Union Look To Embrace Spoiler Role

10/2/2012 - Chicago - With another string of losses following their most recent break, the Union now simply look to embrace a new role. It isn’t the comeback, and it’s hardly going to be a strong finish. If they embrace the role of spoiler though, the vibe going into the off-season could be much different. The Union have five matches left this season, four of which against East leading teams.
Don’t expect to see a recharge of energy, or a silent killer for hopes to ride on into next year. Expect an exhausted limping crawl into November. Recent attendance has reflected the vibe that the club has given off, but possibly, following an upset in Chicago they could return to a familiar setting to face New England. It’s the culture of the time, most fans are already tuned out so the best they could do is finish strong, make some top Eastern Conference teams dread their dates with us and embrace the only role they’ll be seeing till next spring.
The Union’s most recent performance was anything but awe-inspiring before last week's heartbreaking blown call defeat to Columbus. For myself it was like a preface to a 2012 auto-biography that would be harder to read than hieroglyphics. They come into Chicago 8-15-6 30 pts. and some tall odds to pull the upset. Chicago, already looking on to the MLS Cup Playoffs are 16-9-5 53 pts. and 4 points from falling out of the race. Since the Fire certainly won’t be taking any fixture lightly, it will be a chance to judge if the Union performance last week is something to build on, or a cardiac flutter following the last two weeks of non effective CPR.

Confidence high for MacMath in second MLS season

By Andy Jasner of philadelphiaunion.com

When Zac MacMath entered Major League Soccer as the fifth overall pick in the 2011 SuperDraft, he wasn’t sure what to expect.

Now, he expects anything. Check that – everything.

In just a season-and-a-half with the Philadelphia Union, the talented goalkeeper has experienced a plethora of events. It has made MacMath stronger in so many ways, especially mentally.

“Yeah, absolutely, I can’t believe I’m still only 21 and I’ve seen a bunch of players and coaches in the league and a lot of guys here are older and have been here longer and haven’t seen some of it,” MacMath told philadelphiaunion.com after a recent training session. “I just try to take away something from every experience and learn from it and move on. It’s definitely not what I expected. Any player’s dream is to be the starter for their team, and to be the starter in my second year is an unbelievable experience for me and something I’m trying to hold onto.

You can read the rest of the article here: Confidence high for MacMath in second MLS season