|
|
Post by uic53 on Aug 26, 2008 14:00:19 GMT -6
For those of you on or around campus, is this game being advertised to try and pack the house for the opening game? I would love to see a ton of fans, especially students, at the games this year. Keep the momentum going from last year! The soccer deserves a ton of support for their recent accomplishments.
|
|
|
|
Post by UICJohn on Aug 26, 2008 14:16:44 GMT -6
A little worried about this games attendance, being Labor Day weekend and all. However, we've never had a team coming off of an Elite 8 appearance before and everyone loves a winner. I know that I will be there.
|
|
|
|
Post by Big D on Aug 29, 2008 8:51:01 GMT -6
Soccer season starts tonight! I'm real excited. I hope we have a great year and it would be nice for this offense to finally put some balls in the net against UMKC.
uicflames.com reports that senior back Mike Giffin is out for the year with a foot injury. That's too bad. We could've used him this year. As for Kevin Stoll, he appears to be ok after being injured against Notre Dame because he is listed as a probable starter. Anyone know what's up with Spiess? He didn't even play in the game against ND and is not listed as a probable starter tonight.
I wonder why UIC doesn't stream video of its home soccer games. It's a shame because I'd certainly like to watch the team. Are they worried about attendance dropping?
|
|
|
|
Post by uic53 on Aug 29, 2008 9:12:18 GMT -6
Mike Giffin is definitely a big loss for this season. The good news is that it says he will be back for 2009. As for Speiss, is it possible that Serrato just beat him out? We have 3 very talented forwards and it may just be a numbers game. Maybe Serrato brings more speed to the table? I have no information obviously, just throwing out a possible scenario. I would definitely love to see us clean up UMKC so everyone is feeling strong and confident for Santa Clara. We are definitely going to need to score some goals to beat them.
|
|
|
|
Post by soccer fan on Aug 29, 2008 9:46:36 GMT -6
Losing Mike Giffin is going to hurt. Aside from being a fixture on defense, he was also used to kick the ball on set plays (corner kicks and free kicks near the goal), the honor of which usually goes to the most accurate foot on the team.
It will be interesting to see the final lineup. I was wondering the same thing about Spiess, and the "probable" lineup has Serrato and Stoll starting at forward. Without knowing the whole story I wouldn't speculate. We'll just have to wait and see.
What I will say is that as a general rule, a weaker midfield requires speedier forwards. Why? Because a weaker midfield is more likely to turn the ball over before they get it near the penalty area. This means longer downfield passes to the forwards and fewer bodies in the box when they get it, both of which favor speed over physicality.
I am not saying this is the case here (I haven't seen this team play), simply pointing out something I will be watching for tonight, since ball control and dominance in the midfield has been so central to UIC's success in the past.
As far as the streaming the video, isn't that handled by the Indianapolis League (aka "Butler's Buddies")? That should answer your question.
|
|
|
|
Post by UICJohn on Aug 29, 2008 15:13:59 GMT -6
UIC is 79-19-9 at Flames Field. Impressive record I must say. Our "probable" lineup is very young looking at it. With only two seniors listed, Alen Husidic and Pat McMahon, this is a young team. I was also kind of surprised to see Spiess not listed as a probable; however, Serrato is coming in pretty highly regarded. It wouldn't be too big of a surprise if that is the real case. If speedier forwards are used for a weaker midfield, I understand. I wouldn't say that our midfield is weak but they are definitely a lot younger and less experienced. I am very excited to see what Moriba Diallo can do. Charlie Trout showed some good signs last year, so some things to be excited about. I also like our goalie. It's this Jovan Bubonja guy. Could be pretty good for us I think  |
|
|
|
Post by Big D on Aug 29, 2008 16:17:32 GMT -6
|
|
|
|
Post by uic53 on Aug 29, 2008 18:54:54 GMT -6
I'm watching the Sox and also have the Game Tracker up and I see that we have only 1 SOG at the half. Anybody who went to the game, if you could explain what was going on, that would be great. I also see that UMKC only has 2 SOG's. Is this the most boring game ever? Is each team just playing a defensive minded game or am I missing something?
|
|
|
|
Post by uic53 on Aug 29, 2008 19:05:09 GMT -6
I also have a question. Did anything happen to B. Husidic or Stoll or were those just substitutions due to a lack of results? Thanks.
|
|
|
|
Post by uic53 on Aug 29, 2008 19:20:05 GMT -6
Hey hey!!! The Husidic brothers connect!!! Now let's pile it on these guys! Hopefully this can jump start the offense.
|
|
|
|
Post by Big D on Aug 29, 2008 21:15:07 GMT -6
wow, what happened? Looks like we had to fight just to tie it up. The defense apparently was subpar. This does not bode well for the Santa Clara game.
