Five years? Already?

This week marks Clint Dempsey’s fifth year with Fulham FC.  To honor him and celebrate his FA Cup hat trick

Fulham have released a slide show with about 2 dozen pictures of Deuce in action. So if you’ve got the time head on over here and help to honor one of  the best United States players.

]]> http://avoidingthedrop.com/2012/01/11/dempsey-turns-5/feed/ 3 Kevin Clint Dempsey http://avoidingthedrop.com/2012/01/06/thank-you-and-goodnight/ http://avoidingthedrop.com/2012/01/06/thank-you-and-goodnight/#comments Fri, 06 Jan 2012 15:00:41 +0000 Fuse http://avoidingthedrop.com/?p=14899 ]]>

Dear Readers,

The time has come for me to leave Avoiding the Drop.

I would like to thank you for your loyal support and your always civil, insightful, and witty participation in the site- it has made every minute of the last three years worthwhile.

I would also like to thank my fellow writers for always setting the bar at the site high both in terms of content and tone- both have set, and I’m sure will continue to set, ATD apart from other sites.

I hope that in addition to remaining frequent visitors to Avoiding the Drop you will also find time to visit my new project, The Tanner Ba’.

-Fuse

Not so much a clue as a statement

Allow me to begin with an apology for the vagueness of the first question of this week’s challenge.  The life and accomplishments of the individual in question are so singular and so impressive that even giving you a single additional fact would have made it too easy for all of you Google jockeys to answer the question.  If you manage to find the answer anyway, read up on this guy.  Every time you think you’ve found out about all of the amazing things he accomplished you’ll stumble across another one.

1. What American player accomplished so much off the field before and after his NASL career that being a professional soccer player ranks third (at best!) among his accomplishments?

 2. Pelé named me one of the “125 Greatest Living Footballers,” FIFA named me one of the 100 best players ever, I played in a World Cup, I won the Cup Winners’ Cup, the European Super Cup, and the European Cup. After my career ended I was a coach and president of my nation’s F.A., but I knew I’d really made it when people started naming their children after me. Who is the player and what player- also an international- was named after him?

3. What three U.S. universities have produced the most MLS players?

4. What three U.S. universities have produced the most successful (by games played) MLS players?

5. What is the only Division II institution to produce 10+ MLS players?

There’s been a little change when it comes to submitting your answers, so read carefully.  As always, your answers will need to be submitted by midnight EST next Tuesday.  However, going forward you’ll be sending them to a new email address (thetannerba@gmail.com) and the answers will be revealed at www.thetannerba.com next Wednesday morning.

While listening to “As It Happens” (from the Canadian Broadcast Corporation) the other night, I caught a short blurb about the World Cup that starts tomorrow in Nantes, France. That’s the Foosball World Cup, if the picture above didn’t give you a hint…

The blurb I heard on the radio indicated that Canada would be sending seven players to this year’s Foosball World Cup. So being a proud citizen of the USA, I looked up our country’s roster on the United States Table Soccer Federation website, but alas their website doesn’t seem to have been updated since 2010.

However, the world-wide governing body’s website does have information about the event, including live streaming of matches. Here’s the link to the English homepage.  And it was here I found the USA roster:

Coach:

Captain:

List of players

Tony SPREDEMAN

Billy PAPPAS

Ryan MOORE

Robert MARES

Dan BARBER

Rick MACIAS

Tom YORE

Bruce NARDOCI

Yes, that is correct. The USA does not have a coach or captain. Tony Spredeman is currently ranked as the #2 individual player in the world, trailing German player Jamal Allalou by only four points. Jessica Stepp is the highest ranked American woman player at #10 overall.

So if you’re looking for something to watch on your computer tomorrow during lunch/afternoon, point your browser over to the World Cup Site and watch yourself some “baby-foot”

County old boy Conor Gethins makes good

There was only on entrant this week- Andrew M.- but he did well, missing only one of eight questions.  Click through to see what Andrew discovered when he a) should have been working, b) was ignoring his girlfried, or c) should have helping the less fortunate.

1. In what recent tournament did Mexico finish ahead of the Netherlands, Japan ahead of Argentina, and Uzbekistan ahead of the United States?

