New England Soccer Discussion

[blooter442]

Endicott with the better of the play in the first 10. They've showed up.

[blooter442]

Brandeis with its first real chance, but decent save by BC transfer Bacon. Good first 15.

[blooter442]

Dickinson holds Babson to a 1-1 draw. Not a bad result for the Beavers in PA but they will be disappointed to not get the W after leading for so much of the game.

Brandeis starting two freshmen tonight. Brandeis has probably just shaded overall play to this point but the Couchot brothers can certainly play. Gulls having the most joy down the flanks without really getting into any dangerous areas.

[blooter442]

Endicott-Brandeis 0-0 at the half. Gulls actually boast a significant shot advantage and had a pretty good opportunity with about 5 left in the half. Btw, really well done halftime promo of the school, talking about academics/internships/study abroad and the athletics program.

Got to grab an Uber to Logan, so depending on how the Logan Wi-Fi is feeling perhaps I'll get to see the second half before I get down to ATL.

[blooter442]

Missed both goals, but Brandeis gets 2 in 10 minutes to go up 2-0. Nardizzi gets his first Judges goal.

[blooter442]

Brandeis outshot by multiples of 2 in both total shots and SOG (20-8 and 10-4, respectively) but gets out of town with the 2-0 win. I saw the first 55 minutes or so and they looked pretty sloppy at times — misplaced passes and needless fouls — but they did have some bright moments and evidently they did what they needed to do to win. Endicott put forth a very solid effort and ran with their opponents as best I could tell. The announcer (who did a great job by himself, btw) said it mainly came down to the difference in finishing. Either way, decent game to watch even if I missed both goals. Judges will have another tough test at nearby Gordon on Sunday. I also see Gordon putting up a good, spirited fight.

[Ommadawn]

I was interested to note that WNEU has added legendary coach Dave Saward to the staff, presumably as a volunteer assistant coach (http://www.wnegoldenbears.com/sports/msoc/coaches/index).  Coach O'Neill played for Coach Saward back in the day.

[blooter442]

Host Gordon pulls the upset 3-2 over Brandeis. I caught about the first 20 minutes before hopping on a plane. The Scots went 1-0 up early, Brandeis tied it 1-1 on a PK, then Gordon scored twice in 48 seconds on a 30 yarder and a PK. Judges pulled one back in the first half and had numerous chances second including a post hit but couldn't equalize again. Worth noting that a GK who had played 40 mins in two years was in net. The first goal he gave up a rebound but I didn't see the other two goals so can't say whether the 30 yarder was one he should have saved or a wondergoal. I heard each GK is going to get a fair shake, and Friday's starter Irwin came in for the second half so I am wondering if he will continue to start. He did well in his cameos last year. Not the end of the world for the Judges who lost in the opening weekend last year (the opener no less) but they will surely want to avoid making a habit of these setbacks.

[NEFutbol90]

St.Josephs(ME) picks right back up where they left off last year beating Gordon on Friday 3-0 and a late winner to top Endicott 1-0. Endicott attack was very direct and had no real intent to change their attack even as Blake Mullen soared to grab every aerial ball they put into the box. They return to action Tuesday vs in state rival Husson at 7PM for their home opener. If Endicott can't find a more fluid dynamic attack the high aspirations attatched to this years team seem unattainable.

[4231CenterBack]

I was at the St. Joe's/Gordon match and Brandeis/Gordon match.  St. Joe's is the real deal.  I have not seen a more well organized team in college soccer.  The sit at the halfway line and let you come then they close you down immediately.  They counter with speed and #s but regain their shape very quickly.  IMO they can play with anyone in NE.

Brandeis was good and enjoyable to watch.  They are surprisingly small....even smaller than Gordon.  The goal keeper was a hot mess.  Fumbled the first goal right to the Gordon attacker.  Got beat from 40 on the second because he's short and was off his line too far.  Gordon had the better of the play in the first half but Brandeis pressed hard in the second.  Gordon was a bit fortunate to avoid the equalizer.  Both teams play good soccer so it was a pleasure to watch.

[nhfan]

The Beavers seem to be in some sort of rebuilding or reorg situation.  A new coach last year and a lot of freshman starting and playing this year over established players. Hopefully they figure it out before it's too late.

Dickinson holds Babson to a 1-1 draw. Not a bad result for the Beavers in PA but they will be disappointed to not get the W after leading for so much of the game.

Brandeis starting two freshmen tonight. Brandeis has probably just shaded overall play to this point but the Couchot brothers can certainly play. Gulls having the most joy down the flanks without really getting into any dangerous areas.

[Mr.Right]

Just got home from a long weekend and have not seen a D3 game yet this season. Just looking at some of the New England regions scores / bpxes and recaps, I am left with more questions than when the prior to the season to beginning.

