This is part 1 in a…multi part series where we’ll go over a situation that needs to be addressed by the Front Office or Tommy and lay out the pros and cons, and ask you to decide.

Today’s issue: the goalie position.

As I wrote earlier, Louis Crayton appears to be on the outs. Both from my sources and from Martin Fernandez from United Mania, Crayton appears to be rubbing people on the staff the wrong way with his attitude. He has played pretty well this season, starting 5 games, with 20 saves, 1.20 GAA, with a 2-1-2 record. Not along wrong with those numbers.

However as proof of the team’s general confusion at the position, note who has been getting most of the playing time lately, including a home game against a team that is close to DC in the table.

Milos Kocic, the rookie keeper from Loyola, has shown his experience level so far this season, with some issues in coming out to claim crosses, nervy clearances, and a major error that resulted in a goal against Toronto. His stats are not bad either, 2-0-1 in all competitions, 7 saves, with a 1.50 GAA. The team seems to be giving him the benefit of the doubt, giving him every opportunity to grab the reins with both hands, but I think no one is convinced.

Josh Wicks is also on the team, but figures to be a backup for eternity. I may be wrong, but I doubt it.

Clearly, a numbers game is at play here, with Crayton’s large self-negotiated salary potentially coming off of the books in July, and Kocic and Wicks’ salaries being much more Cap friendly. Will the team reach an agreement with Crayton, perhaps bringing down the salary, and giving the team some stability at the position? Or maybe the team says goodbye to Louis, hands the ship over to Milos and say, “Its your show, kid.”. Or maybe, the team looks to the outside, again, for a goalie for the stretch run of the season.

So you’re the boss. What do you do?

Fred missed a sitter early in the first half, and Quaranta was not playing his best, despite what Goff’s ratings may tell you. If his goal was to enable others, then we was adequate. If his role as forward was to score goals and be dangerous, he didn’t do as well. He missed 1 easy chance, and 2 or 3 that he should have buried. As a longtime Tino supporter, I suspect he’ll do better as he gets more fit.

Brandon Barklage played the game of his life. He was tenacious in the middle, found himself in the correct spots, displayed Rod Dyachenko like foot skills, and of course, took his chances at goal and found the back of the net. I think we may have found the potential replacement for Gomez, either as he fades at the end of games, or next year.

Milos Kocic got his first start, and it began somewhat rocky. In his first two clearance attempts, the ball went away from him and he was almost caught out. On his third chance, he muffed the ball, and had to be saved by headsup defending. He made 2 or 3 saves, and was saved by the rulebook, after Kenny Cooper’s penalty came off the post and he illegally buried the rebound.

The defense of Greg Janicki and Bryan Namoff was top class. The attempts at defense by Marc Burch however, were not. Unable to string short passes together, and needing repeated bailouts by Janicki, Burch may be playing his way out of the starting LB spot once Avery John gets fit.

MATCH RATINGS: Kocic 6, Burch 4, Janicki 7, Namoff 7, Jacobson 6, Fred 6, Quaranta 5, Pontius, 5, Barklage 8, Khumalo (4 in the first, 7 in the second), McTavish 6 SUBS: Moreno 4, Peters 4, Wallace 5, Jakovic 6

Below Highlights;

First, coming in. DCU has signed Dejan Jakovic from Red Star Belgrade, in a real, honest to god transfer. It’s like MLS is a real league and everything!
Some info about Mr. Jakovic:

All of this according to Wiki and Goff, Jakovic, who was born in Croatia, and has been capped by the Canadian National Team (as a side note, we’ve replaced our quota of one real National Team player since Guerrero was shown the exit). He made three appearances for Red Star, but following a coaching change, he had struggled to find any playing time. It appears that Kasper envisions him as the starting CB, with the commanding presence that the team missed last year. At 23, that’s a curious statement. But what it most certainly does is relegate either McTavish or Janecki to the bench. That’s something to watch for as the season draws closer.

A player that I enjoyed watching, Mike Zaher, was released. Largely a victim of the numbers game and the depth at left back, Zaher looks to find a USL team on the west coast to latch on to. I liked Zaher’s crossing ability, and general stability in the LB spot. He had some shaky moments last year, especially in CONCACAF, but it would have been nice to have had the luxury of having a player like him in the reserves. One can only hope that a new collective bargaining agreement will both increase the salary cap, as well as restore the roster sizes and reinstate the reserve division.

Apparently, Milos Kocic has received European offers and he is considering them. The team has decided that Nic Platter, from USL1 Minnesota, will be the backup, with Kocic and Thorpe battling it out for a poverty contract. Personally, if I were Kocic, I’d be outtie 5000. If he does, DC should keep an eye on him. What this also appears to state is that Crayton will be extended, because I have a hard time believing that Nic Platter will start for DC United in late season games.

Ryan Miller signed a developmental contract. He played in two CONCACAF games, and I don’t remember being impressed. He looks to be depth at RB and MF filler. Good luck to him.

This reminds me. After watching the Houston and Montreal CONCACAF games, it made me think about CONCACAF Champions League.

I really want to win it. Badly. I know its a new tournament with no history, but I gotta tell you, compared to the US Open Cup or Superliga, CONCACAF is a lot more exciting. Also, Montreal needs a team yesterday. That was phenomenal. I hope next year we aren’t playing our scrubs in these important games.