Category Archives: Houston Dynamo

Dynamo fall 1-0 to San Antonio Scorpions who move into USOC quarter finals

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Photo courtesy of Robin Jerstad

The US Open Cup third round, kicked off Tuesday night with NASL side San Antonio Scorpions FC taking on the Houston Dynamo in a first ever meeting between the two clubs.  While the Scorpions are fighting for respect in second division soccer, the Dynamo sit sixth in the Eastern Conference standings for the MLS.

With Houston set to take on La Liga side Valencia on Thursday, Mac Kandji and Cam Weaver got the nod up front and Adam Moffat in midfield with Bobby Boswell in defense.

The Scorpions started their most offensive attacking line-up with Bayona, Campos and Denissen all playing advanced roles with Harmse and Pitchkolan providing cover for the back four which included former Houston Dynamo Ryan Cochrane.

Houston came out looking confident with the ball and had an early chance when Colin Clarke missed a fairly open shot at the six yard line in the second minute of play.  After that a couple of early opportunities for the Scorpions ensued but they largely squandered what possession they earned in the beginning phases of the match.

FOR THE COMPLETE ARTICLE CLICK ON THE LINK TO VISIT IMSoccer News

NASL Podcast Episode #34 with Special Guest, U.S. Open Cup Expert Josh Hakala | IMS Soccer News

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NASL Podcast Episode #34 with Special Guest, U.S. Open Cup Expert Josh Hakala | IMS Soccer News.

On the verge of the Scorpions epic contest against two time MLS Champions Houston Dynamo, IMS takes a comprehensive look at US Open Cup match-ups across the soccer landscape in the US.

Matt Gold and First Year San Antonio Scorpions Ready to Take on MLS Side Dynamo in Open Cup

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Matt Gold enjoying life as a professional player in the town he grew up in.

After a strong second half and playing a man down for most of the match, the SA Scorpions FC  earned their way into the second round of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup with a 2-0 win over the Laredo Heat. The club secured passage to advance in the historic tournament and also retained the right to host MLS side the Houston Dynamo.

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Many players on the Scorpions roster have US Open Cup and Major League Soccer experience, but for Matt Gold, who spent time living in San Antonio as a youth player, it won’t be his first experience with either a cup environment or against MLS quality talent.

“Last year with TFC (Toronto Football Club) I participated in the Canadian Cup and was also involved with the CONCACAF tournament but this was my first experience with the NASL and US Open Cup.”

Gold, a 43rd pick in the MLS SuperDraft, was involved during the second leg of the semi-final and the first leg of the final for Toronto. He was inserted into the lineup by TFC manager Aron Winter during the latter stages of each match.

He also made his debut in MLS against the Seattle Sounders making two more appearances in league competition and one more appearance during the CONCACAF Champions League. His collegiate career was spent at Ohio State and he also played with the old Austin Aztex U23 PDL side.

Still in his early 20s, Gold believes his ambition relies on his ability to play numerous roles for his team.

FOR THE COMPLETE ARTICLE CLICK ON THE LINK TO VISIT IMSoccer News

Scorpions could host Houston Dynamo in US Open Cup

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courtesy US Soccer

The Lamar Hunt US Open Cup has undergone some significant changes to the structure of the tournament this year.  One major change is the equal selection process that allows teams to host games through the quarterfinals.

Before the tournament began, the potential for a lower-division team to host an MLS team greatly increased thanks to this random selection.

That possibility for the SA Scorpions FC is drawing ever closer as the first ever US Open Cup match for the club is set to kick off next week.

US Soccer announced third round match-ups earlier this week and the Houston Dynamo (MLS) are paired with the winner of the upcoming match against the Scorpions and the Laredo Heat.

“The chance to host an MLS team at Heroes Stadium is great for the team and this city,” said Scorpions team president Michael Hitchcock.

The potential for lower-division teams to host MLS clubs raises the profile of the tournament and allows fans to be exposed to a team from the top league in the country.  From a club perspective, players have a chance to test themselves in a familiar setting and opportunities for revenue greatly increase when featuring some of the top players and clubs in the country.

The Houston Dynamo already have a familiar relationship with the Bexar Co. club and should make for an interesting contest.

Speaking of familiarity, the Scorpions take on the Heat for the third time this year with the two prior matches ending in wins (3-0; 3-1) for San Antonio during the preseason, respectively.

The second round match between the SA Scorpions FC (NASL) and the Laredo Heat (USL-PDL) will take place at Blossom Athletic Center on Tuesday, May 22 at 7:30 p.m.

Highlights: MLS Week 8

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Some choice MLS highlights for you.

Los Angeles Galaxy 1 – 1 FC Dallas

Both squads went into the match without their starting keepers and the score might have been zero-zero had they played.

None the less, each squad managed a fairly equal amount of attempts on goal, with 16 for LA and 14 for Dallas.  The possession averaged about 60/40 in favor of LA which should not be surprising given they were at home.  An exciting match between two conference powers.

DAL – Brek Shea (61′)

LA – Pat Noonan (92′)

Chicago Fire 1 – 2 Seattle Sounders

Eddie Johnson continues to contribute to Seattle and seems to be partnering well with Montero.  Pavel Pardo and Marco Pappa are the class of Chicago but with the home crowd behind them they were unable to change a seven game winless streak against Seattle.

Opportunities on goal were about the same but Seattle took advantage while Chicago let theirs go to waste, sometimes it’s that simple.

CHI – Arne Freidrich (OG, 39′)

SEA – Eddie Johnson (67′)

CHI – Marco Pappa (89′)

Houston Dynamo 2 – 3 DC United

Good game!  Houston is always going to fight, and for United, it was going to be a question of how much they were going to fight back.

Maicon Santos continues his impressive form and is making every team he played for shake their heads in confusion over why he didn’t play like that for them.  DeRo does make things easier when you play in front of him as a striker, but credit to Ben Olson for not playing him as a forward.

DC – Maicon Santos (11′)

HOU – Will Bruin (50′)

DC – Dwayne De Rosario (54′)

HOU – Will Bruin (59′)

DC – Maicon Santos (70′)

Real Salt Lake 3 – 2 Toronto FC

Toronto has to be the most curios team there is in the league.  Aron Winter was massive for Inter Milan as a player, but as a coach for Toronto, well the record speaks for itself.  Toronto is 0-6 and has been outscored 13-4 this season.

Many say the 4-3-3 has been a huge failure for Winter, but one can’t help but notice that sometimes, things just don’t fall Toronto’s way.

RSL – Kyle Beckerman (7′)

TOR – Eric Avila (48′) superb

TOR – Richard Eckersley (OG, 57′)

TOR – Donell Henry (77′)

RSL – Jonny Steele (93′)