The Street Soccer USA Cup Series completed its third and
final 2016 leg this past weekend with a wonderful weekend of soccer at San
Francisco’s Union Square. Street Soccer USA
(SSUSA) is an amazing national organization (with International affiliations)
that provides a real-world framework of solutions for Homeless and At Risk
Youth. The San Francisco SSUSA has been
performing fantastic work for the local community for many years. In 2010 Chris Wondolowski connected with
SSUSA and became their National Spokesman as an outreach based on sports and
soccer resonated with Chris.
This year we worked with SSUSA and the San Jose Earthquakes
(among others) to put on a Celebrity Soccer Match in the middle of Sunday’s
Tournament Finals. The venue was on top
of Union Square – where two Street Soccer fields were set against grandstands
and the beautiful backdrop of the St. Francis Hotel and the rest of the great
landmarks.
SSUSA, through its key pillars known as the 8 Street Soccer
Skills (Show Up, Play with Heart, Look Up, Take the Space, Build Your Triangle,
Praise Great Play, Play the Plan, Adjust the Plan), has built an impressive
record of successes in helping Homeless and positively developing at risk
youth. The Celebrity Players demonstrated
each of those key pillars on Sunday afternoon.
Before we get into the actual Player Ratings for the Celebrity
Match, here are the wonderful people who donated their time and their passion
to play in the game:
·
Chris Wondolowski Celebrity Soccer Match –
Playing for Social Change
o
Joe Cannon – Former Professional Goalkeeper
o
Chris Dangerfield – Former Professional Forward
o
Todd Dunivant – Former Professional Defender
o
Phil Ginsburg – Current Professional General
Manager of S.F. Recreation and Parks
o
Jeremy Gunn – Stanford University Head Soccer
Coach
o
Owen Nolan – Former Professional Hockey Player –
Captain San Jose Sharks
o
Ted Ramey – KNBR On Air Personality
o
Kate Scott – KNBR, Pac-12 Networks, Comcast
Sports, On Air Personality
o
Danielle Slaton – US Women’s National Team
Player – World Cup and Olympics
o
Tommy Thompson – San Jose Earthquakes Midfielder
o
Tim Hanley – Professional Soccer Coach
o
David Bingham – San Jose Earthquakes and US
National Team Goalkeeper
o
Billy Knutsen – Former Professional Goalkeeper
o
Q – San Jose Earthquakes Mascot
The game was tied at halftime but then Team Wondo pulled
ahead in the second half and Team SSUSA could not claw their way back
successfully as Team Wondo won 12-9.
Here are the objective Player Ratings for the game (players rated on 1
to 10 scale with 10 being best) {It’s
not the first time these people have been subjected to these journalistic evil
ratings so they are used to it}
Chris Wondolowski:
[5.5] – he started out in goal and that was a positional mistake as he
didn’t use his hands in the first several minutes. He was good at getting David Bingham’s shots
out of the back of the net. His field
work in the second half elevated his player rating – he and Tim Hanley waged a
serious battle.
Joe Cannon: [8.0] –
Joe displayed his field skills and stayed away from goalkeeper (a common theme
you will see here) and he was busy filling up the net with his shots from the beginning. His great first half was impressive.
Chris Dangerfield:
[9.0] – There are two reasons why Danger gets the high rating … (1) He
is the television commentator for the Earthquakes games and I’d love it if he just
said nice things about my son and (2) His absolute BOMB to begin the second
half – {a rocket from his own half of the field that Tim Hanley had no chance
on} started Team Wondo on their huge second half run.
Todd Dunivant: [8.5] –
Todd brought the colorful shoes and the left foot that just scores Street
Soccer Goals. He was a goal-scoring
machine on Sunday afternoon and quickly learned the ins and outs of Street
Soccer Strategy.
Phil Ginsburg: [9.5] – He scored goals, he helped provide
support from The City to SSUSA and he was there in person to show the support of
The City. And, as mentioned, he scored.
Jeremy Gunn: [8.0] – An effective game from the Stanford Coach,
brought the cerebral dimension to his team on the pitch. Unlike just about every other player on the
field – he passed the ball frequently which stood out as unique.
Owen Nolan: [9.5] – Man of the Match – Owen Nolan quickly
fell into a comfort zone of staying on the offensive half of the field and
cherry picking the outlet passes to build up an impressive collection of goals. Even though his profession included knocking
around large men on ice skates – it was clearly not the first time he ever
dribbled a soccer ball.
Ted Ramey: [7.5] – Not just a good afternoon from the man
with the microphone but also a good week with his on-air support for the
event. During the game he contributed with
great insights and context, perhaps going a bit too light on his on-air
partner.
Kate Scott: [8.5] – Kate put in a solid shift and covered
more ground than all of the former (and current) goalkeepers combined. She played on both sides of the ball (a novel
approach in the game) and passed unselfishly (an even more novel approach in
the game). She was a bit thrown off at
half-time when she didn’t have a microphone chasing one of the players for an
interview – but she adjusted well.
Danielle Slaton: [9.0] – Danielle showcased a magic left
foot married to an attitude that realized that the score was being
tracked. Her competitive fire combined
with some of the best soccer skills on the pitch to put on a clinic for both
teams. She also was a bit lost at
halftime without a microphone.
Tommy Thompson [7.5] – Tommy mixed in tremendous ball skills
and dribbling displays with an impressive array of errant shots that would
qualify him to be one of the Empire’s Soldiers in Star Wars. For those watching from the 7th
Floor of the St. Francis (I think room 732) – would you mind returning the ball
that Tommy shot at the final buzzer?
Tim Hanley [8.0] – Coach Hanley put in a full shift – he had
Joe Cannon and David Bingham on his team but the line of those who wanted to
play Goalkeeper did not exist. Tim got a
great view of some good shots as well as equally great views of some not very
good shots that went by him. But – he did
win first, second, and third place in “Saves of the Game”. Those who play Goalkeeper in Street Soccer
always live to regret it.
David Bingham [8.5] – Once David realized that he could
shoot the ball at a goal that was being guarded by Chris Wondolowski … it was
like he was dropping water balloons from the roof of the school administration
building --- one after another after another.
I did have a bit of a paternal instinct to go out there and save my son
from further embarrassment … but that feeling went away pretty quickly.
Billy Knutsen [9.0] – Put simply – Billy saved his team and
gave it the victory. He stepped into
goal in the second half to relieve Wondo (who had become exhausted retrieving
the ball out of his own net). Billy made
some big saves that helped Team Wondo get out to their second half lead and
preserve it – and he was great on distribution.
Q [6.5] – The South Bay Blue Mascot had some great moments –
but dealing some of the San Francisco canines (specifically one German Shepard)
got the better of him a couple of times. High points for showing up – next time bring a
couple of dog treats though.
Stephen Wondolowski [DNP] – Stephen didn’t get into the game
but showed up as a ready-reserve in case some of celebrity players were not
able to make it. Thanks for the support
of SSUSA.
Rob Cann and Lawrence Cann [10.0] – The two brothers who
started Street Soccer USA and have made it their passion and mission are two of
the most inspiring young men you could ever meet. Seeing Union Square
transformed into a Street Soccer USA Showcase and seeing the organization’s
results makes us all proud.
