WON THE CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH...

Entering the final game of the season it was imperative that the Saurus came out ready to meet a challenging Payson team. This season they weren’t that successful and we didn’t want to be one of their victories. Several players were missing: Will was at National Guard, Tim was back in England and of course we had our injuries; F David and Dr Daniel. I’m not sure who else.

The late game and beating sun took a little energy away from our lads, however we played together to thwart the quickness that Payson had to offer. The defense knew its responsibility, keep them out. Goalkeeper Lance and the defense had another great week with a clean sheet. It’s so much easier to win if they don’t score. Well done Big D! New to the club this season was Gary Walen who took the reigns this game as leader in the midfield to compensate for Tim’s sabbatical. Geordie Wood returned to make his mark at forward scoring the lone goal of the game with Roel and Ralph providing additional spark.

When all was said and done, Saurus would get the victory with a shutout, a 1-0 victory.

All in all, not a bad first season for the newly formed Saurus team. There is not playoff for the 40 Division this season and we’ve played our last game. Every other team has a game left and the Pumas still need to play the Incinerators in a makeup game to see if we will finish in Second Place.

Not bad for a bunch of old guys, eh? From a club standpoint, we did the club proud. Here are the stats:

• Only Zanjeros had a higher ranking (if we are 2nd or 3rd), they won their division… YEA Zanjeros!
• We won 8 games total. Again, only bettered by Zanjeros.
• We beat every team in our league, at least once which is a good building block for the future.
• We achieved 4 shutouts. Again, only bettered by Zanjeros who had 6. Cobras were the only other team to get one.
• Saurus had the lowest Foul Point total in SDFC with only one point.
• And we absolutely had the best cooler. Not just from a club, or even division standpoint... Best in SUASL!

There are some things we've got to improve for next season. Sticking out like a sore thumb is our goal differential (-2). We simply have to score more. The midfield needs to provide better possession and control then distribute the ball more effectively. The forwards need to finish on frame to give the ball a chance for net. Only the defense seemed to have handle on their job this season… as long as they don’t slip back next season.

The MVP for Saurus this season was a sleeper that only came on strong after the Incinerators kicked our ass, 9-0. Everyone had a few poor games but Lance Leslie turned in some excellent games with 4 shutouts. He averaged only 2 allowed goals per game and if you take out the Incinerator game it’s just 1.25 per game. That’s a nice season. Well done Lance.

Saurus’ Golden Boot for this season has seen the award before. Geordie Wood takes the honor again with about 14 goals. He doesn’t really track it and the league website is, well… poor. We know he scored more and it’s about right. Next season we’re having him cloned like Dolly.

It was a funs season and look at it this way, if we finished in second place in the English Premier league we'd be playing in the European Champions League next season! Think about it…

Zanjeros SDFC won 4 -3 on a golden goal in double overtime to reach the finals next Sunday. Although the Tempe Devils came out in full force with a approximately a 15-man roster and the Zanjeros only had two subs, they were able to walk away with their first playoff victory. The Zanjeros came back from a 2 - 0 deficit in the second half and scored a beautiful goal with only a few minutes left in overtime to get the opportunity to play next weekend. It was a great team win.

The final is at 4:00pm at McDowell on Sunday.

Please support the club win another championship.

Samba beat Internationale FC Old Boys 5-2 in the Division's final.

Looking forward to off season tourneys and the new Over 30 division next year.

Cheers to all and many thanks to our supporters
on the sidelines this season.

The weather was crummy all weekend and I received about 30 calls from about 15 players that wanted to know if we were playing. Of course SUASL doesn't post anything on the website or even change to office message. So the only way to figure it out is to go to the field early and see if other teams are playing. Our 2A team, Zanjeros were scheduled for 10AM. So... After a short side trip for coffee we found them playing in the rain, but with good fan support. The weather was cold and nasty with an occasional wind from the Northeast. But the fields were in good shape. GAME ON!

The back field stays wet most of the time and we didn't really know we had a game for sure till 30 minutes before our scheduled kick-off. We were worried we wouldn't have enough to put a full team on the field. Some players were stranded in the snow around Flagstaff and Prescott so they didn't make it back. Our goal scoring machine, Geordie and Ralph were out as were Scott Wolfe, Ed and Chris. Scott Harelson found a way through the snow and arrived just before the second half. Frank's team had the same issues but to a larger degree. They began the game with 9 players and didn't get a full squad till just about the half. At least we had two subs from the start.

The game started with Gary Allard up top helping Roel and Will pitching in at stopper to shore up the defense a bit. Most everyone else played in their normal positions. Initially the field was very compressed with front line players, midfielders and defenders overlapping. After about 10 minutes we spread the field and it started to pay off. We had some nice runs into Incinerator territory. Eventually Roel found a nice long ball and found a way to put it in net. He actually had to beat the keeper about 25 yards out and biffed in the mud to get off the shot. The half would end 1-0, Saurus.

Scotty H showed up and moved into the stopper position, moving Will to the front to help Roel. Just a few minutes into the second half the shift paid off. The ball was played over to Jason Coope. He pushed the ball neatly to Will. There was a pause and the ball was played perfectly in to Jason who was running through the defense on the give and go. He reached the ball first, made a nice run and beat the keeper to give Saurus a 2-0 lead.

Ten minutes later, Tom played the ball on a long pass from the back to Will on a run down the right. Will beat the defender and ran hard directly to goal. The keeper made his move and started coming off his line... Will fired a hard shot at the near post. The keeper got a hand on it but didn't collect the ball. It rolled across the goal three feet off the line. Roel found himself in perfect position on the left to one touch the ball for his second goal of the day. There were several more runs but with no result. One pass of note was off the boot of Stephan to Will but the Incinerators foiled the attempt with good defense.

It was Saurus 3-0... but that just stirred the hornets nest. The Incinerators started several long runs and took some really nice shots. Goalkeeper Lance Leslie really earned his money this day. It could have easily been 4-3 Incinerators with 10 minutes left in regulation but Lance closed the door tight. Eventually they did get a goal. We expected they would as they are a goal scoring machine scoring 9 against us in the first meeting this year. But the final whistle was eventually blown in time to preserve the win.

Man-of-the-Match goes to the whole team. Everyone understood the importance of this game and they stepped up to the plate. Lance was brilliant in goal, the Garys ran hard all game as did Wyzo, Roel and Jason. Mr Utility, David MH played a brilliant game in left defense along with the other staple defenders. Really... Well done all.

Next week we play Payson FC at 4PM on the McDowell Back Field in our final game of the season. There are no playoffs for our division so this is it. Be there. If we win this game, if the planets align and the creek don't rise we should finish in 2nd place behind the Incinerators. Also, if you have time, please support the Zanjeros in their 2A Division Final against ActiveI. It isn't certain but they may play at the same time as us... however, with playoffs going, some games are going to the golden goal or shoot-out. You may get to see some of it... Go out there. They'll appreciate it.

Recap coming soon...

bye weekend ...

Recap coming soon...

It was the Division's Semi Final match and a great match up of sides.

Both squads were ready for a great game but the Sand Dragons only had 9-1/2 players show up (Hugo Suarez played injured and was eventually forced to the sidelines at the start of the 2nd half) and finished with 9 on the pitch. Not a great way to start this important match.

The Sand Dragons played hard and played well but on the day it just wasn't meant to be, noting that you can't win if you don't score.

The Internationale FC Old Boys played very well and kept the pressure on the Sand Dragons defense from the 1st minute to the 90th. The Sandymen did have their chances but just couldn't convert.

It was 1 nil at the half with the 2nd goal coming from Mark Palmer, IFCOB, at the 55th minute. The third with 8 minutes left in the match.

The Sand Dragons were lucky to keep the score at 3 goals despite Dave Healy's, IFCOB, ripper of a shot which would have made it four except that the ref was unsighted and never saw the ball enter the goal. With a nod and a wink Goge grabbed the ball from behind the goal and took a goal kick as the ref motioned to play on. Sorry Dave...and thanks...guess we owe you a pint for that one!

And the match ended 3-0 with the Sandymen totally spent as 9 men left the pitch.

Congrats to the Internationale FC Old Boys. Final to be played in two weeks.

Just playing in the Semi Final match was a huge victory for the Sand Dragons side as they played with the season long curse of injuries and not finishing any match this season with 11 on the pitch, playing several matches with 8, 9 or 10 players.

Looking forward to off season tourneys and the new Over 30 division next year.

Cheers to all and many thanks to the SUARUS side for their support on the sidelines for this final match of the season.

On this cold and wintry day, Saurus would loose it's 4th match of 10 played. We had players out and some injured. Our old pal and sideline specialist Steve Wake didn't make it out this day. Neither did Roel, Ralph or Chris. But the injured Gary Waylen stepped up to the plate and did a proper job running the sideline and substitutions in Steve's absence.

The match started well enough with both teams playing hard. We were well matched most of the game but we had a few defensive lapses that opened the door and the Pumas took advantage. They gave us opportunities too but we didn't capitalize. Puma's last goal was an own goal off Will's shin. It was a deflected corner that was meant to be cleared with a left foot but instead it just dribbled into the goal from 10 yards out.

There were some shinning moments... The first Saurus goal came off a rebound. The ball was fired into the keeper and the ball came loose just out of the keepers grasp but just off the foot of Jason Coope. Mr. Coope was in perfect position and scooped the ball into the goal with his left foot to tie the game at one goal all. Hard running and following the shot paid sweet dividends.

In the second half Scotty Harelson nailed one of the most beautiful Saurus goals all season. From about 25 yards out he punched the ball just over the keepers head and into the high right side of the goal. His shot put us only one goal down. I'd have to say we had our moments but none as nice as Scotties... so Scotty Harelson gets Man-of-the-Match.

Next week we get another shot at the Incinerators. Please show your support... we'll need it against the divisions top team.

Zanjeros SDFC played well enough to achieve their tenth victory. Four Peaks started the game with only eight men, but finished strong with a complete squad. For the last three games the Zanjeros have not played their best team soccer, but they have consistently put together great team-defensive efforts to only allow six goals the entire season. They have also found enough unique ways to capitalize on their well-developed opportunities to always walk away with a solid victory. The game against Four Peaks was an ugly illustration of these trends, but sometimes wins are more difficult than they should be.

The Man of the Match honors goes to the entire squad for gritting out their tenth straight win.

The Zanjeros are looking forward to playing next week against Arsenal, the second place team. The game will be for first place in the league, an undefeated season, and the best opportunity to apply all of the team lessons that they have learned throughout the season, especially the last few weeks. Please come out and support the Zanjeros at noon. Good luck to everyone in the playoffs!

bye weekend ...

With the Cobras season winding down, it would be the last chance to try for a playoff spot. Our opponent, Serbian Time USNT.

Knowing full well this team is good, Cobras still had only one option - to score goals to win. Therefore, we played 3-3-4 at the start. The majority of the first half saw Serbian Time dominating much of the field. Cobras seemed to be stuck in last weeks funk as trapping and passing were not executed well. Cobras could not seem to maintain any shape and Serbian Time took good advantage of that.

Serbian Time would score the first goal. The next goal would be Cobras. A PK was awarded to us just as Kiko showed up from his fun in Prescott - too bad Kiko, we gave it to Jeff Arnold this time.

The last score of the half was a Serbian Time PK. I think that this was the result of a miscall as the penalty occured on the line, I never saw the oppenent cross the line until he fell down. Tough luck. Although Darin gave his best effort, the half ended 1-2 Serbian Time.

Even with four subs this game, Cobras couldn't get the upper hand in the game and gave up three goals in the second half. Not much improvement from the first half, but I think we managed to give more effort, even though the score makes it seem like we did not.

The game would at least end on a positive note as Jerry Rash would make a pass to Rabih for a brilliant scoring drive that looked playbookesque. Although I'm not sure MoM is appropriate this game, I think that Rabih's goal and hard work at the end of the game gives him the honors! Good Job Rabih!!!! Well done.

Cobras would like to thank Serbian Time for a game well played and wish them luck in the playoffs! Cobras have one more regular season game in which we will be playing for nothing. I think we'll mix things up a bit and have some fun!!!! See you next Sunday!

A bright sunny day was a perfect backdrop to the day's match up. Incinerators vs Sand Dragons in the 3rd Quarter Final match of the day. In earlier matches the Blasters fell to Oasis 2-1 after dominating play and Internationale FC Old Boys took care of Korona 6 nil. The winner of the Sand Dragons vs. Incinerators to play Internationale FC Old Boys next Sunday.

The game started off with the Sand Dragons having one sub on the sidelines and plenty of hopes that the Sandymen would finish with eleven men on the pitch but that wasn't meant to be.

The Sand Dragons dominated possession nearly the entire 1st half with the Incinerator side only making a few inroads but nothing really dangerous. The Incinerator goal came in the last minute of the 1st half as sweeper Hugo Suarez, back from the injured reserves list, played a ball back to Sand Dragons keeper, Goge Johl. As Goge, who was well to the side of the penalty box, played the ball it bounced off his thigh and headed straight for the goalmouth. Everyone stood shocked as the Sandymen's keeper tried desperately to clean up his spill but the ball just crossed over the goal line as his kick cleared the ball.

Undaunted, the Sandymen took control of the second half feeling very confident that we would score another two goals to win it in the end.

A fortunate hand ball led the referee to call a penalty on the Incinerators. Rob Heuer took the kick but the keeper guessed the right way and the kick wasn't Rob's best as the Sandymen lost the opportunity to tie it up in the 47th minute.

Just minutes later Ricky Pena took a corner kick that screamed across the box as several Sand Dragons players fought for position. It was Rowdy Rob Heuer that put the ball in with a cute little kick with the outside his heel.

It was 1-1 and both sides were fighting hard to get the winning goal. Jonesy had to leave the pitch with about 20 minutes left due to injury after playing very well in the defense.

Both sides pressed hard and the Sandymen sent everyone up to pressure the goal leaving the back open as the Incinerators took advantage and nearly scored but not for an instinctive skate save by the Sandymen's keeper.

The winning goal came with 7 minutes left in the match. Rob Heuer played a quick free kick as the Sandymen's captain, Vince Nagy, was totally focused and saw the field as Rob's ball penetrated the Incinerator back line. Vince took the ball forward and as the keeper was coming out Vince confidently put the ball past the helpless keeper scoring a clutch winner for the Sand Dragon's side.

Somehow though the side was destined to end the match with less than eleven on the field as it's done every game this season. The last seven minutes were played with 10 men as Ricky Pena had to step off the field to get to his second game of the day with Zanjeros SDFC in the second division. This was the first game that a Sand Dragons player hasn't been sent off by the referee. In fact the first game without any yellow cards at all for the Sandymen.

But end it did and the Sand Dragons celebrated as they move on to the Semi-Finals next Sunday at 2 pm vs. Internationale FC Old Boys.

The win signaled a great coming together for the squad. Team play and individual effort overcame 5 minutes of blunder to make it the sweetest win of the season thus far as Rob and Goge got their vindication by games end. It should be another great match up on Sunday as the Sandymen seek their spot in the Final.

Man of the Match goes to Vince Nagy for scoring the game winning goal with skill and confidence. Many thanks to Norbert, Bill, and Jason for bringing the post match celebratory libations.

Recap coming soon...

Recap coming soon...Zanjeros score in 85th minute to win...

Recap coming soon...Vipers give up goal in 90th minutes to allow tie...

Well, one thing is for sure about this game. It wasn't purty!

This week, division 2C was relocated to Cochise Elementary School fields. Elementary is right! This field was smaller than small. Some of the field was dirt from the baseball diamond. So, needless to say, the field left something to be desired. But hey, at least we got a field.

Anyway, I don't know if it was the field, coming off a bye week, or general lack of team soccer, Cobras did not fair well this day. Although the first half ended in a 0-0 tie, Cobras seemed to struggle all over the field. I'm not sure we were able to complete a succession of more than 3 passes all game. We did, however, play with the same intensity that is to be expected by Cobras, but the fundamentals were just out of reach for one reason or the other. St. Nicholas was not all together either this day, but they managed to set up more opportunities and generally had a better passing game. It was obvious that had Cobras played like a team and worked like we have in the past, St. Nicholas would have been no match at all. Perhaps they suffered the same symptoms as Cobras.

