A Kick in the Grass

So you're angry, you might be a little mad. You keep telling yourself how much you would want an MLS squad suiting up in your backyard. You want pro soccer. You want the pride of dressing up in hometown colors on Saturdays and going to a stadium to consume beer, salted pretzels, arepas and frozen lemonades. You want to be at that big rivalry game. You want to yell at visiting players and coaches and you definitely want to tell the referee he isn't worth his weight in anything. You want it all and you want it now.

Well wait no further.

This Saturday is your chance, if you decided to at least go to one Miami FC game this year, make this the one. It's early in the season so no one is out of playoff contention yet. The team may be still trying to gel but the excitement of a new season is still in the air (even though we are 3-4 weeks in). The cherry on top is that the Miami FC are playing the dreaded Rowdies. That's right, Tampa Bay has the gaul to put forth a team and come to our house.

I'm seething. I want a 4-0 thrashing and an attendance of at least 5,000. Who wants to dream with me?

It's Soccer Madness

Striker Likers, listen up. Here's a little history lesson for those who forgot the second coming of the Fort Lauderdale Strikers. This is the APSL Strikers, coached by Thomas Rongen and the only Striker squad to win a league championship. I grew up with this team and if I needed soccer gear I went to one place: Soccer Madness.

Soccer Madness held offices right here in Broward County and if you needed some new adidas Copas or that new Nike track suit, this is where you would go. The catalog they produced was a bible as it also displayed top-flight European stars in Soccer Madness gear.

That was a great time, just waiting for my Soccer Madness catalog in the mail, it was better than EuroSport, it felt like a magazine, and it was home grown.

Today, Soccer Madness is a faded memory, just like those 1994 United States national team uniforms. But, the soccer store institution is a growing one. Sure you can score some cheap cleats at the Sports Authority or even Wal-Mart, but devoted soccer stores are the true hotspots for soccer passion. You can find them more often than ever before, especially here in our back yard. With the success of these shops will come pro soccer, no question. So let's give Soccer Madness our respect, as well as the Soccer Connection, I miss you guys.

Just Shoot Me

SUN SENTINEL STRIKER PHOTO GALLERY (CLICK TO OPEN)

It was a weekend that a league called the NASL played and a weekend in which Lockhart Stadium saw soccer action. It almost feels like a Striker Liker's dream, but not quite. It is the Miami FC who currently call Lockhart home, but the Sun Sentinel know better. They've unleashed a glorious memory provoking gallery with Striker images from the NASL and the APSL days. So enjoy the slideshow.

Speaking of the Miami FC, they staved off the mighty Rochester Rhinos, but displayed the lowest attendance record of the weekend in the NASL. It's something to be aware of, but rest assured when the Rowdies come to town, that number should quadruple.

The memories are grey but they sure are coming back.

Where's Waldo?

Probably not the post you were expecting on the eve of NASL 2.0's opening weekend, but I had a friend recently move to Greece and when I noticed Freddy Adu not on the Benfica Europa roster against Liverpool I did some searching and found this. A happy coincidence.

Jokes aside, Adu obviously isn't what we Americans have hoped for but the kid is still 21. He's no Messi and if you believe an American will be coined best in the world at this game, you are a very optimistic person. I hope it happens in my lifetime, but truly I'm not holding my breath.

But back to more Striker Liker related issues. Miami FC (soon to be known as the Strikers) take on the Rochester Rhinos this weekend at the daunting Lockhart Stadium. Not a bad way to kick off the NASL in a comfy familiar setting. The Ultras and Southern Brigade have already claimed a section so it's going to be fun to see how the rest of the public reacts. It's also going to be interesting to see how Miami FC itself gets the word out. Their 'head shaving' stunt didn't really follow through last year, but I think the ten people who saw it have already forgotten it by now.

It is a new season, a new team, a new permanent home and new results better be on the way. A win this weekend could go a long way, but also some exciting action wouldn't hurt either.

Let's get our butts to the field!

May 1st Can't Come Any Sooner

The Tampa Bay Rowdies are coming to Lockhart Stadium. No double take necessary, it's actually happening. It's going to happen twice this year, so don't miss your chance to heckle and boo at Fort Lauderdale's most hated vermin.

Before I get into more details I must apologize for my long absence. It's been September since my last post. I have nothing to confess except that the Striker Liker is back, just in time for the re-emergence of the NASL and a newly revamped Miami FC.

So back to the Rowdies, May 1st is their first visit to Lockhart this season and I'm hoping to see a lot of red and yellow shirts there to greet them. If you don't have the gear you can find some here:

Zazzle

Also, did someone say that Miami FC will become the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in 2011? Now almost all my soggy dreams have come true.

Look Again, It's Not What You Think

No, it's not a professional soccer game in South Florida, actually the attendance here might exceed that of some Miami FC games. No, this is the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Egypt. This pic is from the Italy vs. Paraguay match. I wonder how South Florida would fare in staging this game. Sellout crowd at FIU perhaps?

Ah, to dream. September officially marks the end of Miami FCs season, so live professional soccer is now in the closet with the moth balls as we get our soccer fix through espn360, justin.tv, foxsoccer, setanta, etc., etc., etc.

But in an offseason there are always 'talks'. What these 'talks' will lead to no one can really tell. Let's hope they don't end up with the, "let's fold the team" scenario. If that be the case, then maybe this Striker Liker will move to Seattle and deal with the winter.

But for now, the middle of October is the finishing line for World Cup Qualifiers, who will fill out the draw and which heavyweight will watch South Africa 2010 from the comfort of their couch?

20 Years, Can You Believe It?

It's been 20 somewhat interesting years since the Fort Lauderdale Strikers have won a championship. It was actually their only championship, but it was a championship none the less. For a franchise that could call George Best and Nene Cubillas their own, it was the scrappy hardworking Strikers from 1989 that did the business, besting the San Diego Nomads in a cross country final.

Yesterday marked the 20th anniversary of that championship and although there were no ticker tape or parades, we did have an enormous amount of soccer being played around the world and emotions were either bolstered or utterly destroyed.

I'd like to thank FIFA for their Match Centre (pictured above) for keeping me up to the minute while I was at work. Cameroon's victory early in the day started it all off and by 2pm I had the luxury of a little espn360 for some interesting European matches.

Into the night came the games most important to me, although I must say Bahrain's 94th minute equalizer at Saudi Arabia might have been the most intriguing moment of the day - silencing King Fahd International Stadium and sending Bahrain to their second straight play-off to make the world cup. This time out they face New Zealand.

In any case, the Americas had plenty of action as USA and Mexico kept winning to stay atop their group and hopefully avoid a play-off of their own against South America's 5th ranked team.

In South America, Maradona continued to soil whatever he had left of his reputation by putting Argentina in more peril than ever before. Brazil and Paraguay stay atop the standings.

With two games to go, the pure excitement of World Cup Soccer is reaching the ever so famous 'fever pitch'. Small sidenote, the USA and South Africa are leading in ticket sales for the World Cup, we must have some soccer fans in this country.

But back to the Strikers. Sorry we couldn't raise a glass to commemorate you. Instead, we watched soccer from around the world unfold. In a week or so's time, a former Striker will take the US -20 to Egypt for the Youth World Cup. Good luck Thomas Rongen.

Here's to you 1989 Fort Lauderdale Strikers - we love you dearly.