But some WPS coaches whose players play on the U.S. team are starting to feel taken advantage of.  In addition to the actual World Cup games, USWNT coach Pia Sundhage has instituted a heavy training schedule that will keep many of the league’s better-known players out of action for much of the season.  Although helping the national team is both a patriotic duty and a smart business move, is the league going too far to be accommodating?

WPS fans might see a lot less of Lindsay Tarpley this year

Our Game magazine provides a good run-down of the national team’s training schedule: they’re currently in the United Kingdom, to play the English on April 2 in London and train in Scotland up until April 7.  During this period, they’re also rumored to be playing the Scottish national team in a closed-door scrimmage.  After this, the team returns to the States, and the players are available to train and play with the WPS teams.  But, beginning April 18, Coach Sundhage is conducting another training camp in Florida, to last for three weeks.  This time, because the players are state-side, they will be “available” to go back-and-forth between camp and WPS games, but they still won’t be training with their teammates day-in and day-out.  The national team leaves for Europe on June 5, with a heavy training schedule before the World Cup actually opens on June 26.

A complicated set of fixtures, but the long and short of it is this: the WPS season opens on April 9, but players on the USWNT will have limited availability for basically the first two-thirds of the seasons.  During a lot of that period, they’re going to be out of the country (before they return from the U.K., then in the weeks leading up to the World Cup, and during the actual event itself).  Even when they’re in the U.S. and are available to play, they won’t be practicing with their teammates most of the time.  As anyone who’s played soccer knows, this is nearly as big a problem as being absent entirely; club players have to practice together every day (or at least several times a week) in order to work on tactics, timing and communication.  And if the team is struggling, the coach may want to change the formation, introduce new drills in practice, and even go over game film.  None of this can be done from afar, and teams with rosters that are heavy in USWNT players will be at a disadvantage.

Needless to say, several WPS coaches are displeased.  Breakers boss Tony DiCicco tells ChicagoLand Soccer News that U.S. Soccer (our equivalent of the FA) “made it difficult” on the WPS with the heavy dose training in the spring and early summer.  DiCicco says he won’t see his USWNT players until April 7 at the earliest, when they return from Scotland.  And Philadelphia coach Paul Riley appears equally frustrated.  The Independence open their season on April 10, and Riley isn’t waiting around for the USWNT players to get his team ready: “I actually put a team together to play without them … If they are here, they’re here. If they’re not, they’re not. That looks like the way it’s going to be at this point.”

It’s hard to blame Coach Sundhage for wanting to get her players together for as much training as possible.  She knows the U.S. team needs a good showing in Germany to keep her job.  The real question is, where has U.S. Soccer been for the last few months?  WPS teams that rely heavily on players who happen to play for the USWNT, like the Breakers and the Freedom (or whatever they end up calling themselves) are at a huge disadvantage this year – not only on the field, where their best players will be absent much of the year, but also when it comes to selling tickets.  This is exactly where the countries governing body of soccer needs to step in and try to find a better balance between the success of the national team and the growth and health of the sport.

Either way, the season opens in two weeks.  We’ll be back next week to take a look at the Week 1 match-ups, and maybe try to see which teams will be at a disadvantage for having a lot of players on the national team.  How weird does that sound?

Figuratively, of course.

With the dissolution of FC Gold Pride, last year’s champions, the WPS field is wide-open this year.  Fans of every team feel like they have a decent shot to make a run to the title.  The WPS official site’s playoff page demonstrates the league’s unique (and pretty cool, I think) format – 4 of the 6 teams make the playoffs.  In Round 1, the 3^rd and 4^th ranked teams play each other, and the winner advances to Round 2, to play the 2^nd ranked team.  The winner of this match then advances to the Championship game against the regular season champ.  Kind of unusual, but probably the best you can do with a 6-team league.  So the top 4 teams will make the playoffs, with the second-best team getting a bye, and the regular season champ getting a “Super-Bye” (we could also say “two bye weeks” or “a double bye,” but I like “Super-Bye” better).

Our team-by-team analysis proceeds with the understanding that 4 of the 6 get playoff spots:

ATLANTA BEAT

The Beat finished the 2010 season in last place, with only 5 wins against 13 losses and 6 draws.  They faded especially hard down the stretch, winning only a single game of their last 9. 

But the Beat might be the league’s most improved organization in 2011, for two reasons: first, they picked up Cat Whitehill, the veteran defender who has starred with Washington and with the U.S. Women’s National Team.  She figures to bring huge improvements to a team that was last in the league in defense last year.

