RailHawks grind Rhino horns into powder, rebalance trade deficit with China

USL-1
Carolina RailHawks 1, Rochester Rhinos 0
18 April 2009
Cary, NC

In the murky wilds of Cary, NC the Carolina RailHawks claimed the collective hide of the Rochester Rhinos with a 53rd minute goal by Salleu Bundu. The goal poacher from Sierra Leone gave the home fans a much-deserved reward for their consistent, if tepid exhortations. This was the first time in six attempts that the ‘Hawks had been able to sink its talons into Rochester and now have maximum points from their first two league matches.

The goals should have been faster in coming and if not for the inspired play of long time Rhino’s netminder Scott Vallow, the second half would have been devoid of tension. Carolina dominated possession for much of the opening stanza and though the game had become choppy and increasingly violent by the end of the first half hour, it was clear that the crash of hyperborean Rhinoceros was lost in the Appalachian piedmont ecotome.

While dominating in possession, Carolina struggled to find clinical form inside the 18 and 6 yard boxes, squandering a beakful of chances. Part of the trouble was the lack of support provided to lone runner Bundu by attacking central midfielder Plotkin, who remained anonymous throughout most of the half. His Rochester counterpart, the 5 foot 6 inch Johnny Menyongar was well marked out of the match by Lowrey, Stewart, and Schulte whose combined height gives the RailHawks 18 feet 7 inches of defense in the middle of the park.

Rochester did not manage to sustain any possession at all until the 41st minute and their forward surge left them open for a swift counter that Paladini contrived to blunder when all signs pointed to a half-time advantage for the home side. It was an encouraging display, sullied only by a lack of crispness in front of goal and three yellow cards for the ‘Hawks, McKenney’s coming on the stroke of halftime.

The second stanze opened with an attackin flurry that may have been inspired by the syncopated thrashings of the half time tae-kuon-do performance. In the 47th minute Vallow again came to the Rhinos’ rescue as he saved well from Gardner who profited from Bundu’s muscular efforts and delightful lay-off. In the 52nd, Plotkin made his presence known with a steal deep in the attacking half, and played Paladini into the box with Vallow well beaten. Yet a casual toepoke sent the ball against the post and back to the grateful keeper. It was only two minutes later that Bundu slashed into the six yard box to expertly turn in Gardner’s cross.

A frustrated crash of Rhinos is a dangerous thing. In the 56th, left mid Earle came raging into Kreamelmeyer from behind and received a straight red. This turned out to be the best thing possible for the visitors who took advantage of Carolina’s newly relaxed attitude to fashion several chances. Yet Carolina continued to have possession and created more good chances of their own, the best falling to Plotkin who flubbed a rolling ball past the far post with only gnats and oxygen to beat. The Hawks’ lack of precision in front of goal should have cost them at least two points in the 73rd and 82nd minutes as the looming Tai Atieno might have done better with a pair of free headers at the RailHawks’ back post.

The game became even more delicately balanced when RailHawks right back Devon McKenney was shown his marching papers for a second bookable offense. There was some suspicion of softness about each of the cards he received, but the tone of the game had deteriorated to overt aggression towards the end. Rochester’s Ball was shown a straight red in the 90th minute for unknown reasons, brining the card total to 6 yellow and 3 red. Carolina finished with an 11 to 1 advantage in corners, and 12 to 8 in shots - strong indications of which side of the field most of the game happened.

The RailHawks look for an unprecedented third victory in a row next Sunday at 2pm against the Minnesota Thunder.

The Shirt

This is the text of a speech delivered at Trinity University on March 27 as part of the 2nd annual Timothy Isom fund-raising banquet. Dozens of soccer jerseys were auctioned off to raise money for a memorial. Isom died suddenly at the age of 22, just after his graduation from Trinity.

The shirt

Soccer’s great poet-historian Eduardo Galeano recounts the tale of a Gimnasia de La Plata fan who, knowing he was going to die, asked to be buried in the shirt of their bitter rivals, Estudiantes de La Plata. His lifelong friends, shocked that he would betray them at the end asked, ¿por qué?. He responded: so I can take one of those bastards with me.

From a distance, you can tell this is a soccer shirt. It’s not a Hawaiian, or a polo, or a tee, it’s a soccer shirt. It has a badge, distinct colors, a history. Sure, it has a sponsor and a globally recognized corporate icon and is probably manufactured in a sweatshop, but it’s stylish, comfortable, embodied, laden with meaning. You have likely seen this shirt before, in person with tens of thousands, or tele-visually with hundreds of millions. You are receiving messages; the shirt is doing the talking, it awaits your response.

Manchester United formed in 1878, when Florida was still a Spanish possession. Arsenal first took the pitch in 1886, the same year Geronimo surrendered his guns after 15 years of resisting the U.S. army. Liverpool first kicked about in 1892, just as British ships left ‘Pudlian docks for the Opium Wars in China. Chelsea arrayed themselves on the pitch in 1905, prompting Einstein to propose his theory of relativity. Red Devils and Gunners, Reds and Blues their histories contained within the collective memory of those who have worn and loved the shirt. The shirt is talking to you more than it was a minute ago.

Lao Tzu (sage footballer that he was) was asked by a student how he could best demonstrate love for his team. Master Tzu, who practiced a form of goalkeeping known as “saving without diving”, replied: score goal, kiss shirt.

One of the greatest signs of respect in the beautiful game is to trade shirts with a worthy opponent. With this act, you give your number, your shield, your identity, your sweat and blood, your shirt for gods’ sakes, to your adversary; a mutual exchange that years later, when you find it in your bottom drawer, you will remember the man, the moment, the game, the stadium, the result. The shirt gets heavier by the day.

Shirts bring us closer to those who see them hanging in their lockers. We buy their likeness so we can be part of the team, even though we could never play for it. The Argentines respect the shirt of the fan more than that of the players, because the fan will wear it for longer. You may easily pull one on, but it may be impossible to take off.

It is time to call it what it is: a complex symbol of multivariate interaction that both defines and transforms the individual while communicating socio-geographic messages of identity, place, and meaning. It is a symbol, a fashion statement, encapsulated history, a marker of identity, a sense of belonging, a memory, a man, a teammate, a son who is no longer with us.

Shirts. What do they tell us?

