O'Leary Lantern
O'Leary Lantern
My view of the game.
Waiting for Soccer |
| My memories of professional soccer in Chicago are like those of most
non-soccer fans. During the heyday of the North American Soccer League (NASL), I followed
baseball, and I was only aware of the Sting when the outfield grass of Wrigley Field was
marred by their chalk lines. Soccer came to the attention of the sportscasters if there
was ten seconds to fill in a broadcast. Their condescension toward the "Der
Shting" seemed borne of a happiness that something in sports was held in more
derision than sportscasters.
Read the rest |
It's Fire |
| It was the kind of Chicago weather when the unlicensed peddlers at el
stops don't know whether to display sunglasses or umbrellas. The press conference to
announce the name of our new Major League Soccer team was being held outside near Navy
Pier. Apparently it was by invitation only, but a neighborhood newspaper printed the time
and location, so I decided to crash it. Read the rest |
The Playmaker |
| Walking past a guy in shorts, I grinned and mentally rechecked the date.
It was December 16th in Chicago, and the weather was mild, but not that mild. I
still needed my gloves that had been inadequate the week before, but someone in shorts was
a good omen. Pausing on my way to a Chicago Fire press conference, I studied the celebrity
handprints pressed into cement on the wall of the former "Morrie Mages’ Sports
Store." Willy Roy and Karl Heinz-Granitza had passed this way too. Read the rest |
Some Foreign Field |
| My travels have taken me to a couple of matches in England. It is fun to
see their game and the fans are interested in a Yank who follows "footy." I get
asked why I like football and why the rest of America doesn’t. Read the rest |
| Hands down the strangest conversation I ever had about soccer was with
Vu, a former Viet Cong soldier, in Hue, Vietnam. I was on a military history tour with a
British group and my husband and I were the only Americans. Neither of us had been to
Vietnam before, but like all Americans, we have a history there. Read the rest |
 Chicago Fire |
 Barn Burners |
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