Combo Post

A few things are going on in the Women's Soccer World. Why not combine them all in one post?


Hey everyone, just wanted to get some stuff out in writing. There's a few things I'd like to mention.


WPS Expansion- As most of you probably already know, the WPS is expanding to 8 teams for the 2011 season. The addition of the Buffalo Flash will make the team count an even 8. The New York based team just won the W-League title, and is becoming a WPS franchise for 2011. This is some pretty awesome news. It was a shame to lose the LA Sol in last year's off-season, so its excellent news to be having a progressive way to go into the off-season. It was also a shame to lose St.Louis Athletica right in the middle of the season. Hopefully we never have to experience losing a team again. Let's make the only way to move in this league be forward, not backwards. Here's to the Buffalo Flash, and plenty other expansion teams to come!


Oceania Qualifiers- The OFC qualifying has been underway, and some more games in the group stage have been played. In Group A action, New Zealand thrashed the Cook Islands 10-0, and Tahiti beat Vanuatu 5-1. In Group B, Papua New Guinea beat the Solomon Islands 2-1, and Tonga beat Fiji 2-1. New Zealand is atop Group A with 6 points, and Papua New Guinea is atop Group B with 6 points. There will be 2 more matches played tomorrow to finish up Group A. Group B's last matches will take place on the 4th. Then its onto the Semifinals. I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say New Zealand will make it to the Semifinals. They've been mercilessly destroying every team they come up against. I'm glad I'm not on one of those teams that suffered at the hands of the Kiwis. It has to be pretty embarrassing to lose 14 or 10 nothing.


UEFA (Europe) Women's 5th Spot Play-offs- 4 teams in Europe have already qualified for the Women's World Cup, but the losers of those play-off matches still have hopes to get in. The losers will have to play-off against other losers for the 5th spot in the UEFA region. The team who gets through the 2 rounds of play-offs to reach the 5th spot will get the chance to play against the 3rd place in the CONCACAF (North and Central America + Caribbean) for the final spot in the Women's World Cup. The first leg in the first play-off round was today. Italy beat Ukraine 3-0 in the first leg. The second leg is going to be on the 6th. Tomorrow, Denmark will face off against Switzerland in their first leg.


A lot of important matches coming up. Tomorrow, which is Sunday the 3rd, Oceania qualifying continues, and Denmark plays Switzerland in the first leg of their first round play-off matches. On Wednesday, the 6th, the USWNT will face off against China PR in their 2nd match of their doubleheader. It will be their last international game before they head to Mexico for the CONCACAF Women's Gold Cup, which will serve as their qualifying competition for the 2011 Women's World Cup. That will be taking place from October 28th to November 8th. Also on Wednesday is the 2nd leg of Italy and Ukraine's first round play-off campaign. On Thursday the 7th, Denmark and Switzerland will face off in the 2nd leg of their first round play-off match-up. By the 7th, we'll know what 2 UEFA teams will be facing off in the 2nd round of play-offs for the 5th regional spot.


That's all for now everyone! Be sure to stay updated! Or, you could always come here, which I of course think is a much better idea. You can have a little humor go with your cold hard facts here!

See you again very soon!

Denise

A Rekindled Rivalry

The USA-China PR Rivalry has existed since the early days of women's soccer. Today, the USWNT gained a victory over their long time rivals China PR with a 2-1 win.


Hey everyone! Today was the first match in a doubleheader for the USWNT and China PR. The final score was 2-1. The goals for the USA were scored by Rapinoe, on an 18 yard out shot, and O'Reilly, who scored off a ground cross from Wambach in front of goal. I can't really tell you much about the game, it was on match tracker. But, from the sound of it, it seemed like the USA was dominating the game. They came out swinging in the beginning of the first half, but the tempo seemed to slow as it got later in the match. The USA drew the first blood in the 22nd with Rapinoe's shot, but then conceded a few minutes later. But, before halftime, Wambach would send a ball to O'Reilly who hit it home at the far post. The score stood through the 2nd half, although the USA had a few good chances at goal. Wambach almost scored near the end of the game with a curling left footed shot about 23 yards out. But, it stayed 2-1, and the USA notched another W onto their record.

I'm hoping the USWNT really comes out and dominates on Wednesday. Let's hope they kept the big scoreline for the fans to witness! Thank God it'll be on TV; match tracker is not nearly as good as actually seeing them work their magic. Don't forget everyone, the USWNT's 2nd match of their doubleheader against China PR is on Wednesday, October 6th, and be sure to catch it on TV. ESPN 2 is airing the game, with coverage starting at 7pm ET. You won't want to miss this one!

I'll be sure to post before then though! See you again soon!

