October 13, 2008
Playoff Picture
Well, the Rapids did themselves no favor in Los Angles. They needed a result, instead they got schooled. So we're down to two games with no teams being eliminated from contention yet:
Colorado, with 34 points, remains in Los Angles with a game against Chivas USA before hosting Real Salt Lake in the Rocky Mountain Cup finale. Chivas has been hot winning their last four games in a row, and the Rapids will have their work cut out for them.
They are chasing RSL, who has 36 points for the final guaranteed spot in the West, however, RSL goes to Dallas who stands a point up on the Rapids and a point back of RSL at 35.
The game is enormous, because if either team wins, the Rapids would need a victory at the Home Depot Center since RSL would be five points up on the Rapids and Dallas, who would only be four points up, holds the head to head tie breaker on the Rapids. A tie is the only good result in that game.
It also means, the Rapids have no choice but to win the season finale at home against RSL.
Of course, there is also the wild card race, which has so many teams in contention the combination are incredible. What's more remarkable, is there are very few games where the teams in contention for the wild card spot are head to head games.
In short, nothing but six points in the next two games will get us into the playoffs, and even if that were to happen, we could still miss out. The race isn't completely in our hands anymore going from undefeated in September to pointless in October.
The gloves are off, and for the Rapids, there can be no more loses if they plan on lifting MLS Cup without some major events going their way.
October 11, 2008
VI Questions with Gary Smith: Dynamo Loss
Gary Smith was kind enough to answer some questions for Rapids fans. Conducted by great Rapids Supporters Kevin & Yvonne Callahan
I. Going into the game against Houston, Brian Ching has historically found great success against the Rapids and Dwayne De Rosario has been among the leagues elite for years. What was the game plan to neutralize these two and where did it break down?
First and foremost, giving a goal away that early, which was very cheaply given away as well, always offer quality individuals such as Ching and DeRosario the incentive to push on - you know create more opportunities. In terms of the gameplan, it wasn’t really carried out to a ripe amount of success when you concede that quickly. Within the group, we have tried to become more difficult to breakdown and that’s not just the back four, that is the midfield players as well. We’ve asked our wide midfield determined players to be more determined and to come in a little more tightly and make the central areas of the pitch a little more difficult to play in. To a great degree, we have done that. Sadly, against New York where we found an opponent who were very aggressive going forward and playing a slightly different shape on a very quick surface, we conceded more goals than we should have. Against the Houston side, where we know full well those individuals you spoke about are very capable, like I said, we gave cheap goals and I don’t think we were aided enormously by the referees as well. That’s not a good combination
II. Heading into the locker room down two at half, what did you say to the team?
I felt it was a case of really taking the game to them a little more. To turn the phrase, “throwing caution to the wind” probably would be a little bit extreme. But, we needed to get wide a little bit higher and force our fullbacks a little bit higher up the pitch to keep making their team pinned in. We were offering that when Connor gets sent off and again the referee has an impact on the game. So, you know, against a side with Houston’s capabilities, going down to ten men was always going to be tough – two goals behind as well. Ultimately, just want to force our game a little more and maybe get a few breaks in their offense.
III. The team has conceded seven goals in the last two games. Do you have a plant to sore up the back line?
Its not just the back four, we’ve seen that. In the last two games, we’ve concede two goals from very strange areas, obviously Preston’s clearance out, we’ve also had penalties given against us. So, you look around at how a goal can come about and what we can try to do to negate that. The group needs to get back to some of the form we had in games previous, in winning games where that determination and defending was the combination we needed to win games.
IV. The red card to Casey was obviously a bad call by referee Mark Geiger that had a major influence on the game. Now that you've gotten some games under your belt, what is your opinion of the officiating?
Oh, you know I have to be careful on that one. I just think it’s a little bit inconsistent. I watched a game last night, Salt Lake and New York. From what I could gather, there was a sending off that was no more than a high foot that the Salt Lake player ducked into slightly and not being there it was difficult to reason why there was a send off. Juan Pablo Angel jumps two footed into a challenge and there’s no recriminations and Connor Casey gets a booking in our game for something that wasn’t anywhere near as aggressive, so I think just the consistently of the individuals maybe needs to be addressed and I’m not quite sure, so I’ll just let that go there.
V. With Casey and Omar out, what are you going to do up top this weekend?
The decision is still to be made. The choices are to go with Tom McManus who is back fit and to add Jake Peterson to that as well, he’s very capable or to just go with the one. I think that decisions will be left right until the last minute. We still want to be a threat obviously against the back line while not conceding goals. But want to make sure that we address the problems you’ve already stated with seven goals against in two games.
VI. For much of the season Casey has spent a great deal of time with his back to the goal with a few occasions where he was able to face up. Against New York he seemed to mix this up a little bit more. Is this something that's by design, did New York just present the opportunities, or am I just seeing things?
I think the group is growing and there is going to be more continuity between each other as they are building relationships. Connor himself has had his season broken up again with injuries and the fact that he stays healthy just adds to the fact that the individual the has a lot of quality and very capable in front of the goal and the longer he stays fit, he’ll find more goals to score, so its an easy equation
Big Thank You to Gary smith and the Callahans. Hopefully tomorrow will help secure our playoff spot so we can gain revenge against Houston in the Conference Finals.
