Predicting The Playoffs: Who To Root For
by William Conwell on Oct 26, 2011 3:34 AM PDT
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The Major League Soccer playoffs begin tomorrow without the Portland Timbers, but that does not mean Timbers fans should lose interest. With just over half the league qualified the choices to root for are plentiful.
Reasons to root for or against each team in the playoffs (plus a poll!) after the jump.
The Eastern Conference
Record Against the Timbers in 2011: 2W-0L-0T
Love Them: SKC struggled back from starting the season with a ten game road trip to end up in first place in the east. They weren’t always pretty but they feature an exciting offense loaded with you talent. Striker Kai Kamara is an MLS WORKS Humanitarian of the Year nominee for his charity work, particularly in his home nation of Sierra Leone.
Hate Them: Rookie forward C.J. Sapong scored on the Timbers and imitated Roger Levesque’s infamous goal celebration in front of the Timbers Army.
Record Against the Timbers in 2011: 1-0-1
Love Them: John Spencer is probably rooting for his old team.
Hate Them: Midfielder Adam Moffat, after riding the pine for the Timbers, joined the Dynamo in July and promptly scored on the Timbers from forty yards out in what was dubbed one of ESPN Sports Center’s top ten goals of the year. The Dynamo have also earned a reputation as a physical team that is reliant on set pieces, and while they have found success this year, they are not the most fun team to watch. Plus, they have already won the MLS Cup twice in their last five seasons.
Andy adds in the comments:
They prematurely ended Zizzo and Nagbe’s season and put Jewsbury and Chabala at risk for serious injury. They’re a bunch of thugs.
3. Philadelphia Union
Record Against the Timbers in 2011: 0-1-1
Love Them: The Union are loaded up with Columbians including Faryd Mondragon who, in addition to having an awesome name, was playing for the Columbian national team when Diego Chara was only six years old. Also, rooting for the Union means rooting for Jefferson High School graduate Danny Mwanga.
Hate Them: Philadelphia’s talisman, Sebastian LeToux, is a former Sounder fan favorite and despite embracing his new home, the taint lingers.
The Western Conference
1. L.A. Galaxy
Record Against the Timbers in 2011: 1-1-0
Love Them: David Beckham, Robbie Keane and Landon Donovan surrounded by one of the best supporting casts in MLS and coached by the most successful coach in MLS history.
Hate Them: David Beckham, Robbie Keane and Landon Donovan surrounded by one of the best supporting casts in MLS and coached by the most successful coach in MLS history.
Record Against the Timbers in 2011: 1-0-1
Love Them: Nope.
Hate Them: They are the Seattle Sounders.
Record Against the Timbers in 2011: 0-1-1
Love Them: They are paired up against the Sounders. You have to root for them for at least one series. They are also one of the most talented squads in MLS and, despite stumbling into the playoffs without a win in their last six games, will be returning to full strength with the end of team captain Kyle Beckerman’s red card suspension. Did I mention they will be playing against the Sounders?
Hate Them: Their beer is weak and so are their dives. Javier Morales and Andy Williams are two of the most talented distributors of the ball in MLS but both have a propensity for hitting the ground early and often.
The Wild Cards
1. F.C. Dallas
Record Against the Timbers in 2011: 1-1-0
Love Them: Since Schellas Hyndman took over in 2008 F.C. Dallas has been a regular contender featuring plenty of young talent, particularly Brek Shae who has been on the verge of breaking into the starting line-up of the United States national team. Former Timber Jeremy Hall has also been getting minutes at left back for Dallas as they struggle through numerous injuries.
Hate Them: The team formerly known as the Burn gave the Timbers their biggest defeat of the year, putting four goals past Troy Perkins in Frisco.
Record Against the Timbers in 2011: 2-0-0
Love Them: Omar Cummings is always good for two or three moments of absolute magic each game.
Hate Them: The Rapids made the Timbers first game in the MLS era less than triumphant. Missing Conor Casey and Pablo Mastroeni also removes two key cogs from the Rapids offence, leaving behind a team that struggles to function properly in their absence.
Record Against the Timbers in 2011: 1-1-0
Love Them: The team that Sigi Schmid, Seattle’s current boss, built has finally been made anew.
