Sir Landon Of Donovan

[Felix]

I just hope Landon starts to make more runs sooner than later. Everton needs someone to step up in the "I'm taking control of this damn game" department.

As for the "x sport is better than Y" arguments, if people would just stop bashing and beating their chests about how X is boring and Y is better then side conversations would stop. I watch world football 90% of the time but I find it nice to watch something else, be it UFC or NFL or whatever, refreshing from time to time. I will even go out on a limb and say I have even enjoyed a baseball game for all it is worth... which isn't much.

 

[OHIO Patrick]

Yikes I'm behind. I'll do quick bullet answers then.



Haha, that sounds awesome! Where can I watch this? I didn't get that match in the first place, only was able to watch donovan's goal clilp from SBI.

* this match was a disappointment. The reffing was horrible, Everton didn't seem to completely show up and Liverpool outplayed us. Too bad that couldn't have been 3 points.

* At least it was in HD for us!

* I'll agree with Felix's summary about LD - I think he could have done more. He does seem to be reluctant to make his own runs off the ball and often looks too quick to pass it back. He isn't known to do this, so I'm wondering if he's playing cautious or not. The good news is LD was able to put in a full 90 (or 99 as it were) on Saturday. More likely I think someone else hit the nail on the head with LD's place on the team. He's a leader, but not on this team. He's probably carefully trying to chose his place between bossing other players around for motivation, or shutting up & coloring (i.e. knowing his place). I'm guessing he's trying to find that balance. I definitely don't think he "gave up" at any point during the match, he was still running full-speed by the end, one of few Everton players showing that hustle. He was just quick to pass the ball back and do those one-touch passes instead of runs, which as was said I'd like to see more of.

* I thought Donovan's shot was horrible as well, but have to credit him for taking the shot. It keeps defenses honest a bit and might draw more coverage to Donovan as a shooting threat on future runs.

* Regarding the "best-looking" USMNT players, the gf likes Bocanegra herself - she thinks he looks a little like Scott Wolf, whom women fawn over for some reason. Her 2nd favorite is Tim Howard, who she says looks like Jason Taylor. She says LD is "cute" but not in the "hot" kind of way like the others are.



Thanks for the invite! I tend to keep to myself now though, don't do the viewings much anymore. I tried out the supporter group thing with the Sounders last year and have realized that most of the soccer/footy fans are not really the type of people I fit in with I guess. :beer:


you'd probably have broken limbs & some concussions to show for it as well! Pads don't prevent injury, as is evidenced daily in that league. Rugby's tough, but the "Rugby doesn't use pads, therefore it is tougher" argument is possibly the worst ever. Gridiron used to not use pads either, but when the players & hits got bigger, the pads were a necessity. The pads were not introduced to make Rugby seem more tough or gridiron appear more wimpy - they were added because people were getting hurt. I realize people get hurt in Rugby too, but not to the level & with the frequency NFL players do. Common sense tells me the answer to the question right there, but this isn't a gridiron vs rugby thread though, so i'll just leave it.

won't compare soccer to gridiron either as they're completely different. I don't like how some feel the need to "pick" one over the other. Can't we enjoy both? I do.

I'm a DVR guy too though - I have to record it as watching an NFL game live just takes too long. I don't blame the game as much as the NFL. Citing a good quote from an awesome movie, "Football died the first time they stopped a game for a commercial break". Don't think gridiron players are the best athletes in the world, but I don't think you can say that about any sport as a whole.

The fact is there are NFL players who could outrun soccer players - we have a NFL running back who recently challenged Usain Bolt to a footrace because he recorded a faster time at the combine. And obviously there are linemen that can't even run the length of the field, so you have players all over the place that fit their positions. I don't think England has any sports similar to that outside of the handful of types Rugby uses, but even that doesn't scratch the surface of specialization like the NFL employs. Hard to understand if you didn't grow up with it though, I completely understand that.

The LA Galaxy has the interview where you can hear Cahill, it's from Everton TV. I can't yet post the link to it.

 

[Maverick]

Is it true that our chances are better because it won't be as big a rivalry match as Liverpool?

lol no, this is not true

 

[Catamount]

There is a place for every sport and I don't expect English, Europeans, or anyone else in the world to even remotely like gridiron. To explain every rule is maddening if you didn't grow up watching the game like I did. Before I fell in love with the beautiful game I watched a lot of NFL, mostly the Cowboys. There have been some fantastic games in the NFL, this past superbowl was not bad, but it is not for everyone. To compare gridiron to rugby is comparing rugby to hockey. They both are contact sports but have different rules, different hits, and different speeds.

I can appreciate every sport for their difficulty and precision but American gridiron is just so very specific to each position. A running back, a lineman, a wide receiver, a quarter back... each and all completely different jobs that completes the team. The simple fact is some of the NFL players are beasts, almost superhuman, for the speed and size of each player is quite scary. Believe me, the helmets and pads are needed, the full contact of a 300+ pound wall of a human slamming into a poor 200 pound quarterback is crunching indeed.

The World Cup is what turned me on to the real football. Watching nations play each other almost becomes war without a shot fired which I love to see the passion in. This resulted in me watching specific players in certain clubs and from there it just became THE sport to watch even though I had been playing it all of my life. I grew up playing football without ever seeing a single European game but was a natural at defending. Only after was I able to see the pros do it and how much more challenging it all was at that level. Great stuff indeed.

So I am sure you all will defend Rugby and what not till the day you die because it is what you understand and what you like. I will defend the NFL as being a valid product worth watching and can be fun to experience live if you get into it. There is a time and place for everything and thank god for diversity on this planet because if not it would be extremely boring.

