GAME PREVIEW - The Battle for 1st Place Continues...

Portland Timbers

V S

Charleston Battery

Saturday, August 10th

7:00pm @ PGE Park

Radio: 95.5 The Game

Online LIVE: USLlive.com

Preview: History and the Unbeaten Streak marches onward as the Portland Timbers' memorable season continues this Saturday night at PGE Park. The Charleston Battery are currently 1 pt behind the Timbers and the Carolina Railhawks, who are tied for 1st place in the USL-league standings. The Battery, however, play a match tonight against the Vancouver Whitecaps. The Whitecaps are a tired and beaten team after falling to the Timbers last night and with a victory, the Battery would take over 1st place. If the teams have a draw match, then the Battery would earn only 1 pt, resulting in a 3-way tie for 1st place. Either way, it's awfully tight at the top.

On the second night of a back-to-back, the Battery will have some tired legs and with the Timber's depth, they'll surely be in a position to take advantage. Defense has been the calling card for this Charleston squad with only 9 goals scored against them all season, a league-best. Look for Coach Wilkinson to shake up his line-up a bit and make early substitutions in the 2nd half, something he's not afraid to do. If the Battery come out flat, then the Timbers better get rolling and make certain they get on that scoreboard first.

Saturday will be the 2nd time these teams meet this season, the clubs going for a 1-1 draw in June. They will meet again to conclude the season series later this month in Charleston.

Players to watch

Randi Patterson - The forward leads the Battery in goals scored. He'll be the main break-out threat, especially if the Timber's can score first and force the Battery to press the action. Patterson is young, talented, and hoping to find his way back into the MLS.

Tsuyoshi Yoshitake - When he's played, he's been effective and aggressive for the Battery. In his first season in the USL, he's shown a nice touch with the ball and an ability to create for teammates. He's small and fast, if you blink you might miss him.

Frankie Sanfilippo - This guy's been a rock for his team. Leads the team in minutes played, games played, and games started. Not only a leader on defense, but has 2 goals scored this season out of the backfield. Just business as usual for the former USL-all star.

*** UPDATE: It looks like the Timbers will be hosting the 1st place Battery tommorrow night, Charleston leads 2-0 as the 1st half nears a close. It's final now- Charleston 2 Vancouver 1

THE POSTGAME - Portland Timbers are 2009 Cascadia Cup Champions! They Beat Vancouver 1 - 0 !

- The defending champions fall and the Timbers extend their unbeaten streak to 19 matches, avenging their only loss on the season. Wth the victory, the Timbers take the season series from the Whitecaps 2-1 and also take the Cascadia Cup Championship, the franchise's first-ever. An exciting game tonight and it's good to the see the Timbers get 3 points after a couple of dissapointing draws, especially the Minnesota debacle. The Timbers move into a 1st place tie with the Carolina Railhawks.

- Suzuki was all over the place tonight. He drew three whistles in the first half with his relentless pressure up the sidelines. The Whitecaps are forced to send multiple defenders after him, thus creating opportunites and space for the other Timber players. He even made a defensive play in the 2nd half, tracking back to break-up a threatening run into the box. Taka's motor just always seems to be running, too bad he's 33, he'd be a fun player to watch in the MLS.

- Also have to drop about Claesson. He made a handful of nice long balls across midfield that opened up great scoring opportunites for the forwards upfront. Claesson, of course, assisting on the game's only goal to Pore.

- Nice to see Ryan Pore back into the swing of things with that goal. He did a good job playing up front tonight with his speed and constant aggression. However, how well can he and Keita co-exist? It seemed like Keita was a bit quiet tonight and got very few touches. In fact, near the end of the game Pore had that break-away where he shot the ball horrible wide and also missed a wide open Keita running across the box. Hopefully, they can learn to share the pitch, give each other space, and not run into each other too much.

- Cronin gets his 7th shutout on the season. He was his solid self defending the net which has become the standard this season. I liked the substitutions that Coach Wilkinson made in the 2nd half. Scott Thompson brought in a little more defense and some fresh legs to give the team enough energy to stave off any late Vancouver runs. Our defense looked sharp, completely opposite of the Whitecaps. Their defenders looked lethargic and played carelessly, no wonder they've allowed 25 goals against them this season.

- That Marlon James is a dangerous player though, huh? The Timbers did a good job of containing him, but he still was able to break through for a number of threatening runs. He's tied for the league lead in goals at an amazing 8 goals in 10 games played. I wouldn't be surprised to see him making waves in the MLS soon, did anybody see the one-timer he had? Again, good thing we have Cronin.

- It's so good when the Timber's score early, as they seem to play more comfortably and with better confidence. We definitely controlled possesion for most of the match and although the Whitecaps had some good shots on goal, we simply outworked them and fought harder tonight.

- Attendance was decent at 10,783. I think the overcast clouds might have kept some people away, but still a solid crowd. And they got to see a fun Timber's victory tonight.

Game Preview Vancouver at Portland

A chance for REVENGE!
Vancouver Whitecaps

Vs.
Portland Timbers
Thursday August 8th, 7:00PM
PGE Park

Cheap beer, cooler weather and an old rivalry will be at PGE Park this Thursday. Vancouver is back at .500 after a 3-1 win over Rochester on Friday. Marlon James scored two of the goals and is the biggest threat on the team. Earlier in the season he scored a hat trick against Minnesota. James has had trouble staying fit to play, but when he does he is the impact player that Vancouver sorely needs. He is tied for the league lead in goals scoring 8 in just 10 games, silencing this hired gun will be key. Portland is tied for second in the league and needs these three points to move into the number one spot.

Keys to the Game

• Marlon James #9 has proven to be deadly when he is healthy, removing him from the game or from easy chances.
• Martin Nash #7, the younger brother of NBA superstar Steve Nash is a long time veteran for the Whitecaps. Nash is the captain and has 3 goals and 3 assists. The Whitecaps will need his leadership.
• Marcus Haber #14 a Vancouver native is having a great first season with 5 goals. This is a player to watch Vancouver develop for 2011.
• Charles Gbeke #98 has made appearances for 9 different clubs in 10 years. In 2007 while playing for the Montreal Impact he tied for the USL leader in goals with 11. This season he has put 5 in the back of the net.
  
• Portland's key to the game is keeping up the potent offense, play solid defense go strong and show us why this may be the best Timbers team ever.
  

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Face full of balls

Burnley Player Fined for Drinking at Last Week's Match

Burnley forward Steven Thompson(Scottish) was fined a week's wages for drinking during the game. Thompson feel into the beer garden and as any sane man would have it picked up a cup of beer and took a chug. Read more at Lancashire Click

Willie Johnston 1979 Beer Swig Assist

Minnesota BS Penalty Kick to tie the game

Nice job ref you lost control of the game and then gave away the game by giving Minnesota a PK in the final minutes Those fans in the video are sooooo crazy! What a wild group! I think most of Minnesota's goals come from PKs. Sadly they do.

18 Games Undefeated - NO BIG DEAL

Portland gets the draw 1-1 in Minnesota. This next week is awesome as we face two teams at home Vancouver on Thursday and Charleston on Saturday. A 7pm game time gives you little excuse not to show up.