The Portland Timbers announced their opening round match for the 2013 U.S. Open Cup is here in Portland, where they will face the Austin Aztexs or Wilmington Hammerheads. Meanwhile, the Timbers U-23 team advanced to round two with a win over the Sacramento Gold, and will now battle the Charleston Battery for the right to host the San Jose Earthquakes in round four.
The United States Soccer Federation announced the tournament rules and format for the 2013 U.S. Open Cup field that will feature both the Portland Timbers and the Timbers U-23 teams within the 68 team field. For 2013, there is more prize money for the winners, while rules put all decisions for hosting matches between the two sides within a round to be determined by a coin flip.
US Soccer has released the potential match-ups for the third round of the 2013 US Open Cup tournament after coin flips this morning to determine the pairings. The Fire will play the winner of the match between the Seattle Sounders U-23 (PDL) team and the Charlotte Eagles (USL Pro). That game will be played on May 21 in Charlotte.
Former Houston Dynamo Academy defender Sebastien Ibeagha (left) is playing for a PDL title on Saturday with the Carolina Dynamo.
The USL Premier Development League is holding its championship game on Saturday as Houston Dynamo Academy alum Sebastien Ibeagha and his Carolina Dynamo side face Forest City London at 7 p.
Former Houston Dynamo Academy defender Sebastien Ibeagha (left) is playing for a PDL title on Saturday with the Carolina Dynamo.
The USL Premier Development League is holding its championship game on Saturday as Houston Dynamo Academy alum Sebastien Ibeagha and his Carolina Dynamo side face Forest City London at 7 p.
UPDATE: Sounders U23 defender DeAndre Yedlin was named First-Team
All-Conference on Monday and All-PDL on Tuesday. The 19-year-old helped lead the U23 team to the
Northwest Division title, a spot in next year's U.S. Open Cup and into the PDL semfinals. The PDL
is made up of four conferences and the All-League team will be announced on Tuesday.
Cramming in a few last exhibitions before their seasons start, last weekend saw three New England PDL clubs fielding trialists and testing their starting eleven against local teams. In Newtown, CFC Azul battled Connecticut Soccer League's Prosto SC beforethe Reál Boston Rams took to the field for their inaugural match versus Newtown Pride, all while the Western Mass Pioneers battled the NPSL's Mass United FC on the newly-refurbished Lusitano Field.
CFC Azul willkick off itssecondseason in PDL on May 11 against the expansion Real Boston Rams, following the announcement of their 2013 schedule on Friday.
Additionally, the club also revealed thatit will play its home games at Central Connecticut State University Soccer Field in New Britain.
As expected for mid-December, it's been a relatively quiet week for New England soccer, but here are some of the stories New England Soccer Today has been following this week.
CFC Azul head coach Dave Kelly will return for a second season, the club announced on Tuesday.
Kelly, who was named head coach prior to the club'sinaugural season in 2012,led thePDLsquadto a fourth-place finish in the Northeast Division with a 6-5-5 (23 points) record.
"Last year was one of the most enjoyable seasons since I've been in football CFC Azul was a resounding success," Kelly said in a statement on Tuesday.
Alencar Junior's division-leading 10 goals were good enough to earn All-PDL honors on Monday.
(Photo: Chris Aduama/aduama.com)
A trio of New England-based players were named to the All-Conference PDL Team for the Eastern
Conference on Monday.
Defender Pat Boucher (CFC Azul), forward Alencar Junior (Worcester Hydra) and midfielder Jason
Massie (GPS Portland Phoenix) were selected through a vote of team management, according to the
league's official release.
In a move that caught some in the New England soccer scene by surprise, the New England Revolution announced on Wednesday they will be partnering up with local Premier Development League club, the Reál Boston Rams, making the Easton, Mass.-based team an official affiliate for the coming season.
By partnering up with one of the newest United Soccer League expansions, the Revolution have made the Rams part of their "developmental pyramid," allowing New England academy products to play for Reál Boston over the summer while performing the training hours necessary to remain "Homegrown protected," all while under the watch and guidance of the Revs' technical staff.
The Fire have had an active role in player development beginning from the youth stages of the game with the Chicago Fire Academy, to the Super 20s, and Chicago Fire Premier of the Professional Development League. But with all the success these programs have had throughout the years, why hasn’t the club been able to produce more homegrown players that can make the jump from the academy or PDL to the starting XI similar to homegrown players from other teams within MLS?
As we prepare for the next league season in US Club Soccer, whether it be in Major League Soccer, the North American Soccer League, United Soccer Leagues Pro Division, PDL, NPSL, USASA or what have you. There is another competition ... Continue reading →
The podcast returns with Reading United communication director Sean Doyle talking about the SuperDraft. Then, what does the future hold for Carlos Valdes and Freddy Adu? Plus, Abby Wambach's World Player of the Year win.
With winter over and May rapidly approaching, Premier Development League teams have commenced announcing rosters as they finalize squads for the new season.
The Northeast Division has been particularly abuzz over the last month as the Reál Boston Rams and CFC Azul have both made major moves before the season's start, all while two former Seacoast United Phantoms have signed professional contracts in Iceland.
Virginia Beach, Virginia - The Virginia Beach Piranhas announce the clubs 2013 ticket prices which include a Flexi-Pack that allows fans to combine tickets for both men's and women's games. Season Ticket Flexi-Pack ($79.99) includes 13 tickets that can be used in any combination for regular season PDL and W-League home games.
