U.S. Open Cup Round of 4
EL PASO 1 - 0 SEATTLE Amparan (EP) 17' (1st)I don't have any details on this yet, but it looks like what Erik predicted came true. The Patriots pulled in ringers from the Mexican First Division and beat us in their 103 degree climate.
So much for an "FA-styled" US Cup. Instead of starting a great new American soccer tradition in the vein of the venerable English FA Cup, we get this loopholed waste of time. This is not a victory for the underdog, the USISL and especially not the Patriots. There is nothing here that anyone can be proud of.
From the Tacoma Tribune:
The lone goal of the match came off a corner kick in the 17th minute as El Paso's Gabino Amparan
knocked a header past charging goalie Marcus Hahnemann. Amparan's goal was assisted by Lorenzo Baeza.
The temperature swelled to 103 degrees, but the Sounders did not make any excuses for the setback.
True to form, Hinton was much more magnanimous about the lose:
"The heat was a big-time factor and I doubt if any of our guys have ever played in this type of weather," said Sounders coach Alan Hinton, whose team entered the match outscoring U.S.I.S.L. teams, 14-2, in two previous U.S. Open Cup matches at home. "We are not going to use the heat as an excuse. I put together the best lineup I had available to me and sometimes these results happen in the game of soccer."
The Sounders did play the match without A-League All-Star forward Jason Dunn, who stayed home to rest after breaking his nose for the seventh time of his career in the U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal match against the Chico Rooks on July 21.
If Mr. Soccer honestly feels this way, maybe we were beaten fair and square. More an issue of homefield or home-climate advantage than ringers. It just sours you when you hear about such unsportsman like maneuverings. I'd still like to see a more complete match report.
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