Dave Kean

Two years ago I was getting on an airplane when there were a couple of minutes left to play and I never found out the result until I got to London. For the 2010 final I was at Royal Brougham Park and the atmosphere was incredible.

Last night I was back at RBP and I think that was the loudest I’ve ever seen the place. From kickoff through to showing the cup off after the final whistle it never stopped.

For a supporter big nights under the lights with something important on the line don’t come along very often, and when they do walking into the stadium feels a little more special. Last night was outstanding. We were treated to two teams that wanted to win the 2011 US Open Cup. No negative tactics from either side, no hanging on for a draw and a referee that let the game flow.

Even better, it was a really good game, and that only added to the night. Either side could have won it. Had Chicago come out on top it would have capped a huge turn around from their awful beginning of the season.

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Fun night at RBP, lots of goals and even Sigi admitted he’d do it differently next time. While I do believe in the Dave Clark (Sounder@Heart) promoted hash-tag “#trophiesnotfriendlies”, it was fun to watch a team like United play.

The Boy Wayne, Owen, Anderson and England captain Rio Ferdinand

Royal Brougham Park with 67,000

Giggs, 21 years and 613 appearances for United.

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There are a number of talking points that I’m sure will be picked up elsewhere from last nights game.

• The tifo from ECS was outstanding; there was no other way to describe it. Nine large panels that involved all incarnations of the Sounders teams over the years. I’m sure there are plenty of better pictures on the net, it’s worth looking for.
• The weather was awful. It started raining about 45 minutes before kick off and at lunchtime the following day it’s still pouring down. A plastic pitch that wet does not improve a teams passing game.
• There were no yellow cards handed out, this is startling. I’m not sure the ref had a good night and I think he missed a few things, including a solid looking hand-ball off a Levesque cross with about 15 minutes left to go, but the two teams were very disciplined.
• Injuries continue to decimate Seattle. With Friberg spraining his ankle on Friday and the rather injury prone Brad Evans coming out before half time with a groin strain that will keep him out a couple of weeks. This is on top of the injuries to Zakuani, White and Rosales. That’s five attacking starters who have scored 8 out of the 12 Seattle goals (and 10 out of 14 assists) unavailable last night.

The atmosphere was everything you’d hope it was going to be, loud, passionate and 36,593 people were treated to a proper rivalry game. While it ended 1-1 it does feel a little more like a loss in the cold light of day. The first half was very even, both sides had chances but no one was able to take advantage and find the back of the net.

It says "Decades of Dominance"

Seattle came out after the break playing a far more assertive game and on 52 minutes it paid off when Fernandez got on the end of Montero flick that was started by Roger Levesque pass (who else would set it up other than the two players Timbers fan hate the most?) and finished it beautifully.

The building erupted, not just from the goal but from the weeks of build up, nervousness and anticipation that got released. It felt really good.

However it took less than 10 minutes for Portland to come back, and predictably it was from a set piece. Danso headed home a Jewsbury free kick.

The second half of the game opened up and ended up being a rather entertaining second half after the stalemate of the first. Overall it was a good game to watch, but I still came away as unsatisfied as I was wet (and I was soaked through).

Some more thoughts, this time on Seattle’s play.

• Jaqua was totally anonymous last night, he has no first touch and is seemingly unable to win 50/50 balls. I get that with Seattle’s impressive injury list he may be the best option left, but the team needs to so something.
• Fernandez was excellent again, and after the last couple of games has hopefully cemented his place in the starting 11.
• What does Fucito have to do to get into the game? OK, Levesque is the default next option with the injuries, but how does Neagle stay ahead of Fucito in the pecking order?
• Seattle has very little presence in the air, this goes beyond Jaqua and to the entire defence. They had the chance to clear the free kick that lead to the Portland goal, but got beat to the ball.
• The ball is getting to Keller way too much. The central defenders need help in stopping the balls into the box and relying on Keller to keep us in the game.

I think Seattle has very knowledgeable fans who understand the game. I’ll give a certain amount of latitude to the coaching staff with all the players out right now. Having said that, there really does not seem to be that much intensity or consistency on the pitch for long periods. And it’s being noticed in the seats.

Another immensely entertaining game at Royal Brougham Park (or Qwest as some insist on calling it), the result was not great, but if Seattle continues to play like they have in the first three games then it’s going to be a great season.

You can pretty much substitute what I had to say after the LA and NYRB games here and be close. Chances, misses and great goal keeping would all be included in what I had to say.

Seattle were ultimately denied by some great goal keeping by Tally Hall, the reflex save to the goal keepers right from White (I think) in the first half was top class. Settle tried the tactic of shooting form outside, then inside and Hall seemed the equal of that idea. It’s difficult to over estimate how masterful the experienced Houston keeper was tonight.

Houston scored first, and rather against the run of play it must be said. Geoff Cameron beat Keller after some good build up play.

