The Oregonian's Geoffrey C Arnold has reported via Twitter that "Eddie Johnson sustained
another concussion during training Monday and has returned 2 [sic] Portland."
Merritt Paulson has also tweeted: "eddie's out indefinitely. His health and well-being are the
#1 priority for everyone in the organization"
This news is a huge setback for the team.
As you are probably already aware, the weather took an axe to this weekend's non-league fixture
list and only a handful of matches took place anywhere. The FA Trophy Third Round matches were
completely called off and will be played at a later date, so the draw for the quarter-finals, which
is to be made tomorrow, will have a somewhat odd look about it.
The phrase "emotional rollercoaster" is one that is overused in football these days, but the
supporters of Darlington FC are rapidly becoming more than familiar with the term after another
week in which their club sailed close to extinction before receiving confirmation from its joint
administrator that it had permission to continue to trade and therefore play until the end of this
season.
It is a sobering thought to consider that, for all the hard work and drama involved in keeping
Darlington FC alive just nine days ago, the looming deadline over the clubs future comes up for
renewal again on Monday. The last few days have seen a patchwork team lose narrowly to Fleetwood
Town and Hayes & Yeading United in the league, but performances on the pitch have, by necessity,
had to take a back seat to the continuing efforts to save the club.
Two matches in the Blue Square Premier brought together four clubs from directly opposite ends
of the football spectrum yesterday and, while the results of those matches were hardly unexpected,
it was difficult not to feel at the end of this week that these were not as important as the fact
that the matches had taken place in the first place.
Two matches in the Blue Square Premier brought together four clubs from directly opposite ends
of the football spectrum yesterday and, while the results of those matches were hardly unexpected,
it was difficult not to feel at the end of this week that these were not as important as the fact
that the matches had taken place in the first place.
The Pitch Invasion Podcast Episode 1
Can't wait to take a listen to this:
"Peter Wilt and Tom Dunmore host the inaugural Pitch Invasion podcast, exploring soccer culture
around the world from the American Midwest. In the first show, Peter and Tom talk first to Montreal
Impact head coach Jesse Marsch about the challenges of starting a soccer club, putting together a
team from scratch, and fan culture in MLS.
This year has been a difficult year so far for several of our non-league clubs. Mike Bayly
has a round-up of what has been going on at the foot of football's food chain.
By any measure of austerity, it's been a fairly turbulent week in the world of non-league
football. On Sunday evening, the main stand at Rossendale United's vacant Dark Lane ground was
completely destroyed in what police are treating as a suspected arson attack.
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. There can be few other sets of football
supporters that have had to bear up to the sort of agony and exhilaration that the supporters of
Darlington FC have had to put up with yesterday but eventually, more than an hour after final
confirmation one way or the other of the clubs fate was due to be announced, those concerned with
saving the club emerged before the press to make the announcement that so many had hoped for:
Darlington Football Club remains alive for now, at least.
At the exact time of writing (almost one thirty in the afternoon), we do not know whether
Darlington FC has been rescued or not. What we can say for certain is that a situation that may
have seen the club die at one minute to midday has been extended and that further negotiations are
now taking place and that a decision is due imminently over whether the club can be saved in its
current form or not.
At the end of yesterday, Darlington FC remained alive albeit on life support. Today, however,
stories started to emerge which threaten to fragment an increasingly fractious fan-base as the
matter of this club's survival draws closer and closer to its denouement.
There have been words of encouragement and support funds and fury from many supporters that a
situation such as this should be allowed to happen to the same club yet again but, at the time of
writing, we are still nowhere near knowing whether the club will saved or, if it will, who by.
By Chris Wright
As you may or may not know, 128-year old Blue Square Premier side Darlington FC have had to sack
their management team and playing staff and are teetering on the verge of extinction after going
into administration for the third time in less than a decade largely thanks to the utterly
ridiculous £20-million, 25,000-seater 'Darlington Arena' stadium that former chairman and
tax-dodger George Reynolds paid through the nose for a few years previous.
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- Forty-Five Years Ago, QPR Win the First Leg of the League Cup Semi-Final at Birmingham!
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welcomed!
While Darlington have grabbed most of the recent headlines in the race to the financial bottom
that the bottom of the Blue Square Premier seems to consist of this season, Kettering Town
remains in a critical condition itself.