October 08, 2008
VI Questions with Christian Gomez
Christian Gomez was kind enough to take some time for Class VI and answer some questions for us. The interview was conducted and translated by CVI's Kevberto Nuñez
I. The teams fortunes have dramatically reversed from being last in the league to unbeaten in September which has put the team back in control of its playoff picture. What do you think has gotten them back on track?
I think that the team was structured right from the back and to the front, the results have been ours and we have gotten better in getting results which is important and that is why the team is in the playoffs
II. What are your plans for next season and in the long term are you interested in any part of the game after your playing days are over?
Yes, when Im done with my career more than sure I will be a coach for kids, I would like to teach what I learned throughout my career, and for next year, honestly I’m not very happy because Im not playing, when a player isn’t within the starting lineup isn’t happy, and that is what is happening to me in these moments, surely we will talk to see what happens next season because if this situation continues surely I won’t stay, but that will be spoken of after the season is over and we will talk with the people we have to talk about.
III. You and DC United parted ways in the off season and you decided to come to the Rapids. What were your main reasons for signing with Colorado?
My contract with DC United ended in December of 2007, We didn’t come to an economic understanding and Colorado was one of the ones that made an effort to bring Christian Gomez to Colorado and honestly I came very happy with a lot of motivation to play and get important things, but unfortunately Fernando had to leave, the assistant coach got the position he planned his players, of course a coach decides who plays and who doesn’t and obviously in Gary’s strategy I don’t have a spot, but one continues to work and keeps putting effort supporting the team and wishes the best to the team and one is always willing and ready in any given moment to be a support to the team.
IV. Do you still follow the fortunes of DC united and if so do you have any opinions of why the team is struggling this year?
I’m not much about following and looking at standings or to watch games, I know that it’s good that they aren’t doing good that we are better, and I worry about the team where I’m defending the colors of Colorado Rapids, honestly I played 3 fantastic years in DC where they treated me very good, but that is in the past
V. What differences do you see between Fernando Clavijo and Gary Smith?
With Fernando we played more on offense, we would change a lot from one team to another, 3 or 4 players would change almost every week, so we couldn’t find a base team, with Gary I believe he worried about finding the team from the back to the front, and even though we didn’t play good, he is finding the results and he is finding the players, which I think is very good because the results are ours, and the team has gotten better from the back to the front heading the other way.
VI. The last five games have seen you as an unused substitute. This weekend you were still on the bench when the team was behind. You’re obviously one of the most talented players in the league so what happened?
Honestly I am always ready and willing to go in and support the team in any moment, I think it is a pure and only decision of the coach of what substitutions he makes, with New York, with Houston, with Dallas, or with other games because I have been on the bench, I didn’t play I believe that, that is a question that you should ask the coach.
Any Comments of anything you would like to add?
There’s only 3 games left and honestly important games are coming up, Los Angeles, then Chivas, and then Salt Lake, and well to the people to the fans, I’d like to thank the support that they are giving us, in good moments during the season as in not very good moments and they have always been there supporting us, and in these next 3 games that they will keep supporting the same way and we will try to leave everything so that we can get the farthest in the playoffs
October 03, 2008
Road to the Cup
The Rapids have had a major turn around from the summer where they fell to last in MLS. Since Gary Smith took over, Mike Petke returned from injury and took over the arm band from Pablo Mastroeni, and Cory Gibbs was signed, the Rapids have gone undefeated in September and are now in control of their destiny.
The safest way to qualify for the playoffs is to finish in the top three in the Western Conference.
Houston and the Western Conference Title is most likely out of reach with Houston having a game in hand. Colorado would need to win this weekend and then most likely win two of their remaining three while Houston would need to drop games.
On the other end of the spectrum, San Jose has probably run out of time needing seven points with four games left, since RSL who they are chasing has games against both Dallas and Colorado who are the other two teams they are chasing.
Another team that seems out of time is Los Angles. They will need six points to qualify and nine if they drop either of their games to Colorado or Dallas. Lose both of those and it’s all over. Unfortunately for LA, their other two games are against Columbus and Houston. This weekend could see LA’s former coach Sigi put the Galaxy’s season to an end. Also to consider is that Beckham is going to miss the Colorado game.
Colorado can certainly catch Chivas, but the key game is the six point swinger on the 19th. The Rapids cannot lose that game if they want to finish second in the West for the first time in franchise history. However, Chivas gets to take on struggling DC United and San Jose. Chivas has found some success on the road recently and their final game is against Houston which will probably be qualified at that point and not looking to risk much going into the playoffs.
Last night, Dallas had a draw on San Jose. This brought Dallas even on points, but Dallas only has three games left now. They have a very favorable schedule with Toronto and Los Angles, but the game that favors the Rapids is their match against RSL which removes two or three points from one or both team’s pursuit of the Rapids. The Rapids are hoping for a draw on that night.
RSL has their next two games against Eastern opponents: New England and New York. Neither will be easy and it will be interesting if the new stadium will bring them an advantage against NY. With two six point games left versus Dallas and Colorado, they need a result against New England or New York to provide them a little cushion.
For Colorado, this weekend’s match against Houston is the least important of the games left. If they can grab seven points in the remaining stretch, we’re going to host the first playoff game in DSG Park history. The Rapids need a win or two ties in their next three games against Houston, LA, and Chivas heading into the finale against RSL where they simply will need a victory if they haven’t gotten the job done.
Gary Smith has instilled confidence back into the players that seemed to have vanished over the summer and shown us that the team can capture points on the road. It’s a thrilling end to the season in MLS and the Rapids have come back from the dead to give us hope of a ticket to the Home Depot Center on November 23rd.