Erik Friberg seemed to be part of every Sounders play tonight, he worked tirelessly. Covering back when he needed, probing forward and supporting the attack when he could. A very impressive performance.

Jaqua finally made it onto the pitch, he replaced the largely ineffective White at 61 minutes. His presence was felt immediately with a run at goal. Just being on the field seems to open up Montero’s game. The center backs now had two top class threats to take care of and it seems to create a little more space just in front of the defence.

There is more on the good news front. Zakuani looked close to his best, lots of great runs and scored the first Seattle goal of the year. It came from a badly cleared corner that fell to Zakuani, who neatly put it away. It came during a period of solid Seattle play and the stadium erupted, the spell had been broken and we were back in this one.

Yes there are worries. primarily Montero not scoring again, I think the introduction of Jaqua opened up a little more space and he had a couple of good attempts saved tonight. It will come for Montero, and when it does I think the floodgates will open. He’s too good, but I’m sure the European teams that have looked at him over the last year have noticed the dry spell that goes back into last season.

Seattle has been in all three games so far this year. A little luck and they could be on 7 points rather than the one. Lots of football left to play over the next 7 months.

This LA Galaxy bugbear is starting to get old. As is the “lots of chances, but unable to put it away” storyline that defined a lot of the sounders 2010 season. Don’t get me wrong last night was an entertaining game of football, obviously not happy with the result but Seattle played well enough to have won. For the Sounders there are way more positives than negatives to take out of tonights game.

One more thing, it felt good to be back in RBP. It was rather wonderful to spend a couple of hours in The Pyramid with friends, a couple of pints of really good IPA and a great burger. Then to the game. There are a few changes to what’s going on, biggest is the Ninkasi Total Domination IPA is on tap in Qwest Field this year (this is a big deal), if I’m going to spent $7 on beer it needs to be a good one.

Other than the beer situation, other big news was of the day broke just before the game when the Sounders announced they had agreed to end their association with veteran striker Blaise Nkufo. A big surprise as he looked effective last year. It seems there is a disagreement between himself and Sigi about how he should be used.

I do hope it’s not going to become a trend; Ljungberg had issues with Sigi last year. I think they were wider than just how he was being used, but it does cause me to maybe question how the organization is dealing with the higher priced, experienced designated players. If it really is a problem with the players rather than the leadership inside the team then perhaps they will think again before signing a mid 30’s European star in the last couple of years of their career.

Having said all that, even with hindsight I do think Ljungberg was the right player. He gave this team instant credibility when he chose Seattle over the Premier League. In that first year he did a lot of this team on and off the field. However his clear displeasure and frustrations at some of the younger players became more and more obvious.

To the game, as I said the result is disappointing, but it’s the start of a long year and the schedule for Seattle was not fair as they go to Red Bull Saturday.

Nkufo was replaced by O’Brian White, starting his first game for the sounders after a move from Toronto and hopefully greener pastures. White had a busy night and had a couple of good chances, both set up by through balls from Zakuani. With 20 minutes left to play White put the best chance of the night wide when the Galaxy keeper (backup Josh Saunders) made one of his rare mistakes and was out of position.

Zakuani did not look at full speed all night and while the conditions were miserable and hardly conducive to good football, he did not look 100% when he had the ball. Of the other new boys Eric Freiberg looked good, he seemed to be everywhere and covered a lot of ground during the game. His touches forward were typically good and he had some quality linkups with Montero.

When he is playing well, Montero is electric to watch, but he does need to start putting balls in the back of the net to warrant the $800K he’s being paid as a DP this year.

It was a tight game and there was very little in it between the two teams. The midfield possession game was very close and fun to watch. Alonso and Freiberg were in the middle of everything for Seattle.

The defence is as solid as expected; JK Hurtardo and Jeff Parke may be the best center defence pairing in the league. Leo Gonzales and James Riley had license to move forward to fill in space as the midfielders supported the forwards. In all it looked like a well prepared team, it’s just the finishing that was missing.

For LA Beckham is clearly getting on a little, for a start the first 5 yard burst of speed is long gone and he does not scare defenders the way he used to. However the precision passes are still there and he still wants the ball for his specialty; set pieces. I’m sure his value to he team as a whole goes beyond his role on the field, but he is not what he was even a couple of years ago. 

I’m not a fan of Bruce Arena. He has a very well drilled team, they know what to do in any situation. Unfortunately that is shut the game down once they get ahead on the break. An LA is very good at that and that tactic was very evident at Quest.

Saturday is New York, two of the toughest games straight away for Seattle is a tough way to start the year. There are 33 games left in the year, lots of football left to go.

It’s been months since the opening date was announced. There are 17 other sides in this league, and out of this 17 it’s LA I wanted to see come into Royal Brougham Park to open the season.

There are a number of reasons for this wish. First and biggest is it’s payback time for last autumn’s playoffs, that’s obvious. Second is they humiliated us 0-4 last year in our home. It was a woeful Seattle display, but LA did what good teams do and dispatched us comfortably. The performance in HDC last July was not much better; I’m looking forward to the chance to seeing that particular wrong put right this July.

