Stats & Analysis

Friday, June 23^rd, 2017 – Detroit City FC FC 2 Kalamazoo FC 1
Sunday, June 25rd, 2017 – Milwaukee Torrent 1 Detroit City FC 2

As I write this I’m still recovering from Sunday-Monday’s 21 hour round-trip to Milwaukee. Being awake for one full day doesn’t just happen naturally – it’s something you have to make a conscious effort to do. And then, trying to explain it to someone who’s not in-the-know can be almost just as draining. I’ve written this post as a handy reference that I, or anyone else, can use the next time such an explanation is required.

Let’s start off with the basic question one would ask: “Why would you spend an entire day (or more) and travel hundreds of miles to watch an amateur soccer team?”

Reason #1: Chasing Moments

I’ve talked about this in some past posts, but the Cliffs Notes* version is that we go because we crave seeing moments of greatness live and in person. It’s one thing to watch it happen on a stream or as a video highlight, but seeing the buildup, payoff, and aftermath with your own eyes is far superior.

Reason #2: The Overall Experience

Aside from the actual soccer, the experience of traveling to new places while making friends and memories along the way is a reward in and of itself. I can’t help but shake my head when I see people who refuse to give DCFC a chance because it’s “beneath them” and who will only be satisfied by an MLS club. They’re sitting around waiting for something that may never even happen and missing out on potential lifelong relationships and memories in the process. For me personally, one of the worst feelings is that life is passing me by and I’m stuck on the proverbial hamster wheel. This happens more often than I’d like, but I know a sure way to get out of the rut is to break up the usual routine with a road trip. A little sleep deprivation is a small price to pay. It also means a great deal to the ones actualy playing on the field:

Reason #3: Sheer Ridiculousness and Laughable Absurdity

Home matches and in-state road trips have their share of weird, crazy moments, but nothing compares to what happens when state lines are crossed. From DCFC owners tossing beers over the fence to supporters at Cleveland (2012), to the high school-aged official/firetrucks/angry mom (Minn. Utd./Cincinnati/Fort Pitt – 2015), to being threatened with arrest by a toothless man – Indiana, three weeks ago, hilarity is somehow amplified outside of Michigan. It’s these little dashes of spice that add to already memorable trips and make them go down into legend.

The bus ride to and from Milwaukee was its own continuous stream of nonsensical amusement, but if I had to pick one out from the match itself it would have to be this guy:

He just showed up to do his weekly sprint workout and had no idea what was going on at the stadium that day, or even that a soccer team played in his town.

Bigger leagues may be more prestigious, they may have world-class players, and their games may be on TV, but I don’t care. I’ll take 13 hours on a bus, 3 points, and confused workout dudes.

*I always thought it was “Cliff Notes”, not “Cliffs Notes.” Mandela Effect?

Continue reading “Dumb, Stupid, Awesome Fun”

Sunday, June 11^th, 2017 – Kalamazoo FC 0 Detroit City FC 1

On Sunday afternoon I played a rec-league soccer game in surface-of-Venus-esque heat. It went very poorly, both for me individually and my team collectively. After the final whistle, coated in a wonderful mixture of sweat, sunscreen, and dirt, I immediately hopped in my car and drove to Kalamazoo, making it there just prior to kickoff.

I don’t tell you this to show off my purity and virtue as a supporter (okay, maybe just a teeny bit), but to paint a picture of my peculiar mental state. I’m slightly obsessed with soccer, and though I wish I could say it’s a completely healthy obsession, the fact that I risked potential dehydration, heat illness, and wicked sunburn says otherwise.

So why did I do it? Why do any of us go to such lengths for this club? Is it because soccer fans are freakin’ nuts? Partially. Is it because City supporters have become sort of an extended family centered around something that gives us pride in our community? That’s a big reason, but I think there’s another – something more fundamental that we’re not fully aware of until we stop to consider it.

In a piece earlier this year, Sean Spence wrote the following, a message from supporters to players:

At a base, subconscious level, I believe we follow City home and away to bear witness to the moments that result in immortalization – the things we talk about years after the fact, those little details that become pieces of lore. We’re junkies for the extraordinary and the absurd.

While the win over Kalamazoo didn’t produce a Firetruck or Lansing-breaking moment, it provided further evidence of a team that is coming together and looking ever more dangerous. Scoring a highlight-reel goal or faking out a local municipal service are both legitimate ways to be remembered, but so is working your tail off for the full match in rec-player-wilting conditions – the proverbial 90’ in 90°.

String a few more of those together and your name just may go down in history.

Continue reading “To Live Forever”

Friday, June 2^nd, 2017 – Detroit City FC 3 Grand Rapids FC 1
Sunday, June 4^th, 2017 – FC Indiana 1 Detroit City FC 3

Just two weeks ago, Detroit City was reeling after a humbling 2-0 loss to Ann Arbor. The 0-2-1 (W-D-L) start obviously wasn’t fun, but what made it even worse was that the performances simply felt like a continuation of last season’s lackluster play – one disappointing season bleeding over into another. While there appeared to be plenty of talent on the roster, it took until this past weekend for it to finally start shining through. There’s been noticeable improvement in several areas, but what’s stood out most is the revamped midfield. Three players in particular have caught my eye, all of whom have just recently made their debuts.

