Say what you will about curses, it is almost impossible for the Wizards to not make the playoffs after that great victory Saturday night. Using every bit of what I learned from logic in college I have come to the conclusion that the only way for the Wizards to not break the playoffs is if all four of the scenarios below came true.

We are out if

1. Redbulls win on Thursday against Chicago by more than two goals (tie may do it as well)
2. Real Salt Lake defeats Colorado on Saturday (tie may do it as well)
3. DC United defeats Columbus Crew
4. Wizards lose to New England

Simply though Wizards win they are in.

Pack a poncho, KC may have a little help from Mother Nature in putting out the Fire.

Match Previews: 
     ~ KC Star: Bob Luder’s game preview and feature on Aaron Hohlbein
     ~ Fox Sports: KC v. Chicago preview
     ~ MLSnet: Official game notes and game guide
     ~ MLSnet: ‘Resilient’ Wizards welcome Chicago (Bob Rusert) 
     ~ MLSnet: Expectations fuel Fire in second half (Kathryn L. Knapp)
     ~ American Soccer News: Wizards back in action at home (Nate Brinson)
     ~ Goal.com: KC vs. Chicago preview (Pat Walsh)
     ~ Chicago Tribune: Chicago at KC matchup (Luis Arroyave)
     ~ Chicago Sun Times: Tonight Fire at Wizards

This Year’s Meeting:
     ~ 4/20: KC 1, CHI 0
               - Video highlights

Broadcast Info:
     ~ TV: Direct Kick, MLSlive.tv, MetroSports, TWC Ch. 5
               -Former coach Bob Gansler will be in the booth
     ~ Radio: 1480 AM (English), 1340 AM (Espanol)

Picture Preview:

Chicago Fire designated player, Cuauhtemoc Blanco, and Kansas City designated player, Claudio Lopez, celebrate as teammates with Club America in March 2005.

The James P. McGuire Cup, the oldest youth sports trophy in the US, has been awarded annually since 1935.

UPDATE: The Juniors fell 1-0 in the final, conceding the match winner in the 90th minute.  Heartbreaking for sure, but to be runners-up in the National Championship is a great achievement and great representation of the Wizards and their youth system.  Congratulations to Solar 89 for their first National Championship and best of luck to all of these young men in their college careers.

Having been training together for less than a month as a team, the KC Wizards U19 Juniors won the Kansas State Cup in convincing fashion.  They played one game, the championship, and they won 9-0, qualifying for the Region II Championships in Rockford, Illinois.  There they went 4-0-1, defeating the Chicago Fire Juniors in the semifinal and perennial power Scott Gallagher from St. Louis in the Championship.  Now at the US Youth Soccer National Championships in Little Rock, Arkansas, the Juniors are poised to play in Sunday’s championship match with a chance to become the 2nd ever Kansas team crowned national champions (shout out to the KC Dynamos who accomplished the feat in the 2001 U14 Girls division).

Their opponent will be Solar 89 from Dallas who return to the National Championship game for the third time in four years.  The teams are ranked #1 and #2 respectively in the U19 Boys National Soccer Rankings.  Solar boast several top freshman in college programs, none moreso than Corben Bone who was named ACC Freshman of the Year after helping Wake Forest win the National Championship last season with 5 goals and 8 assists.  The award adds to a long list of recognitions for Bone, including 2006 NSCAA National Player of the Year.  Notably, Bone missed Solar’s first two games of the tournament attending classes at Wake Forest.

While Bone was the #3 high school recruit in 2007, U20 teammate Cameron Brown was #2 on the list and chose North Carolina.  At the time of this Rise Magazine article (May 2007) Bone had scored 127 goals and 241 assists in his Solar career to Brown’s 154 goals and 276 assists.  Teammate Alex Chi, sophomore at Harvard, leads the U19 boys division with three goals scored.  Other notables include Xavier’s Ryan Engelmann, St. Louis University’s Scott Wisniewski, Kentucky’s Miles McDougal, Tulsa’s Zach Nulisch and Chris Taylor, and Navy’s Chris Schneider.  

