Flyers Dismantle Alliance FC

Rose City 6 - 0 Alliance

The international break doesn't seem to have slowed down the Flyers. The team crushed Alliance 6 - 0 this week in what is starting to become a seasonal ritual. The winning goal was the first one from none other than Marco Di Vaio but the talk of the town this week will be the continually rising star of Rodney Wallace. After receiving a call-up from Costa Rica but seeing zero minutes on the field, the winger was only available for one of Portland's two games this week. He only needed the one, putting in an assist hattrick to earn himself Man of the Match. Those points are important too.

While the win squeaked Rose City to within three points of a playoff spot thanks to a Spartans loss to Gold Coast, the points pushed the team's APG to 3.0 for the season and 4.0 since Majors Cup Qualifying began. Those points appear more and more likely to matter as the last two BSL playoff places and all of the MCQ spots seem to be up for grabs during a rapidly closing BSL season. There are only seven weeks left to play in the regular season and the Flyers face some imminently beatable competition. Lets take a look.

 Current Standings:

• Week 16: Union Southern California 9th, 5-7-3, 2.1 apg
• Week 17: Spartans 1612 4th, 8-5-2, 3.4 apg
• Week 18: Gold Coast 10th, 5-9-1, 2.5 apg
• Week 19: Capital District Gunners 8th, 5-7-3, 2.9 apg
• Week 20: Orange County Zodiac 2nd 10-4-1, 3.7 apg
• Week 21: Pennsylvania Stoners 12th, 2-12-1, 2.5 apg
• Week 22: Gateway United 7th, 5-7-3, 3.3 apg

Five of the seven remaining opponents sit below the halfway line on the league table. Most of them have an APG of under three, and it doesn't appear to be improving. Meanwhile, Rose City has been clinging tightly to the fifth place spot for several weeks with an APG that continues to increase. As of the end of week fifteen, the Flyers hold a 3.0 APG and have been averaging 4.6 goals per game since week nine when many of the club's injured players started to return. Indeed, since that week nine game against Gateway United the Boys in Red have put up at least four points all but once and put up six points three separate times.

Our other two opponents, the Orange County Zodiac and Spartans 1612 sit above the Flyers in the league table and currently occupy playoff positions. While the Zodiac appear uncatchable with thirty-one points, the Spartans are on twenty-six and are only one win out of the Flyers' grasp. They face top-of-the-table Alamo City next week and then are under Rose City's own control in Week Seventeen. Look for the next two weeks to really define those playoff spots.

Week Fifteen: Back in Action

What a brutal stretch of games the last few weeks have been. The Flyers didn't make out with all the points but are definitely still in the thick of things. That makes this week all the more important. The team visits Alliance this week and there couldn't be a better time for a pick-me-up. The Lions sit near the bottom of the league table in eleventh place and have had trouble scoring all season. Their APG is just 2.0 and that's after last week's 6-1 drubbing of the Zodiac. In fact, those six points are Alliance's best performance of the season so far.

Most everyone is back from international duty but Flyers standout man Rodney Wallace won't be back with his Portland Timbers until this weekend. Everyone else is healthy and ready to go.


Starters
Patrice Bernier (MTL)
Jaime Castrillon (COL)
Marvin Chavez (SJ)
Aurelien Collin (SKC)
Marco Di Vaio (MTL)
Alan Gordon (SJ)
Zach McMath (PHI)
Daniel Paladini (CHI)
Martin Rivero (COL)
Mauro Rosales (SEA)
Rodney Wallace (POR)

Subs
Danny Cruz (PHI)
Teal Bunbury (SKC)
Eric Hassli (DAL)

Reserve
Luis Robles (NY)

Rose City 1 - 2 Alamo City

The league's top club had a down week, scoring only two points and yet, Rose City couldn't take advantage. The only point for the Flyers came on an Aurelien Collin shot on goal. This is by no means the end to the Flyers aspirations but it does mean that every other game this season is that much more important. Draws by both Second City and Gateway keep the Flyers in the scrum but three points here would have been a big boost.

The poor play from Seattle (once again) has hurt Mauro Rosales' production all season and the full 90' from both Bernier and Di Vaio in the Canadian Championship midweek most likely effected their ability to put points on the board in MLS play. To add insult to injury, the Flyers regular output level would have been enough to top any team in the league save Alliance this week as everyone seemed to have a low scoring week. To pile on even more, Rosales did have a glorious cross that added a point for Seattle except it came off of a Chivas defender's head rather than one of his own attackers.

Regardless of the outcome, Rose City looks forward to a two week break and will be back looking to put points on the board again once the International games are all over and done with.

Week Seven Lineup

Last week, a badly depleted Rose City still came within one point of a tie versus a middling Alliance squad. The 2-1 loss hurt, but the goal in the near term remains staying in the hunt as players return from injury. Alan Gordon started his first game last week with a point after playing a few minutes the previous week. Teammate Marvin Chavez and Colorado's Martin Rivero both look to be returning in the next two weeks or so as well. Finally Portland, Montreal, and Seattle both play this week. The play from newly acquired keeper Luis Robles is troubling, but Philly's Zach McMath is still with the team even while he engenders little confidence himself. Look for the Flyers to be competitive with Gold Coast this week and get back to .500.