Second, the Beat had a great draft.  They snagged Kylie Wright out of UCLA and Meghan Lenczyk of UVA with their first two picks.  Wright is a versatile player who can play defense and midfield and who was a first-team All PAC-10 selection last year, while Lenczyk is an explosive scorer who should be able to step in and contribute right away.

Prediction: Atlanta looks to be a much-improved side that should contend.  They might be a year away from a championship run, but if the rookies can learn on the fly, look out.

BOSTON BREAKERS

The Breakers finished last year as regular season runners-up, with a record of 10 wins, 8 losses, and 6 draws.  They were knocked out of the playoffs by Philadelphia in something of an upset, but the Breakers remain a dangerous force.  Leading scorer Kelly Smith is a veteran of the English game, where she scored 73 goals in 4 seasons with Arsenal Ladies.  Boston was also the only club other than (now defunct) FC Gold Pride to rank in top 3 in both scoring and defense last year.

Nonetheless, it occasionally feels like something is a little off with this team.  Counting the playoff loss to Philadelphia, they scored only a single goal in their final 3 games, and won none of them.  They do struggle to come up with clutch scoring when it’s really needed.  They also decided to go the small-conference route with their first pick in the draft, grabbing Keelin Winters of the University of Portland.  The Breakers figure to remain a solid, well-rounded club without a real killer instinct.

Prediction: they might have enough skill and depth to grind out a playoff spot, but I can’t see Boston winning it all. 

PHILADELPHIA INDEPENDENCE

The Indies made a surprising run to the final last year, fighting their way to a playoff spot with a victory in the last week of the season, then dropping Washington and Boston back-to-back.  But their 4-0 demolition at the hands of FC Gold Pride in the final left no doubt as to who was the best team in the league.  Philadelphia plays a fast-paced game that’s great fun for the fans; luckily, they have the skill players on offense to pull it off.  Defensively, they can be exposed (second-worst goals allowed last year, culminating in the championship game, where they were ripped to shreds), but I still think they have the speed and firepower to contend in 2011. 

Philly is led by Amy Rodriguez, the 24-year old star of the Women’s national team who scored 12 WPS goals last year.  They also have Natasha Kai, who beat out all competition to become world’s best-known heavily-tattooed Hawaiian-Filipino Mormon professional women’s soccer player.  And we predict she won’t relinquish that title easily.

Prediction: probably one of the 2 or 3 best teams in the league.  If the defense can improve, Philadelphia is a contender.

SKY BLUE FC

The Blues barely missed the playoffs last year after winning the championship in 2009.  Their defense is solid, and goalie Karen Bardsley had 5 shutouts last year.  Hometown hero Heather O’Reilly, veteran of two Olympics and one Women’s World Cup, leads the midfield.  The club has a fairly dedicated fan base and a number of players with experience.

So what’s the problem in Piscataway?  Basically, not enough goals.  Sky Blue had the weakest attack in the league last year, scoring only 20 goals in 24 games.  A stretch in July when the club went 3 and a half games without scoring a goal pretty much put an end to their season.  This year, Sky Blue hopes to resurrect the offense, but it promises to be a long task, especially as the club had only one pick in this winter’s draft, which came in the last round.

Prediction: Sky Blue appears to be in need of rebuild.  This club probably doesn’t have the firepower to contend.

WASHINGTON FREEDOM

Yeah, I know … this.  But we aren’t calling them majic Talk whatever until we see it on their shirts. 

Washington will continue to rely on Abby Wambach.  The iconic forward suffered through injuries and a little rust last year, but still managed 13 goals.  Despite some miles, Abby can absolutely terrorize defenses when she’s healthy and locked in.  The Freedom will also lean on Becky Sauerbrunn, the reliable defender who anchors the back line for the Women’s National Team.  Although the club still has talent, losing your coach, one of your best players (Cat Whitehill – see above), home city and team name all in one off season is a lot to overcome.

Prediction: too much turmoil.  I’ll be rooting for them, but this off-season’s chaos might be too big a hill to climb.

WESTERN NY FLASH

This year’s expansion team (actually a promoted team) pulled off a major coup when they snagged Marta, the Brazilian 5-time FIFA Women’s Player of the Year.  Almost impossibly, Marta has gotten better since her destruction of Team USA in the 2007 Women’s World Cup.  She led FC Gold Pride to the title last year, notching a goal and 2 assists in the triumph over Philadelphia in the final.