On Saturday, their home match against Forest Green Rovers was called off at lunchtime, which
is unlikely to have done the stricken clubs bank account a great deal of good, and this morning the
Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph, a local newspaper which has been criticised by some supporters
as being too ready in the past to toe the Ladak party line, also stepped off the fence to deliver
its viewpoint of the recent difficulties that the club has faced.
The draft is over and next Friday players report to Portland and the Portland Timbers are
hinting they are not done adding to their roster. Rumors are swirling as to who and what position
said player plays. All of these leaves us fans in what seems like an internal state of nervous
energy.
So lets take a look at what the roster looks like and what we can piece together from tweets and
quotes over the last few weeks.
It is very much a sign of the times that £50,000 is not a great deal of money to a football
club in trouble playing in the fifth division of the English league system these days. An ongoing
debate over the eventual destination of precisely this amount of money, however, seems to be
throwing a spanner into the works of an attempt to rescue Darlington Football Club this weekend,
and this isn't the only area into which it could be regarded as having a malign influence.
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-- Next Newcastle: Stats/Past Results/Past Joint Players
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There may only be a couple of days left to go. Darlington FC continue to stare into the abyss
and the comments of the club's joint administrator, Harvey Madden, in an interview with BBC Radio
Tees this evening will have offered no comfort to those of the opinion that it is now only a matter
of time before this football club folds after one hundred and twenty-nine years.
There has been, as has seemed perpetual over the last few months or so, a lot of bad news about
recently. Whether we are driving to distraction over racism, looking at football clubs that are
staring into the financial abyss or lamenting the death of anything approaching civility within our
national game, putting our heads above the parapets of modern football for longer than a fraction
of a second can be a thoroughly dispiriting experience, and it can become a thorough bind to even
seek to engage with the wider world of football at times.
There has been, as has seemed perpetual over the last few months or so, a lot of bad news about
recently. Whether we are driving to distraction over racism, looking at football clubs that are
staring into the financial abyss or lamenting the death of anything approaching civility within our
national game, putting our heads above the parapets of modern football for longer than a fraction
of a second can be a thoroughly dispiriting experience, and it can become a thorough bind to even
seek to engage with the wider world of football at times.
The news came through with startling speed, another rumour that swelled to an almost bewildering
succession of public statements in just a few short hours. At the end of yesterday, the
battle-wearied supporters of Darlington FC could only step back, blinking, and survey the wreckage.
Their club has been pushed into administration for the third time in less than ten years, and the
prognosis for its future looks bleak.
Ah new year, new MLS season. I've said that ad nauseam now, but it's true. And with a new season
comes, well, new everything! We'll see new players, new tactics, new matches, new business
partnerships... really the door is wide open.
As such, I've decided to compile a list of 2012 predictions.
A new year may have begun, but familiar problems are already starting to make themselves clear
with conflicting stories concerning the well-being of Blue Square Premier club Darlington. A club
that has already had two spells in administration in the last decade could well be headed for
further trauma following reports in the local press during the break between Christmas and the new
year, but upon what were these initial reports based, and can a consortium group which has since
announced itself get the assent of the club's current owner to take over a football club that has
been shipping money left, right and centre for longer than most people care to remember?
First I just want to wish everybody a happy New Year and I hope everybody got home safe last
night. If you're reading this now then I'm also happy you're not suffering from a severe hang over.
Seriously, kudos! I managed to escape one myself!
In any case, with 2011 now officially over I thought it might be a good time to relive some of
the year's more interesting moments.
If you didn't see the Chelsea v Fulham match yesterday, it was a 1-1 tie. Amobi Okugo sums it up
well on the twitter.
The Red Bulls continue to insist they will embrace another MLS team in the Big Apple. It's going
to be lonely playing in front of 1,500 people in Harrison in 2014.
Alex Morgan is one of Scott French's best stories of 2011.
It was only a tiny step forward, but those that have been campaigning for the return of terraces
in the form of safe standing had a rare reason to be cheerful yesterday with an announcement from
north of the border, that the Scottish Premier League is to trial a pilot that may see the return
of standing at matches in the near future.
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- Birthdays for Fitz Hall and former QPR Coach (briefly) Ed De Goey
- Six Year Flashback: Adam Czerkas Exits QPR
- NEXT: SUNDERLAND at Loftus Road - Past Encounters.
