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Hey, wasn't Micaletto well offside there?

RLaryea with the fantastic dish! Superb!

Tremendous run and strike by R. Laryea!!!

Fair question. I do not have the answer, and I am not even sure who to ask. It looks weird.

AKR 2-0 St. Bonaventure Very inhospitable weather! Strong winds gusted from the west throughout! Rain, sleet, and everything in between. Thankfully, the hail stopped before kickoff. 4-2-3-1 (ref Arsenal) Jason Shokalook was injured and did not take off his warmups, so Stefan Dobrijevic filled in nicely up top, playing the full 90. He stroked in a fantastic looping right-footed goal from the left corner of the box to the far top corner. Great. But Stefan also missed several other opportunities that, from the sideline, looked like pedestrian finishes. Dobrijevic arguably should have had a hat-trick. At least he got in threatening positions. Later in the first half, Josh Hallenberger scored a goal that (from my vantage point) looked like the exact same goal, from the identical spot, that Dobrijevic scored earlier. Halle put in a rock-solid shift, box to box. Though not the most talented on the squad, Joey Paulus is a joy to watch compete. He plays with a relentless and unquenchable fire. His linking play is greatly improved, and he is emerging as a team leader. Joey's left-footed shot is surprisingly powerful. He is obviously having fun out there. ZipsNation can hope for a strong Fall season from Paulus. For reasons undisclosed, Joel Sangwa did not take off his warmups. Mani Diop filled in and was the best revelation of the match. Impressive. Diop really plays a very similar style to Sangwe, calmly handling the ball, confidently tackling, and efficiently distributing. Diop will push for playing time soon, not to mention 2024. All in attendance, players, coaches, referees, fans, were bundled up for warmth. It was tough to identify, even at close range, those not playing.

We care about WSOC. But the program has never realized it’s potential. Same resources as MSOC. Same facilities. Some of the very best high school programs in the nation are a short drive from Akron, not to mention the various academies in the area. It should be very doable to recruit at least red chip talent - without ever boarding a plane. Hopefully, Simonetti can do that. If she cannot, I know coaches who can. Give her some time.

Are you suggesting our WSOC program forgot to sign players?

Like I said; I jumped to my feet. Well done!

Joey Paulus’ lefty screamer from the D forced me to my feet! Wow! Joey should always have the green light to fire. Without a net around the goal, that ball just may have left campus. (Not really hyperbole considering the pitch is literally on a hilltop.)

Very competitive match. And Zips were missing some key players. It was cold. Standout for Zips was (no surprise) Joel Sangwa. Highmark is a beautiful venue. Shoutout to David Egbo for showing! (He will never read this.)

I am rooting for Trialist 2.

Good Call! Zarek Valentin actually could host SportsCenter. He has the gift of ham. I was thinking more along the lines of standup comedy (tough gig), but definitely public speaking of some sort. Great guy is ZV.

Excellent podcast! Thx!

Moutinho played out his GA 5 year deal. He was a free agent.

Grant Wahl was the very voice of American Soccer. He cannot be replaced easily. As always, Steve Zakuani shows personal class when paying tribute to the fallen/departed Grant Wahl. Well done, Steve. We join you in mourning this tremendous loss for American Soccer. Our hearts are very heavy.

Give ‘‘em Hell, Dice!!

Life does not always unfold according to plan. It is very difficult to return to school. Way to persevere! Well done, Adam Najem.

I’ll have the #9, please. To go.

That is indeed unusual, if not strange.

As will I.

That referee decision for the first PK looks even worse on the replay. Budler did precisely what you teach your GK to do: collect the ball.

Special shoutout to Ryan Kingsford! Thanks for choosing to attend University of Akron. You are a class act, Mr. Kingsford. Too bad you are out of eligibility. We hope your foot heals well. Please come back to visit us. Once a Zip; always a Zip.

Assistant Coaches getting cards for dissent I can live with a little bit. It can be argued that it is the AC's job to get the occasional card, from a strategic perspective. But it becomes a HUGE problem when players start following the coaches' examples and dissent every call. Coaches and players do not have the same role. WAY too much mouth from our players! And that shite got to stop right NOW! No card on the field is a good card unless it is earned in a tackle. Malik Henry clubbing the ball across the field after the play? Unacceptable. Not to mention Dumb. We have seen way too much of this lack of discipline recently. Coaches had best come correct on this. Bench mouths off to referee? OK. Fine. Players on field should not complain to ref. Let the bench do that. I expect this to change come Spring. And yes, the entire coaching staff will know my expectations.