- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Keeper Notes
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Is it MLS opening day yet?
Dynamo details
New kids on the roster
In the MLS SuperDraft, the Dynamo selected three players -- forward
David Walker from UCSB, midfielder Samuel Appiah from Boston University, and Stu's brother Euan Holden, a defender who played two seasons with New Mexico. Last week the Dynamo acquired defensive midfielder Kevin Harmse from Chivas USA in exchange for a conditional draft pick. Harmse is a Canadian interational who has played three seasons in MLS.
$50 off 2010 season tickets!
Through next Monday, get $50 off 2010 season ticket plans. Full season packages start at $284 for 20 games and offer exclusive perks like access to the private season ticketholder event, the opportunity to buy additional tickets for special events before they go on sale to the public (think All-Star Game) and other cool stuff. See http://web.mlsnet.com/t200/tickets/.
Good job, eh?
Goalkeeper Pat Onstad and defender Andrew Hainault have been called up to the Canadian national team for a January 31 friendly against Jamaica. If Pat plays on Sunday, he will have appeared for the Maple Leafs in four different decades. Seriously.
In case you haven't heard
Rico: http://tinyurl.com/ye9meoa
Stu:
http://tinyurl.com/yesgjfy
Dynamo on TV & radio
Tonight: 7 pm, Dynamo All-Access on 790 AM
Thurdsay: 5 pm, Soccer Matters with Glenn Davis, Fox Sports Houston
Friday: 3 pm, replay of Soccer Matters on Fox Sports Houston
Preseason plans
Our Men in Orange will participate in the inaugural Walt Disney World Pro Soccer Classic next month in Orlando. The Dynamo will face the New York Red Bulls in their opening match on February 25, with FC Dallas facing Toronto FC in the other semifinal. The third-place and championship matches will be February 27.
Academy action
The Academy now have two "alums" in the US u17 national team residency -- midfielder Bryan Celis has joined goalkeeper Fernando Pina. Both are age-eligible for 2011 u17 World Cup in Mexico.
The Dynamo Academy team is in the midst of the Copa Chivas tournament in Guadalajara, the most prestigious competitive tournament they've attended. They are the only American team in the tournament other than Chivas USA.
The not-at-full-strength Dynamo squad fell to Japan's u18 national team Saturday (4-1) and Club America Friday (2-0). They faced Chivas (Guadalajara) yesterday, and play Monterrey Tuesday and Morelia Wednesday. Follow the tournament through the eyes of forward Abe Matamoros, who will be blogging on MyDynamo.net.
��
Rec soccer opportunities
FBASA is having its spring season registration on TONIGHT, 7:30-8:30 pm, at the Marriott Hotel in Town Center Sugar Land. FBASA (Fort Bend Adult Soccer Association) is an over 30 men and women 11v11 soccer league, with games played on Sunday mornings in Sugar Land. Visit www.fbasa.com for details.
�
SWIS men's rec team needs a few players. Email southwest@letsplaysoccer.com ASAP. $75 per player (all fees included). Must be 18 years old. Six games left in team's schedule: 1/28, 2/3, 2/12, 2/15, 2/23, 3/5.
��
Outdoor league for men, women, coed, youth
La Unidad offers divisions for all levels and ages. Come join a team or make your own. See www.launidadsoccer.com. All games played in southeast Houston (most near Loop 610 & I-45 south).
Competitive HFA club in north Houston
Regals FC is looking for serious players 17 and older who consider themselves professional prospects to train & trial with the club. Training schedule is intense, but quality of instruction & level of play is high.�No fee for the trial, only uniform and insurance fee if accepted. Contact Stephen Heisler at 832-445-9983. See http://RegalsFC.com.
How to help Haiti thru soccer
www.unicefusa.org/partners/sports/major-league-soccer.html
www.sportingchancefoundation.org
http://cgi.ebay.com/Bornsteins-Boots-Score-For-Haiti_W0QQitemZ180459988757QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS_Men_s_Athletic_Footwear?hash=item2a0440e715
Southwest Indoor SPRING session
{advertisement}
Sign up ANYTIME to play indoor soccer on the NEW turf field at Southwest Indoor Soccer. The January/February session is underway -- individual players can still be placed on teams for women's, men's, men's over 30 and coed over 30. All sessions consist of 8 games.
SPRING SESSION begins the week of March 8; deadline to register is Wednesday, February 24 ($100 deposit required). Call SWIS at 281-564-7947 or go to www.letsplaysoccer.com/main/Locations/southwest/index.html. Or drop by the facility at 12950 Sugar Ridge Blvd. near Murphy Rd. and W. Airport -- open 5 pm to midnight, seven days a week.
Come out for "Midnight Soccer" on Tuesday nights at SWIS! Just $10/person beginning at midnight. Games will be 5-7 minutes long, winners stay on the field.
Summer session for YOUTH soccer will run June 12 � August 7. League play will be offered for u8, u10, u12, u14, u16 boys & girls. HYSA age eligibility rules observed.
�
Get your orange on Tuesday
Join host Brian Balboa and his roundtable of soccer badasses Tuesday nights on "The Orange Slice" on 1560 The Game, 7-9 pm. Listen live online at www.1560thegame.com. Call-in number is 713-429-1560. Check out segments of previous shows at http://thegame.podbean.com/category/the-1560-soccer-show.
Stars & Stripes update
The US men suffered a 3-1 defeat Saturday against Honduras, after playing down a man for most of the match. The squad was comprised mostly of players with 10 or fewer caps. The Dynamo's Brad Davis came in as a sub in the second half and assisted on the team's only goal of the match.
