Quote from: Coach Jeff on September 06, 2023, 12:29:37 PM
SC Looks like we have a entire conference of PAYWALL this season.  Landmark conference games are all pay to view on FLO...the universities are not making that much money to have the fans pay...thoughts?

I live in a Landmark town and was highly disappointed when I went to watch a match and hit a paywall. I haven't heard directly, but secondary sources say that schools are getting $$ from FLO which makes it worthwhile.  I don't have any interest in paying. I'll watch some away matches and attend the live matches that I can. I am hoping this is not the way forward for all conferences.

Quote from: Ejay on November 02, 2021, 02:01:14 PM

Quote from: backheel18 on November 02, 2021, 01:57:51 PM

Quote from: Ejay on November 02, 2021, 01:29:10 PM
EJay's prediction:
Susquehanna upsets Catholic 2-1 with a late game winner
Drew takes Elizabethtown 2-1 in OT

I'm wondering if the grass field at Etown throws Drew off enough for Etown to get a win. 

I will go Etown over Drew 1-0 in OT and Catholic 2-0 over Susquehanna....although, I could see Susquehanna shocking Catholic at home. The only time Juniata made it into the Landmark tourney, they were 4 and went to Catholic and upset them 3-1. Defend well wide and get in behind their outside backs.

Drew is home on turf against Elizabethtown

Not the first, nor last time I will be wrong.

Quote from: Ejay on November 02, 2021, 01:29:10 PM
EJay's prediction:
Susquehanna upsets Catholic 2-1 with a late game winner
Drew takes Elizabethtown 2-1 in OT

I'm wondering if the grass field at Etown throws Drew off enough for Etown to get a win. 

I will go Etown over Drew 1-0 in OT and Catholic 2-0 over Susquehanna....although, I could see Susquehanna shocking Catholic at home. The only time Juniata made it into the Landmark tourney, they were 4 and went to Catholic and upset them 3-1. Defend well wide and get in behind their outside backs.

Quote from: SimpleCoach on October 31, 2021, 04:47:35 PM
Catholic v Juniata
Juniata
Bias? – First time watching Juniata.
Link – Battle of the Birds

