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denime
11-24-2008, 07:02 AM
No TFC news.


Impact bid scuttled by economic crisis?
By GARETH WHEELER

After being the odds-on favourite for an expansion franchise in 2011, MLS commissioner Don Garber announced Friday that Montreal was out of the running because of an incomplete bid.
The Montreal Impact claim it did not pull out of the running and will hold a press conference this morning to address the situation.
With a soccer-specific stadium and devout fan following already in place, Montreal was a logical fit.
One has to wonder whether the bid's reliance on the financial strength of George Gillett Jr. and his current financial woes contributed to the collapse of the bid.
Gillett and Tom Hicks have a Jan. 25 deadline to pay back the $664-million loan for their purchase of English Premier League club Liverpool.

Read more (http://www.torontosun.com/sports/soccer/2008/11/24/7512901-sun.html)


Too alive Crew
Columbus overpowers Red Bulls to hoist its first MLS Cup title
By GARETH WHEELER, SUN MEDIA

Columbus is used to national football championships with Ohio State, but now it has a football championship of another kind.
In a match featuring two of Major League Soccer's original teams, the boys from the Buckeye State, the Columbus Crew, collected a well-deserved 3-1 victory over the underdog New York Red Bulls in Carson, Calif., yesterday. It was the Crew's first MLS Cup in franchise history.
They opened the scoring in the 31st minute with a soft goal from Alejandro Moreno.
After a 40-yard run down the right side of the pitch, Moreno beat Red Bulls goalkeeper Danny Cepero from a bad angle. It was a calm and cool finish by Moreno, but clearly Cepero played the angle all wrong.
Hardly top-class goaltending, but the kind you might expect when you pay your 'keeper only $248 a week.

Read more (http://www.torontosun.com/sports/soccer/2008/11/24/7512906-sun.html)


SUNSHINE (http://www.torontosun.com/sunshinegirl/)

BuSaPuNk
11-24-2008, 07:12 AM
Morning D! Too bad to hear this about the Montreal bid. It would help not only the MLS but also the community of soccer in Canada. We need a great rivlery. Oh well let's see what the Montreal people have to say today.

JDG
11-24-2008, 07:20 AM
Good Morning denime!

This was sent to me by the Author through Facebook:




GEORDIE coach John Carver will take his seat alongside David Beckham in LA on Sunday to take in the Major League Soccer Cup final hoping that in 12 months time he will be back with Toronto FC.
Like Beckham’s LA Galaxy, Toronto and Carver failed to make it to the play-offs this year but with New York Red Bulls and Columbus Crew doing battle in tomorrow’s final, he will feel that anything is possible.
Carver will rub shoulders with Becks and Co at the Home Depot Center for the marquee event of the year in the US’s soccer world after his first full season as a manager in his own right unfolded in front of a national audience.

More: Carver set to join Beckham for MLS Cup final - ChronicleLive (http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/nufc/newcastle-united-news/2008/11/22/carver-set-to-join-beckham-for-mls-cup-final-72703-22326030/)

Cashcleaner
11-24-2008, 07:50 AM
I don't want to sound like a downer, but I think this was the one and only chance for Montreal to get onboard the MLS train. Even if a new plan is put together a few years down the line, I doubt Garber and the league would still be interested. :(

The whole story just doesn't seem to be adding up, though.

Redcoe15
11-24-2008, 08:30 AM
Why do people still believe that Gillett is the reason for the scuttled bid? Saputo can go on this alone if he wanted to, he has that cake. If the economic times are the reason behind Montreal's bid falling apart then it would seem that most, if not all, of the bids are in trouble as well. Where the fuck is Eugene Melnyk going to get the money for his field of schemes in Ottawa?

Cashcleaner
11-24-2008, 09:00 AM
^ Ummmm, isn't he like incredibly rich or something?

Remember, it was Garber himself who said Ottawa had one of the best plans in place. If Garber is convinced and is the guy who read the proposal, I don't see how we can dispute his statements.

Roogsy
11-24-2008, 09:02 AM
What is with girls singeing their hair with bleach? Looks ridiculous. Like a bail of hay on top of their heads.

Nuvinho
11-24-2008, 09:06 AM
When is the protected list have to be submitted? today?

arbogast
11-24-2008, 09:20 AM
^ Ummmm, isn't he like incredibly rich or something?

Remember, it was Garber himself who said Ottawa had one of the best plans in place. If Garber is convinced and is the guy who read the proposal, I don't see how we can dispute his statements.

Both Melnyk and Saputo are absolutely loaded. BUT, whether or not they are willing to invest their own cash, or minimize risk and find financing is the question. These guys are businessmen and the 1st rule in business is never use your own money.

So if Melnyk wants to finance it with his own dough and take the risk, good for him, but it looks to me like Saputo and Gillette weren't willing to do that and were trying to get public funds to upgrade the stadium.

Beach_Red
11-24-2008, 09:31 AM
I don't want to sound like a downer, but I think this was the one and only chance for Montreal to get onboard the MLS train. Even if a new plan is put together a few years down the line, I doubt Garber and the league would still be interested. :(

The whole story just doesn't seem to be adding up, though.

