Apr 26, 2008
Leones Coverage in the (Houston) Chronicle
Finally, some signs of life from our soon-to-be PDL arch-rivals, the Houston Leones, in the form of two articles from the Houston Chronicle.
The first is a fairly brief blurb covering the basic facts of the new team and the league itself, though it does have a little info on some of the players: Leones ready to roam pitch in Houston
The second is a more in-depth piece on the owner, Juan Carlos Hernández: There's nothing amateur about Hernandez's venture. At least there were never any anguished decisions about where they would play, as Hernandez owns Soccer World Center, a 17-acre private soccer park in Richmond (southwest of Houston).
Sounds like a nice outfit. I can't wait for the Aztex to start beating them!
The first is a fairly brief blurb covering the basic facts of the new team and the league itself, though it does have a little info on some of the players: Leones ready to roam pitch in Houston
Adhering to league rules, the team is made up of mostly college-age players, many of whom attend local schools, including the University of St. Thomas, Houston, Houston Baptist and San Jacinto College. . .
The team also boasts developmental players from Mexican teams UANL Tigres (two) and Cruz Azul (four), the latter with whom the Leones have a partnership.
The Leones will be coached by Carlos Ayala, who previously coached Cruz Azul's team in First Division A, Mexico's equivalent of a second division.
The second is a more in-depth piece on the owner, Juan Carlos Hernández: There's nothing amateur about Hernandez's venture. At least there were never any anguished decisions about where they would play, as Hernandez owns Soccer World Center, a 17-acre private soccer park in Richmond (southwest of Houston).
Proof [of Hernandez' seriousness], in the way of a brand-new 4,500-capacity stadium, is as hard as the white-coated concrete it is made of. A simple yet efficient facility consisting of two long bleacher structures along the sidelines that rise some 25-30 feet, a small but cozy press box (complete with A/C), and a no-frills scoreboard, sound system and lighting. The field is getting greener and should be in good shape come May 3, when the Leones host the New Orleans Shell Shockers.
The Leones will be one of only five PDL teams, out of the more than 60 this season, to own their stadium.
Sounds like a nice outfit. I can't wait for the Aztex to start beating them!
Apr 22, 2008
Stoke Slide to 2nd
Despite a 2-1 victory over Bristol City, Stoke City drop to 2nd place this week. West Bromwich Albion, 0-1 over Wolverhampton on Tuesday and 1-2 over Norwich on Saturday, take over the top spot, 6 points richer than last week. The only other movement at the top of the Championship table was another swap: Hull City continue their climb despite a 2-0 loss to Sheffield United on Saturday, due to their 1-3 victory over Barnsley on Tuesday.
| P | Team | Pts | Move |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Bromwich Albion | 77 |  |
| 2 | Stoke City | 75 |  |
| 3 | Hull City | 72 | |
| 4 | Bristol City | 71 | |
| 5 | Watford | 69 | — |
| 6 | Crystal Palace | 68 | — |
| 7 | Ipswich Town | 65 | — |
(Full table)
That leaves 2 more games for the Potters to keep fighting for every inch (deja vu, I know - I mistakenly thought there were two games left as of last week, but it was three). Hopefully a win against dead-last Colchester this Saturday doesn't require too much fighting.
Labels: Stoke City
Apr 14, 2008
Stoke Back On Top
After putting Coventry City away 2-1, Stoke City are back in the top spot! But there are still only 3 points separating them from the next four teams.
West Brom & Watford drew 1-1, which is as close to them both losing (as I requested last week) as could be managed. In fact, it was practically a festival of ties: fellow promotion challengers Bristol City (0-0 vs. Wolverhampton) and Hull City (1-1 vs. QPR) joined the party as well. Thanks, guys, and keep up the good work. The result was little movement at the top of the table, save for Stoke jumping up to #1.
(Full table)
According to the Telegraph, Stoke manager Tony Pulis used Al Pacino's fire & brimstone locker-room speech from Any Given Sunday to rally the troops before the game:
(Note: includes language not suitable for work ;-)
I hope the Potters can keep on fighting for every inch over their next 2 games, starting Saturday when #3 Bristol City come to Britannia Stadium.
West Brom & Watford drew 1-1, which is as close to them both losing (as I requested last week) as could be managed. In fact, it was practically a festival of ties: fellow promotion challengers Bristol City (0-0 vs. Wolverhampton) and Hull City (1-1 vs. QPR) joined the party as well. Thanks, guys, and keep up the good work. The result was little movement at the top of the table, save for Stoke jumping up to #1.
| P | Team | Pts | Move |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stoke City | 72 | |
| 2 | West Bromwich Albion | 71 | |
| 3 | Bristol City | 71 | |
| 4 | Hull City | 69 | — |
| 5 | Watford | 69 | — |
| 6 | Crystal Palace | 65 | — |
| 7 | Ipswich Town | 64 | — |
(Full table)
According to the Telegraph, Stoke manager Tony Pulis used Al Pacino's fire & brimstone locker-room speech from Any Given Sunday to rally the troops before the game:
"We came into the dressing room and there was a big screen set up with speakers and everything," said Liam Lawrence, scorer of Stoke's winner. "We were like, 'What's going on?' They showed us Al Pacino's team talk from Any Given Sunday [the American Football film] and that really got us going.