FIFA thinks they are so sacred that you can’t take one off in joy or anger. Referees tell us to tuck them in, opponents pull them to gain advantage, they expand in the middle over time. Archaeologists may have discovered that the shirt was born when a group of cave dwelling lads decided to go out hunting rabbits. “What shall we wear to hunt rabbits?”, they asked. “How about a shirt?”, they answered. It is unclear what the rabbits wore.

A shirt does not only function in one direction. The shirt takes everything you will give it: your heart, sweat, blood, passions, your life. Ideally, it comes to represent that which is best in us, shows us our limitations and helps us to overcome them through a collective commitment to something greater than ourselves. Although it is not necessarily a badge of courage, the badge is worn with courage (especially in enemy territory). It is defended and honored and kissed and held high. When a sea of fans transforms a stadium with their shirts, they become greater than the sum of their parts – they create and participate in history.

Tonight we ask you to think about the value of a shirt. You can walk into any soccer store and pay $80 dollars for any shirt you want, scribble a name on it and Bob’s your bloody uncle. The shirts collected here tonight are special because they come directly from the grandest temples of the beautiful game. These shirts have touched human greatness, handled personally by the earthbound gods of our time. Their namesakes have performed on our brightest stages for incredible stakes. This is a chance to touch that, to wear it, to feel the power of the shirt.

These shirts represent the apex of an entire complex of relationships, spaces, places, and events. Right now, in Manilla and Marfa, San Antonio and Sao Paolo, Durban and Dublin, there are millions of kids practicing, dreaming that one day they will pull on one of these shirts in a competitive match. They have been doing so for more than a century.

With this global context in mind, these shirts are much more than they appear. They are powerful symbols recognized the world over. Tonight they take on extra significance, an extra level of respect and meaning.

We are brought together by the shirt, the team, and the community that meant so much to Tito. Tito wears the Trinity shirt in his final resting place. To remember his life, his love for the shirt, and what he gave to us, we gather to create place, to build a stadium, to erect a memorial so that those who follow will better understand the meaning and memories behind the colors.

We are here to honor and remember those who have worn the Trinity shirt, lived with this second skin, been marked by it and left their mark on all that follow. This is a Trinity University soccer shirt. This is me, this is you, this is us, this is Tito.

USA 3, Sweden 2

Cary, NC is a sad and dark place. Beware to those adventurous souls who brave its divided highways to go to a faux Irish pub to watch the national team in action. The most impressive feature of O'Denny's (aka Hibernian) is that it manages to get two apostrophes in its name. They also serve a mean pork chop. But for watching a game of football, it's absolute rubbish.

Though it is a stretch to correlate the quality of the US national team's B side with the geopolitical quagmire of Cary, it seemed like a reasonable assumption at the time. Most USAmerican soccer players come from suburbia, Cary is the paradigm of suburbia, therefore the shameful quality of the side on display against Sweden witnessed in the simulacra of an Irish pub on a non-descript street in the middle of an equally anonymous landscape was a direct result of the socio-spatial conditions of its production.

There was plenty to be appreciated in the play of Sacha Kleijstan however. Though Sweden offered scant resistance other than their ubiquitous christian muscularity, Kleijstan was clearly in command of the game. Fresh off a week's trial with Glasgow Celtic, the CD Chivas USA midfielder looked the business well before he stepped up to lash a 30 yard free kick into the top left corner. A stunning way to score one's first international goal. His second came before half time through a half-deserved penalty as right back Wynn was caressed to the penalty box grass. Kleijstan's third was borne of a piece of brilliant control from Ching, who brought under control a ball that came over his head, took a touch, and slotted through two defenders to the onrushing Kliejstan who side footed home with his left. A glorious hat trick - unfortunately, the shameful defensive line of the USA made sure all three were necessary. (all goals available at www.tvgolo.com)

All in all, our B team is one goal better than Sweden's B team. Kliejstan cemented his roster spot for 2010. R We may see him in the starting lineup against Mexico on Feb. 11th. odgers (especially), Bornstein, Perkins, and Thorrington are out of the mix and that is as good as finding someone to fill a position at this point for head coach Bob Bradley. The Mexico match starts the final round of qualifying for 2010 and will be a blood and guts battle in Columbus.

Railhawks announce new head coach

Railhawks announce Martin Rennie as head coach

The Carolina Railhawks announced Scotsman Martin Rennie as the team’s new head coach. Rennie comes to the Railhawks from the Cleveland City Stars of the USL’s Second Division. At Cleveland, Rennie compiled an impressive record, taking the Stars to the USL-2 semi-finals in his first year and winning the league in his second year. This is clearly a coach who knows how to develop and implement functional tactical systems. Rennie is also noted for his ability to maximize player potential. A high percentage of his acolytes went directly into the MLS or foreign professional leagues following their stint in Cleveland.

Rennie comes to Cary with Europe’s highest coaching qualification: the UEFA “A” license. This is an unusual accomplishment for someone who has yet to begin plucking grey hairs before press conferences. Rennie also carries the UEFA youth license, which will be a huge asset in identifying and developing local talent to bring through the Railhawks’ fledgling development system. He has significant connections with professional teams in Europe, Africa, and the Caribbean and suggested that he will immediately look to add to the international character of the Railhawks’ squad.

During today’s well-attended press conference, Railhawks owner and president Brian Wellman identified the synergy between the Railhawks organization and Rennie saying “we are here to deepen our roots in the community, promote a family-friendly soccer environment, and put a championship team on the field. Martin will bring us consistency, a winning attitude, and a proven track record of success.” Wellman was also very clear that the Railhawks are not content to just compete in USL-1 but will continue to bring in top Mexican and MLS teams, and will target the new CONCACAF Champions League which would bring meaningful (and lucrative) international competition to WakeMed Soccer park.

Among the key changes that fans can look for will be a new attitude on the training ground. Rennie gave every indication that he expects players to work within his tactical system and to be committed to team play. The individual midfield peregrinations of Nuñes, Watson, and Fusilier may be a thing of the past. “Winning is not enough,” Rennie said, “we want to win with style and we want to win as a team.”

Fans can expect Rennie’s Railhawks to play a fast tempo game that is possession orientated (vs. lumping the ball forward), that builds from the back, and that works collectively to defend (vs. waiting for Chris McClellan to work miracles in goal). Perhaps the most encouraging statement of the afternoon was when Rennie said, “Winning is nice, but it is much sweeter when you can share the joy with the community.” While the Railhawks represent a bigger stage on which to display his coaching acumen, Rennie seems to understand that he is part of a much larger endeavor.

