The team gets on an airplane back to the States tomorrow morning so this is the final entry in the WNT Blog for the 2007 WWC. Amazingly, we don’t have carpel tunnel syndrome, or ever seemed to run out of stuff to talk about (well, almost), but such is the character and characters of the U.S. Women’s National Team. We’ve been at this Blog thing since Aug. 18, that’s 45 days of almost daily Blog (we might have missed a day somewhere in there). That’s thousands of words, dozens of anecdotes, and hopefully, non-stop “infotainment” for the fans of the WNT. Thanks to all those out there who posted comments. We really do appreciate you visiting ussoccer.com, reading the blog, and most of all, supporting the WNT through the tough times and the great times. We’re not exactly sure when the WNT Blog will be back, but next year will feature the 2008 Olympics, the 2008 FIFA U-17 and U-20 Women’s World Cups, and qualifying for each tournament, so it will be a busy year for the WNT programs. So for now, thanks and Blog you later.
Sunday, September 30, 2007
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24 comments:
CONGRATULATIONS US-WNT, WE ARE SO PROUD OF YOU!! A HUGE THANKS to this Blog's Author for keeping fans like myself posted especially with all the "infotainment", tidbits... etc - you've done a fantastic job! I'll miss reading the blogs and I look forward to the future blogs for all upcoming WNT events!
Will be missing the funny blogs and those anecdotes of course!
Till then!
A USWNT fan all the way from Singapore,
Marjory
Dear Bloggers,
We are truly grateful that you set this up...it has been fun to have alittle window into China.
Everyone must be exhausted. But hopefully not so exhausted that Hope will be treated like an outcast on the playground. Eating alone? Returning home alone? This is surreal. Tell us this is not true.
There are plenty of mistakes and missed opportunities to go around in this cup.
Please, ladies, be kind to each other. You are all so very special to so many people.
With love and undying support,
Lisa
Thank YOU for the US WNT blog! Hope the team has/had a safe trip back to the states.
PS - Missed seeing Hope down on the field when the team got their third place medals. :(
I really do wish everyone can come together post World Cup and that no one leaves the team as a result of these trying times. It may not be easy, but often things worthwhile are not easy...
Congrats Ladies!!!
Regards, Ralph Lazaro North Carolina, USA
Dear USWNT,
Congratulations from a Chinese national in Canada! I have been following you throughout the entire tournament and watching your funny clips in China on ussoccer.com. As a big soccer fan, I admire your passion toward this sport and I have tremendous respect for all your hardwork and sacarfice. It was great to see your love for China and the Chinese people. I hope you enjoyed the tournament as well as your stay in China; you know you are always welcomed. Good luck and see you in the Beijing Olympic next year! GO USA!
Dave
You are a great group of ladies - love watching you play and representing the USA!!! And here's a special "Ra Ra Carolina-lina" to the gals who also carry that Tarheel Blue in their hearts : )
Judy
UNC-CH Academic Advising
Congrads ladies, you definitely came out and finished on the right note. Hopefully all this will be turned into something positive. You have been incredible role models for our young girls and it was heartbreaking to see what has transpired over the last few days, but also incredible to see how you all responded. What a turn-around to plays such an awesome last game...it was great seeing all those smiles.
Take care of yourselves, and I know the US WNT will be ok in the future.
always a USWNT fan through and through...
Just a few thoughts regarding thursday's game...
I'm getting fed up by everyone and their mother and the way people are responding to the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team.
Last thursday the U.S. Women suffered their largest World Cup defeat at the hand of the Brazilians to lose the semi-finals. Most people have chalked the defeat up to the fact that the head coach, Greg Ryan, decided to make a keeper switch the night before the game. He pulled out the keeper that had been in the net for the previous four games and put in a cold keeper. However, the keeper he did put in was a veteran, and is considered the greatest women's keeper to ever play the game. Anyone who plays soccer, watched the game, or followed the U.S. through the World Cup has felt the need to offer their opinion on the matter as if it was 100% fact and as if they had the authority to make such conjectures about the outcome of the game. This has been pissing me off hardcore because not one of these people play or coach at the national level, nor was anyone in anyway involved with the team on any level to be attuned to its workings. But suddenly, everyone feels a need to be an expert, a critic, and a judge.