October 01, 2008
CVI Questions with Coach Gary Smith: Undefeated in September
Coach Gary Smith has gotten the Rapids back on track and took some time out for CVI from a phone interview.
I. How is preparing MLS players for a match different then preparing the English FA players?
Coach Smith feels that it is not that different. It's about working toward the same thing - winning football. The Rapids had lost confidence and that happens in both places.
He feels the differences however are the preparations that you need to take into account for travel, weather conditions for a summer season, and planning for fatigue accordingly.
II. The team looks cohesive, positive, and motivated to win since you’ve taken over. What reasons do you attribute to the turnaround from the summer.
He said when former coach Fernando Clavijo left, there were a lot of players that felt they had underachieved. When a manager moves on, it suggests that the team hasn't performed and a lot of players had a point to prove.
There has also been additions to the group like Cory Gibbs and players coming back from injury that have made an impact.
Generally there is an atmosphere where players are getting chances to play and are seizing the opportunity. Players that were performing below par, have seen this as an opportunity for a clean sheet and a new platform to work from.
III. Mehdi Ballouchy was traded for a fan favorite, Kyle Beckerman, and subsequently hasn’t drawn the backing of the fans. Do Mehdi a favor sell Mehdi to Rapids fans.
Mehdi is one of the most talented individuals that he’s seen in a long time. He has wonderful balance and he's very intelligent with ball. Looking at the final goal in New York, his final pass was extraordinarily good.
On top of that, the fellow is very driven and has tremendous athletic ability as well. He is the most unsung players in the group this season and he's at a point now where he’s got his opportunity and he’s not going to let go.
IV. Before you took over the team, the Rapids captured 5 of a possible 27 points on the road. You’ve accomplished 6 of a possible 12. When you’re not at DSG Park, what’s your philosophy for road results?
He believes he had an ideal opportunity to see the team in the initial six months. The personnel changes didn’t help and there was a feeling that going away players felt negative.
He thinks now they are the front foot. With how they played against Dallas and New York, which they were fortunate to get results in both, it's more apparent that players are more hungry to win a game on the road. It's a different mind set.
V. Last season, Colin Clark was a break out player for the team and this season it appears Nick LaBrocca is the break out player. Tell us more about Nick and what he brings to the team.
Nick has proved over the season his true worth as a team player. He certainly is not the most talented and certainly not the most physically gifted, but he is great team player that brings confidence to the group. He is extremely important to the group by bringing what the team needs to win. Nick offers good energy, good discipline, good understanding, and quality in a young body. His future is bright, and by getting more minutes then anyone else, reflects how high he is thought of.
VI. Is there a manager or a philosophy you have subscribed to or has influenced your style and approach to coaching?
Smith says the style aspect would be along the Arsenal route, where the team is gifted with the ball. But you need time to put a team like that together.
In terms of style influence on him, he says Martin O'Neil, who he played for in England. Also Terry Burton, manager at Wimeldon was a good first team coach that had a huge influence on him on the practical front. Finally, working with Tony Adams at Wanders has been good for the situation he's currently in, has been very helpful.
We thank you coach and look forward to a difficult game against Houston. Here's the rise of the Rapids!!!
September 27, 2008
Rapids Roll On
Don't look now but this team is on a roll under Gary Smith. It wasn't the prettiest of games but the Rapids pulled off a big road win over the New York Red Bulls. Last year it was 1-0 win, this year the Rapids left it until the end for a 5-4.
Who was the man of the match? Conor Casey for his hat trick (only 4th in the history of the Rapids)? Omar Cummings? Medhi Ballouchy? Have your say in the Class VI forums by voting for your MOTM here.
September 20, 2008
New England At DSG Park Tonight
Tailgating starts at 5pm tonight for the Rapids - Revolution game tonight. The weather is looking perfect and the Revolution haven't won in Colorado since their first trip under their current head coach Steve Nicol back in 2002. The Rapids have won 3 of their last 5 games including 2 on the trot. Can Colorado make it 3 in a row?
Bring a light coat, put on some burgundy and join Class VI before the game in Lot AA. New England's supporters group Midnight Riders will be joining us. You should too. (NE corner of the stadium).
Getting back to the match, Class VI's Jason Maxwell takes a look at the match over at his blog View From The Couch. He sees a 1-0 win in the cards for the Rapids.
We Want Rapid Man doesn't have a look at the game. But last Wednesday Nick did mention that Petke expected to be healthy enough to start. Good news as he's looked like a good partner for Corey Gibbs in the center of the defense.
Brian Forbes over at the Denver Post takes a look at the game. He also touches on the problems the Rapids have had winning at home this year.
September 17, 2008
Coach Gary Smith speaks with Class VI
Gary Smith was kind enough to agree to be interviewed. Now keep in mind I'm no journalist and this was done via Telephone - so the answers are not his exact words but what I was able to write down
I. You've gone 3-2 since you've taken over the team. What is the single most important thing you implemented or changed to get the team's fortunes reversed?
Coach smith felt sure that it is because we're playing a 4-4-2. He feels the shape for a lot of players gives them stability. It's not too complicated to understand and it's important to stick with it.
II. Historically, MLS coaches that don't have years of playing or as an assistant coach within MLS have had difficulties finding success because of how different the league is from the rest of the world. Do you feel you have a deep enough understanding of the league's nuances to be ready to take the job full time?
