Monday Morning Report: June 1

Some of you ask me why I spend so much time each week with the roster.  Cuz, after all, isn't this just "REC soccer?"  In truth, Matt monitors the co-ed evite every half-a-day, and consults with me about 5-10 minutes every day about it.  Sometimes, like on Friday when we were short on ladies, we go back-and-forth 10 times, and work the phones and texts to get the roster just right.  My thought is, in life, as well as in AC D.C., "if you treat it like REC, you'll get a wreck."

And so it was on Saturday for our men's squad, when the wreck was made not by poor effort or terrible footballing, but by bad roster management.  And I have no one to blame but myself, as I didn't monitor the evite every half-a-day.  When I was alerted that we only had one sub, it was already Friday evening, and there was little I can do at that point. This won't happen again either this, or any other, season.

One bad game can potentially do a lot of damage.  If we let it, it can bomb us back to the "stone age" when we played punt-and-chase bull$hit football.  The challenge for the men's team is to shake off the wreck, realize that it had little to do with our playing (again, bad personnel management), and return to our patient, intelligent football that we've discovered the latter half of this spring season.  We are in the position to earn double-digit points this session, and that would be a first for the men's squad!

Hope shone through on Sunday when the co-ed squad played patient and intelligent football. We beat the Red Devils by a score of 4-1 with goals from Jan (x2), Paul and Hanna.   The first goal was particularly notable, as it came in the first minute, when our ladies played passes tic-tac-toe and into the net.  The Y-chromosomes just stood in awe. Wow! And hey, why exactly was Paul playing (literally) in Linsday's pants?  Were there some magical powers in that garment that allowed him to score? I'm afraid that's a subject I have to leave for Paul and Kelley to explain...

...and I need to get off this topic before someone beats me.

Right.

The co-ed squad continues to show some of the best football AC D.C. has ever produced.  It's a shame that as we advance into the playoffs, our roster will be decimated by weddings (nice work Georgie!) and multiple, simultaneous vacations in June.  I mean, who takes three weeks off?  If I took three weeks off, AC D.C. would have to go without new uniforms for at least 1.5 seasons!  

Next week is the last in the men's season, and it looks like the co-ed squad will have a "bye" before quarterfinals.  The ticket offer for Real Madrid stands as below.  Please respond ASAP if you can join.

Real Madrid v. DC United tickets

August 9th, Sunday, 3pm Fedex Field

We were approached by DC United to purchase tickets for this event, and our club has decided to make a club event out of it. Wouldn't it be nice to have a big group of AC D.C. players at this game? It's too bad that Eleonor's love-interest, Mr. Fabio "so hot" Cannavaro, just left the team to return to Italy, but Saint Ike et al. will still be fun to watch. My personal favorites are the Dutchies: Sneijder, Robben, van Nistelrooy, Drenthe. Plus, it looks like they are on the verge of signing Franck Ribery from Munich.

If we get a big group, we can go for the group tickets, which are around $70-80 a piece (not cheap). We'll organize some sort of tailgating (keep Georgie away from the vodka please) before the game. Maybe borrow Jeffy's tent as he is in Alaska.

Please send me an email or leave a comment to this blog, if you are interested in joining this event. The deadline for AC D.C. group tickets is Monday June 8th. After that, you'll have to get your own tickets. Peter and Mumbles, please don't wait 'til the last minute to tell me.

Monday Morning Report: May 18

This weekend was a six-pointer for AC D.C.!!  The two victories were great but they were not without complications.

(Don't look at the first picture if you are squeamish....Jeff)

The Saturday opponent for the Men's team was the Little Urban Achievers.  You may recall, that the last time we played them, Brian's nose exploded on the pitch, and it led to his (phantom) retirement.  This time, an injury only slightly less damaging happened again. During the early parts of the second half, Alex suffered a laceration above the eye, not unlike a boxer. It took him out of the game, and we spent the ensuing 3 hours in the Georgetown E.D. waiting for him to be sutured up.  Ah, spending Saturday night roaming the Emergency Department ....surely reminds me of the decade of my twenties!

Alex's laceration was above the right eye, rather than the one depicted above. Despite the pain that this injury must cause, I can't help but think that there's a nicknaming opportunity here for our talented full-back.  "Boom boom?"  "Stitch?"  What do you think?  M. Alex "Boom boom" Peabody has an intimidating ring that would make his brother envious.  Go ahead and vote in your comments this week.

The Saturday game itself was a gritty, gutsy, grind-it-out affair.  We expected only 1 sub, and when Alex went out, we had none.  And yet, faced with a determined opponent, we fought and fought.  We went up 2-nil, and then conceded.  Fortunately, Peter's left-footed cracker in the 72nd minute sealed the deal for us, and the three points were ours.

The Sunday game was entirely different.  The Co-Ed squad is playing some of the best football AC D.C. has ever produced.  We have finally figured out that keeping possession makes things difficult for our opponent, and that playing the ball back rather than making risky passes or dribbles forward may achieve a better result.  The passing was fluid, sharp and often beautiful to watch.  The three-nil result could have been much worse for our opponents, as we had far more legitimate chances than the goals we scored.

Our opponent paid us the greatest compliment during the game.  After a brilliant sequence of passes, when they could do nothing except watch as the ball pinged around our team, faced with the unfathomable defeat to an indomitable foe, they whispered on the sideline: "These guys clearly practice during the week."

!!!!!

The major copage award goes to several players this weekend.  Chris is living out of a box right now because his landlord screwed up his apartment.  With the stress of finding a new place to live, he still managed to show up this weekend (though perhaps a bit out of uniform...uh hm). This was critical on Saturday as we were notably short-handed. George and Carlos were last-minute recruits for Sunday, and both had gone through the ringers for the former's bachelor party on Saturday.  Kudos to their loyalty to AC D.C.

It was great seeing everyone mid-week for Jan and Jimmy's Going-Away Party.  Jim and Brian both became "Doctors" on Sunday.  Congratulations to them, but the world has just become a far more dangerous place to live!  Just don't get sick in July!  The bar tab from last Wednesday was quite steep, since Current is not a cheap place to get drunk.  If you can help with the party deficit, please send $$.

We have two weeks off and no games during the upcoming Memorial day weekend.  Yes, yes, Mumbles needs the time off to let his body recover.  How do I know that?  Probably because he mentioned it at least 5 times this weekend.  If I hear it once more, I swear I will have to smack him despite my love for the junior penguin.

The senior penguin gets to reunite with his darling god-son, who has spent the last year in Brazil with his parents.  They have finally moved back, and I get to spoil him rotten Memorial Day weekend.  Guess what team he cheers for?  Maybe this picture from two years ago will give you a hint!

Be safe out there during Memorial Day weekend, and behave yourselves.

Monday Morning Report: May 11

The house you see here is Georgie's  new home in Falls Church.  I took this when I helped him paint Sunday afternoon.  Can you just picture the ice luge on the front porch? 

This weekend was a tale of two 1-1 draws for AC D.C.  But first a small business item for the men's squad:

I realize there are a lot of evites out there waiting for your responses.  If you have an opinion about this system, please tell Jeff.  Telling me ain't going to help you.  If you are one to respond early to these evites, please make sure during the week prior to the game, that your response is registered correctly.  This is especially true if you answered "yes," because you won't get a reminder during the week and we assume you will show up.  And again, please note the meeting time posted and BE ON TIME. If Jeff posts a time of 11:15, assume he wants you all to show up 11:15.  When he'll show up is of course anybody's guess. Time + 10", time + 20", time + 30"....any bets for next week?  ;)

OK, on to the game summaries.

The Men's squad played a decent team on Saturday, and started the game poorly.  We had significant trouble keeping possession, and not surprisingly, went down one nil.  But, once again thanks to some outrageous saves by Robb, we hung in the game, and started to play better.  In 80+ degree heat, our opponents began to wilt.  Around the 75th minute, Mumbles latched onto a through-ball (what Ray Hudson would call: "Dagger Balls from the back four"), and "spanked it home" from the left-edge of the box.  It was a brilliant strike!  

Although our men's opponent was completely beatable, we ended the game with a sense of satisfaction that we came away with a draw.  The same cannot be said about Sunday.

The Co-Ed team's opponent was the league leader.  We played outstanding.  Their defense was placed under "the caush" right out of the gate, when Jeff's long-range strike bounced off the post, and across the goal-mouth.  Then, we had chance after chance right in front of their keeper, but somehow managed not to produce.  Finally, early in the second half, Brian picked up possession near the edge of the box, and launched a rocket from about 30 yards out.  As soon as it left his foot, I knew it would test their keeper... and he failed.  That was the goal of the season so far, and I really wished I had hired a videographer to capture it.

Our opponent, although quite a speedy team, didn't really have any obvious opportunities.  But, as luck would have it, they also picked up possession at the edge of our box, and launched a similar rocket at Georgie.  The problem was that their goal-scorer had an eternity to "ready...aim...fire."  You could read his intentions like a bed-time nursery rhyme, but somehow our central midfield didn't close him down.  George had no chance.  Anybody noticed that the goal-scorer had shin guards tattooed on his shin? That is bad-ass, man!

This 1-1 draw was deflating, cuz we had the game in hand, and played sharp.  Just goes to show that if one plays 99% of the game brilliantly, a momentary lapse in focus can destroy all the hard work.

A special "thank you" goes to Kelley who was a last-minute sub on Sunday for a late, late drop out.  She graduated college on Saturday, and answered our call Sunday morning.  What a trooper!

With two minutes to go on Sunday, I sub'ed out Jimmy for the final time.  Although the AC D.C. sideline erupted in heart-felt applause, I don't think our players knew that it was the ceremonial exit of a 4-year veteran.  I stopped the game for his exit.....well, at least I applauded his service and dedication.

You'll have your chance this upcoming Wednesday at Current.   All the plans are in place for a good time to celebrate Jan's and Jim's career with AC D.C., and I hope to see you there.

The manager is suicidal

That was the most important game of the season. We lost and it hurts. But....

