Angel City Goes Commercial

Angel City FC went professional last month for a Liberty Mutual commercial.

(acfc thesbians mixing with the enemy... Freddie DeLeon, Luis Deveze, Ivan Reyes, James Green, Jonny Ibanez, Marius Sandvik, Jeff Pedersen, Bryan Moore, Sammy Xalitdet, Marc Salomon, Christian Olde Wolbers, Dan Stafford and Ben Kull)

Here's the spot...

And in case you're wondering... yes, those are my aged bow legs rushing in to break up that soccer fight.

-Ben

ACFC 7s take Setanta title (revised Mar. 23)

L A P L

ACFC lost a tight 3-2 decision to FK Dinamo Monday night at Crossroads leaving the squad in 10th place after regular season play with a record of 7 wins, 13 losses and 2 ties.

ACFC will face seventh-place PAFC in the Cup Tourney's First Round Thursday, March 31 at Crossroads with an 8 PM kickoff. The winner will then play the Coyotes -- who received a bye into Round 2 -- Monday, April 4 at Crossroads (8 PM kickoff).

S M A S L

With just one week left in the winter/spring season, the ACFC 7s captured the SMASL Sentanta Division title Saturday with a scorching 13-1 win over Del Rey City Admiralty.

Del Rey, who must have felt somewhat like Napoleon at the battle of Waterloo, found themselves quickly down 2-0 after just five minutes, and 9-0 at the half.

The second half was fairly quiet on the scoring front for the first few minutes, before ACFC resumed its bombardment with an additional four strikes before Del Rey earned its lone tally in the final minute.

Brandon Cooke led the charge with four goals, followed by James Green, Russ Muratov and Ivan with braces, and Andreas, Angel and Rahoul Ghose with singles.

ACFC sits on top the Setanta Division with 21 points (76 goals for, 35 against), two points up on nearest rivals multiple scorgasms on 18 points, and AWOL Select with 15.  With a win counting for three points in the league, the best the scorgasms can hope for is a tie on points if ACFC lose their last match against Westside Proper FC.  The scorgasms play Del Rey in their finale. However, ties are first contested on head-to-head results and head-to-head goal differential.

SMASL TIE-BREAKING METHODOLOGY

1) Head to Head competition in common games during the season with the tied team, greater points total wins.
2) Goals For minus Goals Against in Head to Head Competition with the tied team, the team with the greater differential wins.

The scorgasms took their first matchup against ACFC 7-5, Jan. 22.  But ACFC struck back with a vengeance Feb. 26, winning 9-2, tipping the GD race in ACFC's favor 14-9.  Of course a win in ACFC's finale would make them clear winners anyways. Congrats to the team for taking the Cup for a second successive season.

For the AC Allstars, who play in the Santiago Division, the waters are much more muddied right now. With one game to play in the season three teams are tied for the lead on points at 17: the Allstars, That's What She Said and Busbys SC. Coffee Bean is one point off the top at 16 points, while the final two teams -- LA Lekers and Tangled Roots -- are out of contention with five and three points a piece.

Despite having to play a man down due to a red card infraction this week, the Allstars managed to tie Coffee Bean 2-2, with James Green recording the brace.

This coming Saturday sees the following match-ups:

AC Allstars vs That's What She Said
LA Lekers vs Tangled Roots
Busbys SC vs Coffee Bean

For the Allstars to have any hope of also repeating as Cup winners, they must beat TWSS.  Then the only way for that reality to occur is for Coffee Bean to beat or tie Busbys.  This would give the Allstars 20 points, Busbys SC 18 and Coffee Bean 17 (tie scenerio) or Coffee Bean 19 and Busbys 17 (win scenerio) ... and TWSS 17 points. If Busbys win, then even though the Allstars would be tied on points, they would lose on head-to-head goal differential.  Here's hoping for the right alignment in the stars.

S O U T H   B A Y  S P O R T S  L E A G U E

The ACFC Cuties had a quiet one this week with Goats SC defaulting. The squad now had three straight wins to top the division. The Cuties play the Wolves next week at Aviation Park with a 5:30 PM kickoff.

Cuties and 7s rack up more wins

S O U T H   B A Y  R E C R E A T I O N   L E A G U E

Playing only their second game in the South Bay Recreation League Men's Open 11s, the Angel City Cuties met a more formidable opponent Saturday in their match-up with the Playa Rovers ... but still came out on top.

"We won 2-0 in a very tough and physical game," player/coach Miguel Lopez said.  "There were seven yellow cards distributed among both teams and a lot of hard fouls."

Lopez added the referee missed two calls that could have been penalties in Angel City's favor.

"One was a deliberate take down of one of our boys inside the box and a second was a hand ball inside the box by one of their guys that even the line judge signaled. In any case it's good to be able to get the win under these conditions."

