You beat me to it putting that up

So Lilly will we be back then as captain I suppose I really feel for Hope , just hope Pia has her own mind and wont listen to certain people.

First, I still think Lil is seriously thinking about retiring, but they are leaving the door wide open for her to return if she has a change of heart over the holidays. I think they may feel that she's still persuadable and they will use the camp in January into persuading her to commit, while she will use it to determine if she still has the desire -notice through all of this that their has been no definitive answer from Lilly herself, just the people associated with the program saying they want her back.

It is also possible that Pia wants Lil as a role player rather than a starter, like I think you've mentioned before, but Lilly may want all or nothing. Pia said she wants her back, but she wasn't specific about her role, she may just want her more as a teacher.

I say this because I still think her excuse is weird, especially compared to everyone elses, and considering that everyone injured during the WWC (Rampone and Markgraf also older players) are back and we all knew before the WWC that she was considering retiring. If she was definitely back on the squad they would be shouting it from the mountain tops now.

Also they will have to replace at least one defender (for Ellerston) and one middie (for Jobson) and possibly two because I could see Hucles still being dropped and even Lopez if Pia is impressed by some of the kids at the camp. Plus, the USC goalie who just won the NCAA championship with her team, who is apparently very, very good, will now be available for call up for the Jan camp if seen necessary by Pia. I know she's not going to shake it up too much, but most of these moves would affect the future rather than the present.

A new interesting article out of camp:


The U.S. women's national team is in soccer rehab.

Its collective addiction: a one-dimensional attack that relied on athleticism rather than ball possession and a penchant for playing at one speed rather than dictating tempo.



The cure: Swede Pia Sundhage, the first foreign coach in team history, who is leading her initial therapy session - make that camp - at Home Depot Center.

"The team needs change, otherwise I wouldn't be here," she said Monday. "It will be a change because I am not American."

Still, Sundhage is not unfamiliar with American soccer.

She served as a scout for the U.S. during the 2004 Olympics.

In 2003, she led the WUSA's Boston Breakers - a team that had missed the playoffs during its first two years - to the best regular-season record in the league.

And she played against the U.S. numerous times during a national team career that saw her score 71 goals in 146 games between 1975 and 1996.

Not surprisingly, with a playing record like that, Sundhage preaches a European-style "total football" approach, where Greg Ryan, her predecessor as U.S. coach, emphasized defense first .

"She's making everybody defend and everybody do the offensive side," said midfielder Shannon Boxx, the former South Torrance High star. "Greg was very much on the defensive side and Pia is very much on the offensive side."

Presumably, that will eliminate the reliance on low-percentage long balls out of the back and then hoping goal-scoring machine Abby Wambach can get on the end of them.

Finesse and tactical awareness will replace brute strength and strategic naivete.

And players will be asked to do more, rather than simply fill a niche and perform a specialized role.

Wambach, who boasts 86 goals in 105 games but was looking increasingly isolated and frustrated in attack toward the end of Ryan's reign, is looking forward to a more balanced approach.

"It brings the fun back into it for me," she said. "I do think there's going to be more responsibilities for the entire team. It's not going to be me and (veteran striker) Kristine (Lilly) responsible for winning games."

The F-word - fun - is something that was lost somewhere along the way under Ryan.

As hard as it is to recall now, this is a U.S. team that went into the World Cup unbeaten for three years under Ryan (the only loss came on penalty kicks, although it's in the record books as a tie).

Ryan's .900 winning percentage is the best among the six coaches the U.S. has had.

And the U.S. lost just one game last year.

But it was the manner of that demoralizing 4-0 loss to Brazil in the World Cup semifinal that stung.

More than just a humiliating shutout, the result served as repudiation of an American style that had outlived its usefulness. The rest of the world had caught up.

"The World Cup exploited our weaknesses," said Kate Markgraf, who played for Sundhage in Boston. "Brazil tore us apart."

It did, both tactically and emotionally, as the incendiary post-World Cup outburst of goalkeeper Hope Solo and the team's reaction to that illustrated.

"We were just trying to do the best we could, but we didn't know how to solve defenses and formations other teams were throwing at us," Wambach said.

If Ryan eventually proved out of his league, Sundhage is among the most sophisticated practitioners of the women's game.

But with a short-term contract, two overseas tournaments plus Olympic qualifying in the first four months of 2008, she doesn't have time to waste.

Yet this is no intervention, with her charges being dragged kicking and screaming into rehab.

"They really want to change," Sundhage said. "This will be fun."

"It could be," Markgraf added, "the best thing that ever happened

I'm beginning to now feel that with this new positive approach from Pia bringing back Lilly will be a foot in the past. I think a fresh start is needed and she now should call it a day , that goes for Scurry as well. If you look at the entire squad they are both the slowest player's. But I've just got this feeling that Lilly is gonna hold on for the Olympics , and this would be a mistake. But we're have to wait and see.