It's a significant decision to make considering his role with Arsenal. He says he's slowly but surely coming to terms with the league, the players, and the demands.
And just as importantly with the climate - playing through the summer instead of winter months, like in Europe, adds greater stress to the players .
If the opportunity were to arise to take the position permanently, he certainly foresees successful times ahead.
III. Going into the season, the Rapids traded their Beckham slot to DC United along with a first round draft pick for Christian Gomez and made him the highest paid player on the team. Why has Christian lost his role your team selections?
He said given poor run of form, leading to Fernando Clavijo's exit, he needed to build more of workman platform for Christian Gomez to flourish.
Following the Kansas City game with three away games, he felt it would be tough for Christan Gomez and decided to stick with it. In the future, it's building a good foundation for Christian Gomez to succeed.
IV. Most fans don't really know how you became part of the organization. How did you get connected with the Rapids and become part of the organization?
It was a joint decision by Arsenal and Jeff Plush together and to put the Arsenal Academy in place and to support John Murphy and Fernando Clavijo as an auxiliary coach.
V. Two players that have been fan favorites were Herculez Gomez and Bouna Coundoul. Herculez of course was traded to Kansas City, and Bouna has yet to play with you at the helm. Why was Herculez traded and why has Bouna fallen out of favor with your team selections?
Bouna is because he has been away on international duty. While he was away, Preston Burpo came in and played extremely well and retained the position. There's no slight on Bouna, but both players are vying for the spot.
Herculez had been with the Rapids for a period of time and found it hard to break into the team even before Gary took over. He needed a new challenge and they got a good offer, so it was a good fit for both the team and player at the time.
VI. In the victory over Chicago, you made three substitutions, yet it looked like you stuck with the same tactics for the entire 90 minutes. Can you explain the thinking behind each of the substitutions and why you decided not wo switch to a more defensive shape when Chicago started pushing their attack to even up the game?
He felt they were quite effective with the shape they had and it proved hard to break down.
Mike Petke had an injury to his ankle. Terry Cook, as well as he was doing, he took out and moved Nick Labrocca to the right and put Mehdi Ballouchy in the middle to provide more stability. He felt Tom McManus gave all that he had and with eight minutes to go, putting in a fresh pair of legs up top was exactly what the team needed.
We'd like to thank Coach Gary Smith for his time, and look forward to him bringing victory to Dick's this weekend and well into the playoffs
September 15, 2008
Herculez to Rapids Fans
Herculez Gomez has sent the following message to all the Rapids Fans
Hey all! I just wanted to thank all of you for your warm wishes and continued support.
I leave with me nothing but great memories and lasting friendships.
While my time with the Club was not always positive, I firmly believe that I am leaving a great group of guys behind, a group that can accomplish many things.
Colorado will always hold a special place in my heart.
Thank you for all the great memories.
Thank you to all those who still believe in me and even those who don't. ; )
I look forward to my new challenge in life.
I wish you all nothing but the very best.
Herc
Class VI wishes Herculez Gomez nothing but success in the future (except when his success directly impacts the Rapids of course!).
September 14, 2008
Rapids Beat Fire
Our Rapids beat the Chicago Fire today at Dicks Sporting Goods Park. Jordan Harvey opening the scoring (although at this point it's been ruled an own goal) and Omar Cummings added another. Who was the man of the match for the Rapids? Have your say and vote for the Class VI MOTM at our boards [Click Here].
September 05, 2008
Players' Impact
After last nights victory over FC Dallas to put us back into contention for the playoffs, I decided to do a little analysis of players to see what kind of impact they have on the team. Now all these stats were manually compiled - so I'm sure there some errors but here's what I found.
Not surprisingly, Pablo Mastroeni has the biggest impact on the team. When he plays, we pick up 60% of the possible points PP (pts gained/games played * 3 pts). He's been on the field for 22 goals for us and 15 against us and is the only player on the team that has seen more wins at 8 then losses at 7.
Next up for impact was Terry Cooke. I know you're not surprised that he has achieved a PP of 57% contributing 2 goals and 6 assists. But the perception that he's a defensive liability falls shallow when his Goal Differential (GD) is +4, second highest on the team.
Two players at the top of PP is John DiRaimondo (52%) and Ugo Ihemelu (50%). Ugo has a GD of +2 surprisingly and John -1.
Looking at two players that were shipped off Herculez Gomez and Rafael Gomes and the stats speak for themselves; Herc ranked 4th from bottom with a PP of 40% and Gomes at 14%! That's right, we were 1-6 with Gomes on the field. Herculez, often brought in at the end of the game, had a GD of +1 while Gomes was -1.
Two players that have seen significant time on the bench are Christian Gomez and Jose Burciaga, Jr. with PP of 41% for both. Gomez is -1 while Burciaga, Jr. is -4, third worst on the team.
So who who has a GD of worse then -6? Colin Clark and Conor Casey. We've lost 5 more games then we've won with Clark on the field, which is quite surprising for a player of Clark's popularity.
Touching on the other regulars: Erpen 47% +0, Cummings 47% -1, Kimura 45% +3, LaBrocca 44% +1, Ballouchy 44% +1, McManus 44% +3, Harvey 43% -2, Peterson 42% -2
I know stats don't tell the whole story in soccer but we're a nation of sports statistics so hopefully people will appreciate a little statistical analysis.
