Friday, July 31, 2020

Indy Eleven vs Hartford Athletic - 07.06

Summary
- Opponent: Hartford Athletic
- Location: Lucas Oil Stadium
- Attendance: 4,775
- Final Score: 4-1 W

- Starting XI: Newton, Hackshaw (C), Osmond, Ouimette, Conner, Gibson, Antley, King, Pasher, Ilic, Moon

- Substitutions: Watson 71' (Moon), Rafanello 82' (Ilic), Dumas 82' (King), Carleton 90' (Pasher), Lindley 90' (Conner)
- Unused: Farr, Barrett

- Scoring Summary:
IND - Moon 4' (assist King)
HFD - Dixon 46' (assist Swartz)
IND - Pasher 51' (assist Ilic)
IND - Conner 81' (assist Ouimette)
IND - Watson 87' (assist Ouimette)

- Bookings:
HFD - Swartz 33' (Yellow)
HFD - Davey 45'+5' (Yellow)
HFD - Silva 90'+3' (Yellow)

- Referee: Lukasz Szpala
- Adage goals: One

Thoughts and Opinions

A loss on the road isn't the worst thing in the world, particularly with the start to the season that Indy has had so far. However, the best way to get rid of the sting of a loss is to head back home where you haven't lost in over two years. Luckily for Indy, that was exactly the schedule that was laid before them. 

What you don't expect if you're an Indy Eleven fan is to have the team play a home game and score four goals. Prior to this season, Indy had scored 4 goals in a home game (in a league game...) just 3 times, all in the 2016 season. It's an interesting fact that the last time Indy scored four or more goals multiple times in a season, they walked away with hardware for the NASL Spring season and made it to the title game and have now already done it twice in six games this season.

The goal scoring is, obviously, going to make the opening headline to this and many articles about the game. Moon gets the team off to a quick start with a textbook header down and back in the direction it came, making it extremely difficult for a goalkeeper to stop. A header that came from a one-touch cross from one of the best crossers on the team in King. Hartford then claws one back immediately after halftime on a shot that deflected off of Osmond on its way to Newton, who was left frozen. Less than five minutes later, Ilic and Pasher put Indy back in the lead by fighting to keep possession and proceeding to move forward and Hartford forgetting that Pasher is the league's leading goal scorer and the lose track of him. As the game wound down, Ouimette found Conner and Watson for the insurance goals and a game that often felt close, became a route.

Indy scoring four goals at home deserves some obvious attention.

Yet, what stuck out for me is the defensive midfield. A double six defensive midfield isn't a new thing under Coach Rennie. It's been a staple of his time here in Indy and in his time in most (all?) of his coaching stops along the way.  

What is different is how well the pairing of Gibson and Conner is working together and their movement throughout the field. Their energy levels are impressive and they take their defensive roles seriously. However, the addition of Conner to the team has also brought a player that is more box-to-box than Walker has been in the past and provides a better connection between the back three and the front three. Gibson and Conner are roommates and being stuck together for an extended period during a pandemic may have created a deadly combination for opposing midfields. Both players got into the attack in this game, providing three chances created between the two of them, with Conner scoring the insurance goal. They were both completed more than 80% of their passes (Gibson at an astonishing 93.5% overall and 91.7% in Hartford's half of the field). Indy fans started to see what Conner could provide after his addition last August, but it has become more and more obvious this season that his addition to the team may have been what the team was missing to get better offensive output. With the way that Antley and King are playing on the wings in the absence of Ayoze and Haworth, the midfield is becoming the engine that Coach Rennie's roster is designed to support.

I've been mentioning the way to win in a "sprint" season versus the "marathon" season and Indy are continuing to follow the script perfectly. They are winning games early in the season to put teams behind you so that the pressure is on them to catch you, win at home, win against the teams that you are supposed to beat, steal some points on the road, and then hope for some other results to go your way. Louisville is struggling to beat anybody right now, Indy is beating everybody, and winning at home where they play the majority of their remaining games. Indy have played more games than the other teams in Group E, but with every win, they are ratcheting the pressure on Louisville City, Saint Louis, and Sporting KC II to get similar results. Another win on Saturday at home against SKCII and a Saint Louis loss to Memphis that night would put Indy 9 points clear of 2nd place in the group after just 7 sames. That's how you live up to the preseason hype about the team.