The Cuties, who boast six points over two games and a Goal Differential of +7, next face Goats SC this coming Saturday at Aviation Park with a 3:30 PM kickoff.

S M A S L

In SMASL action this past weekend both squads posted impressive wins with ACFC knocking off a resilient Real Talk 9-5 despite missing some starters who had an LAPL 11s match scheduled at the same time.  Brandon Cole led the squad with a hat trick, followed by James Green with a brace, and singles from DK, Ivan, Marc and Angel.

The win -- combined with AWOL Selects loss to Del Rey City -- leaves ACFC alone atop the Setanta Division, leading by two points with just two matches remaining. ACFC faces Del Rey City this coming week and Westside Prop FC in the season finale.

The AC Allstars -- also facing a must win situation to stay in Santiago Division cup contention -- faced top-place Busby's FC whom the team had dropped a close 4-2 loss to earlier in the season.  The Allstars started on a positive note with an early goal from outside the box, struck past the keeper by Rahoul Ghose, but then saw themselves drop two before the half.  James Green combined for a second half brace to put the Allstars back in the lead, with Matt Onheiber adding a late insurance goal.  Good insurance it was, as Busby's slammed home a winner just before the final whistle ... leaving the Allstars with a narrow 4-3 win. 

The Allstars face coffee bean this coming Saturday, tied for first with the squad on 11 points.  coffee bean handed the Allstars their only other loss this season ... a close 5-4 decision.  Adding to the mix are That's What She Said (the Allstars final match-up of the season) and Busby's SC, who both have 10 points.  It's going to be a nail-biter ... but two wins for the Allstars will hand them the cup.

L A P L

Saturday's only downturn came in the LAPL with Angel City playing its third consecutive Saturday match in a row ... highly inconvenient when the club plays in two other Saturday leagues.  The over 30s 11s side dropped a close 4-3 match to Matador FC, leaving them in eighth place (7 wins, 12 losses, 2 ties) with only one regular season game remaining. They will face FK Dinamo Monday, March 21 at Crossroads with an 8 PM kickoff.   Then the team will be entered in a single knockout playoff round.

L A   M U N I C I P A L  L E A G U E

And finally the full schedule for the Angel City 30s Muni League team will be released this coming Friday. The squad's first Thursday night match will be played  March 31. Stay tuned for more details.

ASCL Spring Season Schedule Now Live

The ACSL is set for spring -- and its fourth consecutive season at the Playa Vista Sports complex ... the schedule for the popular, 12-squad, 7 v 7 league in now live.

The league, featuring past cup winners the Swamp Donkeys and Malibu United, as well as a trio of Angel City squads, starts April 23 and continues on Saturdays from 9 AM to Noon until June 11, after which SMASL matches resume.

Line-ups for ACFC, Angel City FC and the AC Allstars will be announced shortly.  As always volunteers are needed for each match Saturday, at 8 am to help set up the field with cones and goals, and following the last match around noon, to break down goals and collect cones.

League website: http://angelcityfc.com/acsl/index.html

Best Day in Angel City History!

This past Saturday did not just mark the premier of Angel City's new team, "The Cuties." It wasn't the first time the Premier League team beat Cloverfield FC. It was not the first time both 7s teams won. It was not just the birthday of Manager/Blog Writer Ben Kull. It was all these things. But it was also the first time in club history that four ACFC teams won games in the same day.

Angel City Cuties

The newest ACFC team made its presence known by defeating "No Goals 4 U" in its first Southbay League game. It took a half for the team to settle in before running away with a second half four goal shutout. The final score was 6-1 in favor of the Cuties, suggesting a name change for the defeated team.

Next week sees the team face defending champs Playa Rovers at 5:30pm at Aviation Park in Manhattan Beach.

Angel City Premier

Our 30+ Premier League team took revenge on mid-table rivals Cloverfield FC this Saturday at Palisades High School.

Following an early season loss the Cloverfield and facing a plague of injuries, Coach Tom Bry called in a number of reserves, asking his players to step up and fight to salvage their season. And the team fulfilled its promise, winning 2-0 and moving up to 7th place in the table, poised for a top half finish.

The win was a team effort, as ACFC controlled possession and protected a 1-0 lead until Greg Metzger scored on the final kick of the game to ice the victory. Standout play from recent call-up Andres Rodriguez on defense and two assists from the recently returning Freddie DeLeon highlighted the win. Pete Marlenga in goal led his defense to the third shutout of the season.

City faces Matador FC this Saturday at 2 pm at West LA College.

AC All-Stars 7s

The All-Stars won another nail-biter this Saturday, defeating Tangled Roots 5-4, to move to 2nd place in the Santiago Division of the Santa Monica Adult Soccer League.

