Despite the fame that Carli has rightfully achieved, I suspect that she is still the same nice kid I remember. May she and her teammates continue to bask in the glow of their historic achievement.
Sunday, July 19, 2015
Basking in the Glow
Very cool to see the girl I coached from 8th through 11th grades holding the World Cup on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Grant Wahl, arguably the country's top soccer writer (although Sam Borden and Jere Longman from the New York Times could make a case) wrote about Carli and her trainer, James Galanis. I have known James for many years and recall meeting with him at the Medport Diner in Medford to discuss his becoming technical director of the club where Carli played and drafting his contract with the club. Wahl tells the story of how he connected with Carli and motivated her to become the player she has.
Despite the fame that Carli has rightfully achieved, I suspect that she is still the same nice kid I remember. May she and her teammates continue to bask in the glow of their historic achievement.
Despite the fame that Carli has rightfully achieved, I suspect that she is still the same nice kid I remember. May she and her teammates continue to bask in the glow of their historic achievement.
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
Carli In The Cartoons
I've gotten used to seeing Carli Lloyd, whom I have known since she was in 8th grade, be on television, score winning goals in big games from the Olympics to the recent World Cup. But until today I never saw a player I had coached featured in an editorial cartoon.
That changed when Pulitzer Prize winning Philadelphia Daily News cartoonist, Signe Wilkinson, drew the cartoon below depicting Lloyd about to instruct Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie how to take a long shot - a reference to Lloyd's goal from midfield in the final against Japan. That long shot resulted from great vision, quick thinking and an assessment of the risk of taking it. Wonder if the governor will apply those same traits in his campaign.
Sunday, July 5, 2015
World Champions!
It was really over by the time Carli Lloyd scored the third goal of her hat trick, just 16 minutes into the final. When it was "only" 2-0, you thought maybe Japan will get organized, maybe get a goal before halftime, then come back in the second half to tie or even go ahead. Didn't happen.
Lauren Holiday made it 3-0 in the 14th minute, then Lloyd completed the hat trick with a wise decision: she saw Japanese keeper Aiyumi Kaihori out too far and lofted a long ball from near midfield past the startled goalie and into the net. And then you knew for sure it was over. Not a twinge of worry when Yuki Ogim narrowed the gap to three with a goal in the 27th minute. It was over.
An own goal charged to Julie Johnston cut the lead to to two before Heath's score put it back at three. But it was over.
Coach Jill Ellis used two of her three subs to get Abby Wambach and Christy Rampone, each playing in her final World Cup, into the game. In a classy gesture, Lloyd turned the captain's armband over to Wambach when she entered the field. Afterwards it was Wambach and Rampone who accepted the cup foe the United States.
Jere Longman wrote the game story for the New York Times.
For the third straight match Lloyd was player of the match and she was rightfully awarded the golden boot as the tournament's MVP.
I'm very proud of Carli Lloyd and to have coached her way back when with the Medford Strikers. Tonight showed what hard work and determination can do.
Lauren Holiday made it 3-0 in the 14th minute, then Lloyd completed the hat trick with a wise decision: she saw Japanese keeper Aiyumi Kaihori out too far and lofted a long ball from near midfield past the startled goalie and into the net. And then you knew for sure it was over. Not a twinge of worry when Yuki Ogim narrowed the gap to three with a goal in the 27th minute. It was over.
Coach Jill Ellis used two of her three subs to get Abby Wambach and Christy Rampone, each playing in her final World Cup, into the game. In a classy gesture, Lloyd turned the captain's armband over to Wambach when she entered the field. Afterwards it was Wambach and Rampone who accepted the cup foe the United States.
Jere Longman wrote the game story for the New York Times.
For the third straight match Lloyd was player of the match and she was rightfully awarded the golden boot as the tournament's MVP.
I'm very proud of Carli Lloyd and to have coached her way back when with the Medford Strikers. Tonight showed what hard work and determination can do.
U.S v. Japan: It's Our Year
It all comes down to one game and that game is tonight: United States v. Japan in the Women's World Cup final, a rematch of the 2011 final. But the realization that this is our year goes back to maybe the China game when the team picked it up a notch and continued through the semi-finals with a convincing 2-0 win over top seed Germany.