How can spectators truly know what went wrong to cause such a defeat? How can spectators know the true motivation and history behind the coach's decision to make a goalkeeper switch? How can a spectator say that it was the keeper switch that dictated the outcome? Seriously, folks, let's actually think before we pretend to speak with authority. Below are four major factors that I have not heard one single person mention when criticizing or analyzing thursday's game.
1. The U.S. had to play a man down for 55 minutes of that game due to a player being ejected for a phantom call.
2. One of the goals was an "own" goal, as a player placed a diving header in the back of our own net in an attempt to head it out the sidelines off of a corner kick.
3. Our offense did not put a single goal in the back of the net during the Brazil game.
4. This was one of the youngest teams in terms of age and experience to compete for the U.S. since the 91' World Cup.
If we were to change those four factors, I think the outcome would have been much different. If we were to change those four factors, or if we had won the game, no one would have been spouting off about the fact that "Greg Ryan made the worst coaching decision of his career by choosing to sit Hope in favor of Bri." Many people I've talked to think that Ryan should be fired for his decision. But why be so hasty? Before this loss, Ryan had led the U.S. team to 51 straight victories. Obviously he has been doing something quite right. Why change that?
Also, why don't all of us stop acting like we are the experts. Seriously, if we really are as good as we let our mouths pretend we are, then we would be playing on the national team or coaching at that level. Yet not one of us is...so until we've reached that level, I do not think it is our right to criticize as if we are at the level. How can we know what is needed to compete in the semi-finals of a World Cup unless we have competed in the semi's? How can we know what motivates a coach to make a major defensive switch in the middle of a World Cup unless we've been coaching that team for the past few years and know the players and their capabilities inside and out? How can we know the dynamic of the team, their motivations, how they work together, and team chemistry unless we are a part of that team? Until we honestly know these things, do not speak as if we do.
So please stop judging, criticizing, and conjecturing. I'm trying to stay neutral and objective on this issue, because let's face it - I'm not an expert on playing for the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team.
US WNT...I LOVE YOU GIRLS! i have been following you since the days of michelle akers. i love to watch you play. i enjoy reading about your lives as soccer players. you might not have gotten the gold in this world cup, but you guys get the gold star for sticking together as a team, for working hard and comming out strong in the end. CONGRATS. you are all amazing players. i wish you all the best and i will be following you girls as you go into the olympics and as always GO FOR THE GOLD LADIES!
This is a much nicer blog. We are all in agreement that all is well with the team.
Great job ladies! Remember you are all part of the team. Don't alienate a player for simply stating their opinions. Although the team did not win the gold medal, you guys played great. I hope to see ALL of you in the upcoming games vs. my country, Mexico. I'll be cheering for you!!
Congratulations US-WNT! You played great soccer. Tough out against Brazil, but you came back strong against Norway.
This is not why I'm writing however.
I am writing because of the recent NY Times article about the increased incidence of concussions in women's sports.
I wanted to ask the players and the supporters of U.S. Soccer to start a campaign to make the headband-thing Julie Foudy always wore a required piece of safety equipment, just like shinguards. There are probably more concussions than broken shins, and the consequences can be far more serious.
So get out there! And promote the safety headband thing (maybe it needs a better name)!
Thanks!
Peter
thanks for the continuous updates with the team! i will definitely miss them, and will be looking forward to the second edition of this blog!
