SBI’s NASL Preview: A year later, new league is ready to launch
By JOHN BOSCHINI It's been almost 27 years since the North American Soccer League last saw a game, but that will change this Saturday when the storied league returns to action under the USSF umbrella with eight franchises. The NASL was scheduled to begin last April, but a bitter and protracted feud with the United...
SBI’s NASL Preview: A year later, new league is ready to launch
By JOHN BOSCHINI It's been almost 27 years since the North American Soccer League last saw a game, but that will change this Saturday when the storied league returns to action under the USSF umbrella with eight franchises. The NASL was scheduled to begin last April, but a bitter and protracted feud with the United...
Henry, Ballouchy score as Red Bulls defeat Strikers, 2-0
By FRANCO PANIZO Fort Lauderdale, Fla. - The New York Red Bulls concluded their week-long preseason camp in South Florida on Saturday afternoon, and they did so with a convincing win. The Red Bulls defeated the newly-renamed Ft. Lauderdale Strikers, 2-0, at Lockhart Stadium on Saturday afternoon through goals from Thierry Henry and Mehdi Ballouchy....
NASL teams ruled out of U.S. Open Cup; sanctioned league struggling financially
Photo by ISIphotos.com By JOHN BOSCHINI After a tumultuous offseason rife with doubt over the future of one of American soccer's lower-tier leagues, the NASL lived to fight another day as the U.S. Soccer Federation gave the league provisional sanctioning over the weekend. Although the eight NASL teams have a league in which to play,...
NASL submits final bid to USSF for Second Division sanction
The USSF Second Division Pro League is no more, and the second incarnation of the North American Soccer League is aiming to assume the mantle as the second division soccer league in the United States. The NASL tabled a bid that included six teams back on September 28, 2010 -- two fewer than the eight...
Islanders claim improbable USSF D-2 title
Photo by ISIphotos.com In the end, the 2-0 first leg lead proved to be plenty for the Puerto Rico Islanders, the 2010 champions of the USSF Second Division. The Carolina Railhawks didn't have enough to overturn the deficit, only mustering a 1-1 tie in Cary, NC. It only took eight minutes for Puerto Rico to...
For Seattle’s Parke, perseverance paid off
By JOSE M. ROMERO To hear Jeff Parke tell it, everything he went through to get to today just made him a stronger person. It was all worth it when he looked up into the stands at Qwest Field earlier this month and saw 31,000 people celebrating the Seattle Sounders' U.S. Open Cup championship, with...
USSF D2: Islanders take lead on Railhawks, Rhinos jump to USL Pro
By TRAVIS CLARK Advantage, Puerto Rico Islanders. Over the course of 2010, the plucky USSF D2 side has mastered the art of two-legged performances. The trend continued on Sunday, as the Islanders defeated the Carolina Railhawks 2-0 on home soil in the first leg of the USSF D2 championship. Sandy Gbandi opened the scoring in...
USSF D2: Pore grabs MVP, Nolly named goalie of the year
Photo by ISIphotos.com The second day of USSF D2 awards saw Ryan Pore walk away the big winner, as the league's leading goal-scorer was also named the Second Division MVP on Thursday. Pore carried most of Portland's offense throughout the 2010 season, and was also named a member of the D2 Best XI. Rounding out...
USSF D2: Pore named scoring champ, Janicki best defender
Photo by ISIphotos.com Two final games are all that remains in the USSF D-2 season, but the first round of postseason awards were doled out Wednesday. To no surprise, Ryan Pore was named the league's top goal scorer, finishing the season on 15 goals, one more than future teammate Eddie Johnson, who scored 14 for...
Timbers look to build after adding first four players
By JOSE M. ROMERO The Portland Timbers have their first four MLS players signed and in the books as the fledgling franchise's original quartet. Timbers technical director Gavin Wilkinson introduced forward Bright Dike, midfield wing Ryan Pore, goalkeeper Steve Cronin and a surprise - former Austin Aztex forward Eddie Johnson - to the public and...
USSF D-2 Playoffs: Carolina, Puerto Rico to battle for league title
By JOSE M. ROMERO The next two weekends will decide the winner of the USSF-Division Two title. The second-seeded Carolina Railhawks and eighth-seeded Puerto Rico Islanders emerged from the eight-team playoff rounds as the last two standing, Carolina surviving with a 2-1 aggregate-goals win over the Montreal Impact Sunday night and the Islanders' Nick Addlery...