Starters
Patrice Bernier (MTL)
Marco Di Vaio (MTL)
David Estrada (SEA)
Alan Gordon (SJ)
Michael Harrington (POR)
Zach McMath^ (PHI)
Sanna Nyassi (MTL)
Frederic Piquionne (POR)
Mauro Rosales* (SEA)
Chris Tierney (NE)
Rodney Wallace (POR)

Subs
Marvin Chavez (SJ)
Martin Rivero (COL)
Aurelien Collin (SKC)

Reserve
Luis Robles (NY)

Week Six Lineup

This week's gonna take some work; that's for sure. Montreal has a bye week in MLS which means no Marco Di Vaio and no Patrice Bernier. Sanna Nyassi's out of the question as well. Seattle too is not playing this week due to CCL commitments so you won't see Mauro Rosales either. That means that, once again, the Boys in Red are looking a little thin. Not everything is bad news though. Alan Gordon got limited minutes last week and is expected to see even more (maybe even starting) this week with San Jose. Winning this game would continue a great trend for Rose City, leaving the team at .500 and in a good position to head up the table as more of the injured players return to their respective lineups. Alliance is at the same record and, generally speaking, has had issues scoring this season so it's not impossible to see the Flyers come out with a "W".

Starters
Marvin Chavez (SJ)
Aurelien Collin (SKC)
David Estrada (SEA)
Alan Gordon (SJ)
Michael Harrington (POR)
Frederic Piquionne (POR)
Martin Rivero (COL)
Luis Robles (NY)
Mauro Rosales (SEA)
Rodney Wallace (POR)

Subs
Patrice Bernier (MTL)
Marco Di Vaio (MTL)
Sanna Nyassi (MTL)

Reserves
Zach McMath (PHI)

Flyers Fall, Week Five

Rose City 2 - 3 Burud Town

The Flyers are no longer perfect versus Burud Town. A close match in which some new members of the team got on the board didn't end the way Rose City wanted. Still struggling with injuries to several key pieces, the Flyers are still averaging two points a game. While not great, that's going to keep the team in the running until the rest of the team gets back to fitness. Once the full force is available you can expect a fight to the end versus anyone and everyone in the league.

Week Six features a match against Alliance who are also on six points. Their PPG is slightly lower, but it remains an interesting match. The winner is likely to move up in the standings while the loser continues to fight for a grip.

Lineup Week 16

Strange things going on in life means late lineups.

Week Fourteen was big for the Flyers. They'd been talked down to for weeks about their weak offense and the number of points scored every game. They came out of nowhere to drop five points on a helpless Alliance team, all from assists. Marvin Chavez was Man of the Match with a pair.

Week Fifteen features a matchup against the KC Quest and, speaking from the future, the Flyers have a hill to climb. Their lazy GM managed to post the lineup late.

Starters
Steven Beitashour
Justin Braun
Marco Di Vaio
Marvin Chavez
Dan Kennedy (Keeper)
Mike Magee
Darlington Nagbe
Mauro Rosales (Captain)
C.J. Sapong

Subs
Adam Moffat
Kosuke Kimura
Bjorn Runstrom

Week 11 Lineup

Whew! Rose City squeaked it out last week against Alliance in a tight 1-0 victory. Dan Kennedy proved to be the deciding factor.

"We still need to get more consistent at putting points on the board," the Flyers coach offered up after practice mid-week.

Week 11 looks to be interesting with the rising Gold Coast coming to town in another Match of the Week.

Starters
Justin Braun
Marvin Chavez
Dan Kennedy (Keeper)
Mike Magee
Adam Moffat
Alejandro Moreno
Darlington Nagbe
Mauro Rosales (Captain)
C.J. Sapong

Subs
Bjorn Runstrom
Kosuke Kimura
Marco Di Vaio

Week 10 vs. Alliance

The boys from Vegas are in town this week to face down Rose City who currently has more wins than any other team in the BSL. However, Alliance is currently 10th in the standings and only a touch higher on the Power Rankings. Can they shake up a Flyers team that looks to be rock steady? Only time will tell.

"We're doing pretty well right now," the Flyers coach admitted when talked to during a mid-week practice. "Most wins in the league isn't something to sniff at, but we still have room for improvement. We'd be in first but for our APG. That's where my concern is right now."

The concern is warranted as Rose City is currently only averaging 2.4 points per game. That's not as many as a team that'd be capable of staying at the top of the standings should be putting out. However, help is on the way. The team played without Mauro Rosales until last week and Italian Marco Di Vaio should begin making an Impact (pun intended) in the next week or two himself. With their newfound firepower, can the Flyers keep their grip on a playoff spot? What's to come with Majors Cup qualifying just around the corner?

Starters
Justin Braun
Marvin Chavez
Dan Kennedy (Keeper)
Kosuke Kimura
Mike Magee
Adam Moffat
Alejandro Moreno
Mauro Rosales (Captain)
C.J. Sapong

Subs
Bjorn Runstrom
Darlington Nagbe
Marco Di Vaio

Bill Hamid was dropped this week for the incoming Di Vaio. The captain's band has been captured by Rosales after poor performance by Alejandro Moreno.