Finally, in the second half, the tie would be broken, but by St. Nicholas. The score was not even a shot but a goofed attempted pass that somehow found the right side of the goal and bounced in before Cobras Keeper could get a hand on it. The second half didn't seem much different as Cobras continued to struggle to manage the fundamentals and put a game together. Then in the last 10 minutes, it was like some kind a magic curse had been broken and suddenly Cobras got it together. However, the plays could not be finished and there were no scores. Then by a stroke of luck, Rabih would be pulled down in the box for a PK to tie the game shot by, who else, Kiko! After the PK was sunk, the whistle was blown. Whew! Man of the Match goes to Cobras back up Keeper Albert Mercado, who played an excellent game! The boy didn't even use no gloves, Yo! Had it not been for his skills, Cobras may not have faired as well. Thanks Albert! Well Done! Albert says he never got MoM before, so I guess there is a first time for everything!

A wet afternoon for the days match up. Sand Dragons met the undefeated Samba side for the final match of the regular season.

The game began as the Sand Dragons had just 11 players to start. Unfortunately once again the Sandymen would finish with less than 11 due to ejections.

The game started off with both sides making chances and both sides playing hard. With 5 minutes in comeback player of the year, Mark Jensen, scored the first goal of the game and his 3rd goal in 3 games. The Sandymen were pumped up and the Samba side was in shock.

The match continued and physical and skilled play was evident on both sides. About 20 minutes later Samba struck on a dead-ball play. As the ball came across the box several Samba players were left unmarked and as the ball dropped to the feet of one of the opponents he miss hit the shot but still managed to hit the inside of the post past a crowded line including the Sand Dragons keeper who flew across the goal but still had no chance. 1-1

About 5 minutes later some physical play led the ref to eject Rudy Torres, Sand Dragons midfielder, and Tim Greene, a Samba midfielder from the game. Both with double yellows. And that was a kicker because it meant that the Sandymen wouldn't finish a league game this season with all it's men on the field.

With about 10 minutes left the physical play mounted and some questionable calls by the ref had both sides frustrated. Later as Jonesy was marking a man that had come into the box he was called for a penalty. Sand Dragons keeper, Goge Johl, was up for the task as he saved the kick and the score remained 1-1 at the half.

The second half showed both sides determined to score the winning goal. As the Sand Dragons mounted their attacks the Samba side continued with their own transition offense finally breaking the Sand Dragons defense as short numbers in the back led to the winning goal.

Sandymen keeper, Goge Johl made several more saves to keep it close but with 5 minutes left in the match too many players were pressing the Samba goal leaving openings in the back and result was 2 more goals in the last 3 minutes to put it out of reach.

Playoffs next week. Stay tuned.

We're gonna give Man of the Match to Thong Nguyen who had a very good match in the midfield covering massive amounts of the pitch with his skillful and sometimes physical play. Kudos to Mark Jensen who has been the fresh air for the Sandymen over these past 3 matches.

It's all out the window now. Quarterfinals on Sunday and single elimination will mean the Championship will be decided in 3 short weeks.

Funny how it rains every time we play this team. In spite of a poor record they are a good team coming into the match with only a -3 goal differential. The first match played on a windy and rainy day ended 1-0 Saurus up at the Copper Ridge Field. This day we wanted a victory on the smaller Mt View pitch. The field size would totally change the game strategy but hopefully not the outcome.

For some reason Saurus didn't pass well all day but the defense did a great job with just one small slip. We played in the United end most of the game and when that happens, the shooters will get to test the keeper and eventually get one in. Geordie Wood, enter stage right... Geordie found net midway into the first half with a header to the far side net. It looped right over the keepers head. I'm not certain who served it up but the result was Saurus up 1-0. It was a great cross.

Later in the Game United would get a man free deep in the Saurus end and he would score. Game 1 all... and it would stay that way till the 90th minute. Apparently there was some mix-up between the keeper and some of the United players. The ball was loose in front of the goal and Geordie, in position as always, was there to take advantage. The cheers were more intense than I have seen in years from this bunch. You would think we just beat the Incinerators 9 - 0! But the excitement was evidence that it was a very hard fought game. They were, are, and will be a tough team every time we face them. For his header and game winner, Geordie Wood gets Man-of-the-Match. A big WELL DONE to Geordie.

Following our winning goal, two of their players got into it with each other. They had to be restrained and red cards were awarded. I've never witnessed that before. It is unfortunate as it was unnecessary... they played a good game and they are a good team. After the altercation, they kicked off and the ref called game.

The Saurus record improves to 6 - 2 and next week we face Sambapati (3-4). Last time we played this team the game was called early because red cards were issued and the match got out of hand. It should be a hot one as Saurus and Sambapati are each coming off wins and looking to extend the streak. The game is scheduled for 2:00 at the Mt View Field. We'd love the support if you can attend.

Saurus would like to send a special thanks to Pam and Libby for coming to our game and for bringing some wonderful deserts to the after game BBQ. It was also nice to see the Cobras on the next field in the club kit, stealing one from St Nicholas and then sticking around after the game to have a beer with us. We hope they plan more after activities with us in the future.

Recap coming soon...

Recap coming soon...

Recap coming soon...

A beautiful day for football, but not a great day for the Sand Dragons as they fell to Internationale FC Old Boys.

The match started off with a flurry of attacks and shots from the Old Boys side but Sand Dragons keeper Goge Johl was up to the task as he turned each shot away nicely.

The 1st half was very hard fought and the Sand Dragons had a hard time mounting their own attacks getting down to the Old Boys byline only a precious few times as the half ended scoreless.

As the second half started both sides came out strong. The Sand Dragons started to show their presence and had much of the play as Internationale FC were on the defensive.

A foolish foul outside the Sand Dragons penalty box gave the Old Boys their first goal. Old Boys midfielder Ko Das hit a very well placed free kick over the "short" wall and above the outstretched reach of the Sand Dragons keeper to make it 1 nil Internationale FC.

Their second goal came very shortly after as the Sand Dragons were caught pushing forward with not enough men back. An Old Boys player received the ball about 40 yards out and brought the ball forward then hit a ripper of a shot from about 25 yards out and right into the upper corner leaving the Sand Dragons keeper an arm short of saving it.

The Sandymen weren't about to give in as attack after attack produced good chances but none that scored. Until Rowdy Rob Heuer, who has been on a drought lately, moved the ball to the byline and crossed it cleanly in front of the goal. Several Sandymen were awaiting the ball and Mark Jensen scored for the Sandymen's first of the match and second for Jensen in as many games. 2-1

The back breaker was the third goal which came from a free kick on top of the box. The Old Boys took the kick while everyone was waiting for the Ref to finish booking Norbert for a yellow card. As they played the ball square even their own players weren't sure if the ball was live and as players from both sides were shouting Chris from the Old Boys collected the ball and put it in with a look on his face that said, " I don't know if this will count but I might as well put it in." Pleaded as we did, the Ref allowed the indirect free kick goal and rightly so EXCEPT that he must restart the game following a yellow card booking. With everyone tongue tied and flabbergasted the Ref wouldn't listen as Rudy explained that he was still writing in his book. The result. 3-1

The Sandymen once again came back right away with another goal as Rudy Torres hit a wonderful header into the net and it was once again a one goal game.

Minutes later and after a defensive clearance, one of the Internationale FC players physically struck Sand Dragons sweeper elect Juan "Pollo" Rodriguez and unfortunately the incident got out of hand as Juan pummeled the player in retribution and both were sent off. That's probably the last we've seen of Juan for the season and once again the Sandymen would not finish the match with 11 players.

Then, minutes later after Ricky Pena dribbled four of the Old Boys players Ko Das, from the Old Boys, was shown his 2nd yellow and sent off. Possibly for language as Ricky was laughing and snickering as he dribbled by Ko.

The Sand Dragons kept on the pressure even bringing up their keeper on one of the last corner kicks but couldn't do enough to score. Then once again the Sand Dragons were caught up field as one of their players took a kick from their keeper and beat his defender and as Goge approached him to smother any attempt taken the Old Boys forward hit the bouncing ball well over the keepers head and that was the final nail in the coffin.

With too little time left the Sand Dragons kept battling but the score would remain 4-2.

Man of the Match goes to Mark Jensen for scoring his second goal in as many matches. A great ROI on his surgery and...new boots.

The last time Saurus played Mirage was opening day of the season and Mirage took home the victory with a 3-1 decision. This day had to be different as it was the day of the SDFC Picnic and the members of Team Saurus wanted a good result for the rest of the club, for our friends / families, as well as for ourselves.

The weather could not have been better and the day felt special because of the home crowd. We had most everyone at the field on time so subs weren't an issue. All the starters took the field with a few lineup shifts to account for the injured and missing. The issue with some of the jerseys had Mike Levario and Jason Coope playing in green tees. The referee, Gilbert allowed the players giving Mike the number 99 and Jason number 00.

The first ten minutes Saurus was flat and chasing the ball. Mirage seemed to have it together from the start and they penetrated into our side several times. But eventually the lads steadied and took control of the match. The defense was especially strong in the middle with Scotty Harelson and Tommy Uczekaj plugging it up as well as I have ever seen. When the game came under control, the ball was pushed from the back and well into the Mirage side. Several shots were taken but no goal. About 30 minutes into the match, Mirage took a player down in the box and Saurus was awarded a penalty kick. The sure foot of Geordie Wood was up to the task and found net with the simplest of kicks. Saurus would go to the half up one - nil.

The second half saw some adjustment to get the elusive insurance goal. Saurus dominated the second half mostly by way of much stronger play in the midfield. There were numerous shots on goal by several Saurus players but no goal till Geordie found his way free, beat a player and the keeper to find net. Saurus now up two -nil.

With Saurus now in command and with an insurance goal, some of the starters were given a rest. Mirage would take advantage and put together several strikes of their own. Keeper Lance Leslie kept his area tidy all game with maybe his best effort this season. Striker Geordie Wood noted that over the last two games, Lance had really become aggressive in the box. In fact, this day Lance would be rewarded with a bloody nose for his efforts. Saurus would finish the day with a shutout mostly because of the Keeper. So Man-of-the-Match goes to Lance Leslie. Well done Lance.

The final would be 2-0, Saurus but it was a hard fought game. The players of Saurus appreciate the competition, clean play and good officiating. We always look forward to playing Mirage as they are a good team that plays hard but clean. And it was good to see the Mirage manager, Barry Brannon and many of their players stick around to have a beer with us. Over the years we've become friends with many of their players, which is why we know we'll enjoy seeing them on the pitch again for many seasons to come. Thanks Mirage.

Also, the players of Team Saurus would like to thank our families, friends and the members of SDFC for your support during the game. We're glad that we were able to earn a favorable result for you all as the party is much better after a win. It is always more fun when you have over 100 fans at your game.

Zanjeros SDFC completely dominated the tempo and style of the game and achieved their seventh victory. Scottsdale United only had a couple of offensive opportunities because they effectively executed their hedgehog-like strategy, which meant packing the defensive third with ten men. Due to Scottsdale United's cohesive effort, they were one of the best 'teams' the Zanjeros have played this season.

After many of the Zanjeros's possessions ended in futility about thirty to twenty yards out, the game was decided in the last ten minutes. In the final twenty minutes the Zanjeros loosened up their opponent's defensive stand with more shots from beyond the eighteen and improved ball possession. They finally buried one after getting behind their last man. The game ended 1 - 0, but it could have been even more lopsided if the Zanjeros were more efficient offensively.

The Man of the Match honors goes to everyone for being pliable with their positions as the team dealt with vacations, illnesses, and injuries.

A change of venue and a change of fate was on the menu for the Vipers this week. With all previous matches at Chaparral Park the Vipers moved up to McDowell Mountain for a high noon match up vs. Savannah. After three straight matches the Vipers finally broke the dreaded curse of the draw and captured a 4-2 victory thanks to goals by Jason Schwein (welcome back Payson), Matt Newman, Zaid Alzubi (beautiful bicycle kick) and a well-taken PK from Amjad Alzubi.

The defense manage to keep the quick Savannah team from creating to many opportunities and strong play in net by Phillip Beere proved to be the magical combination we have been looking for.

Man of the Match goes to Steve Desjardins for his outstanding midfield presence and play making ability.

Recap coming soon...

A disappointing loss to the Division Champions, Blasters FC.

The match started off with an Own Goal by Bill Evans after just a few minutes in.

The Blasters passed the ball well and looked good the first half and although the Sand Dragons looked like they were missing a few steps and passes we still managed to score two goals. (3 including the O.G.) Jason Schwein scored the first goal after sitting out for over a month with an injury. Mark Jensen, who played with the Sandymen two seasons ago put in the 2nd. Mark was also coming off an injury but looked great as good clean hustle and a toe in the right spot made it happen for Mark and the Sand Dragons in the first half. (he got his roi on his new shoes too)

Hugo Suarez was injured with a muscle pull and looks to be out for the rest of the season. (Hopefully not)

Blasters player Greg Veatch scored the Blasters first goal (well, ok 2nd goal) as he beat the defender and came into the box slotting the ball nicely past the diving keeper who couldn't do much as it was well hit. Blaster's player Dutchie played well and kept the Sand Dragons defense at odds with his passes across the middle of the box.

The Blasters scored their 2nd (3rd) as a ball was played across the box to two completely unmarked players. One of them calmly put the ball into the goal with the inside of the foot as Dragons keeper Goge Johl could only cry about the lack of help.

Goge did make a few nice saves, one coming from a shot by Sand Dragon's defender Colin Smith (Almost another O.G.) and another he plucked out of the corner coming off a great shot from just outside the box. (It might have been Barry Tait that took the ripper.) Check the BlastersFC website for their version of events.

The second half was a very hard fought 45 minutes with both sides having their chances but none would score.

A replay of the Championship match...maybe. The Blasters looked like they wanted it more than the Sand Dragons did and although the Sandymen have better players than last season...they didn't play well enough as a team to score for the tie or win.

Ricky Pena (mr. bigmouth) got a red card in the 80th minute and we played a man down but still created some good attacks in spite of it.

We scored 3 goals...but lost 3-2

No pick for Man of the Match this week although there were several players who played well in their own right.

Recap coming soon...

Zanjeros SDFC dominated the first half and held on during the last half of the game to capture their sixth straight win. With the support of many of their friends and family, Atletico Moreles played a tenacious game that created a good amount of unrewarded chances in the second half. Despite their opponent's passion, the Zanjeros successfully grunted through another game and further developed their team environment. .

During the first forty-five minutes, the Zanjeros demonstrated a great deal of patience, kept possession for long periods of time, and moved the ball around the field in order to tuck away three well-developed opportunities. The second- half was completely different with Atletico Moreles controlling the game and creating a number of opportunities to score. Their emotionally-driven efforts were finally rewarded with a successful penalty kick. As the game started to quickly degrade into a series of chippy fouls, injuries, and yellow cards, the game ended approximately eight minutes early and the Zanjeros walked away with a 3 - 1 victory. .

The Zanjeros are looking forward to next week's game to continue their winning streak, put together a solid ninety minutes, and walk away feeling good about their sustained level of play. The Man of the Match honors goes to entire team for keeping their composure as the game lost its gracefulness and beauty.

It was déjà vu all over again this Sunday as the Vipers faced Kastle United.

With only 12 men available due to injuries and a suspension the game played out the same as the previous two weeks.

The Vipers dominated play and controlled the ball in the Kastle United end of the field at least 85% of the time but could not manage to get one past the keeper and the game ended in a 0-0 tie.

Man of the match this week goes to Nigel Forrest for his outstanding defensive play.

Special thanks to Goge Johl for protecting our net in the absence of our keeper for the second time in this short season.

