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Tuesday, June 8, 2010
World Cup right around the corner!
The USA opens it's first match against England on Saturday June 12th, 2010. There are a lot of questions entering the match. The biggest one is USA ready to play with one of the top teams in the world. They need to come out with confidence and most of all they need their stars Landon Donavan, and Clint Dempsey to step up. England has a good attack and if Tim Howard is not on his game this game could be over quickly. The main goal of course is to get out of group stage and that would involve us defeating Algeria, and Slovenia. With this in mind the England game is not as big as it is made out to be. A lose would hurt but they would not be done yet.
Friday, December 4, 2009
USA draws england for World Cup
APE TOWN, South Africa (AP) -- The United States will face England at the World Cup for the first since a famous upset 60 years ago, then play Slovenia and Algeria in the first round of next year's tournament.
The U.S. opens against England in Rustenburg on June 12, the teams' first World Cup matchup since the Americans' 1-0 victory at the 1950 tournament in Brazil.
The United States then meets Slovenia at Johannesburg's Ellis Park on June 18 and completes the first round on June 23 against Algeria in Pretoria. The U.S. has never played either nation.
"This is the best draw we've ever had in any World Cup," said former U.S. forward Eric Wynalda, now an analyst for the Fox Soccer Channel. "No disrespect to England, but this is an ideal group for us."
Several U.S. players are well known to England because they play in the Premier League, including goalkeeper Tim Howard (Everton), midfielder Clint Dempsey (Fulham), defenders Jonathan Spector (West Ham) and Jay DeMerit (Watford) and forward Jozy Altidore (Hull). U.S. captain Carlos Bocanegra played for Fulham.
"It will be like a Premier League game," Fulham manager Roy Hodgson said. "The USA is like a team you meet every week. It's better than meeting North Korea and a style of play you're not used to."
The game could feature a matchup of Los Angeles Galaxy teammates Landon Donovan playing for the U.S. against England midfielder David Beckham. Donovan shrugged his shoulders when the U.S. was picked to play England. "It never ends," he said -- apparent reference to his connection to the English star.
"This is going to be awesome," Donovan said. "I can't wait. This is going to be great."
The U.S. has beaten England twice and lost seven times in nine meetings. The other victory was 2-0 in a 1993 exhibition at Foxborough, Mass. In the most recent matchups, England won 2-1 at Chicago's Solider Field in 2005 and 2-0 at Wembley last year.
The only official match between the teams was at the 1950 World Cup.
"It's a tough game," former England manager Terry Venables said. "They will be very well organized and very fit. They won't outplay us but they could out-strength us.
"They won't give in until the last but we do have a bit more."
Mexico was drawn Friday to meet South Africa in the tournament opener on June 11 in Johannesburg. El Tri then plays France and Uruguay in Group A.
In the other groups it was:
Group B: Argentina, Greece, Nigeria, South Korea;
Group C: Algeria, England, Slovenia, United States;
Group D: Australia, Germany, Ghana, Serbia;
Group E: Cameroon, Denmark, Japan, Netherlands;
Group F: Italy, New Zealand, Paraguay, Slovakia;
Group G: Brazil, Ivory Coast, North Korea, Portugal;
Group H: Chile, Honduras, Spain, Switzerland.
AP Sports Writers Ronald Blum and Dave Skretta in New York contributed to this report.
The U.S. opens against England in Rustenburg on June 12, the teams' first World Cup matchup since the Americans' 1-0 victory at the 1950 tournament in Brazil.
The United States then meets Slovenia at Johannesburg's Ellis Park on June 18 and completes the first round on June 23 against Algeria in Pretoria. The U.S. has never played either nation.
"This is the best draw we've ever had in any World Cup," said former U.S. forward Eric Wynalda, now an analyst for the Fox Soccer Channel. "No disrespect to England, but this is an ideal group for us."
Several U.S. players are well known to England because they play in the Premier League, including goalkeeper Tim Howard (Everton), midfielder Clint Dempsey (Fulham), defenders Jonathan Spector (West Ham) and Jay DeMerit (Watford) and forward Jozy Altidore (Hull). U.S. captain Carlos Bocanegra played for Fulham.