The Game Beckons Game Ball
I thought about giving this to the defensive mid duo of Conner and Gibson, for the reasons I described above, but Ouimette provided two perfectly weighted long balls that became assists as they lead to Conner's and Watson's goals to close out the game from nearly the exact same point in the field that solidified it for me for him to receive this game's Game Beckons Game Ball.

Sunday, July 26, 2020

Indy Eleven vs Saint Louis FC - 07.05

Summary
- Opponent: Saint Louis FC
- Location: West Community Stadium
- Attendance: 
- Final Score: 1-0 L

- Starting XI: Newton, Hackshaw, Barrett (C), Ouimette, Lindley, Gibson, Antley, King, Carleton, Rafanello, Moon

- Substitutions: Conner 68' (Gibson), Pasher 68' (Moon), Watson 80' (Rafanello), Dumas 
- Unused: Farr, Osmond, Walker

- Scoring Summary:
STL - Blackwood 24' (assist Fall)

- Bookings:
IND - Hackshaw 44' (Yellow)
STL - Fall 68' (Yellow)
STL - Umar 83' (Yellow)

- Referee: Jervis Atagana
- Adage goals: None

Thoughts and Opinions

Indy's first chink in the armor was on full display today with the first substantial lineup change since the season rebooted. Pasher and Conner were given a rest from the starting lineup and Ayoze and Haworth were still missing from the game day lineup as well. As a result, Rafanello and Lindley picked up their first starts for Indy Eleven and King had his first start of the 2020 campaign. 

Unfortunately, Indy's infusion of different players into the starting lineup played against them as Saint Louis FC bunkered and were very quick to recover on defense to get players behind the ball, stifling most of the Indy attacks. Without Pasher's pace up top to chase down the periodic ball over the top to keep the Saint Louis defense honest, Indy's normal desire to play through the back routinely put 9 or 10 Saint Louis defenders behind the ball. This created very minimal passing lanes and the Indy midfield and forwards struggled to unlock many serious threats on goal, despite having 20 shots and 7 shots on goal. In fact, today's forward line of Moon and Rafanello had 3 shots on target and 2 chances created. The back three of Hackshaw, Ouimette, and Barrett had 1 shot on target, 1 shot off target, 1 blocked shot, and 3 chances created. It's not always a good sign when you can't look at the offensive stats and tell the difference between the forwards and the center backs.

Alternatively, Saint Louis managed just 2 shots, but scored with just one of those on a pass through the back line where Ouimette was pulled too far centrally and Barrett was unable to recover, The goal reminded me of the one that Harris from Sporting KC II scored last week. 

By the time Coach Rennie went to his bench in the 70th minute, with an infusion of pace with Pasher and a Conner for Gibson change, Saint Louis were content to further bunker and 10 to 11 guys behind the ball for most of the final parts of the game. With that many guys back, further plugging the passing lanes, every time Pasher touched the ball, he was met by multiple defenders. Saint Louis basically said, "you [Indy] may find a way to tie or win this game, but you [Indy] are going to have to find a way to do it with somebody other than Tyler Pasher." Indy was unable to find someone else to win the game for them.

With the schedule that teams have to play to get in a 16 game season in such a short timeframe, Coach Rennie is doing the right thing of giving some guys a rest and giving some guys some playing time. However, they are going to have to figure out a way to beat teams in ways that don't always include Pasher. He's also going to need to give the back line some breathers too as Hackshaw, Ouimette, and Barrett are putting in some long shifts and can't be the defensive stalwarts they need, while also providing a significant portion of the offense. I wonder if we'll see Osmond on Wednesday against Hartford Athletic.