Next week 12:00 at McDowell Mountain vs. Savannah.

No recap sent...

Started with 8 men...Played with 9 men most of the match...Ended with 8 men.

1 red card, 1 injured player/coach.

Man of the Match knows who he was....

No recap sent...

Zanjeros SDFC played a hardnosed game in order to earn their fifth win. Mesopotamia's long ball strategy and physical presence formed a brutal style of soccer that created numerous problems for the Zanjeros. The first half ended with the Zanjeros up 1 - 0 from a breakaway goal.

As the second half developed, Mesopotamia began to gain confidence and apply enough pressure to be awarded a penalty kick, which they tucked away to even the score. Both teams were able to create various scoring chances, but the Zanjeros kept possession the majority of the time. During one of those episodes of building numbers, the Zanjeros capitalized on a well-developed opportunity that enabled them to walk away with a 2 -1 victory.

At the end of the day, the Zanjeros realized it was an ugly win and are looking forward to playing at a higher level next weekend against Atletico Moreles. The Man of the Match honors goes to the entire team for staying composed and playing solid soccer within adverse conditions.

The Vipers took the field Sunday looking to improve on disappointing tie from the previous week. With six people unavailable to play, four with injuries (Barry, Norbert, Jason and Jeff) and two out for family obligation (Dre and Will) the Vipers were left thin and with one sub.

The Vipers played their hearts out and when half time came we were only down 3-2. Half time discussions resulted in a change of tactic and the Vipers quickly took control of the second half play leading to two goals that gave the Vipers a 4-3 lead with 18 minutes left.

Play got a little chippy in the second half and when an altercation occurred between a Zacapetec player and Amjad Alzubi both teams were forced to finish the match with 10 aside.

The Vipers continued to control play the entire second half and had multiple chances to extend the lead but were unable to cash in. Zacapatec however was able to get one by a diving keeper to tie the match with just a few minutes remaining.

Final 4-4.

Goals this week were scored by (2) Zaid Alzubi, Ivan Valdez and Dan Gallegos.

Next week is another tuff match so get well boys we need everyone. The entire team gets credit this week for leaving their guts on the field. The team battled and worked as cohesive unit and got a well deserved point from the match. Man of the match goes to the entire team for that effort.

The morning was quite pleasant on Sunday. The clouds blocking out the scorching sun. But by Noon, those clouds were no where to be found. So with the Sun in our eyes, Cobras set out for another tough match of soccer.

Today's opponent would be Eagles. We knew from 2B an games earlier this year that they are able to keep a close game with minimal scoring against every team they've played so far. Cobras needed to fix a few things this week, as last week was unsuccessful. Although Cobras were missing a couple of key personnel, we got out there and stuck it to them Eagles in the first half. I made some key line up changes, and I think I may have found one that Cobras will continue to use throughout the rest of the season.

The main goal today was to secure another 3 points. The game started in typical Cobras fashion, with Cobras pretty much taking control of the field. The intensity was boosted 200% over last week. Our focus on maintaining zones and defensive man posturing helped us avoid open midfield and unnecessary bunching. Cobras would go down 0-1 as Eagles managed to head in a corner kick. But shortly thereafter, Cobras would make 2 by Jeff Arnold and Jerry Rash. The half ended 2-1, Cobras.

The second half was to bring on a Cobra team ready to repeat the same effort of the first half. For at least 25 minutes, this was surely the case, however, Eagles seemed determined and were not to be shaken. I don't know if it was heat, conditioning, frustration, or a combination of all these things, but Cobras seemed to lapse back into some of the issue that are plaguing us this season. Because of this, Cobras couldn't set up very many opportunities in the second half, and only due to a few miraculous defensive plays were able to keep the score 2-1 until the last 10 minutes when Eagles again scored off the corner kick(It should be noted that Eagles had a guy who was of Payson Jason's height and build, so defending him on the corner was very difficult. An guess what, he was the goal scorer).

Unfortunately, the match would end in a 2-2 draw. Man of the Match will go to Anthony Yoon, who although still the all time Cobras Gimp, would put forth an uncompromising effort that managed to thwart Eagles offense, and on two occasions saved a sure thing goal on the goal line. Smoking Job Anthony!!!! Heal yourself up, PRONTO! Also, Cobras Defense and Keeper get a pat on the back for an outstanding game and vast improvement from prior games! Oh yeah, and Darin didn't have to get kicked in the face or nothin'.

Cobras would like to thank Eagles for an excellent and hard fought game. Good luck to them the rest of the season. Next week, 8AM!!!!! The Term 'Put a Fire Under it' will most likely be more appropriate for getting our tired butts outta bed!

The day's match was much anticipated as the Sand Dragons were up against the Incinerators. Both teams are in the upper half of the tables while the Sand Dragons still have a game in hand.

Both teams played well and very hard. Not just a skills match up but also a physical match up. Both sides moved the ball up and down the field showing that the division's quality has continued to increase in stature.

Both sides had chances in the first half with both team's keepers needing to come up with big saves to keep the score at nil all by half time.

The second half saw more of the same but as time elapsed play became more and more physical. The Sand Dragons are definitely not going to be the side with the fewest yellow cards coming from hard tackles this season.

Midway through the half an Incinerator player was tossed for his second yellow. Play continued to be physical and as Rudy Torres was battling in the midfield for the ball his opponent threw an elbow and Rudy made him flinch with a "mock" head butt. (no contact made) The player retaliated and the Ref was Johnny on the Spot with two red cards, one for each.

The remainder of the game was played with 9 v 10. The Incinerators scored the first goal of the match with about 20 minutes to go as Incinerator forward, Rich, followed a ball into the top of the box and connected with a diving header about 10 yards out that went just inside the post past a full stretch by the Sand Dragons' keeper. 1 nil Incinerators.

The Sand Dragons were sure they would also tally and kept on pressuring the "one man down" Incinerator side. With 5 minutes left Rob Donaldson gave Vince Nagy a great ball inside the box and as Vince moved in for his shot he was taken down. The Ref blew for the penalty and Rowdy Rob Heuer scored it with confidence and the score was even once again.

A few more attempts by both sides yielded nothing and the game ended as a draw. The draw puts the Sandymen in 4th place outright, still with a game in hand. Several players felt we played well as others felt we should have played better despite coming together for this big match.

The post match MOM committee gives the Man of the Match award to their Keeper, Goge Johl for several key saves to keep the came at hand.

Many thanks to Bart who brought a nice assortment of beer as 12 of 15 players stayed after to enjoy the rest of the day. Jonesey and Ricky went on (minus any beer drinking) to play & win their second match of the day with Zanjeros. Several Sandymen made the drive to see the Saurus match and have a pint with the O40 side. Thanks for the hospitality.

Rudy will be going to bad boys class on Wednesday and the Sand Dragons will be facing the Hardrockers next Sunday at Noon.

It was billed as the toughest game we'd play all season... and it was. The Incinerators came to play and apparently we did not. The absence of Scotty Harelson, Ralph DeGraph and others really intensified the issues. It was an ugly game that none of us wants to relive. There were issues in all aspects of our game. It just wasn't our day.

Basically, from the kickoff we were flat and couldn't get a break on the field or from the official. They scored two goals in the first half and were dominating possession. The ball seemed to bounce right to them. But we were still playing hard.

At the half, everyone felt like we were in the game still but we had to make adjustments... We did but it turns out they were the wrong ones. Everyone came out playing hard, especially the defense. But the official rewarded the opposition with free kicks for our trouble. Both sides agree the officiating was atrocious.

The second half is when the onslaught really began. They were hitting goals from everywhere and we barely had shots on goal. I guess that about says it for the second half. I'm not certain of the actual final score but I did hear seven in the second half. So I think they scored nine total.

We could not and would not brand any player for Man of the Match in this game. I'd say it was a team loss.

Next week we play Payson. Yesterday Payson played short vs Samba who was also short. Hopefully all can attend and we'll see a better result next Sunday.

SPECIAL NOTE: With help from the Dragon Squad, the team did rally in the 99th minute... We stormed the cooler and heated the Brats. There were numerous great passes of cold beer from player to player. I sure we won the third half. Also, special thanks to our fans on the sidelines for sticking with us through such a miserable game.

We are all looking forward to the picnic on 31 October. See you all there.

Zanjeros SDFC played their toughest competitor of the young season, and walked away with a well-played victory for their resume. ActiveI.com played a very physical and intense style of game, which was anchored by a talented goalkeeper.

The first half ended 0 - 0 with ActiveI.com having numerous, dangerous opportunities by taking advantage of the many, self-created Zanjeros' losses of possession in their own defensive half. As the second half developed, the Zanjeros began to effectively keep possession, drastically limiting their opponents scoring opportunities, and finally created enough offensive pressure to spectacularly tuck one away in the final twenty minutes.

The Man of the Match honors goes to everyone for preserving another shutout and developing our best team effort this season to defeat a quality adversary. Although the team has had a variety of line-ups the first four games, the Zanjeros are quickly developing their own style of play.

Recap coming soon...

Cobras opponent this week was Suicide Kings. Having played this team in 2B, we knew they are able win games. A pre-game pep talk and a whistle blow later, the game was underway. Cobras looked good at times but were unable to really move the game. Suicide Kings were more organized and were getting to the ball quicker. Down 2-0 at the half, halftime coach talk was a little less than pleasant, but motivating, nevertheless. I know we knew what needed to be done, but we couldn't seem to find that synergy on the field.

The second half was more of the same, but Cobras did manage to pick up the pace. In fact, Cobras set up more opportunites than did Suicide Kings. Cobras just couldn't finish. In the end, the final was 4-0, Suicide Kings.

Good Job Suicide Kings! Thanks for a game well fought. Cobras will be back next week with a vengeance. That story to come soon........

This weeks Man of the Match goes to Rob McKaig. Although he missed that shot I assisted him with, we wont hold that against him......... Rob had a good game and really busted his butt out there with the 110% drive. Congrats Rob! All in all, Cobras, we had an average game with a few minor fundimental issues we are working on. Good Job Cobras on the effort. Cobras never lay down!

The Sand Dragons faced a new team in the division called Touch of Grey. The TOG side started the match with a man or two down and played most of the match with only 10 men.

The Sand Dragons came out strong and touched the ball around the field easily due to the man down situation. The first goal came early as a free kick was awarded to the Sandymen down around the corner kick area.

Hugo Suarez came up to take the kick and put a nice cross over to Rob Heuer who was waiting at the far post. Rob hit a strong header decisively into the back of the net for the first score on the day.

The second goal came shortly after as the Sand Dragons were dominating play. Rob Heuer beat two players on the touch line and drove the ball across the face of the goal where 3 Sandymen were arriving. Thong Nguyen put the ball in from just a few yards out making the score look easy.

Later in the half Bill Evans, who had a very good match playing in the defense, made a nice run up the line. As he received the ball in the box from a nice give and go he was brought down and there was no hesitation by the Referee as he blew for the penalty and pointed to the spot.

Rob Heuer put the penalty away with confidence and the score was 3-0. No more goals for the half although there were many attacks that were missed and as the TOG keeper made several saves to keep the score from getting out of hand in the first half.

The first part of the second half saw dozens of attacks that had players looking like they would surely score but as luck, skill, and timing would have it they either missed the target or put it right to the keeper.

Midway through the half Rob Donaldson took a pass from the ever-present Rob Heuer, beat two men (the first with a nutmeg) and put the ball past the TOG keeper for the fourth goal of the day.

More chances continued to present themselves while the Sandymen fought their tendency to be offside. Rudy Torres hit a wicked free kick which the TOG keeper did nicely to block.

The Fifth goal came from Player/Coach Milton Melo. Milton had the ball on the byline and as he moved in to make a pass to onrushing forwards, he instead pivoted and hit a beautiful chip shot over the keeper into the goal from a tough angle to the delight of all the players and fans.

Touch of Grey scored their sole goal with about 7 minutes left to go as the Sand Dragons took time out to argue intensely about the best method of penetrating the TOG defense. TOG forwards played some nice touches into the box and across the front of the goal as a flubbed shot turned into a trickle of a goal as the Sand Dragons keeper lay on the ground like a big fat shark out of water, giving TOG a small energy burst for the final few minutes.

Man of the Match goes to Rob Heuer for his two goals and two assists. All of the Sand Dragons had a very good match dominating play most of the game as the TOG side didn't give the Sandymen as good a game as they might have.

After the match the Sandymen went down to the West field and enjoyed some ceviche and beer courtesy of Hugo & Company. (His pennance for missing the game last week due to a one game suspension.) Many thanks as most every Sandymen stayed to enjoy the post match activities.

Next week's match vs. Incinerators will be the first real test vs. a strong opponent with the Sandymen fielding a complete team. The Sandymen are now 2 and 1 with a game in hand.

The day began for Saurus with confusion and field changes. Before 7AM, calls were being made about the game location. The league website had Copper Ridge School as the normal field but last week we were moved to Mountain View to accommodate some youth premier teams. On Saturday, the schedule page said Copper but the homepage said Mt View. A conversation with an official before the Dragon game all but confirmed it, we were back at Mt View. Everyone had to be notified and quickly. Mark Jensen, still out with an injury but running the sidelines, drove to Copper to catch people that we couldn't get on the phone and redirect them to Mt View, 10 miles to the South. Only a few players were late and we had a full squad to start. On the day we weren't the only team effected... Even Sambapati, Pedro's team had several players late because they went to the wrong field.

The early morning was cool but by kickoff the temp had risen drastically. If you haven't been there, the field at Mt View is small and it has high grass and some "moist" spots. If you don't hit the ball with a firm foot, it may not make it to it's target. But several large trees along the West sideline offer great shade making our canopy obsolete. It was also picture day for what seemed every kids team in Scottsdale. So there were always spectator Moms, Dads and kids watching the game.

This game was billed as the battle for number two in the division and thanks to J. Ridgeway's scouting report, Saurus was ready for the Puma star, Vlad. But we didn't totally shut him down. Ten minutes in, Vlad received a long ball and cut through the defense like hot butter. Glennon in goal for Lance had no chance to stop the ball as the defense was unorganized with Chris and Will playing defense to fill in for missing players. It didn't take long for Vlad to put the Pumas up 1 - 0.

Ten minutes later Saurus started stringing passes together very well. It was like the Puma goal was a wakeup call. The goal to tie was a ball crossing back and forth in front of the Puma keeper... he made a save but the ball rolled out and Geordie Wood took advantage, blasting the ball to the back of the net. Minutes later, Geordie would get his second goal off a header for the go ahead. Around the 35th minute, Tim added icing with a third goal from the top of the box. The Pumas were all defense with only the long ball to Vlad... but the Saurus defense recovered, organized and found a way to shut him down. The teams would go to the bench at the half 3 - 1 Saurus.

Twenty minutes into the second half, Chris Leary would add a 4th goal for Saurus on a beautiful breakaway down the left sideline. Chris was "focused" and looking for help in the middle but with nobody to pass to he took it to the keeper. At the corner of the box he popped the ball just over the Puma keeper into the near side upper left corner. It was a fantastic goal and his first goal in several years. He was so elated that he ran around hugging everyone. The sideline went berserk! In the second half the short field and fatigue allowed for numerous thrusts into the offensive end by both teams. Both keepers are to be commended for making numerous saves and truly having great games.

After the 4th Saurus goal, Pumas stepped it up a notch and would answer with two more goals, one a PK that Glennon got a hand on but couldn't stop. The other a rocket from 25 yds out. But the game would end with Saurus victorious. As it turns out, Chris' beautiful goal was the game winner, and for that Chris Leary... Yes, Chris, wins Man of the Match.

Next week up for Saurus (3-1), the undefeated Orion Incinerators (3-0). Game time is 12 noon at the Mt View field... we think. Check the website often to be sure. Gary has the cooler. Glennon has the grill. See you there.

Zanjeros SDFC continued to play a level above their opponent and captured their third win for the season.