The Railhawks have a hugely talented group of players to draw from and Rennie will have much work to do in the coming months as he restructures what has been a disfunctional team culture. The Railhawks will host open tryouts on December 13th and 14th and hope to capture some local talent who are knocking around in the many Latino leagues in the Triangle. Though the 2009 season seems impossibly far away, it began in earnest today. The Railhawks have made a hugely positive step in hiring Martin Rennie: bienvenidos al triangulo, laddie.

Rilhawks weekend preview

Railhawks v. Battery Preview

In a final flurry of very ruffled feathers, the Cary-based Carolina Railhawks flap into a doubleheader against the Charelston Battery and Portland Timbers in USL-1’s final weekend. The stakes are high, as anything less than six points will snare no better than an 8th place finish for the sophomore ‘Hawks. In addition to winning two in two, they only make the playoffs if Atlanta and Minnesota choke.

On the bright side, if they do manage this Sisyphean task, they will be in the playoffs, which is of uncertain benefit other than fashioning a mantle of Cinderella to be lugged about. On the confusing side, why are there only seven teams in the playoffs? The Hawks finished 8th last year and made it in before being beaten soundly by Seattle.

It has been a rough year for the Railhawks who have struggled to find consistency, though they have been playing much better of late. The additions of players from Cuba, El Salvador, Mexico, Uruguay and Chile have begun to gel with those from Raleigh, California, Colorado, England, and Cote d’Iviore (to name a few), scoring 21 goals in their last nine games. There is a core of young talent spiced with some graybeards in their early 30s, which bodes well for the future. This season will look better in the Annals of American Soccer.

Before the avoidable 1-1 draw with Rochester last weekend, Scott Schweitzer pleaded for patience from the fans, and possibly the management. It was a pretty convincing plea, until with a 1-0 lead in the 82nd minute, an attacker was pulled off for a defender and in the 82nd minute it was 1-1. Even the staunchly supportive commentating crew were aghast at the decision which left the ‘Hawks scratching out a point when three were beak-bound.

Regardless of their chances of getting to the playoffs, I always recommend that people go to see the Railhawks play. They feature a great mix of international and home grown soccer talent in a comfortable, public transportation-free place to watch it. Almost like home, with all the niggling beauty of reality. You might also want to see proof of the old Wall Street adage: even if you don’t make it, they will come.

Carolina Railhawks v. Charleston Battery

USL-1 Regular Season Match

Wake Med Soccer Park

Cary, NC

September 6, 2008

Wake Med Soccer Park is one of the finest venues in the United States to watch soccer, if you have a car. The total absence of public transportation to the stadium would be more noticeable if anyone seemed to mind.

A light crowd came out to see the last place ‘Hawks roll the dice in their bid to reach the post-season. They were facing a Charleston Battery team that had looked very impressive in a 2-1 loss to D.C. United in the final of the U.S. Open Cup on Wednesday. Almost everything went well for the home side as they notched three goals for the third time in five games.As Charleston sat back and hoped to spring on the counter, Carolina dominated early possession, attacking with fluidity through Ronald Cerritos in the center of midfield. When they were able to get the ball to the flanks, Nuñez took on defenders with his usual aplomb, creating trouble in the Battery backfield.

As the ‘Hawks opened some space they were reluctant to play early balls over the top, and after several abortive attempts Cerritos finally hit a one time ball through to Diallo who was bundled over in the box in the 25th minute. The ref did not hesitate in pointing to the spot, and Kupono Low stepped up to slot a wonderful penalty past the outstretched arms of Huddock.Inexplicably, Carolina did not press their advantage in possession but resorted to lobbing balls into the 6’4” Antoniuk, who paid dearly for his yeoman efforts in a nasty aerial collision with the 6’4” Nylen. An all too typical clash of monsters in the USL. It wasn’t long after that Cerritos, who should simply know better at his age, went flying into a 50-50 ball, smashing heads with a Battery defender and crumpled in a heap on the grass. The ref called for a stretcher, but all that could be found at WakeMed was a roller chair. One wonders if the trainers ask the players for their insurance cards. Unfortunately, Cerritos could not continue after the half-hour mark.

In the 37th, Charleston finally came to life and demonstrated some of the flowing soccer that put them in the Open Cup final. Five deft touches through midfield released Richardson on the left wing and his cross put Carolina’s back line to the test. Soon after, another midfield combination released Jamie Holmes on the right wing and his angled slot slid perilously close but Carolina escaped the danger.After a period of listlessness, Carolina responded through another series of passes in which play switched from left to right. Nunez released Diallo on the left, who played centrally to Waston, who slotted to the overlapping Curfman. His cross was directed into the net by Alewari in the 43rd minute. Charleston nearly pulled one back in injury time, but McClellan ended the half without having to make a save.

The half time entertainment featured the Railhawk Dancers performing a mock gang war, ironic given the recent escalation of gang violence in both Raleigh and Durham that seems a world, and not miles, away from Cary. There were also racing dogs and kids playing small sided games, in case anyone keeps track of these things.

Nothing much was generated by either side in the opening 20 minutes of the second half. Diallo continued to look slippery and dangerous running at the defense but it was Antoniuk who deserved the third goal of the night. Receiving a bouncing ball with his back to goal, he flicked over his defender and took the falling ball at full volley, sending it screaming to the top left corner. Hudock was equal to the task, flying across the goal to tip just over. This alone was worth the price of admission: two moments of athletic genius within one second.

The Battery are a good side, and they continued to look for combinations through midfield to prize open the heretofore stingy defense. A neat one-two in the attacking third allowed Spicer a chance to outmuscle Stokes and power underneath McClellan, who will wish he had another chance.

In the 74th minute, Diallo was taken off and Carolina looked to lock down their 2-1 advantage. They managed to give much of the initiative to Charleston who could not make too much of ten minutes of sustained pressure. As Carolina began to go backwards as much as forwards, this commentator was anticipating the worst, until a long sequence of passes ended with Curfman finding Watson on the right wing. Watson neatly turned his defender, dribbled to the line and cut back for the surging Cuban, Rey Martinez, who scored on his home debut. 3-1, and three points for Carolina.

This was one of the better displays of the season for the Railhawks who looked intent and confident. They continued their mastery of Charleston, running their all-time record to 5-0 against their Southern Derby opponents.
With three games to play, Carolina will need to put together even better performances if they are to defy the odds-makers who last week put their chances at a playoff spot at 5%. Nonetheless, they played well, scored some goals and will keep those that were there coming back for more.