These results took place in the group stage of the recent 2011 U17 World Cup.

2. Only one Scottish footballer has scored 100 or more goals for two Scottish clubs- who is he?

James McColl scored 117 goals for Celtic and 130 goals for Hibernian in a career that lasted from 1913-1932 and also included time at Peebles Rovers, Stoke City, Partick Thistle, and Leith Athletic.

3. Only one French footballer has scored 100 or more goals for two French clubs- who is he?

Bernard Lacombe scored 153 goals for Lyon and 142 goals for Bordeaux in a career that lasted from 1969 through 1987 and also included 39 matches for Saint-Étienne in which he scored 29 times.

4. What league’s list of top scorers includes no less than six players who averaged at least a goal per match over their careers?

The Hungarian top flight’s list of top scorers includes Imre Schlosser (1.33), Gyula Zsengeller (1.22), Jozef Takacs (1.01), Ferenc Puskas (1.01), Ferenc Deak (1.28), and Sandor Kocsis (1.00).

5. What former Ross County player once led a European second division in scoring?

Conor Gethins led the Irish First Division (second tier) in scoring in 2007 after spending four years playing for the Staggies. He is currently a fullback with Highland League outfit Nairn County F.C.- maybe.

6. What striker, who just led his country’s Premier League in scoring for the sixth time in a row, has never been capped by his country’s national team?

Striker Rhys Griffiths of Llanelli F.C. has been the league’s leading scorer for the last six seasons, part of the league’s “Best XI” for the last six years, is the all-time goal scoring leader in the Welsh Premier League, led his club to the domestic double in 2007-2008, and has never been called up by Wales.

7. What are the six cups that have been open to both Irish and Northern Irish clubs since 1941?

The Dublin and Belfast Inter-City Cup, the North-South Cup, the Blaxnit Cup, the Texaco Cup, the Tyler Cup, and the Setanta Cup.

8. What tournament, held only twice, was created for communist countries and those sympathetic towards them?

The Games of the New Emerging Forces were set up as an alternative to the Olympics and featured a soccer tournament. The 1963 tournament saw the UAE defeat North Korea and the 1966 tournament saw North Korea defeat China.

I’ll be back in the morning with a new, difficult, and very special challenge.

BA!!

Liverpool F.C. v. Newcastle United F.C. (Friday)

The title race is down to two clubs and these are not the two clubs. A place in Europe, however, is still very much up for grabs and these two clubs are in the thick of the race for it. Separated by only a single point, Liverpool and Newcastle probably don’t need to worry about Stoke City or anyone else catching up to them, but they will need to catch Arsenal to sneak into the Europa League. Thus, a draw will not suit either club. Even if Arsenal lose to Q.P.R. on Saturday Liverpool would need a win to pass them and Newcastle would need a win just to match them on points. Given this scenario, this match could be a pretty dramatic affair and one in which the key may be whether or not Liverpool can find a way to contain Demba Ba (how good of a signing was he?!) and his 14 goals in 17 matches.

Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. v. Bolton Wanderers F.C. (Saturday)

I like Owen Coyle- not just because he once played for Ross County!- but I have a feeling that if he comes out on the wrong end of this relegation battle he’ll be out of a job. Mick McCarthy, conversely, seems to have a knack for surviving just this kind of situation personally and Wolves have done just the same as a club in recent years. One reason Wolves will probably avoid the drop this year is midfielder Matt Jarvis. If there’s a player in the Premier League whose form has been better in the last few months I’d like to know who it is. In recent weeks Jarvis has been rampaging up and down his wing no matter the opponent that’s been matched against him. He’ll be adding to his single England cap very soon. Fun Fact: Wolves won the NASL International Cup in 1967 playing as the “Kansas City Spurs.”

Manchester United F.C. v. Blackburn Rovers F.C. (Saturday)

Much has been made in recently about the support that Blackburn manager Steve Kean has received from Sir Alex Ferguson and I’m sure that, one Scot to another, Sir Alex has meant every word of it. However, his support of his countryman and coaching colleague will not prevent him from putting the sword to both Steven Kean personally and Blackburn Rovers as a club. Thus this battle of “potentially first” to “potentially worst” may resemble more of a coup d’grace than a football match. Nobody expects Rovers to win or Steve Kean to survive the season, but that won’t prevent the fine folks at Venky’s London Limited from showing him the door anyway. Fun Fact: Is it just me or did Mark Bunn- he of only three previous Premier League appearances- look very good for Rovers last week?