Denise

Reaching 1,000 Views

Hello everyone! Today is a very special day. Yep, that's right, my blog has reached a milestone of 1,000 views! It wouldn't have been possible if it weren't for all you readers! I'd like to say thanks a lot for reading, whether you stumbled upon this place randomly and checked it out, or if you're a fellow fan who checks in from time to time. Women's soccer is my passion, and I love writing about it. Thanks for sharing the love of the women's game with me, and thanks for making my writing worthwhile and rewarding. I hope you will continue to read and enjoy my posts. I have tons of fun writing them. Here's to the next 1,000!

By the way, if you read something, and have something to say, for example an argument, question, or really anything, please do not hesitate to comment! I love having a nice conversation with fellow fans.

Thanks again! Here's to the continued growth and love for the women's game.

See you again very soon,

Denise

Some Quick Scores

Hey everyone. Just here to notify you of a few scores.

Canada vs. China PR- Canada won 3-1. I ended up seeing the last 10 or so minutes on the computer, thanks to a friend who was nice enough to share the link with me. Goals for Canada came from Matheson, Tancredi, and Sinclair. Sinclair also had an assist on the night. I'm not sure of all the facts, but China's only goal came from a mistake by LeBlanc. Good job Canada!


Oceania Qualifiers- The first round of matches have been played. In group A, the most stand out fixture was New Zealand's complete destruction Vanuatu 14-0. Ouch. I would not want to be Vanuatu. Also, the Cook Islands won their match in group A. In group B, the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea also won their games. Tomorrow, more matches will be played.


Ok everyone, this was just a quick little update. Come back again soon for some more news!

Until then,

Denise

A Few Random Things

Below are some random topics currently up for discussion in the women's soccer world



Hello everyone! There's a couple of things going on in the women's soccer world right now, and there's also some things coming up soon, so I figured, why don't I just talk about them together in one post? Let's talk about some things that are up for discussion.

Canada vs. China PR- That match is today! In fact, it'll be on at 7:30pm. If you're a Canadian, there's a great chance that this game is going to be broadcast via Sports Net or something like that. I live in the United States, so I wouldn't know. I'm a blooming fan of the Canada WNT, and some of my favorite WPS players hail from Canada, so I'm rooting for them on this one! I'm going to try and see if I can get it on some website like justin.tv or maybe find a link on google that doesn't look shady (harder than it sounds). I'll probably post the results of this match later today, or sometime this weekend. Even though WPS is over, women's soccer around the world continues. Actually, with WPS done, it does shed new light on internationals and qualifications for the World Cup, so WPS did leave us fans off with something equally exciting!


WPS Rumors- Recently, there have been rumors circulating about Abily parting ways with FC Gold Pride, to go play with her home club in France; Olympic Lyonnais (Lyon). Supposedly, she stated a desire to go back to France because of upcoming practice with her home country for Women's World Cup. It has also been rumored that Bompastor is expressing desires to return to her home country of France, also due to practice for the World Cup competition. Also, rumors regarding Cristiane's future have surfaced, stating that she will be returning to her native Brazil. None of these have been confirmed, but even if these rumors are true, would the internationals come back to WPS? Some people are starting to worry that the Internationals are all going to leave in droves to their home country's league in order to be present when qualifiers/practice friendlies take place. If the internationals want to go, then fine. I can understand their desires to leave based on international practices. But, some people have been going overboard, saying that if the internationals leave, WPS is doomed. I personally don't believe this. There is a ton of domestic talent still here in WPS, and people seem to forget that. If anything, the World Cup should really help the growth and popularity of the women's game. Believe it or not, we're hitting the same spot the WUSA did. It had about 2 years under its belt, and when the 2003 World Cup came, the league was terminated. I think this is a big step for the WPS. If it can get past this offseason, and if it can survive the 2011 season (even though many stars will be out of WPS for the World Cup during the months of June/July, the WWC can only help the women's game. It might help to spur interest in countries around the World) then I think it will be here to stay. We might have gone through some rough obstacles, for example losing 2 teams, but this is a fairly new league and we have to give it time. I'm confident that the WPS will stick around. This will probably be the hardest time for WPS. If it can survive another season, I say its here to stay.


