The PDL has had issues with officials all season long - mostly falling for flops by players. My wife nicknamed a player on one opposing side "twitch" because every time he flopped, his legs would twitch so much it looked like he was on death's doorstep. But ever time he did it, he got a call from an official.
Well, it looks like the floppers had their way with the officials in western Texas yesterday. This time it cost the Kitsap Pumas a potential shot at the title.
A flop in stoppage time by a newly-hired flopper on the Ventura County Floppers was erroneously called a penalty by the official (who was apparently operating without his seeing eye dog and/or white cane). The Ventura Floppers scored on the resulting free kick to defeat the Kitsap Pumas 2-1. The defeat eliminated the Pumas from playoffs.
Yesterday was a great day! I got to spend it with some great friends, and attend two great soccer matches!
Part 1: Sounders v Chicago Fire
Our friends Charles & Linda came over to our house in the morning, and we all took the ferry to Seattle to see the Seattle Sounders play the East Division leading Chicago Fire at noon at Qwest Field. Although I'd gone to see the Sounders-Chelsea exhibition last week with my brother, this was my first regular-season match, and it was the first Sounders match at all for Carrie, or Charles and Linda. Charles is a bigger (and much more knowledgeable) soccer fan than the rest of us, so he was in heaven. But we all really enjoyed the match and the atmosphere.
It was absolutely electric inside. The crowd (30,000) was really into the match. It looked like the videos I've seen of playoff soccer in Europe. Although the Sounders were clearly the more aggressive team, and had many more chances, the match ended in a 0-0 draw.
Below are a photo of Charles & Linda, and one of some of the banners in the stadium.
Part 2: Kitsap Pumas playoff match When the Sounders match was over, Charles and Linda and Carrie & I walked up 1st Avenue to the Pike Place Market. It was hot (about 90) so we didn't spend a lot of time there. We couldn't really, because we had a schedule to keep. We had to be on the 5:30 ferry to Bremerton so the four of us could meet our friends Mike & Debbie and all go to the Kitsap Pumas playoff match.
The Pumas were playing the Seattle Wolves in round one of the Premier Development League playoffs. Although smaller and somewhat quieter, this was a great crowd for the Pumas - over 2,300 people. And they made some real noise - especially when the Pumas scored their two goals en route to a 2-0 victory. The Pumas dominated throughout, and are now in the Elite Eight of the PDL. They play in a mini-tournament (in Texas) next weekend.
Below is a photo of (left to right) Debbie, Carrie, Linda, Charles, and Mike. This was taken before the stands filled in.
Below is a video of the Pumas (courtesy of David Falk of the Seattle Soccer Examiner) two goals and an interview with their goalie, Dustyn Brin.
...is what 65,000 soccer fans watching an exhibition soccer match looks like. I took my brother to see the Seattle Sounders take on Chelsea Saturday. What an amazing experience! Steve and I are both soccer fans from way back, and this fit the bill perfectly. Chelsea is a world-class organization and had several national team captains on their side. They were obviously better than the Sounders.
I thought the Sounders looked like the more dangerous side for the first ten minutes or so, and then Chelsea scored a beautiful goal twelve minutes in. The Sounders chased for the rest of the match, eventually losing 2-0. The had several chances, but just couldn't finish.
But the energy in that stadium was electrifying. I can't recall ever feeling anything like it, even in 30 years of Husky football. Come to think of it, the only time I ever experienced that kind of electricity was in the 1995 Mariners-Yankees ALDS series.
Despite having a man sent off for no apparent reason in the 30th minute, the Kitsap Pumas continued to work hard and it paid off. They scored in the second half and defeated a team from Abbotsford, BC last night, 1-0. The Pumas are still undefeated (11-0-3) and clinched the division title last night.
You have to hand it to the referee last night. He was able to run up and down the field at a high rate of speed without using his white cane or his seeing-eye dog.
The Pumas have two matches left, during which they could easily clinch the best record in the entire PDL, and then it's on to the playoffs! What a fantastic inaugural season!
The Kitsap Pumas defeated the Vancouver Whitecaps under-23 team 4-0 this weekend. I guess a 4-0 win is more like a spanking than a win.
Here's video of two of the goals:
The Pumas are still undefeated in league play, with a record of 6-0-2. They have 20 points and are in first place in their division of the Premier Development League, with a game in hand over the two teams tied for second. In their eight league games so far, they've only allowed five (that's right, five!) goals.
The Kitsap Pumas defeated the Portland Timbers U23 team last night, 1-0. The Pumas are now 5 - 0 - 2, and in first place in the Premier Development League with 17 points. Portland is in second, with 16 points.
Tuesday evening, the Pumas take on the main Portland Timbers team in US Cup play.
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