Watford F.C. v. Doncaster Rovers F.C. (Saturday)

I have no reason to preview this match other than my amazement that Neil Sullivan, Doncaster’s goalkeeper, is still an active player! For a start, Sullivan made his professional debut for Wimbledon in 1988, where his teammates included Vinnie Jones, John Fashanu, and Dennis Wise. Sullivan is also a former Scottish international, even though he retired from international duty almost a decade ago. And here he is, trying to keep Doncaster from getting relegated to League One. Watford, meanwhile, probably aren’t in danger of relegation, but if they were to lose this match and their next one against Portsmouth that may well change. Fun Fact: Take a look at Doncaster’s club crest and tell me it wouldn’t look right at home on the front of and old time fireman’s helmet? Too abstract?

Ross County F.C. v. Partick Thistle F.C. (Monday)

By more or less treading water for the past two weeks (and having the clubs chasing them do the same) the Staggies still have a chance to close out 2011 with no less than a three point lead and as much as a nine point lead over Falkirk and/or Dundee. Either way, they’ll have a match in hand. Better still, ownership has let manager Derek Adams know that if he feels he needs to strengthen the squad come the January transfer window, funds will be made available for him to do so. The next few weeks, it appears, could be interesting both on and off the pitch. In theory Partick are still in the title hunt (they’re ten points behind the Staggies), but a loss here could drop them back to fifth place and four places and thirteen points are probably just to big of an ask for a club whose form has been, at best, spotty. Fun Fact: I’ll be seeing County play twice in March- at home to Falkirk and away at Hamilton.

Hibernian F.C. v. Heart of Midlothian F.C. (Monday)

You’d have to go a long way back to find an Edinburgh derby where both clubs were in the midst of such dire crises. While it may appear that Hibernian are worse off, as they are one of the clubs facing relegation from the Premier League, it is actually fifth place Hearts who have the biggest problems. The spendthrift ways of Hearts owner Vladimir Romanov have finally come home to roost and he cannot afford to pay all of the players that he brought into the club. The players’ wages have already been late twice, and if their December wages are not paid by January 14^th all of their contracts will be considered null and void and they will be free to leave the club. What happens after that is anybody’s guess- they field the reserve side? They are punished with relegation? The club ceases to exist?

This week’s challenge is mostly about scoring goals- lots of them, and over a long period of time.  Sprinkled in among them are a few questions about odd tournaments and cups- it’s a perfect combination.  Or it isn’t.  I honestly don’t know.  Whatever the case, the questions themselves are pretty interesting and that’s all that really matters.  Click through to see what you’re made of…or not made of as the case may be.

1. In what recent tournament did Mexico finish ahead of the Netherlands, Japan ahead of Argentina, and Uzbekistan ahead of the United States?

2. Only one Scottish footballer has scored 100 or more goals for two Scottish clubs- who is he?

3. Only one French footballer has scored 100 or more goals for two French clubs- who is he?

4. What league’s list of top scorers includes no less than six players who averaged at least a goal per match over their careers?

5. What former Ross County player once led a European second division in scoring?

6. What striker, who just led his country’s Premier League in scoring for the sixth time in a row, has never been capped by his country’s national team?

7. What are the six cups that have been open to both Irish and Northern Irish clubs since 1941?

8. What tournament, held only twice, was created for communist countries and those sympathetic towards them?

Please email your answers to avoidingthedrop@gmail.com by midnight EST next Tuesday.

No spoilers in the comments.

Good luck!

Estas botas pertenecen a David Villa

I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, one of the best parts of putting together the Thursday Challenge every week is seeing the commenters come up with answers (and correct ones at that!) that I never anticipated.  This week was no exception.  Not only did Andrew M. and Dennis W. both answer all of the questions correctly, they also added quite a bit of new information as well.  Click through and we’ll take a look at my answers as well as those that Andrew and Dennis discovered.