Apparently, every team gets to have Marta once

Prediction: you can chalk it up to Marta or call it beginner’s luck, but I think the Flash are going to be hoisting the championship trophy this year.

LOOKING AHEAD

The teams have already started playing pre-season exhibition games, and we’re less than 4 weeks away from opening night.  Keep in mind that the WPS has a national TV deal this year with Fox Soccer Channel, who will be airing games every Sunday at 6 PM.  So set your TiVos, if you’re so inclined.  And join us next week as we check up on the status of the Washington Freedom and look at this summer’s schedule.

WPS officials have long referred to the Freedom as one of the league’s flagship franchises.  The club has existed in the same form and with the same ownership group since the old WUSA days, and numerous women’s soccer stars have worn the colors, including Mia Hamm, Brianna Scurry, and Abby Wambach.  Throughout the turmoil of 2009 and 2010, the Freedom were one of the league’s foundation stones, a source of stability.

This made it all the more confounding when the Hendricks family, the team’s owners, announced that they wanted to sell their majority stake in the club.  Although they never explicitly said as much, it was clear that the owners weren’t willing to keep on losing money; there was even a possibility that the club could fold, until the Freedom were purchased by the enigmatic Dan Borislow.

Borislow is, if nothing else, someone who will get people talking.  His obviously self-edited Wikipedia page describes him as an “entrepreneur, inventor, and thoroughbred horse breeder.”  He made millions inventing a VOIP phone network, and established a reputation as a brash and antagonistic businessman.  I’ll go out on a limb and declare him the only WPS owner to be described as “an asshole” by the chairman of AOL. 

Borislow’s first move was to rename the team “magicTalk SC / Washington Freedom.”  No, that is not a joke.  He declared that he wanted the team to play “some” of its home games in Florida, where he and his family live.  He made clear his desire to bring Marta onto the roster (she’s since been signed by the expansion Western New York Flash).  Basically, DC-area Freedom fans have been in limbo for months, not sure whether they even have a team anymore, although the club’s moving out of its offices at the Maryland SoccerPlex was definitely not a good sign.

In February, it was announced that the Freedom (or should I be calling them magicTalk? We’ll wait to see what’s actually on the uniforms before taking that step) will likely be playing their home games at Florida Atlantic University’s soccer field.  The official line changes every week, but news outlets were told that the club would still play a few games in the DC-Maryland area.  The club’s first home game is on Saturday, April 23, and the venue is still listed as “TBA” on the official WPS site.  Needless to say, several important questions remain unanswered.  Tune in next week as we follow the ongoing saga of the Freedom and preview the upcoming WPS season.

Up close and personal at the WPS Draft

As often with young leagues, a lot of changes were made in the offseason.  I thought I was at least glibly familiar with the WPS going into the day, but a few incidents of upheaval since the past season ended took me by surprise:

- A new franchise has been added in Rochester, to be called the Western New York Flash. 

- Several teams have folded, including California’s FC Gold Pride (last year’s champions) and the Chicago Red Stars.  They join St. Louis Athletica, who went under halfway through last season.

- The Washington franchise has announced it will play some of its home matches in Florida (where the owner happens to live) this coming season.  This doesn’t augur well for this team’s future in the DC area.

- Also, the Washington team, currently called the Freedom, announced it will change its name to magicTalk FC / Washington Freedom.  The less said about this, the better.

If you’re keeping track at home, this leaves six teams to play in the upcoming 2011 season: the Western NY Flash, the Atlanta Beat, the Philadelphia Independence, Sky Blue FC (based in NJ), the Boston Breakers, and magicTalk FC / Washington Freedom.  All of them are based on or near the East coast. 

There were definitely a few positive signs.  First, the sponsors from last year hung around, and the league did pick up a few more.  Citibank and Puma logos were all over everything at the draft.  This is probably more important than anything.  Even the biggest and best leagues need sponsors (consider the bidding wars to be “the official truck of the NFL”), but for a smaller and newer league, they are absolutely vital.  Only corporate sponsorships are going to give you the continued and reliable flow of cash you need to fund the operational basics – salaries of players, coaches and employees; lease payments on arenas and stadiums; even travel costs.  Draft day showed that are a few companies that are willing to stick with the league, and surely for business reasons (I doubt Citibank has much of a sense of sentiment).

