Maine Premier Soccer (MPS) and Westbrook Soccer League are excited to announce a new partnership that’s been established to enhance development opportunities for soccer players and coaches of Westbrook and mutually-benefit the programs and goals of both organizations. Westbrook Soccer League will be an official affiliate of Maine Premier Soccer (MPS) with immediate effect and will receive year-round support, resources, guidance and training from MPS soccer professionals.- John C.L. Morgan
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Westbrook Soccer League Announces Partnership with Maine Premier Soccer
MPS:
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Recommended Reading: MLS and the Paradox of Possession
Armchair Analyst:
- John C.L. Morgan
Of the 213 victories in MLS 2011, only 83 of the teams winning that game managed more possession than their opponent (39 percent). Also important to say that of the 75 sides to manage 60 percent or more possession in an MLS game last season, only 15 of those sides managed to win that game (20 percent).For what's worth, seven of the eight victors in games played over the kick-off of the 2012 MLS season were won by the team who also won the possession battle.
- John C.L. Morgan
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Revere's Ride: Final Thoughts on Revs vs. Earthquakes
1. The Revolution's midfield was supposed to be its strength, but it was its weakness.
Coming into the season, many analysts and fans cited the team's midfield as one cause for optimism. The combination of the veteran stalwart Shalrie Joseph, the clever Benny Feilhaber, the steady Clyde Simms, and the youthful newcomer Kelyn Rowe was supposed to compensate for whatever was lacking elsewhere on the field.
If this core four will be the team's bright spot, then last night's performance casts a dark cloud over the start of the season.
Obviously, it was Joseph's careless square pass in the 15th minute that led to San Jose's goal. However, the miscues among the midfielders persisted throughout the game. Including Clyde Simms's respectable 84% pass completion rate, the New England Revolution's midfielders combined to complete only 65% (97 of 149) of their passes, including a paltry 54% (43 of 79) of their passes in the offensive half of the field. San Jose's midfielders, on the other hand, completed 70% of their passes--despite attempting more than twice as many passes as the Revs' midfielders--including 63% of their passes in the offensive half of the field.
To put the Revolution midfielders' poor performance in even greater context, consider the performance of the Real Salt Lake midfield against a tougher L.A. Galaxy team: Kyle Beckerman, Javier Morales, et. al. completed 86% of their 205 passes, including 86% of their 98 passes in the offensive half of the field.
2. The Revolution's attack was predictably toothless.
If the Revolution midfielders have a legitimate reason for their ineffective play, then it rests with the pathetic play of the two starting forwards. Target man Blake Brettschneider and second forward Fernando Cardenas were non-factors throughout the game. With the exception a handful of times, Brettscheider was either unable to track down a pass or unable to maintain possession if he did happen to get a body part on a pass. And though Cardenas was energetic throughout the game, he usually appeared clueless (he was offsides more than once) or inconsequential.
Granted, the Revs are lacking quality at forward due to injury (Saer Senne) and no-shows (Jose "Pepe" Moreno), so we are hopefully not destined to suffer the Brettschneider & Cardenas Show every week.
3. The backs were pretty solid.
Granted, pass completion rates among defenders are a little inflated due to the number completed while a player is under relatively little pressure. Nonetheless, the defenders had a better pass completion rate than the Earthquakes' defenders (71% vs. 66%), while attempting more passes (205 vs. 189).
A.J. Soares and John Lozano were the most careless with the ball, but Soares was playing a new position on short notice, and Lozano improved after being horrible over the first 25 minutes. Stephen McCarthy was one of the Revs' three best players, and Kevin Alston's offensive contribution was better than I had initially realized. Tyler Polak's confidence on the ball is encouraging.
Most important, the backs didn't surrender a shot on goal, with the exception of the 15th minute goal that was sparked by midfield incompetence. There were times, especially early on, when the backs opted to play the riskier long ball instead of the high-percentage short pass. But they played positively enough to at least provide some optimism for next week's game against Sporting Kansas City.
