Sounders Fan Insider: ECS and Portland face off at Starfire Sports Complex for supporters tourney

By Greg Roth

It is not secret that Seattle and Portland have one of the most heated rivalries in the U.S. sporting landscape. One can cut the vitriol with a knife. Next year the Portland Timbers, along with the Vancouver Whitecaps, join the Sounders in MLS to rekindle the great NASL and USL rivalries of the past.

This Sunday March 28th at 3pm, down at Starfire, the mighty Emerald City Supporters Football Club will take on Portland Army’s, FC Portlandia. Parking is free as well as admittance for this armature tournament.  The quality of play on the pitch may not be top flight but the passion and heart will be.

If you are not doing anything and are in the area come out and support Seattle Sounders premier supporters Group and enjoy the company of other footy fans on a spring afternoon.

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March 27, 2010  Tags: , , , ,   Posted in: Sounders FC 360 News Coverage  Comments Closed

SFI Premier Online Network: Post match coverage: Sounders v. Union 3/25/10

By Greg Roth

Once again, Sounders FC opened their season at home to a sold out crowd at the X-Box Pitch at Qwest Field and once again fans went home happy as Sounders FC defeated a shorthanded Philadelphia Union 2-0. It was the first home Sounders FC match in which in rained continuously almost non stop. This hampered the game a bit, in that players were having greater difficulty controlling the ball on the touch and passes were skipping and speeding up because of the combination of water and field turf. As always, the Sounder home crowd was loud and boisterous but the crowd seemed to be more quiet in the second half. This is was probably attributed to the fact that the Sounders were up a man and chose to play a more tactical,  possession game and the fact that a lot of folks were soaked and a bit chilly.

All in all it was a great night in the Emerald City as the Sounders and fans had the honor of kicking off the 2010 MLS season in front of a national TV audience. Here is some of the best coverage from some of the best and most respected soccer writers in the region.

By Steve Clare

Sounders FC made a victorious start to their 2010 campaign with a convincing win over the visiting Philadelphia Union. A regular season record of 36,241 saw Sounders made a positive start to their 2010 MLS campaign with a convincing 2-0 over the Philadelphia club, playing their first competitive game in their history. To read the rest of the story go here

By David Falk

Seattle Sounders FC struck for two first-half goals and cruised to a 2:0 win over the expansion Philadelphia Union before over 36,000 fans at Qwest Field in their home opener Thursday night. Wind swirled and rain drizzled, keeping the noise level lower in the stands. We were all just trying to stay dry and warm. Meanwhile, the Sounders were trying to keep the vistors at bay and control the wet ball on the Field Turf. To read more go here

By Dave Clark
As mentioned by Sounder at Heart in the previous post, Union coach Peter Nowak was unimpressed by the supposedly floppy nature of some of the Sounders top players. After reading his quotes, though, I felt it was worth addressing the issue to read more, go here

By Yamsmos
So by my count. this is a 9 beer report. and even as i write that, I feel somewhat sober, which is pretty sad for me in many ways if you think about it. all in all a good win on a sloppy night. nobody is going to write home about an amazing match of footy that they just watch, b/c that is not what we saw tonight. we saw a sloppy game that can be blamed much, but not all, on the weather. to read more go here


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March 26, 2010   Posted in: Sounders FC 360 News Coverage  Comments Closed

Sounders Fan Insider: Match day and “MLS First Kick” It’s about all of us… again

By Greg Roth
Like last year when Sounders FC launched their inaugural season, there has been massive amounts of news with interviews and announcements that just keep coming. This year brings a few changes. Namely the fact that we are no longer an expansion club. Players, fans and the organization have gone through and entire season together and experienced the highs and lows of launching a new product into the Seattle sports landscape.  Like last year, we took photos of fan favorite Sebastien LeToux, except this year he is wearing a Philadelphia Union kit instead of the Sounders rave green.

Yesterday, SFI again has had  the pleasure of working with one of the best journalists in the area, Steve Clare from Prost Amerika / MLS Examiner.com. This guy loves what he does, he loves his football and most of all, the fans that he does it for.