The Juniors will certainly have their hands full, but the boys in blue have proved quite capable thus far.  Kickoff is at 10:45 am and the Plano Star provides a great preview of the match.  Check the KC Wizards Juniors blog for more info, video highlights, photos and match recaps.  Good luck, Juniors!

Photo by Jonathan Daniel

Photo by Dave Sandford

Photo by Dave Sandford

Photo by Dave Sandford

Here are a few shots of Jimmy’s full 90 in Toronto last night in the MLS All-Stars 3-2 win over West Ham (click on them to enlarge)  And here’s video of an interview with him at a training session earlier in the week.

UPDATE 2: Conrad captained the MLS All-Stars to a 3-2 victory, playing a full 90.  As is all too often the case for defenders, his two most notable moments were negative ones: his header deflection on West Ham’s second goal and a caution for a reckless foul in the 82nd minute.  

UPDATE: Listen to The Jimmy Conrad Show live from Toronto last night.

Wizards’ captain Jimmy Conrad is Kansas City’s lone representative in tonight’s MLS All-Star Game.  This is the groin’s (or is he going by the ant now?) fifth consecutive All-Star appearance*, and if the previous four were any indication, he will be in the starting lineup against West Ham tonight in Toronto (to the displeasure of this Toronto Star columnist):

• 2007: full 90 against Celtic (top left).
• 2006: first half against Chelsea (top right).
• 2005: full 90 against Fulham.
• 2004: full 90 against the East.

UPDATE: Juniors win 3-1! Combined with Solar 89’s 4-0 win in the other group game, the Juniors have qualified for the National Championship on sunday.  Regardless of the result in tomorrow’s game against Solar 89, the Wizards will meet Solar 89 again on Sunday in the final.  Nice job Juniors!

My place looks about like RFK did last night.  Off and on power courtesy of a mid-morning monsoon means an abbreviated post.  First up are highlights of yesterday’s Juniors dramatic 3-2 comeback victory over Maryland’s Freestate United at the National Championships in Little Rock, Arkansas:

The Juniors now play the second of three group games at 11:30 am today, with a win potentially sending them through to the final (Solar 89 would have to tie or win in the group’s other game).  The team faces Colorado Rush Nike who fell 4-3 in their opener.  Despite winning their state cup the last 9 years and reaching the Regional final six times, it is the U19 Rush’s first trip to Nationals. Always the bridesmaid never the bride, it looked that way again this year after they fell to Sereno 89 White in the Region IV championship in Hawaii.  However, an appeal that Sereno illegally dropped players and forged signatures was upheld by the Arizona Youth Soccer Organization thereby disqualifying them from competition.  The scandal resulted in a resignation by the Sereno’s director of coaching.  The Rush boast UCSB’s Joe Eubanks, San Diego State University’s Kellen Frye, Raymundo Reza, and Morgan Maestas, Old Dominion’s Ben Medina, Notre Dame’s Jeb Brovsky, and Harvard’s Jarren LaGreca.  The Rush also have two familiar faces for Wizards Junior Matt Perry – his University of Denver teammates Marc Kokel and Ryan Aweida.  I’ll update this post with the game result, but check Hillcrest Road, KCW Juniors and Down the Byline for match details.  Good luck, Juniors!

The KC Wizards U19 Juniors opened their National Championships successfully with a 3-2 victory early this morning.  The 7:30 am kickoff against Freestate United was probably a blessing for both sides, as humidity is expected to push the heat index into the 100’s in Little Rock today.  Check out Hillcrest Road and Down the Byline for match details or a KCW Juniors blog has been created to provide information on the team and will be available after noon.  In the group’s other game, Solar 89 (Texas) defeated Colorado Rush Nike 4-3.