The game saw the return of recently engaged Matty Onheiber, who scored two goals and ran the midfield from whistle to whistle. Loanee Ian Worell added two more from the midfield, while Mike Gemballa continued a fine run of form with a header goal from a Kirby Adams assist.

An under-the-weather Jonny Ibanez played to the point of collapse, making the game winning assist on his final touch of the game. Angel Matos, Bryan Moore, JP Meyer and Goalie Ian Benyo played their hearts out as the team gained valuable points on the rest of the league.

Next week the team faces Busby's FC for sole possession of first place. Game is at 2:30 pm at Santa Monica Airport.

ACFC 7s

The red hot ACFC 7s won their fifth straight by defeating first place AWOL Select. With a seven goal first leg defeat to avenge, ACFC attacked for 50 minutes, scoring nine goals to AWOL's four.

James Green extended his Golden Boot lead by scoring four goals, while Brandon Cole continued his run of form with two more goals. Ivan and Russ added tallies as the team flexed its muscles against the best the league had to offer.

Now tied for first on points, ACFC seems ready to win the final three games of the season, hoping for a stumble from AWOL.

Next game is this Saturday at 12:30 pm at Santa Monica Airport against bottom dwellers Real Talk.

My Birthday

Thanks to everyone who wished me well and joined me for victory drinks at Spitfire Grill. Shots, ice cream, cookies, friends and four wins.

I couldn't ask for a better day.

-Ben

Angel City News Update

Greetings Angel City blog readers. Sorry it's been so quiet here. Our regular poster, Rahoul, has been busy, actually working for a living. So for now, your fearless and perpetually injured manager, Ben Kull will be giving you the update.

LA Premier League

After an encouraging first half to the season that saw the team briefly enter the elite top three, our over-30 geezers have come crashing back down to the bottom half of the table like a grizzled old bag in an 80s era medic alert commercial. With only two wins since October 16, the team is facing an injury epidemic and a big moment of truth. An upcoming series of winnable games vs mid to lower tier rivals has coach Tom Bry calling on his players to dig deep, "trust each other and fight for each other for 90 minutes."

As an added obstacle, this week brings the departure of veteran defender, Leo Wallach. It's been an honor and a privilege to play with Leo and we wish him the best of luck up North. On the positive side, Ben O'Meara sits in sixth place in the league in goals scored (10) and total points (24). Dave Woirhaye is 14th in the league in total points (18). Coach Bry has started calling up Andres, Ivan and Li'l Marius to the past few games to prepare for Leo's absence. And we're still performing better than most new Premier League teams, only five points away from the top half of the table. There's plenty of time to turn things around.

Santa Monica 7s - Santiago Division

The AC All-Stars has become known for stingy defense and a scrappy offense. The average goal difference this season has been only two goals per game. In a small field league with full sized goals, this is a remarkable statistic. This All-Stars team has never had an easy win, has lost two heart breakers and walked away with a tie in last Saturday's battle of wills with the LA Lekers. Sammy X leads the scoring, with nearly every member of the team adding goals this season. The season high came two weeks ago with the dethroning of league leaders That's What She Said. With a clogged up Santiago Division table, the All-Stars are only two points out of first place. Bottom dwellers Tangled Roots are on the schedule this week. A win is crucial as the All-Stars need to go undefeated down the stretch in their bid for a second league title.

Santa Monica 7s - Setanta Division

The ACFC 7s team has been lighting their league on fire, notching four straight wins while outscoring their opponents 38 - 10 during the winning streak. English import James Green leads the scoring with 16 goals in 6 games. But it's been a team effort with goals and assists coming from every member of the team and help from All-Stars loanees, Logan, Sammy, DK, Luis and Rahoul. The team's biggest win of the season came last weekend with a 9-2 drubbing of the young upstarts from Multiple Scorgasms, who were barely able to score multiple times, without a single orgasm (we hope).

This week brings on the league leading AWOL Select, fresh off their first loss of the season. A win this Saturday is vital for ACFC's chances for a third consecutive Santa Monica League title.

Southbay Sports League

This Saturday marks the debut of Angel City's all-ages 11 v 11 team. Nicknamed "the Cuties" by Managers Miguel Lopez and Dave Wardell, the team is poised to make a run for the Southbay Title. The team includes many top level players from college, club and semi-pro ranks and has played a solid pre-season, holding their own against an excellent Sunset FC team and beating a patchwork Del Rey City squad 7-0.

LA Municipal League

After a season off, Angel City is re-entering the LA Municipal League 30+ division, where the club won its first championship. With some veteran players from the original squad mixed with a collection of new internationals, the team will be going up against the top teams from last season's Municipal League, playing on Thursday nights in Griffith Park.