December 7, 2007
For everyone that thinks that Jeff has been taking it too easy on the Rhinos brass, this blog post is for you!
The other issue to me that wasn't addressed in Jeff's post is that the team was late to admit that they were having issues.
How many times over the past couple of years were attendance figures questioned and concerns about declining ticket revenue brought up? And it seemed that until lately that the Rhinos always tried to spin things that they weren't that bad.
While one cliche says that "Hindsight is 20/20", there is another that states that "Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it". There are a lot of people within the Rhinos organization and in the community that need to learn from history as people try and turn things around.
Failing to pump more money into PAETEC Park will not improve the situation for anyone involved.
But, running PAETEC Park and the Rhinos the way that they have been lately won't improve the situation either.
My only concern is that too many of the parties involved are unwilling to admit that they have made mistakes and will continue down a path that has gotten them into the situation that they are in today. Let's all hope that isn't the case.
News & Notes:
- The USL has announced the details of the 2008 W-League season. The Rhinos will play in the North Division of the Central Conference in 2008. And once again, the host of the W-League Championship Tournament will be determined by a bid process with the host team being guaranteed a spot in the W-League Semifinals.
- Charleston and Portland have linked up in a trade. The Battery land MF Luke Kreamalmeyer while the Timbers add D Tim Karalexis. Kreamalmeyer is coming off a down 2007 season following a stellar 2006 campaign that saw him land a spot on the USL 1st Division All-League 1st Team. If he can revert to his 2006 form, this could be a big addition for the Battery.
- Hope Solo has finally talked to the media about the whole blow up at the World Cup earlier this year that helped push USWNT head coach Greg Ryan out the door.
It's going to be very interesting to see how this whole thing plays out. I'm hoping that everyone involved is professional enough to put the past in the past and they can all move on to trying to win Gold at the 2008 Olympics.
- Could Pablo Mastroeni be the first big name added by the San Jose Earthquakes...............
- The KC Star has an article on how Kansas City's mayor is coming out against big tax breaks for the development proposal that includes a new stadium for the Wizards. While this appears really bad for the Wizards, this could be good for a city that is hoping to add an MLS team.
- There are more rumors on the Toronto FC coaching situation. Goal.com is saying that Mo Johnston will become the team's GM, Steve Nicol has turned down the head coaching job, and that Paul Mariner is still in the mix. However, the Toronto Globe and Mail is saying that Mo is remaining on the TFC sideline and is merely looking to replace Bob Gansler as his top assistant. It will be very interesting to see how this all plays out.
- US Soccer Players.com has a really good QA with USMNT assistant coach Mike Sorber.
- US U-17 head coach Wilmer Cabrera won his first game as the US defeated Russia 2-0 in Bradenton.
- And finally, Rhinos fans aren't the only ones that are worried about how the Rochester Sports Group's finances will affect their team..............
The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author, and not necessarily those of the Rochester Rhinos or SoccerSam.com. Feel free to send any comments or complaints to news@soccersam.com. James promises to read (but not to respond) to all of them.