Brandeis----I cannot remember ever questioning Margolis and his player decisions and tactics. Let me start now. WHY on earth would the GK position "be up for grabs" going into this season? I had just assumed Irwin was their man and based on last nights recap he now should be. However, that is 1 game to late. Irwin stepped in last year BIGTIME in the middle of the 2017 season when Woodhouse got injured. He started I think 5 consecutive games in October against Chicago, Wash U and a couple others and MORE THAN HELD HIS OWN. This other kid Cohen played in 2 career games all in mop up duty against Elms and Clark off the bench when the game was easily in hand. If Margolis was so unsure last year of these 2 GK's than why didn't Cohen get a run last season along with Irwin? Probably because he knew Irwin was the better GK and gave them a better chance to win some very tough games. So what changed? Why are we all of a sudden going into "job up for grabs" situation. This is not 2017 Tufts with Johnson and Mieth. Is it? This should have been Irwin's job TO LOSE from the get go. He showed well enough last year to be given the benefit of the doubt. Now Margoils and Cohen have cost Brandeis a key game. Yes we are only 2 games and yes it is only 1 loss but Brandeis cannot play around like other schools with Conference Tournaments. EVERY GAME MATTERS. This loss to an average Gordon side might not matter in the end because they probably will not be good enough in late October to be ranked but then again if they go real well in conference(a distinct possibility) and get a result v Amherst then they will be ranked. That will be already 1 Ranked loss for Brandeis that could have been avoided.

[Mr.Right]

Newmac---This league has been mediocre the past few seasons. From the looks of it this season could be different. We have 4 legit teams fighting for the title and another 1 or 2 question marks in the hunt. Springfield surprised me this weekend getting 2 wins over average teams on the road up at Plattsburgh. While neither opponent was a Top 25 team it impressed me that the new Head Coach Tommy Crabill started his tenure 2-0-0. They will be tested BIGTIME in 2 days on the turf against a really angry Brandeis side. If Springfield shows well in that game then I will admit I was wrong to have taken them out of NEWMAC Title contention. WPI has started off nicely and are 2-0-0 after wins against decent teams in UMASS Dartmouth and Worcester St(who with Bridgewater St should win MASCAC). WPI's roster looks like the real deal with tons of experience coming back from 2017. Their true test will also come in 2 days at Wesleyan on the turf at night and then a week later at Home v Brandeis. Babson has started the year of 0-0-2 and as predicted should be an improved side. ETOWN and Dickinson are 2 teams that are usually ranked in the Mid-Atlantic and while it sounds like Babson could have won both games they atleast did not lose. They also play Brandeis in 5 days at Home along with games against WPI, Williams and Springfield in the next 2-3 weeks. We will know what they are made of after that. Sounds like they are going young which is fine with me as they needed to make changes and it seems they have tidy up'd their D but will still have problems getting the ball into the back of the net. 2 question marks are both MIT and Clark. Both have also started 2-0-0 with Clark lighting up Castleton St(the team in 2017 that scared Messiah in the NCAA 1st Round) with 8 goals. They also beat Rivier 6-0 and have no challenges on that schedule until late September so we will really not know what they are made of for a few weeks. MIT beat UMASS BOSTON and Newbury to go 2-0-0 on the weekend. In 2 weeks they have a stretch of games v Babson, WPI, Brandeis and Springfield. After that 4 game stretch we will know all about MIT. I will say early indications are the NEWMAC has improved with 3 Top Dogs and 2 chasers along with a young Wheaton side with new coaches that will get them pumped to defeat the top dogs. Coast Guard can always be a tough out down in New London. One team that has looked like they have gotten worse is Emerson. They have opened the season 0-2-0 with losses to Pine Maonr and Emmanuel. NOT GOOD..I am always mentioning how coaches need to pick their next jobs carefully and the former Tufts assistant who jumped ship 2 years ago for the Emerson job might have made a disastrous decision. Being Shapiro's assistant on a National Title team he could have gotten a much better job if he had stayed patient. He did not.

[Mr.Right]

I have to say it is WAY to early to sound the alarm bells on Endicott. Yes they might struggle in midfield a bit and yes they might not have a legit striker but two losses to St.Joe's and Brandeis is not worrisome to me. Those are 2 legit Top 25 teams. Yes Endicott sits at 0-2-0 and might have lost some confidence but Joey put this massive schedule together for a reason. I really think he believes his guys are a Top 10 team in New England and who am I to disagree with that so far. They have Trinity on Wednesday night and as long as they are not leg heavy they should be able to get back on track in that game. After that they have a battle at Conn College and a match v WPI and have some very winnable games in between. They finish the year off with Rochester and Springfield. Remember this is a side that should be able to win the CCC this year so this monster out of conference schedule should only serve to help them. I will say that the CCC looks to be a tougher league than expected. Nichols, Gordon and Roger Williams have all started strong and WNEC is no picnic so Endicott will need to get the train back on the tracks rather quickly.

[Mr.Right]

A couple last minute notes here on Brandeis..Looks like Andrew Allen has decided this will be his breakout year and the transfer Nardizzi is the real deal so Brandeis looks to be much better off up top than expected. Looks like Miskin is back and being used off the bench. Is Gans injured? I did not see him in either boxscore. I am glad Handler is in midfield it looks like so the back 4 is DePietto, Hennessy, Walter and Burch. Burch is a 5'9 Frosh who I am assuming is playing wingback. Is Glass holding or did I get my back 4 wrong?