Any positives from tonight? How was the crowd?
|
|
|
|
Post by FuryJP on Aug 29, 2008 22:51:00 GMT -6
|
|
|
|
Post by ss2002 on Aug 30, 2008 22:35:02 GMT -6
I was at the game yesterday night and just wanted to express a couple of my observations. I don't know a whole lot about soccer, but I'm hoping to go to quite a few games this year so I can learn. We had a hard time scoring (duh, right?) . In the first half it felt like we rarely had the ball down to where we could score. I remember at one point, we did have a good shot, but for some reason, the UIC player (can't remember who it was) held onto the ball for a couple extra seconds instead of going for the clear shot, allowing a UMKC player to sweep in close on his shot. In the second half, we finally had scored, only to have the game tied up on a penalty kick, and then within a matter of a couple of minutes the lead was taken away. The thing I and a few of the fans sitting around me noticed about UMKC'S second goal was that as soon as the UMKC player got the ball, our defense pretty much stopped and let him have at it. A note about the turnout for the game- I was pretty impressed and happy about the turnout. There was a good mix of people there- people from the neighborhood, alumns, current students - it was nice to see. I think that the attendance was boosted by the fact that it was a Friday- I noticed a lot of people dressed to hit the bars/parties later. It looked like people were using it a a start to the night and to meet up. Also, the fact that school has started recently probably helped too. Students are still exploring and figuring out what's fun to do on campus. The Fury was out in full force as well. There were a ton of them. I love the drum that they use! I wanted to say, and this doesn't really have anything to do with the game, is that I am amazed by the scene down there. It really is great to see students walking down Halsted and making the south campus area the place to be. I'm very jealous of the campus as it is now. Anyone who graduated before all the new developments and hasn't been back since should make an attempt to check it out. You will be shocked. This isn't the first time I've been back, but I am always amazed. The way the area used to look and how it looks now...unbelievable... I'm planning to make Monday's game and a few more. I'm having fun learning and following UIC is not a bad way to do it. Hopefully, by the end of the season I will be able to post with more details and soccer knowledge |
|
|
|
Post by Guest on Aug 31, 2008 9:11:34 GMT -6
i got some information about the game vs UMKC to answer some questions and give some quick facts about the team.
1st, Spiess has been on the injured list with a groin problem and was supposed to play limited minutes because he isn't fully recovered yet...this is why he didn't play at the Notre Dame game as well.
2nd, the formation they started with was 4 defenders, 5 midfielders, and 1 forward...usually it is 4 defenders, 4 midfielders, and two forwards...I noticed the players changing positions a lot as well, maybe Trask is still searching for the best way to line up?
3rd, HUGE GAME vs Santa Clara Monday,,,,we need even more FANS for this one...let's come out and support these guys!!!
3rd,
|
|
|
|
Post by soccer fan on Aug 31, 2008 9:11:55 GMT -6
I was at the game yesterday night and just wanted to express a couple of my observations. I don't know a whole lot about soccer, but I'm hoping to go to quite a few games this year so I can learn. We had a hard time scoring (duh, right?) . In the first half it felt like we rarely had the ball down to where we could score. I remember at one point, we did have a good shot, but for some reason, the UIC player (can't remember who it was) held onto the ball for a couple extra seconds instead of going for the clear shot, allowing a UMKC player to sweep in close on his shot. In the second half, we finally had scored, only to have the game tied up on a penalty kick, and then within a matter of a couple of minutes the lead was taken away. The thing I and a few of the fans sitting around me noticed about UMKC'S second goal was that as soon as the UMKC player got the ball, our defense pretty much stopped and let him have at it. A note about the turnout for the game- I was pretty impressed and happy about the turnout. There was a good mix of people there- people from the neighborhood, alumns, current students - it was nice to see. I think that the attendance was boosted by the fact that it was a Friday- I noticed a lot of people dressed to hit the bars/parties later. It looked like people were using it a a start to the night and to meet up. Also, the fact that school has started recently probably helped too. Students are still exploring and figuring out what's fun to do on campus. The Fury was out in full force as well. There were a ton of them. I love the drum that they use! I wanted to say, and this doesn't really have anything to do with the game, is that I am amazed by the scene down there. It really is great to see students walking down Halsted and making the south campus area the place to be. I'm very jealous of the campus as it is now. Anyone who graduated before all the new developments and hasn't been back since should make an attempt to check it out. You will be shocked. This isn't the first time I've been back, but I am always amazed. The way the area used to look and how it looks now...unbelievable... I'm planning to make Monday's game and a few more. I'm having fun learning and following UIC is not a bad way to do it. Hopefully, by the end of the season I will be able to post with more details and soccer knowledge KC employed a very effective defensive strategy in the first half. Whenever UIC got the ball in their half of the field, KC immediately withdrew, except for the forwards, who took up position 10-15 feet on the UIC side of the midfield. Nobody on KC's team EVER challenged or pressured the UIC defenders. This set up a numerical disadvantage for UIC's midfielders around the midfield line, and as soon as they got the ball from the defenders, they were blitzed. Its a classic trap, and more often than not, our guys coughed up the ball. This is why there were so few shots. The low points of the game had to be the penalty calls. Neither of them needed to be made, in my opinion. As a resident of University Village, I am glad to hear your favorable impression of our neighborhood. I've been living here for over two years, I really like it, and yes, it is truly starting to feel like a college town. I'm noticing more students around this year, even more than last, which I didn't expect since Stukel Towers opened last year. I suspect what is happening is that a lot of the kids who were in the dorms last year are opting to either stay living on campus, or are at least staying in the neighborhood. Rather than leave every weekend, or spend all their time on the North Side (which was the norm in the student commons), they are creating a social scene centered at Halsted/Maxwell. And hey, don't be jealous, be glad! All it really means is that UIC isn't just a place mainly for hipsters and ethnics anymore. It is also a place for conventional kids to spend a conventional 4 years in college. Which is fine by me, there's plenty of room for everyone. |
|
