Off Field
Like Brian Bliss and Duncan Oughton, Crew goalkeeper William Hesmer weighed in on his All-Time MLS Best XI. Hesmer deviated from Bliss and Oughton's 3-5-2 formation to go with a 4-1-4-1 look. The veteran 'keeper chose a very American-laden lineup with the exception of Canadian Dwayne De Rosario and former Crew teammate Guillermo Barros Schelotto, check it out:
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William Hesmer's All-Time MLS XI (4-1-4-1) |
||
|---|---|---|
| GK | Tim Howard | |
| DF | Frankie Hejduk | Bench |
| DF | Carlos Bocanegra | Kasey Keller |
| DF | Chad Marshall | Ryan Nelsen |
| DF | Jeff Agoos | Wade Barrett |
| CDM | Brian Michael Carroll | Marco Etcheverry |
| RW | Landon Donovan | Shalrie Joseph |
| CAM | Dwayne De Rosario |
Brad Davis |
| CAM | Guillermo Barros essssSchelotto | Jaime Moreno |
| LW | Clint Dempsey | Coach: Jeff Cunningham |
| ST | Brian McBride | |
As part of MLS Supporters Week, former MLSers and Crew front office personnel Brian Bliss and Duncan Oughton took the time out of their Monday to choose their All-Time MLS Best XIs. Bliss took the time to list all the candidates he felt were qualified at each position and narrowed the list down one by one. Oughton went the extra mile and included a bench to his list.
Check it out:
|
Brian Bliss' All-Time MLS XI (3-5-2) |
|
|---|---|
| GK | Pat Onstad |
| DF | Marcelo Balboa |
| DF | Robin Fraser |
| DF | Carlos Bocanegra |
| CDM | Pablo Mastroeni |
| RM | Steve Ralston |
| CM | David Beckham |
| CM | Peter Nowak |
| LM | Preki |
| FW | Landon Donovan |
| FW | Brian McBride |
|
Duncan Oughton's All-Time MLS XI (3-5-2) |
||
|---|---|---|
| GK | Brad Friedel | |
| DF | Robin Fraser | Bench |
| DF | Ryan Nelsen (love for a fellow Kiwi) | Tim Howard |
| DF | Frankie Hejduk | Carlos Bocanegra |
| CDM | Peter Nowak | Chris Armas |
| LM | Mark Chung | Ross Paule |
| CM | Marco Etcheverry | Robert Warzycha (or I might lose my job!) |
| RM | Clint Dempsey | Stern John |
| CAM | Guillermo Barros Schelotto | Jeff Cunningham |
| FW | Brian McBride | |
| FW | Jaime Moreno | |
(Note: Oughton only chose ex-MLS players)
Check back TheCrew.com throughout the week for more Crew personalities' All-Time MLS Best XIs.
Several MLSers talk about their favorite player which happens to hold a special place in our hearts, Brian McBride.
The CW Star, Kaitlin, has an all-access pass to the Crew games and will show you the behind the scenes stuff you don't see on gamedays. This episode is all about the broadcast. Kaitlin talks with FOX Sports Ohio's Duncan Oughton and Ashleigh Ignelzi.
View more Crew Access at CWColumbus.com
Crew defender Josh Williams will welcome his former PDL club, the Cleveland Internationals to Crew Stadium on Saturday as the Black & Gold host Vancouver Whitecaps FC, whose roster features Williams' Internationals teammate Michael Nanchoff. The two have recruited around 500 fans from the Cleveland area to make the trip down I-71 to attend the match. Check out the video below.
MLSsoccer.com is unveiling a new video series entitled "Taking the Lead" that will focus on captains around MLS. The series will give unique insight to the leadership that goes in to being a field general. We're looking forward to seeing Chad Marshall's perspective on wearing the captain's armband later in the season.
Tomorrow's debut episode will showcase Real Salt Lake captain Kyle Beckerman.
Check out the trailer below:
The Crew make their first appearance in 2012 on national TV this Saturday on the new NBC Sports channel. The Black & Gold travel to Philadelphia to take on the Union Saturday at 3:30pm.
Click here to find NBC Sports on your local provider.
Official Crew Pub Tour stop this week at BBR in the Arena District. Learn More
With his pick of Kentucky and Kansas to play for the National Championship, rookie Ethan Finlay came from behind to surpass Justin Meram in the Crew Bracket challenge. Heading into the Final Four, Meram led both Finlay and Josh Williams by three points. However, Meram predicted Kentucky would play North Carolina in the championship game, giving Finlay the victory.
Tommy Heinemann had Syracuse and Missouri playing for the title with Mizzou winning. Needless to say, he finished last.
Here are the final standings:
1. Ethan Finlay 386 points
2. Justin Meram 339
3. Josh Williams 336
4. Eric Gehrig 332
5. Cole Grossman 307
6. Tommy Heinemann 183
Julius James talks about his time living in Toronto while on the team's pregame walk.
Following Thursday's training session, Eric Gehrig, Justin Meram, and Josh Williams brought a little basketball to the pitch, check it out: