I don't think it is too much of an overstatement to call tonight's Union win over Celtic the
biggest win in the franchises short history.
Celtic were the first British team to win the European Cup and they have been named Scottish
champions 42 times.
The Union have not even played 42 games in their history.
It was draft day and Brian Perk stepped out of his hotel to meet up with his
father, nerves most likely fluttering as he prepared himself for the day that would decide his
professional future in the U.S. Waiting for the rendezvous, Perk was blindsided by a cohort of
chanting Philadelphia Union supporters, over 200 strong.
BY ADAM SERRANO
The 2010 season may be only be a few days dead, but the 2011 season has already kicked off with
the Expansion Draft.
The Vancouver Whitecaps and the Portland Timbers added ten players to their initial MLS rosters
on Wednesday as their clubs began to take shape for the 2011 season.
First off, sorry for the lack of updates today. I've had quite a busy day around these parts but
I wanted to pass along what just dropped into my inbox not to long ago, the final rosters for this
year's MLS Combine.
Major League Soccer has announced the full roster for both this year's Generation adidas class
and the updated MLS Combine rosters.
Chris Seitz is on the bench as the Union plays Ecuador to a 1-1 draw on Tuesday in a closed door
scrimmage. Brad Knighton and Brian Perk each got a half in goal. Even if its star players were not
released from their European clubs because the North American tour was not a FIFA endorsed event,
the Union can take pride in the fact that Ecuador was just one point away from qualifying for the
2010 World Cup and played Mexico to a 0-0 draw on Friday.
Peter Nowak is letting us down.
The Philadelphia Union drafted first, sixth and seventh in the 2010 MLS SuperDraft. They drafted
first in rounds 2 through 4.
There seemed to be a plan: Draft young, develop your players. First overall pick Danny Mwanga,
sixth and seventh overall picks Amobi Okugo and Jack McInerney were teenagers.
Peter Nowak is letting us down.
The Philadelphia Union drafted first, sixth and seventh in the 2010 MLS SuperDraft. They drafted
first in rounds 2 through 4.
There seemed to be a plan: Draft young, develop your players. First overall pick Danny Mwanga,
sixth and seventh overall picks Amobi Okugo and Jack McInerney were teenagers.
Photo by ISIphotos.com
I know I've taken a while to answer a Q&A when I don't get around to it until the next
decade.
Okay, so the November Q&A has taken a while to get through, but the end is near and this latest
batch of Q&As should help provide some insight despite the fact that six weeks have gone by since
these questions were asked.
BRIAN PERK ________________Photo by ISIphotos.com
The 2010 MLS Combine is just three days away, meaning scouts and coaches from all 16 MLS teams
are heading to Florida this weekend for a chance to see what the best of the MLS Draft pool has to
offer.
The first day of the 2010 MLS Combine is in the books and while it was a truly ugly day, there
was actually some good soccer played and some impressive performances put in.
I won't go into great detail just yet about the day's events (I'll save a more detailed
breakdown for tomorrow), but I will provide you with some lists of overall performances for day
one:
PLAYED VERY WELL
Tony Tchani, Ike Opara, Justin Morrow, Drew Yates, Irving Garcia, Michael Stevens, Zach Loyd,
Othaniel Yanez.
Danny Mwanga talks to the press. (Kevin Kinkead for WVHooligan.com)
The 2010 MLS SuperDraft is finally over. The dust has settled on another year's draft and just
as always there were some big winners and then there were some losers. I wanted to post this piece
last night but I felt that I really needed to take a bit of time away from the draft to really give
it an honest look.
Amobi Okugo could be a big time player for the Union. (Kevin Kinkead for WVHooligan)
In this expansion era in Major League Soccer we've seen the good and the bad on how to bring a
new club into the league. The bad is obviously just about everyone but Seattle. Most clubs stumbled
in their first year due to either poor management from the start or bad player choices.
You know those pseudo-intellectual, semi-respectable, journalistic (and probably pretentious!)
types of posts I often write here about the Union, their tactics and the future?
Yeah, well, this isn't one of them.
This is a look back at a night that was basically my ultimate WTF game, for so many reasons.
The Union announced Friday that they have signed midfielder and local product JT Noone. The
terms of the signing, following league policy, were undisclosed.
Noone, grew up in Harrisburg where he attended Central Dauphin High School. He played at Temple
University where he was named to ESPN Magazine Men's Soccer Academic All-District 2 University
Division Second Team as a sophomore.
The Union announced Friday that they have signed midfielder and local product JT Noone. The
terms of the signing, following league policy, were undisclosed.
Noone, grew up in Harrisburg where he attended Central Dauphin High School. He played at Temple
University where he was named to ESPN Magazine Men's Soccer Academic All-District 2 University
Division Second Team as a sophomore.
By TRAVIS CLARK
Freddy Adu's professional playing future is once again up in the air, and his next club
destination is unknown.
What is clear is that he won't be joining Swiss club Sion. After a short trial this week, the
team decided that it would pass on the chance to add the 21-year-old.