   This is what I will call the Ejay Experience.  I am watching the second half of this game.  Not counting passes.
   Catholic 0, Juniata 1.  Went back and watched the goal.  Came on a corner.  Catholic doesn't mark man to man, they all go inside the six.  Big man gets up, unmarked, and scores a header.
   I mean this is where I scratch my head and say I can't believe they are not better.  Catholic has the ball in the back.  Catholic #4 receives the ball from his left from Catholic#29/.  Takes a touch then passes it to Catholic#24.  To his right is the third leg of the triangle, but he is not in the right position because he is too high.  Catholic#24 receives the ball and passes the ball out of bounds instead of to the man on his right.  And so you go from an easy build up to giving Juniata a throw in deep in Catholic's half. 
   I am watching too much soccer and starting to nit pick.
   And then Juniata throws the ball in, and the receiver on touches the ball... out of bounds.
   Catholic has the opportunity to tie the game early in the second half with three or four shots from two yards out.  Juniata Keeper comes up big on a couple, defense on a couple and finally get the ball out.  Should be 1-1. 
   Those shots inside the six is exactly what Catholic looks for in their attach.  The more chaos ball, the better.
   Catholic now gets a ridiculous penalty from what I can tell.  Shoulder to shoulder for a ball.  Catholic#7 to step up and take it.  Puts it to the Juniata Keeper's right, he dives left.  Catholic 1, Juniata 1.
   Am baffled by the work some of these players do to win the ball, then to squander it with a bad pass or ill-timed attempt to beat the man on the dribble.
   Juniata caught Catholic sleeping on a restart, and Juniata#7, who received the ball, did a poor job controlling the ball and it went out of bounds.
   Catholic is keeping Juniata deep in their half.  They can't connect to get out of the pressure.
   If I were the Juniata coach, I would press Catholic#32 every time the ball came to him.
   Think this referee is losing it.  Just handing out cards indiscriminately as if they were business cards.
   Lets be clear, Catholic is the better team.  Why it is even tied is beyond me.  The only two players that stand out for me are Juniat#8, a big tall center back, and Juniata#23(?) , a speedy forward.  Other than that, think Catholic should have the run of these guys.
   I find that with Catholic and a lot of teams, they lack awareness in their positions, and that their positions are starting points, not areas of responsibility, if that makes sense.
   Catholic attacks without any sense of organization, which is fine.  But their CDM, Catholic#18 is hunting for a goal and stepping up high.  Result is that there is a 30 yard gap between defenders and the midfielders.  This is where Juniata should have a man sitting, hovering for the ball to come to him and then go on the attack.  That's where Juniata will get a goal.
   Catholic is having all sorts of shots blocked or cleared off the line. 
   Catholic Keeper just came out for a corner ... more like went fishing on a corner.  Big Juniata player snapped a header that went off the cross bar.  They got the corner ... because of two bullets before.
   Unless Juniata can counter quick, they have no hope of getting the ball past midfield.  If done right, two passes can leave 7 Catholic players chasing back.
   Getting a little chippy.
   Juniata is dangerous on corners.  Different looks and have four real tall players.
   Catholic attacks North/South.  So predictable.  If I were the Juniata coach, I would man mark Catholic#3 and Catholic#12 shut them down and the wings will be shut down.
   And end of the second half.  Catholic 1, Juniata 1.  OT it is.
   According to the stats, Catholic has 24 shots, Juniata 5.  How is it only 1-1?  Seriously, that is a question I would be asking if I were the Catholic head coach.
   First OT .... Same as it ever was.
   Second OT.  Catholic Keeper has a spectacular save on a Juniata shot to keep it level.  On a corner... Catholic chaos.  Shot, block, shot, header, block, shot block, rebound goal.  Catholic 2, Juniata 1.

Watched this as well. Agreed with all of your points. I was waiting for Juniata to start pressing the back line and then break out through their speedy winger, but it did not happen.

This is the most chaotic Catholic team that I have seen in recent years. Normally they have a few CMs that control the tempo and move the ball side to side. Instead, it is get the ball wide and go.

I will be interesting to see how the Landmark semi-finals go tonight. I could see Susquehanna pressure Catholic's back line enough to get the W.

Quote from: Ejay on October 31, 2021, 03:00:13 PM

Quote from: SimpleCoach on October 31, 2021, 02:29:43 PM

Quote from: PaulNewman on October 31, 2021, 12:54:26 PM

Quote from: SimpleCoach on October 31, 2021, 12:50:24 PM

Quote from: Ejay on October 31, 2021, 12:40:45 PM
Landmark playoffs set for Tue.

#4 Susquehanna (3-2-2; 9-7-2) @ #1 Catholic (5-1-1; 9-6-2)
First meeting was 2-1 in OT to Catholic

#3 Elizabethtown (4-2-1; 9-5-2) @ #2 Drew (5-1-1; 8-7-1)
First meeting was 2-1 in OT to Drew

This is a conference that is one where I ask, why aren't the teams better?  So much going for these schools.

SC, can you say a little more?  What strikes you as attractive about them?  They don't get talked about much here, other than occasional passing references to Catholic, and E'town in context of its rivalry with Messiah.

Sure.  I can't speak for Susquehanna.  My only familiarity with it is I had a colleague from years ago ... who went there.  I am thinking in the context here of the other three schools.  Not talking about academics because ultimately that's something beyond the control of coaches, etc.

So lets start with Elizabethtown.  They have a long history of success, including a national championship.  Central PA with access to some premier level talent ... think PA Classics, FC Continental, Delco, Lehigh Valley, and I haven't even gone west yet.  Competitively, they contend with Messiah, Gettysburg, maybe Muhlenberg, for talent.  I would actually suggest Scranton is in the same situation.