Much to the Jaguars DC's credit they never accepted defeat and continued to play hard for the entire match.

Although the Zanjeros were missing a few key defenders, the squad played solid team defense by preserving the shutout. In the attacking end, the team demonstrated an admirable level of patience, unselfishness, and precision.

The Man of the Match honors goes to the entire team for their positional flexibility in dealing with a smaller roster, and the team's desire to raise their level of play despite their opponent's plateau.

Recap coming soon...

Eager to put a poor performance behind us, Cobras came to the field determined this Sunday. Sporting the new SDFC uniforms, we looked good. Hopefully our determination and good looks would win us more than a hot date. Cobras were pitted against Cabras Locos.

The game whistle saw Cabras Locos kick off. Fifty seconds later and two costly mistakes put Cabras Locos up by one. As if by one sudden swoop, Cobras found our focus. We began to construct our possession game and take control of the field. Our team philosophy allowed us to win 50/50 balls and move the ball effectively over the field. We knew we could not underestimate our opponent, however, because they were most definitely equipped with weapons.

Cabras Locos relied heavily upon placing the long ball to the speedy strikers. Cobras defense saw themselves with a tough job, however, Cobras field management took apart Cabras Locos defense and midfield. The result of the game was Cobras 5, Cabras Locos 3. Goal scorers were Rabih Hajjar, Jeff Arnold, Rob McKaig, Jimmy Mackey, and Jerry Rash. Most notable were Jimmy Mackey with the textbook header off the corner kick and Jeff Arnold’s outside lefty slice to the inner post and in!

Cobras congratulates Cabras Locos on a game well played and good luck during the season. I want to personally congratulate Cobras for their consistent and unfaltering team spirit and their 110% efforts. It paid off and will continue to do so. Well done Cobras!!

Man of the Match was hard to determine this week, but Kiko is well deserving for his hustle and presence on the field. Way to go Kiko!

The Sand Dragons finished poorly but won.

The match started with both teams starting short of players. Both sides had more players arrive after the start of the match.

The Sand Dragons struck first early on with a goal from new signing, Bart Park, who tucked his goal in the back of the net with authority. The ball came from a pass into the penalty box by Rudy Torrez, who played his first game of the season with the Sand Dragons.

Shortly after the Korona side scored from a direct free kick on the top of the box which left the Sand Dragon's keeper with no view of the ball as it came over the wall and into the upper left.

Both sides fought for the play of the game as the Sand Dragons also fought themselves on half a dozen off-sides calls during the first half.

Robert Donaldson, another new signing scored the second goal as a long throw from Rob Heuer deflected off the keeper right onto the awaiting head of Rob Donaldson. It was 2-1 but not for long as the Korona side scored again as a through ball was played into the box from a free kick outside the box.

Both teams played hard the second half and despite some shoddy refereeing, no one was tossed.

Rudy Torrez did score a goal from a free kick deflected back by the Korona players but the referee called off-sides on the shot, leaving the Sand Dragons feeling robbed and disgusted.

The Korona side had a few dangerous attacks but the Sand Dragons keeper only had one point blank shot to save to turn them away completely in the second half.

The Sand Dragons had a hard time putting the final finish into the back of the net but with 5 minutes to go Rob Heuer ran onto a ball in front of the Korona goal from Thong Nguyen and flicked the ball nicely around the oncoming keeper.

3-2 means 3 points and the Sand Dragon's first win. The team played with several players missing due to work, injury and suspension.

Man of the Match goes to Rob Heuer for scoring the winning goal.

A change of venue at the last moment led to some early confusion and last minute arrivals for the start of the game. Fortunately, everyone came prepared to play as we quickly dominated the play with crisp passing and aggressiveness. Ralph DeGraph took advantage of defensive poor judgment stealing a pass across the penalty box and completing the strike into the left side of the goal to propel us 1-0 going into the Half.

The second half saw a deterioration of game play although we still had some chances to extend our advantage. The game took a turn for the worse as the Referees chose not to mediate the physical play and tempers flared leading to a game ending fight initiated by a Sambapati player that received his second yellow for rough play.

The defense was effective in completing their second shutout . The offense was hampered by small field conditions and rough play by our opponents. Roel fell victim to a foot injury from which we await his future status. Ralph gets Man of the Match for his winning goal but kudos to the defense for solid play.

Frustration was felt by all in reaction to the unfortunate turn of events leading to the game being called prematurely to avoid more rough interactions.

Zanjeros SDFC won its second game of the season in tactful fashion.

Due to Americana's strategy to take advantage of the strong wind in the second half, they were quickly down 3 - 0 before halftime.

As the Zanjeros kept possession, constantly changed the point of attack, and neatly tucked away three more goals during the second half, Americana's will to effectively compete faded.

Americana also realized that the lopsided match was due more to their opponent's ability and organization than the weather.

The Man of the Match goes to the entire squad for starting to knock the ball around as a team and preserving the shutout as they kept their composure against a frustrated adversary in slick conditions.

No recap sent...

We came, we sucked, we lost.

Bye week.

The day started early with a flurry of calls over concern about the weather and a rain-out. Tropical Storm Javier advanced thru Arizona Saturday night and early Sunday morning with heavy rain to end a 32-day dry spell for the valley. But about 9am we found out that the Vipers, who had an 8am game, were about to start the second half. Game on!

It was also the first day in the new Xara uniforms so we really wanted to play... and win. Everyone had to show up extra early so that Tom could issue the kits and so the team could get dressed and still have time for a nice warm-up and a stretch. There was noticeable excitement over uniforms, much cooler weather and the opportunity to put a big fat "W" on the record.

There was a strong wind blowing into our face the first half. Both teams had trouble with balls in the air. But our boys figured it out going to the tight low pass. We passed very well but the five man back line kept us out of the goal... till the 38th minute. On one of many penetrations deep into the United end, Scott Wolfe, Geordie Wood and Roel Bauzin found the combination to the safe. It was Scott up the middle to Geordie on the right, Geordie squared the ball across the goal mouth at the top of the 5 yard box. Roel blasted it for good measure as if he was trying to kick it through the net. Suarus up 1-0. Saurus controlled the ball 90 percent of the first half.

In the second half Saurus went to our "wear them down" offense. We subbed in players every few minutes to keep our boys fresh and to run United hard until they started making mistakes. As a result, we spent the second half on their end too, so they didn't run that much. Their five man stacked defense held up well. They just never had many chances on our end. Around the 60th minute, Roel served up a great corner to the head of Team Manager, Will Bullock, who fought through a crowd in the goal mouth to get position. The ball came off his head very hard but it cleared the bar by a foot. After the goal and the close header everyone seemed to be play with more confidence, but there would be no more goals by either team. The game ended 1-0 Saurus.

Man of the Match honors go to Roel for scoring the winning goal but not without mentioning that he thought the game would be cancelled so he didn't bring the Bratwurst. AND he told Ralph the game was cancelled. It turns out Ralph wasn't registered yet and it rained so hard after our game that we would have had a time cooking anything. Still, Roel gets Bratwurst honors next week... and maybe every week. The vote is still out. Ralph, get registered this week!

Post game we stood in the rain to watch the Mirage - Samba game and of course to sing to Johnny Ridgeway. Once the game ended and the beer was gone, nobody wanted to stand in the rain to watch Payson - Incinerators. So we moved out to Zips for a burger and drier conditions. Some members of other teams joined us there. We had a great time. Some guys were still playing pool at 10pm. Could it be tradition? We'll have to see in weeks to come. Next week's schedule isn't up yet but the schedule for the remainder of the season should be up soon. Check the site often for up to date info. Until then...

Zanjeros SDFC won its debut, but it was not a well-organized, graceful match. The Great Nile was an athletic team that played a counter-attack, run-and-gun style of soccer.

Since it was the Zanjeros' first game, the team lacked a personalized tone of play and had a difficult time possessing the ball, which fed into their opponent's chaotic pace.

After going down 2 - 0, the Zanjeros began to quickly identify their marks, string some passes together, and capitalize on a couple of chances.

Although the Zanjeros went a man down, with a foolish red card, they showed an incredible amount of heart and resilience and fought their way to a 4 - 2 victory.

Over the course of the game, the team began to band together defensively and dramatically limit their opponent's opportunities, and offensively they began to efficiently move the ball around the pitch and finally capitalized on several chances. The Man of the Match goes to the entire team for their pliability.

With a 2C championship under it’s belt the Viper’s took the field facing their first game in the 2B division. The team started fast and took control of the play maintaining possession in the opponents’ end of the field 90% of the time.

Midway through the first half a Futbal United player got the ball free down the right sideline where an injured Norbert Peto had vacated. United was able to make good on a blatant handball and took a 1-0 halftime lead.

Following halftime the Viper’s seemed to shake some of the rust from their game and squared the match at 1-1 when Barry Rybicki slipped the ball past the United keeper with a slick left foot move.

With very few attacks against the Viper’s, the United team was able to gain a 50/50 ball on the edge of the box and with a strong tackle Quill Nebeker (a.k.a. Widow Maker) was call for a PK and the Viper’s were down 2-1 with 20 minutes to play.

Showing the heart and desire this group has always had they did not give up and within a few minutes squared the match when Barry Rybicki took the ball around the end line, megged a United defender and was pulled down from behind before he could get a shot off.

Justice was served and the Barry quickly converted the PK. 2-2. After taking a knock on the head from the goal post Barry Rybicki seemed to be on a mission working his magic in the United box he got a shot off that rebounded to a waiting Dennis Foil (a.k.a Powder). Dennis settled the ball and hammered home a nice left footed strike to give the Viper’s a much deserved lead. 3-2

As the game neared time goal keeper Jason Schwien (a.k.a Payson Jason) came out to the top of the box to pick up a loose ball. Unfortunately a United player beat Jason to the ball and struck a shot bound for the upper right corner of the goal. Swooping in from the left across the box came Quill Nebeker and with his big head he cleared a line drive away from danger.

With the first week behind us and the shroud of relegation removed the Viper’s look to shake the remaining rust away next week and put together a complete victory. Man of the Match goes to Barry Rybicki for heading the post and taking the offense on his back. Honorable mention to Quill for using his melon to save the day.

The Sun was out to help us kick off the Fall season. I think it was about 105 degrees. Thanks goodness we had white Jerseys. After having a pre-game warm-up and pep talk, we took the field looking for our first victory.

Our numbers were low and we only had 2 subs at the start. Right off the get go, Cobras commanded the field. We dominated every aspect of the game. The hustle and intensity were something to be reckoned with. Our game plan was being executed almost flawlessly. We had many opportunities, but none materialized into a goal until middle of the first half when Jimmy Mackey took one to the net with power and confidence.

At the half, Cobras were winning 1 - 0. We assured ourselves we would come back out and play the same game with the same intensity, but the heat and the lack of subs were definitely showing signs of fatigue.

The second half was more of the first. Cobras dominated almost the entire half. The intensity was still there in heart, but the game was definitely slowed due to the conditions. Everybody gave 110% and in the end, Cobras pulled off a 1-0 victory.

Congratulations on a game well played!!! Man of the Match goes to Jimmy Mackey, who after being playfully taunted about has lack of goals before the game, shined with a full force performance and game winning GOAL! Outstanding effort Jimmy!

The start of the season ended in a less than spectacular fashion for the Sand Dragons as they faced a new team in the Division, Oasis, a Mirage FC team.

The start of the game had the Sand Dragons starting against only 9 men as the Oasis side was still arriving to the pitch. At the 2 minute mark the Sand Dragons keeper, Goge Johl, received a red card for pulling an Oasis player down in the box and the Sand Dragons were about to go 1 down from the ensuing penalty kick.

Jonesey stepped in as keeper but the Sand Dragon's play was a bit off as they let in a soft goal for the second score of the game in less than 5 minutes time.

Very soon after the second goal, Rob Heuer hit a ripper of a shot from outside the box that went upper right corner giving the keeper no chance. It was 2-1.

With the goal in hand the Dragons started to counter their bad start. They regained some of their lost composure and mounted a few attacks but couldn't put the ball in the net.

Then on a free kick just a few minutes after Rob's goal the ball floated into the Dragon's box and an Oasis forward just got his toe to the floater and the ball ended up in the goal. It was 3-1 Oasis.

The Dragons collected themselves playing harder as they pushed to the Oasis goal and were awarded a penalty. Rob Heuer stepped up and put the ball confidently past the keeper to make it 3-2. The score would remain as half time approached although the Dragons had several very good opportunities to tie and or go ahead.

The second half saw the Oasis side emboldened with their lead and put in two unanswered goals to put the game beyond the Dragon's reach.

Directly after the 5th goal one of the Oasis players kicked the Dragon' s Sweeper from behind, sending him to the ground yelling obscenities. Hugo was red carded for language and sent off even though the linesman saw the dirty play by the Oasis player.

That's how the game ended. The Dragons are looking forward to their next match and hope to see the Oasis side again in the playoffs.

Man of the Match goes to Rob Heuer for his two goals on the day. Honorable mention goes to Thong Nguyen and Ricky Pena, who both had a good game despite the rough start by the team.

In a nutshell, the first game for Saurus did not return a good result but Glennon did a fine job stepping in as a temporary replacement for missing goalkeeper, Lance Leslie in the first half holding the opponents to 1 goal.

Offensively, Geordie came back with a vengeance and scored the team’s first goal of the season on an assist from Roel whose pressure forced a defensive error from which we capitalized.

Geordie gets the honor of first Saurus MOM, getting the first goal for the new team. The game was pretty evenly matched, however, two bad breaks in the defensive half provided the margin and a three to one defeat.

Next week both Will and Ralph will be back in town and hopefully that will make a huge difference on the offensive end of the field. F Dave's hammy is bothersome and he is listed as uncertain for next week's match.

After the game the team had a great time with cold beer provided by new Team Rep, Tom and BBQ Bratwurst provided by Glennon. It would appear the after game tradition will be strong with this team. See you next week.

Chicago chapter SDFC

GAME 8 REPORT
Sand Dragons break offensive records while defeating Shogun for the second time. Sand Dragons (8) - Shogun (6)

The Sand Dragons played another historic match against very worthy adversaries in the likes of the Shogun warriors. The Dragons opened up an impressive offensive barrage in what might have been one of the wackiest and craziest games any of us have ever played in. The SDFC squad broke Club records across the entire organization by scoring 8 goals in a game. This is a feat, I believe, that has not yet been accomplished by any squad in the SDFC organization.

The Dragons solidified their hold on second place and improved their record to 4-2-2. Interestingly enough, the Dragons are undefeated (3-0-1) since porting the SDFC crest on the jerseys. As a recap to the season so far, one of the losses (St. Charles Celtics) escaped us, and the other (Chicago Celtics) was most certainly a fluke. The two ties have gone down in Dragon lore as last minute disappointments.

Anyway, returning to the recap of the game at hand, the wackiness started before the game even commenced where SDFC court jesters (Joe Butera and fellow conspirators Greg, Tom and Junior), giving Elder Dragon - Al Romero a heart attack calling in the prank and stating that they were misdirected at a field in Palatine just before game time.

A total of 13 Dragons were on hand for the game, and among them newcomer Jose Armando Melgar. The squad welcomed the return of Tom Pawula who returned from the disabled list. Unfortunately, Stan Mietus was reported to be undergoing an MRI, and is at risk for the rest of the season. The Dragons, much resembling the Chicago Cubs, already have Robi Greer, Tony Passi, Tony Szabo, and Eddie Valencia on the disabled list. Edgar Joya is now officially out for the season as he continues to mend a broken collarbone.

