Pipe Dreams: Week Twenty Two

Rose City 1 - 2 CD Gunners

Well, the front office had mostly admitted up front that qualifying for the Majors Cup was a pipe dream at this point, but with the loss to the Gunners it's official. No one seemed to be able to put up points this weekend and that's been essentially the biggest problem in the Rose City since day one. Sometimes they're hot, sometimes they're not. With a little luck the boys in red have managed to stay near the top of the standings and will be competing in their first Playoff at the end of their first year. It's not exactly a BSL blowout (not yet) but it looks like a strong first year offering from the Flyers.

The final week of the Regular Season will feature a match versus Burud Town before heading into the postseason. They sit in the middle of the table at 7-11-3 and 24 points. It's not a season to be disrespected but Rose City should get the win here.

Rumors abound that the front office is in the midst of searching for some extra firepower for the Playoffs but we'll see how far those go.

Starters

Steven Beitashour

Marvin Chavez

Marco Di Vaio

Kosuke Kimura

Mike Magee

Darlington Nagbe

Mauro Rosales (Captain)

C.J. Sapong

Josh Saunders (Keeper)

Subs

Justin Braun

Hamdi Salihi

Adam Moffat

Week 21 Lineup

It's all about the Majors Cup Qualifier now that Rose City has qualified for the BSL Playoffs. And that's where we get to the lineup this week. In order to qualify for the Majors Cup, the Flyers need to win their last two games of the season. They also need either the Stoners or the Gunners to lose both of their final games. It just so happens that the CD Gunners will be in town this week for another Match of the Week to battle our boys in red. This is the best chance Rose City has to make this happen. Everything else is out of their hands now.

In other news, Hamdi Salihi has been picked up in place of Dan Kennedy barring approval from the BSL Commissioner. Until approval, this lineup could change. Kennedy is a strong keeper, but the weak Chivas back line prevents him from putting up the best numbers. We thank Dan for all his hard work for the club.

Starters
Steven Beitashour
Marvin Chavez
Marco Di Vaio
Mike Magee
Adam Moffat
Mauro Rosales (Captain)
Hamdi Salihi
C.J. Sapong
Josh Saunders (Keeper)

Subs
Justin Braun
Darlington Nagbe
Kosuke Kimura

Rose City Clinches Playoff Spot!

Rose City 2 - 2 Gold Coast

Rose City clinched the third BSL playoff spot with a tie this week versus Gold Coast. It came down to the wire, but with many of the Flyers major players sitting out for one reason or another, Mauro Rosales delivered with two points in the final MLS game of the week.

The Flyers move into fifth in Majors Cup Qualifying, but are five points off of the CD Gunners and the Stoners. Someone is going to have to have a very bad two weeks for Reds to slip into contention there.

"I thought we played pretty well for having most of our big name guys sitting out this week," the Flyers coach pointed out. San Jose had a bye week so no Marvin Chavez or Steven Leinhart and Marco Di Vaio had returned to Italy to answer questions in the ongoing match fixing scandal there. It came down to Rosales.

"Obviously we'd like to have a stronger all around team next year," the coach said when asked about next season. "Being able to get points from anyone on the field isn't something we've excelled at and several players who were supposed to be big have been a bit of a let down. But we got the job done. It's our first season in the BSL and we'll be in the Playoffs."

Next week the Gunners come to town for another Match of the Week and provide the best opportunity this team will have to squeak into the Majors Cup as well. Either the Gunners or Pennsylvania need to lose the last two of the season and Rose City needs to win both to make it happen. Beating the Gunners in Week Twenty-one would be the way to start.

Week Twenty Lineup

Rose City is just one point from clinching a playoff spot in their first year in the BSL. Standing in their way is Gold Coast who come into the game sitting at 6-10-3. But don't be fooled. With San Jose and Chivas taking the week off, every member of the squad will have to contribute if the Flyers are to get that point.

Starters
Justin Braun
Marco Di Vaio
Kosuke Kimura
Mike Magee
Adam Moffat
Darlington Nagbe
Mauro Rosales (Captain)
C.J. Sapong
Josh Saunders (Keeper)

Subs
Steven Beitashour
Marvin Chavez
Dan Kennedy