The Germans started out in control - for about 10 minutes, showing dazzling quick feet and pinpoint passing, but with nothing in the back of the net. The U.S. received two breaks in the 63rd minute: one from the referee for not sending off Julie Johnston after a foul in the box; and the second from the tournament's leading scorer, Celis Saic, who sent the ensuing penalty kick wide left. Nine minutes later a foul on Germany, which may have been outside the penalty area, led to a PK that Carli Lloyd nailed.
Lloyd has been player of the match in the last two games.
All this has brought a well-deserved round of favorable publicity to Lloyd. Juliet Macur wrote in the New York Times after the victory over China, "In a significant way, then, with Coach Jill Ellis willing to tinker but not to renovate, this has become Lloyd’s team. As Lloyd showed against China, she can be the engine that makes it run at full speed and the leader who may decide how far it will go."
Today Macur wrote about Lloyd's former high school coach, Rudy Klobach, of Delran High School, whom I knew when he coached Carli in high school and she played on the club team that Joe Dadura and I coached. Sadly Rudy passed away back in January, much too early at age 70.
People ask me about Carli and I tell them it never gets old seeing her play at this level, and especially the success she has realized in this Cup. I see the Facebook posts of our former Medford Strikers team supporting Carli and I know we will all be watching tonight - hopefully seeing her hoist the Cup.
My prediction: United States 2, Japan 1.
The Germans started out in control - for about 10 minutes, showing dazzling quick feet and pinpoint passing, but with nothing in the back of the net. The U.S. received two breaks in the 63rd minute: one from the referee for not sending off Julie Johnston after a foul in the box; and the second from the tournament's leading scorer, Celis Saic, who sent the ensuing penalty kick wide left. Nine minutes later a foul on Germany, which may have been outside the penalty area, led to a PK that Carli Lloyd nailed.
Lloyd has been player of the match in the last two games.
All this has brought a well-deserved round of favorable publicity to Lloyd. Juliet Macur wrote in the New York Times after the victory over China, "In a significant way, then, with Coach Jill Ellis willing to tinker but not to renovate, this has become Lloyd’s team. As Lloyd showed against China, she can be the engine that makes it run at full speed and the leader who may decide how far it will go."
Today Macur wrote about Lloyd's former high school coach, Rudy Klobach, of Delran High School, whom I knew when he coached Carli in high school and she played on the club team that Joe Dadura and I coached. Sadly Rudy passed away back in January, much too early at age 70.
People ask me about Carli and I tell them it never gets old seeing her play at this level, and especially the success she has realized in this Cup. I see the Facebook posts of our former Medford Strikers team supporting Carli and I know we will all be watching tonight - hopefully seeing her hoist the Cup.
My prediction: United States 2, Japan 1.
Monday, June 29, 2015
Lloyd's 200th Cap a Memorable One Against China
Carli Lloyd made her 200th cap a good one last Friday, serving as team captain and scoring the only goal (a header off a cross from Julie Johnston) in the USA's 1-0 quarterfinal win over China.
Equally important, Lloyd and her teammates took the level of play up a notch, which they will need to maintain in tomorrow's semi-final against Germany. The Germans beat France in a shootout.
Juliet Macur wrote in The New York Times, "So with Rapinoe in the stands and Wambach on the bench, Lloyd wore the captain’s armband, and that armband turned her superhuman. She and that armband were everywhere. Pushing the ball forward. Stealing it back. Running it down. Grabbing the team by the scruff of its neck and leading it to a win."
Andrew Keh's game story in the Times also featured Lloyd, whose goal was her 65th in international play.
On to Montreal to face the powerful German side.
Equally important, Lloyd and her teammates took the level of play up a notch, which they will need to maintain in tomorrow's semi-final against Germany. The Germans beat France in a shootout.
Juliet Macur wrote in The New York Times, "So with Rapinoe in the stands and Wambach on the bench, Lloyd wore the captain’s armband, and that armband turned her superhuman. She and that armband were everywhere. Pushing the ball forward. Stealing it back. Running it down. Grabbing the team by the scruff of its neck and leading it to a win."
Andrew Keh's game story in the Times also featured Lloyd, whose goal was her 65th in international play.
On to Montreal to face the powerful German side.
Tuesday, June 23, 2015
Bring on China
"Underwhelmed but not surprising," was how Alexi Lalas described the U.S. 2-0 Round of 16 win over Columbia in Edmonton last night. A bit harsh, I think. Team USA did what it took to win and that's always the sign of a good team.