"It will be like a Premier League game," Fulham manager Roy Hodgson said. "The USA is like a team you meet every week. It's better than meeting North Korea and a style of play you're not used to."
The game could feature a matchup of Los Angeles Galaxy teammates Landon Donovan playing for the U.S. against England midfielder David Beckham. Donovan shrugged his shoulders when the U.S. was picked to play England. "It never ends," he said -- apparent reference to his connection to the English star.
"This is going to be awesome," Donovan said. "I can't wait. This is going to be great."
The U.S. has beaten England twice and lost seven times in nine meetings. The other victory was 2-0 in a 1993 exhibition at Foxborough, Mass. In the most recent matchups, England won 2-1 at Chicago's Solider Field in 2005 and 2-0 at Wembley last year.
The only official match between the teams was at the 1950 World Cup.
"It's a tough game," former England manager Terry Venables said. "They will be very well organized and very fit. They won't outplay us but they could out-strength us.
"They won't give in until the last but we do have a bit more."
Mexico was drawn Friday to meet South Africa in the tournament opener on June 11 in Johannesburg. El Tri then plays France and Uruguay in Group A.
In the other groups it was:
Group B: Argentina, Greece, Nigeria, South Korea;
Group C: Algeria, England, Slovenia, United States;
Group D: Australia, Germany, Ghana, Serbia;
Group E: Cameroon, Denmark, Japan, Netherlands;
Group F: Italy, New Zealand, Paraguay, Slovakia;
Group G: Brazil, Ivory Coast, North Korea, Portugal;
Group H: Chile, Honduras, Spain, Switzerland.
AP Sports Writers Ronald Blum and Dave Skretta in New York contributed to this report.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
USA World Cup Update
Team USA is in a good spot to qualify for the world cup. Not a great spot considering how close all of the top 4 teams are but good enough. We are leading the group with 16 points and only the top 3 get in and the 4th team has to qualify another way.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
True American, Dead at 77
Copied from New York Times
The death of Edward M. Kennedy immediately raises the question of who will succeed him in the Senate — and how quickly — as Congress is embroiled in a bitter battle over plans to overhaul the nation’s health care system.
Readers' Comments
One of Senator Kennedy’s last public acts before he died on Tuesday was an emotional plea to Massachusetts state lawmakers that they replace him quickly upon his death. Though he did not cite any issues specifically, his note was viewed as an acknowledgment that his absence would leave uncertain not only the identity of his replacement, but also the essence and fate of health care reform, his most cherished legislative goal.
In the letter, dated July 2, Mr. Kennedy asked lawmakers to amend the state’s rules and grant the governor the power to appoint his successor until a special election could be held.
“It is vital for this Commonwealth to have two voices speaking for the needs of its citizens and two votes in the Senate during the approximately five months between a vacancy and a special election,” he wrote.
While Massachusetts voters would probably vote in another Democratic senator, any delays caused by a special election could hinder efforts by the party to corral the 60 votes needed in the United States Senate to move health care legislation forward.
But the effort to find a quick replacement for Mr. Kennedy may prove complicated. In the week before his death, reaction in Boston to his request ranged from muted to hostile. The state’s Democrats found themselves in the awkward position of being asked to reverse their own 2004 initiative calling for special elections in such instances.
Until that year, Massachusetts law had called for the governor to appoint a temporary replacement if a Senate seat became vacant. But when Senator John Kerry, a Democrat, was running for president in 2004, the Democrat-controlled State Legislature wanted to deny the governor at the time — Mitt Romney, a Republican — the power to name a successor if Mr. Kerry won. The resulting law requires a special election within 145 to 160 days after the vacancy occurs.
“The hypocrisy is astounding,” the state House minority leader, Bradley H. Jones Jr., told The Boston Globe on Thursday. “If we had a Republican governor right now, would we be getting the same letter?”