Once the groups were announced for the season restart, many (most?) felt that Group E was going to be a race for Indy and Louisville and that Saint Louis and SKCII were going to need to steal points from those two teams to give themselves a chance. Saint Louis did just that in back-to-back games and have placed themselves firmly in the discussion for advancing to the playoffs. It was unlikely that Indy were going to go through the season unscathed, but a draw would have been a welcome result in Saint Louis. Maybe that was Coach Rennie's logic and he thought his team could get it done while resting some players. 

Going into the non-group game against Hartford on Wednesday, the questions become:
  1. Will Coach Rennie adjust the lineup again to give some other players some rest? and 
  2. Will they be able to find some goals from attacking players not named Pasher (remember, the other goals for the season have come from Ayoze, Haworth, Hackshaw, and Barrett)?
After today's result, I expect 
  1. Yes, 
  2. Indy fans better hope so.

The Game Beckons Game Ball
While I'm not a big fan of his over acts of frustration, Carleton was the player who looked to attack more than anybody else (not named Barrett). In a loss where things didn't seem to click as much as Indy fans would have preferred, that's about as good as I can get tonight. 

Friday, July 24, 2020

Indy Eleven vs Pittsburgh Riverhounds - 07.04

Summary
- Opponent: Pittsburgh Riverhounds
- Location: Highmark Stadium
- Attendance: 
- Final Score: 1-0 W

- Starting XI: Newton, Hackshaw, Barrett (C), Ouimette, Conner, Gibson, Antley, Haworth, Watson, Pasher, Moon

- Substitutions: King 45' (Haworth - injury), Lindley 66' (Watson), Rafanello 90' (Moon)
- Unused: Farr, Carleton, Osmond, Walker

- Scoring Summary:
IND - Pasher 90’+7'

- Bookings:
PIT - Dover 21' (Yellow)
IND - Ouimette 31' (Yellow)
PIT - Griffin 63' (Yellow)
IND - Barrett 70' (Yellow)
PIT - Mertz 74' (Yellow)
PIT - Mensah 82' (Yellow)
PIT - Velarde 90'+5' (Yellow)

- Referee: Eric Tattersall
- Adage goals: None

Thoughts and Opinions
Without ESPN2 for me to watch the game, this recap of the game is going go be short since I can only base it on the highlight video and the stats from the Match Center. 

What I see from all of that is a much less effective Indy Eleven team in the final third; more than 20 percentage points less effective in their passing in their oppositions half of the field than they were coming into the game. Indy managed just 7 shots, after averaging 19 shots in the previous three games and just 3 shots on target after averaging 9. Indy also attempted a significantly larger number of long passes than in the previous games; 30% versus 16% average before.

Hysterically, as I watched the highlights from the game, it shows Ouimette's shot on goal in the first half stoppage time (45'+5') and then bypasses the entire second half of action to show Pasher's collection of a ball in the defensive half of the field in the 96th minute that led to the game winning goal. The league felt that there wasn't a single other event in the second half that was worthy of being posted to the game highlight. 

Indy picked up a road win against their toughest opponent of the season so far, but had to do it in spectacular fashion thanks to the number of minutes added due to a hydration break. Indy also proved a key addition to my previous statement about how to win in a "sprint" season versus a "marathon" season.  
Win quickly to put teams behind you so that the pressure is on them to catch you, win at home, win against the teams that you are supposed to beat, and then hope for some other results to go your way.
"Steal some points on the road."

Indy is now 25% of the way through the season and have started as well as can be expected. It would be difficult to assume that they can maintain this win pace, but with 8 of their final 12 games occurring at home where they haven't lost in over 2 years, who knows what could happen?


 

The Game Beckons Game Ball
In a game where the league didn't think it was necessary to highlight any of the 2nd half so that they could have half of the highlights focus on Pasher's goal, it has to be Pasher. It could be the goal of the week and don't be surprised if it's in the running for goal of the year. Pasher continues to score and make something out of nothing. 