There was an apparent goal by Abby Wambach in the 4th minute that was called back by an offsides. (Good call.) Colombian keeper Catalina Perez, who plays for the University of Miami, made three tough saves. But there were times when it looked as though Colombia might score first.
Never happened and the half ended scoreless. The toughest moments of the opening half for the U.S. were not injuries (thankfully there were none) or missed opportunities. Rather they were the yellow cards shown to Lauren Holiday in the 17th minute and to Megan Rapinoe in the 41st, Because of prior yellow cards each player will have to sit out the China game. Both plays were fouls but neither deserved a card.
The U.S. got a huge break just two minutes into the second half when Perez came out to challenge Alex Morgan, missed the ball and clipped Morgan's feet, bringing her down. It was an "obvious goal scoring opportunity" within the meaning of Law 12, so Perez was justifiably sent off, forcing Colombia to play 43 minutes a player short. To make matters worse, the foul was just inside the penalty area, giving the U.S. a penalty kick.
Surprisingly, Abby Wambach went wide left on the PK, a miss that good have energized Colombia. It did not and Alex Morgan finally broke the ice with a goal in the 53rd minute. When Rapinoe was taken down in the box in the 66th minute, Coach Jill Ellis went with Carli Lloyd over Wambach. Lloyd went right and the keeper went the wrong way to give the U.S. a 2-0 lead. According to Wambach, as quoted in this morning's Inquirer, "I could have taken it, but that's my punishment. Carli gave me the opportunity to take it and I said, 'No, you get it. Bury it.' "
So the U.S. is open of eight teams still playing but no one seems overly impressed. "At times, the best team in the world didn't look that good as a result of the way we performed," Colombia coach Fabian Taborda was quoted as saying said through an interpreter.
Lloyd was a bit more positive: "I know the goals will come," she was quoted as saying in the Inquirer. . "We've just got to keep moving forward, keep plugging away, and have the confidence to know that chances will fall."
They may have scored only six goals in four games, but then they've allowed just one, the last one being by Australia 27 minutes into the opening match. That's 333 minutes of scoreless soccer.
I like the chances against China.
There was an apparent goal by Abby Wambach in the 4th minute that was called back by an offsides. (Good call.) Colombian keeper Catalina Perez, who plays for the University of Miami, made three tough saves. But there were times when it looked as though Colombia might score first.
Never happened and the half ended scoreless. The toughest moments of the opening half for the U.S. were not injuries (thankfully there were none) or missed opportunities. Rather they were the yellow cards shown to Lauren Holiday in the 17th minute and to Megan Rapinoe in the 41st, Because of prior yellow cards each player will have to sit out the China game. Both plays were fouls but neither deserved a card.
The U.S. got a huge break just two minutes into the second half when Perez came out to challenge Alex Morgan, missed the ball and clipped Morgan's feet, bringing her down. It was an "obvious goal scoring opportunity" within the meaning of Law 12, so Perez was justifiably sent off, forcing Colombia to play 43 minutes a player short. To make matters worse, the foul was just inside the penalty area, giving the U.S. a penalty kick.
Surprisingly, Abby Wambach went wide left on the PK, a miss that good have energized Colombia. It did not and Alex Morgan finally broke the ice with a goal in the 53rd minute. When Rapinoe was taken down in the box in the 66th minute, Coach Jill Ellis went with Carli Lloyd over Wambach. Lloyd went right and the keeper went the wrong way to give the U.S. a 2-0 lead. According to Wambach, as quoted in this morning's Inquirer, "I could have taken it, but that's my punishment. Carli gave me the opportunity to take it and I said, 'No, you get it. Bury it.' "
So the U.S. is open of eight teams still playing but no one seems overly impressed. "At times, the best team in the world didn't look that good as a result of the way we performed," Colombia coach Fabian Taborda was quoted as saying said through an interpreter.
Lloyd was a bit more positive: "I know the goals will come," she was quoted as saying in the Inquirer. . "We've just got to keep moving forward, keep plugging away, and have the confidence to know that chances will fall."
They may have scored only six goals in four games, but then they've allowed just one, the last one being by Australia 27 minutes into the opening match. That's 333 minutes of scoreless soccer.
I like the chances against China.
