I hope we all will grudgingly move on from this choice by the FO but to ask of it just one day after I think is a bit much. If anything I would hope to hear more people vent their anger over this; I just have a feeling there are those among us who are seriously filled with anger over this and are honestly questioning why they should continue to support this club. Is that bad? No. It shows just how much devotion/love they have for this team and I think the only way; if they ever can, get over it is to vent. And what better place to do it but among fellow fans who love the team too and felt that stab of anger, sadness, and frustration over the choice.

gotta say the itch that got me in that article was the mention of Bill Manning. It's been years since he's been here but still kinda weird.

we could organize some sort of new age primal scream/crying therapy, lets say tomorrow 6:30 at the sweetwater?

Maybe Real Salt Lake has secret plans to baptize us after the match (with or without our consent) which will give us new life in the tournament even after losing?

The Minnesota Thunder beat this team once. What really are the chances of the MN Stars beating them now? I'd venture to say our team is way way better now ...But as we all bitchingly know, the match is away. I'd think we have a better chance to win over any other team in our league. What will we all be saying if we DO win Tuesday night? And what if they loose?

Right now we're 2nd in our league and we're still undefeated after 7 games! I'm still supporting this team - thick and thin! I don't know all the details of the FO's decision and I am pissed that we're not playing a MLS team at home. Regardless of $$$, I'm pretty sure it would have converted some new fans, If we Won! If we lost, not so much!

Lots of If's in this story.. But we do know the Facts! And it is what it is....So Show Your NUTS OF A WARRIOR and Get back to supporting this team were we belong!

And if we do win at Rio Tinto Stadium, The whole country will see that we're a HOT team and we really do have the NUTS OF A WARRIOR and thus would vastly improve our chances of new ownership. Another IF I know... Just my 2 cents.

Just a quick comment (for me, anyway)...

Apart from my opinion of this whole thing (which I won't go into now because there is a morsel or two of info I need first coupled with the fact that Joan and I are moving again and I really don't have the time), there is one thing I want to be perfectly clear about.

We don't throw the Cup. We NEVER throw the Cup.

Winning the US Open Cup could, if used properly, guarantee that the Stars would survive as an NASL or MLS team. It would be more important than 10 League titles. In a row.

As much as we might not like admitting it, we are a minor league franchise in a major league town. As long as we remain so, the attention given to us by the media in this town will be fairly minimal. We can still carve out a niche audience without it, but our position will probably remain precarious.

A US Open Cup win, beyond the local, national and international press that a 2nd Division club would receive for such an upset, means we qualify for the CONCACAF Champions League where we would face the best teams and players in North America. This would be interesting enough for the local media to devote to the Stars a reasonable facsimile of the type of coverage the major league teams currently enjoy.

It would certainly be enticement for the soccer snobs who can't be bothered with a minor league team.

And we would probably make at least a half decent showing there. Our predecessor, the Thunder, had victories over teams from MLS, and franchises in the Liga Nacional de Guatemala and the Liga Nacional de Costa Rica who have won the CONCACAF Champions League. And we certainly would be favorites against most Caribbean participants.

A US Open Cup win could even make the Stars more attractive to the Wilfs, who would love to attach a palmares like that to their prospective MLS franchise.

So, no way do we start less than our best for the Open Cup. And no way do we play less than our best, either.

"I, for one, will always 'BELIEVE'!" proclaims

That little old jersey collector

Me

"You cannot underestimate how big this game is tonight." - Gareth Southgate, ITV1

Here is what the owner of the Rowdies said via Twitter:









Lots of talk, but it should be noted that Tampa hasn't hosted an MLS team since the Mutiny folded, so this may be a reason for their excitement.

Funny thing is that all focus has been on USOC and not tonight's game against our boys.

From the "The Seattle Sounders Fan Blog"

http://blog.seattlepi.com/soundersfan/20...pen-cup-antics/

" Sounders took the spirit of the tournament and ran roughshod over it, checkbook in hand. "

There's a large amount of people in this discussion making a false equivalency that somehow criticizing or even just working through and reflecting on this development is akin to somehow being less of a supporter, or not believing in the team.

That's invalid.

I am a season ticket holder, and have spent significant amounts of time and money to follow and support this team. Most of the people being critical have done the same.

I love this franchise, we all do - let's avoid the implication that having an open discussion about team decision making is an indication of something otherwise.