Photo by ISIphotos.com
I know I've taken a while to answer a Q&A when I don't get around to it until the next
decade.
Okay, so the November Q&A has taken a while to get through, but the end is near and this latest
batch of Q&As should help provide some insight despite the fact that six weeks have gone by since
these questions were asked.
BRIAN PERK ________________Photo by ISIphotos.com
The 2010 MLS Combine is just three days away, meaning scouts and coaches from all 16 MLS teams
are heading to Florida this weekend for a chance to see what the best of the MLS Draft pool has to
offer.
The first day of the 2010 MLS Combine is in the books and while it was a truly ugly day, there
was actually some good soccer played and some impressive performances put in.
I won't go into great detail just yet about the day's events (I'll save a more detailed
breakdown for tomorrow), but I will provide you with some lists of overall performances for day
one:
PLAYED VERY WELL
Tony Tchani, Ike Opara, Justin Morrow, Drew Yates, Irving Garcia, Michael Stevens, Zach Loyd,
Othaniel Yanez.
By FRANCO PANIZO
The MLS Combine has come to a close, and the final day of action saw some of the lesser-known
players raise their stock.
Both of the day's games ended 1-0, with defender Tennant McVea heading home the winner in
F50i's match vs. Predator X, and a long-range blast from midfielder Eric Alexander proving to be
the difference in Condivo's win over Jabulani.
By FRANCO PANIZO
The MLS Combine has come to a close, and the final day of action saw some of the lesser-known
players raise their stock.
Both of the day's games ended 1-0, with defender Tennant McVea heading home the winner in
F50i's match vs. Predator X, and a long-range blast from midfielder Eric Alexander proving to be
the difference in Condivo's win over Jabulani.
Well before the draft started, Peter Nowak and Co. sent notice they were going to make this
event about the Philadelphia Union. The newest MLS franchise acquired the first round selections
from DC United and FC Dallas for, well, what exactly? Allocation cash in FC Dallas' case. The
rights to Troy Perkins in DC United's.
Photo by ISIphotos.com
The 2010 MLS Draft will be remembered as the Philadelphia Union's first, and may be seen as the
expansion's best draft for a long time.
Between Philly's impressive haul, Chicago's surprisingly strong class and the New York Red Bulls
drafting of Tony "The Franchise" Tchani, these are just some of the stories to discuss coming out
of the draft.
Photo by ISIphotos.com
The 2010 MLS Draft will be remembered as the Philadelphia Union's first, and may be seen as the
expansion's best draft for a long time.
Between Philly's impressive haul, Chicago's surprisingly strong class and the New York Red Bulls
drafting of Tony "The Franchise" Tchani, these are just some of the stories to discuss coming out
of the draft.
I won't bag on Chris Seitz too much for this because I'm sure the sum total of the series of
unfortunate events that have plagued his young Philadelphia career so far are bothering him enough.
He doesn't need me to tell him that things are wildly off the rails right now and neither do you
(you have cable, and you've seen it for yourself).
The Daily News has some background on that new guy with the bleached-blond hair who started in
the midfield and assisted Le Toux in the game winning goal, Eduardo Coudet. He's 35, he's from
Argentina, and you can expect the announcement of his signing any second.
More on Coudet, who won three titles with River Plate, from the Union website.
The Daily News has some background on that new guy with the bleached-blond hair who started in
the midfield and assisted Le Toux in the game winning goal, Eduardo Coudet. He's 35, he's from
Argentina, and you can expect the announcement of his signing any second.
More on Coudet, who won three titles with River Plate, from the Union website.
Philadelphia Union held Manchester United even for 75 minutes before Gabriel Obertan scored in
the 76th minute to give the Red Devils a 1-0 victory Wednesday night.
Tonight's friendly at Lincoln Financial Field saw the hometown Union surprise Man U by playing
an aggressive match throughout, and the first half was a back-and-forth endeavor that saw both
teams miss good chances.
By TRAVIS CLARK
Fredy Adu's professional playing future is once again up in the air, and his next club
destination is unknown.
What is clear is that he won't be joining Swiss club Sion. After a short trial this week, the
team decided that it would pass on the chance to add the 21-year-old.
Major League Soccer's all-star game was last week, but Philadelphia Union only just passed the
15-game mark. That makes it time for a midseason review that may come a bit late to some but
hopefully just in time for the rest of you. The team is 4-8-3 and in 6th place in Major League
Soccer's Eastern Conference, but the record is less relevant for an expansion team.
Union
Nowak says he's sticking with Seitz.
The Trentonian previews the tonight's match against Columbus Crew. Eddie Gaven, Hamilton
Township native and former player for Steinert High School, will be unavailable for the Crew due to
a concussion he suffered against Chivas last week. The match will be on ESPN2 from 8pm.
It's only a friendly, but it's also the biggest game of the year (in terms of the size of the
crowd) in Southern California - the Galaxy-Real Madrid exhibition at 7:30 p.m. at the Rose
Bowl:
*A game preview is here.
Earlier posts and stories include:
*Columnist Jill Painter's take on Real Madrid.