I know the USC goalie your talking about but I can't remember her name , there is certainly a buzz going round about her. The loss of Jobson wont effect the team that much if at all , the same with Hucles. Rodriguez I think it is has been getting some good reviews and she's been called into camp. Defence is going to be the weak link for the U.S , can't see where the next good set of player's are gonna come from. Lopez for me is just not good enough for a starting berth.

That was a good article. I will be interesting to see the U.S playing a more European style , you could see the frustration on the striker's faces as they couldn't get anywhere near the ball.

Kristin Olsen- USC gk Had to look it up, I really don't follow the college game.


-Elisabeth Leidinge has turned down Sundhage's offer to be the U.S. goalkeeper coach. Leidinge said the time just wasn't right as she already has commitments in her native Sweden.
As for the defenders, fortunately after the Olympics they have a long time to rebuild. And some people may emerge from the league.

Also a nice comment from Markgraf:

"She emphasizes making the right decision," Kate Markgraf said of Sundhage. "That's what soccer is all about." The central defender also admitted that the team's PR image has taken a hit. "I'm just happy people are still watching us and hopefully we can win them back," she told Green.

I'm glad that the PR team took a hit and hopefully it hurt them. I don't think people were gonna desert the team. I can only speak for myself I found them wanting in that w/c , not the team I'm used to watching , there was no fighting spirit which shocked me. But a lot of it was down to tactics and team selection , I was appalled at some of it , especially the tactics in the Nigeria game. But I'm really looking forward to the new era

Is Pia looking to try and get a all Swedish backroom staff I wonder!

Doubt it, but I think she like Marika Domanski-Lyfors and Sven-Göran Eriksson want to have one or two other swedes on her staff.

I was just surprised by her wanting a new goalkeeping coach. I thought Phil Wheddon did a great job.

It probably had nothing to do with him. Elisabeth Leidinge was the Swedish WNT keeper during almost all of Pia's playing career in it (20 years Pia from75 to 96, Elisabeth from 74 to 95) and have been a goalkeeping coach since. I think Pia just feelt she would be more comfortable with her.

Oh right , understandable I suppose.

Agree with janbalk. I believe she has other Swedes signed up, but I don't remember who they are or know anything about them, but all are people she's worked with in the past. The USWNT is clearly open to change right now. Now that she's worked with Wheddon during the mini-camp, and Leidinge turned her down, he may get the call back since he's certainly qualified and familiar with the team. If not he should volunteer to be gk coach for the Argentines, because I believe they have already qualified for the Olympics.

I've just seen the vid on US Soccer and Pia's enthusiasm looks infectious. The player's look well up for it. The singing at the beginning made laugh though

Pia Calls First 2008 USWNT Camp

2007-12-29 21:02:21


U.S. head coach Pia Sundhage has called 27 players to a six-day training camp at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif., that will run from Jan. 3-8, 2008 in the USA’s first action of the new year.
Sundhage will then select a 20-player roster to travel to China for the 2008 Four Nations Tournament being held from Jan. 16-20 at the Foshan Sports Center Stadium, in Foshan, China.

Canada, Finland and host China round out the field for the annual competition to be played less than seven months before Beijing hosts the 2008 Olympics. The USA opens the competition against Canada on Jan. 16 before facing Finland on Jan. 18 and China on Jan. 20. These will mark the first-ever matches under Sundhage, who was hired in late November.

This will be the ninth trip to China for the U.S. women since 1998 and serves as continuing preparation for the 2008 Olympics, for which the Americans will have to qualify from the CONCACAF Final Women’s Olympic Qualifying tournament being held April 2-13 in Mexico.

“This is an exciting tournament as they will be the first games with the new coaching staff,” said Sundhage. “”We want to continue to play with passion and start our change in attacking style. We want to try to dictate the tempo of the matches in the attack and while staying true to the principles in defending. The injuries we have to some veterans will most likely give some young players a chance (during the Four Nations), and it's important to find a good mix of young inspiration with experience.”

This will be the seventh time the USA has participated in the Four Nations Tournament in China. The U.S. team also traveled to China for a pair of matches against China in 2001 when the tournament was not held. Should the USA qualify for the Olympics, this Four Nations Tournament will be the final time the team will travel to China before heading back to Beijing in August.

In January of 2007, the U.S. went to the Four Nations Tournament with a young squad as veterans Kristine Lilly, Abby Wambach, Christie Rampone and Aly Wagner were not on the roster. The USA tied full-strength teams from Germany and England before defeating China, 2-0, to win the championship.

The USA won the Four Nations Tournament in 1998, 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2007, failing to take top honors only in 2002. All the matches in the 2007 Four Nations Tournament will be played in Foshan, which is just south of Guangzhou in the Guangdong Province in the southeast part of the country.