In the end, of course, only converting large numbers of fans will bring the necessary revenue: tickets sales, shirts and hats, and eventually TV viewership.  The league seems genuinely confident that this will come, in time.  But the sponsorships are going to be necessary to keep the show on the road for at least the next two years.

A second positive sign was the presence of a respectable-sized media pool.  Between reporters with notebooks and tape recorders, photographers, and bloggers typing away at computers, I counted at least 20 media types on the scene.  A few people were live-blogging the draft.  The entire thing (which wasn’t shown on TV) was being broadcast over the net, and we were told the start had to be delayed because the online feed was overwhelmed.  So there are people interested in the WPS.  How many, and how deep their interest, remains to be seen. 

The draft itself followed an asymmetrical format – because of special expansion and compensatory picks, none of the four rounds had the same number of picks.  This kept us on our toes.  With the first overall pick, the Western NY Flash took Alex Morgan, forward out of the University of California.  Unlike the MLS Draft, the women came from a wide of variety college programs: 18 schools were represented in the 24 picks, and no school had more than two. 

The expansion Flash probably made out the best.  In addition to Morgan, they selected Elli Reed out of the University of Portland, Rose Augustin from Notre Dame (who led the Irish to the NCAA title this year), and Ashleigh Bowers from Niagara U.  So don’t be surprised if the league newcomers threaten in their first year. 

Teams are still in the process of signing their players, so complete rosters for the upcoming season aren’t available yet.  The full season schedule won’t be set until February, but the first week of games has already been announced.  The Breakers and Atlanta Beat open the season on April 9, and the Independence travel to Jersey to take on Sky Blue FC the next day, with Fox Soccer Channel broadcasting live.  Stay tuned over the next few months, as The Offside will preview the upcoming season, investigate the possible move of the Washington franchise to Florida, and maybe even profile a few players.

FIRST TEAM
Pos., Player, Class, School, Hometown
K, Anna Belpedio, Jr., Winona State University, Coon Rapids, Mich.
D, Lisa Bradley, Sr., University of California-San Diego, Martinez, Calif.
D, Kelly Guerin*, Sr., College of Saint Rose, Sutton, Mass.
D, Jenna Wenglinski, Sr., Grand Valley State University, Portage, Mich.
D, Katie Whiting**, Sr., College of Saint Rose, Holden, Mass.
M, Kendra Clemons, Sr., Midwestern State University, Odessa, Texas
M, Amanda Deck**, Sr., College of Saint Rose, Syracuse, N.Y.
M, Catherine Hauck, Jr., Lenoir-Rhyne University, Lake Mary, Fla.
M, Erin Mruz*, Jr., Grand Valley State University, Gurnee, Ill
F, Ashley Botts, So., Grand Valley State University, Beloit, Wis.
F, Shakira Duncan*, Sr., University of West Florida, Kingston, Jamaica
F, Sarah Oswald**, Sr., West Chester University, MaCungie, Pa.
F, Jodi-Ann Robinson, So., University of West Florida, Richmond, B.C.

SECOND TEAM
K, Kristin Armstrong, Jr., University of California-San Diego, Anaheim, Calif.
K, Chelsea Parise, So., Grand Valley State University, Warren, Mich.
D, Maria Leider, Sr., University of Minnesota-Duluth, Duluth, Minn.
D, Taylor Sawyer, So., Seattle Pacific University, Gig Harbor, Wash.
D, Abigail Schuhmann*, Jr., Bellarmine University, Louisville, Ky.
D, Casey Smith*, Sr., North Ga. College and State University, Stockbridge, Ga.
M, Danielle DeLuca, Sr., C.W. Post University, Islip, N.Y.
M, Stephanie Lowery, Jr., Columbus State University, Sandy, Utah
M, Amanda Mason, Jr., Northern Kentucky University, Cincinnati, Ohio
M, Alyssa Rhodes, Jr., University of Central Missouri, Olathe, Kan.
F, Liz Franco, Sr., Cal State-Los Angeles, Oceanside, Calif.
F, Hayley Hollenga, Jr., Fort Lewis College, Colorado Springs, Colo.
F, Megan Lindsay, So., Seattle Pacific University, Spokane, Wash.
F, Linda Velaj, Sr., University of Bridgeport, Stamford, Conn.

