Major Link Soccer - Merchandising Edition

It's been a good week in Seattle Sounders land.  Suddenly the team looks focused and ready to play.  Two wins in the league and a valuable Open Cup victory against the Kitsap Pumas have really sparked a fire in the Sounders and their fans.  You can relive some of the action with photos of the NE Revolution match from Jane Gershovich. 

Hopefully the team can keep up the good work by stealing three points at the Home Depot Center against the LA Galaxy.  Starting goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts is out 4-6 weeks with a broken ulna and reserve keeper Josh Saunders will miss the game due to a red-card suspension.  The Galaxy will be playing Brian Perk, their third string goalkeeper, which is as good as an opportunity as we've ever had to take down a team that's often had our number in front of a national audience.  

Merchandising, Merchandising, Merchandising! The Sounders are expanding their commercial reach inside the city with another pro-shop in the West Lake Center area.  The 3,300 foot store will offer both Sounders and Seahawks gear to the locals and the many summer tourists wandering the downtown area.  Stop by today and tomorrow morning for free Sounders themed doughnuts from Top Pot and other Sounders chotskies.  

More after the jump:

USA Women Defeat North Korea: The US Women's National Team opened up the World Cup with a 2-0 win over the hermit kingdom.  Hopefully, their coach doesn't get shipped off to a labor camp.  Tomorrow the women's team are the odds-on favorite against Columbia.  Go USA!

U-17 Team Soundly Defeated: The US Men U-17 team took a beating this week at the hands of the Germans in the U-17 World Cup.  The Germans took a 4-0 victory by capitalizing on the chances presented to them by the US team. The U-17 team are now removed from the World Cup after reaching the round of 16.

Better Late Than Never: President Obama took some time out of his schedule of debt negotiations and war management to congratulate the Colorado Rapids for winning the MLS Cup.  We all know college basketball is the President's true sports passion, but he did an admirable job of embracing soccer during the short ceremony.

Toronto Opens the Check-book: Toronto has signed two new aging designated players in an attempt to turn their dismal season around.  Torsten Frings will slide into the defensive midfield slot opposite Julian de Guzman (Toronto's original DP).  The 34-year old German midfielder will help spark the Toronto attack out of the back.  Danny Koevermans, a 32 year old Dutch striker, will provide some much needed fire-power up top.

Reactions from Pumas Fans: Last weekend the Sounders advanced in the Open Cup with a close win over the Kitsap Pumas.  Two Pumas fans made the trip to Starfire and shared their feelings on the game from a Pumas perspective.  Also, you can see some photos from the match here and a recap from the Sounders website.

The Death of a PDL Team: Spokane had a brief foray into PDL soccer with the Spiders.  Unfortunately, the team never caught on and folded up shop last year.  In the first part of a two part series David Falk looks at the short life of the Spokane Spiders.  An interesting read for those of you on the Eastern part of the state or just interested in lower division soccer.