Sunday, July 19, 2020

Indy Eleven vs Sporting KC II - 07.03

Summary
- Opponent: Sporting KC II
- Location: Indianapolis Lucas Oil Stadium
- Attendance: 4,931 (the infamous distributed tickets value...)
- Final Score: 2-1 W

- Starting XI: Newton, Hackshaw, Barrett (C), Ouimette, Conner, Gibson, Ayoze, Haworth, Carleton, Pasher, Moon

- Substitutions: Antley 11' (Ayoze - injury), Lindley 63' (Carleton), Ilic 64' (Conner), Walker 89' (Pasher), Osmond 90' (Gibson)
- Unused: Farr, King

- Scoring Summary:
IND - Pasher 39’
SKCII - Harris 53'
IND - Barrett 67' (assist Ilic)

- Bookings:
SKCII - Cuic 26' (Yellow)
SKCII - Rad 35' (Yellow)
SKCII - Riley 40' (Yellow)
IND - Haworth 44' (Yellow)
IND - Ilic 71' (Yellow)
SKCII - Barbir 82' (Yellow)
IND - Antley 90'+9' (Yellow)

- Referee: Eric Tattersall
- Adage goals: None

Thoughts and Opinions
If the Indy Eleven's time in the NASL has taught us anything, it's how to be effective in a "sprint" of a season and not a "marathon" of a season. Win quickly to put teams behind you so that the pressure is on them to catch you, win at home, win against the teams that you are supposed to beat, and then hope for some other results to go your way.
  • Win quickly - 3 games, 3 wins - CHECK
  • Win at home - 2 home games, 2 wins - CHECK
  • Beat teams you're supposed to beat - Wins against Saint Louis and Sporting KC II - CHECK
  • Other results to go your way - Saint Louis beats Louisville tonight - CHECK
Then have some guys who can put the ball in the goal and aren't afraid to do it. I'm looking at you Paddy Barrett. You thought I was talking about Pasher. Everybody knows about Pasher at this point. 
"And they just can't stop him." - Brad Hauter. Pasher is now tied for 3rd in club history for Points Scored with Dylan Mares (Dylan is also now tied with Ouimette for Games Started and was overtaken by Ouimette for Minutes Played) and is making it look like he might score in every single game this season unless he is physically double-teamed through the entirety of the game.

Paddy Barrett though, who Coach Rennie once answered one of my questions about Barrett, by saying that the team often jokes that Barrett is a striker in a defender's body. He had 3 chances created, 1 shot that slide just wide of the goal, and he scored the game winner with a soft little bending shot around the keeper. All that after forcing Saint Louis' keeper into an outstretched save last week. 

He's the center back.

The team is getting goals from defenders and it's just a matter of time before guys like Moon, Carleton, and Lindley find the back of the goal too. Indy had 11 shots on goal; not 11 shots, shots on goal. They had 23 shots. Of the 11 shots, Moon, Carleton, and Lindley accounted for 4 of them, with Tyler Pasher accounting for 4 more. 

Throw in the defending that Ouimette, Barrett, and Hackshaw routinely perform and the group defending from Gibson, Conner, Ayoze, and Haworth, and this team looks formidable. The USL Match Center for the game lists SKCII as having 14 total shots and my recollection of the game wouldn't have put it that high. The 2 shots on goal seems accurate, but even one of those shots is the goal were Harris got in on Newton 1v1 and slide it past him. Otherwise, Newton was forced to make 1 save. 

SKCII is a very young team. The starting goalkeeper is a kid from Indiana who is only 18 years old and made 9 saves tonight. So you can see the talent on their squad and they are going to take points from the top teams in the group, probably even Indy because it's difficult to win against a team every time when you play them 4 times in the season. SKCII were fast, full of energy, and pressed well. In fact, when I saw the sign raised for 8 minutes of stoppage time, I truly wondered if they were going to be able to steal a point out of the game. Yet, Indy's group defending and some moments where the ref kept the whistle out of his mouth in dangerous (PK) locations saw the game finish with Coach Rennie using his allotted 5 subs this week. While Walker and Osmond are only going to be officially credited with 1 minute of game time, their fresh legs and effort were evident. Indy's depth, and the youth at that depth, is going to be valuable, even in this shortened season.