Lastly, but not least, I think LA was the best side in the League last year and if Seattle wants to be taken seriously as a contender then they have to beat the best, and I think the best is LA.

On Tuesday night the rest of the league will be watching. Loose and it’s not all over, win and the Supporters Shield is not ours. There are a lot of games to go and nothing will be won or lost on Tuesday night, but this is the opening game. This is Seattle’s chance to make a statement on national TV, win and the rest of the league takes a little more notice of Seattle.

Getting some revenge for last year in a full and loud RBP in a nationally televised game that has the potential to show that in 2011 Seattle is about more than full stadiums, sounding good and having bra straps on our shirts. It will show we are here to compete with the best in the league.

Tuesday night I’ll be taking part in a game day tradition that goes back to the first football league game in 1888. I walk to the stadium with the optimism and anticipation of a new season. Every team is level, no one has lost a single game yet; every supporter thinks that we can win it all, we can mow down all those put in front of us. Anything can happen.

I think we have the players, I believe we have the coach; I have no doubt about the supporters. Maybe this is our year; maybe we can win it all.

I love the feeling of walking from the concourse, through the tunnel towards my seats and into the lights of the stadium. Looking to my right and see the ECS already pogoing, taking in the noise, atmosphere, seeing the familiar faces as I walk up the stairs. It’s game day and there is no place like it.

For a team only two years old there have been quite a number of big moments. The opening night against New York was special, last seasons 3-0 demolition of Colorado impressive, last week in Columbus was another great performance and of course there was winning the cup in DC last year. There have been some lows, most of the first half of this year that culminated in the atrocious performance in LA over July 4th weekend.

The Open Cup leads the march to the match

As an indication of how this team does things differently, the cup itself was carried into the stadium by two members of the ECS prior to the game. This franchise set out to be competitive from the start, to listen to the fans and create a community around the game. This has been helped by the club largely doing the right things both on and off the pitch.

Last night made the top of my list; there was an atmosphere perhaps even better than the opening night and the two teams gave us a game worthy of a cup final. They played positive, passing football and both sides went out looking for the win.

ECS

In a repeat of what went on last week in Ohio, Columbus never really had an answer for Seattle’s attack. In the middle was Nufko and Montero, whose very presence creates space on the outside for the outright pace of Zakuani and Nyassi.

A big night under the lights

At the other end of the field Tyson Wahl was in for Leo Gonzales and he struggled initially, but over the 90 minutes won the fight against Emmanuel Ekpo. Columbus’s other threat Schelotto was marked out of the game by Pat Ianni, who had maybe the best performance on the field.

It’s difficult to say Seattle dominated, but they spend long periods of time in control of the ball. There were times Seattle played a very pretty passing game, but the final passes were more often to feet rather than space for the runners to hit.

Late in the game

Columbus deserved their early lead. They had kept Seattle under pressure and the goal was a very well taken chance by Kevin Burns that came onto the end of a nice passing move around the Seattle box.

Sounders equalized shortly before the break and it was Sanna Nyassi who scored for the second game running. The Columbus keeper came for a cross and never came down with the ball and Nyassi slotted home to level the score.

Even when Seattle fell behind the noise never went out of Quest field, there was little doubt that Seattle was going to score and when Nyassi obliged the place just got louder. I hesitate to say Seattle were destined to win last night. I was nervous before the game, but once we’d made it to kick off I had no doubt that Seattle were going to win.

Seattle began the second half the stronger team, lots of possession but nothing that got past the Columbus defence until Jeff Parke missed a fairly straightforward chance at the back post. A few minutes later Nyassi scored his second. He was in just the right place to clean up from a Zakuani header that came back off the bar.

There was a late scare that bough an involuntary “fuck” from me. Robbie Rogers unleashed a big shot that rattled the underside of the crossbar, Keller was beaten but his luck held. The rebound fell kindly for Seattle and was quickly cleared down the field.

2-1

Shortly afterwards Nyassi came off to one of the loudest cheers of the evening, he was be replaced by Fernandez as Sigi tried to close the game down for the last 10 minutes. Those minutes dragged, but Keller’s goal was not seriously troubled again.

Eventually the ref blew for full time and I think it’s fair to say the Sounders were the better team on the night. Seattle retained the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup in front of 31,311. Quite the night at Quest, if you were there you know how good it felt.

A lap of the field post-game

On Saturday the team play Kansas City, all the team needs is a point to clinch play off football once again. Last year the team finished the season struggling to score goals and struggled against Houston in the playoffs. This year looks very different; the team in on great form, is scoring freely and dispatching the teams they should be.

Tonight was something special, about the only MLS night I’ve known at Quest to compare it with was the opening night last year and the 3-1 win over New York. This was a celebration of the beautiful game, what it can mean to a community. It’s rare for a side to win a major trophy in front of their home fans, that was a fun night.