Sundhage has called in 16 members of the USA’s 2007 FIFA Women’s World Cup Team including Wambach, who was recently named 2007 U.S. Soccer Female Athlete of the Year. Defenders Kate Markgraf and Heather Mitts, and midfielder Aly Wagner were not named to the training camp roster as they continue to rehabilitate injuries. Lilly has not yet decided if she will pursue a spot on the roster for what would be her fourth Olympic games.

The additional 11 invitees range from numerous players with extensive Youth National Team experience to players getting their first-ever call-ups to the full National Team as Sundhage continues to evaluate the player pool.

Sundhage called in seven players who recently finished their college seasons, including former University of Portland defender Stephanie Cox, a starter for the USA at the 2007 Women’s World Cup who missed the mini-camp in December, in part due to her wedding (she was formerly Stephanie Lopez).

Also called in were 2007 U.S. Soccer Young Female Athlete of the Year Lauren Cheney and midfielder Tina DiMartino, both from UCLA, as well as forward Amy Rodriguez from the newly minted NCAA champion University of Southern California. Rodriguez, who scored twice in the NCAA semifinal, played for the USA at the 2004 FIFA U-19 Women’s World Championship in Thailand, and along with Cheney, DiMartino and Tobin Heath, at the 2006 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Championship in Russia. Rodriguez has five senior team caps, but did not play for the USA in 2007.

This is the first call-up to the full National Team for DiMartino, while Cheney participated in Residency Training Camp last year and has two caps and one goal. Heath will be participating in her third full National Team training camp.

University of Virginia defender Becky Sauerbrunn, a co-captain of the U.S. squad in Thailand, gets her first call-up to the full National Team, as does midfielder Ali Krieger, who has played several years for the U.S. U-21s, but missed a year with a broken leg suffered during her junior season. She finished her college career at Penn State in 2006.

Defender Amy LePeilbet, who has 23 caps for the USA, returns to the squad for the first time since recovering from ACL surgery which knocked her out of competition all of last year.

The USA played Canada just once in 2007, a 6-2 victory in Frisco, Texas, but has faced their northern neighbor a total of 39 times, the second most of any team in the world behind Norway. The USA is 33-3-3 all-time against Canada. The USA played Finland twice last year, battling to a 1-0 win at the Algarve Cup and a 4-0 win in the final match before leaving for the 2007 Women’s World Cup. The USA is 12-0-0 all-time vs. the Finns.

The USA played China three times in 2007, the first two in back-to-back games that finished the Four Nations Tournament in late January (2-0 win) and started the Algarve Cup in March (2-1 win). The USA also played China in June on the road to the Women’s World Cup, a 2-0 win in Cleveland, Ohio, over a Chinese team on which Sundhage served as an assistant coach. The USA is 19-8-11 all-time against the Chinese. Since 2000, the USA has gone 3-2-2 against China in China, always a difficult game for a visiting team.

“It will be good to be back to China and once more feel that environment,” said Sundhage. “It will be a unique feeling and I'm happy that I’m getting the chance to experience that. It will be great to see the Chinese players and people I worked with when I was over there.”

GOALKEEPERS (3): Nicole Barnhart (Gilbertsville, Pa.), Briana Scurry (Dayton, Minn.), Hope Solo (Richland, Wash.);

DEFENDERS (: Stephanie Cox (Elk Grove, Calif.), Marian Dalmy (Lakewood, Colo.), Keeley Dowling (Carmel, Ind.), Amy LePeilbet (Crystal Lake, Ill.), Christie Rampone (Point Pleasant, N.J.), Becky Sauerbrunn (St. Louis, Mo.), India Trotter (Plantation, Fla.), Cat Whitehill (Birmingham, Ala.);

MIDFIELDERS (10): Shannon Boxx (Redondo Beach, Calif.), Lori Chalupny (St. Louis, Mo.), Tina DiMartino (Massapequa Park, N.Y.), Tobin Heath (Basking Ridge, N.J.), Angela Hucles (Virginia Beach, Va.), Ali Krieger (Dumfries, Va.), Carli Lloyd (Delran, N.J.), Joanna Lohman (Silver Spring, Md.), Leslie Osborne (Brookfield, Wis.), Angie Woznuk (El Cajon, Calif.);

FORWARDS (6): Lauren Cheney (Indianapolis, Ind.), Natasha Kai (Kahuku, Hawaii), Heather O’Reilly (East Brunswick, N.J.), Amy Rodriguez (Lake Forest, Calif.), Lindsay Tarpley (Kalamazoo, Mich.), Abby Wambach (Rochester, N.Y.)