Indy travels to Pittsburgh on Wednesday, both riding wins and sitting atop their groups as Pittsburgh put a 6-spot on Philadelphia Union II tonight. 

The Game Beckons Game Ball
Game winner from a defender. There were a lot of good moments from the game, but a goal from Barrett a few days before his birthday? Yeah, that's enough to get you the GBGB.

Sunday, July 12, 2020

Indy Eleven vs Saint Louis FC - 07.02


Summary
- Opponent: Saint Louis FC
- Location: Indianapolis Lucas Oil Stadium
- Attendance: 4,761 (the infamous distributed tickets value...)
- Final Score: 2-0 W
- Starting XI: Newton, Hackshaw, Barrett (C), Ouimette, Conner, Gibson, Ayoze, Haworth, Carleton, Pasher, Moon
- Substitutions: Watson 69' (Carleton), Ilic 80' (Moon), Osmond 84' (Barrett)
- Unused: Farr, Antley, King, Walker
- Scoring Summary:
IND – Pasher (assist Carleton) 52’
IND - Hackshaw (assist Ayoze) 79'
- Bookings:
NONE
- Referee: Calin Radosav
- Adage goals: None

Thoughts and Opinions
I'm going to start this by saying that I wasn't at the game and that I question the playing of games entirely. I appreciate the fact that people's livelihoods are on the line here. I understand people's desires to try and get back to some kind of normal. I'm just not convinced we're there yet and we're potentially setting ourselves up for an extended "social distancing" life because people aren't taking it seriously enough. I saw people in the stands without masks on. I don't get that. I miss being at games. We all do. Yet I couldn't get beyond my personal opinion of how I've witnessed people behaving for me to attend the game in person. Maybe at some point, but I'm not there yet.

I was glad to see the players standing up for Black Lives Matter. This is an important moment in the history of the country and I hope that we're finally moving in a direction that addresses the issues we've had for too long in this country. They're small steps at this point, but they're small steps that have needed to be taken for far too long.

No, onto the game itself...

With tonight's win, the Indy Eleven haven't lost in Lucas Oil Stadium in over 2 years. In a shortened 16 game season (one pre-shutdown and 15 post-shutdown), that's a useful stat to have in your back pocket with 10 of the 15 games taking place at home. Add in the ability to have 5 substitutes with Indy's depth in every position, and it will be unfortunate if the Eleven don't make it into the post-season. To do that, I've mentioned before that I thought Indy needed to take as many points as they can from Saint Louis and Sporting KC II and then hope to split the season with Louisville to clinch their spot. Indy took the first step in that tonight by not only getting a win against Saint Louis, but also keeping the clean sheet to help with the goal differential, which could come into play at the end of the year.

If you look at the heat map from this game, it would appear that this game was played predominantly in the midfield, but Indy won in all of the major statistical categories. They nearly doubled Saint Louis in shots and shots on goal, won the possession and aerial duels battle, and completed more than 80% of their passes. Most people will argue that it isn't just possession, but where you have that possession and what you do with that possession. Indy took their possession and methodically moved it up the field to put themselves in dangerous situations, with just enough of the long passes to Pasher, Moon, and Carleton to keep reminding Saint Louis that Indy has one of (the?) fastest players in the league with Pasher. I enjoy a distribution map that looks as green as what Indy was able to create tonight.

Indy's distribution and attack led to 13 shots and 8 shots on goal in the first half alone and 19 and 9 for the game.  Indy's attack came from multiple sources as even Barrett had a 40 yard shot that forced a good save from Morton in just the 9th minute of action, signifying the extent to which Indy was going to try and break down Saint Louis' compact defense. 

Yet, for all of the distribution and passes from Indy, their goals came from a long pass or a set piece cross. The first goal was a 40-yard pass from Carleton to Pasher, who the performed his normal magic trick of making a defender think he's going to his right, only to get it back to his left and put it under the keeper. The second goal was a 30-yard set piece cross from Ayoze that was perfectly placed in a spot over the defense, but that kept Morton planted on his line. 

