After the final whistle blew and most of the crowd left, the FCD reserves took the field for their first match of 2008. Sunday’s second game mirrored the first in multiple ways. The Dallas captain was the centerback, the scores were the exact same and each match saw a stop in play at least five minutes long.
Saturday’s forecast called for heavy rain and cold temperatures. The possibility of cancellation lingered through the day, but by 4 PM just a light rain fell over Pizza Hut Park. The goal of Saturday’s match was to get as many players time on the field as possible. Combined with the amount of miles traveled by the University of Memphis, both teams were determined to get a game in.
The sun was out in full force on Sunday morning as the FCD and Crew reserves played on Field #1 at Pizza Hut Park. A Sandi Gbandi header and a Bobby Rhine blast were not enough to stop the Crew as the Hoops fell to the visitors 3-2.
The Toronto fans are one of the nicest groups you’ll ever meet in MLS. They’re up there with the New England Revolution’s Midnight Riders in terms of friendliness, hospitality and generousity. The first question they asked each of us was, “Did you REALLY make the trip up here all the way from Dallas for the game?”
The FC Dallas reserves played their first home game of the season on Monday morning against a struggling Real Salt Lake. The two sides played a relatively tame game which ended in a late goal to make the difference and give FCD the win.
I was all set to write about my trip to Salt Lake City with pictures and all, but tragedy struck this morning when my memory stick cracked. After a few failed attempts at getting my computer to read the card, I merely let out a string of explatives, grabbed my backpack and set out for class. I’m in the process of trying to salvage the pictures- all 60 of them- full of mountains, the view from Park City, the Olympic torch and the game- you know, nothing important, right? Until then, however, I can’t post any visual proof that I was indeed in Utah and not stuck back in Dallas with the snow flurries.
Thankfully, 2007 is a new year and on Saturday night FC Dallas took the Saturn Cup seriously. Played at the University of Oklahoma in Norman, most of the names in the starting lineup for the Saturn Cup were recognizable as the first eleven was comprised of mostly first-teamers. While the first half was sloppy, and the second half saw Dallas take and lose the lead twice in a span of ten minutes, Dallas came out victorious in the end after a hard fought match ending in a Dominic Oduro breakaway.
The annual preseason match of FC Dallas versus SMU normally takes place late on a Tuesday or Wednesday afternoon. The sun is usually shining and it’s usually pretty breezy outside. To be quite honest, FC Dallas usually blows SMU out of the water. Friday night’s game was anything but ordinary. It was a cold and rainy night in which FC Dallas spent the majority of the game down a goal. They came uncomfortably close to losing, but thanks to some last minute heroics from two specific players were able to leave Westcott Field with a win.