September 03, 2008
RAPIDS TRADE HERCULEZ GOMEZ TO KANSAS CITY
Colorado Receives Multiple Draft Picks and Allocation Money in Exchange for Fifth Year Forward
COMMERCE CITY, COLO. (Wednesday, September 3, 2008) – The Colorado Rapids traded veteran forward Herculez Gomez to the Kansas City Wizards in exchange for Kansas City’s natural fourth round pick in the 2009 MLS SuperDraft, a first round pick in the 2009 MLS Supplemental Draft and allocation money, the club announced today. Per club and league policies terms of the allocation money are not disclosed.
Gomez appeared in 37 games for the Rapids during the 2007 and 2008 seasons after coming to Colorado in December 2006 following three seasons with the Los Angeles Galaxy. While with the Rapids, he scored six goals and tallied three assists. Gomez etched his name in the Rapids’ record books scoring the first-ever goal at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in a 2-1 Colorado victory over DC United on April 7, 2007.
Transaction
Colorado Rapids – Trade forward Herculez Gomez to the Kansas City Wizards in exchange for Kansas City’s natural fourth round pick in the 2009 MLS SuperDraft, a first round pick in the 2009 MLS Supplemental Draft and allocation money.
August 30, 2008
Rapids at FSL Man Of The Match Voting
It was a disheartening loss for our Colorado Rapids. That said, who was you Man of the Match for the FSL - Colorado match Friday Night? Class VI members can vote here.
August 28, 2008
Friday Night Viewing Party
Tomorrow night our Colorado Rapids take on Real Salt Lake in Salt Lake City. The official Class VI viewing party and the official Colorado Rapids viewing party will be at the British Bulldog. The convention is over so it's safe to travel downtown. The location of the British Bulldog is here.
August 26, 2008
Kieran Cain talks to Class VI
by Becky and Daniel Clark
On July 15th, the Senior Director of Marketing and Game Entertainment, Kieran Cain, graciously allowed us the opportunity to conduct a Q&A session for Class VI.
What marketing changes have taken place this year from last year?
I would say we’ve been up against more obstacles this year in terms of budgets. Last year, one of the big challenges for us was the opening of the stadium. We had more resources available for that to push the grand opening. So, obviously we don’t have that. It’s year two of the stadium. Every team that has their own soccer-specific stadium goes through that. When you’re in the building the second year, the newness has kind of worn off. You can’t count on people just showing up to take a look around. We have to find specific things that we have to work on this year that are going to drive people to come to games.
Are you marketing towards the huge Latino population here?
I’d say the biggest thing we did this year was this Lucho Libre, combining the two passions of soccer and wrestling. Everybody knows that Denver is very highly Hispanic, but it’s also highly Hispanic-Mexican. We knew that and the partners we tend to work with in the advertising world tend to be newspapers like El Hispano and a couple of the bigger weekly papers. So, a lot of times I tend to market the games that are going to be around Hispanic events. The good thing is, being in the promotions department, we can plan those games and make Hispanic events out of them. So for instance, when we were setting our schedule this year, one of the things we decided was one, we wanted a game on Cinco de Mayo. We wanted to play DC United on Cinco de Mayo, which we got and we wanted to play Blanco and Chicago on September 14, which is El Grito (Mexican Independence Day). So, we set those up. For your average game, when we played July 27 versus Columbus, I’m not going to do a lot of Hispanic advertising. I’m not going to reach out and do ads in Spanish. But we definitely do have a platform and a message. We develop our brand, “experience the world’s game.” “Experimente el juego de mundos”? is our Spanish language brand name. So, we kind of have those two separate entities that go hand-in-hand.
What about the college crowd?
We kind of tend to think about it when we’re thinking about our promotions based on the year. We’ve done the free beer night and those kinds of things. One of the main things that I tried to come up with this year was finding the right media partner to appeal to that crowd. I’m definitely past the college age, but the 20-30 year old males especially are who we tend to be missing at a lot of our games. To me, the right angle to reach that audience is through KTCL (93.3). We picked 5 games on the schedule that we wanted them to try to promote. They advertised us on the radio and in return get some stuff from us on the back end, but it really pumps up these certain games in the year that we think might be more appealing to the college age/alternative rock listening crowd. That is why we reach out to that station. A lot of times we partner up with things like The Onion and The Westward and those kind of papers and try to appeal to that. We also rely on our college students that are interns here with the Rapids.
Do you interact with the Denver Post? Or other newspaper outlets?
We actually have our media relations department. That’s their job. They’re always pitching them stories. I know they were talking to 9News yesterday about coming out here and doing a story about the complex and what’s going on this week. So, they’re constantly hitting them up. They’re in constant contact with Brian Forbes over at The Post and Brian Jennings at the Rocky Mountain News. They’ll take out the sports editor of the Rocky Mountain News and take him to lunch. We’re definitely putting them under pressure.