Let’s take a look at some of our junior boys in blue:

• Goalkeeper Scott Angevine – Junior at Northern Illinois University from Blue Valley Northwest H.S. where he won the state championship as a senior and was an NSCAA All-American nominee.  Also punted and kicked for the high school’s football team.  Recorded three shutouts at Regionals, including a clean sheet in the Championship, to qualify the juniors for Nationals.
• Austin Eanes - Also from Blue Valley Northwest H.S., he was a 2005 Class 6 2nd Team All State selection.  Now plays defense at the University of Evansville where he appeared in 6 games in 2007.
• William Koss - Also from Blue Valley Northwest H.S. where he was a three-year captain and won NSCAA All-Midwest Region and All-State honors.   Member of the 2006 US U-20 team that played in the Busan International in South Korea.  Plays midfield at Loyola University, appearing in all 19 of their matches as a freshman in 2007.  
• Josh Westberg - Also from Blue Valley Northwest, he scored 20 goals and 18 assists as a senior and was named Honorable Mention All-American and First Team All State.  Now attends Loyola University Chicago.  Sophomore forward who had 1 goal and 2 assists in 17 games as a freshman.
• Goalkeeper Alex Burton – Class 5A First Team All-State at Lansing High School.  Pictured here and here during a 2005 Regional victory over Bishop Miege.  Started 18 games at Baker University in 2007, conceding 23 goals.
• Matt Griffin – Also playing at Baker University, Matt is a sophomore defender who tallied 1 goal and 2 assists in 17 games in 2007.  Olathe East H.S. alum.
• Ian Christenson – Blue Springs South H.S. alum, will be an incoming freshman at Graceland University (open tryout addition Kevin Souter’s alma mater).
• Giovanni Edward - Also a Graceland University player (article on the two’s accomplishment here) – scored 3 goals in 21 appearances in 2007.  Plays for the PDL’s Des Moines Menace.  Scored in the Regionals semi-final.
• Chase McCoy – Plays at Hastings College in Nebraska, recording 2 goals and 2 assists in 18 appearances in 2007.  He was a 2006 Class 3 All-State and NSCAA All-Region V selection at forward  at Blue Springs H.S.
• Tyler Nichol – Also a Blue Springs H.S. grad (story on them being reunited), Nichol plays at Rockhurst University but did not appear on the stat sheet for the Hawks in 2007.  
• Brett Heinz – Midfielder at Butler University from Leawood, Kansas (1 assist in 20 appearances in 2007).  Played high school at Blue Valley North where he was a two time state runner-up and set school records for career points, goals in a game, and points in a game.
• Curt McDonald - Also a Blue Valley North alum (Class 6A First Team All State and NSCAA All Region V in 2006), played in 22 games for Furman University in 2007 earning 2 goals and 1 assist.  Scored the game winning goal in the Regional Championship to qualify the Juniors for nationals.
• Tyler Schwab - Also from Blue Valley North (First Team All State and All Region in 2006), Tyler is a redshirt freshman at Marquette University after injuring his shoulder in 2007.  
• Coleton Henning – Gatorade Kansas Boys Player of the Year.  Won 2006 Class 5A State Championship at St. Thomas Aquinas H.S. in a season when he scored 26 goals and 10 assists and was named a NSCAA All-American. Followed it up his senior season with 25 goals and 15 assists in winning another state championship (Aquinas’ fifth straight) and another NSCAA All-American selection.  He will be a freshman at Furman University this Fall.
• Spencer Nash – Scored 24 goals and 8 assists in his junior campaign, and 17 goals and 4 assists as a senior at Mill Valley HS last Fall and was named class 5A first team All State.  Pictured here. 
• Matt Kuhn – Raytown South HS product where he scored 34 goals as a junior, he is now a sophomore midfielder at Drake University – started 19 games, tallying 6 goals and 6 assists in 2007.
• Michael McDonald – Sophomore at Rockhurst University, appeared in one game for the Hawks in 2007.  From Blue Valley HS (Class 6A Second Team All State in 2006).  
• Kyle Miller – Also a sophomore at Rockhurst University, from St. Thomas Aquinas H.S (Class 5A First Team All State).  Played in 20 games for the Hawks, netting 1 goal and 3 assists.
• Michael Perry – Sophomore defender at the University of Denver, also from St. Thomas Aquinas H.S (First Team All State and NSCAA All Midwest Region team in 2006).  Played in 13 games as a freshman in 2007, recording 1 assist.
• Kelly Porter – Played in 16 games as a freshman at Coastal Carolina, scoring 5 goals and 1 assist.  At Trinity Academy, he scored 33 goals in his senior season to bring his high school total to 103 goals scored.  Two time 2nd Team All State Selection and four time 1st Team All Region honoree.