There are fair weather fans and then there is Jeffrey Nelson Cruz. He finds out that the result is bad for the team that he pretends to cheer for, and then, chemically altered in whatever combination (you name the substance), he decides, miraculously, that he is too busy to watch the game with the real fans.

Yeah right. Too bad we're not born....Yesterday! (I wouldn't be so sure if he hadn't done this before!)

Representing all things decent and honorable... and all things ARSENAL....Jeff Cruz is banned from ever cheering for Arsenal again! (And from wearing that Argentina jersey I gave him.)

I hope that Barca wins tomorrow....that Messi breaks Ronaldo's jock strap, that Xavi demolishes Rooney, that Ineista murders Giggs, that Henry is resurrected and annihilates Van Der Saar.

We will always have next season.

The Italians have one word for this: Vendetta. I hope that the Tiber runs red from the people who wear that color on the streets of Rome on May 27. I hope that Via Cavour is awash with the "Sangue" from fans who cheer for Ronaldo. I hope the Italian mob castrates Ferguson, and sell his goods to the dogs that roam Trastevere and Piazza Navona.

OK, so I'm not suicidal. I'm homicidal.

And if I ever get in the game this weekend, I will surely run into Jeff's right shoulder and see what the price of betrayal is....

(Now, which part of this entry is serious and which is not.....I don't even know myself. I guess we'll have to see whether I intentionally foul Jeff this weekend to find out.)

Monday Morning Report: May 4

Several thing during this weekend reminded how far AC D.C. has evolved in our 6 years.

AC D.C. players, circa spring 2005

(Received call from Ben Sunday night. Playing organized footie again..finally)

But, Saturday started off the "old-fashion" way.  Four players were late to the Men's game, and we started the game helter-skelter.  No surprise that under those conditions, we conceded a goal in the first 5 minutes.  We have so many obstacles against us, we simply must eliminated the self-created ones.  Arriving on time seems so easy, but somehow impossible for our team.

We fought back.  Against the best team in our WISL division, we equalized before the interval. The goal came from a beautiful cross from Imi (Ray Hudson would call it "4 carat diamonds served on a silver platter"), and Jan headed home with sublime panache.  Robb's outrageous saves resembled Saint Buffon (Gigi!  Gigi!) and that kept us even (the save on the PK was reeeee-diculous). 

We had our chances in the second half.  I counted 2 sitters, and one phantom offsides call which would have easily resulted in a goal for Imi.  Peter also had a rocket bounce off the cross bar. All-in-all, we deserved a better fate than the score line, and a draw with the top team of the division would have been fair.

Sunday was rainy.  Last time we played under those conditions, Matt was sick and sat in his car to watch, while the rest of us (9 players) destroyed the opponents who had forfeited the game to us at the start.  This wet Sunday, we played against an opponent who was once again evenly matched with us.  In the first half, Paul had a zinger which their keeper miraculously kept out of the goal.  In the second, Morgan got hurt.  Although she was a trooper and stayed on the pitch (we had no lady subs), we were effectively playing with ten players.

We went down one-nil during a lapse in concentration on defense.  And then, with 3 minutes to play, something curious happened.  I conceded a goal without playing a single minute of the game!  Borrowing a page out of the old Manchester United playbook, I pulled Robb out of goal for an extra tall guy in the box during a corner kick.  Unfortunately, the ball pinged around and landed with our opponent, who had no contest charging toward our goal.  We can add that play to the ACDC rookie dictionary (along with terms like "Lachman conditions," "Farid Unit") and call it the "Penguin Gambit."

So, why was I reminded of the past?

After our Sunday game, having played all of 7 minutes all weekend, I decided to stay and play for a rec division team short of players.  I played all 70", had a blast, and our team won the game four nil.  The opponent was disorganized and basically non-existent, so the passing on our side was fluid and Arsenal-quality.  Just goes to show that anyone, even I, can look semi-decent when the opponent is really bad.  The game reminded me of AC D.C. six years ago, when we had quality players and our s-leagues opponents were all rubbish.  The fact that nowadays, we can play well against one of the top teams in WISL means that we have come a long way.

Ever wondered who came up with "Vae Victis?"  Or why AC D.C. wears red and black?  The person who was in large part responsible for those.....well.....HE's BACK!  Starting a new job as the special assistant to the under-secretary of acquisition, technology and logistics (translation: You bomb us?  We bomb you harder!), Jonathan "Marcus" Lachman is now armed with two ivy-league degrees (having been classmates at Harvard with the incomparable AC D.C. magician Pablo Quintanilla) and back to stay.  You attacking-midfielders need not worry though.  He's only good during "Lachman conditions," which is between 11am and 4pm, 55 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit.  

AC D.C. players, circa...well, Sunday night

(Catching up with Loxly was remarkable....4 years have passed as if no time at all)

Having Sir Loxly back made me think about the past six years and all the footballing we've done.  My goodness, has this club come a long way!  Playing with that "thrown-together" rec division team only strengthened my belief that you all are the creme-de-la-creme, no matter what the score line says any given weekend.