- John C.L. Morgan
Coming into the season, many analysts and fans cited the team's midfield as one cause for optimism. The combination of the veteran stalwart Shalrie Joseph, the clever Benny Feilhaber, the steady Clyde Simms, and the youthful newcomer Kelyn Rowe was supposed to compensate for whatever was lacking elsewhere on the field.
If this core four will be the team's bright spot, then last night's performance casts a dark cloud over the start of the season.
Obviously, it was Joseph's careless square pass in the 15th minute that led to San Jose's goal. However, the miscues among the midfielders persisted throughout the game. Including Clyde Simms's respectable 84% pass completion rate, the New England Revolution's midfielders combined to complete only 65% (97 of 149) of their passes, including a paltry 54% (43 of 79) of their passes in the offensive half of the field. San Jose's midfielders, on the other hand, completed 70% of their passes--despite attempting more than twice as many passes as the Revs' midfielders--including 63% of their passes in the offensive half of the field.
To put the Revolution midfielders' poor performance in even greater context, consider the performance of the Real Salt Lake midfield against a tougher L.A. Galaxy team: Kyle Beckerman, Javier Morales, et. al. completed 86% of their 205 passes, including 86% of their 98 passes in the offensive half of the field.
2. The Revolution's attack was predictably toothless.
If the Revolution midfielders have a legitimate reason for their ineffective play, then it rests with the pathetic play of the two starting forwards. Target man Blake Brettschneider and second forward Fernando Cardenas were non-factors throughout the game. With the exception a handful of times, Brettscheider was either unable to track down a pass or unable to maintain possession if he did happen to get a body part on a pass. And though Cardenas was energetic throughout the game, he usually appeared clueless (he was offsides more than once) or inconsequential.
Granted, the Revs are lacking quality at forward due to injury (Saer Senne) and no-shows (Jose "Pepe" Moreno), so we are hopefully not destined to suffer the Brettschneider & Cardenas Show every week.
3. The backs were pretty solid.
Granted, pass completion rates among defenders are a little inflated due to the number completed while a player is under relatively little pressure. Nonetheless, the defenders had a better pass completion rate than the Earthquakes' defenders (71% vs. 66%), while attempting more passes (205 vs. 189).
A.J. Soares and John Lozano were the most careless with the ball, but Soares was playing a new position on short notice, and Lozano improved after being horrible over the first 25 minutes. Stephen McCarthy was one of the Revs' three best players, and Kevin Alston's offensive contribution was better than I had initially realized. Tyler Polak's confidence on the ball is encouraging.
Most important, the backs didn't surrender a shot on goal, with the exception of the 15th minute goal that was sparked by midfield incompetence. There were times, especially early on, when the backs opted to play the riskier long ball instead of the high-percentage short pass. But they played positively enough to at least provide some optimism for next week's game against Sporting Kansas City.
- John C.L. Morgan
Revere's Ride: Forwards' Possession vs. San Jose
(Editor's Note: Thanks to Major League Soccer's use of Optics, there's a wealth of information available to the average fan. Below is an analysis of the possession statistics of Revolution forwards in the team's 1-0 loss to the San Jose Earthquakes.)
Pass Completion Rate
1. Cardenas, 69% (9 of 13)
2. Nguyen, 60% (6 of 10)*
3. Brettsneider, 57% (8 of 14)
TOTAL: 62% (23 of 37)
OPPONENTS: 68% (41 of 60)
Turnovers
1. Brettschneider, 8
2. Cardenas, 5
3. Nguyen, 4*
TOTAL: 17
OPPONENTS: 21
* Replaced Cardenas in the 69th minute.
The graphic below depicts the Revolution forwards' performance in possession within 25 yards of goal. The green bubble represents a successful pass, and a red bubble represents an unsuccessful pass attempt.