As the game started, it was evident that the one-month recess for summer break affected the Dragon squad. The team returned to the pitch for the first time in over four weeks. It was a sloppy beginning to the game with lots of misplaced balls and rushed passes. Regardless, the Dragons managed to penetrate the Shogun Defense on the right flank and put a nice cross pass to a sliding Jose Armando Melgar who drilled a rocket into and through the right side of the net. Although we would like to claim that Jose Armando's shot put a hole in the net, it was already there. Unfortunately, the referee annulled the goal and the "wackiness" was well under way. A few minutes later, Carlos Delgado blew past the defense on the right, embarrassed a defender dribbling easily around him and reached the end line before placing a nice swift pass to the feet of Jeff Ahmadian whom violated the net of Takao Tamai for the first official goal of the match with a blistering shot to the left side of the net. Fortunately, that side of the net did not have any holes in it!

The Dragons continued to press hard. Hector Betancourt playing up top as the left striker found a few openings and tried to drill several 30 yard shots to keep Shogun off balance. However, the fun was just starting as the Japanese squad turned things around quickly. The Samurai's struck back with a surprising counter attack that left the Dragons short to even the match. Not more than a few minutes later, Nippon struck again leaving the Dragons shocked and angry. While Joe Butera went down with an injury, Shogun continued to play for at least two minutes without lobbing the sphere out of bounds. With Joe down, the flank was exposed and Shogun leveraged the weakness for a break away and a sobering finish (2-1 Shogun). At the 37-minute mark, Shogun's Team Captain, Tokunaga dribbled right through the middle of the defense with an exposed Joe Mindock suffering the consequences (3-1 Shogun). This third goal rocked Joe's patience as he exploded with rage frustrated at the Dragon squad for not containing the opposing attackers. Up to this point, Joe had turned in a fine performance coming out of the net as needed, making very nice saves and firmly controlling the penalty area, but he couldn't do it all by himself.

Our keeper was justified in his explosion for several reasons: 1) The entire team was tired and flat, walking back into position and getting caught with overwhelming numbers on the counter attack. 2) Absolutely no head balls had been won at midfield during the entire first half. 3) The Dragon defense could not contain the Japanese masterful dribbling display and allowed attackers to slip right through the middle of the penalty area for crystal clear shots on goal.

A minute before half time, Carlos Delgado challenged the Shogun squad and nearly broke through as he was dropped from behind in what could have triggered a red card. However, a free kick was awarded from just beyond the top of the penalty area. Junior Garcia lined up to take the shot and drilled a blast that skimmed off the head of a defender in the Japanese wall cruising nonetheless into the back of the net (3-2 Shogun).

Once again the Dragons had given up three goals by half time, an embarrassing reality that has been all too common the entire season. Fortunately, courageous Dragon Heart is what the second half comeback squad is all about! While the team talked over the happenings and the strategy, team captain - Jeff Ahmadian went off on a tantrum not wanting the offense to be blamed for the misfortunes of the first half even though nobody could walk away blameless. At any rate, a fire was lit under the squad and Jeff's prophecy that the offense would score goals was about to come true. We are not sure whether it was Jeff's fire, or Joe's wet kiss place on a bewildered Al Romero, or the adjustments that Al worked into the strategy, but the Dragon's came out on fire. <>

The second half adjustments were as follows: 1) Hector Betancourt was shifted to stopper to help close the middle 2) Joe Butera was shifted to the midfield to win the head balls and 50-50 balls. 3) Al Romero moved to forward to inject a little more creativity and passing up top.

At any rate the Dragons wasted no time at all, within 5 minutes Carlos Delgado took a long loft from Joe Butera, passed the defense, and slammed a point- blank shot that was stopped by Takao Tamai. A charging Al Romero poked the rebound past a recovering keeper to tie the game at 3-3. That was the break that the Dragons needed, as Jeff proceeded to take control and dominate the midfield, and Joe Butera began winning the air game by both challenging headers and lofting long boots to attacking strikers. The defense started to plug the middle and a very aggressive Jose Garcia shut down opponents.

Only a few minutes later, Carlos Delgado again flanked the Shogun defense only to slide the ball quickly to an awaiting Jeff Ahmadian who proceeded to blast a stunning shot into the right side of the net (4-3 SDFC). Carlos and Jeff celebrated with "slippery fives". And less than five minutes later, the Dragons celebrated again. This time attacking from the left, Al Romero, Junior and Jeff teamed up for a bang-bang play. In a matter of seconds Al one touch passes to Junior, Junior one touch passes to Jeff and finishes by drilling another shot into the back of the net finding the lower right hand corner open to notch a 5-3 lead. This marked a hat trick for Jeff and breathing room for the Dragons.

Al and Junior teamed up again shortly thereafter in what seemed to be a near replay. Al received the ball inside the box and with no time wasted dropped a pass back to a charging Junior who rocketed the top of the net to enhance the lead to 6-3. At the 30 minute mark, the Dragons were smelling blood and continued to press. Jeff Ahmadian working the middle placed a through ball to Junior who then dribbled past three defenders and drilled another shot into the net for his own hat trick! Dragons up 7-3. And again a few minutes later, Junior took the soccer ball, dribbled through defenders and was toppled inside the penalty area before launching a probable 4th goal. The referee awarded a penalty kick, which Junior salivated for … unfortunately for him, the kick was awarded to Greg Janes so as to prize the defense for a better job in the second half. Greg stepped up to the area and coolly propelled a canon into the top of the net that was unreachable by Tamai. Dragons up 8-3.

Little did we know that the tables would quickly turn as the Dragons suffered a complete and total, mental collapse. Tokunaga took charge working in tandem with Yamamoto. A quick score by Yamamoto made the game 8-4. Gaining confidence the Japanese squad began to press, and the Dragons returned to the antics of the first half - walking and lunging. As a result, Joe Mindock was peppered yet holding the fort quite well with several outstanding point blank saves. Tokunaga found an opening attacking from the right side and shot a low line drive that passed under Joe's diving body. The shot should have been stopped by our keeper; regardless, the score was now 8-5. Tokunaga wasn't done though, and continued his masterful display of dribbling and walked right through the middle of the defense again to blast in another goal - his third of the game - to draw Shogun close at 8-6. Another Dragon fell injured, as Hector Castro suffered a severe groin pull leaving the Dragons with one sub vs. the full force of 17 or 18 Shogun warriors. The game continued to be suspenseful until the last whistle blew. Notch the victory to the Dragons, but some reflection is needed to tighten the defense.

MAN OF THE MATCH: Junior Garcia receives the nod for his hat trick and two assists. A tremendous game was displayed, as he was everywhere achieving at will. HONORABLE MENTION: Joe Mindock for keeping the Dragons in the game in the first half and as the game ended with at least five point blank saves, and good domain.

GAME 7 REPORT...CLICK HERE

Sand Dragons O35 2nd place in Championship match.

Sunday May 2nd 2004

Vipers win Championship!
Sunday April 25th

Goal Scorers:

Will Sisneros -1 1st goal	Malik - 2 2nd and 3rd	Barry Rybicki - 1 4th goal

See archives for recap...

Chicago chapter SDFC

GAME 6 REPORT
Sand Dragons on a roll and take over sole possession of second place!

The sun was shining on the Sand Dragons today, about 90 degrees worth. However, it was a bit of a miracle that the Dragons came out with the victory. Not so much for style of play but for the antecedents before the game. At 4:30 PM there were only 5 Dragons on the field with a sixth man in the parking lot. Two committed SDFC Dragons were AWOL … Route 88 was miserable … the underpass at Route 59 was flooded … River Fest was holding traffic back in downtown St. Charles ... All the makings of a disaster. However, God was merciful and provided a blessing to the SDFC squad. As it turns out, the St. Charles Celtics and the Referee were noble to the Dragons and generously allowed more time for the players to arrive. At 4:45 five additional Dragons pulled into the lot and within a few more minutes the game was underway. The Celtics (Blue) must be recognized for their sportsmanship! The thankful Dragons also remember the age old expression "What goes around comes around" … as this might have been payback for the Dragon's own noble gesture that allowed this same St. Charles team the chance to play with three unregistered players in Game 2 giving them the advantage that carried to an SDFC defeat.

Once the Dragons saw the full eleven on the field for the start of the game, it was a totally different story. The Dragons were not about to give up three goals in the first ten minutes of the game, as was the case the first time we played this opponent. The game plan called for the squad to play conservatively on defense already anticipating the wing play with short cross passes to the top of the box. The Dragons kicked off and immediately demonstrated their ability to play the short pass game that has become an exhilarating trademark. Beautiful combinations of one touch passing surprised the Celtics and kept them off guard. The Dragons grew in confidence as the defense proved to be sharp and disciplined in the early going. At the 15 minute mark Carlos Delgado found some room at the right wing and crossed it over to a waiting Jeff Ahmadian whom coolly chest trapped, settled and banged it home to put the Dragons on top 1-0. The defense continued to play well to stymie the Celtics throughout the half. Unfortunately, the heat began to affect the Dragons as they began to tire without any subs. The Celtics were at full force with what seemed to be 18 players on roster. Greg Janes held the fort down at sweeper having another successful outing against this very same team working well in tandem with his back line. The outside backs, Jose Garcia and Joe Butera, were aggressive and intercepted everything that came their way. However, the last ten minutes of the half were difficult as we were finding ourselves pressed to much in front and Tony Passi, as stopper, left a gap that was exploited by the Celtics whom found their game again by placing sharp passes across to an open middle. The Dragons held on to the half and returned to the sidelines for a much needed break.

The "fire breathers" came off the sidelines limping, as Stosh was suffering from a first half groin pull, and Carlos seemed to be suffering from tightness, not to mention that Tony Passi's back was ailing. The Dragons suffered through a scare when Carlos went down. It was a little surprising the Celtics continued to press and didn't kick the ball out of bounds (Did I mention sportsmanship earlier?). It took both teams a full minute or two to get the ball out of play. While it looked like Carlos might have been out for the count, he regrouped and remained in the game. A few minutes later, Jeff broke through the defense entering the box from the right side only to be tripped from behind. A sure penalty argued by the Dragons, but the referee pardoned the foul. Our defense recovered quickly and was having a fine day. Jose and Joe continued to dominate the backfield and would pump wonderful long through balls back to the top. Yet at the same time, the offense started to stagger because all of the Dragons decided to play long ball. On the other hand it might not have been a bad idea, because it bought a little breathing room. Carlos, however, now dubbed the "Gazelle", as was often heard on the playing field, went shagging all of those balls. At the 20-minute mark, his hard work paid off. On an out of bounds play, Greg Janes placed a long throw-in into the box that was received by Stosh who in turn swiftly passed short to a receiving Carlos. A second later, Carlos had juked the defender and took a left footed blast from the top of the box that found the back of the left side of the net to place the Dragons in the lead by a 2-0 mark. However, Carlos wasn't through yet. About five minutes later someone from the midfield punched a through ball that Carlos overcame blitzing behind the defense only to be taken down in the box. What was interesting was that Carlos had already shot (and missed wide), but the referee blew the whistle and called a penalty kick. It seemed to be more of a compensation for the earlier one that was not called. In addition, the Celtic player was ejected with a red card. Jeff lined up the penalty and took a conservative shot to the lower right hand corner to make the score 3-0.

The Dragons continued to make adjustments as the Celtics wouldn't quit. An early adjustment in the half was a switch at the stopper position. Jeff dropped back, and a hungry Tony Passi jumped to the attack. Stosh who was pretty much done for the day dropped back to pinch in at contention. Regardless the flanks were widely exposed as the Celtics charged with superior numbers on the attack. It is evident that the SDFC squad needs greater discipline on the halfback mark. The Dragons tired again, but a firm, stand and fine display of defense by the back line held the Celtic attack. Greg, Jose and Joe bumped attackers off the ball and turned it around for the counter. It must be mentioned that Joe Mindock had a fine game out at the left wing and created numerous opportunities for the fiery serpents. That's exactly what the Dragons need to do, play to the outside and cross it through the middle. The goals will come. Junior also came to play and had a fine game as a Dragon showing some razzle-dazzle and coming close to a goal of his own. The net was clean for 88 minutes as Robi had himself a great showing and a near shutout. Unfortunately, the Celtics found their goal as they drilled a 30 yard lob over everyone's head and beyond Robi's reach to the back of the net. Carlos went out injured to even up the sides, but the game was over soon after.

Congratulations to the Dragons taking over sole possession of second place! It was actually the Dragon's finest hour and most complete game of the season holding firm on defense and putting together two good halves in the same game. Just as important, the Dragons finally put an end to a long and dreadful four game streak of giving up three goals in the first half. Another important side note is that SDFC Chicago has not lost since porting the blue logo emblazoned jerseys loaned by the Club in Arizona. Wear them with pride boys! That's what Stan said … that's what the team has been doing for the last three weeks. MAN OF THE MATCH: Joe Butera for his incredible display of defense, strong boot and clears, solid through ball passing. More importantly, Joe has shown true team spirit on and off the field, which is exemplary to all of us. Cheers to Joe for his tremendous effort recruiting, registration of players, picking players up in a car pool, etc…etc...

Honorable Mention: Jose Garcia, Greg Janes, Robi Greer for shutting down through balls, overall tight defense and a great communications effort from the back. Carlos Delgado for running like a Gazelle, for a beautiful clinching goal and two assists. Jeff Ahmadian had a fine performance front and back, and two solid goals.

The Sand Dragons met the Blasters in the Final of the SUASL O35 Division.  This was the first time the Sand Dragons would be in the final match.  The weather was great for an 8 am start time.  The team was missing Milton Melo out due to travel and player/coach Roel Bazuin was playing full time coach due to injury in the last round robin match of the season.

The last time these teams met during round robin play, the Blasters beat the Sand Dragons 6-2.  In that game the Sandymen were missing 6 players including goalkeeper, Goge Johl.  This match would prove to be a very different match.

 Both sides came out strong showing their skills and teamwork. As the half progressed each team had their chances at goal and showed why they were in this championship game playing very well indeed.  Neither team showed any lack of fitness or desire as the half ended 0-0 with both sides going strong.

 After 15 minutes of the second half expired the Blasters lost their sweeper to what looked like a hamstring pull but the experienced Blaster defense picked right up where they left off and didn’t look any worse for wear.  Soon after the Blasters took advantage of a lapse in defending by the Sand Dragons as one of their forwards moved unmolested into the penalty box with the ball and quickly ripped off a shot and hit side netting as the Sand Dragons keeper dove but couldn’t reach the strong shot.

 It was 1 nil Blasters but as often happened this season, the Sandymen answered the call and started to attack with great fury.  But now it was the Sand Dragons turn to lose a sweeper as 1^st year player, Hugo Suarez, had to leave the game with a pulled hammy.  As the game continued, the Sandymen brought the ball up the field on attack while Dieter Welle moved in to collect a loose ball coming out of the defensive third of the Blaster side.  Dieter first time volleyed a shot from what looked like about 40 yards out.  As the well hit volley, that knuckled some but never rose above 15 feet, approached the goal it was becoming very apparent that the ball was not only hit on target but was surely going in and Dieter’s rocket of a volley hit upper corner and the Sandymen were even at 1-1.

 The game wasn’t nearly over as both sides battled for possession and some 10 minutes later the Blasters scored as their winger brought the ball down to the end line and moved to the near post which was being closely guarded by the Sand Dragons keeper.  The Blaster player had no real opportunity to score so he put the ball across and away from the keeper to the top of the 6 yard box as another Blaster player took advantage of some sleeping Sand Dragons beat them to the ball and with 2 defenders on his flank, tucked the ball into the back of the net well away from the sprawling keeper for the Blaster’s 2^nd goal of the day.

 With about 10 minutes left in the match the Sandymen took over and started to pound the Blaster defense with offensive attacks one after another.  As the pressure mounted the Sandymen’s leading goal scorer, Tony Nguyen, hit a ball that was knocked in by a Blaster player O.G. to once again bring the match square.  The Sandymen were at this point in total control of possession and had the Blasters on their heels for the remainder of the match and although creating several opportunities missed scoring as the ref blew the final whistle for overtime.

 It was golden goal time and the Sand Dragons were looking to keep the pressure up but as luck would have it the Blasters scored in the first 30 seconds as the Sand Dragons left a player completely unmarked as he took a shot from about 25 yards out and hit side netting past a diving Dragon keeper who nearly got his hand to the ball…but didn’t.  Game over.

