soccer

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

WaPo Endorses Garvey — The Washington Post has endorsed Arlington School Board member Libby Garvey in the Democratic County Board caucuses being held tonight and Saturday. The Post said Garvey and Melissa Bondi “stand out” in the five-way race, but lauded Garvey as “cool, competent and a quick study” while expressing reservations about Bondi’s tax troubles. [Washington Post]

Bondi Statement on Accusations — County Board candidate Melissa Bondi has responded to new allegations against her. The accusations, largely spread by anonymous blog commenters, insinuate that Bondi illegally voted twice in recent elections — once in Virginia and once in Ohio, where she used to live. Bondi says the basis of the accusations — Ohio voting records referencing someone with her exact full name and middle initial — is a result of the fact that her mother is also named Melissa M. Bondi. [Bondi for County Board]

D.C. United Practices at Long Bridge Park — D.C. United held its first outdoor practice of training camp yesterday on the synthetic turf soccer fields at Long Bridge Park. The team practiced at the new county park, near Crystal City, due to poor turf conditions at RFK Stadium. [Washington Post]

Moran Statement on Pipeline Decision — Rep. Jim Moran (D) is reacting to the Obama administration’s decision to reject the a proposed Canada-to-Texas oil pipeline. Moran said, in a statement: “I applaud President Obama’s decision to deny the application for the controversial Keystone XL Pipeline. Our collective national interests, whether economic, environmental, or national security, would be better served by reducing our addiction to fossil fuels… Building a pipeline to tap one of the dirtiest sources of fuel and the few temporary jobs it might create are not in our nation’s best long term interests.” [Office of Rep. Jim Moran]

Donna Gets Job in Arizona — Disgraced local chef Roberto Donna is trying to turn over a new leaf in Arizona. The 50-year-old has taken a job as a chef at an Italian restaurant in Scottsdale, Ariz. The Arlington County Treasurer’s Office, which is trying to collect more than $150,000 in back restaurant taxes from Donna, has asked the Commonwealth’s Attorney to look into whether the new gig would pay enough to allow Donna to increase his court-ordered payments on the debt. [Washington Post]

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Board Lifts Ban on A-Frame Signs — Following through on a New Years promise from Arlington County Board Chairman Chris Zimmerman, the Board voted on Saturday to allow businesses in the county to use temporary sidewalk signs, also known as A-frame signs. The Board also approved the use of branded sidewalk cafe umbrellas. [Arlington County]

New Soccer Fields Discussed — The County Board is pondering where future soccer fields should be built in Arlington. New fields are necessary, the Board has been told, due to expected growth of youth soccer programs. The 6,000 player strong Arlington Soccer Association is expected to add another 1,000 players in coming years as Arlington experiences growth in its youth population. [Sun Gazette]

WaPo Readers Complain About ‘Hippie High’ Nickname — A pair of Washington Post readers wrote letters to the editor to complain about an article that once again dubbed the H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program “Hippie High.” [Washington Post]

Arlington Expecting Another Tough Year in Richmond — Arlington’s legislative delegation is anticipating another difficult year in Richmond. They say the Republican-controlled Virginia General Assembly has repeatedly passed legislation that goes against the county’s interests, despite the fact that Arlington is a significant source of state tax dollars. [Washington Times]

Flickr pool photo by Damiec

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Construction Planned for New Penrose Square Park — Construction is set to begin on a new public park in front of the Penrose Square apartment building on Columbia Pike. Included in the park will be a 50-ton granite sculpture of a “concave elliptical parabola.” [Pike Wire]

Free Pizza Offer — For some reason, Papa John’s and the Washington Post are giving away thousands of free pizzas over the next three days. Papa John’s has three Arlington locations. [The Capitol Deal]

A-SPAN Launches ‘Street Soccer’ Team — The Arlington Street People’s Assistance Network has set up a soccer team for its homeless clients. The team was created as part of the Street Soccer USA program. [Shirlington Village Blog Spot]

Flickr pool photo by Christaki

Video: Arlington Soccer Player Scores Incredible Goal

By ARLnow.com

This video of a 13-year-old soccer player making an incredible bicycle kick goal at the Thomas Jefferson Community Center soccer field is making the rounds on the internet today.

BigLeadSports first posted the video on its web site this morning. That was followed by a post on the popular sports blog Deadspin, where it has received nearly 10,000 views in just four hours.

The player who made the “Rooneyesque” kick is said to be a 13-year-old from the Arlington Civitan club’s U13/14B Bengals squad.

Two years ago a 16-year-old Yorktown High School student made a similar bicycle kick goal that earned him “Goal of the Year” honors from the US Youth Soccer organization.

H/t to Mark Blacknell

Soccer Fans to Kick Off MLS Season in Clarendon Tonight

By ARLnow.com

Local soccer fans will be gathering at Clarendon Grill (1101 North Highland Street) tonight to mark the start of the 2011 Major League Soccer season.

DC United goalie Bill Hamid is expected to stop by and greet fans at the event, which is being organized by the Arlington Athletic and Social League. There will be gift bags for the first 50 fans who arrive, plus raffles for DC United opening day tickets (the game will be held on March 19 at RFK Stadium) and other memorabilia.

In addition to the soccer festivities inside, organizers plan to set up pick-up games of cornhole outside on the patio.