Every sport has it's metaphor. Gridiron takes war as it's metaphor. All of the lingo is about war: aerial attack, sweep, spy, blitz, wildcat, etc. Just like battle the team strategizes and then attacks or defends. Good football coaches run their team a lot like the military, especially at the lower levels. Injuries are by far the highest of any mainline sport played in the United States. The uniform matters more than the individual because you can't see the individual.

Football takes its metaphor from life, always decisions between risk and caution, patience and commitment, aggression and resilience, guile and speed. The game of life is about connecting with your team mates, working for each other, expressing your individual talents in the midst of a collective whole, courage, commitment, enterprise, invention, ingenuity, preparation, judgement, passion and trust. These are the things that matter in war as well but persist when the war is over. Football is about life.

 

[ijjysmith]

This thread has gone very very weird.

 

[Catamount]

This thread has gone very very weird.

I believe this all started with discussions about how well American athletes in other sports would do at football. LD is a prototypical football player in America, too small for gridiron and basketball, not quite fast enough for track and field, but an extremely good athlete, fast, smart, great balance and body control, superb coordination.

The above post reflects on other cultural aspects that go beyond money. Now American players have the prospect of making good money if they play in leagues around the world, yet many athletes continue to try for gridiron and basketball, and when they fail to reach the pros they simply fade away.

Part of it is the mentality of gridiron, it is really addicting for young men. They can often go straight from the high school gridiron into the marines or the army and do very well.

 

[ijjysmith]

alrighty then

 

[Huey]

Thanks for the invite! I tend to keep to myself now though, don't do the viewings much anymore. I tried out the supporter group thing with the Sounders last year and have realized that most of the soccer/footy fans are not really the type of people I fit in with I guess. :beer:

Alright, but feel free to stop by sometime. It's an older and more subdued crowd at the George than what I've experienced with the ECS.


Here's the interview with Donovan after his goal:
Los Angeles Galaxy: Video: | Landon Donovan scores his first goal for Everton - Video

Cahill starts harassing him around 1:30.

 

[MLS is not quite EPL]

Alright, but feel free to stop by sometime. It's an older and more subdued crowd at the George than what I've experienced with the ECS.


Here's the interview with Donovan after his goal:
Los Angeles Galaxy: Video: | Landon Donovan scores his first goal for Everton - Video

Cahill starts harassing him around 1:30.

Thanks! Gotta love Cahill, dude has a sense of humor haha

Maybe I'll try the G&D, especially if it's more subdued than the ECS locations!

Can't wait for the Chelsea game. I just watched the Hull/Man City game last night on the Tivo (FSC did get that one), and it was fun to watch Altidore run all over Man City's defense. Hooray upset! Let's make another upset this next match, eh? Who's with me?

 

[MLS is not quite EPL]

we're not getting this on tv, are we?

EDIT: just looked it up, on Setanta. Dammit. I only have FSC.

 

[BlueMedley]

I believe this all started with discussions about how well American athletes in other sports would do at football. LD is a prototypical football player in America, too small for gridiron and basketball, not quite fast enough for track and field, but an extremely good athlete, fast, smart, great balance and body control, superb coordination.

Kobe used to live in Italy when he was young while his dad played basketball, and he's said that if he did move back to that States he'd be playing for Milan. And I believe that.


As far as Donovan goes, it seems like each performance becomes more and more lackluster. I hope he turns it on again cuz at this point i think I'd only take him on loan again next season.

 

[thebes20]

This whole American football Vs Soccer rant is stupid.
The only position in AF that compares to soccer is actually the field goal kicker vs the PK taker, and in that AF wins hands down. The PK taker has the keeper to contend with, while shooting up close. The field goal kicker has the opposing team in front of him and may have to kick it through the uprights at 40+ yards out.
Other than that, soccer requires more skill, SINCE, there are few great soccer players that started playing in their late teens, and made it to the pros, while many AF players do not start playing until high school.
They are two totally different games. Both have their fans and detractors.
I grew up watching football and watch every Miami Dolphins game, BUT I love soccer.

 

[thebes20]

Kobe used to live in Italy when he was young while his dad played basketball, and he's said that if he did move back to that States he'd be playing for Milan. And I believe that.


As far as Donovan goes, it seems like each performance becomes more and more lackluster. I hope he turns it on again cuz at this point i think I'd only take him on loan again next season.

A bit harsh I think. He has played like what 5 games in the EPL and has done some nice things, including a goal. There are few players in the MLS that can make the journey over to the PL and start and contribute. And he has.
He plays in a different role at Everton, in that he is not the player that the game revolves around. They have a lot of good players. The USMNT and the MLS players always look to spring him out into space and that is not the case here. He has adjusted well I think. The next game will be interesting.

 

[Garbaggio]

I believe this all started with discussions about how well American athletes in other sports would do at football. LD is a prototypical football player in America, too small for gridiron and basketball, not quite fast enough for track and field, but an extremely good athlete, fast, smart, great balance and body control, superb coordination.

Don't mean to nit-pick at your post Catamount, but when the U.S. trained at an Olympic training center in Colorado, USA Track and Field ran tests on the U.S. players and declared that Donovan possessed the short burst of an Olympic sprinter.

 

[Huey]

we're not getting this on tv, are we?

EDIT: just looked it up, on Setanta. Dammit. I only have FSC.

Showing at the George and Dragon replayed at 7PM PT. I can make it due to work but it sounds like there will be a least five Evertonians there.

I don't know when other places will be showing it but you can find places that have Setanta in your area here: Venue Finder2 | Setanta I'd call and verify with the venue first though before making plans.