CALICHMAN IS SORELY MISSED : GALAXY UNABLE TO FILL DEFENSIVE VOID.Byline: Kevin Acee Daily News Staff Writer Mark Semioli has a herniated herniated /her·ni·at·ed/ (her´ne-at?ed) protruding like a hernia; enclosed in a hernia. her·ni·at·ed adj. stomach muscle. It hurts to walk, let alone make the rapid turns and twists required from a soccer fullback. Robin Fraser's groin bothers him only slightly less than that. That was apparent when he took a full minute to raise his body from the ground after a hard tackle Sunday. These were the players primarily responsible for filling the void in the Galaxy's defense with team captain Dan Calichman Daniel (Dan) Jacob Calichman (born February 21, 1968) is a former American soccer defender. Calichman grew up in Huntington Station, New York. He played college soccer at Williams College, where he was a three-time Division III All-American. on the bench after receiving his third yellow card of the playoffs in the Western Conference finals. During the run of play in Sunday's MLS Cup The MLS Cup is the final game of the Major League Soccer postseason, officially recognized as the championship of the league. The trophy is called the Alan I. Rothenberg Trophy, after the founding chairman of MLS. '96, these two and the rest of the Galaxy players did a remarkable job of stopping the Washington D.C. United D.C. United is a professional soccer club located in Washington, D.C. that participates in Major League Soccer. The club's official nickname is the "Black-and-Red" and home uniforms are black and white with accents of red. The team's name refers to Washington, D.C. scorers - sometimes just in time, and sometimes with the help of a well-placed puddle. But three set plays - plays in which Calichman is at his best - doomed the team that started the season hotter than any American soccer team ever had. The United overcame a two-goal deficit and beat the Galaxy 3-2 in sudden-death overtime Sunday at Foxboro Stadium Boston/New England Patriots • • [ . And the inevitable question was: How much did Calichman's absence hurt? ``It had a huge impact,'' said Semioli, who will have surgery in the coming weeks. ``All of the goals came off of set plays, which is Danny's forte.'' It is highly likely that Calichman could have made a difference on the two free kicks and corner kick that won the game for D.C. ``We missed Calichman in the air,'' Galaxy coach Lothar Osiander Lothar Osiander (born November 8, 1939 in Munich, Germany) is a U.S.-German soccer coach who has served as head coach to the U.S. national and Olympic teams as well as the Atlanta Ruckus, Los Angeles Galaxy and San Jose Clash. said, referring to Calichman's size, which allows him to cut off many scoring opportunities on high balls in the penalty box. Greg Vanney Greg Vanney (born June 11, 1974 in Chandler, Arizona) is an American soccer player, who currently plays defender for DC United of Major League Soccer. Greg Vanney played college soccer for Florida International University in 1992, and for UCLA from 1993 to 1995. , twice the hero for the Galaxy in its two Western Conference final series games, played well Sunday. Arash Noamouz, Calichman's replacement, did well if you overlook the fact he committed both of the fouls that resulted in the dooming free kicks and also kicked the ball out of bounds to give the United the winning corner kick. And midfielder Jorge Salcedo Jorge Salcedo (born September 27, 1972 in Cerritos, California) is an NCAA soccer coach for UCLA. Personal Salcedo grew up in Cerritos, California and attended Cerritos High School. He graduated from UCLA with a Bachelor's Degree in Political Science. , also in dire need of rest for his pulled groin muscle, played his best defensive game in months. But as the United got desperate after falling behind 2-0 and started sending everyone forward except goalkeeper Mark Simpson Mark Simpson is the name of:
``Nothing against the other guys,'' Semioli said. ``But they're not true defender types that are going to win balls in the air for the entire game. Sooner or later . . . .'' Osiander was uncharacteristically irritable in the postgame interview tent. His remarks belied the fact he was thinking about what might have been. ``I played with three injured players,'' he said. ``And they fizzled out. Maybe with (Calichman) in there they would have been better.'' Calichman, frustrated and hoarse, agreed. ``You always believe if you were playing you could do something better,'' he said. But he was mostly dejected de·ject·ed adj. Being in low spirits; depressed. See Synonyms at depressed. de·ject  ed·ly adv. that he could
not help calm the team when the United came back.
``As soon as you see the momentum change, that's the time a leader steps up and calm everyone down and get everyone ready,'' he said. ``But I couldn't help them. I couldn't do anything.'' CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: Galaxy midfielder Arash Noamouz dribbles the ball ah ead of the United's Jamie Moreno at Foxboro Stadium. Associated Press |
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