Zip_ME87

My understanding from the Zips' ticket office is that there is a NO re-entry policy for soccer games this season since the restrooms are complete. I never noticed if the policy is posted at the gates, but it should be since it is a significant change.

I don't think any real judgements can be made on Souders, Fives, Serna, Foldesy, Koroma, Morris from 1 match (actually portions of 1 match). Observances on how they played in that match, yes, but not judgements of their abilities overall.

Definitely not as you can see here. Perhaps the duress of defending against Saad.

Saad vs Kayvon in high school (Gahanna Lincoln defeats St. Ignatius, November 13, 2009) St. Ignatius' Kayvon Afsarifard, right, defends on Gahanna Lincoln's Saad Abdul-Salaam. (Chuck Crow/The Plain Dealer)

I don't know the re-entry policy, but there are plenty of restrooms now. Both men's and both women's restrooms are open. They were all open for much of last season, but re-entry was still allowed.

My understanding is that he has been around for sometime now. He played in the Spring, and I believe I saw him around last Fall. I don't know why he wasn't eligible before Spring 2012 or exactly how long he has been around.

Passing, especially in the first half, was not as crisp as that to which we've grown accustomed. The Zips seemed to lose the ball often and not win it back as quickly as they need to. Many of the corner kicks were either too long or too short. David Meves made 2 great saves in the first half. There was one defensive breakdown in the 2nd half that I remember where the ball went wide to the right of the goal and could have led to a draw. Wil Trapp and Robbie Derschang saw no action. Caleb Porter made more substitutions than we've seen in the past. My takeaway is that I didn't see anything I wouldn't have expected in a first exhibition match which included numerous new players. From the squads I saw in practice a week ago, all of the players on the pitch last night hadn't played together as a unit in practice. They're getting used to the system and each other. I'm a little concerned that the season is just beginning, and players are already "banged up". As was mentioned on GoZips.com, Wil and Robbie were held out due to injuries that, although not serious, could be nagging. Hopefully, they rest and are able to fully recover prior to the season's start. I'll say I see a lot of depth on this team. A lot of talented players who just need to learn to effectively combine their talent in Caleb's system.

Congratulations to Scott for being named on the Hermann Trophy watch list. I'm certain that he or any of our Zips would say that winning the National Championship is the goal.

I hope the author has proof (not just hearsay) before writing this. Thankfully, Rob Ianello is gone. I don't expect to see this under the current coaches...so, I'm not sure that it's currently "a big issue".

Yeah, we'll either find out Wednesday or Friday, but i love this discussion. Thanks headaviatorrowdie and TheTank. GO ZIPS!

Thank you. I was surprised to read on GoZips.com that there was a meet the team event that had taken place. I've attended these in the past when they were "advertised", but I didn't see anything about this one until it was over. If there was a flyer that came with my season tickets (as one would have thought), I missed it.

Do you know who was up front? In the Spring, if I remember correctly, DeA was the right forward in the 3-4-3.

The 1st hour of practice was drills. While I was behind the north goal watching the GK's practicing and challenging each other during the drills, Aodhan injured his left leg. He was sitting on the bench icing it, but he was wearing a blue vest. I remember Chui "ref'ing" the west sideline. Stevenson was with the blue (but got hurt and sat for sometime also). I think Renaldo was the center ref. With this information and looking at the roster, you can probably figure out who played on the blue squad. I remember hearing players calling out directions to each other by name, but I didn't commit the blue squad line-up to memory. Pina played 30 minutes in goal with the blue, and if I remember correctly, Meves played the 2nd 30 minutes in goal for blue. Meves played the 1st 30 minutes in goal for the orange and then McAdams played the 2nd 30 minutes with the orange. EDIT: I wish I could have returned Friday evening. I think I heard Caleb say they were going to work on the 3-4-3 "tomorrow". I'd have loved to have seen the orange squad make up for this formation. We may find out next Friday, given that he's already used the 3-4-3 vs Wright State resulting in a plethora of goals.

All I'll say is that the orange team last night (8/9/12) included Gallego (LB), Barson, Souders, Yedlin, Trapp, Caldwell, Serna, Derschang, Koroma, and Schmitt.

I agree with you. I'll have to ask Chad's parents if that's true next time I see them (probably August 15th). Good theory, but would probably hold up better if his name was something like Nathaniel Chad Barson (NCB - Natural Center Back).

Referring to Caleb's Practice Day 1 comments, I also found it interesting that Caleb counts Ben Speas among former Zips in the MLS (15, i.e., 14 + 1 in Thailand) although a number of ZN.o members (not me) and GoZips.com do not. I just thought it was interesting given the minor debate on this topic on ZN.o sometime back. I think the discussion was in the "Speas" thread.

Competition between Souders, Afsarifard, and Brenes.

Interesting. I heard Caleb's comments as the Zips will play the 4-3-3 and 3-4-3. Paraphrased - We have DeAndre Yedlin, Chad Barson, and Bryan Gallego returning. If we play 4 in the back that leaves left back a bit up in the air. We have Scott Caldwell, Wil Trapp, Eric Stevenson, and Aodhan Quinn returning at midfield. If we play with 3, obviously those 4 guys will be fighting for those spots. If we play with 4 then we have those guys. I believe Dillon Serna will also compete for a starting spot...

Yeah, I was shocked when I looked at MLSsoccer.com just prior to the Timbers/FC Dallas match and first saw the news...so very sad. Only 22 years old. RIP Kirk Urso. http://www.thecrew.com/news/2012/08/gone-t...e-memories-urso

Ampai's Intro Video with Buriram...footage from Akron included

Sweet goal at 19:50 by Teal Bunbury vs the New England Revolution. Well worth watching the highlights later when it's available. EDIT: Teal's goal vs the Revolution

Actually, Chivas lost Zarek Valentin because they didn't know what they were doing. As far as this trade, great for Blair Gavin. There's a chance that he could be joined by Scott Caldwell, whom I believe is a Revolution Academy product, next season. I saw tweets earlier this summer that Scott spent some time working out with the Revolution during practice sessions this year like he did last year. I also imagine the Caldwells, who are Revs fans, are happy to see Blair join their local MLS club. Some built-in local fans for Blair.

Actually, in July, but what's a few hours among friends. One other point, has Wil Trapp ever scored a goal other than this one for the Crew Juniors U19's? If this was his first or one of a handful even, it was beyond impressive. As far as you nearly suffering a stroke on Scotty's goal...it had a different health-related effect on me. I was sitting in the stands, absolutely miserable from bad Ahi tuna that I had eaten the night before. Scotty's goal made me forget how miserable I felt until well after the celebration inside Harder Stadium.

And, I overpaid to get the Final, but I HAD TO HAVE IT! I actually have the semi-final vs Michigan on VHS tape that a colleague (Michigan alumnus) gave me.

I'm not sure what the big deal is about predicting who the starters will be when we haven't seen these guys yet. Caleb will choose his starters the same as he has in the past, I'm sure. Also, I still believe that if the 3-4-3 is utilized from time to time this season, we'll see 1 to 3 different starters in that formation vs those who start in the 4-3-3. So, the Zips may have 12 to 14 players whom we consider "starters" instead of just 11.