Crew midfielders Eddie Gaven and Robbie Rogers are among 24 players named by U.S. Under-23 Men's National Team head coach Peter Nowak to participate in the team's final training camp before 2008 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying. The camp will take place in Bradenton, Fla. from March 1-9, before the final 20-player roster travels to Tampa, the location of the first-round games in the qualifying tournament for Group A.
The final 20-player roster may include players not in the Bradenton training camp and will be announced prior to the team's arrival in Tampa on March 9, two days before the U.S. opens the qualifying tournament against Cuba on March 11 at Raymond James Stadium.
The U.S. will then face Panama on March 13 at 8 p.m. ET and Honduras on March 13 at 7 p.m. ET. Group B features Canada, Guatemala, Haiti and Mexico facing off on March 12, 14 and 16 at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. LP Field in Nashville will host the semifinals on Thursday, March 20, and the championship match and third-place game on Sunday, March 23. The tournament will send its two finalists to the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.
ESPN Deportes will broadcast all 16 matches of the tournament as the exclusive Spanish-language rights holders. In addition, ESPN360.com will also show all 16 games live online, and will have a replay of each game available on demand for 48-hours following its completion. English-language broadcast information will be announced later this week.
There are 10 players on the roster who have earned full-team caps, including Gaven, with Benny Feilhaber leading way with 15 total appearances for the senior side. Jozy Altidore is coming off of his first start for the MNT, scoring his first goal against Mexico in February.
Altidore was also the fourth-leading scorer at the FIFA Under-20 World Cup last summer, netting four goals in five games. He is among 14 players with Under-20 World Cup experience, including Gaven, who played for the Sigi Schmid-coached U.S. squad in 2005.
Gaven, 21, tallied five goals and seven assists in 2007, his second season with the Crew and fifth overall in MLS. Rogers, 20, tallied three goals and one assist with the Crew in his first MLS campaign, after spending six months with Heerenveen of the Dutch First Division.
Of the 17 Major League Soccer representatives, Real Salt Lake sends the most to Florida with the trio of Robbie Findley, Chris Seitz and Sturgis. Six teams will each send two players into camp, including the Crew, Chicago Fire, FC Dallas, New York Red Bulls, Houston Dynamo and Toronto FC, while Chivas USA and the LA Galaxy will each send one.
CREW RETURNS TO COLUMBUS AFTER DROPPING FINAL MATCH OF CALIFORNIA LEG OF PRESEASON
The Crew returns to central Ohio today after dropping the final match of its California preseason trip 1-0 to the Ventura County Fusion (PDL) late Monday. Sergio Garcia provided the Fusion's lone goal in the 12th minute. Crew Lineups:
First Half - Will Hesmer, Frankie Hejduk, Chad Marshall, Danny O'Rourke, Ryan Junge, Guillermo Barros Schelotto, Brian Carroll, Emmanuel Ekpo, Eddie Gaven, Robbie Rogers, Alejandro Moreno
Second Half - Kenny Schoeni, Ryan Miller, Ezra Hendrickson, Andy Iro, Leonard Griffin, Brad Evans, Duncan Oughton, Adam Moffat, Stefani Miglioranzi, George Josten, Guilherme Só
The Crew is scheduled to train in Columbus on Friday at 10 a.m. at the SuperKick facility in Lewis Center (409 Orangepointe Dr.), before traveling across the Atlantic for a week-long stay in England from March 2-9. While there, it will train at Blackburn Rovers' training facility and take on the Everton Reserves on March 6. The Crew will travel to New Orleans for the final leg of its preseason schedule from March 11-17.
WEB CAT WITH CREW TECHNICAL DIRECTOR BRIAN BLISS WEDNESDAY AT 2 P.M.
Crew Technical Director Brian Bliss will chat live Wednesday (Feb. 27) at 2 p.m. ET at TheCrew.com, answering questions about the Crew's plan for 2008 and beyond. Questions may be submitted in advance HERE.
CREW AND TORONTO FC ANNOUNCE FIVE FINALISTS FOR "HELP NAME THE CUP" COMPETITION
In preparation for their 2008 season opener at Crew Stadium on March 29, the Crew and Toronto FC have announced a competition to help name the new Cup that will be awarded to the winner of the season series between the regional rivals. Fans of both teams were encouraged to log on and submit names for the award online and five finalists have been chosen. The five names to choose from are: The Cross Border Cup, The Great Lakes Cup, The Capital City Cup, The Trillium Cup and The Buck-Loonie. Fans can visit TheCrew.com (here) to "Help Name The Cup." Voting runs through Wednesday, March 5.
CREW SOCCER ACADEMY CONTINUES INAUGURAL SEASON WITH A PAIR OF MATCHES IN VIRGINIA
The Crew Soccer Academy continued its inaugural season in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy last weekend as both teams traveled to the Richmond, Va., area for a two-match road trip. In Saturday's action against the Richmond Strikers, the CSA Under-16 squad played well, receiving a goal by William Phiri and a four-save performance by Justin Lithy, but gave up an unlucky goal just before halftime, as the two sides played to a 1-1 draw. In the U-18 match, CSA got three saves from goalkeeper Antonio Beltran, but fell to the Strikers, 3-0. On Sunday, both CSA squads took on the Richmond Kickers, with both the U-16s and U-18s notching 3-0 victories over their respective counterparts. After this weekend's play, the U-16s now sport a record of 3-1-2, and the U-18s currently sit at 3-2-1. Both teams next see action on Saturday, March 1, against Ohio Elite Soccer Academy at the Town & Country Sports & Health Club in Wilder, Ky. The U-18s kick off first at 4 p.m., followed by the U-16s at 6 p.m.
CREW'S HESMER BLOGS FROM CREW TRAINING CAMP
Crew goalkeeper Will Hesmer is currently keeping a blog updating fans about the squad's preseason training camp in Bradenton, Fla. Hesmer will share anecdotes and offer insight at TheCrew.com (here) on his and his teammates' activities throughout the preseason.
CONSTRUCTION CONTINUES AS STAGE TAKES SHAPE AT CREW STADIUM
The new permanent stage being constructed in Crew Stadium's north end is taking shape. Work began on Sept. 10 and the project is scheduled to be completed on April 15. The stage will measure 60 feet deep by 120 feet wide. Click here to view a fact sheet detailing more features of the stage and here to view a photo gallery chronicling the project's progress so far.