A lot of newbies in this camp I still see we have to put up with Scurry

MASSIVE NEWS:


Jan 7, 2008
Kristine Lilly pregnant: Former Wilton soccer star will skip Olympics

By Tim Murphy



Kristine Lilly
Kristine Lilly, the former standout soccer star at Wilton High School who later went on to Olympic and World Cup soccer fame, has announced that she is pregnant and will not play in the upcoming Olympics.

In an exclusive interview with The Bulletin on Monday, Ms. Lilly said she found out she was pregnant in November, and is expected to give birth in July.

While she said she would not play in the Olympics, Ms. Lilly, who is 36, said she did not plan to retire from the sport.

“It’s going to be a little bit of a transition, but I’d like to play again when the women’s pro league returns next April,” said Ms. Lilly. “I would also consider playing for the national team if I get called up again.”

Ms. Lilly said a press release would be coming out later today.

Ms. Lilly graduated from Wilton High School in 1989, playing on three state champion and three FCIAC champion teams. She won four straight NCAA titles at the University of North Carolina and has played for the U.S. national team since 1987.

Ms. Lilly has won two World Cup titles and two Olympic gold medals with U.S. team. She holds the record for the most international appearances by a man or woman with more than 300 caps. Ms. Lilly played for the Boston Breakers in the Women’s United Soccer Association.

Ms. Lilly is married to Dave Heavey, a firefighter in Brookline, Mass., where the couple lives.

The complete interview will appear in this week’s edition of The Wilton Bulletin.


Congrats and all that, but I find it funny because I just read someone a couple of days ago speculating that she was trying to get knocked up so that she could keep her contract without having to deal with the rest of it. I'm not saying I think its true, but I find it funny that she's preggo now.

Anyway, the 20 person roster for the 4 nations should be announced today in a couple of hours. People who will not be on it besides Lilly, Ellerton:pregnant, Mitts:still rehabilitating knee, Kai: brochitis (sp?), Jobson:retired. I also believe Wagner still has injury issues, but this means there are a lot of openings. Also, like the Olympics, they will probably only take two goalies, so Scurry may still be cut if Barhart looks like she's exceeding her in practice. Also she may just want to give Barney some actual experience, which is what the 4 nations tournament has traditionally been about.

Oh, and that stuff about Solo was great, I knew a lot of it from before hand, but I think people should appreciate that she said what she said because she was way TOO emotionally involved and give her a break for that. I still personally think the bottom line was that she was right and although the truth may hurt, sometimes you desperately need to hear it. But Pia seems to have the team focused on moving on so that's good. Unfortunately, apparently Gregg Ryan is on Football Fone In tonight. This should be both fascinating and irritating at the same time watching a desperate man pick at an old scab. No matter what he says, I'm pretty confident Pia's over it and unless Hope does something stupid she's back in her starting spot.

We shall see...

Greg said on the Parkinson show he is not pregnant

(Only j/k)

At least Lilly is out now I can't see her ever coming back to play , but congratulations to her anyway. Interesting what you say there Weipeng , about her trying to get preggers so she wouldn't lose her cotract , naughty , naughty

I'm hoping Barnhart gets a chance as the number two , and I'll be glad when I see Solo reinstated as number one.

haha i had the same thought smithy least she wont be there , but congrats on the pregnancy

Oh god I can't believe this we get rid of one old timer and the other ones stays

Pia has named Scurry as one of the two keepers to go to China in a couple of weeks. Hope Solo is the other. Not happy one little bit Barnhart should of been given a chance.

For those who haven't seen the list for the 4 nations hear it is. And yes Scurry is still on it, and therefor probably on it for the Olympics if Pia didn't see fit to give Barney a chance in a tourney that doesn't mean much. Because there are a lot of knowns out, this gives a lot of young people a chance to prove themselves which should make it a fun tournament.

The naughty, naughty from Lilly is purely a theory I read from someone else. I'm not saying I believe it's true in anyway, but if it was it would be brillant way of getting out of things because she'll get to keep 50% of her contract while out, which runs through 2009. Nothing big comes up after the Olympics for years so I don't think she'll comeback to the Nats either, except for maybe an official retirement game or tour. But after the WWC she took a lot of flak for her lack of leadership skills as captain, which is something that she has never ever had to deal with, and probably found absolutely shocking, so I don't expect her back. I think she just wants a serious chance to play for the Boston team of the new women's league for a year or two.


Boxx, Shannon M
Chalupny, Lori M
Cheney, Lauren F
Cox, Stephanie D
DiMartino, Tina M
Heath, Tobin M
Hucles, Angela M
Krieger, Ali M
Lloyd, Carli M
O'Reilly, Heather f
Osborne, Leslie M
Rampone, Christie D
Rodriguez, Amy F
Sauerbrunn, Becky D
Scurry, Briana GK
Solo, HopeGK
Tarpley, Lindsay F
Wambach, Abby F
Whitehill, Cat D
Woznuk, Angie M

Oh and Phil Wheddon has been retained as gk coach.