1. Dundee United F.C.’s Tannadice Park and Dundee F.C.’s Dens Park are located .17 miles apart, but they are only the second closest derby rivals- who are the first?

MTK Budapest F.C.’s Stadion Hidegkuti Nandor and BKV Előre S.C.’s Sport Utcai Stadion are directly across the street from each other. Stadion Hidegkuti Nandor was used in the classic football movie Victory.

Andrew suggested Notts County F.C. and Nottingham Forest F.C., but they have a city block and the River Trent between them.

2. Name three stadiums whose capacity is larger than the population of the city/town in which they are located?

TSG 1899 Hoffenheim old stadium, Dietmar-Hopp-Stadion held 5,000 supporters and their new stadium, Rhein-Necker-Arena (located in nearby Sinsheim), holds over 30,000 supporters. Hoffenheim has a population of less than 3,500.

Stade Felix-Bollaert, home of R.C. Lens holds over 41,000 supporters, the city’s population is around 36,000.

Finally, Ross County F.C.’s Victoria Park has a capacity of 6,300, while the town of Dingwall has a population of 5,000.

Andrew added Guingamp’s Stade Roudourou.

Dennis added Brora F.C.’s Dudgeon Park.

3. What current world class player once used his influence to block a transfer that would have made his younger brother his teammate?

While at Real Madrid Wesley Sneijder prevented his younger brother Rodney from moving to Real Madrid from Ajax.

4. What footballer’s Adidas F50 boots are personalized with the flags of Spain and Asturias as well as the name of his first child?

Barcelona’s David Villa.

5. Whose record for “longest clean sheet” in a single season was broken by Ediwn van Der Sar in 2009?

Former Atlético Madrid goalkeeper Abel Resino.

6. What recently retired player- not a goalkeeper- made over 1,000 appearances for club and country?

Defender Paolo Maldini played 902 times for A.C. Milan and 126 times for Italy.

Andrew pointed out a player that I should have known about myself- in addition to playing 955 league matches (mostly for Preston North End), Graham Alexander also had 40 caps for Scotland.  Alexander is still active as PNE’s player-manager, so it’s conceivable that he could pass Maldini’s total early next season.

7. What former player and current manager was granted a hereditary title by his monarch in 2011?

Juan Carlos II of Spain made national team manager Vincente del Bosque the Ilustrísimo Señor Marqués de Del Bosque (“The Most Illustrious The Marquis of Del Bosque”).

8. What distinction do David James and Robbie Fowler hold?

They are the only members of Liverpool’s “Spice Boys” who are still playing.

Thanks again to Dennis and Andrew for chiming in with their answers.

I’m back tomorrow with a new challenge.

Video of young Matty to follow...

Aberdeen F.C. v. Inverness Caledonian Thistle F.C. (Saturday)

As I may have mentioned a few weeks ago I feel I have to start watching the bottom of the Scottish Premier League table as the club that finishes last could be the one that Ross County replaces in the top flight. Aberdeen are probably safe, but ICT, Hibernian, and Dunfermline Athletic are probably not. While ICT lead the other two clubs by a single point, they’ve also played an additional match. There are those who would like to see ICT stay up so that the Highland Derby could take place between two SPL clubs next year- I am not one of them. Sure, that would be great, but I’d rather it was County that swapped places in the top flight with their rivals. There’s just something wonderful about the idea of ICT having to play away to a newly-promoted Arbroath while County are kicking off at Ibrox or Celtic Park…

S.C. Freiburg v. F.C. Augsburg 1907 (Saturday)

Things are bunched tightly enough in the bottom half of the Bundesliga that this match won’t seal either club’s fate, but with Freiburg in last place and Augusburg only one place and two points above them, both clubs are in desperate need of the three points. All of that being said, it’s going to take a run of a few good matches (and some help from those above them) for either of these clubs to climb up the table at all. If you’re thinking of putting a few marks on one of these clubs I’d recommend backing Augsburg- their defense is much less horrible than Freiburg’s and their form has been much better recently- as good as any club outside of the top four, actually. Fun Fact: Augsburg’s midfielder Lorenzo Davids is the younger brother of Ajax, Juventus, and Dutch legend Edgar Davids.