Railhawks lose again, come to screeching halt in cellar

Montreal Impact v. Carolina Railhawks

USL-1

8 August 2008

Cary, NC

Wake Med Soccer Park

Do RailHawks bounce when they hit the ground?

The numbers are not pretty, but do tell the story. In the last 6 games, the Railhawks have scored two goals, suffering five shutouts. They have scored just 19 goals in 22 games, conceding 31. They have not won since June 27, and since then have taken 3 out of a possible 27 points. The strains of Ozzy Ozborne’s “Crazy Train” that play as the team is introduced should be replaced with Tom Petty’s “Freefalling”. It might soften the blow for the crowd.

At the end of another anemic performance marked by mental lapses, bitching at the ref, another churlish red card for Stokes (3^rd in 10 games), and a gear grinding attack, the disgust was about as palpable as it is likely to get in Cary. A dozens fans took their souvenir Frisbees and heaved them onto the pitch, a strong statement in staid suburbia.

This was the first choice team for coach Schweitzer and on paper one that looks the business. But after an opening five minutes of nice possession and good movement, the wheels fell off as Montreal countered, breaking the trap. Segovia lost precious ground as he remonstrated with the linesman. Jefferson took full advantage, turning the Chilean in the box and slotting past McClellan into the far corner. That really made an Impact. Having NEVER won after going a goal down, the only remaining work was to chart the positives and negatives of the players in terms of possession and influence.

Player	Positive		Negative
McClellan	3		2
SanFilippo	3		9 hideous going forward
Segovia	2		2 ball and fwd, not ref!
Stokes	2		3 another red card!
Worthen	2		0 pulled hammy, really odd luck there
Fusilier	0		5 subbed at ½ time
Low	7		3 solid in DCMF role
Watson	4		7 lost on right wing, more comfortable in middle
Nunez	5		4 no service in 2nd ½
Cerritos	3		5 static
Antoniuk	2		1 lack of service, hard work
Diallo	1		1 sparked attack briefly
Norkus Curfman		1	5 not a left back, easily gave away poss. Late sub, some nice touches
		2

It’s hard to know what to say about a team with no clear direction. For now, the only way to go is up, but that seems increasingly unlikely given the force of the impact of their crash into the cellar. Next up: Miami FC and the return of Connaly Edozien. Has enough time passed to call him prodigal? No matter, he’ll likely score a brace.

Vancouver Whitecaps v. Carolina Railhawks

Vancouver Whitecaps v. Carolina Railhawks
USL-1
1 August 2008
Cary, NC
Wake Med Soccer Park
Partly cloudy, balmy, perfect field conditions
TV: Fox Soccer Channel

It was a big week for Carolina in the front office. Gone was Connoley Edozien, last year’s leading scorer and stylish poster child. In comes fading El Salvadorian star Ronald Cerritos and rising Mexican estrella Eddie Gutierrez (click for more details). National television cameras were rolling, skies were clear, a much needed three points for the 9^th place Railhawks , lovely night for optimism and football.

After the most soulful rendition of “O Canada” this commentator has ever heard, it took less than one minute for Vancouver to score. Carolina kicked off, passed backwards (as is their wont), Low lost possession at left back, and gave up a foul deep into the right attacking third. Vancouver threw five players into the box (five of them 6’1” or bigger, with two verifiable monstros at 6’5” 220+ pounds), the ball bounced around, got rammed back across the front of goal, one nil, Bob’s your uncle. Carolina had the pleasure of being the first team in USL-1 to kick off twice within 75 seconds this year.

Nine minutes later, the groans were even more audible from the directors box. After right wing Fusilier rashly fouled in the depth of the ‘Caps’ tidal surge, McClellan bobbled the threatening cross, no ‘Hawks could move with so many huge standing waves around, 2-0. Bob’s your uncle and your father.

Things weren’t too bad for Carolina after that. Though they continued with their nasty habit of wasting free kicks and corners and their forwards have lost the confidence to take people on with the meager service they get, they looked pretty good for long stretches. Vancouver never really got much going, depending on the physicality of their forwards and pace of their defenders to generate and close openings. Santiago Fusilier gave some real delight to the home fans with an 18^th minute strike from outside the area. A thing of beauty, artfully lobbed over the ‘keeper, dipping just below the bar, diving into goal over the head of an outstretched Whitecap. Lovely stuff and well deserved. Hope sprung. It was mortally wounded in the 35^th minute.

For the third time in two home games, the ‘Hawks gifted a goal that left McClellan with no chance. Low’s one time pass to retreating center midfielder Solle (who had a disaster) was intercepted, Segovia was exposed holding a high Chilean line, and Eduardo Sebrango didn’t need his tiocubano to help him make it 3-1. The sound of air leaving a roof-less stadium is very odd indeed.

Though all was lost, the referee soon completed his rightful duty as an entertainment manager and expelled Vancouver’s incredibly pacy right back Takashi Hirano in the 43^rd minute for a blistering two footed tackle on Dombrowski. Carolina made no use of the ensuing freekick or man advantage until the 83^rd minute.

After Zuzga, Lemons, Curfman, Worthen and Antoniuk had been thrown into the mix for Norkus, Diallo, Fusilier, Dombrowski, ,and Solle, Nuñez pulled back a deserved goal for Carolina. As the game inexorably moved to its end, Vancouver held on to their three points like barnacles to a boat. Carolina screwed away several chances, hit the post, were denied by good saves, and their own lack of je ne sais qua.

They may be under some kind of curse. This is the thirteenth winless game on the trot. They have never once won after being a goal down and have only scored 3 goals in their last 5 games. Why then does the game get handed to the opposition within 60 seconds? Is there no idea of what to do at the very beginning of the game, much less adjust to it as it gets increasingly complicated? One wonders how this is going to translate to the new signings. Bienvenidos amigos, nececitamos ayuda. No le pasan la pelota al otro equipo, por favor.

