Crew for One

America's Hardest Working Fans (Photo: Sam Fahmi)

Ahh Memorial Day, that magical weekend where barbecues flicker, parades flourish, and bloggers forget to write anything about their favorite soccer team. OK, so I slacked off. Forgive me. To make up for it, I am flogging myself with a whip made of Frankie Hejduk's National Team called-up mane, and writing a dual wrap-up article about both the loss to New England (1-0) and the victory over RSL (2-0).

To accomplish this, I'm going to take some negatives from Saturday's loss and contrast them with some positive things the Crew did to change it up in the Open Cup win. I'm also swilling some Landshark, so bear with me if I start blogging under the influence.

Negative #1: The Crew's futility cost them against New England.

The Crew were stuck trying to poke home prayers in front of New England's ace keeper Matt Reis, who had a hell of a game stopping the Crew's chances. But to only manage two shots on goal is pathetic. Alejandro Moreno looked frustrated and oft-fouled, and when Robbie Rogers was not getting stuffed into the turf, he was being marked by three guys. Clearly, the league has gotten the memo that these two are pretty good.

Positive # 1: The Crew's offensive swagger returned against RSL.

To be sure, the Royal Mormons are GAWD awful. But the creativeness of new faces like Steve Lenhart (who tucked in the first goal from about 8 yards out) and Emmanuel Ekpo were welcome. Granted, Ekpo was lost at times in the midfield, but his pace and footwork were more than sufficient to create space, and you can see the potential. Robbie Rogers showed his world-class skill by bending a 25-yarder around Nick Rimando for our second goal. It was, dare I say it, Beckham-esque. Let's just say the Crew needed that confidence boost almost as bad as bad as China needs a few more seismographs.

What...the Olympics are coming, and I'll be damned if we're letting Robbie go over there with two good legs before they get those earthquakes under control.


Negative #2: The Crew's left back against New England.

It's probably not fair to continually rip Ezra Hendrickson. After all, it's not his fault Sigi keeps calling his name come gametime. Still, Ezra once again looked like a flamingo trying to kick an armadillo on some of his clearances. And as if there needs to be any more evidence, Ezra was beaten in the box by Steve "Wow, I remember when dirt was invented" Ralston. Seriously? If you can't lock down Old Man Ralston, it might be time to start working on the non-regional dialect for the old broadcast booth there, EZ.

Positive #2: The Crew's starting left back against RSL.

His name is Ryan Junge (pronounced "BAMF"), and he was a beast tonight. He's not Gino Padula, but I'll be damned if he didn't rip a shot right at Rimando from 30 yards out in the first half. And he was more than capable in assisting the stalwart Chad Marshall and tenacious Danny O'Rourke. Someone needs to sit me down and explain to me why he isn't the first backup in defense instead of Ezra, because I am just not seeing it.

Negative #3: The midfield was less than agressive against both Toronto and New England.

In the last two games, playing through the midfield was tougher than trying to figure out how Guillermo gets that elastic crinkle in his sleeves. (Does he custom order them that way, or does his twin brother sew in the elastic? I haven't been able to sleep for 5 weeks trying to figure this out...) Partially, that's because the Crew were playing against two of the better midfield in MLS, but it also had to do with the absence of one key player...

Positive #3: Adam Moffat's agressive play.

I unfortunately had to work until 7:30, so I missed the first 25 minutes of the game. But you can imagine my and all Crew fans excitement to see Adam Moffat back on the pitch after his torn cartilage kept him sidelined for a few weeks. And he made a difference once again, fighting for every loose ball and winning more than a few hard tackles in the midfield. I can guarantee you no two people are happier to see him back than GBS and Robbie Rogers. With Moffat in the middle of the park in front of Brian Carrol, Danny O'Rourke and Chad Marshall, any opposing player coming to the center circle and beyond will be getting a warm welcome from the Crew's Scottish Ambassador. Also, I would be surprised if all the cheap fouls on Guille and Rogers continue, now that Moffat is back and especially when Gino gets back.

Negative #4: The 5% of douchebags who made the other 95% of us look bad against New England.

If you haven't seen MLS Rumors or Steve Goff's riffs on the Nordecke, don't bother with it. I won't re-bore you with the minutia, but basically, a few people threw beer at New England's players, and one person was heard on youtube calling some of the African players on New England the "N" word.

Apparently Goff and the chick that runs MLS Rumors haven't figured this out, so I'll spell it out nice and clear: When you judge a group of people by a select few, you're painting with a broad brush. And which takes more skill: painting a house, or painting Van Gogh's "Starry Night?" The simple-minded often jump on the easy point, which is often the entirely wrong story.

What should have been the story was how professional athletes who are paid a salary by people who attend games have no problem taunting those very same people that could easily walk away from their game, thus eventually costing them salary and ultimately their livelihood. I don't expect the Perez Hilton of MLS to grasp the subtle nuances at work in a social science experiment like that one, but Steve Goff works for the Washington Post for crying out loud. I would expect more from someone like him.

That all said, if you are the person who felt the need to use the "N" word, I encourage you to man up and say that to Ezra Hendrickson, Andy Iro, and Emmanuel Ekpo, and see how tough it makes you feel. Better yet, if you're so proud of it, why don't you just tell us all who you are? If that's why Shalrie Joseph flipped us the bird, then I quite honestly can't blame him.

The bottom line is, 95% of the crowd on Saturday was there for the right reasons, but 5% ruined it by being stupid. Welcome to life.

Positive #4: The 5% of douchebags who made the other 95% of us look bad against New England didn't show up against RSL, leaving only 100% Awesomeness.

If MLS is truly investigating the Crew Supporters, they need only look at what little tape exists from the RSL match to put the matter to bed. On a game where only the diehards showed up, nary a bottle, smokebomb, or racial slur made it onto the field. What did translate all through the stadium was a rowdy fan group that threw nothing but streamers, cheered on our boys in yellow, and sang for 90 minutes. Gee, it's almost as if the true fans are the ones playing by the rules! Go figure!!

If you want the 95% good, there are almost always going to be the 5% bad. There has to be a way to manage it, but let's put it this way: I'd rather have to keep an eye out for 10 or 12 bad apples instead of only having 10 or 12 people who care. With great success comes great responsibility. Hope we're up to the task.

Other notes:

- Congrats to Frankie Hejduk getting the call-up for some National Team duty. Also, any chance we can get the Olympic team to be sponsored by Natty Light? I think it would be appropriate on so many levels.

- Let it be heretofore noted that the coaches made the right move letting John Busch go. I loved the guy, but with Will Hesmer in goal and Andy Gruenenbaum on the bench, the Crew are more than fine between the woodwork. If you missed it, the Hebrew Hammer was the MOTM in my opinion against The William Jeffers All-Stars. I honestly like the idea of having a US Open keeper and a MLS Season keeper.

- Sigi came over after the match and shook everyone's hand on the front row all the way around the corner. You have to love that show of support after all the crap some of the media has given us this week. Good on ya, Sigi.

Go Crew, we face Chivas this Saturday night and eventually will take on the F*re in the next round of USOC qualifying.