Drew is in a similar position.  Great location in New Jersey.  Probably compete with more schools in the area for talent, but they  have access to top clubs like PDA, STA, Cedar Stars, and a number of other clubs that I would categorize as second tier.  And if a kid is good enough, he has to choose from RU-Newark, Rowan, RU-Camden, maybe Stockton.  From a soccer perspective, TCNJ is no longer in the mix as I don't think the coach cares one way or another.  So unless a kid is going out of state, those are his choices. 

And then Catholic.  Right in DC on a beautiful campus, 10 minutes from the White House.  In the middle of some incredible soccer as well.  All the Baltimore clubs, the NOVA Clubs ... no shortage talent.  Frankly in my mind, I don't see why they are not in the Top 20 conversation year in and year out.

I don't know much about Juniata, Goucher, and Moravian, so not including them in this take.

Not familiar with the coaches of the schools, their recruiting strategies, and how they get along with youth coaches in the area.  I am sure that is the biggest factor.  I do know a couple of kids who went to each of those schools and met with different degrees of success.  But everyone has those stories.

That's my thinking at least.  Not sure if it is right or fleshed out completely, but it is what it is now.  Would like for someone to convince me otherwise so I don't ask myself that question every time they come up in conversation.

I'm intimately familiar with many of these schools and that's a decent take on the situation.  The Landmark schools should be on par with the Centennial schools, the only difference is they don't have the name brand recognition.  For example, many people know Gettysburg and Muhlenberg, but not many know Drew or Scranton - which are more or less peer institutions.

What's even more interesting is that half of the Landmark schools have no football teams, so you would think soccer would be THE sport. And at times it was, though not consistently. The 2003 Drew team was 20-2-3 and gave up 6 goals all season, including 17 straight clean sheets which was an NCAA record.  They lost to Trinity in the NCAA final 2-1. Scranton was a powerhouse in the 80's, rarely losing more than 2-3 games and went deep in the Tournament several times. 

The recruiting comment is interesting.  As SC noted, the NJ, Eastern PA and DC area is a hotbed for recruiting.  I just think there are too many options in the area, and the school themselves don't really have anything unique to distinguish themselves so the talent pool gets diluted among all the schools.

I'd love to see a unique thread that talks about programs which should be better, or were once really good but no longer are, and what happened.  The prime example being TCNJ.  No reason whatsoever that program shouldn't be fielding a Top 20 team every year, as they do in almost every other sport beside men's soccer. As a NJ guy, it's such a shame to see.

I agree that many of these schools are in prime recruiting locations (other than Juniata), but also agree with the assessment that there are so many schools on the eastern seaboard that it dilutes recruiting.

Not sure why so many of those schools are down, maybe not being able to bring as many recruits on campus during Covid?. Scranton really struggled this year and Catholic did not look like the slick passing team that they normally are under Travis. I watched some of their match over the weekend and they allowed the game to be a track meet up and down the field. They may have out shot Juniata by a wide margin, but were also dangerously close to giving up a goal late to lose.

I have known a number of people that have gone to each of the schools, and have heard little other than how wonderful they are. However, the confrence should be putting out better soccer as a whole. Especially given the duration of time most of the coaches have had. Skip has been at Etown since the dawn of time and Lenny has been at Drew since the 90s. Other than Juniata and Moravian, the other 6 schools have not changed coaches in more than a decade.

At least Scranton's women make the conference look good.

Quote from: jknezek on October 22, 2021, 03:37:47 PM

Quote from: PaulNewman on October 22, 2021, 03:32:01 PM
Again, my bad, that first sentence was more of an aside and the rest of the post was what I was invested in.  And even in that first sentence, the key part was the there are more factors to consider than beautiful soccer.  And I thought you didn't watch basketball!  Anyway, sure, other sports have styles of play like bball that fans sometimes like or don't like...but imo soccer is unique in the extent to which "beauty" and "playing the right way, etc. can dominate the focus.

