Did I just see correctly...we beat Indiana and Cincinnati on the road? Way to go boys, anybody got any more information about it? I have only made it to one game so far this season, the Pats overtime win agains Indiana in the second leg of the open cup qualifier and I couldn't quite get a good feel for the team with the bad weather. This definately seems like a step in the right direction though.

You saw it right, Matty. EP 3, Cincy 2, in OT, and second place all by their lonesome. A big, BIG weekend. The winning streak's at four with Portland at home this weekend.

I simply cannot remember ANY two-match road swing where the Pats won both.

WTF?!?! When is the last time this happened? Hell when is the last time (if ever?) when the Pat's were tied for second place overall in the A-League. I hope and pray this is the sign of things to come.

That's a question asked around the offices, and not even Guillermo McFarlane can remember ANY time the Pats have won two-in-a-row on the road. It's never happened.

I have to temper this enthusiasm by saying that most teams in the table have at least 3 games in hand on the Patriots.

Assuming conservative points out of those matches the Patriots are really more like 7th.

Still, I think I'll take that over some the expectations to start the season.

Jeff

Portland at home? That should be one in the win column since I believe they are something like 1-99-0.

We have not really come up against too many strong teams yet. and it seems Cincy is starting to behave more like it has in past.

Anyways, this is still pretty good deal.

If the Timbers look anything like they did on Thursday, they should be able to win that game. On the other hand, they will be without the key to their defense, Gavin Wilkinson, and will also be without Hugo Alcaraz-Cuellar in midfield, so it remains to be seen how they will perform.

We've seen so many versions of the Timbers this year that it's hard to tell if it will be the team who lost to Calgary, or the team that held Vancouver to 2 shots "on goal" (even though only one could be reasonably have been considered "on goal"), and no corner kicks.

Should be interesting. But I wouldn't go dismissing the Timbers just yet.

Dont misunderstand my excitement. I know it's a long season and we still have a lot of hurdles to clear before we can really begin celebrate. I was just making an observations in lght of this teams past performances where we would be in the middle or in the bottom of the standings. It was meant to be funny. I guess I wasn't clear.

Chuy, after lo these many seasons, we're allowed at least one "Yahoo!" You never know how long it's going to be before the next one.

Allison, just let the boys know we're in for a cool front this weekend. It's supposed to get down into the mid-90's for Saturday. Break out the parkas.

I wasn't really bagging on Chuy at all. One thing I have always kind of hated about the A-League is that, for instance, at this point in the season one team has played 10 games and another has played 4.

That is ridiculous. There is no way a fan, or a coach for that matter, can gauge a team's progress relative to its league with those kinds of game disparities.

As someone once said, "The season is long, and it is hard."

Jeff

Especially when you have played Indiana like 15 times!

But seriously, I am looking forward to seeing which Timbers team shows up on Saturday. Who are the El Divers's, oops I mean El Paso, good players this year, players we should watch out for?

Brutal schedule - we play you guys at 6:30 on Saturday and then have to turn around and play Milwaukee at 2:00 on Sunday. Whoever came up with that travel plan shoudl apply for work in Hades.

El Divers, Finnegan?

Once again, another fan who refuses to see the greater art of The Game as Opera. Tsk, tsk.

Incidentally, I don't think they do that nearly as much at home as they do on the road. Especially, speaking of bad scheduling, when a team plays two-in-two. It's just hard, and this team will often try to slow the pace.

Players to look for list probably begins with forward Laurenco Andrade. Omar Millan has been a workhorse up front. Tim Pierce has been super sub. Michael Griego has been solid and has scored goals.

In midfield, you'd be remiss if you didn't consider Freddy Juarez, the team captain, as the guts of this franchise. Great defensive midfielder who can stop attacks cold. Javier Carrasco and Junro Narita, former U. of New Mexico teammates, do quite well on the wings.

In the back Sidnei dos Santos runs things from the middle. Carlos Martinez and Joel Rios do well, too, and Scott Alexander has really helped solidify the D in goal. That man knows his business.

Should be an entertaining match. Always seems to be between these two.