 Both sides cheered each other after the game and offered each other congratulations for a hard fought championship match.  Congratulations Sand Dragons for making their first division final with many new players this season and of course Kudos’ to the Blasters who won a match either team could have come away with.

Many thanks to Glennon Miller, who was sidelined this season with injury, for assisting the team as 2nd coach this season. Glennon's help on the sidelines was much appreciated by all.

Click here for some post match pictures...

Chicago chapter SDFC

The Good, the Bad, the Ugly … Dragons Fall Short in Game 2

Sand Dragons (2) – St Charles Celtics Blue (4)
 

The game was anticipated to become the battle of the Titans … already, so early in the season. These are the two most likely teams to be contending for the Championship. Unfortunately, round one goes to the Celtics.
 

The Environment:  Cold, drizzly and windy.

The Location: A little beyond B.F.E. with an average drive time of an hour twenty amongst our players (with Complaints). Some of our troopers were gritting through terrible traffic coming out of Chicago arriving just before game time. Even the referee was late which was a blessing in disguise.

The Numbers: The Dragons rushing to get dressed and check in had no time to warm up, and started the game with 10. The 11^th was on the sideline rushing to get ready. Missing three players this week including Robi, Hector C., and Tony Szabo. Warm welcome to Andreas.
 

It comes as no shocking surprise that the Celtics kicked off with an onslaught and incessantly pressed the goal. The Dragons looked airless, legless, confused and at the mercy of the Celtics. Short handed and two minutes into the game, the left defensive flank was exposed with Luis over-committing and falling to the ground leaving the Celtics with a three on two break away that was perfectly executed with a cross over the goal mouth settled and put past our diving Keeper.
 

It didn’t help much to even the numbers, because the Dragons still looked confused on offense and defense. Three minutes later, the Celtics exposed the right defensive flank with superior numbers at the goalmouth. A simple pass was placed into the goalmouth to a wide-open Celtic striker whom just tapped it in for a 2-0 mark. And shortly thereafter, the Celtics put yet another cross to the mouth that was easily headed in for a 3-0 mark at the 10 minute mark (The Bad).
 

Captain, Jeff Ahmadian, made the call for an adjustment and pulled himself out of sweeper to move up on offense. Greg Janes in turn moved to sweeper with Hector Betancourt shifting to stopper. And what a move that turned out to be. Sorry Jeff, you’ve been replaced at sweeper. Not only because the double move solidified the defense, but also because Jeff took control of the offense. As they say, the best defense is a good offense… and the Dragons never looked back.
 

At the 20 minute mark, the Dragons had found the secret and had started to flank the Celtics on the right looking for Al Romero to poke the through ball to our strikers. Al chipped a through ball to Stan whom was on a break away before being taken down in the box. Jeff Ahmadian finished the penalty kick with precision to bring the score to 3-1.
 

All of a sudden, the offense clicked into total domination of the Celtics with exhilarating ball control and a swift passing game exhibited by Jeff, Andreas, Tony, Carlos, Stan, and Al. Time after time, the Dragons pressed and reached net. The addition of new Dragon Andreas was essential as he proved to be a critical link in the mid field contributing significantly and helping the offense to gel. The Dragons continued to press the right side and found Al alone on the flank. Al in turn dribbled forward and placed another through ball to Stan who played pinball with Carlos on a speedy give and go leaving defenders in their tracks. Stan took the last pass around the bend and blistered a no angle shot from about five yards off the right post drilling it into the left side of the net for a goal. At the 30-minute mark, the score was now 3-2 with the Dragons absolutely dominating. Carlos played an absolutely outstanding game up top doing exactly what he had to do … release the ball quickly. Carlos almost found his reward when he received a crossing pass and volleyed on net with what seemed to be the game tying goal, but the opposing keeper made a fine save. The Dragons would not let the Celtics out of their own 30 for over twenty minutes (The Good).
 

It turned out to be unfortunate that the half ended so quickly. In the second half, the Dragons returned to the incessant pressing, but had lost a little momentum as the Celtics tried to adjust. Jeff Ahamdian attacked ferociously with several shots on goal. Hector Betancourt would take control of the back, dribble up and place excellent passes or even take the shot himself in spite of his roll at stopper. Tony Passi created havoc on the left wing and drilled a left footed shot that was captured by the keeper.
 

However, the air was let out of the bag when Dragon, Edgar Joya, went down violently with what looked to be a painful shoulder separation (The Ugly), and turned out to be a fractured shoulder. The Celtics took advantage and scored soon after on a counter attack for the final 4-2 mark. Edgar gets the Gladiator award as he stayed in to play and fill in space and even mustered a couple of good clears, but the game was now much more difficult. Al was forced to play both midfield and full back at the same time. The Celtics grew in confidence and pressed Joe Butera, our keeper, aggressively. Joe had a fine game in spite of the four goals that penetrated the net. His boot created much of the offense to begin with placing it long and well for our Midfield and Strikers to reach.
 

Man of the Match: Stan Mietus, finding his mark as a striker participating in both goals. Honorable Mention: Edgar Joya for showing loyalty to team and true grit.
 

A long story this week, but there was lots to talk about. The Dragons are definitely Championship caliber, and will dominate the playing field. You heard it hear – The Dragons will not lose more than two or three games out of the 17 game season.

 
The “No Fail” Secret:

1. Show up on Time.
2. Warm up.
3. Arrive in numbers with three subs.

Vipers win Championship!
Sunday April 25th

Goal Scorers:

Will Sisneros -1 1st goal	Malik - 2 2nd and 3rd	Barry Rybicki - 1 4th goal

See archives for recap...

It was a beautiful morning as the Sand Dragons took the field for an 8 am match-time and the Division Semi-Final.  Sunday’s semifinal match saw the return of injured players Milton Melo and Jonesey. All other players were present although player/coach Roel Bazuin was sidelined with an injury from the previous week’s match vs. Samba.

 
Saint Nicholas was the Sand Dragons’ opponent who won the round robin and came into the match with only 2 defeats the entire season, one of those losses from the Sandymen.  Both sides knew it was going to be a tough, hard fought match.  And that it was.

 
The first 30 minutes of the match had both sides moving the ball in attack and both sides had clear opportunities only to miss the goal entirely although Saint Nicholas put 3 shots on target but right to the Sandymen’s keeper.

 
With about 15 minutes to go the Saint Nicholas side brought the ball down the field and crossed it over with the ball heading dead at a Saint Nicholas forward who was poised for a volley at the goal from about 9 yards out.  While most everyone else was ball watching Milton Melo left his man and moved forward to intercept the ball with a diving header just in front of the Saint Nicholas player.  Milton’s diving header did catch the ball cleanly, unfortunately he nailed it into the side netting past a diving Sand Dragons keeper.

 
The score was 1 nil against the Sand Dragons but Saint Nicholas still hadn’t scored themselves and so the Sandymen went into an attacking frenzy throwing everything forward.  With 9 minutes left sweeper, Hugo Suarez took a free kick from about 45 yards out and sent it to the far post and right at the crossbar.  As the ball moved closer to the goal Steve Bruns, who captained on the day, moved in to apply pressure to the stony handed Saint Nicholas keeper who misplayed the ball and as it hit the underside of the bar and with the ball slowly going into the goal Brunsie made sure of it as he corralled the ball with his body and walked it into the back of the net. 1-1 and the half-time whistle blew just a few minutes afterwards with the Sandymen seeing most of the possession time for the half.

 
With the match tied at 1-1 both sides again pressed hard at goal with the Sand Dragons missing the goal on several good attempts and 5 or 6 wasted free kicks as Saint Nicholas was stopped by Goge, the Sandymen's keeper, on a break-away as one of the only attacks that made it to the Sand Dragons goal thus far in the half.  But with 15 minutes left in the second half Saint Nicholas moved up at goal and one of their players hit an uncontested shot from about 20 yards out that went upper left corner with the Sandymen’s keeper diving but coming up with nothing but air.

 
Suddenly it was 2-1 Saint Nicholas and with 9 minutes left the Sandymen were pressing hard as Rob Heuer assisted (his 12th assist this season) to Tony Nguyen (the Sandymen's leading scorer this season) on a great attack which featured some great skill moves by midfielder Thong Nguyen and once again the Sandymen answered and the game was tied.

 
Shortly thereafter, Saint Nicholas once again had a one on one opportunity at the top of the box only to be stopped by Goge who had anticipated the break away and pounced like a hungry snake on the ball to deny the Saint Nicholas side.

 
With 3 minutes left the Sandymen put it all together and marched the ball down to the Saint Nicholas goal and with all the pressure in the world and almost no time left Tony put the ball across the face of the goal and from about 5 yards out an onrushing Andy Honker put the ball cleanly and confidently past a sprawling Saint Nicholas keeper for the winning goal!

 
With 3 minutes left the Sandymen played with everyone back simply playing kickball with every ball coming into their half to lock up the match.

 
So many players played so well on the day but for the winning goal of the game, Andy Honker is awarded the Man of the Match.

 
The final will be played this Sunday May 2^nd. Match time TBA. Way to go Sand Dragons!

Vipers win Championship!

Goal Scorers:

Will Sisneros -1 1st goal	Malik - 2 2nd and 3rd	Barry Rybicki - 1 4th goal

The Vipers were pumped up for the final of the 2C division. Although the team managers (Dan and Jason) and Quill were unable to be there, the reserves were ready to fill in. The game started slow with both teams controlling the ball in the middle. The Vipers started to take over after a few minutes by passing the ball to the outside, and breaking the offside trap that World Futbol was playing. After a flurry of close shots on goal, Jeff Arnold sent a beautiful cross from the right side into the box, and Will Sisneros Leaps, and heads it in for a Vipers 1-0 lead.

Shortly after that, World Futbol started to control the midfield as the Vipers pushed up to add more goals, but during one counter attack, one of their players struck a shot from outside the box low into the right side of the goal, and that made the score 1-1.

Things got physical at the end of the half, but both teams controlled their tempers, and the teams went into half time tied 1-1. During half time, Jason, Goge, and Amjad emphasized the importance of controlling the middle of the field, and how we need to come out, put pressure on them, and score goals. That was exactly what the Vipers did.

Just a few minutes after the start of the 2nd half, Malik passes the ball to Richard, and without looking, Richard turns, and gives the ball back to Malik on the edge of the box. Malik knew exactly what to do with the ball, and struck it beautifully over their goalie. The Vipers were pumped, and continued the pressure. 2 minutes after that goal, Rabih Hajjar robs their midfielder from the ball, and falls and hits his head on the ground. By the time he was helped up, Malik has already scored goal number 3, making the score 3-1 Vipers.

The Vipers didn't stop, and they pushed for more goals. After a scramble in front of goal, the ball was deflected away from goal towards the edge of the 18-yard box. That's where Barry was waiting for it, and he heads it towards goal, and the goalie couldn't handle it, as the Vipers jump in joy, joined by Brunsie's dog who ran all over the field celebrating our 4-1 lead.

After that goal, the Vipers decided to control the ball, pass it on the ground, and take advantage of a tired World Futbol team that had no subs. Just 10 minutes before game end, Amjad fails to clear a ball, as he was held by a forward. That same forward then takes a shot, Viper keeper, David Larson, saves it but the ball bounces into the forward, and into goal making the score 4-2.

World Futbol had only 4 chances the whole game, as the Vipers defense was ready for them, and our 4-2 lead was never threatened. The Vipers were joyous after the final whistle blew, but we were concerned with Barry's injury, as he had a knee inflammation, and we hope he's doing ok.

Special thanks to Jason Kaiser, who was in charge of subs. He kept the players fresh, and relieved the Captain from any additional responsibilities, Goge for his helping warm up David, and keeping the spirits high, and for all the fans, especially the Sand Dragons O35 squad that supported the Vipers during the biggest game of their short history.

More Special thanks to Miguel, Doug, Norbert, Amjad, and Jeff Beaver for a great effort on defense. I know World Futbol scored two goals, but the defense contained World Futbol for most of the game. To Jeff Arnold, Will, Barry, Malik, Chris, and Igor for great passing, and scoring all four goals from midfield. To Richard, Rabih, and Walter who created for the midfielders by giving the ball up unselfishly to break up the offside trap World Futbol used unsuccessfully. To Our awesome goalie, who without him we wouldn't be in the final: David Larsen. Great game everyone. Man of the Match goes to Malik who scored 2 goals.

The Vipers SDFC
are SUASL's
2C Division Champions!

Chicago chapter makes Arizona proud as the Sand Dragons start a winning tradition in their 1^st game kicking off the North Suburban Soccer League. It was a bit of a reunion as many former CLVB Colombia players put their cleats on after a separation of 10 years.

 
On a rainy Saturday, the Sand Dragons really came out storming and surprised the St. Charles squad quickly. While St. Charles was trying to build a short passing game in the early going, Jeff Ahmadian blew through the left wing leaving defenders in their tracks showcasing excellent dribbling skills and when reaching the end line swiftly passing the ball across the goal mouth to an eagerly awaiting Stan Mietus who popped it into the net from a few yards out.  It took only seven minutes for the Dragons to mark their first goal.

 
Fifteen minutes later, someone placed a beautiful through ball to Stan Mietus down the right wing. Stan exploded for a break away and finished solidly placing the ball to the left of the keeper for his second goal of the match!  St. Charles United couldn’t find a way to break through the stingy Dragon defense in the 1^st half as Tony Szabo turned in an admirable performance at Sweeper. Robi Greer was solid and reliable in net coming out quickly when necessary and diving on occasion to make saves. Near the end of the half, Robi was roaming in no-man’s land as an attacker broke through the right flank and lifted a lob over Rob’s head to mark the 1^st half at 2-1. A score too close for a half that was completely dominated by the Sand Dragons. The Dragons constantly created danger and reached the opposing goal. Unfortunately, the Dragons should have finished at least on three other occasions.

 
In the second half, the Sand Dragons demonstrated that they were going to continue to press forward. Carlos Delgado created a lot of pressure with fresh legs arriving in the box time and time again, but could not finish. On several occasions, Carlos tried to dribble around the goalie instead of taking a hard shot that would have probably scored. Next time we’ll have to make sure we take the shot!  However, as captain Jeff Ahmadian persistently worked his magic on the left wing, he crossed it over across the middle where Carlos Delgado settled it and stroked it in past the keeper for the Dragons third goal twelve minutes into the half.

 
Finally, the 12 man Dragon crew wore down and gassed out. St Charles grew mighty and caught the Dragons with their pants down and scored to make the game close at 3-2. Robi was up to the challenge making a few diving saves that kept the Dragons on top. With St. Charles pressing and the Dragons gasping for air, Jeff found his way through the defense and blasted an unstoppable shot past the keeper. That goal sealed the match for the Sand Dragons who chalked up the first victory. A sign of the times for SDFC these days.

 
Man of the Match: Shared by Jeff Ahmadian (1 Goal & 2 Assists) and Tony Szabo (Outstanding on defense).

The Sand Dragons played their 11th and final match of the season's round robin play this past Sunday. The match was billed as a quarterfinals match with the winner gaining the fourth spot in the semifinals. The top 3 spots were finalized earlier in the day as Saint Nicholas and Incinerators earned 3 points each in their matches on the day.

The round robin standings showed Saint Nicholas ending up at the top spot with 25 points. With 23 points each, Incinerators earn the second spot over Blasters in third due to goal differential.

The Sand Dragons' line-up had Milton Melo and Jonesey both out due to injury and Lee Nguyen, Johnny Ridgway and sweeper Hugo Suarez also unavailable for the day's match.

As the first whistle blew both sides knew it was going to be a hard fought match. Both sides played very physical as well as skillfully. There were only 2 yellow cards shown, however. The first half saw each team have it's chances in front of the goal with the Sandymen's keeper making 4 saves in the first half.

The Sand Dragons' strategy for the second half was to go hard at Samba and make every effort to score while not giving up anything at the back.