For those of you who missed the ESPN.com chat today – it only lasted about 20 minutes — here is the  transcript of Jimmy’s Q&A.  He touches on a bit of everything, music to food, cards to video games, even which superhero he would be.  Rest assured, there’s some soccer stuff in there too ahead of his All Star appearance.  Enjoy.

UPDATE: Wizards reserves move into first place and improve to 4-1-2 with a 3-0 win on goals by Wolff, Pizarro, and a New York own goal.  Official press release here.  Check the reserves page for updated stats and standings.

Reserves in action, Juniors preparing for action, and even some stadium news to share…

• The Wizards reserves (3-1-2) host the NY Red Bulls reserves (1-3-0) this morning at the team’s Swope Park Training Facility — 10 am kickoff, weather permitting.  The game, rescheduled from a July 11th conflict with the Atlas friendly, is a big one for Kansas City.  A win would propel them into first place in the East and put them atop the single table.  Both sides will have their full rosters available for selection today, an oddity for Reserve League games, because neither team’s previous game falls inside the 60-hour restriction window.  Expect Josh Wolff to be among the KC squad as he returns to full fitness.  I updated the reserves page, and it looks like the Wizards are led in scoring by Ryan Pore (4 goals in 3 games) and Nelson Pizarro (2 goals, 2 assists in 5 games), with goalkeeper Eric Kronberg having allowed 10 goals in 6 games.  New York’s reserves, currently in last place, will be trying to avenge for a 2-1 loss to the KC reserves on May 18th and are coming off a 5-0 thrashing at New England.
• The KC Wizards Juniors U-19 team is representing Region II at the US Youth Soccer National Championships in Little Rock, Arkansas this week.  The Juniors play their first of three games at 7:30 tomorrow morning, facing Maryland’s Freestate United.  A quick look at Freestate’s roster shows a lot of college talent:  ’06 HS All-American and UNC-Greensboro sophomore Nirav Kadam, Maryland goalkeeper Will Swaim, Stanford University’s Kevin Huang, University of Pennsylvania sophomore forward Fernando Duran, Penn State redshirt freshman Marco Ciarla, Davidson’s Josh Zipin, Georgetown University’s Mostafa Ebrahimnejad, Catholic University’s Nick Sylvester and Adrian Davis, and George Washington University’s Marcus Ranney, Kyle Albrecht and Erick Perez.  A good writeup on the team was posted today on Potomac Soccerwire.  
• As for the senior team, all I’ve got to offer is Sean Kosednar’s mlsnet.com video recapping the Columbus game and previewing Sunday’s Chicago fixture.  And don’t forget Jimmy Conrad’s ESPN.com chat at 2 pm today.
• Finally, I hesitate to call this stadium news but when we’ve heard so little as of late I’ll take anything I can find.  Today is the deadline for bids on asbestos remediation!  Gotta start somewhere I suppose.  I’ll keep my eyes on The Trails website to see if anything stadium-specific is posted.  As always, stay tuned…  

It’s always fun for me to see what’s being said, shown, shared, etc. about our team online and today is no exception…