Next the US men face El Salvador in Tampa on February 24. Game airs live on ESPN Classic and TeleFutura at 6 pm. Then they head to Europe for a March 3 friendly against the Netherlands. That match airs live on ESPN2 and Galavision at 1:30 pm.
The US women, who currently sit atop the FIFA women's world rankings, will compete in the prestigious Algarve Cup annual tournament that begins in late February. They have been grouped with Iceland, Norway and Sweden.
The u20 US women are in the midst of CONCACAF qualifying for the u20 Women's World Cup. They defeated Jamaica 6-0 and Trinidad & Tobago 4-0; they wrap up first round play this afternoon against Mexico. Game kicks off at 4:30 pm. All games stream live on concacaf.com. They've already clinched a berth in Thursday's semifinals; a win in the semis earns them a place at this summer's u20 Women's World Cup in Germany, which kicks off in July.
Keep up with the Keeper
� Twitter feed at www.twitter.com/keepernotes
� Houston Dynamo Examiner feed at www.examiner.com/x-31347-Houston-Dynamo-Examiner
� Keeper Notes calendar via any browser:
www.google.com/calendar/embed?src=keeper%40keepernotes.com&ctz=America/Chicago
All 2010 World Cup matches are listed.
Who's in your five?
Houston was picked to be part of the official bid to bring the World Cup back to the USA in 2018 or 2022. Choosing the host cities is just one step in the process -- now we need to focus on being selected as host nation! Soccer fans need to show FIFA that the entire country stands behind the bid.
Invite five friends to join this movement today, and make the message to FIFA even stronger: http://gousabid.com/InviteFive. The more people we have supporting our bid, the more powerful our message will be.
Soccer to watch
All times CT. All times subject to change.
Today
African Cup of Nations quarterfinals
Egypt v Cameroon, 10 am, MyAfricanFootball.com
Zambia v Nigeria, 1:30 pm, MyAfricanFootball.com
Benfica All-Stars v Amigos �Match Against Poverty�
Zidane, Ronaldo & friends v Benfica, 2:15 pm, Fox Soccer Channel
u20 women's CONCACAF qualifying for 2010 World Cup
Trinidad & Tobago, 2 pm, CONCACAF TV
US v Mexico, 4:30 pm, CONCACAF TV
Tuesday
English Premier League
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Liverpool, 1:45 pm, Setanta Sports
Tottenham v Fulham, 2 pm, Fox Soccer Channel
Wednesday
Coppa Italia
AC Milan v Udinese, 3 pm, ESPN360.com
English Premier League
Chelsea v Birmingham, 1:30 pm, Fox Soccer Channel
Thursday
African Cup of Nations semifinals
Ghana v Zambia/Nigeria winner, 10 am, MyAfricanFootball.com
Algeria v Egypt/Cameroon winner, 1:30 pm, MyAfricanFootball.com
Coppa Italia
Inter Milan v Juventus, 1:45 pm, ESPN360.com
u20 women's CONCACAF qualifying for 2010 World Cup
Semifinals, 12:30 pm & 4:30 pm, CONCACAF TV
Saturday
African Cup of Nations
Third place match, 10 am, MyAfricanFootball.com
English Premier League
Fulham v Aston Villa, 9 am, ESPN2
Birmingham v Tottenham, 9 am, Fox Soccer Chanel
Liverpool v Bolton Wanderers, 9 am, Setanta Sports
Burnley v Chelsea, 11:30 am, Fox Soccer Channel
England Championship
Leicester City v Newcastle, 11:20 am, Setanta Sports, ESPN360.com
France Ligue 1
Montpellier v Olympique Marseille, 2 pm, Setanta Sports
u20 women's CONCACAF qualifying for 2010 World Cup
Third place match, 1:30 pm, CONCACAF TV
Championship match, 4:30 pm, CONCACAF TV
Sunday
African Cup of Nations
Championship match, 10 am, MyAfricanFootball.com
English Premier League
Manchester City v Portsmouth, 7:15 am, Setanta Sports
Arsenal v Manchester United, 10 am, Fox Soccer Channel
France Ligue 1
Olympique Lyon v Paris St. Germain, 2 pm, Setanta Sports
Serie A
AC Milan v AS Livorno, 8 am, Fox Soccer Channel
Juventus v Lazio, 1:30 pm, Fox Soccer Channel
Get your info in Keeper Notes
FREE: soccer-related job openings, youth & adult league registration info, free soccer events, teams looking for players, any nonprofit info, and any "shout out" to local soccer achievers. Email details to keeper@keepernotes.com.
NOT FREE: tournament listings, soccer camps, other commercially-related info. The Keeper Notes list (which is never, ever sold) is over 4800. Contact The Keeper for rates.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Keeper Calendar
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
January 25: US u20 women v Mexico, Guatemala
January 28: US u20 women CONCACAF semifinal, Guatemala
February 24: US men v El Salvador, Tampa
March 3: Mexico men v Bolivia, San Francisco
February 24: US women v Iceland, Portugal
February 26: US women v Norway, Portugal
March 1: US women v Sweden, Portugal
March 3: US men v Netherlands, Amsterdam
March 3: Mexico v New Zealand, Pasadena, CA
March 25: 2010 MLS season begins
March 27: Houston Dynamo at FC Dallas
April 1: Real Salt Lake at Houston Dynamo
May 7: Mexico v Ecuador, New York
May 26: Mexico v Netherlands, Innsbruck
June 11: 2010 World Cup begins
June 12: US men v England, South Africa
June 18: US men v Slovenia, South Africa
June 23: US men v Algeria, South Africa
late July/early August: 2010 MLS All-Star Game, Reliant Stadium
Expanded calendar at keepernotes.com.