Tyrone Mondi

In this year’s season preview I wrote the following about Mondi:

Early returns point toward helicopter – an attack helicopter with twin .50-cals and laser-guided rockets. Aside from his deceptive speed and skill on the ball, what’s most impressive is how in sync with his teammates he looks after after such a short time. He recorded an assist in each of his first two starts this weekend and combined well with Cyrus Saydee and Spencer Glass in the final third to consistently create chances. In spite of his newness to the team and the number of other quality players at the winger position he looks to have carved out a starting role for himself. He should remain there as City moves into the middle part of league play.

Louis Dargent

When Louis Dargent was added to the roster just before the season, I incorrectly assumed he’d be a depth player – someone to fill in as needed and see time as a defensive specialist due to his height and heading ability. I was clearly wrong in this regard* and I’m perfectly happy to admit it.

He’s turned out to be a revelation at center midfield. In addition to his aforementioned aerial ability, he’s surprisingly technical and good with the ball at his feet for someone his size (6’4”). Not only is he defensively sound and good at winning the ball, he’s shown that he’s also an asset going forward:

Like Mondi, Dargent has cemented his place as a key player and automatic starter. I don’t know what the story is with Coastal Carolina, but in supplying City with both Dargent and Kervin Kenton, it’s proven itself as a gold mine for under-the-radar talent.

*In my defense there’s next to nothing about him on the Internet, other than his college bio and a Top Drawer Soccer page.

Aaron Franco

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a City player become a team leader in such a short time as Aaron Franco. Case in point, when Dave Edwardson was subbed out on Sunday against Indiana, it was none other than Franco who received the captain’s armband. That’s quite an accomplishment for someone who was playing in just his second league match with the club and third overall.

He may not stand out as much as the playmaker Mondi or the towering redhead Dargent, but what Franco does is just as important to the team’s success. By sitting in the spot between the centerbacks and the rest of the midfield, he’s able to gather the ball and distribute it forward, greatly aiding City’s ability to play out of the back. It was subtle but noticeable that the team was less reliant on long balls this weekend, and a lot of that had to do with his style of play.

Oh, and by the way, Cyrus Saydee, Bakie Goodman, Jeff Adkins, and Dave Edwardson (among others) are still here too. This has the makings of the best midfield in club history, and whatever success City experiences this summer will be due in no small way to this group.

Continue reading “The Middle Way”

Sunday, May 21^st, 2017 – AFC Ann Arbor 2 Detroit City FC 0

A lot of my recent reading has centered around the subject of mindset. The basic theory is that your thoughts and attitudes shape your actions and that making small changes to the way you think can have a tangible impact on the outcomes in your life. In Man’s Search for Meaning, Viktor Frankl describes his experiences as a prisoner at Auschwitz and posits the view that each person at all times has the ability to control of his or her own attitude, regardless of external influences. He observed that, in general, those who attempted to maintain at least a tiny shred of a positive outlook had a higher survival rate than those who gave into nihilism and despair.

It goes without saying that the horrors of a death camp are in an entirely different universe than the week-to-week challenges of a sports team, but the same principles uncovered by Frankl in that waking nightmare can be applied by any person in any difficult situation, no matter how trivial.

Two weeks into this season we’ve already pored over dozens of possible changes to City’s lineup and tactics in an attempt to get some grasp of what’s going wrong and how the team can get back on track. Last week I talked about the need for each individual player to become more part of a cohesive unit, but something else struck me when I watched Sunday’s match play out as so many have in recent memory: the divergent mindsets between City and its opponents.

DCFC’s reputation as a big lower-division club was built over the years as it stacked up wins at Cass Tech and its outsized support turned the place into a cauldron that caused visiting players to visibly lose their composure. Consequently, every single opposing team now comes to the match with their very best in the hopes of knocking City from its perch. This is why their players celebrate goals exclusively in front of the Northern Guard rather than their own fans. That giant-killing mentality seems to fuel each and every one of them.

It’s not a controversial statement, however, to say that City hasn’t played like giants of late, at least not since the Open Cup run of a year ago. On paper the talent is there, but something is just off. They look tight, afraid of making mistakes. Dealing with adversity has been a problem too. In each match this season they’ve come out and looked like the better team for the first 30-50 minutes, but when the other team makes adjustments and a couple things go against them they seem to get a little lost. This in turn noticeably affects their playing style as short passes are eschewed in favor of long balls, challenges become more reckless, and on the whole things just look generally panicked and hurried.

If I’m right and the team mindset isn’t where it should be, it’s up to the coaching staff and the leaders amongst the players to reframe things. If I can offer one suggestion it would be to co-opt the strategy from the teams they’ve struggled with: view yourself as the underdog going up against the big bad bullies that need to be knocked down a peg.

Practically speaking, do the things that frustrate you when they’re done to you: get in the way of crosses and shots, work hard in the midfield to win the ball and make smart passes to keep it away from the other team once you get it, make runs at the back line, pressure the defenders and keeper when they have the ball.

The mental aspect of the game is often discussed, but I think it’s more important than most people realize. We’ve all heard the stories of visiting teams standing in the tunnel at Cass, already shaken by the atmosphere. They’d lost before even setting foot on the field because their heads weren’t in the right place.

Mastering one’s state of mind is just as challenging as any on-field feat, and can have just as significant of an impact on the outcome.

Continue reading “Mental Warfare”