USWNT vs. China PR- Our very own USWNT will be playing China PR this Saturday. The US Women have been working hard at training camp as usual, and will be facing off against the Chinese on 2 dates: October 2nd and 6th. These will be the last matches they'll play before the CONCACAF Gold Cup starting October 28th. Now, this is the part where I tell you what channel its on...but wait...oh that's right, its not being televised! Well, at least not the first match. I'm sure I'm speaking for every other USWNT fan when I say: "What the hell?!" Why aren't BOTH matches being televised? Now, I'd hate to sound like a whiny complainer, who's spoiled from seeing all my team's matches on TV, but let me ask you this: Do the Sports networks miss any of the men's friendlies? I wouldn't know, but my guess would be No. Come on people, I thought the days of not having domestic matches televised were over! I know we've come a long way with our matches being televised 90% of the time (only domestic. If its overseas...you're outta luck. That's something we've gotta work on.), but seriously! Its a domestic match in KSU stadium for crying out loud (Atlanta Beat's home, ring a bell?). Look, the televising of women's soccer has gotten progressively better in the U.S. For example, the U-20 women's World Cup was televised almost completely, and all of the USA's games were televised. Hats off to the channel that put it on TV, U-20 is lesser known to begin with, let alone the women's side. Still, we have to work on the televising a little more. I'm still waiting for the day when we can watch a match that's happening overseas (friendlies and Algarve Cup, for example. Important competitions are always aired, like World Cup, but what about friendlies? They can get it done for the men, so why not the women?). Well, that turned into a little bit of a rant there. Anyway, I'm going to be on my computer come Saturday, searching feverishly for any online TV links. I doubt it'll work, so I know its safe to say that come 6pm ET, I'll be sitting here watching our very own USWNT take on China PR on match tracker (if they'll even give us fans that much! Haha, I kid...kind of). I'll always be supporting our USWNT, whether its at a live game, watching on TV, or cheering them on from a match tracker computer screen. But, I'll be watching them on TV come the 6th, when they play China PR again. Catch that one on ESPN 2, at 7pm ET.

Oceania Qualifications-The regional qualifiers for the Oceania region started yesterday. I haven't looked up any of the results yet, but for all you fans out there of any Oceania team, qualifiers started, so cheer your teams on! I might post a little later today, probably about the Canada game, and I might research some of the scores.


Well, hope you enjoyed this miscellaneous post I threw together here. Expect some more of those.

See you again soon,

Denise

On The Road To Germany: Four More Teams Qualify For The Women's World Cup

England, France, Norway, and Sweden are on the Road to Germany for the Women's World Cup in 2011



Hey everyone! I know I'm a little late on this information, but since these teams qualified right around the time when WPS Play-offs were starting, this little piece of news took a back seat. But, here's the information for you now, just in case you didn't know.


Four more teams will be joining hosts Germany, along with Australia, Korea DPR, and Japan, in the World Cup Finals. The UEFA (European) qualifiers, which started in August of 2009, ended in mid-September. England, France, Norway, and Sweden will be heading to Germany in 2011 for the Women's World Cup. The four teams that lost (Ukraine, Italy, Switzerland, and Denmark), still have hopes to get into the World Cup, and will be playing against each other in a round of play-offs. There are actually 2 rounds of play-offs. The winner of the Ukraine vs. Italy match will face-off against the winner of the Switzerland vs. Denmark match. Whoever wins that will have to face off against the 3rd place team in the CONCACAF Gold Cup. Whoever wins that match will get a spot in the Women's World Cup.


That's now 2 regional qualifications that have been finished. But, there's still plenty more! The end of 2010 is going to be quite a busy one in the way of Women's World Cup Qualifiers, particularly the months of October and November. The African Championship is going to be held from October 29th to November 14th. The North, Central American and Caribbean (CONCACAF) Gold Cup will take place from October 28th to November 8th. The South American (CONMEBOL) qualifying will be held from October 28th to November 14th. And, last but not least, the Oceania (OFC) qualifying will be held from the 29th of September to the 8th of October. As you can see, a lot of qualifiers are taking place at the same time. Mark your calendars ladies and gentlemen, its going to be very busy! I'll be sure to check scores and results frequently, and of course I'll be writing posts as the countries qualify little by little. Seems like next up for all of us is the OFC. I'll be sure to keep track on that and let you all know who qualifies.

See you again soon!

Denise

The Champions Are Crowned: FC Gold Pride Capture The Championship Trophy

FC Gold Pride were crowned WPS 2010 Champions today as they defeated the Philadelphia Independence 4-0.


Hey everyone! Today was the Championship game, and it was an excellent match. Not so much for the Philadelphia Independence, but for the Pride, it was probably one of the best performances I've seen them put on all year. As for Philly, they gave it a valiant effort, but FC Gold Pride was just too strong for them.


