A Day in the Life of a DIII Soccer Coach in Maine

Bates:

“What do you do in the off-season?” It is a question many wonder about college coaches who compete for short two to three month seasons every year. We decided to follow Bates men’s soccer coach Stewart Flaherty for a day in the off-season to gain some insight behind the scenes of a Bates head coach.

- John C.L. Morgan

On the Cornelia Warren Four Season Rink

The Westbrook Soccer League kicks off its Summer Street Soccer program tonight (6-8p) at the Cornelia Warren Four Season Rink on Lincoln Street. Below are six interesting facts about the rink:

• The Cornelia Warren Four Season Rink is named after Cornelia Warren (1857-1921), one of the paper mill owner S.D. Warren's five children who was well-known for her support for social justice and for her generosity as a philanthropist.

• The rink was dedicated to the City of Westbrook in August 1994 by the Cornelia Warren Association, a foundation that began in March 1925 with a $125,000 endowment from Warren.

• The Cornelia Warren Association spent about $35,000 on the construction of the rink.

• The rink is constructed on a site well-known to Westbrook's ice skaters and hockey players dating back to the 1940s.

• The off-season use of the rink was intended to be roller-blading, a fast-growing sport in the U.S. in the early 1990s, when the idea of the rink was conceived and the structure was built.

• The rink's surface is made of macadam and was painted white to reduce the heat absorbed by the sun. The rink's boards are four feet tall, and they were built by students from Westbrook High School's vocational program.

- John C.L. Morgan

On the Champions League Anthem

NYT:

Still, the Champions League anthem--officially titled “Champions League” but known to many as that song that is always on during important European soccer television broadcasts--will be played at a final for the 21st time this weekend. Two decades after its introduction, it remains one of the best-known sports songs in the world.

- John C.L. Morgan

2013 Presumpscot Open (5 v. 5 street soccer tourney)

The Westbrook Soccer League is excited to announce that we will be hosting our first annual Presumpscot Open, a unique 5 v. 5 street soccer tournament from June 21-23, 2013.

The tournament will feature four divisions divided by age and gender (see below), and the teams will be limited to 5-6 players on each roster. The registration fee for each team is only $60, and all teams will be guaranteed at least three, 20-minutes games.

Send an e-mail to John C.L. Morgan at wsbksoccerleague@gmail.com to register your team today!

Saturday, June 22
12p-5p
Junior Boys (ages 10-13)

Saturday, June 22
5p-10p
Senior Men (ages 14+)

Sunday, June 23
12p-5p
Junior Girls (ages 10-13)

Sunday, June 23
5p-10p
Senior Women (ages 14+)

Besides hosting the tourney, the Westbrook Soccer League will also present on Friday, June 21 a free outdoor screening of Pelada, an award-winning documentary about two American collegiate soccer players traveling the globe in search of their next game of pick-up soccer.

FMI, see www.westbrooksoccerleague.com or the event's Facebook page.

- John C.L. Morgan

NE v. NYRB Pre-Game March Narrative

The Bent Musket:

This is the culture of soccer in the United States. We supporters, siblings that often quarrel, are all part of one family. No city more so than New York can sympathize with and understand the pain and heartache that Boston is recovering from. The Rebellion banner in the Revs section read: You will not break us. We will never fear you. Our city, our Country will always overcome. The march down Riverbend Drive helped transform those words painted on a banner into a reality we can all believe.

- John C.L. Morgan

MLB as MLS

Boston-based graphic designer Mark Willis has reimagined Major League Baseball's uniforms if the franchises were part of Major League Soccer (or any other soccer league, for that matter):

AL East

AL Central

AL West

NL East

NL Central

NL West

- John C.L. Morgan

The Coaching Education of Jurgen Klinsmann

ESPN Soccernet:

It is only when the U.S. manager opens up about his playing days that you realize he learned the game from some of the most iconic coaches in modern football -- Arsene Wenger, Giovanni Trapattoni and Cesar Luis Menotti among them. Klinsmann smiles as I mention those names, and admits "I always had supportive coaches I adored and early on, I began to try and be a sponge and learn from them."

- John C.L. Morgan

'60 Minutes' and Barca

-John C.L. Morgan

Best Soccer Writing of 2012

A Football Report:

2013 will bring new stories, and writers will continue to unveil value in the context of our day-to-day lives. But before we jump ahead, we really should take a step back. The internet is a wonderful place, but our constant consumption of content allows us to forget which stories were truly compelling, creative, well-researched, and told with conviction.

- John C.L. Morgan