Wednesday, July 30, 2008

MoneyFutbol!

...the Quakes have now aquired Arturo Alvarez from FC Dallas! I think the relationship between the Oakland A's and the Quakes (same ownership) is showing now in FULL FORCE. I can't help thinking that Billy B. is either directly involved or is serving as an advisor in the most recent flurry of transactions that have been executed by the Quakes.

Read this exerpt from a NY Times article from last Aug. 2007:

Wolff said one of the key members of the team’s brain trust would probably be Billy Beane, the A’s general manager, who is a rabid, if closeted, soccer fan. Beane’s frugality and keen evaluation of baseball players for a small-market team was dissected in the book “Moneyball.”
“Billy and his staff will help a lot in identifying players,” Wolff said. “I took Billy and a bunch of A’s executives to the World Cup in Germany last summer. I was just in awe of their knowledge of soccer. They know about every baseball player who can stand upright and they also know soccer. What was funny was that, in the middle of the baseball season, Billy was away in Europe and the A’s won six games.”

Sunday, July 27, 2008

Huckerby's Home Debut

July 27, 2008

It was Darren Huckerby's home debut at the South Bay San Siro and he didn't disappoint. He scored the Quakes 2nd goal of the day. You ask how did the Q's score two goals and end up tying the NY Red Bulls? The Q's first goal was an own goal by Eric Denton minutes after the opening kick. OUCH. He was trying to head the ball back to Joe Cannon and oooops - it went to high and Joe couldn't stop it. This is the 2nd time this season that the Q's have given own goals while attempting to just pass the ball back to Joe. We got 1 point, but we needed 3 BAD.

Overall though, the team looked good - there was a sense of confidence that they exuded and maintained offensive pressure on the RB's all day. The addition of Huckerby, Sealy, and Lima has changed the face and heart of this team. Looking forward to a run so we can somehow squeek into the playoffs.

MARKETING: I can't figure out why the stadium is not filling up for every game. Soccer is very popular in the Bay Area and the Q's still struggle to sell tickets (unless there is the lure of an opposing team with a superstar such as Blanco or Beckham). C'mon Bay Area - the Quakes are alot of fun to support.

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Joe Cannon on Facebook

Well, I ran across Facebook profiles for Joe Cannon and James Riley while taking a look at the SJ Quakes fan page on Facebook. Now I have Joe and James on my friends list. Fun.

The Quakes played great against Chivas USA over the 4th of July weekend, but ended up losing the game 1-nil in final minutes of regulation. It was heart-breaking. It will be nice to have them back home again for the game against Colorado this Sat at the South Bay San Siro. We'll have the drums ready for action!