"Any added motivation is good at this stage. It's 40-odd games in and you've still got to play every game as though it's your first. It's just about winning now."
(Note: includes language not suitable for work ;-)
I hope the Potters can keep on fighting for every inch over their next 2 games, starting Saturday when #3 Bristol City come to Britannia Stadium.
Labels: Stoke City
Apr 9, 2008
Stoke City Drop to 3rd
It hasn't been a good week for Stoke City's promotion prospects, as they lost to Crystal Palace Monday night, 1-0.
Meanwhile, Bristol City lost 0-2 to Southampton last weekend, which was nice of them. West Brom was less accommodating with their 3-1 defeat of Blackpool, which was enough to put them in the #1 spot, if barely. Watford won once (2-1 over Coventry City on Saturday) and lost once (0-3 to Barnsley on Wednesday), holding their #5 spot. Hull City's recent steady climb was on hold this week, if only because they didn't play.
So Stoke drops to 3rd, but not by much. Notice that the top 5 teams are separated by a mere two points!
The Potters' weekend match is away against 19th-place Coventry City. Hopefully West Brom, Bristol City, Hull and Watford will all lose (which would be a neat trick, actually, since West Brom and Watford play each other!).
Meanwhile, Bristol City lost 0-2 to Southampton last weekend, which was nice of them. West Brom was less accommodating with their 3-1 defeat of Blackpool, which was enough to put them in the #1 spot, if barely. Watford won once (2-1 over Coventry City on Saturday) and lost once (0-3 to Barnsley on Wednesday), holding their #5 spot. Hull City's recent steady climb was on hold this week, if only because they didn't play.
So Stoke drops to 3rd, but not by much. Notice that the top 5 teams are separated by a mere two points!
| P | Team | Pts | Move |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Bromwich Albion | 70 | |
| 2 | Bristol City | 70 | |
| 3 | Stoke City | 69 | |
| 4 | Hull City | 68 | — |
| 5 | Watford | 68 | — |
| 6 | Crystal Palace | 62 | |
| 7 | Ipswich Town | 61 | — |
The Potters' weekend match is away against 19th-place Coventry City. Hopefully West Brom, Bristol City, Hull and Watford will all lose (which would be a neat trick, actually, since West Brom and Watford play each other!).
Labels: Stoke City
Apr 6, 2008
Quick Hits
It's been kind of slow for the Aztex lately, news-wise. To tide you over until we hear something about the U23 roster, here are a few miscellaneous tidbits (apologies to readers who keep up on BigSoccer's Aztex forum, as neither of these will be news to you).
First, Playing Through, a nice write-up in the Austin Chronicle about local soccer hopefuls Marcelino Uriarte & Wes Allen:
Second, here's a BBC Radio interview with Aztex owner Phil Rawlins. You can listen to the full, hour-long show in original RealAudio format, or just the 7 minutes of Phil's interview in MP3 format (which occurs about 42 minutes in to the full show). Apparently Phil, along with Head Coach Adrian Heath and USL President Francisco Marcos, was preparing for a Stoke City fan meeting of some kind, to discuss all things Aztex.
Phil (& Adrian, presumably) will also be at Brittania Stadium tomorrow night to watch Stoke beat Crystal Palace, the lucky dogs. I'll post an update to the Championship League table after the game, but I'd like to thank Bristol City for their 0-2 loss to Southampton yesterday. Keep up the good work, lads!
First, Playing Through, a nice write-up in the Austin Chronicle about local soccer hopefuls Marcelino Uriarte & Wes Allen:
It's a tale of two center midfielders.
Both are smart and versatile. Either would be a cornerstone of the Austin Aztex's Premier Development League team, a squad starting up from scratch a few weeks before the 2008 season opener on May 3 (home opener May 10 vs. Houston Leones, 7:30pm, at Dragon Stadium in Round Rock).
Second, here's a BBC Radio interview with Aztex owner Phil Rawlins. You can listen to the full, hour-long show in original RealAudio format, or just the 7 minutes of Phil's interview in MP3 format (which occurs about 42 minutes in to the full show). Apparently Phil, along with Head Coach Adrian Heath and USL President Francisco Marcos, was preparing for a Stoke City fan meeting of some kind, to discuss all things Aztex.
Phil (& Adrian, presumably) will also be at Brittania Stadium tomorrow night to watch Stoke beat Crystal Palace, the lucky dogs. I'll post an update to the Championship League table after the game, but I'd like to thank Bristol City for their 0-2 loss to Southampton yesterday. Keep up the good work, lads!
Labels: coaches, media, players, Stoke City, U-23
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