4th of July (okay, 5th of July) on the road...

SoccerJunkie brings you this post courtesy of my Blackberry, so all typos are to be blamed on the fact that SoccerJunkie has huge thumbs and they keys on this thing are pretty small... that disclaimer aside...

Happy 4th of July everyone! and Happy 233rd Birthday America---you don't look a day over 200!

The holiday weekend brought plenty of action, led by the US lining up against Grenada in only the 2nd game the Yanks have played on this national holiday (the other was a 1-0 loss to Brazil at the '94 World Cup)...and the result of this one was far more favorable, as our boys eased out a 4-0 win over the 88th-ranked Spice Boys in their Gold Cup opener. While a win over an island nation of 90,000 isn't cause for a huge celebration, there's nothing but positives to take out of this game: a team of young players showed a lot of maturity, Steve Cherundolo had a solid game in his return from hip surgery, and the US showed it doesnt have to rely on a few select players to score. Charlie Davies, who only continued to tighten his grip on a 2010 World Cup roster spot, scored the 4th goal for the US, the 3rd of his career---the most career goals of any of the 4 goalscorers last night. Freddy Adu added the 2nd of his career, Robbie Rogers scored the 1st of his career (and assisted on 2 others) in only his 2nd cap...only to be outdone by Stuart Holden, who marked his debut with the senior team with an intelligent header for the 2nd US goal. The Yanks controlled the play, Kyle Beckerman and Logan Pause snuffed out attacks in the midfield, and the US moved the ball well in the offensive-third, outshooting Grenada 25-3. All-in-all, this should prove to be a good confidence booster ahead of the most crucial match of the group stage, which comes Wednesday night in the nation's capital against Honduras.

For the first time in a while, SoccerJunkie can give you a little insight into a couple of great WPS games this weekend---including the what was probably the best game of the weekend (played by any gender) in the country this weekend: LA at Washington tonight (at worst, it's a close 2nd to the El Salvador-Costa Rica game in LA Friday Night). It was a game that featured great technical skill, fantastic chances, and late-game heroics (as LA won 1-0 on a Marta goa in 2nd-half stoppage time). And don't let the fact that this was a game featuring women fool you---these ladies went hard into every single tackle (example A: LA's Christie Shaner going down with what we can only hope isn't a serious leg injury after a strong challenge on Abby Wambach early in the 2nd half---Shaner had to be stretchered directly to an ambulance, Marta's goal coming early in the resulting 9 (yes, NINE) mins of stoppage). The only disappointing thing was what appeared to be far from the best games from Canada's top 2 'keepers (LA's Karina LeBlanc and Washington's Erin McLeod)...but everytime the 'keepers were beat (with the exception of the goal), the defenses covered up, with both teams having efforts cleared--spectacularly on more than one occasion--off the line, as well as shots for both teams off the woodwork. Just a fantastic demonstration of the "Beautiful Game" by two very talented, determined teams...played in a fantastic atmosphere in front of 5,100+ at the beautiful Maryland Soccerplex (we need more fields like that in SoccerJunkie's home state of NJ). Well worth the 3+ hrs each way on the road (this entry comes to you from I-95 on the way back to Jersey).

The other WPS game SoccerJunkie caught live was an afternoon match-up between Sky Blue and the Boston Breakers at Rutgers' Yurcak Field. This one wasn't quite as good as tonight's game, with both teams struggling to possess at times, and missing (Sky Blue's Natasha Kai-shoulder) or losing (Boston's Heather Mitts, who left at halftime after picking up a gash in a head-to-head collision with Sky Blue's Kelly Parker). Heather O'Reilly picked up the only goal in Sky Blue's 1-0 win, curling a corner kick that barely crossed the line before Boston 'keeper Allison Lipsher-who horribly misplayed the ball-parried it out.

One quick observation from the two WPS games SoccerJunkie attended this weekend---the league has done a terrific job when it comes to providing a atmosphere that is great for both the fans and the growth of the league. Sky Blue's home field- Rutgers University's Yurcak Field- is a roughly 4,000-seat facility (though this weekend's crowd (under 2,000) was decidely quiet in comparison to some of the larger crowds the team has drawn) that seats all the fans in a larger single sideline stand. The staff (more specifically the interns) do a fantastic job keeping the crowd (made up largely of families that include younger female players, obviously the league's target audience) excited and into the game. Washington draws a larger, equally energetic crowd to their roughly 6,000-seat stadium at Maryland Soccerplex. While tickets are a little pricier at Washington ($19 can get you front row at Rutgers, while $20 only gets you into the upper section at Soccerplex), they do have a facility that seems almost tailor-made for this new incarnation of the league, which has a business model built on realistic attendance expectations (an average of 5,000 fans per game). If WPS teams shared stadiums with their MLS counterparts (which would come at a higher cost), the atmosphere would be lost---similar to going to a Red Bulls game at Giants Stadium, where 15,000 fans (if we're lucky) seem almost lost in the 80,000-seat bohemouth. Playing in front of 5,000 fans in a 25,000-seat stadium (or worse, in Sky Blue (80,000-seat Giants Stadium) and Washington's (50,000-seat RFK Stadium) case) would likely see the league head in the direction of the old WUSA. So here's 3 cheers to the execs at WPS!

Speaking of the Red Bulls, they also took the field Saturday night, with an away game at FC Dallas. The result? Yet another loss. Sure, Osorio's guys managed only their 2nd road goal of the year---Juan Pablo Angel finally scored a non-PK goal that wasn't a gift from the opposing teams defense (like Dallas' first goal, a gift from Red Bulls' Luke Sassano)---but even that was nearly saved. For weeks, the question has surrounded what it would take before management made the necessary change and let Osorio go. After this loss, the Red Bulls, at 2-13-4 (10 pts), have played more games than any team in the league, but have the fewest points of any team... The international transfer window opens on the 15th, an opportunity for a (new) coach to (re)shape the squad to his liking... So what will it take before Red Bull management looks to build excitement again? Red Bull Arena opens next year, but there needs to be excitement about your team, not just your ridiculously, awesomely incredible facility (which SoccerJunkie has seen from the inside, in-person, and can attest to its ridiculously, awesome incredibleness). It's time, Osorio HAS to go.