The Caribbean Football Club Champions Cup is just around the corner, kicking off March 9 with the First Round. Among the clubs involved in the tournament are USL Pro newcomer River Plate FC of Puerto Rico and their rival Puerto Rico Islanders of the NASL. The tournament concludes March 29, determining the three clubs that will advance to the CONCACAF Champions League
The Islanders, veterans of the CCL and defending CFU champions, enter the event in the Second Round as the lone team seeded with a bye. They will face the winner of the series between St Lucia's Northern United All-Stars and Suriname's Walking Boyz Co.
River Plate's opening series pits the club against Bodden Town from the Cayman Islands. A year ago, the Puerto Rican side performed well in the tournament, but had the misfortune of being drawn into a difficult group in the Second Round which featured San Juan Jabloteh of Trinidad & Tobago. After sweeping group play with a 12-2 aggregate score in three games versus Racing of Haiti and a pair of Antigua & Barbuda clubs, River Plate drew 1-1 with Alpha United (Guyana) and were edged, 1-0, by Jabloteh, who went on to qualify for the Champions League a second consecutive time.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Cup champion Seattle's CCL results in hindsight
The US Open Cup champion Seattle Sounders had a tough run of it in the CONCACAF Champions League this past summer as the last-place finisher of their group with a 1-0-5 (W-D-L) record. But looking at the initial Quarterfinal results this week, maybe that finish was not all that bad. The group winner, Monterrey, went on to win the Apertura championship during the fall and opened the knockout portion of the tournament with a 1-0 road victory Wednesday over Toluca. They were the only club to win away from home in the four series. The group's runner-up, Saprissa, earned a 1-0 victory at home Thursday against Olimpia, who were 4-1-1 en route to winning their group, beating out Toluca and the famous Puerto Rico Islanders.
The Sounders get another shot at international play this summer after winning their second consecutive US Open Cup title last fall with a 2-1 victory over the Columbus Crew, who are still in the CCL and played to a scoreless draw against Real Salt Lake Tuesday in Ohio.
The Sounders get another shot at international play this summer after winning their second consecutive US Open Cup title last fall with a 2-1 victory over the Columbus Crew, who are still in the CCL and played to a scoreless draw against Real Salt Lake Tuesday in Ohio.
Saprissa tops undermanned Olimpia 1-0
Armando Alonso scored his fourth goal of the season and Saprissa outdueled an undermanned Olimpia 1-0 on Thursday to win the home leg of its CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal against the 23-time Honduran champion. Full Report +
They Said It: Bob Lenarduzzi
"There’s been an evolution of the tournament, with FC Edmonton coming in. There will be less games to what there has been in the past, and with it being home-and-home, it’s going to put a premium on the two games we play in the semifinals. We’ll be making sure we have our best available squad out there for our games against Montreal." - Whitecaps FC President Bob Lenarduzzi (Whitecapsfc.com)
CSA confirms 2011 NCC schedule
The Canadian Soccer Association has announced a new format for the Nutrilite Canadian Championship along with its 2011 schedule. For the first time, the competition will now feature four teams, with FC Edmonton added to the existing group of Toronto FC, Vancouver Whitecaps FC and Impact Montréal. The old round-robin format has been replaced by the combination of a home-and-away semi-final stage along with a home-and-away championship final. Full Release +
Monterrey subdues 10-man Toluca 1-0
Second-half substitute Osvaldo Martinez converted a 23-meter free kick in the 82nd minute to give Monterrey a 1-0 victory over 10-man Toluca Wednesday in the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinals. Full Report +
Crew, Salt Lake shiver to 0-0 draw
The Columbus Crew failed to capitalize on a man advantage for most of the second half and had to settle for a 0-0 draw with Real Salt Lake on Tuesday in the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinals. Full Report +
Orozco leads Cruz Azul past Santos 2-0
Javier Orozco scored his 24th goal in less than three years of the CONCACAF Champions League and Christian Gimenez added another to give Cruz Azul a 2-0 victory over Santos Laguna on Tuesday in the first leg of the quarterfinals. Full Report +
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