pretty direct and look to pick Renteria out in the box. Jorge’s delectable pace would be perfect to open up seams in the box and set Renteria up in front of goal. What’s coming back? Allocation money. Are you kidding me? There’s nothing on Columbus that is going to fix the fullbacle[8] the Timbers must immediately remedy.

So there it is, Jorge Perlaza to Columbus for allocation money. That allocation money – along with the $38,000 difference between Fucito and Eddie Johnson’s salaries and the savings from moving Perlaza off the books – will be spent on an international fullback. Who will that be? Come on, even I have standards high enough to not speculate that much.

Onward, Rose City!