The event will be held from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. Admission is free. It will be immediately followed by the start of the LA Galaxy vs. Seattle Sounders MLS opening night game on ESPN2.

Soccer Tourney Coming to Arlington This Weekend

By ARLnow.com

The annual Arlington Spring Invitational soccer tournament will kick off Friday.

The tournament features 500+ boys and girls travel teams and about 4,500 players from around the mid-Atlantic region and beyond. One team is coming from as far away as Quebec, Canada. Teams range in age from Under-10 to Under-15.

The boys teams will play this weekend. Girls teams will play next weekend.

The tournament, which is sanctioned by US Youth Soccer, takes advantage of Arlington’s plentiful synthetic turf fields, which are ideal for the normally soggy month of March.

Unfortunately, rain is indeed in the forecast for Saturday and Sunday.

According to this article about the invitational, Arlington County has the highest concentration of synthetic fields in the country.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Illegal Immigrant Bills Killed in State Senate — Most of the bills that immigrant advocates spoke out against at a rally last week have suffered a quiet death in a state Senate subcommittee. The bills would have prevented illegal immigrants from attending public universities in Virginia and would have required citizenship checks for anyone arrested by police. [Washington Examiner]

Cyclist Gets Doored on Clarendon Boulevard — It’s a non-uncommon tale of woe from the cycling world. A bicyclist was riding in the bike lane on Clarendon Blvd when a parked motorist suddenly opened his door. A collision ensues. Police and medics are called. The next day, however, the injured bicyclist wasn’t able to get the driver’s insurance information from police. While this raises police procedure questions, there is also the larger question: Is there a way for drivers and bicyclists to share the road without injuring or cursing at each other? [TBD, Patch]

More: Native Foods Cafe Coming to Shirlington — This Craigslist ad seems to make it official. California-based vegan restaurant chain Native Foods Cafe will be opening their first East Coast location in Shirlington. Earlier, we reported that a restaurant that at least shared the same name was planning to open in the old Bear Rock Cafe space. [Shirlington Village Blog, Shirlington Village Blogspot]

Charlie Davies Signs with D.C. United — Soccer phenom Charlie Davies will be playing for D.C. United this season, on loan from the French club FC Sochaux. Davies is still trying to get up to full-speed after suffering serious injuries in crash on the GW Parkway in October 2009. The crash, which killed one female passenger, happened on the Arlington section of the GW Parkway, just past Memorial Bridge. [Washington Post, FanHouse]

Flickr pool photo by Philliefan99

Cinema Drafthouse Saves the Day For Soccer Club

By ARLnow.com

News of the recent neighborhood fracas over rap music being played at the Arlington Cinema & Drafthouse (2903 Columbia Pike) didn’t sit well with David Goodwin, Outreach Director of the Screaming Eagles soccer club.

The Arlington Brigade of the Screaming Eagles will be hosting a charity event at the Drafthouse Saturday night, and Goodwin wanted to let us know how accommodating  the theater was to his organization.

I was saddened to see the story the other day of a customer having an issue with the Drafthouse and their staff.

Here is a quick one that shows how customer-friendly the folks over there are:

The Arlington Brigade of the Screaming Eagles, a non-profit soccer club, were in a bind on where to show an international match this Saturday night (due to the delay by the USSF in releasing their TV deal for the event). Yet, the staff of the Arlington Cinema & Drafthouse were extremely helpful in allowing us to take over one of their busiest nights of the week for a fundraiser for two soccer charities – love.futbol and the U.S. Soccer Foundation.

As a result we hope to pack the place with soccer fans decked out in red, white and blue on Saturday night at 10pm for the USA vs. Chile match and raise funds to help create safe places for children to play both at home and abroad.

See more information on the USA vs. Chile viewing party here.

Volunteer Opp: Help Out With a Soccer Tournament

By ARLnow.com

Have you ever wondered who runs the game clock at sporting events? Does watching a soccer game while pressing a few buttons sound like a sufficiently low-effort way to give back to the community?

If so, the Arlington Parks Department needs you to help out with an indoor youth soccer tournament at the Barcroft Sports and Fitness Center on Nov. 20.

In addition to running the clock, the parks department needs volunteers to help with registration and the monitoring of games.

No previous soccer or coaching experience is required.

Call Milada Weaver at 703-228-4730 or email her here for more information. (Note that Arlington government offices are closed today.)

The ARLnow.com World Cup Guide

By Ashley Houghton

Lessons we learned while gathering information about local bars and their World Cup specials:

  • Irish pubs cannot stand France.
  • Irish pubs cannot stand England.
  • Irish pubs are likely to ask “Wait, why do you need an excuse like the World Cup to drink?” when asked about their World Cup drink specials.
  • Even British pubs are hesitant to say that they’re supporting England in Saturday’s match against the U.S.
  • There are too many ridiculous eating and drinking opportunities to avoid soccer for the next month.

Soccer is a game meant to be watched with a large group of loud and inebriated fans, so go ahead, summon your old middle school soccer ambitions and yell out those rare soccer-related phrases you remember from the matches (“CORNER KICK!” and “STRIKER!”).

ARLnow’s list of places to watch the World Cup in Arlington is after the jump. The tournament, by the way, kicks off (get it?) at 10:00 a.m. Friday with host country South Africa versus Mexico.

Photo via Facebook: Piola Restaurant all decked out for the World Cup.

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