It's a risk, but it's possible that someday the biggest markets in the USL will get absorbed into the MLS the way the WHA teams did into the NHL. Montreal would get in then.

In the meantime, they'll still get to play TFC and Vancouver every year and maybe get into the Champions League.

Really, $40 million seems like too much.

Ottawa is in the same position Toronto was, though, they have to be in what's seen as the 'top league' to attract fans and, maybe more importantly, sponsors, so for Ottawa joining the USL wouldn't be enough.

Technorgasm
11-24-2008, 09:37 AM
BRING ON THE WHITECAPS!!!!

Fuck off MTL.

we al lHATE the Crew, biut at least their win validates that the best team on the season won.



MLS playoffs would be an absolute JOKE had NYRB (shite) won.

Roogsy
11-24-2008, 09:46 AM
CNN Sports Illustrated's Freedman's take on the Title Game.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/jonah_freedman/11/23/mls.cup/index.html

I am glad he mentioned the fact that the game was not sold out. It was embarrassing to say the least. I had visiting friends from England watching the game with me and they questioned whether this was a "championship" game. Both for the quality on the pitch as well as the atmosphere, which was pathetic.

keem-o-sabi
11-24-2008, 10:18 AM
Daily hottie (http://coedmagazine.com/category/Daily/)just in case you wanted to see someone different

Shaughno
11-24-2008, 10:21 AM
^^ Yowsa's Yasmin! :eek:

Stouffville_RPB
11-24-2008, 05:32 PM
CNN Sports Illustrated's Freedman's take on the Title Game.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/jonah_freedman/11/23/mls.cup/index.html

I am glad he mentioned the fact that the game was not sold out. It was embarrassing to say the least. I had visiting friends from England watching the game with me and they questioned whether this was a "championship" game. Both for the quality on the pitch as well as the atmosphere, which was pathetic.


Nice read. Totally agree with the last point about attendance.

mighty_torontofc_2008
11-24-2008, 05:48 PM
I don't want to sound like a downer, but I think this was the one and only chance for Montreal to get onboard the MLS train. Even if a new plan is put together a few years down the line, I doubt Garber and the league would still be interested. :(

The whole story just doesn't seem to be adding up, though.


I too feel Montreal blew their chance, maybe they enjoy the USL,
but when they expand again 40million for the fee will look like small change...Cheers to MLSE for getting in while the time was right.

Toronto 1 Montreal 0:D

James17930
11-24-2008, 08:15 PM
I don't think the attendance was that big a deal. Sure there were some empty seats, but not that many. I'd say there were only a few thousand.

So 24 or 25 k go out on a Sunday afternoon in Los Angeles to watch New York play Columbus? That's pretty damn good if you ask me, given the geographical considerations.

And I gotta say the Crew fans represented pretty damn well -- there was that entire section of yellow in the stands.

Freedman is being a pissant here on his one.

Roogsy
11-24-2008, 08:19 PM
^ For THE championship game?

I realize this isn't the NFL...but it not being your "home" team has nothing to do with people actually wanting to see a good game of soccer. Look at the Superbowl, how many times has the host city had their team participate in the championship game? And yet the tickets are insanely in demand.

I am not asking for 200% markups...but at least fill the stadium! Sorry...I have to agree with Freedman here.

James17930
11-24-2008, 08:22 PM
^ For THE championship game?

I realize this isn't the NFL...but it not being your "home" team has nothing to do with people actually wanting to see a good game of soccer. Look at the Superbowl, how many times has the host city had their team participate in the championship game? And yet the tickets are insanely in demand.

I am not asking for 200% markups...but at least fill the stadium! Sorry...I have to agree with Freedman here.

Yeah, but the NFL is in a league of its own. You can't compare them.

btw -- I'm knocking a few points off of Columbus's support due to use of thundersticks.

Roogsy
11-24-2008, 08:41 PM
LOL! Hence the reason I said:


I realize this isn't the NFL...but it not being your "home" team has nothing to do with people actually wanting to see a good game of soccer.

I realize they aren't going to fill a 75k stadium at $1000 a pop...but 25k at a reasonable price? For the trophy game of the whole league? Not filling it is inexcusable. NFL or not.

I think the league has started to believe a lot of it's own hype about the growth of MLS...at the end of the day this is still a 2nd tier league in the spectrum of US sports and they need to recognize their place and address the issues that still hold this league back from greatness before moving on to bigger and better things.

James17930
11-24-2008, 08:52 PM
Would you have gone to MLS Cup in Toronto if it was RSL versus Chivas? (Be honest)

SoccMan
11-24-2008, 10:44 PM
I saw the game on TV and sure there were a few thousand empty seats, but it did not look that empty, I watched the game with about 6 other people and no one brought up the attendance because the stadium looked pretty full. It's the MLS for gods sake not the NFL, and for this writer to even mention the NFL in this story in terms of comparison has got to be kidding. Also, I have been to many so called sold out games at BMO field that had as many empty seats as I saw yesterday at the Home Depot Centre.

Roogsy
11-24-2008, 10:57 PM
BMO Field has the Carlsberg Patio...what is the Home Depot's excuse?