As we saw last season, teams can know the scouting report and still can't stop it. 
  • Pasher wants to go to his left. Force him to his right. He might still beat you, but you're giving yourself a chance. In the moment though, when he's going at a defender with more speed than a player is used to seeing, the ball fakes seem to work.
  • Ayoze is dangerous on free kicks. Okay, teams can't prepare for his placement. I'll give them that one.
  • Indy is going to stay organized defensively and if you're going to attack it, you need to do it in numbers. Saint Louis did that a few times, but just couldn't do it consistently enough to overcome a goal, and then two goal, deficit.  
What teams don't have in the scouting report is the effort and ability of Carleton and Moon have added to this team and the pressure that Haworth on the right side is going to take off of Pasher on the left side. They saw a glimpse of what the new additions are going to bring to this year's squad and it should concern opposing teams. Indy was good last year and they have additional pieces that are going to make them even harder to beat, particularly given their home form.

Sporting KC II comes to Indy next weekend and Indy needs to continue taking points from the teams not named Louisville City FC to put themselves in the best position at the end of this sprint season.

The Game Beckons Game Ball
It has to be Pasher, right? 85% pass right, 5 shots, 3 shots on goal, and his goal turned the game from "promising" to a nearly certain win. Hackshaw's goal put the game out of reach for Saint Louis, but it was Pasher's goal that showed that teams can game plan around him, but he can still beat them and Indy has found weapons around him to take off some of the pressure.

Friday, July 10, 2020

The Soccer Life - Katherine Reed

Sometimes I need to try and figure out how to fill in some blanks for people after they fill out this series of questions. Katherine's response is not like that. So instead of me rambling on, I'll let Katherine do all the talking about The Soccer Life for her:


1. Name:
- Katherine Reed

2. Role (Player, Parent, Coach, Referee, General Spectator, All of the Above, None of the Above, Other):
- Soccer Mom (a pretty cool one, according to Elliott), Brickyard Battalion Vice President, proud member of Slaughterhouse-19, and in a previous life: coach, ref, player.

3. Soccer-specific Nickname (and any story behind it):
- Kat (because sometimes Katherine has too many syllables).
Valdy/Valderrama (My bestie and I usually played center-mid together. We both have brown, poofy, curly hair. In the 80s, I'd sometimes use a crimper...brilliant.)

4. Age became interested in soccer:
- I've been surrounded by soccer since birth. If you know my Dad, you know that's true. I've been interested in soccer forever. I didn't agree to start actually playing, though, until I was....9? 10? And I did so because the persuading coach promised that the team had lots of parties. 

5. First recollection of the game:
- The years and years I spent watching my older brother play, before I started playing. The hours spent in the back of my parents' car, sharing a walkman while listening to English Beat, to and from games.

6. Highest level of play achieved:
- High School; decided not to pursue college after an injury.

7. Honors/Awards
- Some typical Athlete/Academics awards in High School. Mom of the Year award, by Elliott.

8. Last competitive match – Date (if known) & Level of Play
- Do practices with Elliott count?

9. Position:
- Center-mid, sometimes right-mid

10. Jersey number:
- 10

11. Coaching experience:
- Coached some local youth teams while I was a college student.
Rec Coached Elliott and Annabelle. Stopped when my dramatic daughter would hide behind my legs during a game if she didn't get the ball.

12. Refereeing experience:
- Way back in the day.... when I was a middle school student, I worked youth games. Best part was telling loud parents to HUSH.

13. Most memorable moment(s):
- Most memorable moments as a player? Soccer camps were the best...loved going away to camp. NC State was my favorite - their fields were like carpet. Camps pushed you physically and emotionally. I loved the bonds that were strengthened when you were on your own with your teammates.

As the Mom of Elliott: legit, every game he plays.

