Rider Insider

So here I am with a new blog on a site that I have no idea how many people read. I know the subject has to be the New England Revolution but other than that the choice is mine. With no real direction and the knowledge that my writing will be compared with the other bloggers on this site I know that I need to figure out my niche. I had hoped that this would come easy, I would sit down and the idea would just jump into my head. I know I don’t possess the Matt Reis-like wit of Chowda or am as capable of endless; yet entertaining rants like Seamus, but there has to be something that I can bring to the table.

There have been a few ideas on what the focus of this blog should be, most notably the idea tossed around where I blog from the parking lot, completely drunk, during the post-game tailgate, but nothing has given me the inspiration to the point where I feel that this blog must go in one specific direction. So, for now, I’m going to start this journey off the way I start many of my life journeys, with no real plans but the hopes of having a good time. The end result will hopefully be an entertaining and informative day-to-day read from the viewpoint of a diehard Revs fan and not result with me passed out from drinking too much or crying in front of strangers, which is how many of my other life journeys have ended.

So with that said, let’s get down to business. There have been a few items of concern on my mind regarding the Revs and almost none of them have to do with the play on the field. The Revs have been playing above my expectations this year especially considering all the injuries. For the most part, when someone has had to step up, they have. Kheli Dube and Sainey Nyassi have been more than impressive and are a huge part of why we’re sitting atop the table at this point in the season. If I avoid thinking about wasted spots on the roster and allocation money, I can get really positive about where we are as a squad. If Twellman gets healthy we could be peaking at an ideal time, right before the Super Liga.

Now enough of all that positive stuff…

As we all know, when it comes to Revs, things can be peachy on the pitch but it is never paradise. Lately a string of poor treatment from the front office has once again driven many fans to the breaking point. I know there are some Riders out there who disagreed completely with the nature of the protest and there were others who were very quick to say that it wouldn’t change a thing. The fact of the matter is that something needed to give. Either the TIFO displays stop all together or people work together to find a solution to this problem. It seems that collectively the Riders have chosen the latter course and I think it was the right way to go. Clearly, it will take more than that one protest to make a point to the dead-behind-the-eyes front office but it was a positive, unifying, first step to supporting the club the way that they deserve.

The unity was great but there was something that occurred in the Fort last Thursday that I was a little miffed by. The protest required everyone participating to remain seated and completely quite. Yet, just behind the protesting Fort there was a “Stand Up, Speak Up” sign, in response to the now infamous comments heard in a Youtube video from last week’s match in Columbus. Don’t get me wrong, the racist language hurled at my new favorite player Kheli Dube was disgusting, but it is an issue that has been beaten to death and condemned by everyone in the soccer world this side of the Atlantic. The sign undermined the point of the Revs protest against the front office and probably went a long way to confusing other fans and the media. If those with the sign knew what the Fort was planning as far as the protest was concerned they should have left the sign at home or kept it under wraps until the 12 minute mark passed.

I look forward to hearing what you have to say about the protest, my take on a certain banner and what you would like to read about in this and any of the Rider’s blogs.

Next up, a preview of Fridays match and probably a lot of moaning about $40 parking and the pushed up kick-off time.