In an interview Wednesday morning with WBZ News Radio in Boston, Gov.Deval Patrick signaled that he was in favor of granting Senator Kennedy’s request to change state law and allow Mr. Patrick to appoint a temporary successor until a special election can take place.
“I believe that the senator’s request to permit the governor to appoint someone to serve for the five months between now and that special election is eminently reasonable and, I think, especially timely when you consider the momentous proposals in front of the Congress right now around health care reform and climate change and so forth,” Mr. Patrick said. “Massachusetts needs two voices in the United States Senate.”
He added: “But having said that, now is the time for us to reflect on the senator s life and contributions and to pray for the comfort of his wife, Vicki, and their family. We’ll turn to succession in due time."
Even if Mr. Kennedy’s death prompts a change of heart, the State Legislature is not set to return until after Labor Day.
In the United States Senate, Mr. Kennedy’s absence had been felt for months before his death as he underwent treatment for a malignant brain tumor at his home in Cape Cod. As deliberations began on a major health overhaul effort — an issue Mr. Kennedy called “the cause of my life” — he had to hand off day-to-day oversight of the health committee to a close friend, Senator Christopher J. Dodd of Connecticut.
Despite his reputation as an unapologetic liberal, Mr. Kennedy was known inside the Senate as a master of negotiation, and senators were divided over whether the ultimate bill would be more — or less — bipartisan if he had been around to shepherd it through. Mr. Dodd, who moved a version out of the Health Committee, said he stayed true to Mr. Kennedy’s convictions.
Others disagree.
“It is a very one-sided, very liberal bill,” said Senator Orrin G. Hatch of Utah. “I know that Ted would not have done that had he been able to be here.”
Because of their struggles pushing the health care overhaul forward, Democrats have increasingly been considering using a process called “reconciliation” to advance the legislation with just a simple majority, rather than 60 votes. With Mr. Kennedy gone and Senator Robert C. Byrd of West Virginia also in poor health, such a maneuver seems even more likely.
Several people, inside the family and beyond, have been discussed as possible candidates to take Mr. Kennedy’s place in the Senate.
In the letter discussing his successor, Mr. Kennedy said the appointee should offer the “explicit, personal commitment” not to run for the seat in the special election. His wife, confidant and policy adviser, Vicki Kennedy, has been subject of speculation in the state as a possible successor, though she said before his death that she was not interested.
Other family members seen as possible heirs include his nephew, former RepresentativeJoseph P. Kennedy II, who has $2 million in leftover campaign funds. Mr. Kennedy has expressed reluctance to return to politics but has not closed the door on the possibility. Senator Kennedy’s sons, Edward M. Kennedy Jr. and Representative Patrick J. Kennedy of Rhode Island, have also been mentioned.
Outside the family, there is a stable of high-profile Massachusetts Democrats considered possible successors, including state Attorney General Martha Coakley and former Representative Martin Meehan, who retired to become chancellor of the University of Massachusetts-Lowell last year, but who has about $4.8 million in campaign cash left.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Mexico vs USA
USA traveled to Mexico where they have not been very good. Well that's an understatement. We have never won a match on Mexican soil. This was suppose to be the game we changed that.
We were looking good when we took the lead in the 9th with a Charlie Davies goal. We played decent until about the 15th min. Mexico started applying pressure and in the 19 min of play Israel Castro scored on a 27 meter shot that sailed right over Tim Howard. After that went in we looked shocked. We never did really recover from it. Landon Donavan looked tired the whole game because of the adjust you have to make with the 7,400 feet altitude in Mexico City. This was a heated game the whole way. One of the US players fell down and the Mexico's player tried to help him up but he didn't want up so a shoving match started. No one was ejected but the match was heated.
Landon Donavan took a corner kick and the Mexican fans were throwing different things at him so the cops had to watch close as he took the corner kick. The whole game was heated and in the 82nd min Mexico took advantage of the home field when Miguel Sabah scored a rather lucky bouncing goal right over Tim Howard.
That was that and the USA squad went home again in another sad defeat. We still have a great shot to make it to the World Cup as long as we win our home games coming up. Our next match is against Trinidad and Tobago on September 9th.
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