As a Supporter? Too many to count or rank. Some highlights:
-The first pre-season game at The Mike with my Dad. Just me and him went from the family because it was so darn cold outside. It was special - knowing that we now had a team to support together in Indy.
-The Miracle at The Mike. Duh.
-The first big away day for Elliott in Nashville. Uncle Peter taught him how to properly fly a flag. His happiness from the away day carried over to the next home game when he *finally* agreed to stand in the BYB (he'd been a bit intimidated for years). Follow this up with last year's playoff games when Elliott then persuaded his two red-headed brothers-from-another-Momma to stand in the BYB for the first time. Watching him now mentor his younger besties in the same way that Uncle Peter had mentored him..... melted my heart. (Psss.... we love you Dunmores!).

14. Least memorable moment(s):
- For a couple years I helped start the VArmy, the first official supporters group of the Columbus Crew. This was way back in the day of Coach Andrulis. Things had started to go downhill and all supporters wanted to see him sacked. When the atmosphere had reached the bottom, I brought dozens and dozens of brown paper grocery bags to a game and people cut eye-holes out of the bags and wrote SACK ANDRULIS on the backside of the bags. Supporters then wore the bags in the stadium during his introduction and at various times during the game.
It's a little bit cheesy.

The moment I wish I could forget in USMNT history  - the '02 US/Germany game. Specifically the 50th minute or so. Cheaters.

15. Favorite World Cup moment(s):
- I measure my life in World Cups. I remember during Italia '90 when games were interrupted and goals missed due to commercials. There's a lot wrong in this world...but at least we now have uninterrupted soccer on tv.

I was living in Chicago during the '94 World Cup. That entire summer was magic. My team walked in the opening parade - the whole weekend was an insane, international party.  The German National Team was headquartered not too far from my house; my family was invited to join the team for dinners on non-game days - that was incredible. I was taller than Voller. I was awe-struck by Klinsmann (who knew that he'd become so frustrating to an American supporter years later). Watching all the games at Soldier Field. Traveling to the Silverdome to watch Wynalda score that goal.

Last summer on 7/7/19, "Finals Day." We had a massive party in the parking lot of Union Jack (love you, Jay + Chelsey). We started the day off watching the USWNT with 700+ of our best friends. Sharing in that moment with friends and my kids was unforgettable.

16. Favorite team(s)
- Indy Eleven, USWNT, USMNT, France, Manchester United, Dortmund

17. Favorite Historical player:
- Ryan Giggs. While all my friends had posters of Boy George and Robert Smith hanging on their walls, I used posters of Ryan Giggs as wallpaper. Nothing against Smith. Love him.
But GIGGS. Giggs will tear you apart.

Carin "Crazy Legs" Jennings. Really, pick a player from the USWNT in the 90s, and I loved them. Akers Stahl? Incredible. But Jennings..... she was spectacular with the ball at her feet. I wanted to be her. And thanks to some dear friends, I have some irreplaceable souvenirs from her world cup collection that I will cherish as reminders of how amazed I was watching these women, as a young girl.

18. Favorite Current Player
- Elliott.
Oh. You meant like a professional?
Hmmm....
Indy: the combination of Ayoze, Ironman Gibson, and Drew "Tuck it In" Conner.
ManU: Rashford.
USWNT: toss up between Rapinoe and Heath.
USMNT: anyone who will take shots on net....and better yet, score a damn goal.

19. Indoor vs Outdoor:
- Outdoor

20. Grass vs Turf:
- Grass

21. Other sports played (and to what level):
- I'm pretty strong at Looping Louie. Gotta work on my soccer tennis game now that Elliott is older.

22. Other Comments:
- It's always been more than a game.
If you haven't watched a game from behind the goal in the Brickyard Battalion - please do. We want you with us.

23. Other Information:
- Get involved at brickyardbattalion.com
Follow us at @the_byb
Follow me at @kchreed
Buy tickets at bybtix.com

Thursday, July 9, 2020

The Soccer Life - Peter Evans

Photo credit: Trevor Ruszkowski/Indy Eleven
Photo credit 2: SocTakes article
With somebody as ubiquitous to the history of the Indy Eleven as Peter Evans, it feels a little weird providing any kind of introduction of him that hasn't already been said before. Peter is one of the founders of Slaughterhouse-19 and the former head of game day operations for the Brickyard Battalion.