Railhawks match report, 7/18/08

July 18, 2008

USL -1

Wake Med Soccer Park

Cary, North Carolina (National Geographic Article, very telling)

Carolina Railhawks 0 v. Puerto Rico Islanders 2

As usual, it rained just before the game, “killing the walk up”. Game time rain means many thousands of lost dollars to team management. Playing simply and intelligently in the back should mean more to the coaching staff. Both Puerto Rico goals were gifts: Carolina’s Solle and Stokes contrived to put Hansen through in the 16th minute through a bungled clearance. He simply couldn’t miss. Left-back Low’s seeing eye pass to attacking mid Villegas needed a touch but left McClellan no chance in the 34^th and the game was effectively done and dusted. Carolina has never come back to win after being two goals down, and there was the general sentiment that one point would constitute both moral and pyrrhic victories.

The first was perhaps the worst half of soccer Carolina has played all year. If not for the enterprise and bustle of the alas rioplatense, Nuñes and Fusilier, there was little energy to be found in the Railhawks’ nest. Like a climate threatened glacier, attacks were slow to develop and quickly ended. Set pieces were pedestrian, rarely threatening, and ill-rehearsed. To be fair, on the occasions when Carolina did get the ball into the box, the referee could have gone for three penalties and certainly should have given at least one. Does he have no sense of how to build positive emotion amongst a partisan crowd? For Chris’s sake (very funny), it’s a second division game in a suburb, it’s the 70^th minute of a 2-0 game, give a damn penalty to the home team to make it interesting!

The Hawks stay in 8^th place in the league, while the Islanders jump up to the top of the table for the first time this year, perhaps ever. Next up for the Hawks are the Rayados de Monterrey, Mexico who will be starting their first eleven in front of a partisan, Mexican crowd. If Carolina does not solve their back line problems soon, Jared Borgetti (you tube) will be shitting bird feathers for a week.

Darting away

It is difficult to talk critically about culture without poking a finger in someone’s eye. Since long before Hammurabi, we have been poking right back. From this we have no doubt come to understand the wisdom in keeping one’s singular eye on things such as the ball, the bottom line, the road, the prize, etc. With these trepidations in view, I venture into the world of darts.

As a cursory search of the internet and a modicum of casual observation will confirm that “darts began in the drinking halls of England”. The idea of drunken men slinging about shortened arrows at overturned wine barrels seems about right even now. Even the feaux cracks we see on modern dart boards are a remnant of medieval dudes throwing sharp points at an immovable object. I imagine that their spaces of sotted leisure were as given to banal expressions of masculine solidarity as ours, and that they drank the Miller Light and Budweiser (perhaps, Guinness) of their day.

I first played for Armed & Hammered in season 42 of the Bull City Dart League (hereafter, BCDL). Because it was my first season in the league and I had the highest average points per dart of the “rookies”, I was “BCDL Rookie of the Year”. I have a trophy to prove it. I also won a trophy for “high out”, meaning that my “136 out” in a singles game of 301 (where you have to count down and finish on zero by hitting a double) was the best in the league for the season. I was so excited about it that I took a picture of the darts, triple 20, triple 20, double 8. Overall, my numbers weren’t bad, but at around a 14 handicap I was in the middle of the statistical pack. There were guys throwing at 21 and 22, knocking down 180 once or twice a night, 5 marks on command, three bull outs to scare the pants off ya. I tell you, there were some serious players. And they keep some serious stats to prove it. It took me a full three weeks to figure out the scoring.

What seemed Byzantine in complexity turned out to be an interesting way of organizing an evening of arrows for between 10 and 16 people. As ESPN invariably flickered like a sad, decaying constellation in the background and Lynyrd Skynyrd hitched up his panties for another go at Freebird, with Joe Cocker limbering up in the box, some snuck outside for a “safety meeting”, everyone made sure their beers were full, the room filled with smoke and the game was on.

The BCDL kicked off at 8, finished by 11, and continually left me feeling either good about my darts and indifferent about the night, or badly about my darts and downright hostile for spending so much time and money thinking it was worth it. Nonetheless, I played another season (Season 43) of Tuesday nights in the BCDL (with two more trophies to boot), and then switched to the Triangle Dart League, now playing on a team called, Still Armed, More Hammered (see p. 2).

The geographic overlap between the BCDL and the TDL is minimal, only one bar, the West End Tavern (WET) hosts teams in each league. What these two leagues don’t cover in the Triangle the Raleigh Dart League with 8 divisions picks up in droves. All of these local teams and bars have an affiliation with the Piedmont Dart Association which has a fantastically complex and comprehensive geography of its own. But that organization is modest relative to the American Darts Organization (ADO) which is in turn humbled by the World Darts Federation. Successive levels of inanity each more befuddling than the next. However, if we look at the member countries, the ol’ British drinking game rears its head, with some EU company:

► AUSTRALIA ► AUSTRIA ► BAHAMAS ► BDO ► BELGIUM ► BRAZIL ► CANADA ► CZECH REP ► DENMARK ► ENGLAND ► FRANCE ► FINLAND ► GERMANY ► GIBRALTAR ► HONG KONG ► HUNGARY ► IRAN ► ITALY ► LATVIA ► LITHUANIA ► NETHERLANDS ► N. ZEALAND ► N. IRELAND ► NORWAY ► PAKISTAN ► PORTUGAL ► SCOTLAND ► SWEDEN ► SWITZERLAND ► USA ► WALES

Wait a minute…Who is that between Hungary and Italy? Perhaps the next president could establish some kind of “darts diplomacy” with our Persian brothers.

It seems absurd to comment on the culture of darts without talking about the places and people in more detail. The places where darts are thrown with something more than sloppy attention tend to have pool tables, electronic bar-top gambling, drop ceilings, fluorescent lighting, perpetual sports programming, primitive toilets, NFL/Budweiser advertising, and rock and roll on the three song for a dollar jukebox. The bars either don’t serve food or don’t do it well enough to bother. Some serve decent beer on tap, all have something good in bottles. A majority of people smoke. Nearly everyone drinks, and if they don’t it is likely on doctor’s orders. Whiskey shots are unceremonious. Fist punching, ubiquitous; high fives, impromptu and frequent. Casual racism, homophobia, and misogyny pervasive. Following tough norms of masculinity are welcomed, but not required. Being able to protect one’s self physically seems unnecessary, though fights are a part of life’s great mystery. There are also women present. To call it a disproportional representation would be both cruel and accurate, yet as I have frequently heard, "no one wants to lose to a team of bitches".