As the second half played out the score was still nil-nil and with 20 minutes left to play the Sandymen moved an additional man forward to aid in the attacks leaving only 3 in the back line.

With 12 minutes left to go the team's leading goalscorer, Tony Nguyen received the ball at the top of the box and moved in maintaining possession then passing the ball across the top of the six yard box to Ralph DeGraph who had Samba defenders all around him. As the ball slid across, Ralph cleanly slotted the ball into the back of the net with confidence, leaving the Samba defense with nothing to do but watch the resulting celebration.

With the winning goal in hand the Sandymen played with all 10 men in the defense protecting the lead with minutes left to play. The entire squad played great, both individually as well as a team, with many making outstanding plays of their own. Coaches Roel and Glennon chose Sandymen's keeper, Goge Johl as the Man of the Match.

This match puts the Sandymen in the Semifinals match. Both will be played simultaneously at 8 am on the McDowell Mt. fields this upcoming Sunday.

Congratulations Sand Dragons and SDFC!

Vipers win Semifinal match vs. Eagles in a great game.

Viper's Goal Scorers:
Barry Rybicki (15)
Barry Rybicki (pk 66)
Rabih Hajjar (70)
Walter Houtz (77)

Eagles scored in the 83rd minute.

Man of the Match:
Keeper: David Larsen

Division 2C Final: World Futbol vs. Vipers SDFC
Kick-Off: Sunday - Noon
Field: McDowell Mt. - East field

Sand Dragons The Sand Dragons played their 10th match of the season and for the 3 points needed to stay alive in the playoff hunt.

The match started off with the Sandymen dominating play as the first 10 minutes were played with the Hardrockers short 2 men. Just after the late arrivals filled the Hardrocker's ranks the Sandymen's new signing Lee Nguyen scored the first goal of the match and his second of the season. 1 nil Sandymen.

The next 10 minutes saw three more goals as Rowdy Rob Heuer, Tony Nguyen, and Ralph DeGraph all scored goals. Ralph's goal was particularly nice as he took advantage of a defensive miscue, took the ball forward and hit a great chip shot from 35 yards out that skinned the underside of the bar and hit the back of the net.

The rest of the first half was littered with Sand Dragon chances at goal but nothing was realized.

The start of the second half saw the Sand Dragons score it's 5th goal as Rowdy Rob got his 4th of the season.

Suddenly the Sand Dragons play went down in intensity. With the game surely in hand player/coach Roel Bazuin battled the Hardrockers forwards in the penalty box as several players slept in, while the ref called Roel for a penalty. The Sand Dragon's 9th penalty call of the season...the scoreline was now 5-1.

Several minutes later many of the Sand Dragons missed the Wide Awake Club's meeting and the Hardrockers quickly put a free-kick square to an oncoming forward who's shot deflected over the helpless Dragon keeper.

The embarrassing allowance of goals to the Hardrocker side frustrated several of the Sand Dragon's players and minutes later the Hardrockers, who were at this point feeling they might make this a game, scored again off a throw-in that went just over Colin Smith's head as he was marking a forward and somehow bounced completely over Dragon sweeper, Hugo Suarez, and landed squarely in the lap of an oncoming Hardrocker player who tucked the ball into the only open section of the net as Johnny Ridgway and Dragon keeper Goge Johl had 7/8's of the goal mouth covered leaving Goge swimming in the dirt filled goalmouth. 5-3

Needless to say the wake up call light was on and the Sandymen went back to work with their final goal scored by the team's leading goalscorer, Tony Nguyen in the 91st minute.

Man of the Match goes to Colin Smith for a solid and consistent match stopping the Hardrockers at every attempt against him and playing some sweet and cool passing skills at Left & Right Back as well as playing Stopper and Sweeper in the second half.

Six pack honors goes to Mike "Jonesey" Jones for playing hard with that Sandymen fighting spirit after sustaining an ugly injury to his leg in the teams previous match while subbing in at keeper vs the league's leader.

Come see us play under the lights, this upcoming Sunday, vs. Samba at 6 pm on the McDowell West field. Winner of this match earns a spot in the division's Semifinal match.

It was another very warm day as the Vipers looked to face Dynamo in the first round of the playoffs. A past match up with Dynamo was hard fought and this one proved to be even more so.

The game started very chippie from the first whistle and the Vipers would create the first real opportunity of the game when Dre nearly scored on a diving header.

A few minutes later the game lost all control when a player on Dynamo was injured and the referee stopped play. Just after the restart an altercation ensued between Barry Rybicki and another Dynamo player after Barry punished him with a hard tackle on the touchline. The result was the ejection of both as the Dynamo player was ejected for retaliation.

The game continued 10 on 10 with back and forth play until a Dynamo player split the Viper defense and ripped a knuckling shot past the Viper keeper.

The score remained 1-0 Dymano until half time. During half-time the Viper team talked about regaining control of the middle of the field and some changes were made in the line up that quickly paid off when Amjad Alzubi found the back of the net tying the scored at one.

As the game continued Dynamo had several chances but was stopped handsomely by Viper keeper, Dave Larsen. Soon it was clear that Dynamo was becoming tired which created opportunities that the Vipers were not able to capitalize on and the game carried into “Golden Goal” overtime period 1 thanks to a last minute save by Super Dave.

The first 10-minute overtime saw no scoring and Dynamo seemed to be playing for penalty kicks. It was not to be.

Just minutes into the second overtime Amjad Alzubi took a free kick from the top of the box, the ball curled over the Dynamo wall toward the upper right hand corner of the net leaving the Dynamo goalie no chance to make a play. 2-1 Vipers WIN!!!!!!

Overjoyed with the goal, Amjad ran toward his own side of the field, the entire Viper team came storming onto the field and piled on Amjad with jubilation.

Man of the Match goes to Amjad Alzubi for obvious reasons and special mentions go to Dave Larsen for his outstanding goal keeping effort and to the Viper defense in front of him.

The Vipers would like to thank all the people that came to cheer us on. Thank you to the Cobra’s your support was outstanding.

See you in the Semifinals next week against the Eagles…….game time TBD.

It was a hot high noon this past Sunday as the 4th place Sand Dragons took on the 1st place Blasters. The Blaster side had plenty of subs while the Dragons only had 12 men, with players out of town and injured, which proved to be a crucial factor in the game. The game started out fairly evenly with Blasters holding more of the possession, but the Dragons looking threatening on several counterattacks, including a missed one v one opportunity for Rob Heuer.

The first-half tide shifted when Blasters were awarded a penalty kick about 25 minutes in after a challenge from Hugo Suarez on a Blasters forward. The Blasters managed two other first-half goals despite some fine keeping from Mike Jones, playing in place of the usual net minder who was off sipping pina coladas on a beach somewhere.

At half-time the Dragons decided that if the final score was 3-0 or 10-0 it wouldn't matter, so the team decided to push forward and attack, a strategy that paid off for the first 25 minutes of the second half. Playing three up front the Dragons managed to pressure the Blasters back line and prevent the buildup and control that the Blasters had managed in the first half. The increased pressure paid off about 15 minutes into the half with a handball in the box off of a long Rob Heuer throw in. Rob stepped up to take the penalty and put it away. 3-1. Five minutes later Fred Digne found himself free on the left side of the box and scored the goal of the match, slotting the ball past the keeper and off the inside of the far post. 3-2.

Now, the Dragons showed even more life and could see the tying goal in their grasp, but it was not to be. Rob Heuer stumbled on a breakaway chance and Steve Bruns had a couple of strong shots saved by the keeper. Then, after pushing forward so much the Dragons simply ran out of gas. The Blasters scored their 4th about 30 minutes in the half and that just took the wind out of the sails of the Dragon side and the Blasters scored two more late goals against the weary Dragons.

At the end of the day, the Dragons decided that we needed to push and attack the best teams in the league from the start of the match, not after falling behind 3-0. For about 25 minutes in each half the game was pretty even, which bodes well for the final two matches of the season. A pair of wins to close out the season should put the Dragons into the playoffs.

Man of the Match goes to Mike Jones for stepping up and playing in goal for the day and for making many key saves on great shots.

The last game of the regular season, the last game of the day and the last place team is what faced the Vipers on a very warm Sunday afternoon. Earlier in the day the Ron JFC had lost it’s match and with that loss the Viper team could move into second place with a victory and a 5 goal differential.

The Viper’s didn’t wait around and quickly scored the 5 goals needed against a heavily undermanned Bloke FC team with goals by Richard Barton, Walter Houtz, Rabih Hajjar and a hat tricks by Jeff Arnold and Barry Rybicki. The Viper team took a 9-1 lead into halftime.

While Bloke FC gave it their best they did decide not to come out to play the second half of the game and the match was called.

The Viper team finished its inaugural season with 6 wins, 2 ties and only 1 defeat. We look forward to the playoff starting next week with a possible first round match against the Eagles a team which the Viper’s had beaten earlier in the year.

Man of the Match goes to Jeff Arnold for the hat trick but honorable mention goes to the Bloke FC team for their effort and willingness to compete despite the odds.

The Sand Dragons played their 8th match of the season on Sunday. It was a beautiful sunny day as well. The Sandymen had Roel, Scott and Milton out for travel, priorities and injuries for this match.

The game started off with both sides feeling some pressure as each team needed the 3 points and with the division's games coming down to the last 3 weeks of regular play every game is crucial.

As always the Dubliner / Sandymen rivalry was in full force with both sides playing hard.

In the opening minutes Fred Digne turned quickly on a ball at the top of the box and hit a rocket only to have Mark Palmer, who was playing in goal for the Dubliner side, make a great save to keep the match scoreless.

With about 15 minutes into the match Rowdy Rob Heuer hit a great shot but once again Palmer came up with a diving save but couldn't hold on to it. Man on the Spot,
Fred Digne came rushing in and slammed the ball into the back of the net for his first goal of the season and the Sandymen's first goal of the day.

10 minutes later Rowdy Rob broke through the Dubliner defense and smashed the ball past the keeper to make it 2 nil, Sandymen.

Both sides had chances and the Sandymen's midfield and defense were playing with solid skill and determination. Ralph DeGraph and Thong Nguyen were particularly helpful as they continually stripped the ball from the Dubliner midfielders when it seemed that they were just about to create a goal scoring opportunity. On one of those chances Thong broke free and nearly scored as he took on several players in the Dubliner half but couldn't put the ball away as Palmer in goal forced Thong to put the ball wide.

The half ended 2-0 as the Sandymen felt they had played the best half of the season vs. the tough and very skilled Dubliner side.

With 10 minutes into the half Steve Bruns scored his second goal of the season and the Sandymen's 3rd goal of the day with a beautiful shot in the upper corner.

As play continued the Sandymen dominated possession and Andy Honker confidently scored the 4th goal of the day on a break away putting a nicely hit shot into the side netting for his 3rd of the season.

With 20 minutes to go the Sand Dragons seemed to break down in their defensive efforts and let a Dubliner player run free with the ball about 35 yards out. The player hit the ball high and hard over the Sand Dragons keeper who was watching cartoons in no man's land.

Suddenly it was 4-1 with plenty of time left in the game. The Dubliners had several opportunities but the Sand Dragons defense kept them from putting anything in until Hugo Suarez was called for a penalty after tackling a Dubliner on the top of the box.

With 2 minutes left the Sandymen's leading scorer, Tony Nguyen broke free on a through ball and the result was a 50/50 ball between Tony and the Dubliner keeper who was coming with speed, about 15 yards out of his box and came in very hard. Some players said cleats up, but the referee was there and didn't throw any cards so it may have just been Tony's unlucky day on a tough play. Tony had to be strechered off the field and it's not known yet as to whether or not his leg is broken.

4-2 was the final score and every man on the Sand Dragons side had a good match with Glennon Miller standing in for the traveling Coach Roel. Glennon did a great job moving players in and out of the game keeping the tempo high. This seemed to be one of the Sandymen's best efforts as the season comes to an end.

Glennon picks Thong Nguyen for the Sandymen's Man of the Match for his hard defensive play in the midfield and with the quick transitions to offense.

The win puts the Sand Dragons squarely in 4th place in the standings as all the other top teams in the division all tied 1-1 in each of their respective matches on the day.

With the sidelines overflowing with fans, the Viper team took the field looking to put some distance between themselves and Cabras Locos. Today was show down day for Rabih and Amjad who would be facing their old club for the first time and the Viper squad would not let them down.

Six minutes into the match Rabih Hajjar struck on rebound follow up putting the Viper on the board. 1-0 Vipers. The match would continue with some tough play at both ends and in the ninth minute Cabras Locos struck on a perfectly played touch ball that just eluded the Viper keeper. 1-1 Tie.

The Viper team was not deterred from the task at hand and continuously pressured the Cabras Locos defense until Barry Rybicki was dragged down in the penalty area again this week. Barry made no mistake and the Viper team had a 2-1 lead they would take to halftime.

When the second half started the Viper team came out strong playing nearly the entire half in the Cabras Locos end of the field. The Vipers struck again midway through the second half when Dan Gallegos headed a ball to Barry Rybicki who chest trapped it and ripped a powerful volley into the back of the net from the top of the box. 3-1 Vipers.

Man of the Match goes to Barry Rybicki for his incredible volley and skillful play. Special mention goes to the Viper defense for another strong performance.

The Sand Dragons played their 7th match of the season vs. one of the newest teams in the division. Sunday saw the weather warming up and at game time it was in the mid 80's. The Sand Dragons played with Coach Roel and Scott Wolfe out for the weekend. Milton Melo stepped in as interim coach, still recovering from knee surgery last week.

The game started with the Sandymen keeping possession nearly the entire half with almost nothing for their keeper to do. After about 20 minutes and a few missed shots on goal it was the Sandymen's leading goal scorer, Tony Nguyen who scored the first goal on the day off a great cross from Rowdy Rob Heuer.

The score remained 1 nil the rest of the half as the Sand Dragons tried but just couldn't find the back of the net although several attempts came close.

The second half saw the Sandymen playing in the Hakoach half for most of the minutes played. At 65 minutes in Tony scored again and the score was finally 2 - 0.

It seemed that everyone on the pitch had a chance to score another goal but it was Steve Bruns who put in the 3rd and final goal of the day. His first this season.

Ralph DeGraph had some of the more exciting shots on goal but couldn't convert. Several players had one on one opportunities in the last 15 minutes but never got lucky and put several attempts wide as the Hakoach keeper did get lucky on a few and made some saves on a couple, saving several sure goals with the Dragons outright blowing the rest.

In a game that should have seen the Sandymen score 6-9 goals easy, it was a disappointing 3-0 win...if that's possible.

With 4 games left in the schedule, every game is critical as the Sandymen move into a 3 way tie for 5th place as the second half of the season is underway.

Tony Nguyen scored his 4th and 5th goals of the season and is the Sandymen's Man of the Match this week.

Looking to improve on a their record with a win on Sunday the Viper team took the field against Dynamo team just hoping not to kill each other.

The Viper team came out strong and dominated play for the outset, controlling the ball in the Dynamo end of the field nearly the entire first half. Dynamo mounted very few attacks but the ones they did have just missed the mark a couple of times.

The first goal of the match came from a set play when Barry Rybicki found Amjad Alzubi on the left post from 30 yards out. Amjad skillfully headed the ball to the far right post and the ball hit side netting. 1-0 Vipers.

The match continued with breakaway and wide open chances that the Viper team was not able to cash in on and the score remained 1-0 at half time.

As the second half began the Viper team continued to control play but Dynamo was able to get the match squared at one with a semi-breakaway goal.

Allowing opponents to remain in the match, a pattern which the Viper team has shown all year did not sit easy with the team and like they have done all year the team made a few changes and raised it’s level of play quickly score three times. The first goal came from a PK that Will Sisneros drew in the penalty box when a Dynamo player ran him over from behind. Barry Rybicki quickly put the goal on the board for a 2-1 Viper lead.