The game was excellent. It was played in front of a sell-out crowd, and the cheering and constant music made by the fans created an excellent atmosphere. It was a great way to end the 2010 WPS Season I think. This game gave the 2010 season the awesome close it deserved. It was pretty intense, and there were plenty of attacking chances. Mostly though, the attacking was done by FC Gold Pride. Philly spent most of the game defending. In this game, there honestly was no question of who was Champion and who wasn't. FC Gold Pride played 10 times better than Philly. I'm sure the fact that Philly played 2 consecutive 120's, combined with the traveling, didn't help, and I know Philly wasn't playing their best at all, but regardless, FC Gold Pride was going to win, and there was no question about that. The first goal came after a huge scramble in Philly's box. Marta took 2 shots which were blocked consecutively by Henderson. The ball went loose, it was shot at goal, but a defender cleared it away, and somewhere in the mix it got shot/passed to Sinclair who was open in front of the goal line to put it away. The next goal would come later when Wilson would run down a ball on the right flank. She would beat a tired Falk and would shoot a high ball from the right side of the 18 into the net past a confused Val Henderson. Halftime came, and the teams headed to the locker rooms. When they came back out, the game resumed, and the second half was practically identical to the first. Philly could barely keep control of possession, and FC Gold Pride passed the ball around the field, using quick one touch passes to split the midfield and defense, and also using long balls and long passes to beat the defenders. The 3rd goal would come from Sinclair. Marta would pass a ball from the right side of the 18, straight to Sinclair who slotted the ball into the open net. It was 3-0 for the majority of the 2nd half, and the fourth goal would come in stoppage time, as Marta notched hers from the right side of the 18 off a ground cross from Riley who was on the left side. On the sideline, the FC Gold Pride players dumped the water from a Gatorade cooler on Albertin Montoya, and got ready to jump over the ad boards to their on field teammates. The whistle blew, and the FC Gold Pride players on the sidelines ran in celebration to their teammates on the field. Everyone began screaming, hugging, and jumping around in the ecstasy and glory of victory. As for Philly, the players skulked around in exhaustion and defeat. Many consoled each other after sustaining this rather embarrassing loss, especially in the Championship Game. As the FC Gold Pride players lined up and climbed onto the podium, the Philly players gathered around and put their arms around each other, united in defeat. The FC Gold Pride players danced around, and celebrated atop the podium as Tonya Antonucci thanked the fans and players for a great season. The Trophy, which was held by Sky Blue FC only a year ago, was then presented to FC Gold Pride's captain, Rachel Buehler, and she lifted it over her head. The trophy was passed around and each player got a chance to hold it. Afterward, the players went to take a victory lap around Pioneer Stadium, which was packed. It was an excellent way to end such a fantastic WPS season.


My take on this game? I kind of always had a feeling that FC Gold Pride would take the Championship, no matter who faced off against them. FC Gold Pride was simply on form this season. To think that a team who was last in 2009 with only 13 points, would end up blowing everyone out of the water in 2010, winning the Regular Season and the Championship. Even from the beginning of the season, FC Gold Pride looked like they were going to go very far. I felt the same for Philly. So, I guess my feelings were correct. I would just like to say, hats off to FC Gold Pride. They played outstanding all season and proved that they truly are the WPS Champions. And Philly? Hats off to you too. The Independence came in this season as a new team and gave everyone a run for their money. Hell, they made it to the Championship game! I am confident that Philly will once again be contenders in 2011. Putting all my bitter feelings aside regarding the first round, I loved Philly all season, and I felt bad for them today. They played their hearts out to get to the Championship, and in the end, the fatigue just set in, and that factor, combined with FC Gold Pride's beastliness (for lack of a better word), just made this match far worse for them. Even though they lost, they put in a great effort. I have nothing but respect for Philly. Once again, congrats to both teams in this match. You guys ended the year with style.


Well everyone, the WPS 2010 season is over! In my opinion, the 2010 season was a huge improvement over 2009 (and that's saying a lot, since 2009 was awesome)! This season was just amazing. I want to give a huge thanks to all of the teams, players, and all of my fellow fans for making this year an awesome experience. I loved every single minute of this season, whether it was going to a game, watching on TV, watching a webcast, matchtracking, having a good conversation with fellow fans, or managing my fantasy team. Thanks a lot, you guys made this season absolutely fantastic. I'd also like to say, thank you to all of my readers. Whether you're a follower, or a casual reader, or someone who stumbled upon my blog and decided to check it out, thank you so much. I have a lot of fun writing about women's soccer, and this WPS season was so much fun to experience and to write about. Thank you guys for joining me in enjoying the 2010 season! Now, I hope you guys don't think this is a good-bye, because it certainly is not. I know for a fact that I'll still be visiting womensprosoccer.com frequently throughout the off-season, and I will be blogging about any updates or off-season events. Also, as the WPS comes to a close, that opens the door to new excitement: Women's World Cup Qualifiers! Also, don't forget about USWNT friendlies and other international women's soccer action! The WPS might be over until 2011, but I will still be blogging about everything from the USWNT to Women's World Cup Qualifiers to WPS Off-Season events, so be sure to check back here often! Also, I'm planning to do a "WPS Season in Review" highlighting this season's big events, and also an overview of each team and their story throughout the year. Be sure to check in for that! Once again, thank you to all of the readers, and also, a HUGE thank you to the players, staff, teams, and fellow fans of WPS. Without all of you, this wonderful league would not be possible.

The 2010 season was a thrill ride full of memorable games, moments, goals, saves, and plays, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I hope you did too! Here's to the WPS 2011 Season!

See you again very soon!

Denise