- John C.L. Morgan
Revere's Ride: Midfielders' Possession vs. San Jose
(Editor's Note: Thanks to Major League Soccer's use of Optics, there's a wealth of information available to the average fan. Below is an analysis of the possession statistics of Revolution midfielders in the team's 1-0 loss to the San Jose Earthquakes.)
Pass Completion Rate
Pass Completion Rate
1. Simms, 84% (27 of 32)
2. Joseph, 67% (33 of 49)
3. Rowe, 57% (17 of 30)
4. Feilhaber, 54% (21 of 39)
5. Guy, 20% (1 of 5)*
TOTAL: 65% (97 of 149)
OPPONENTS: 70% (200 of 285)
Turnovers
1. Feilhaber, 21
2. Joseph, 19
3. Rowe, 16
4. Simms, 5
5. Guy, 4*
TOTAL: 55
OPPONENTS: 50
* Replaced Simms in the 78th minute.
The graphic below depicts the Revolution midfielders' performance in possession in the offensive third of the field. The green bubble represents a successful pass, and a red bubble represents an unsuccessful pass attempt.
- John C.L. Morgan
Revere's Ride: Defenders' Possession vs. San Jose
(Editor's Note: Thanks to Major League Soccer's use of Optics, there's a wealth of information available to the average fan. Below is an analysis of the possession statistics of Revolution defenders in the team's 1-0 loss to the San Jose Earthquakes.)
Pass Completion Rate
1. Alston, 76% (34 of 45)
2. Polak, 74% (17 of 23)*
3. McCarthy, 73% (35 of 48)
4. Reis, 73% (27 of 37)
5. Lozano, 63% (17 of 27)
6. Soares, 60% (15 of 25)
TOTAL: 71% (145 of 205)
OPPONENTS: 66% (124 of 189)
Turnovers
1. Polak, 9*
2. Lozano, 10
2. Reis, 10
2. Soares, 10
5. McCarthy, 13
6. Alston, 14
TOTAL: 66
OPPONENTS: 81
* Replaced Soares in the 60th minute.
The graphic below depicts the Revolution defenders' performance in possession in the offensive half of the field. The green bubble represents a successful pass, and a red bubble represents an unsuccessful pass attempt.
Pass Completion Rate
1. Alston, 76% (34 of 45)
2. Polak, 74% (17 of 23)*
3. McCarthy, 73% (35 of 48)
4. Reis, 73% (27 of 37)
5. Lozano, 63% (17 of 27)
6. Soares, 60% (15 of 25)
TOTAL: 71% (145 of 205)
OPPONENTS: 66% (124 of 189)
Turnovers
1. Polak, 9*
2. Lozano, 10
2. Reis, 10
2. Soares, 10
5. McCarthy, 13
6. Alston, 14
TOTAL: 66
OPPONENTS: 81
* Replaced Soares in the 60th minute.
The graphic below depicts the Revolution defenders' performance in possession in the offensive half of the field. The green bubble represents a successful pass, and a red bubble represents an unsuccessful pass attempt.
- John C.L. Morgan
Revere's Ride: Revs Fall in Season-Opener
The New England Revolution opened its 2012 season last night with a 1-0 loss to the San Jose Earthquakes in San Jose. Below are player ratings for the fourteen Revs who made appearances.
Player Ratings
(1=atrocious, 3=poor, 5=average, 7=good, 10=excellent)
(1) Matt Reis: 6
The veteran goalkeeper didn't have a chance on the Earthquakes' goal, but was otherwise not really tested. There were numerous times when he decisively sprung off his line, and he was sure-handed throughout the game. Distribution improved as the game progressed, as he repeatedly opted for a higher-percentage throw or pass instead of the crapshoot of a punt.
(4) John Lozano: 4
The Colombian central defender was a disappointment. His distribution throughout the night was careless, and he was just average in defense.