The second goal came from a ball played on a quick flick from to an on coming Barry Rybicki and he made no mistake on the breakaway putting the ball just inside the right post. 3-1 Vipers.

The fourth and final tally for the Vipers came on a ball played to a sprinting Will Sisneros and he also made no mistake beating the Dynamo goalie in the same fashion as the previous goal. 4-1 Vipers.

Dynamo mounted a late challenge by adding a second goal with 4 minutes left in the match but the damage had already been done. Final score 4-2 Vipers.

Man of the Match goes to Quill Nebeker aka "The Widow Maker" for his outstanding defensive play, skillful headers on the back line and for chasing Dynamo’s number one player all day.

The Sand Dragons played their 6th match of the season against fellow club team, Venom. The weather was excellent as the stage was set for a hard fought match between the two club sides.

The opening minutes saw the Sand Dragons goalkeeper make a save using only his teeth against a ripper of a shot from an on coming Venom player who broke through the Sandymen's defense. From then on out the Sand Dragons had most of the possession time with the Venom side mounting a few counter attacks which resulted in little to no offense.

With about 20 minutes into the match, defender Mike "Jonesey" Jones moved forward on an attack and showed the Sandymen's forwards how to score as his flying volley hit nothing but net and the Sandymen were up 1 nil.

The Venom side played hard and did their best to mount attacks but the Sandymen played tough defense in the Venom half taking the ball back on most of the counter attack attempts.

With about 15 minutes left in the first half the Sandymen struck again. Rowdy Rob Heuer put a great long throw-in to Steve Bruns who flicked the ball nicely to the awaiting head of Andy Honker. Andy wasted nothing as he firmly headed the ball into the back of the net giving the Venom keeper no chance.

Near the end of the 1st half the Venom was awarded a penalty and the score at half was 2-1 Sand Dragons.

The second half saw the Sand Dragons completely dominate possession time as the Venom side only mounted 3 or 4 counter attacks that made it near the Sand Dragons goal. But Venom never gave in or gave up as they continued to pressure the Sandymen's possession throughout the second half and the game ended with a scoreless second half.

Coach Roel picks Jonesey for this week's Man of the Match for his great defensive play and for the first goal of the match. His second MOM this season! Great job Jonesey!

The result gives the Sandymen 10 points and move them up a couple of spots on the table. Next week is another must win match vs. last place team, Hakoach.

Another perfect day for soccer and the Viper team was ready to face the Eagles with a chance to get a win after two straight draws.

The first half was filled with play dominated by the Viper squad with multiple chances and despite the controlling the game the Viper team found themselves down 1-0 just before half-time on an Eagle header from a corner kick.

After an inspiring half-time speech, Barry Rybicki reminded everyone to have fun and the Viper team came out and quickly struck on a header from Will Sisneros and the match was all square at 1-1.

Play continued with some outstanding play by the Viper defense and it wasn’t until a mix-up in the backfield allowed an Eagle to strike again on a semi-breakaway the split the Viper defenders.

The Vipers didn’t hang their heads and showed the resilience they have shown all season. They pushed forward and created breakaway opportunities that were missed, multiple corner kicks and kept constant pressure on the Eagle defense. All the pressure paid off when Barry Rybicki was dragged down in the box giving the Viper’s the goal to tie the match at 2.

Ten minutes later the Eagles tripped a Viper player just beyond the half field line setting up a free kick. Barry struck the ball well and as it headed toward the left front post of the Eagle goal Will Sisneros got himself into position and headed in his second tally of the game 3-2 Vipers.

All in all an outstanding effort from a Viper squad that has earned points in 5 of 6 matches this season and was without the services of Amjad Alzubi a key player in this years Viper squad.

Man of the Match goes to Will Sisneros for using his head and getting the Viper team the win.

Thank you to all the Viper’s who contributed to the picnic. A good time was had by all and we were treated to a great game between Venom and the Dragons.

The Sand Dragons played their 5th match of the season coming into the game with a 2 & 2 record playing against the Incinerators, a perennial top half team who were 3 & 1.

2 players were out for the day, Freddy Digne whose wife just had their 2nd (Congratulations!) and Steve Bruns out of town due to work.

Always a tough hard fought match with plenty of skillful physical play by both sides. This match was no different.

Early on Andy Honker struck a ripper of a shot on goal only to come up empty at the end of it. Rob Heuer also came very close within the next few minutes. The Incinerators also had a few chances but put nothing on the goal. The Sandymen dominated possession time with the Incinerators only able to mount a few counter attacks in return.

Tony Nguyen scored the first goal of the match for the Sandymen, beating about 4 players and the keeper, he fought for and dribbled the ball right into the goal. The rest of the half saw the Sandymen playing with intensity, it was 1 nil at half-time.

The second half saw a bit of a let down in intensity at the start of the half and Scott Wolfe fouled an Incinerator player inside the box and the ref wasted no time in calling a penalty. Suddenly it was 1-1 and the Incinerators smelled a chance, they were back in this game.

Sand Dragons keeper, Goge Johl made several saves on attacks by the Incinerators and later in the second half Lee Nguyen scored his first goal of the season for the Sandymen and gave them a 2-1 lead. The Sandymen's midfield and forwards were all playing great defense off the ball and looked as if they might put in another goal as the Incinerators looked like they were on their heels.

With about 10 minutes left in the match the Incinerators scored the equalizer on a shot that found the inside of the post despite a full stretch by the Sand Dragons keeper.

In the last 10 minutes of the match the Sand Dragons played with extra intensity and created several outstanding attacks but could only manage to hit the bar on an otherwise rocket of a shot by Andy about 16 yards out. Tony Nguyen, the Sandymen's leading scorer this season with 3 goals, also had a near goal experience but came up empty.

Great physical play in the defense by Jonesey and Hugo turned away most of the Incinerators attacks and midfielders Ralph DeGraph and Thong Nguyen also got physical in the middle of the pitch as the side ended with 1 point from a hard fought match.

Hugo Suarez is Coach Roel's pick for Man of the Match for his strong play as sweeper. The tie gives the Sand Dragons 7 points and are currently 5 points out of first. Next weeks Picnic Match vs the Venom won't be a picnic at all as both sides will be fighting for more than just points in the semi-annual meeting of the Club's two O35 teams.

The Vipers team took the field Sunday against Rebellion hoping to improve on last weeks disappointing tie. This week the Viper team had a special guest double roster backup keeper as Goge Johl played in the net for the first half of the game and was outstanding.

The match was hard fought from the outset and featured dirty play by Rebellion resulting in Viper injuries and Rebellion yellow cards. As usual with the Rebellion team, when they fall behind, begin fouling and playing physical soccer and this time it was no different.

With the first half ending tied at 0-0 both teams took the field hoping to get the goal that would put them up and it wasn't long before Richard (Dre) Barton took the ball down the right sideline turned the corner around a defender and found the back of the net on a skillful run where he actually assisted himself. 1-0 Vipers.

The game continued back and forth with physical play at both ends of the field as play was stopped many times with bad fouls. From that point on the game was on edge with players from both teams barking back and forth at one another. Quill Nebeker, Norbert Peto and Jeff Beaver played particularly tough the entire match in the defense.

Five minutes before time the Viper keeper attempted to clear the ball from the box with a punt and while attempting to clear the ball a Rebellion player chased him back and forth not allowing him to get the punt off, at one point even lifting his leg to block the kick. The referee determined that the Viper keeper held the ball too long and a free kick was awarded. The resulting play led to the game tying score. When questioned why he awarded the free kick the referee replied “The Keeper didn't make a effort to clear the ball, if he was trying to clear the ball he would have been RUNNING back and forth”. The Viper team has filed a protest.

The defense gets big ups for playing hard and a great effort all around. Man of the Match goes to Jeff Beaver for, as one of his teammates put it, “Magnificent” defensive play.

The Viper team looks forward to next weeks match and the festivities that follow…..

The Sand Dragons played their 4th match of the season. And a beautiful day for football it was.

Another match of nearly complete domination but without the goals to prove the side true.

The Sandymen kept possession in the first half nearly the entire time with only a few counter attacks coming from Mirage.

Once again the Sand Dragons showed that they can get the ball up field quickly and maintain possession but unfortunately it didn't lead to many attempts to finish.

Midway through the first half the Sandymen did manage to score on a ball that bounced over the Mirage keeper as Tony Nguyen headed the ball in for the sole goal of the half. 1nil Sand Dragons at Half-time.

The second half saw more possession play by the Sand Dragons but nothing in the way of finishing. Mirage managed to create a counter attack which caught the Dragons defense flat as they scored their first goal. With the game tied up at 1-1 Mirage played with more enthusiasm and continued to counter attack.

Mirage's second goal came on another counter attack as the Dragons keeper made a save but could only deflect the ball back into play where an awaiting Mirage forward put the ball in the net untouched.

Mirage played with more desire the rest of the game and both sides had several chances. The Sand Dragons had several free kicks on the edge of the box but failed to make anything of them. Mirage had several good attempts but all were saved by the Sand Dragons keeper who was kept busy the last 20 minutes of the match but the scoreline remained the same.

This week's Man of the Match award goes to Thong Nguyen for his skillful and tough play in the midfield holding onto the ball as well as coming back on defense.

The Sand Dragons played their 3rd match of the season and needed the important 3 points in their match vs. the improved Serbian side, Saint Nicholas. And it was a fantastic day weather wise.

The game started off with several players out for the weekend for business and with some nursing injuries. Due to the lack of subs Milton Melo played, and contributed in the midfield and defense, although injured himself.

The Serbian side looked organized and motivated before the match, team warm ups and everyone in matching kit. They came into the match undefeated with a 2-0 record. The Sandymen dragged in their 1-1 record, sorely needing a boost of points.

The Sand Dragons looked pretty good in the opening minutes despite making their keeper come up with a save on the very first Saint Nicholas attack.

Midway through the first half, with the Sand Dragons forward, Tony Nguyen, scored on a penalty kick awarded as a Saint Nicholas player used his hand to keep the ball out of the net minutes earlier.

Playing with renewed confidence, the Sandymen started to dominate play. Rowdy Rob Heuer took a pass from Roel Bazuin and after skillfully beating several players near the touchline took the ball down to the end line and crossed it over to the onrushing Andy Honker who was coming in like a fully stoked steam engine. As the ball arrived Andy first timed his volley into the back of the net leaving no chance for the Saint Nicholas defense. The game plan was played to perfection. 2 nil, Sandymen at half.

With the prospect of scoring more goals the Sand Dragons midfield and forwards pushed into the Serbian half and were caught behind the ball on several counter attacks, leaving the Defense to deal with the oncoming Saint Nicholas players.

Five minutes into the second half Saint Nicholas scored their first goal as the Sand Dragons keeper couldn't manage to knock a high ball far enough to clear the top bar and it was 2-1.

Now playing with renewed motivation, the Saint Nicholas players were all moving forward and were showing how they came up with wins in their first two matches.

Halfway through the second half Saint Nicholas scored their second as one of their players was left alone at the far post with time to pick his spot against the Sand Dragon's keeper. Suddenly it was 2-2, but the Sandymen were determined to get the points they needed and the Defense shored up its gaps and started to stop the Serbian side well before the top of the box. Mike "Jonesey" Jones played particularly well, intercepting several throughballs and hitting their forwards with clean hard tackles. Hugo Suarez also played well in the Sand Dragons defense.

With 10 minutes to go once again Coach Roel's game plan came into it's own as Rowdy Rob took on 3 or 4 of the Saint Nicholas midfield and defenders and after beating them handily along the sidelines he moved again to the end line crossing the ball over to the middle of the goalmouth. As Tony tried to control the ball in traffic it was Ralph DeGraph who calmly put the ball over the Serbian keeper and into the net as a Saint Nicholas defender again tried to use his hand to stop the ball. This time no penalty was needed. The Rowdy Rob and Ralph show made it 3-2 Sandymen.

The Sand Dragons found themselves playing defense for the rest of the match as the entire Saint Nicholas team moved in for several attempts at goal. The final minutes saw the Sand Dragons defense turning back several attacks as the Saint Nicholas forwards put on heavy pressure to try and even the score once again. With a last second save by the Sand Dragon's keeper, the Serbs could do nothing but hold their heads in their hands as the final whistle blew.

Coach Roel picks Mike Jonesey Jones as the Sandymen's Man of the Match for his outstanding play at stopper. Next week's grudge match is vs. Mirage at Noon. See you there...

The Sand Dragons had their second match of the season vs. a new side, Veteranos Zacatepec. Both teams wore green and it took the refs and the teams about 15 minutes to decide what to do. Finally, the Vets of Zacatepec wore white and the game was on.

The Sandymen dominated the entire match but just didn't convert any of their numerous chances in front of the goal. Many players played well all over the field but there was nary a finish in the house despite some tremendous attacks. The Sandymen were putting on a clinic in the midfield.

Steve Bruns with Andy Honker making his run from the back did manage to score a beautiful goal, but the linesman, who really had no position called the ball over the end line and the man in the middle called the goal back. It was still 0-0 with 25 minutes left in the first half.

5 minutes later the Zacatepecians pushed a ball through and beat the Sand Dragons offside trap. The ensuing one on one with the Dragons keeper left the side a goal down as the Zacatepec forward hit the ball nicely with his toe and poked it over the pouncing keeper.

This gave the Z-Vets a bit of hope and they played like they had a chance against the very skilled side of the Sand Dragons.

The second half saw more domination by the Sandymen with little to no offense by the other team.

Still in the end it was the Z-Vets with a goal and the Sand Dragons with nothing to show for themselves but lots of possession time.

Late in the second half the cartoons came on when the Sandymen's keeper, Goge Johl, came out to kick forward a throughball, but with so much time lost track of the ball itself and produced a Frasier with a Swing and A Miss. New man Hugo Suarez quickly collected the ball and played it forward as everyone had a good chuckle.

The entire defensive unit played well as they were on their own most of the second half while the rest of the squad was encamped at the other end of the field paying homage to the football gods. Alas, Sandymen the used up all their favors from the football gods last week as the side won their protest against Payson.

Man of the Match goes to Andy Honker for the lone goal called back and for his dominating play in the midfield and defensive half.

The start of a new season with hopes held high. The Sand Dragons pre-match cartoons started with a bit of controversy as Payson SC played the match with a couple of unregistered players. The referees had no recourse but to let the match go on due to the season just starting and no way to verify who was or was not registered as the Payson players in questions still had their cards from last season. The league D & R committee has taken the matter under review. The D & R committee did rule in our favor and the final score was recorded as 3-0 us.

The match started with the Sandymen completely dominating the Payson side for the first 15 minutes, not allowing them out of their own half. Several clear and sure opportunities presented themselves but the Sand Dragons couldn't finish as their new signings proved they could play but lacked finish the entire day.

SDFC Club member Jason Schwein played forward for the Payson team and got a few opportunities to score but was thwarted by Sand Dragons keeper, Goge Johl. It was 0-0 until late in the first half when Payson came down and pushed the ball across the box to an unmarked midfielder who tucked the ball inside the far post leaving the Dragon's keeper clutching dirt.

A bit of frustration peeked through as the half-time talk had several players pointing fingers.

The second half saw both teams with plenty of opportunities and again the Sand Dragons side showed some poor defending as they failed to clear the ball from the six yard line after the Dragon keeper made the initial save from point blank range.

With 20 minutes to go the Sand Dragons scored their first goal coming from one of their new signings, Tony Nguyen.

As play continued both sides continued to have chances although the Sand Dragons missed some open nets which served to further the frustration on the day.

Missing two of their key players Andy Honker & Colin Smith, both out due to cold symptoms, the Dragons looked tired and unfit in the last 20 minutes despite all the opportunities to score.

Coach Roel Bazuin summed it up saying after the match that it was a very poor game with some of the players not showing enough heart. Roel picks Freddy Digne as the Sandymen's Man of the Match for showing plenty of heart and giving it his all up to the last second of the match.

Stay tuned for further details and decisions by the league D&R committee.