We got some great interview footage of Union gaffer Peter Nowak and our beloved Sebastien Le Toux. To see the video go here. You also may be interested in this piece as well: “Le Toux Happy to Be Back in Seattle”

Last year at this time SFI was happy to have almost 1000 followers on Twitter. This year we have over 4000. Last year at this time Sounders FC had no matches under their belt. This year we have a whole season and a U.S. Open Cup in the trophy case to show for our efforts. Last year we were the new kids on the block and the league was at 15 teams. This year Philadelphia joins the union of teams that comprise Major League Soccer. Next year, or neighbors from the north and south will come into the fold, as Vancouver and Portland join us to rekindle the great rivalries from the old North American Soccer League and not so old USL days. in 2001 MLS will be at a healthy 18 clubs with a strong possibility of Montreal joining the following year, looming on the horizon. The a healthy number of teams in major markets throughout North America and a five year collective bargaining agreement in place. The future is looking bright for Major League Soccer.

Speaking of Philadelphia, last night we had the opportunity to finally meet some of the boys from the Philadelphia Union premier supporters group, “Sons of Ben”,  who’s club, The Sounders will face later tonight. Like us last year for us, they are experiencing their brand new club for the first time and excited with anticipation of MLS First Kick. Even though we support opposing teams the common thread is that we share a philosophy that if the  respective ownership groups connect with their fans and build a relationship with them, the fans will get behind them and form a solid partnership. Seattle and Philadelphia are evidence of that. The owners of our respective clubs have kept their promise to the fans by listening to them and partnering with them. The fans have done their small part by evangelizing their clubs, league and game to the mainstream audience and the unenlightened.

SFI and other passionate writers and bloggers like Dave Falk from GoalSeattle.com, Dave Clark from Sounder at Heart and many others, who’s links you see here, love our club and love this game. it is that passion that drives us to do what we do. With that said, we are just a few of many working in tandem with others. It is you the fans that we do it for. It is you the fans that has  helped make Seattle the capital of US soccer right now and soon Philly will get to experience the love and joy that we did and will for years to come. You wore scarves with pride. You attended the events, you attended the matches home and away. You posted messages on the message boards, and you wrote the e-mails to the owners. You told your friends about this great thing we have in our cities. You made flags and displays. You bought scarves-shirts, tickets, coffee cups and other swag, rave green. kits and most importantly you bought tickets in large numbers.

Today is when everything that we have hoped and dreamed continues and for Philly, comes true. Today, the celebration is all for you. For the folks in Philadelphia at home and attending in person, Drink in and take in every moment because today will be a day that you will remember the rest of your lives. Today we celebrate soccer, our Sounder. Philadelphia celebrates their Union and together we celebrate our league. It is all about you and the passion and love you have for your respective clubs and the beautiful game. Today, SFI is putting our cameras down and shutting our computers off because today is about being a fan and celebrating what we have all created together. The worlds game is here and alive and well in the Emerald City.

Until next time…scarves up and give us your full 90!

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March 25, 2010  Tags: , , ,   Posted in: Seattle Sounders FC, Sounders FC 360 News Coverage, Sounders FC Supporters Groups  Comments Closed

Sounders Fan Insider: Goalkeeper Chris Eylander waived by club

Eylander makes save during last years pre-match warm ups prior to U.S. Open Cup match Photo by: Greg Roth / SFI

By Greg Roth

Renton WA, Sounders FC announced today that back up goalkeeper was waived by the club. Eylander, 26, made his first and only appearance in MLS on April 18, 2009, starting in a 2-0 loss to Chivas USA.  He also played a key role in the Sounders 4-1 U.S. Open Cup play-in victory over Real Salt Lake. (SOUNDERS FC: Former USL Sounders shine in 4-1 USOC victory)

Eylander signed with Seattle on January 6, 2009. He was hampered with several injuries last year that kept him on the disabled list for most of last year paving the way for Terry Boss, who was signed last year, to become the Sounders number two goalkeeper behind former U.S. National team and current Sounders goalkeeper, Kasey Keller.

Boss earned the back up slot this year by beating out Eylander with a strong preseason performance in training and exhibition matches. This will be a sad day for Sounders FC fans as Eylander is hugely popular with USL Sounders fans. He helped lead the team to the USL Championship in 2007 with his stellar play and will be truly missed by the Sounders faithful. Because of his injuries last year, Eylander was not able to have the opportunity to solidly establish himself as Sounders backup keeper in the club’s inaugural season.

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March 22, 2010   Posted in: Sounders FC 360 News Coverage  Comments Closed

Sounders Fan Insider: Let the games begin!

By Greg Roth

It has been a long and cold winter (albeit, not as cold as last year) but now winter is over and Spring has arrived.  With the dawning of spring comes the dawning of a new collective bargaining agreement thus clearing the way for the start of a brand new MLS season that will include  a new club from the city of brotherly love.