In short, the world of the BCDL and the TDL is a common one, where petty antagonisms and historical trajectories of intolerance manifest in predictable and lame forms. It’s almost hard to muster righteous cries of indignance when people are so grossly ignorant as to continue half-hearted, yet pointed attempts at making intolerance clever. Yet, in darts, it is ever necessary and increasingly important to get one’s point across. A small world in a large universe leaves little room for distinction.

CTG

April 7, 2008

Durham, NC

Carolina Railhawks (0) v. Red Bull New York (1)

Railhawks get feathers ruffled, lose to Red Bull New York 1-0

Cary, NC
March 28, 2008
Weather: low 60s, sight breeze, partly cloudy, lovely night for soccer

This is the most diverse place in Cary. The 5,426 fans that came to watch an exhibition match between the Carolina Railhawks of USL-1 and Red Bull New York of the MLS offered keen insight into the general demographic mix of the Triangle. For myriad reasons, soccer is something that white people like. Fortunately, soccer is also something that Latin Americans and African Americans like, making Wake Med Soccer Park one of the few places where the major demographic elements of the Triangle come together for a shared event. While socio-economic, linguistic, and geographic divides are in no way altered by the event, there is a sense of shared appreciation that pervades the soccer experience.

In addition to augmenting a sense of importance and connecting diverse social groups, the rituals surrounding any public event also provide insight into cultural norms. One of the most striking twists to the pre –game rituals was the introduction of the Railhawks players as they emerged from cars. Not just any cars, mind you, Saturns, Saturns of Cary. 1,2,3,4,5,6 different models appeared from behind the stands, each delivering players behind the north goal. As the teams right-faced for the national anthem, the cars were trying to back out of their precarious position. Unable to move quickly enough, the cars paused for the well-belted national hymn, engines idling, facing the flag. More cynical readers might get a whiff of the poetic, others might not think about it at all. I suppose we should be thankful that they weren’t brought in by rail or public transportation.

Another curious ritual was the presentation of the Railhawk Dancers. The curious practice of putting teen and pre-teen girls in skimpy costumes as they move suggestively in front of thousands of people (mostly males) apparently is well within the bounds of suburban normalcy. As a parenting technique, it is a bit off. Could it be that there were girls as young as 6 prancing about for visual consumption? One gentleman sitting to my side commented that he felt as if he were a protagonist in American Beauty and was discomfited by that prospect. When we start suggesting to girls at such a young age that they are valued for their ability to successfully “perform” ritualized expressions of sexuality for consumption by the public gaze, what hope is there?

There was so much to think about before the game started that had forgotten why I was there in the first place. Having Red Bull NY in town was a rare opportunity to see former USA national team captain Claudio Reyna and the rising star Jozy Altidore. It was also a great opportunity to see some of the Railhawks’ new signings and to check out the changes that the front office and head coach Scott Schweitzer have made.

From the beginning the gap in quality between the two teams was evident. New York came out with a 3-5-2 which allowed Reyna freedom to dictate the pace through midfield. Carolina, as ever, play a traditional 4-4-2 with an emphasis on the 4s. The first ten minutes of the match revealed some of the differences between MLS and USL, with NY controlling the tempo and exhibiting greater confidence with and fluidity off the ball. However, those intimate with the foibles of US American soccer will not be surprised to hear that even at the highest professional level our players still have difficulty crossing the ball.

Local fans familiar with the anemic attack of 2007 will not be surprised that the Railhawks marked their vernal nesting grounds by laying a goose egg on the scoreboard. However, there was evidence that things could change through the sprightly, knavish, incisive, dynamic Martin Nuñez. Without knowing a thing about this 21-yr old attacking midfielder, it was obvious at first glance that his football is fútbol, molded on the banks of the Rio de la Plata. There needs to be an immediate competition for a nickname for this guy who plays like a small burrito Ortega.

Despite, and perhaps because of, the lack of collective organization going forward the Carolina defense stood out as quick, solid and experienced. Goalkeeper Chris McClellan was in control of his box, veteran center back David Stokes looked imperious, and captain Frankie San Filippo provided good defensive cover on several occasions. Though NY had the majority of possession, Carolina were only undone by a spectacular volley from 20 yards that flew into the top left corner. This was probably the best goal Dave van den Berg has scored in years.

Tactically, Carolina lost shape badly in transition, went backwards as frequently as they went forwards, and could not find anyone to pair with the creativity and guile of second half sub Fusilier, who comes from the same Rio de la Plata mold as Nuñez. Carolina did not make the most of the few chances gifted them by the Bulls – forward Joel Bailey making a hash of several counterattacking possibilities. In fact, Carolina only mustered one shot on goal all night. Thus, the biggest cheers of the evening were for free t-shirts. An interesting social science experiment would be to see how many t-shirts it would take for the crowd to become indifferent. Would there be as many unbridled expressions of desire if everyone had at least one? What if they changed the t-shirt every time? What if the Railhawk Dancers intimated the throwing of shirts but then left the crowd in the lurch? Would that only increase their lust for Bangladeshi cotton products?

The Carolina Railhawks are playing in the USL-1 for the second year. The Carolina RailHawks Women will play seven home games in the Atlantic Division of the USL W-League. Wake Med Soccer Park is also home to the Cary RailHawks U23’s, who will play in the Southeast Division of the PDL (Professional Development League, equivalent to the 4^th division). Stay tuned.

Manuel Negrete

Tonight I completed a kind of pilgrimage. Twenty one years ago, I was a spotty faced teenager who was fortunate enough to be playing in a soccer tournament in Portsmouth, England. My fortune was doubled because we were able to watch the World Cup every day, something that would not have been possible had I been home in Texas. On June 15th we headed down to the pub to watch Mexico vs. Bulgaria in round of sixteen match, the winner going on to face Germany in the 1/4 final. Mexico had never been further than the round of 16. They were playing in the nation's capital, playing in the largest stadium in North America, 114,580 fans packing the Estadio Azteca to the roof. Bulgaria, coached by the peripatetic Bora Mulitinovic, was a disciplined side prone to fits fo violence. Mexico had great hopes, recovering from the earthquake, asserting itself on the international stage, playing decent football, that sort of thing. Thirty one minutes into the first half, this happened: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drU2OzGuVfQ

There might be words to explain that goal, but I can't find them.