(5) A.J. Soares: 5
Before being replaced by Tyler Polak in the 60th minute, Soares had a mostly solid game. His distribution from the back was pretty good, but he still needs to adjust to the shift from central defender to fullback.
(11) Kelyn Rowe: 5
Despite a very good pre-season that inspired a lot of high hopes and Rookie of the Year talk, Rowe's performance was pedestrian. He had some nice moments when he was involved in combination play, but he didn't create a true scoring chance and he wasted a corner kick in the waning minutes of the game.
(19) Clyde Simms: 5
I've always been a Clyde Simms fan, but his game tonight was average at best. As the holding midfielder in the 4-1-3-2 the Revs came out in, it was his job to serve as the pivot between the back line and the attackers, but he never took command in that role. He wasn't a liability on the defensive side.
(21) Shalrie Joseph: 3
Joseph's poor turnover in the 15th minute that led to the game-winning goal was the most obvious example of Joseph's poor showing. But Joseph was a non-factor throughout the game, and in some ways actually detracted from the team's performance. In the 51st minute, for example, his poor turnover almost led to a second goal, and his poor pass a minute later snapped a good little build-up the team was engineering.
(22) Benny Feilhaber: 5
Feilhaber was the only player on the field for the Revs who seemed to create possibilities, but the backline's predominant preference to play the ball over the midfielders' head limited his involvement in the build-up, and the strikers' inability to, well, do anything limited his ability to effectively participate in the attacking third. The one time he was able to meaningfully penetrate the penalty box was when he scuffed a good pass by Fernando Cardenas in the 48th minute. His obvious frustration with his teammates and his impatience with their lackluster play is concerning.
(23) Blake Brettsneider: 3
There were a few times when Brettsneider fulfilled his duty as the target forward by holding up play, but for the most part his play was non-threatening. Unfortunately for him, the only time he checked out of the Witness Protection Program was when he whiffed on a good chance late in the second half.
(26) Stephen McCarthy: 6
McCarthy joins Reis as having the most solid game for the Revs. He was solid defensively, and he was effective when he had the ball. Unlike his fellow central defender Lozano, McCarthy opted to maintain possession when he won the ball. He had an opportunity to finish an attacking run in the 13th minute, but chose to retreat. If he instead continues to finish his counter-attacking runs like he did once in the second half, he can give the Revs' attack another dimension a couple times per game.
(30) Kevin Alston: 5
Like his fellow defenders, Alston didn't commit any egregious mistakes defensively. His distribution, as usual, was uneven. There were times when he slowed himself down and played good passes to a teammate's feet, but there were other times when he was moving at 1,000 miles-per-hour and played careless passes.
(80) Fernando Cardenas: 4
Cardenas did a few things right. His involvement in a nice string of passes in the 9th minute was positive, as was his pass to Feilhaber in the 48th minute. For the most part, though, Cardenas was ineffective, and his canny ability to be offsides was frustrating.
(3) Tyler Polak: 5
After entering the game as a sub for A.J. Soares in the 60th minute, Polak acquitted himself well defensively and showed a lot of confidence in possession of the ball. Game circumstances late in the game forced him to play low-chance balls through the air, but he showed the ability to make sharp passes on the ground.
(13) Ryan Guy: N/A
Guy replaced Simms in the 79th minute and played an anonymous ten minutes.
(24) Lee Nyugen: 6
Nyugen replaced Cardenas in the 69th minute, and he threatened the Earthquakes' backline more in twenty minutes than Cardenas had in the previous seventy. His nifty footwork along the endline late in the game was the most glaring example of positive play, but he was confident on the ball throughout.
- John C.L. Morgan
Player Ratings
(1=atrocious, 3=poor, 5=average, 7=good, 10=excellent)
(1) Matt Reis: 6
The veteran goalkeeper didn't have a chance on the Earthquakes' goal, but was otherwise not really tested. There were numerous times when he decisively sprung off his line, and he was sure-handed throughout the game. Distribution improved as the game progressed, as he repeatedly opted for a higher-percentage throw or pass instead of the crapshoot of a punt.
