You'd think with my attempt to add some drama to today's transfer deadline by putting up a countdown clock that the nation was at risk of defaulting again, or that the not-so-immediate debt crisis suddenly an issue resurrected.
You would be pretty close in thinking something of the sort, as today the Sounders concluded the final transfer window of the season with no new additions to the team. Despite numerous reports (here and here) circling around about how close the team was to securing their targets acquisitions, it was the magnitude of the reactions from vociferous and concerned fans today that occupied the entire spectrum.
It shouldn't be surprising to see how passionate fans are about the opportunity to bolster our defense and attack, but the issue is reaching a political fervor. Maybe it's the spillover from this Tuesday's state primary elections, but most fans are separating into one of two camps: those supporting the attempts of Adrian Hanauer in searching for the right fit for the team, and those calling for the heads of players who have yet to make an impact.
In the spirit of the elections, I wanted to create a poll surveying your opinions on the topic, which similarly most people would likely ignore. So instead, here is a survey of fan reactions taken from Sounder at Heart, the Seattle Times, BigSoccer forums, and of course, Twitter.
Here are some of the reactions.
"That we have to spend the rest of the year watching Roger Levesque and Pat Noonan pair up with Montero is a disgrace. I don’t want to be the Everton of MLS. I don’t want “good” seasons. I want people to expect us to win the Supporters Shield and the MLS Cup. We know we won’t do either of those things this season, which is a bitter pill to swallow for me and I’m sure a bitter pill to swallow for all my fellow season ticket holders.
I like this Front Office. I really do. But they let us down here." - Sounders4Glory
"We didn't sign anyone. Life goes on." - sp_the_ghost
"With any growing business, you need to spend money to encourage that growth. This is a company and to challenge for championships and grow their fanbase they need to put the $$ back into the team." - Djonan
"Good lord some of you need to check your meds. Yes we need a striker but i do not want the team to sign someone just to sign someone and possibly cap restrain us even further. To insinuate that the FO is not trying hard enough without ANY first hand info is absurd so unless you've seen Adrian & Chris at the Tulalip playing texas hold'em we have no idea how hard they are searching/working. My guess is pretty damn hard but nothing has worked out that makes sense." - Dmain
"I agree RB2142. It's a bunch of spin. We have had a month to make a move. I think the brass sat on their hands when we had the hot streak and tried to scramble at the end and ran out of time to get something done. I am very unimpressed. If we have the money we should have brought a real striker in here. "oh well, there's always next year" I get so tired of that crap." - Higgi
"Dissappointing." - BroughamBuff
"Not happy about this at all. Big things promise and all we do is sign a youngster and send Montano out on loan to Montreal. Big Whoop. I don't like this team but I think I have a higher standard than Adrian... I can't believe they can't see it. I can't believe they think they can win it all with this team. It seems there i[s] a big disconnect between what the fans want and what the team wants." - GonnaWinTheLeague
"If we don't get healthy quick, I do not expect much from the status quo. Very disappointing." - Hawktalk2legit
"I would rather do nothing now than nothing later. They are right that we can compete with any team in MLS. Obviously that isn't an issue. They COULD strike lucky and win an MLS Cup. I doubt anyone would complain about that.
But I'd rather nothing happen now than have a guy come in for half a season, crash out in the playoffs, hold him until right before the season starts and have him retire because he's at a disagreement with what his role should be.
As long as they are aggressive in the off-season transfer window I have no problem with this. Sometimes you can't get the players you want, it happens. But there is no reason to just sign players for the sake of signing players." - Ganapper
"'til I die, I support the boys, I do not/will not support the FO. #EBFG #sounders" - Sea_doc
"@Sea_Doc get over yourself..." - Citizen_BAK
"Will say, Seattle's FO could take a few lessons from AEG on getting big transfers done while still appearing to follow MLS rules." - SeattleOnside
"Your club makes the most money in the league at the gate and in merchandise. If they wanted a rule "bent", it would happen." - MLSRumors
"Since we invented the silly season, what happens if we don't make a move? Does everything cease to exist? #ebfg" - MWeatherHogg
"All you #Sounders need to calm down! So what if we didn't make any moves during the transfer window. Look at the standings. We're doing fine" - ArmofCrass
"Even Jaqua can finish from the "1 yard line" if you give him 2 chances." - Ajas95
"Lobster, check. Moet, check. Now, that target forward I sent adrian out for? Hmmm.... #thoughtsfrommyyacht #youllneveryachtalone" - Thomas513
"I would much rather our club find the right player than sign some big name just for the sake of signing someone that will draw a crowd #EBFG" - RachelShock
"I share the frustration to a certain extent of many people here, but we need to be a little more realistic. There aren’t barrels of undiscovered or top talent out there seeking to come to the MLS. The $s and cents don’t work for many and the overall maturity of the league isn’t there. People are making this seem like all we needed to do is pick up the phone and the ghost of forwards past would send talent our way. We got to this point by having management that understands the long game and smart enough not to mortgage the future for the present, especially out of some sense of desperation.
...We’re also a young team with lots of upside. We are not the old guys who desperately need to win now. So disappointment is fine, but we have to remember we’re still a good team in the MLS. There will be some tough breaks when trying to obtain talent, but we are on our way and maybe need to be a little more patient. We’ve sent the bar as fans so high that maybe performance expectations are a little too high as a result." - illwillbli
"I prefer the delusion of being a Sounder fan to the mediocrity-craving of being a Mariner fan." - Grady Clapp
"Why not have both? Throw in the shoulder chips of the 12th man, some Sonics sorrow, and some “Insert Future Seattle NHL Franchise HERE” hope and you have a complete sports fan." - AgentJ
"AH knows he can be voted out of his job, right?" - Ramalamadingdong
So there you have it. Anything and everything thrown into the debate. Conspiracies about turf, concerns over wasted funds, and impatience with the lack of ambition. Throw in some accusations of spin by the front office, Seattle sports-fan anguish, and calls for supporter action to remove managers from power, and we have a citizen revolution here.