Tonight, I met the man who did it, Manuel Negrete. Negrete looks like many ex professional soccer players of a certain caliber. He is tanned, fit, confident, well-spoken and handles the press easily. We chatted in the kitchen area of the press box for about ten minutes. It's hard to know what to ask someone who has entered into the global consciousness in ways that you or I can never hope to do. He told me that last year, to mark the 20th anniversary of his goal, the Bulgarians flew him over for a tribute. Everywhere he goes, people ask him about the goal. He is clearly used to talking about it and has well polished answers: "very proud of my accomplishment", "it's opened some doors", "just one great moment in a long career". That goal clearly changed his life. He often finds himself in the same room, at the same dinner table, as Pele, Cruyff, Beckenbauer, Sanchez. He is known throughout the world, by people born after that goal. I remember trying to practice that movement, that goal, that moment of genius again and again in the backyard, always failing and flailing. I'm sure there were many others trying to do the same. This was one of the purest moments of genius on one of the biggest stages of anykind, in one of the most pressure filled situations imaginable. Conjured out of (literally) thin air, the unmistakable brilliance is impossible to diminish.

But for all the glory and fame that has come of that one moment (12:35pm, 15 June 1986), that one goal that etched Negrete into the stone of the immortals, he is still trying to find his way, coaching here and there, working as a technical director, trying to find some way to latch onto the money machine that is global (and Mexican) soccer. After a 20 year career that took him from UNAM Pumas, to Sporting Lisbon and Sporting Gijon of Spain (a rarity for a Mexican in those days) he has taken up coaching, received his masters in soccer administration from the Johann Cruyff University (http://www.cruyffacademics.org/), served as technical director for Atalante and is currently on tour with Cruz Azul of the Mexican first divsion as part of Tecate's bid to sell more beer to the huge U.S. based Mexican community. I left our interview more impressed than I was 21 years ago when I stood up screaming in an English pub.

So after twenty-one years of thinking about that goal, I have met the man who scored it. A small circle is complete and he and I go our ways in the world of football.

Railhawks article in the Independent Weekly

Top left: Kupono Low’s winning goal goes past Charleston goalkeeper in the RailHawks’ victory on May 19. Bottom left: Scott Schweitzer, head coach of the Carolina RailHawks, at practice. Above: RailHawks players celebrate the Low’s winning goal against Charleston at SAS Soccer Park in Cary.

Poised to fly

The Carolina RailHawks bring professional soccer back to the Triangle. Will they remake the culture of the suburbs in the process?

by chris Gaffney • photos by Rex Miller

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s the team bus pulls into RE/MAX Greater Atlanta Stadium at Silverbacks Park, the stadium name is not the only source of confusion. The facility is still under construction, so there are no locker rooms, only trailers. The grass isn’t grass, it’s turf. The press box has no functional electrical outlets. It isn’t even a box, just plywood on scaffolding. It’s Saturday night in early May, and the RailHawks left Cary at 7 a.m. this morning, having battled the Puerto Rico Islanders to a 0-0 draw the night before. Head coach Scott Schweitzer knows his team and its stingy defense will put up a good fight against the Atlanta Silverbacks, but will they have the legs for 90 minutes? An early goal could be the difference.

With the arrival of the Carolina RailHawks, the latest expansion franchise in the USL-1 league, the Triangle now has a team that is professional soccer’s equivalent of the AAA Durham Bulls baseball club. The RailHawks play at Cary’s 7,000 capacity SAS Soccer Park, a field that attracts nationwide attention because it is considered one of the top soccer venues in the country (an opinion confirmed by strolling across the billiard-table-smooth grass).

The team is an odd mixture of local success stories, journeyman professionals and rising young talent. Earning monthly salaries ranging from $1,500 to $4,500 per month, players from England, Ireland, Ghana, Trinidad, Brazil and Argentina combine with those from 14 states to form one of the deepest pools of talent in the league. Among them are Nigerian-born Connally Edozien, a powerful midfielder with delightful moves and vision; David Stokes, a graceful, tough defender who spent three years with D.C. United of the MLS; and Santiago Fusilier, a knavish young midfielder who came to the team via N.C. State University and Buenos Aires.

The team is overseen by the 35-year-old Schweitzer, an intense man with the bearing of a drill sergeant—and indeed, his specialty as a player and a coach has been defense. Schweitzer, who played for N.C. State in the early ’90s, spent most of his 15-year career with the Rochester Raging Rhinos and was twice named USL-1 Defender of the Year. Now, he looks focused and concerned as his team faces its first road trip, less than 24 hours after last night’s frustrating draw. “Having squandered six points at home [their first three home games were draws, worth one point; wins are worth three], we are playing to win,” Schweitzer says. “We’re going to play our style of soccer. If we do the right things for long enough, we will eventually start winning.”

The

team is the fledging brainchild of Chris Economides, a member of the U.S. Soccer Hall of Fame and longtime owner of professional soccer teams. Originally from Rochester, N.Y., Economides co-founded the USL-1 Rochester Raging Rhinos in 1996 and developed it into one of the top 10 small market sport franchises in the country. MLS considered elevating his Rochester club to major-league status, but Economides decided to look for a new project that he could call his own. After scouting viable markets with strong youth leagues, soccer traditions and supportive city governments, Economides settled on Cary, which had partnered with Wake County to build the $14.5 million State Capital Soccer Park in 2002 and was home to the now-defunct professional women’s team Carolina Courage.

Indeed, it’s easy to see why Economides saw the Triangle as a golden opportunity. With registered players numbering around 20,000 and recreational players pushing 50,000, it is a rare Triangle resident who does not know someone who plays, watches or drives someone to play soccer. In fact, seven members of the current squad—including University of North Carolina alums Chris Carrieri and Caleb Norkus, and N.C. State’s Eric Kaufman, Santiago Fusilier, ex-national team member Dario Brose plus Schweitzer—played at local universities. More local talent is in the pipeline playing with the RailHawks’ under-23 squad (the Cary RailHawks) in the USL’s Professional Development League (PDL). The Triangle is one of the United States’ soccer hotbeds and was ripe for a professional soccer team.

Economides, who formed the RailHawks’ parent company Triangle Professional Soccer in October, 2005 said, “We’ve formed a true partnership with the mayor’s office and have had total cooperation from them. They are fair and decent people who have really helped to get this off the ground.” The launching of a team that has to underwrite travel between places as far away as Vancouver, British Columbia and San Juan, Puerto Rico is no small endeavor, and Economides has courted local investors to anchor the project in the community. “There weren’t too many stumbling blocks with the city or the league,” Economides said. “We’ve hit a couple here and there, but our partners are so committed that we’ve been able to deal with them.”