(4) John Lozano: 4
The Colombian central defender was a disappointment. His distribution throughout the night was careless, and he was just average in defense.
(5) A.J. Soares: 5
Before being replaced by Tyler Polak in the 60th minute, Soares had a mostly solid game. His distribution from the back was pretty good, but he still needs to adjust to the shift from central defender to fullback.
(11) Kelyn Rowe: 5
Despite a very good pre-season that inspired a lot of high hopes and Rookie of the Year talk, Rowe's performance was pedestrian. He had some nice moments when he was involved in combination play, but he didn't create a true scoring chance and he wasted a corner kick in the waning minutes of the game.
(19) Clyde Simms: 5
I've always been a Clyde Simms fan, but his game tonight was average at best. As the holding midfielder in the 4-1-3-2 the Revs came out in, it was his job to serve as the pivot between the back line and the attackers, but he never took command in that role. He wasn't a liability on the defensive side.
(21) Shalrie Joseph: 3
Joseph's poor turnover in the 15th minute that led to the game-winning goal was the most obvious example of Joseph's poor showing. But Joseph was a non-factor throughout the game, and in some ways actually detracted from the team's performance. In the 51st minute, for example, his poor turnover almost led to a second goal, and his poor pass a minute later snapped a good little build-up the team was engineering.
(22) Benny Feilhaber: 5
Feilhaber was the only player on the field for the Revs who seemed to create possibilities, but the backline's predominant preference to play the ball over the midfielders' head limited his involvement in the build-up, and the strikers' inability to, well, do anything limited his ability to effectively participate in the attacking third. The one time he was able to meaningfully penetrate the penalty box was when he scuffed a good pass by Fernando Cardenas in the 48th minute. His obvious frustration with his teammates and his impatience with their lackluster play is concerning.
(23) Blake Brettsneider: 3
There were a few times when Brettsneider fulfilled his duty as the target forward by holding up play, but for the most part his play was non-threatening. Unfortunately for him, the only time he checked out of the Witness Protection Program was when he whiffed on a good chance late in the second half.
(26) Stephen McCarthy: 6
McCarthy joins Reis as having the most solid game for the Revs. He was solid defensively, and he was effective when he had the ball. Unlike his fellow central defender Lozano, McCarthy opted to maintain possession when he won the ball. He had an opportunity to finish an attacking run in the 13th minute, but chose to retreat. If he instead continues to finish his counter-attacking runs like he did once in the second half, he can give the Revs' attack another dimension a couple times per game.
(30) Kevin Alston: 5
Like his fellow defenders, Alston didn't commit any egregious mistakes defensively. His distribution, as usual, was uneven. There were times when he slowed himself down and played good passes to a teammate's feet, but there were other times when he was moving at 1,000 miles-per-hour and played careless passes.
(80) Fernando Cardenas: 4
Cardenas did a few things right. His involvement in a nice string of passes in the 9th minute was positive, as was his pass to Feilhaber in the 48th minute. For the most part, though, Cardenas was ineffective, and his canny ability to be offsides was frustrating.
(3) Tyler Polak: 5
After entering the game as a sub for A.J. Soares in the 60th minute, Polak acquitted himself well defensively and showed a lot of confidence in possession of the ball. Game circumstances late in the game forced him to play low-chance balls through the air, but he showed the ability to make sharp passes on the ground.
(13) Ryan Guy: N/A
Guy replaced Simms in the 79th minute and played an anonymous ten minutes.
(24) Lee Nyugen: 6
Nyugen replaced Cardenas in the 69th minute, and he threatened the Earthquakes' backline more in twenty minutes than Cardenas had in the previous seventy. His nifty footwork along the endline late in the game was the most glaring example of positive play, but he was confident on the ball throughout.
- John C.L. Morgan
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