The league’s season opener, called the First Kick, is Thursday, when Sounders FC hosts expansion Philadelphia Union at 6:30 p.m. at The X-Box Pitch at Qwest Field. Not all of the details of the new CBA were made immediately available Saturday, but MLS Players Union executive director Bob Foose said that there will be more guaranteed contracts, a higher salary-cap and greater rights for out-of-contract players.”The union is happy with this agreement as it addresses the core issue of players’ rights and we look forward to working cooperatively with the league going forward,” said Foose. You can read the official press release from the club’s website here.

We have to admit, it has been a bit difficult to get excited about the upcoming season with the the threat of a strike looming over our heads. Now that the threat has been removed, so has our writers block. SFI has not posted anything here since November. The last post was a tribute to our beloved Sebastien LeToux, who will return back to The X-Box Pitch wearing the colors of the opposition. With that said, Seba is certain to receive a warm ovation and proper greeting from the fans that in Seattle that love him. Even though he is now a Union member, he will always be a Sounder to us.

Life changes, a day gig and other interests have gotten in the way of contributing to the SFI website on a regular basis for the last few months. Besides, there has been no shortage of great Sounders news and information all around the web.  SFI is back and looking forward to another exciting year of professional soccer in Seattle and the U.S. We will continue to offer some of my own coverage as a fan while at the same time shining the spot light on some of the great writers and blogs right here in our backyard. Read what Prost Amerika,  Sounder At Heart and the Seattle Soccer Examiner are saying about the upcoming season and the latest happenings in Sounders Nation.

Spring is in the air indeed and so is the beautiful game. With the issues between the owners and players settled, all is well in the Emerald City for the Sounders faithful… Scarves Up!

Video courtesy of SoundersFC.com


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March 20, 2010  Tags: , , , , , ,   Posted in: Sounders FC 360 News Coverage  Comments Closed

Sounders Fan Insider: Video and Photo Tribute to Sebastien Le Toux

By Greg Roth

On Wednesday, November 25th, The MLS Expansion Philadelphia Union chose Sebastien Le Toux from the Seattle Sounders. Seba, played with the USL Sounders and was the MLS Sounders first player signing. Over the years that he played in Seattle Le Toux won the hearts and admiration of fans by his tireless work ethic on the pitch and his passion for the the fans and community off the pitch. This video is a tribute and example of what he meant to Seattle Sounders fans and the community.

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November 28, 2009  Tags: ,   Posted in: Sounders FC 360 News Coverage  Comments Closed

Sounders Fan Insider: Heartbreak…Sebastien Le Toux no longer a Sounder (video)

DSC01377_edited-1 By Greg Roth

It was a dream season culminating with a world cup type atmosphere right here in Seattle this past Sunday as Real Salt Lake took on the LA Galaxy for MLS Cup 2009. The love affair that started back in 1974 when the Sounders made their debut at Memorial Stadium continued to new heights in 2009. However, there is no joy in the Emerald City tonight for we found out earlier today that our first MLS Sounder and beloved Sebastien Le Toux, will no longer be wearing the Rave Green.

Perhaps Seattle’s most beloved player, Le Toux is heading east to help launch another MLS franchise, the Philadelphia Union. Sebastien Le  Toux is one of the most classiest and gracious professional athletes that I have had the opportunity to get to know. I had the opportunity to interview him several times and chat with him at the several charity events that he attended. If there was ever a Sounders FC charity event for a worthy cause you could count on Le Toux to be in attendance talking with fans and signing autographs.

At one event this past year at the Baltic Room, Seba as he is affectionately known by fans, fellow players and coaches, even got out on the dance floor to cut a rug with the fans. On and off the pitch he carried himself with grace and class and had the reputation for one of the hardest working men on the team and in the league.

I remember covering a Sounders match this past summer and walking on the pitch back up to the press box long after the match was over. After several players had dressed and were heading out of the stadium, Seba would still be on the pitch in full gear signing autographs for fans. He would not leave until every single autograph was signed, much to the chagrin of the Sounders and Qwest staff, who were all anxious to get home to their families. Seba just couldn’t help himself. He loves the fans of Seattle and the feeling is more than mutual.

In 2010, The Union will take the field in Seattle for their debut against our Sounders. Seba will be wearing the blue and gold of the MLS newest franchise. Of course we will root against the Union but we will be cheering for our Seba because in our hearts he is and always will be a Sounder.

Here is an interview that SFI TV did with Seba before he and our Sounders traveled down south to take on the Portland Timbers in the US Open Cup tourney…

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November 25, 2009  Tags: , ,   Posted in: Sounders FC 360 News Coverage  Comments Closed