A lot of times, I would say, the writers get a bad rap, but it’s not them. They’re wanting to write more. Brian Forbes would love to write an article every day that goes to post. Honestly, it’s the editors that have the control over what runs. If you remember, we tried back in March of this year to get an e-mail campaign that we kind of put out there hoping the fans would take charge of that. What they tell us every time is that they base what runs on what fans want. They’re not hearing enough. They’re not getting enough e-mails asking about the Rapids. That’s why we kind of tried to put that out there and we intentionally leaked a bunch of their sports editors’ e-mails and kind of asked the fans to take over. It’s the fans that really drive that. People that write those letters to the editors are more powerful than anything we could ever do. We pitch them ideas everyday. We’re talking, even promotional stuff. There’s some buzz out there that our next game features a “Rock, Paper, Scissors Tournament.” So, we thought about calling Drew Sourcher. He talks about that stuff on the news. He loves all those crazy types of things., so he’s already gotten a call from us. I’ve called all kinds of people. I’m sure they’re sick of hearing from us, because any time we have any scatterbrained idea, regardless if it’s just the team or just players, we’re always hammering those guys saying, “Hey, you guys, this is an angle you might want to run with.”
With the “Rock, Paper, Scissors Tournament,” the hardcore fans think that you’ve run out of promotional ideas.
My response to them would be that it’s a little bit like looking a gift horse in the mouth. I mean, we’re just coming off a week where we’ve got the biggest 4th of July festival in the state of Colorado, we brought in a Mexican team, we brought in the US national team. That’s a week full of fantastic promotions. It doesn’t get any better than that. In my opinion, for us to get through last week where we had those three things going on, a third jersey launch, a big wine tasting event - to me, those are all promotions. Those are all coming through our promotions department. Yes, our next game features a Rock, Paper, Scissors Tournament,” which is something our ticket sales department came up with because it did so well with the Minnesota Timberwolves. That’s actually where they got that idea Whenever we see something good, we’re not above stealing a good promotional idea. We had that Guitar Hero tournament a couple games ago. Last year we tried a “buy a ticket and get all you can eat in the stadium.” I’d say that’s a good example of a promotional idea that we tried and it failed. It wasn’t any good. We gave it a shot. Nobody did it, but we gave it a shot.
Just so the fans know how we kind of look at the games. Normally, I sit down once we get the schedule right here in January. It has all the home games listed for the season. So, what I do is sit down with our ticket sales department and my game entertainment director. We look at every single home game and we pick two or three promotions that are going to happen at each home game. For instance, our next game. I know we just talked about the “Rock, Paper, Scissors Tournament,” but our next home game on July 27 also features a Rocky Mountain News Family Pack, which is 4 tickets, 4 hot dogs, and 4 sodas for $69. It’s also Celtic Heritage Night, which I wanted to do, being of Irish heritage. I thought we should celebrate our culture and have some bands and stuff out here. That tournament is one of the six promotions going on at the game. It’s also McDonalds Family Pack Night.
But, just so everybody knows, every home game on the schedule has at least two or three promotions attached to it that are just different angles that are great for our ticket sales staff, because the one person heading up the “Rock, Paper, Scissors Tournament” is something they can focus on to try and sell tickets. If they want to run with it and they want to go with it and it sells 500 tickets, then great! If there’s a “Rock, Paper, Scissors” freak-out there that has never been to a game, then why don’t we host it and bring them to a game? So, it’s stuff like that that there’s one person heading up. You know, the ticket sales guys as a whole kind of deal with the Rocky Mountain News Family Night thing. Our game entertainment department is really focusing on the Celtic Heritage Night. And then the team, obviously, is focusing on playing Columbus. The hope is that five different departments are all working together all to get more people to be going on July 27, which is what it all comes down to. So, if it’s stuff that’s not interesting to you, then there’s four other things going on that might get you to come to the game.
What if fans have ideas for promotions?
My e-mail’s right on the website. They can e-mail me. I know Mark has e-mailed me a couple times with different ideas. We’re trying to do a viewing party for a game in August that can generate some exposure for Class VI. It doesn’t necessarily have to be self-serving. It could just be an idea. We’re always open to that. Sure. I will say that we always try and think about the fact that it’s nice to have promotions and stuff going on at games, but the one thing we always have in the back of our minds is, how many tickets is this going to sell us or is there some sponsor money that we’re going to get out of it? The whole Guitar Hero thing didn’t sell a whole lot of extra tickets to the game, but we were able to close a sponsorship deal for the entire year through Comcast. We do a tournament and now they’re on for a multi-thousand dollar deal for the whole year. People that might not have known that just think it was a dumb halftime thing. So, it’s really about what kind of finances will be in it for the club, because we don’t want to be a minor league baseball team.
I remember it was a couple of years ago that we were playing at old Mile High that there was feedback from the fans that there was too much focus on the promotions and it was all about the giveaway. People would talk about free soccer ball night, but they may not know that we were playing Kansas City. The focus was more on the promotion, so we made a conscious effort over the past few years to move away from that. If you notice, it used to be that in ’99 and the early 2000’s, every Rapids game you came to, you got a giveaway. Whether it was a lunch box or it was a whatever. We haven’t had a single giveaway over the last two years that I can think of, besides the Lucho Libre mask. Just so you guys know and we want the fans to know, we do hear those kinds of comments and we made a conscious decision to change, and you definitely don’t hear about it around our office anymore. There’s nobody talking about free jersey night, which we used to talk about all the time and it was more, “how can we sell free jersey night? How can we get people to come?” Now it’s more like, “Hey, we’re playing Columbus in the next game. There’s also some other stuff that may be going on, but the focus is one the game.”
Is there any chance of getting a shirt sponsor any time soon?
