Sacha Kljestan and Anderlecht came away from Beerschot with only one point, while the D2 Americans had mixed fortunes in weekend Belgian action.

The Portland Timbers reached back into their USL history for their latest assistant coach hire after Trevor James left the team in December. Cameron Knowles, a defender for the USL/USSF D2 Timbers between 2007 and 2010, will join Coach John Spencer's staff effective immediately.

The NASL released their 2012 Schedule on Thursday. After taking the league over from the USSF D2 Pro League in 2010, the NASL 2011 schedule was a bit more stretched out then the previous year which helped to layout a more balanced schedule with many more weekend games. This years schedule looks to improve upon [.

Vancouver Whitecaps FC coach Martin Rennie has acquired the MLS discovery rights to Carolina star striker Etienne Barbara, who blossomed during Rennie's tenure with the RailHawks in D2. The Whitecaps acquired the rights to sign Barbara from the Montreal Impact Tuesday in a trade that sent defender Glenir Garcia to Montreal.

The African national team championship tournament begins Sat Jan 21 and is co-hosted by Gabon & Equatorial Guinea.
Group A
Equatorial Guinea
Libya
Senegal
Zambia
Group B
Angola
Cote d'Ivoire
Burkina Faso
Sudan
Group C
Gabon
Morocco
Niger
Tunisia
Group D
Botswana
Ghana
Guinea
Mali
Matches & Scores:
Group Stage
-Sat Jan 21
Equatorial Guinea v Libya
Senegal v Zambia
Venue: Estadio de Bata, Bata
-Sun Jan 22
Cote d'Ivoire v Sudan
Burkina Faso v Angola
Venue: Nuevo Estadio de Malabo, Malabo
-Mon Jan 23
Gabon v Niger
Morocco v Tunisia
Venue: Stade d'Angondjé, Libreville
-Tue Jan 24
Ghana v Botswana
Mali v Guinea
Venue: Stade de Franceville, Franceville
-Wed Jan 25
Libya v Zambia
Equatorial Guinea v Senegal
Venue: Estadio de Bata, Bata
-Thu Jan 26
Sudan v Angola
Cote d'Ivoire v Burkina Faso
Venue: Nuevo Estadio de Malabo, Malabo
-Fri Jan 27
Niger v Tunisia
Gabon v Morocco
Venue: Stade d'Angondjé, Libreville
-Sat Jan 28
Botswana v Guinea
Ghana v Mali
Venue: Stade de Franceville, Franceville
-Sun Jan 29
Equatorial Guinea v Zambia
Venue: Nuevo Estadio de Malabo, Malabo
Libya v Senegal
Venue: Estadio de Bata, Bata
-Mon Jan 30
Sudan v Burkina Faso
Venue: Estadio de Bata, Bata
Cote d'Ivoire v Angola
Venue: Stade de Franceville, Franceville
-Tue Jan 31
Gabon v Tunisia
Venue: Stade de Franceville, Franceville
Niger v Morocco
Venue: Stade d'Angondjé, Libreville
-Wed Feb 1
Botswana v Mali
Venue: Stade d'Angondjé, Libreville
Ghana v Guinea
Venue: Stade de Franceville, Franceville
Quarterfinals
-Sat Feb 4
A1 v B2
Venue: Estadio de Bata, Bata
B1 v A2
Venue: Nuevo Estadio de Malabo, Malabo
-Sun Feb 5
C1 v D2
Venue: Stade d'Angondjé, Libreville
D1 v C2
Venue: Stade de Franceville, Franceville
Semifinals
-Wed Feb 8
A1/B2 v D1/C2
Venue: Estadio de Bata, Bata
C1/D2 v B1/A2
Venue: Stade d'Angondjé, Libreville
Final
-Sun Feb 12
Semifinal Winners
Venue: Stade d'Angondjé, Libreville

Stats for all division one NCAA schools that have had at least 10 players play a game in MLS. Ranked by average games played.
Players Avg GP Median GP Avg Goals 1 FIU CUSA 11 118.1 28 10.0 2 UCLA P12 57 101.5 75 8.9 3 Indiana B10 29 98.

Rich's law for seeing how it's all going

The law states that, at any given point in a season, Fulham should have about the same number of wins, draws and losses. Any imbalance one way or the other is either a signifier that Fulham have been better or worse than expected.

We currently have a record of: P13, W2, D6, L5

How to read this, then?

NASL joins Open Cup, gets provisionally sanctioned

Bravo. Now when will the real D2 soccer stand up?

With the most recent international break behind us and none scheduled this spring, Fulham's season can now fully set sail until season's end.