Photo courtesy of Duke athletics
The quest for college soccer's top individual award has been narrowed to three competitors.
Duke's Andrew Wenger, North Carolina's Billy Schuler and Creighton's Ethan Finlay were named
finalists for the Hermann Trophy, emerging from a list of 15 semifinalists that was released
earlier in the week.
Whilst the eyes of most of the football world were focussed upon the likes of Stamford Bridge
and the Nou Camp last night, an altogether more prosaic battle was playing out at Nene Park in
Irthlingborough. The Blue Square Premier has had something of a flustered look about its lower
reaches all season, with newly-relegated Lincoln City and Stockport County both finding life below
the Football League tougher than they might have expected, but for existence-threatening financial
difficulties, Kettering Town and Darlington beat all others hands down.
PORTLAND, Ore. — The Portland Timbers and adidas today unveiled the team's official third uniform
design for the 2012 season. The retro-inspired jersey is produced from 100 percent recycled
materials and was designed and manufactured in Portland. Timbers defender David Horst and
midfielder Darlington Nagbe revealed the new look during a special unveiling event [.
Twenty years ago in January, Wrexham AFC managed one of the great FA Cup surprises of all time.
They had finished the previous season at the bottom of the Football League and had only been spared
relegation to the Football Conference on account of the League expanding its size, while their
Third Round opponents in that competition, Arsenal, had ended the previous season as the champions
of England.
With the 2011 season officially over and the Expansion Draft having come and gone we've begun to
see many trades and player movements throughout MLS, including our own Portland Timbers who have
dropped a number of players and are bringing on a new DP in the coming days/weeks.
But with all that done, there's still one huge event looming on the horizon: the 2012 MLS
SuperDraft.
It is that time of the year to start speculating on exactly what the Portland Timbers' roster
needs are for the next year. For starters we need to take a look at the most used formations by
John Spencer and the Timbers and then fill in what the Timbers still have on the roster.
Formation(s):
The Timbers employed a 4-4-2 for almost the first half of the season.
By Chris Wright
Pies has teamed up with the fine gents over at Savile Rogue to give you the
chance to win one of the world's finest cashmere football scarves in the club colours of your
choice.
Savile Rogue scarves give a nod to football terraces of yesteryear, shunning in-your-face logos
and cheap nylon in favour of a traditional bar design and the comfort, quality and warmth of top
grade wool.
Congratulations to the Los Angeles Galaxy for winning MLS Cup. There I said it. Can we just move
on already?
For those of you who watched the game, I'm sorry. It wasn't exactly an enthralling game was it?
Of course most MLS Cup matches aren't so I suppose it really was no surprise. Still, Beckham has
his trophy, LA finally proved they can win the big enchilada so good for them.
Some of you have asked and here it is, the list of players that have graduated out of the
Generation adidas program.
- Teal Bunbury (Sporting Kansas City)
- Danny Cruz (Houston Dynamo)
- Dilly Duka (Columbus Crew)
- Blair Gavin (Chivas USA)
- Sean Johnson (Chicago Fire)
- Perry Kitchen (DC United)
- Josh Lambo (FC Dallas)
- Peri Marosevic (Toronto FC)
- Danny Mwanga (Philadelphia Union)
- Tony Tchani (Columbus Crew)
- Zarek Valentin (Chivas USA)
There are still 15 others left in the program for next year like RSL's Luis Gil, Vancouver's Omar
Salgado and Portland's Darlington Nagbe.
We have five matches for you this week as our non-league videos of the week. First up is the
match from the Blue Square Premier between Ebbsfleet United and a club that has been having renewed
difficulties off the pitch again, Darlington. Next up are the goals from the Blue Square North
match between Altrincham and Gloucester City.
We have five matches for you this week as our non-league videos of the week. First up is the
match from the Blue Square Premier between Ebbsfleet United and a club that has been having renewed
difficulties off the pitch again, Darlington. Next up are the goals from the Blue Square North
match between Altrincham and Gloucester City.
The people have spoken, and they've chosen Darlington Nagbe.
The Portland Timbers rookie won MLS Goal of the Year honors on Wednesday, beating out Vancouver
Whitecaps striker Eric Hassli for the award. Both players, suiting up for expansion teams,
delivered goals that were among the best MLS has ever seen in their first years in the league.