Any thoughts on the rest of that post?  I obviously trying to underscore that imo there are more factors to consider relative to the wisdom of changing sub rules.

My thoughts on the overwhelming number of small colleges in this country, and the need many of them have to create oversized rosters of sports teams to keep the doors open, would not be very popular on these boards.

May not be popular, but it is the unfortunate truth.

Quote from: NEPAFAN on October 21, 2021, 03:04:49 PM

Quote from: backheel18 on October 21, 2021, 10:38:55 AM

Quote from: NEPAFAN on October 21, 2021, 09:15:12 AM
Time for some new energy at Scranton, great facility a few  years old, women's soccer and field hockey excelling. Men's team plodding along with an anemic offense. This program can be better.

I haven't watched many of their matches closely. Are they missing anyone? It seems to me that they should be right there pushing for what is a very winnable Landmark title this year.

One that I am aware of left the team. Coach's wife is the women's coach. I wonder if that complicates things

Not sure. Piv has always struck me as a good guy that runs a solid program. He has always been able to get a few game changer type players that have given him success to go a long with a solid team and fairly deep bench. Other coaches seem to really respect him.

The new facility is very nice, but I always wonder if sitting off campus hinders the atmosphere they could have. Plus, I miss the train rolling by at the old field, but I'm sure most coaches do not miss how narrow that pitch was.

Like I said, I think a number of teams could win the Landmark. Not sure I have seen anything out of any of them that shows they could win more than one game or so in the tournament when it comes time.

Quote from: Ejay on October 21, 2021, 10:17:08 AM
That Moravian/Etown result is interesting in that you now have a 4 way tie for 1st in the Landmark - Catholic, Drew, Etown, Susq all sit 3-1-1.

Surprised by that result as well seeing at how Morvian started strong but has really fallen off. Plus they had two reds against Juniata in the previous match which left them short one of their better players. I caught the last 10 minutes and over time as I was jumping between Landmark matches. I feel as though any of those four teams could win the title depending on the day.

Quote from: NEPAFAN on October 21, 2021, 09:15:12 AM
Time for some new energy at Scranton, great facility a few  years old, women's soccer and field hockey excelling. Men's team plodding along with an anemic offense. This program can be better.

I haven't watched many of their matches closely. Are they missing anyone? It seems to me that they should be right there pushing for what is a very winnable Landmark title this year.

Quote from: Hopkins92 on October 06, 2021, 02:51:56 PM

Quote from: SimpleCoach on October 06, 2021, 12:40:49 PMAnd finally, as a general rule, I think most teams have spent so much time working on defensive shape and midfield support, that they have forgotten about forwards and have let their goal scoring com from luck, defensive errors and brute force.  I am not sure if I am missing it or not.

First off, I think it's good for you to put the teams out there. Lots of very honest analysis on here and unless I'm sorely mistaken, I don't there's ever been any "official" blowback. It is what it is. They're getting paid decently to coach a game. They can handle a little honesty.

Second, to the bullet above. Totally agree, I'd just add that a lot of those teams rely on the vagaries and lucky bounces of set-pieces, including a really strong desire to have a guy that chuck into the box on long throws.

I agree with Hopkins that we all appreciate your analysis.

Second, from my days coaching, I do agree that many teams spend a great deal of time on defensive shape. I would also say that it can be very difficult to find and recruit goalscorers at this level. I have seen very many goalscorers turned to CBs or DMs or other spots at the higher levels. You would think that because of this more teams would spend time working on finishing. Just my observations.

Falconer mentioned Hayden Woodworth. I was humbled by him more than once over the stretch we played against one another. I was happy just to continue my playing career in college and wasn't anywhere near the caliber of player that would have been associated with a team chasing a national title. Looking back I was happy I had the chance to play against those sides that won national championships even though it wasn't very enjoyable at that time.

Quote from: SimpleCoach on September 23, 2021, 11:07:08 AM

Quote from: Hopkins92 on September 23, 2021, 10:56:31 AM
This had me chuckling. It's the rough equivalent of "what do I have to do to get you into a car today" from a coach. Or car dealerships that talk about being honest and trustworthy.