As he conveyed to the American Pyramid in June 2017, "I spoke to the BYB board and basically offered to head up our tifo, capo, and other game day-related things. No one else really wanted to take on the role, so I was given it by default." As a reward for his long-standing dedication to the team and his constant presence in the capo stand, Peter was the club's inaugural recipient of the XI Century Award, presented to Indy Eleven fans who have attended 100 games (Peter currently stands at 103 home games and 125 total games). 

For someone so involved in all of our experiences with Indy Eleven games, it surprises me that it took me so long to get his input in The Soccer Life:

1. Name:
- Peter Evans

2. Role (Player, Parent, Coach, Referee, General Spectator, All of the Above, None of the Above, Other):
- BYB President Emeritus

3. Soccer-specific Nickname (and any story behind it):
- None.

4. Age became interested in soccer:
- 5

5. First recollection of the game:
- 1994 World Cup

6. Highest level of play achieved:
- Rec Soccer

7. Honors/Awards
- BYB Supporter of the Year

8. Last competitive match – Date (if known) & Level of Play
- About a year ago.

9. Position:
- Keeper

10. Jersey number:
- 39, 0

11. Coaching experience:
- None

12. Refereeing experience:
- None

13. Most memorable moment(s):
- 4-1
Editor's note: For the uninformed, that's the score of the Indy Eleven vs Carolina Railhawks game on June 11, 2016 to secure the NASL Spring Championship.

14. Least memorable moment(s):
- I do not recall it.

15. Favorite World Cup moment(s):
- Lighting off smoke in Union Jack during the 2014 World Cup

16. Favorite team(s)
- Indy Eleven

17. Favorite Historical player:
- Cobi Jones

18. Favorite Current Player
- Kyle Beckerman

19. Indoor vs Outdoor:
- Indoor

20. Grass vs Turf:
- Grass

21. Other sports played (and to what level):
- Hockey (house and rec), golf (competitive until high school, now mainly just focus on my handicap), basketball (rec)

22. Other Comments:
-

Wednesday, July 8, 2020

The Soccer Life - Michael Carney

You may know Mike from his back-and-forth Twitter exchanges with Jon Busch about hockey. Or his discussions about Varmint Trace Farms and his chickens. Or his experiences as a head soccer coach for Bishop Chatard High School.

Or you might know him as one of the contributors of the grassroots media site Lady Victory & Her Quest for Glory. In his words, "His motivation for the blog was simple; for every Indy Eleven home game during their inaugural season, Carney created his own scouting reports and took notes during the games. He now shares these scouting reports prior to each game in Lady Victory and Her Quest for Glory." Mike used to write and contribute to Total NASL, as well.

And now he's a contributor to this site as he provided his responses to my questions about The Soccer Life:

1. Name:
- Michael Carney

2. Role (Player, Parent, Coach, Referee, General Spectator, All of the Above, None of the Above, Other):
- Coach, player, fan

3. Soccer-specific Nickname (and any story behind it):
-

4. Age became interested in soccer:
- 14

5. First recollection of the game:
-

6. Highest level of play achieved:
- High school

7. Honors/Awards
-

8. Last competitive match – Date (if known) & Level of Play
-

9. Position:
- Outside mid

10. Jersey number:
- 11

11. Coaching experience:
- High school head coach for 3 years.
Editor's note: Mike is the head coach of the Bishop Chatard High School boys team for the past three years and spent time before that as a coach at Cardinal Ritter HS, Martinsville HS, and Guerin Catholic High School.

12. Refereeing experience:
-

13. Most memorable moment(s):
-

14. Least memorable moment(s):
-

15. Favorite World Cup moment(s):
-

16. Favorite team(s)
- HI HO SHEFFIELD WEDNESDAY

17. Favorite Historical player:
- RYAN GIGGS

18. Favorite Current Player
-

19. Indoor vs Outdoor:
- Outdoor

20. Grass vs Turf:
- Grass

21. Other sports played (and to what level):
- Baseball (high school) and track (high school)

22. Other Comments:
- USSF National D License