Yeah. For sure. It’s a big priority for our sponsorship sales team to get that big deal sold. It’s going to go a long way to making us financially where we want to be. Actually, we were just working on some demographics stuff as a presentation, so there’s constant presentations out there. We wouldn’t just sell it to anybody. You wouldn’t see Marlboro or something like that as our jersey sponsor. It’s got to be somebody that fits into our belief and our brand system, which is “we are the world’s game.” Through what we bring to the table through our youth connections and our global partners with Arsenal and Pachuca, we’ve got some major backers that are the right companies with the same mindset. There are some people on the table right now that would be very interesting. I’d say the steps have been taken to get us to where we want to be, but we’ve got a ways more to go. We’re not going to do anything prematurely. It’s a big thing for Jeff Plush to get that thing sold, but to sell it right and not undervalue it. We rate ourselves at a certain level. We’re not going to take less than what we think we deserve. But the fans should know that it’s a very big part of our business and our sales team is working on it constantly.
Speaking of the fans, how do you feel about the Rapids’ supporters’ sections?
I like them. I much like the Class VI section because I think it’s unique to see a group that just wants to be able to be a sitting group. To me, that’s awesome. Our concern is that supporters’ groups aren’t growing on their own. We want them to be alive and grow. We want it to be like Toronto. We want it to be like DC. We want the boards of each of the supporters’ groups to get together and have meetings. We want to help you throw an event, like a fundraising event here at the stadium to raise money for the supporters’ clubs. Raise $10,000 and give it to charity or use it for whatever. The more things we can do like that, the club should be helping.
I can’t believe we don’t get requests. Nobody ever asks us for help. You’ve got to hit us up. Tell us you want the stadium for a field day or whatever to raise money. Put on a membership drive. Put something in our newsletter or put a story on the website about why you should join Class VI. Put a story in the programs or the handouts at all the games. It’s easy for us to do it, especially if it doesn’t cost anything. If our supporters’ clubs want our help, we’d be crazy not to do that. I just wish there were more requests. Let us know how we can help. If you guys have an idea, let us know. We can do anything from donated jerseys at the end of the seasons to writing articles for Free Kick to whatever. It’s much better for us to support you guys, because you support us than some other organization.
The one thing that everybody in the supporters’ groups should know is that everybody that works here is a fan. When I started off, I went to the first Rapids’ game as a fan. I went through the whole first year as a fan. I pretty much decided that’s where I wanted to work. I’m not going to go work for Dallas, DC United, or New York. I’m a Rapids’ fan. That’s why I came to work here. We go out of our way to find the right people. If they have a ton of great experience and they are a fantastic marketer, but they aren’t a soccer fan, we won’t hire them. You have to be a soccer fan to work here. You may not get paid all the money in the world. We’re not breaking the bank. I work here because I love it. I’m not a soccer fan, I’m a Rapids’ fan.
August 24, 2008
Rapids @ DC United - Man Of The Match
With excitement over Gary Smith taking over as head coach of our Colorado Rapids, it was difficult to swallow a 3-0 loss Saturday. Class VI man of the match of the match voting for the game is open here . It's a chance to take a look at some of the bright spots for the game. Was it new Rapids Corey Gibbs? The ever consistent Nick LaBrocca? Someone else?
August 19, 2008
Welcome to Class VI
So tomorrow is the foosball tournament with the Rapids! I'm very excited. I think it's going to be a very fun time. Right off, I want to thank Kieran Cane for making this idea happen. And really thank all the Rapids Players that are taking their time for us - to actually play foos with the fans! You guys are awesome. (Hopefully not too many of you are being forced into it!).
Hopefully, you're visiting http://NoFanAlone.com for the first time because you met some of the 160 Class VI members and are checking us out. 160 you say? WHERE? Well sir I'm glad you asked!
I've been a Rapids fan from day one. I was 21 when I went to my first Rapids game - I'm 34 now. Yeah, it has been a difficult ride. But man how MLS has grown, huh? I've been all about it from the beginning. Dragging friends to the game: "You gotta support US Soccer or it's going to end!" Yup, that early on and that ridiculous :D It's always been a different kind of sporting atmosphere. I grew up in upstate NY with minor league hockey. I went to high school with the son of Slap Shot's 'Clarence "Screaming Buffalo" Swamptown' and my father-in-law fixed the bus that got hit with the sledgehammer. These games in Utica, NY were crazy. One time a fan hit a coach with a cup of beer and the players came into the crowd and 14 year old me got caught in the middle!
It was exciting, but I don't want MLS to turn into THAT! Trust me. But come on! Soccer is passion. Soccer is exciting! In the early days I got yelled at a lot. Not because I was swearing or drunk or anything. But because I was up when Tritt would get a head on the ball or when the ref gave Pablo another card. I didn't stand all game, but I was loud and I was into the game. I was there for the game.
You know what I'm saying. I know you do! We can admit it: Rapids games just don't have the same atmosphere as a Donkey's or Avs game. See I'm a big time NHL fan, but I'll admit it - I miss the old days when fighting was part of the game's strategy. But hockey won't ever go back to those days. It's not that the direction it's moving is bad - it's just not the same and I miss it.
But MLS is different. You as a fan are different than fans of the big four now. You can help direct where this game is going. I'm serious! Look, the Rapids Front Office wants a great sporting environment. They'd love to have Toronto's atmosphere. I'm fortunate enough to have sat down with Jeff Plush, the Managing Director of the Rapids, a few times. I like him, he's a good guy. He wants it too. Come on are you crazy? This guy has sat in games in Europe. He's accompanied Arsenal's shareholder Stan Kronke to London - you don't think he has an idea of how big this game can be? If you're an American that has seen a game in Europe, you know it's impossible not to leave an impression!