Ross County F.C. v. Falkirk F.C. (Monday)

Of course, for the scenario mentioned above to happen, the Staggies first have to win the SFL’s First Division and a win in this Boxing Day match could go a long way toward making that happen. No matter what, County will be in first place at the New Year (something that has never happened before while they’ve been in the First Division), but wouldn’t even be better if they had a nine point lead over second place than a six point lead? Don’t forget that County also have a match in hand over every club chasing them except last place Ayr United. In short, the club just needs to take advantage of its current situation if they want to gain promotion. As long as we’re discussing good news, I believe that captain Richard Brittain will be available for this match after his long suspension. Johnny Flynn will not- MCL strain.

Middlesbrough F.C. v. Hull City F.C. (Monday)

While it is always nice to see a “never been in the top flight” club promoted to the Premier League, that’s not likely to happen this year as of teams in that category only Cardiff City have a legitimate chance of making the promotion playoffs. So, I’ve decided to take a look at Middlesbrough, a club that has spent 14 seasons in the Premier League, the most recent one being 2008-2009. Middlesbrough were generally a “middle third” of the table club, but they played in Europe a few times and were UEFA Cup runners-up in 2005-2006, beating the likes of Roma and Stuttgart before losing to Sevilla in the final. Fun Fact: Every manager in Middlesbrough’s 135 year history has been either English or Scottish. It would also be nice to see their current manager, Tony Mowbray, back in the Premier League.

Linfield F.C. v. Glentoran F.C. (Monday)

There are many Boxing Day Derbies in Northern Ireland, the biggest of which is, fittingly, “The Big Two Derby.” The Blues of Linfield are in first place and playing well- and they need to be because second place Portadown are still within striking distance. Lifield’s striker Mark McAllister is making a strong case for a call-up to the full Northern Ireland national team (he’s a U21 mainstay)- he has 11 goals in 22 matches this season. Glentoran, meanwhile, still have some work to do if they hope to equal last year’s third place finish- though they do have a match in hand over all of the clubs above them. Fun Fact: Glentoran are, of course, the club of forward Matty Burrows who once did this.

Swansea City F.C. v. Queens Park Rangers F.C. (Tuesday)

It’s probably a little early for this kind of talk (Burnley, Hull City, and Blackpool were all once in similar situations and we know where they are now!), but in this battle between two of the three newly promoted clubs is the winner safe from the danger of relegation? Over the past five seasons 40 points has guaranteed safety and 35 has often been enough. A win by Swansea would give them 21 points and a win by QPR would give them 19 points and both clubs would still be a match short of the seasons midway point. It actually appears that, with Norwich City already on 21 points, all three newly promoted clubs could stay up- I can’t remember the last time that happened. Fun Fact: Swansea’s goalkeeper, Michel Vorm, is going to be a Premier League goalkeeper for a long, long time.

Shiny!

You’ll be happy to know that this week’s challenge has a little something for everyone:  some questions require just some common sense and a bit of digging on the web, while others will require you to have a bit of knowledge about football culture so that you’ll at least know where to begin.  There’s no prize this week, but if participation is good there might be next week!

1. Dundee United F.C.’s Tannadice Park and Dundee F.C.’s Dens Park are located .17 miles apart, but they are only the second closest derby rivals- who are the first?

2. Name three stadiums whose capacity is larger than the population of the city/town in which they are located?

3. What current world class player once used his influence to block a transfer that would have made his younger brother his teammate?

4. What footballer’s Adidas F50 boots are personalized with the flags of Spain and Asturias as well as the name of his first child?

5. Whose record for “longest clean sheet” in a single season was broken by Ediwn van Der Sar in 2009?

6. What recently retired player- not a goalkeeper- made over 1,000 appearances for club and country?

7. What former player and current manager was granted a hereditary title by his monarch in 2011?

8. What distinction do David James and Robbie Fowler hold?

Send your answers to avoidingthedrop@gmail.com by midnight EST next Tuesday and no spoilers in the comments section.

Good luck!