• One Columbus fan thinks we’re the Kansas City Warriors.  After their friendly versus West Ham last night, maybe thats what they should be calling themselves.  In the who knew department, Kansas City does have a team named the Warriors; they’re national champions, no less.
• Another Crew fan gives us the anatomy of a dive, courtesy of KC midfielder and Ohio State’s own Roger Espinoza.  To his credit, he gets a great photo of Wolff celebrating his equalizer MJ-style.  But how did his tap-in make its way to the upper 90?? 
• Roger’s superb first time strike is a Goal of the Week nominee, but currently trails the other four choices, including Guillermo Barros Schelotto’s free kick from the same game.   
• After calling out the Wizards advertising efforts, it’s only fair I mention the ad I saw on the Kansas City Star’s online sports page.  Is this new or have I just not seen it before?  Good location, good color — hopefully it directs a few more folks over to the team site where they then get the full screen ad for the Galaxy game in September.  
• Likewise, after calling out the Kansas City Star’s soccer coverage, it’s only fair I give credit for today’s story on the US Women’s Olympic Team by Mechelle Voepel and yesterday’s midseason MLS report by Pete Grathoff.  Interestingly, Mechelle notes that the WBNA will be suspending league action for a month during the Beijing Games, an idea that some MLS supporters have lobbied for during major international tournaments when players are away on national team duty.
• Speaking of USMNT players, Wizards’ captain Jimmy Conrad is doing an ESPN.com chat at 2 pm tomorrow.  Send in questions for the ESPN.com contributor here.  
• A sports fan chose Thursday’s Kansas City – Columbus match as his virgin MLS experience and kept a diary to mark the memorable occasion.  His analysis is interesting but somehow he was left unimpressed, citing the lack of American talent and poor defensive effort.  Then again, the BBC felt the same way about the LA-NY thriller from Saturday, comparing it to watching the English second-division.  Eurosnobs, all of em.  
• Wizards blogger and photographer Thad Bell is the new Soccer By Ives’ KC correspondent and gives us his take on the roller coaster ride that was Thursday’s goalfest.  On a related note, Oz City contributor Tony Felich, a blogger himself, is now writing for American Soccer Reader.
• Finally, Sounders goalkeeper Chris Eylander was recently unanimously named “Player of the Round” for the US Open Cup quarterfinals after his performance in Seattle’s shootout win over the Wizards on July 8th.  Good interview with him on the game and the team’s impressive 421 minute shutout streak.  KC keeper Eric Kronberg was also up for the award.    

Check back for more news and notes tomorrow, lots more information to share.

With the weekly MLS Primetime Thursday match bumped to ESPN, the stage was set for another classic KC-Columbus thriller last night.  The two teams didn’t disappoint, scoring 5 goals in a 16 minute span and 6 goals total, though the local media coverage of the 3-3 draw did leave me more than a little disappointed.

The Kansas City Star story, written by the Columbus Dispatch’s Shawn Mitchell, once again gets buried (page D7), but why?  The Royals didn’t play Thursday, yet still got the top story.  The Chiefs and a local swimmer got stories on the side and the centerpiece package goes to a NASCAR feature on Kyle Busch.  So despite being the only local team to play — and at a deadline-friendly 7 pm kickoff time — in a game that turns out to be of presumable interest to even the casual sports fan, the most space it merited was the inside of the back page???

By contrast, let’s take a look at what could have been.  Exhibit A: The Columbus Dispatch.

Front and center on the sports page.  Two full color pictures.  Two stories, a game recap and a column, both that jump to page 2 where readers get a third picture from the match.  But not to stop there, the paper also includes a great picture and brief on Abby Wambach’s injury in the US Women’s National Team game Wednesday, as well as a story on the selection of the Crew’s Robbie Rogers to the US Men’s Olympic Team.  

Exhibit B: The Columbus Crew Advertising Department.  Major kudos are in order.  Perhaps Friday’s edition was a fluke, but two terrific quarter-page, full color ads appear.  The first for the Crew’s U18 Academy team who will play in the US Soccer Development Academy Finals tonight on ESPNU.  The second for the Crew’s friendly against England’s West Ham on Sunday.  I certainly don’t recall the Wizards doing any such publicizing of the Wizards U19 Region II Championship victory or the club’s recent exhibition against Atlas, either.

Tremendous read today from ESPN.com’s Kristian Dyer: Wizards’ Onalfo a true survivor.

“He is the same person that he was before all this, which is to say that he is a terrific person,” said Arena. “He’s a fighter, on and off the field. He always was, and he still is.”

UPDATED: Posted some video footage below of Curt following the season opening victory against his former team, DC United.  Curt shares the moment with fans, his family, and the local media.  

By JASON FRANCHUK
The Kansas City Star
08 Jun 2008

Unable to score, the Wizards won’t bother to nitpick. At least Real Salt Lake also didn’t find the net, as the teams battled to a 90-minute 0-0 draw Saturday at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Finishing a six-game Major League Soccer road trip, the Wizards,…read more…