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ack in Atlanta, the game is delicately balanced. The ’Hawks conceded an 18th-minute penalty kick and need to press forward in the second half in search of the equalizer. They were visibly tired at the end of the first half. Now, if they push too much they will leave themselves exposed, too little and there’s no chance of scoring, too late and they won’t have the energy. The Silverbacks’ fans barely have time to get their drums going when a rare mistake in the back line sends two Atlanta forwards scurrying toward Chris McClellan’s goal. Two goals to nil, and a mountain to climb.

Meanwhile, life in the major-league city of Atlanta is feeling a little less than grand. The power in the press box keeps going out, complicating the live broadcast I am doing with Dean Linke for WSHA 88.9. The crowd of 700 is loud for its size, with a dedicated corner of fans (one in a gorilla suit) providing a bit of atmosphere. While Atlanta has been in the USL-1 since 1999, the Silverbacks aren’t a well-known entity in the city, averaging 2,300 fans per game in 2006—well below the league average. When completed, the stadium will be a great place for soccer, but for now, its unfinished state adds to the visiting RailHawks’ discomfort.

The name RailHawks is a symbolic one, as there is no such bird. “RailHawks” combines North Carolina’s railroad history with our most common raptor, the red-tailed hawk. The name is surprisingly apropos: It is not infrequently that a train passes during a game, whistle blowing; while red-tailed hawks have not yet set up camp under the stadium lights, they continually threaten to do so.

Attending games at SAS Soccer Park is akin to stepping into the future while watching high-level soccer in the present. For players preparing to take the field at a RailHawks’ game, the future may look frightening as they have to run a child-gauntlet to get on the field. Before kickoff, Brad Myers, the RailHawks’ vice president of marketing and public relations, forms two lines hundreds of kids long to greet the players as they run out of the players’ tunnel toward midfield. At first, the kids cheered wildly for both teams, but they have since learned that casual slaps of the hand are more appropriate for the visitors. The RailHawks’ family-friendly atmosphere is augmented by their mascot Swoops, an admittedly clever name for a hawk, and the ever-popular gambit of throwing free things into the crowd.

The crowd is predominantly gringo American, which is to say white and suburban, drawn from the middle and upper-middle classes. However, commensurate with demographic shifts, there is a growing Latino fan base, which was underscored by the majority Mexican-American crowd of 5,025 that turned out in a driving rain to see the RailHawks beat Chivas USA of the MLS on May 8. As with crowds at car-racing, professional baseball and hockey, African Americans are under-represented, something that has as much to do with the demographic profile of soccer in the United States as it does about patterns of residential settlement, socio-economic inequality and the history of sports in the Triangle.

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n Atlanta, the game has ended and the RailHawks have lost 2-0. The players are forced to shower in a trailer. It’s not pleasant right now—not only are we a long way from the glamour of international football, the team is also a long way from finding its attacking form, scoring just one goal in four games. Furthermore, the game was full of mutual antagonisms and scuffles, the players and coaching staff are exhausted, annoyed at themselves for losing to a team they know they can beat. The goals aren’t falling and they have to play again in two days. Right now, being a professional soccer player sort of sucks: It’s 10:30 p.m., there is no hot water and the six-hour bus ride back to Cary starts in 30 minutes.

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hile the short-term future of the RailHawks depends on bringing in 3,000-4,000 fans a game (a benchmark they have met so far), what happens at SAS Soccer Park is also about the future of soccer and urban communities in the United States. The trend for major American sports such as baseball and American football is to build or renovate stadiums in urban centers. Soccer is just the opposite, reflecting the continuance of an unfortunate (and ecologically disastrous) cycle in our urban history, further isolating the game in affluent suburbia.

Still, it is in the realm of professional soccer that we see recent and not so recent immigrants connecting in the same moment. Latinos who grew up with the game find its highest local expression in the RailHawks. Affluent suburbanites who have made soccer a lifestyle choice (replete with gas-guzzling SUVs and minivans) can also see the end goal of all those trips to practices and tournaments—which are ultimately aimed at producing college soccer players who then go on to the pros. For other groups, such as the Triangle Soccer Fanatics (trisoccerfan.com), the RailHawks are an object of passionate support that gives texture and life to the anomie of suburbia.

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few days after the frustrating loss in Atlanta, fans in Cary experienced one of the most exciting moments in the team’s short history when the Los Angeles-based MLS team Chivas USA came to play. The match drew a huge Latino crowd, but despite their presumed ethnic loyalty to the visitors, many seemed to turn against their erstwhile compatriots to cheer on the local boys. Later, Latino fans could be seen queuing up to buy the home team’s shirt after the match. It could be that the Carolina RailHawks will be a melting pot of sorts, allowing us to communicate similar feelings in dissimilar tongues, connecting very different lives in a very common way.

However, the Chivas game had some sour notes. It was interrupted three times by scuffles on the field, disruptions all the more striking because the game was an exhibition “friendly.” After the game, Schweitzer shrugged and said, “That’s just the way the game is played.” More recently, complaints about the RailHawks’ tough, defensive style have begun to crop up on soccer chat rooms like BigSoccer. The team is developing a style and reputation that reflects that of their coach, who Economides describes as “someone you hate to play against, but love to have on your team.”

After the RailHawks defeated Chivas in that exhibition match, their fortunes began to improve: Scoring two goals against an MLS team, and shutting them out in the process, put air under their wings. Since then, the RailHawks have put together an impressive string of results, taking 10 out of a possible 15 points (three wins, one tie, one loss), including a road win over the defending USL-1 champion Vancouver Whitecaps who were undefeated over their past 16 games. The RailHawks are currently in third place in USL-1, surprising everyone but themselves.

The RailHawks begin a five-game, month-long home stand this Friday, June 8, against the Rochester Raging Rhinos. This may be the biggest match of the year for Economides, Schweitzer and the four ex-Rhinos on Carolina’s roster. After a U.S. Open Cup game against Chicago’s RWB Adria (June 12), the RailHawks resume league against Seattle Sounders (June 15) and Charleston Battery (June 23) before meeting the first-place Vancouver Whitecaps for a rematch on July 3.

La Ley 96.9 broadcasts highlights of RailHawks’ games on Sunday afternoons, and WSHA 88.9 carries all games live, with some of the best soccer commentating in the country. For more information and tickets, visit www.carolinarailhawks.com. x