That is, until those obnoxious FA Cup weekends where we're not playing due to an earlier exit from the competition.

Anywho, Saturday will mark just the third time in the past three seasons that Fulham have to travel following an international break.

Welcome to episode #19 of the IMSoccer News North American Soccer League Podcast, a special NASL Championship edition and the final show of 2011. The second leg of the NASL Championship was played in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and just like last years USSF D2 Pro League Puerto Rico Islander who came from the last playoff [.

I don't know where I'll rank in headline writing when my story is written, but I've got a three topics I want to cover today. Recruiting, Heath and finally, his final regular season home game scheduled for this Sunday. If you want to understand the first two, you owe it to yourself to attend the "Legacy Game" between Missouri State and SIUE at 6:00 pm Sunday.

While last season's D2 playoff champion the Puerto Rico Islanders will meet the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in the second leg of their semifinal series and 2011 regular season champions the Carolina RailHawks battle the NSC Minnesota Stars Saturday in the other semifinal matchup, other NASL teams are announcing roster changes for next season.

NASL Commissioner David Downs In New York Times On D2 Soccer In USA

Touches on business issues, pro/rel and his failed bid for a future World Cup in the United States.

The NSC Minnesota Stars waited until the last game of the season, but they made their way into the NASL playoffs next week with a 2-1 in Cary over the now struggling Carolina RailHawks. The Montreal Impact, in their last season in D2, did everything they could Saturday night by beating the Atlanta Silverbacks on [.

The San Antonio Scorpions, who will join the D2 NASL next season as an expansion team in 2012, have named Tim Hankinson as the head coach. Hankinson, a New York City native, will begin his duties of assembling a coaching staff and scheduling player tryouts immediately. Hankinson, 56, played college soccer at the University of South Carolina [.

I'm mostly only putting this up here because I like to rip on my Newcastle United loving friend... and because they lost to a USSF D2 team. Perhaps if Joey Barton had made the trip...Video: Floridaleisure
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Photo courtesy of the Portland Timbers and Craig Mitchelidyer

Shortly before the Montreal Impacts game in Blaine, Minnesota on Friday evening, the team announced that Portland Timbers midfielder Ryan Pour was being loaned to the Canadian D2 side for the remainder of the season.

Photo courtesy of the Portland Timbers and Craig Mitchelidyer

Shortly before the Montreal Impact's game in Blaine, Minnesota, on Friday evening, the team announced that Portland Timbers midfielder Ryan Pour was being loaned to the Canadian D2 side for the remainder of the season.

Photo courtesy of the Portland Timbers and Craig Mitchelidyer

Shortly before the Montreal Impact's game in Blaine, Minnesota, on Friday evening, the team announced that Portland Timbers midfielder Ryan Pore was being loaned to the Canadian D2 side for the remainder of the season.

Photo courtesy of the Portland Timbers and Craig Mitchelidyer

Shortly before the Montreal Impact's game in Blaine, Minnesota, on Friday evening, the team announced that Portland Timbers midfielder Ryan Pore was being loaned to the Canadian D2 side for the remainder of the season.

Here is part II of Shine On, the excellent documentary video about the NSC Minnesota Stars D2 team in the Minneapolis, St. Paul metro area that Brave New Media is putting together for the Stars. Their hope is to get more fans to the game and to find a new owners for the NSC Minnesota Stars who were pulled together at the last minute this past winter and are currently a 'league owned" team.

It's been a year since our first post about the penalty kick during the World Cup in South Africa. So it got us thinking, what have been some of the "Best Of's" in the past year?While one could argue that the dos Santos goal from the 2011 Gold Cup final was pretty sweet, as was the Canadian backup keeper's half field free kick that bounced into goal, we are going to have to go with:D2 Greece,
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No matter how down Seattle Sounders fans are about their results, nothing compares to what the Toronto FC faithful have gone through. They didn't even win their national championship in the first possible year, at least the Sounders got the US Open Cup and didn't lose it to a D2 team. This year only a weather decision prevented them from losing the Voyageurs Cup to Vancouver.

The Fort Lauderdale Strikers announced there will be a double header this Saturday as Lockhart Stadium. Starting at 5 pm. Palm Beach United and the Jacksonville-based Florida Sol of the Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL) will be playing prior to the Strikers versus the Puerto Rico Islanders to be held at 7:30 pm.

Craig Baillie and Damian Petrou, partners of Brave New Media which is located in Minneapolis, Minnesota and who also have offices in Los Angeles, California and Cyprus, Greece, committed to the NSC Minnesota Stars this past winter to help promote team this season. In doing so they are hoping to help to find new owners for Minnesota which is currently owned and run the North American Soccer League.