Sunday, June 14, 2015
After Sweden
Sweden needed the win more than we did and after a hard-fought scoreless draw Friday night, probably needs a win against Australia Tuesday to advance. The United States, meanwhile, is in a good position with four points, although if we lost to Nigeria and Australia beat Sweden, Australia would win the group with six points. The U.S and Nigeria would be tied but the second place spot would probably go the the Americans on goal differential.
There are six groups of four and the top two in each group go through, as will four of the six third place teams. In other words, after two weeks of play, only eight of 24 teams will be eliminated.
Back to the Sweden match: the New York Times story is here. Both teams had chances and both were victimized by a bad call. Somehow the officials missed Nilla Fischer's mugging of a U.S player in the box but they later missed a hand ball by Sydney Leroux in the box. Swedish keeper Hedwig Lindahl, who was properly named player of the match, came up big a number of times, including on a hard shot by Carli Lloyd which was a great chance.
The American defense of Meghan Klingenberg, Becky Saerbrunn and Julie Johnston played well and it was Klingenberg who saved the game in the 77th minute. Caroline Seger was open about 10 yards out to the left and looped a ball towards the upper right corner, past keeper Hope Solo, only to see Klingenberg, the shortest player on the field, head it off the line into the underside of the cross bar and out, where it was cleared. The goalline cameras showed the ball had not crossed the line.
Off the field the Hope Solo story will not go away. After recent reports that she was really the aggressor in a domestic violence incident last year (the charges were dismissed on procedural grounds, which the prosecutor appealed), a United States senator called for Solo to be kicked off the team, the president of U.S. Soccer defended her and her roommate, Lloyd, was asked about it after the Sweden match. She replied,"Hope Solo news, that's so old news. Hope is my roommate, and we don't even talk about it. It's all old news, we just laugh about it." The laughing about it comment caused some to criticize Lloyd because obviously domestic violence is no laughing matter.
In an interview with Philly.com's Jonathan Tannenwald, Lloyd explained her remarks: ""Obviously, it wasn't the best choice of words," she said. "The laughing bit of it was the fact that, you know, we're a couple games deep into the World Cup, and the team is solely focused on the World Cup, the games, and the preparation. The fact that we're still being asked these questions about Hope's case is kind of tough."
Back on the field, today was a rest day. The final games of the first stage begin tomorrow. Thus far, only Japan and Brazil have won both of their first two matches.
There are six groups of four and the top two in each group go through, as will four of the six third place teams. In other words, after two weeks of play, only eight of 24 teams will be eliminated.
Back to the Sweden match: the New York Times story is here. Both teams had chances and both were victimized by a bad call. Somehow the officials missed Nilla Fischer's mugging of a U.S player in the box but they later missed a hand ball by Sydney Leroux in the box. Swedish keeper Hedwig Lindahl, who was properly named player of the match, came up big a number of times, including on a hard shot by Carli Lloyd which was a great chance.
The American defense of Meghan Klingenberg, Becky Saerbrunn and Julie Johnston played well and it was Klingenberg who saved the game in the 77th minute. Caroline Seger was open about 10 yards out to the left and looped a ball towards the upper right corner, past keeper Hope Solo, only to see Klingenberg, the shortest player on the field, head it off the line into the underside of the cross bar and out, where it was cleared. The goalline cameras showed the ball had not crossed the line.
Off the field the Hope Solo story will not go away. After recent reports that she was really the aggressor in a domestic violence incident last year (the charges were dismissed on procedural grounds, which the prosecutor appealed), a United States senator called for Solo to be kicked off the team, the president of U.S. Soccer defended her and her roommate, Lloyd, was asked about it after the Sweden match. She replied,"Hope Solo news, that's so old news. Hope is my roommate, and we don't even talk about it. It's all old news, we just laugh about it." The laughing about it comment caused some to criticize Lloyd because obviously domestic violence is no laughing matter.
In an interview with Philly.com's Jonathan Tannenwald, Lloyd explained her remarks: ""Obviously, it wasn't the best choice of words," she said. "The laughing bit of it was the fact that, you know, we're a couple games deep into the World Cup, and the team is solely focused on the World Cup, the games, and the preparation. The fact that we're still being asked these questions about Hope's case is kind of tough."
Back on the field, today was a rest day. The final games of the first stage begin tomorrow. Thus far, only Japan and Brazil have won both of their first two matches.
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