Hate Them: Tom Heinemann has the stupidest hair on a team with a long history of stupid hair.
Record Against the Timbers in 2011: 1-0-1
Love Them: Nope. Had Jozy Altidore and Tim Howard on their team at one point, I guess.
Hate Them: Thierry Henry and Rafa Marquez were both known as classy players overseas. Strange then that they are perhaps best known in the US for their shenanigans rather than their Champions League victories. Henry famously used a handball to eliminate Ireland from the 2010 World Cup and followed that up with his first two professional red cards this season. Marquez, of course, was most well known to Americans for headbutting Cobi Jones back in 2002 but is now renowned for throwing his teammates on the Red Bulls defence under a bus, getting benched, and having them play better without him.
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To the list of reasons to hate Houston I would add
that they prematurely ended Zizzo and Nagbe’s season and put Jewsbury and Chabala at risk for serious injury. They’re a bunch of thugs.
When I write, I write for the Timbers. Contributing Editor of Stumptown Footy
wth
Seattle is tied for 2nd in votes? Impossible.
I voted Galaxy. They’ve been the most dominant side this year, are extremely talented, and won the Supporters Shield and thus I think they’re the best team and should win the MLS Cup to be recognized as such. Their fans aren’t irritating and their players are pretty nice people for the most part as well (jury’s out on Keane, though).
hoping Houston and New York get eliminated as well aside from the obvious team to root against. Both teams play crazy dirty and feature totally classless players. I am completely apathetic to SKC and Columbus and often times forget the latter exists (as do many people in Columbus, apparently) and I’m not particularly keen on FCD or RSL. I do like the Union too though, so I’m hoping for a Philly-LA final.
You would be suprised
By the number of Seattle fans that actually come over and read SF. I looked one time at the stats for referred traffic and Sounder at Heart was second or third.
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
Those Sounders fans
They must just yearn to support a team that has a soul. They turn up on this blog, not knowing for sure why they’re doing it, for it’s time they have and peace they lack. Cheering for the Sounders leaves them hollow, empty; they read our blog, and it’s as if they dipped themselves in magic waters. It reminds them of all that once was good and that could be again.
When I write, I write for the Timbers. Contributing Editor of Stumptown Footy
by Andrew Wheeler on Oct 26, 2011 10:26 AM PDT up reply actions
Problem is that nobody here is miserable or unfortunate
But yeah, schadenfreude is pervasive in the culture up there.
by yepyou'reright on Oct 26, 2011 5:52 PM PDT up reply actions
nah
It’s the good writing for me. BURN!
by chrisperry1983 on Oct 26, 2011 2:18 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions
... thanks?
Contributing Editor for Stumptown Footy
by William Conwell on Oct 26, 2011 10:09 PM PDT up reply actions
seriously though it is
I read several other SBN blogs because the writers are good. Some SBN blogs though, the writers are terrible and I avoid them, which is a shame because I like the teams they write for.
by chrisperry1983 on Oct 27, 2011 8:56 AM PDT up reply actions
Actually Twitter is the gold standard of literature
and modern thought. Didn’t you know? Really, the profundity of it is overwhelming. /sarcasm One day on it and already I want to smash it. But hey, it’s where the self-important and alleged kool kidz hang with the team owner (why MP?). And apparently it’s now essential to society, culture, and democracy if you listen to social media “gurus” and PR hacks.
When I'm bored I'm on Twitter. I love the First World.
by yepyou'reright on Oct 27, 2011 10:13 AM PDT via iPhone app up reply actions
I voted Rapids
They have a title to defend, which is compelling. And some of their (female) supporters are really hot!
Blazers win!
Stephen Keel
Wasn’t he a Timber? Another reason you could theoretically root for NY. That is if you’re able to stomach rooting for an East Coast team, along with the other reasons you stated.
Yes
When NY played Portland in PDX he scored a goal for us.
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
PDX4RSL?
If they don’t win let’s blame Kenny Cooper and John Spencer’s substitution patterns.
When I'm bored I'm on Twitter. I love the First World.
by yepyou'reright on Oct 27, 2011 3:29 PM PDT via iPhone app reply actions
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