Away form since 2007/08:

August P7 W1 D2 L4 September P5 W0 D3 L2 October P7 W0 D5 L2 November P8 W0 D4 L4 December P10 W1 D4 L5 January P10 W0 D2 L8 February P8 W0 D6 L2 March P7 W1 D2 L4 April P9 W4 D3 L2 May P5 W3 D0 L2

First, I have to apologize for Blogger making every post we had in the past 4-5 days vanish without even a notice to ourselves. That said and done, here's your goal of the week, nay, of the year from d2 Greece. Wait, what? D2 Greece's PAS Giannina? Really? Yeah, well, after watching this, those kids ought to be receiving double what Man U paid for Bebe.

Damn, gotta give credit where credit is due... Thanks to Who Ate All the Pies for finding this gem.That's Greek D2 side PAS Giannina with the rabona to the bicycle goal... Damn.Video: 101GreatGoals
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Missouri Southern Lions, Randi Russell (Joplin/2012)

The Missouri Southern Lions, who play D2 soccer in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) Conference, visit the Drury Panthers, a D2 program in the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC). The exhibition game will be played at Harrison Stadium at 7:00 pm.

High Ladder To Climb is a new feature for the Brotherly Game. Current Atlanta Silverbacks (NASL) defender Tyler Ruthven gives readers insight into the life of a player in America's lower tier leagues. His updates will be about his continued quest to make it to MLS. Follow him as he details his day-to-day trials and tribulations based on the life he is able to live through the constraints of his job - and paycheck.

A win or a draw against Levante this weekend and Jose Mourinho will have gone nine years without losing a league game at home. That is a streak that stretches back over 148 home game.

The last time the s"Special One" experienced a league defeat with a side that he coached was on 23 February, 2002, when Porto were beaten 3-2 by Beira Mar.

A win or a draw against Levante this weekend and Jose Mourinho will have gone nine years without losing a league game at home. That is a streak that stretches back over 148 home game.

The last time the s"Special One" experienced a league defeat with a side that he coached was on 23 February, 2002, when Porto were beaten 3-2 by Beira Mar.

In a briefly worded press statement released Saturday evening, US Soccer confirmed that the North American Soccer League was provisionally sanctioned as a division 2 professional league for 2011.

Confirming what IMS posted Saturday morning, the statement said: The provisional sanctioning allows the NASL to operate a Division 2 league during the 2011 season.

Not since the 1985/86 season have Real Madrid remained perfect at home through 22 weeks of La Liga action

No team this season has been able to leave the Santiago Bernabeu with points in hand. Real Madrid have won all 18 matches played at home and have scored 61 goals in doing so. The Whites haven't lost a game on their home turf in ten months; a feat last accomplished by Luis Molowny's men in 1985/86.

In a phone conversation on Friday, Curt Johnson, president of the Carolina RailHawks, clarified that the new organization running the team is starting from scratch with player contracts. The contracts from the old organization, Triangle Professional Sports, L.L.C, were voided with the dissolution of that corporation.

Having had their moments of shock, anger and venting on message boards and blogs, soccer fans who are certain the new North American Soccer League is the way forward are now taking their message directly to the head man at US Soccer, Sunil Gulati. In response to USSF's revoking of sanctioning for the NASL for the 2011 season, they've sent Gulati a letter, which you can read in its entirety here or with my snarky comments after the jump.

Seattle defender Baudet exploring other options

I guess no Baudet for us. Sounds like Adrian was pretty clear about that up front when the transaction was made. Also makes it sound like the team is pretty confident Cruz will work out.

Assuming we don't sign him, under the new CBA what are our options?

Aaron Davidson was making the rounds on Monday night granting interview requests on a number of radio talk shows. He took time between those interviews to talk to IMS and explain what the NASL has done in response to US Soccer's rejection of his leagues bid for sanctioning of D2 soccer last Thursday.

Ben Rycroft

Ben Rycroft of Metro News Canada and more recently, Canadian Soccer News, invited me to participate with him in a conversation regarding the news that broke last Friday that USSF had turned down the North American Soccer League for sanctioning of D2 soccer for 2011.

IMS welcomes new contributor Gerry Wittmann aboard. Gerry has written extensively about the 2010 USSF D2 season for the NASL Fanatic (Formerly AC St. Louis Fanatic) and has also contributed to the NASL Fanatic podcasts. He's also been a guest on In the Mixer and Feuerstein's Fire podcasts.