THIRD TEAM
K, Lyndsie Bernardini*, So., West Chester University, Elmer, N.J.
K, Deanna Esposito, Sr., College of Saint Rose, Sayville, N.Y.
D, Kelly Boyd, Sr., St. Edward’s University, Round Rock, Texas
D, Chelsea Deeter, Sr., Kutztown University, Langhorne, Pa.
D, Cindi Nickles, Sr., West Chester University, Baltimore, Md.
M, Christina Cuffari, Jr., College of Saint Rose, Brick, N.J.
M, Becky Fleming*, Sr., Quincy University, St. Louis, Mo.
M, Morgan Gruenenfelder*, Sr., Carson-Newman College, Sweetwater, Tenn.
M, Elizabeth Hawes, So., Lenoir-Rhyne University, Valdese, N.C.
M, Paula Lillsjo, Jr., Florida Institute of Technology, Helsingborg, Sweden
F, Janae Averett, Sr., St. Edward’s University, Round Rock, Texas
F, Shannon Becker, Jr., University of Wisconsin-Parkside, DePere, Wis.
F, Chloe Roberts, So., University of North Alabama, Plymouth, England
F, Julissa Rodriguez, Jr., New Mexico Highlands University, Kennewick, Wash.

I’m curious in the breakdown of players by team.  Here’s a list of the players who played in the match on Saturday, their number on the U.S. team,  and the club they are employed by.

# – Name – Club

4 – Yael Averbuch – Sky Blue FC
18 – Nicole Barnhart – FC Gold Pride
7 – Shannon Boxx – FC Gold Pride
26 – Rachel Buehler – FC Gold Pride
12 – Lauren Cheney – Boston Breakers
14 – Stephanie Cox – Boston Breakers
16 – Ali Krieger – FFC Frankfurt (Germany)
6 – Amy LePeilbet – Boston Breakers
13 – Kristine Lilly – Boston Breakers
11 – Lori Lindsey – Philadelphia Independence
10 – Carli Lloyd – Sky Blue FC
24 – Jill Loyden – Chicago Red Stars
2 – Heather Mitts – Philadelphia Independence
9 – Heather O’Reilly – Sky Blue FC
3 – Christie Rampone (C) – Sky Blue FC
15 – Megan Rapinoe – Chicago Red Stars
8 – Amy Rodriguez – Philadelphia Independence
20 – Abby Wambach – Washington Freedom

I’m not 100% sure, but I don’t think there are any Chinese Players in the W.P.S.  Here’s a breakdown of how many players from each club were called up for this squad…

Atlanta Beat – 0
Boston Breakers – 4
Chicago Red Stars – 2
FC Gold Pride – 3
Philadelphia Independence – 3
Sky Blue FC – 4
Washington Freedom – 1

Ten of the players that were called up are from playoff teams, and 7 non-playoff players. Interesting because I was thinking Coach Pia would lean more on the non-playoff players since their training coincided with the W.P.S. playoff schedule. It will be interesting to see how the roster shapes up as we get closer to the Women’s World Cup.

Smart-Alecs get their team pictures distorted on the Interweb

Thank you, Tiffany, because I think I can smell it from here. And if delicious, eyebrow-raising sarcasm was not your intent? Hey, your post still beat the hell out of execution processes and business innovation.

• Amy is on a brand new team.
• Independence head coach Paul Riley is refreshing.
• Her job is to score goals.
• Amy plays without pressure.
• The Boston Breakers is her old team.
• Playing against the Boston Breakers will be different.

Now you don’t have to click play. But if you’re a fan of seeing stupid in action, sit back and enjoy your Friday, son!

Ramona was my first pick for my WPS Fantasy team, the Boston Fakers. Hey, if Boston can’t have her, “Fantasy” Boston will. She sat out for the Atlanta Beat last weekend courtesy of the flu, but let’s hope she’s healthy enough this weekend to make an appearance in Maryland when her team visits, and promptly defeats, the Washington Freedom. I’m thinking, like, three goals from you, Ramona, if that’s okay? Just sayin’—it’ll greatly help out my Fantasy League rankings.

In somewhat related news, one game in, Lauren Cheney has already tied Amy Rodriguez’s goal-scoring record as a Breaker. Both players have one goal each.

It appears as though Rodriguez’s mostly dry spell has continued in the fine city of Philadelphia. Amy’s new team Independence tied 0-0 with the other league newcomers, the Atlanta Beat.

Amy will be back in Boston this Sunday, where I hope to god loud chants of either “A-FRAUD!” or “YOU SUCK!” echo throughout Harvard Stadium. Chances are higher, though, that she will be greeted with high-pitched screams normally reserved for the likes of Justin Beiber.