USWNT, Coaches, Athletic Trainers, Docs, PR, and all of you who supported the effort: THANK YOU!!!! Also, a big thanks to the parents and families of this team. I recognize the effort you all put into driving the girls to practice all those years, the mud in the house, a few broken windows, injuries, and grass stains. It is because of you all that we can look up to our USA team and be proud. We get to see a small bit of the effort from the games we watch, but all the time behind those 90 minutes is often not recognized. Today, everyone that is in awe of this team as I am, look around and recognize the little girls out there, the parents coaching, the field supervisors, and the fundraisers. You never know when one of them will finish with a medal in the world cup.
Well done USA..Well done!!!
KNU50 in AZ
Dear USWNT, Coaches, Athletic Trainers, Docs, PR staff, and everyone who supported the effort: Thank you for representing our country with pride and honor. Congratulations on your success.
Thank you also to the parents and families of our players. Because of you we can recognize this team, honor them, and cheer for the USA Women. Thank you for driving them to practice when they were five. Thank you for putting up with mud in the house and a broken window or two. Thank you for scrubbing the uniforms to get out as much of the grass stains as possible. Thank you for making them do their homework so they could get to college. Thank you for believing in their dream even if maybe at first it was hard. I honor you as I honor the team.
Everyone, remember we all won't make it to the world cup, but will make it in life. Make a difference today in a little girl's life even if you're tired and it's raining outside. Because one day, one of these little girls, will be wearing the medal with pride.
GO USA!!!!
P.S. How many days until the Olympics?
I hope Hope Solo received her bronze medal. She should have been allowed to participate in the closing ceremony and the team photo. She helped the team get to the top three. I've heard male athletes say worse and act worse and still remain with their team. She's young, emotional, and inexperienced with the press. Give her a break!
Hang in there Hope,
A Soccer Dad
Great Job. Way to bounce back from the distraction and end on a victory in the tourney. Gold awaits at the Olympics...
Pete
I too will miss your blogs and wish you all the best. America is proud of you.
Will Hope Solo be able to play in the games vs. Mexico? I hope she can join the team again. We all look forward to a reconciled U.S. team!
p.s. Briana went off on one of her teammates, too.
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U.S. goalkeeper Scurry out to make amends
IRAKLION, Greece (AP) -- There's no doubt in Briana Scurry's mind. If she had been the starting goalkeeper four years ago in Sydney, the U.S. women's soccer team would have won the gold medal.
"I put myself into that entire game," she said. "And I've always felt -- and I still feel -- that if I were playing, we would have won."
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http://robots.cnnsi.com/2004/more/08/09/bc.oly.scurry.sstorysoc.ap/
I need to vent this, but the USWNT's head coach had done a pretty bad job. He should be replaced for making such a make-no-sense decision to replace Hope Solo at the last minute before the biggest match of the USWNT. In the history of the World cup, no one has ever done that: replacing a goal keeper before a big match !! what he's thinking?? I'm still shaking my head. So disappointed!
I have been a fan of the WNT almost since its inception. For me, China brought the saddest week in the WNT history. When Ryan made the goalie decision, I was perplexed, but nonetheless hoped for the best. When Solo got up and stated the obvious in the press, it was not a shining moment for her or the team. But how the team reacted was enough to keep me from watching the Norway game, the first game I have missed since they were first made available.
I have been coaching high school girls for a long time. I have even had kids get in front of the local press and say things they probably should not have. I once even benched my star goalie for doing just that, HOWEVER, they were benched, not shunned. It actually sickened me to hear other players and Ryan get in from of the press and state that they did this to keep the team together and focused. TOGETHER! Together includes Solo. You are not children on a playground, you are elite adult women athletes. This should mean that you apologize, forgive, and move on AS A TEAM.
I understand that Solo has apologized to the team; has the team apologized to us, the fans. When they do, I will forgive, but until then my TV is off and ticketmaster will be quiet.
On a separate note, Ryan must go. An apology is not enough. It is not just the Solo incident and aftermath. It is not just his inability to keep the WHOLE team together for Norway. The style of play and decisions from the bench has shown a lacking. His actions show that the WNT needs more than he can offer.
I'm really hoping that Hope plays this Saturday against Mexico. I'll be really disappointed if she's not.
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