If you have to say that out loud, there's probably something you're covering for (IMO).

It's been drummed into everyone's head that "playing it out of the back" is the preferrable and "correct" way to play the game. And, yes, it is more aesthetical and often a statistically more preferable way to play.

Problem comes in when you just don't have a) the players or b) the coaching acumen to make that happen.

I know these are obvious points, but you really nailed it when you bring up coaches just saying what they think parents/players want to hear. All it takes is watching your team for 10 minutes to suss that out, coach.

Glad I could help lighten the day @Hopkins92.  Some of the things we were told were outright absurd ... I knew it when I was told and my sons recruiting list was small because he disqualified coaches who were full of it.  That was always the gotcha question for me.  To boot, to watch now, I am not sure I am watching the game the coach talked about.

Looking at some of their recruiting classes is even more comical.... doubling down on the opposite of "working it out of the back."

Not that I will ever know, but wonder how many coaches read these boards.  And if so, would love to have an honest discussion about how they play.  I suspect this wont happen because for some of these guys, being called out isn't exactly what they are looking for...

@Simplecoach - I have known of a few coaches that have read these boards and I first got on here because I was helping at a D3 school. I think that coaches talk about their style of play because they think that is what recruits want to hear. However, when you look at the landscape of D3 soccer, there are far more Burnelys than Man Citys. For a coach who is not in the upper 100, would it help their program if they are honest and say that their style of play is pack it in and spring on the break? Maybe. But I am sure that they would also be worried about turning off players that will help them change their style of play.

Didn't get to watch as much of the Moravian match as I wanted, but they are looking like they will be tough all year as long as Sturza the transfer stays healthy. Kid can make good runs between CBs, take people on, and finishes well. Landmark conference could be an interesting battle.

Quote from: Mid-Atlantic Fan on September 14, 2021, 02:08:51 PM
MAF Top 10 (Week 2)
1. F&M (3-0-0) The Diplomats jump to the top after their third straight shutout
2. Messiah (3-0-1) The Falcons drop just a spot after a battle with Muhlenberg ended in a draw
3. Gettysburg (2-0-1) The Bullets picked up a nice win over Lycoming to stay undefeated
4. Hopkins (2-0-1) The Blue Jays picked up 2 solid wins and remain unbeaten on the year
5. Muhlenberg (2-0-1) The Muhles pick up an impressive result vs Messiah and remain unbeaten on the year
6. Swarthmore (3-1-0) The Garnet dropped their first game of the year but have some time off before a clash with Hopkins 
7.Stevens (3-1-1) The Ducks split games and have a nice break before a showdown with NYU
8. Catholic (3-1-0) The Cardinals picked up their first blemish on the year but remain in the hunt
9. Lycoming (3-1-1) The Warriors dropped their first game of the year to Gettysburg but rebounded with a solid win over Ithaca
10. Eastern (4-0-0) The Eagles remain undefeated after 2 shutout wins

RV:
Leb Val (4-0-0) The Dutchmen tack on 2 more wins but the next 3 games will be more telling
Moravian (3-1-0) The Greyhounds continue to impress but for now are just outside the top 10
Misericordia (3-0-0) The Cougars keep on rolling with another decent win
Cabrini (4-1-0) The Cavaliers remain close behind after dropping their first contest of the year
Etown (2-1-0) The Blue Jays dropped a tough one to F&M and remain on the outside looking in

Been seeing a lot of small group (max 12 players at field and players in groups of 3, for example).  Then plans to allow for more if there is not an outbreak.

I am hearing that some schools are cutting their numbers of interns and assistants to try to save the schools money.  One area that I really feel has improved from the time that I played (2003) is the number of schools that have full time coaches and then have brought in paid assistants or interns.  Could we see some smaller schools go back to part-time coaches?  Or the older model where coaches had to help with another team outside of their season?