All that to say, I'm a big fan and I want a true soccer atmosphere. So what did I do about it? I started Class VI. It's not a standing section with drums that stands all game. We started in 2005 and man getting the first 30 people to take the chance was tough! But right away, it was just different sitting among other people there that were there for the love of the game. People that know and love the game inside out.
It caught on. It took a while but it did. And something I didn't forsee happened! These people became my friends - they are such super people I'm lucky to know. And they believe in Class VI. Our tailgates rock! Among the best in MLS - no joke. And it's because people bring dishes to share with everyone else! I mean we provide hotdogs, soda, a keg of beer, and utensils - but it's the VIers that make Class VI so special.
And it's changed MLS for me. I don't have to deal with those balloon knockers or getting up and down a thousand times. I don’t have people giving me gruff because I yell at a player to get up. Lots of people have told me, when the Rapids are playing in the middle of say a ten game winless streak, it's Class VI that makes it fun for them.
You're still wondering where we are huh? Section 108. Yeah only a few games see all 160 members at once - but we're there. And we'd love for you to join us. Imagine the entire section filled with people? That's how you can direct MLS' future. The first 30 were the pioneers - but every new body is adding to the movement.
There are no dues. There are no meetings. We're 100% fan run by a lot of people that deserve way more credit than they’re given. We have a tailgate two hours before every game. We've traveled to SLC and LA for games. We get together in Denver and Windsor for away games for Rapids and drinks. We'd love for you to become one of us. We're passionate about soccer and we believe that there should be NO FAN ALONE.
August 18, 2008
KC Grades are in
by Josh Vaisman
Watching the Rapids v Wizards match from 108, here’s how I saw it:
Burpo – Played a very solid game with no obvious mistakes. Quality distribution, good positioning and made some timely saves. The goal he gave up was more the defense’s inability to clear the ball then his fault. Grade = 6
Erpen – Although it feels a bit weird for me to say it, Erpen played a good game. He made some very solid plays on defense, maintained his position well and the “good-for-at-least-one-bonehead-move-a-game” seemed to take a one game vacation. I applaud him. Grade = 7
Gibbs – I’ll admit I was worried when I saw him in the starting XI considering his lack of first team time the past couple seasons but he impressed. I don’t think he played exceptionally well but he didn’t do anything poorly either from what I could tell and I think as he gets more fit and builds chemistry with the other defenders he’ll get even better. Grade = 6
Petke – It was nice to see Petke’s calm demeanor and great positioning back in the lineup last night and I think it helped. But he is a bit rusty and I’d like to see him get more minutes. Played well, if unspectacularly. Grade = 6
Burciaga – As with Erpen he played well on the wing but didn’t do much of anything special I could see. He did cover his side of the pitch well, pushing up to help in the attack and backtracking to defense when needed. Grade = 6
Peterson – As he does so frequently, Jacob did a heck of a lot of running and put himself in some nice positions to create on the attack. But, his lack of vision and a left foot proved detrimental in this match and his energy wasn’t put to full use. He had an open shot on goal that he wasted by spending time switching to his right foot – had he felt comfortable enough to shoot lefty we may have had 3 goals. Grade = 5
LaBrocca – LaBrocca seemed oddly lost the first third of the match and I saw many times where he was running closely beside Ballouchy or Pablo, bunching up when he could have spread out to create passing lanes. To his defense, he did come on the last 20 minutes or so and I’ll mark this down to a subpar match for him. Grade = 5
Ballouchy – This kid drives me batty. He makes runs, sees things and has obvious skill on the ball but he doesn’t consistently string quality play together and makes blunders someone who has been playing professionally for as long as he has shouldn’t. I think he played fairly well in this match but the difference in creativity and ball control between him and Christian Gomez is vast. Grade = 6
Cooke – Yes he is relatively one-dimensional, and yes he is mostly a “one trick dog” but he does that trick so well and sees things most other players on the pitch do not. He showed that vision and quality passing in this match. His cross to Casey’s head for the first goal was pure quality and he sent some long passes through that only he could have seen. I could be wrong, but I feel like he put a little extra energy into the match…I’ll let other’s wonder why. Grade = 7
Pablo – Pablo played like a man possessed last night. He was a totally disruptive force at defensive mid and his runs into the attacking third were brilliant. Was there an Italian scout in the crowd? Grade = 8
Casey – Despite what some others have said on the forums I think Casey played a truly quality match. His runs were decisive and intelligent and he displayed some good skills with the ball at his feet and distributed well (yes, he does have a rock hard first touch at times, but I do not believe it is as frequent as others profess). His first goal was excellent and the second goal was purely the result of his energy and “no-give-up” attitude. He was another one that seemed to play particularly hard and his fatigue showed the last 20 minutes of play. Regardless, excellent match for Casey. Grade = 8
SUBS:
Herc – Herc had some great passes and runs down the sideline but, once again, his lack of speed showed. He still tries to outrun defenders too frequently and I don’t think he has the speed he once did. Still, he played well and used his center mids intelligently. Grade = 6
Dalby – Wasn’t in on the action enough in his 10+ minutes of play. Grade – Incomplete
McManus – Was in for just a few minutes but it sure was great to see him out on the pitch again. Grade - Incomplete
Introduction