On the anniversary of the Portland Timbers being created back in 1975, another potentially significant event occurred involving the top league in American soccer and the league in the third level of the soccer pyramid. MLS and USL Pro announced the basic framework of an agreement to integrate MLS Reserve teams within the current league structure of USL Pro.
If you've ever thought the Premier Development League business model sounds great no player salaries or workman's comp, limited regional travel, short seasons keep in mind it's no guarantee of success. A dozen PDL teams some of them clubs of long standing are no more, according to the 2013 schedule announced today by United Soccer Leagues.
Real Boston Rams coaches look on during a recent tryout held at Dana Farber Fieldhouse in Foxborough. (Photo: Real Boston Rams)
Since the United Soccer League's inception in 1986, Eastern Massachusetts has long struggled to keep its teams in the division from moving or folding all together after a few seasons each, save for the Cape Cod Crusaders who lasted from 1994 to 2008.
The Virginia Beach Piranhas announced today that Matt Busch will take the head coaching reigns for the PDL team for the 2013 season. Busch has been coaching for over 20 years and currently holds a USSF "A" license, National Youth license, NSCAA National license and serves as Technical Director and Director of Club Operations for Virginia Rush Athletic Club.
Set your calendars now to comecheck out another excitingPDL season with the SpringfieldDemize.Springfield Demize, part of the Heartland Division of the PDL League, play their homegamesinCooper Stadium, at the Lake Country Soccer Complex.
Boston-area soccer fans will have a new club to root for in 2013.
On Monday, the United Soccer Leagues announced the addition of the Real Boston Rams, which will begin play in USL's Premier Development League next year.
"Our vision is to become the area's top soccer club that identifies elite college-age players in our back yard to give them an opportunity to play for a club and to further their ambitions for a professional soccer career," General Manager John Paul Barata said in a statement on Monday.
Boston Victory midfielder Ruben Resendes was one local collegian who saw playing time with the club during their inaugural season. (Photo: Chris Aduama/aduama.com)
A pair of New England-based Premier Development League clubs that launched earlier this year won't be back for seconds in 2013.
Chesterfield, VA (Thursday November 1st, 2012) - The National Premier Soccer League, or NPSL is a USSF Sanctioned league and considered the 4th Division of professional soccer here in the United States. It is similar to the PDL where youth and college players are able to fill roster spots without affecting a player's amateur status.
Phantoms founder Jim Dedeus (center) was on hand for Monday's All-Star Game featuring Oxford
United. (Photo: Seacoast United)
Seacoast United Mariners striker Eddie Jones scored for the "Jim Dedeus XI" All Stars after the
half hour mark, but it wasn't enough to overtake Oxford United in Monday's 4-1 loss at Portsmouth
High School.
This is where I typically open up with some witty paragraph introducing the article and making a
brief note about the state of the site. Well, I've got nothing, folks. Let's get straight to the
important stuff:
1) Chin to Chicago?
This won't do much to quell those who believe I'm a closet Sporting Kansas City supporter, but
SKC commentator Callum Williams recently tweeted about how Orlando City striker Dennis Chin is
currently on trial with the Fire.
Today the Rapids announced the rumored signing of Honduran midfielder Hendry Thomas. Thomas is 27
years old and has played for Olympia in Honduras and Wigan in the EPL. He spent the last 3 seasons
in England getting 55 appearances before falling out of favor with the current coaching staff.
Looking at descriptions from Wigan fans Hendry appears to be a player in the same mold as Pablo
Mastroeni.
Hey Soccer Fans...... The Virginia Beach Piranhas are once again looking for host families to host a Piranha in their home for the 2013 season. We have both PDL (male) and W-League (female) players in need of housing. Many of our fans have been host families in the past and have formed close ties with our players.
A week after naming Paxton Ballard as their first committment for the 2013 season, the Reál Boston Rams announced the addition of Wheaton College midfielder Luke Finkelstein to its roster.
Playing as a #5 since his days in the Peabody Youth Soccer program, Finkelstein was one of the first New England Revolution U-16 players from back in 2008 and now joins the Rams' ranks as a "quality player (with).
The college soccer scene is deep in hibernation as coaches focus on recruiting a 2013 Freshman class and players look forward to the upcoming spring schedule and PDL season, so it's a good time to step back and consider some of the stories and developments that could affect the Sounders Academy alumni in the upcoming year.
With his club planning to join the Premier Development League by 2014 and a major team survey circulating the net, co-founder and media head Alex Edwards of the Central Mass Cobras recently filled in the details regarding his team with New England Soccer Today'sJames Paleologopoulos.
So there's me, venturing down the snowy slopes from my mountain lair for a family outing to watch the Harrisburg Heat host the Ohio Vortex (PASL indoor, for those keeping score at home) and perking up when the Vortex introduced the "special" uniform used to denote a keeper playing in the field during a power play[1].
All of us at Hot Time in Old Town were saddened to hear that former Chicago Fire PDL and
Columbus Crew midfielder Kirk Urso passed away last night at the age of 22.
Urso was born in nearby Lombard, Ill. and played his college ball at the University of North
Carolina. He spent the 2010 PDL season playing for the Fire Premier (PDL) side.
In their first season in existence, the Sounders U23s won the toughest division in the PDL, won
their first ever playoff match, and defeated 2009 PDL Champion Ventura County Fusion in the
conference finals. That took them to the national semifinals yesterday in London, Ontario, where
they faced Forest City London, who are on a bit of a cinderella run with the fewest regular season
points of any playoff team.
