Timbers Army
This one is for all the marbles.
The Portland Timbers head north to take on the Seattle Sounders on Oct. 7 at 6pm PT. Currently sitting atop the three-team standings for the Cascadia Cup between the Timbers, Vancouver Whitecaps, and Sounders, the Timbers could return home with the coveted cup if they draw or win at CenturyLink Field.
Unable to make it north for #SeattleAway? Do not fret, we'll be hosting a big bash at one of our esteemed Timbers Pub Partners but we want your help in deciding where. Vote on the poll at right to have your say about who should host and where you'll want to be when you watch this historic match.
The poll ends September 26 at 5pm PT.
In his latest Throw-in column for MLSsoccer.com, Jonah Freedman opines on how a precedent can set up a team's expectations. Whether it's the Cascadia Cup, Brimstone Cup, Trillium Cup, MLS Cup, U.S. Open Cup or more, Freedman posits that no matter the silverware, these trophies matter. They can help define, or at the very least, begin to define the direction a team aims to take. Given how close the Timbers are to winning this year's Cascadia Cup in what has been a difficult season, Freedman asks,
So what are fans supposed to make of these trophies? For Portland, it’s a sign of progress, a symbol of success upon which they can hang their hats in their second MLS season. It is perhaps a springboard to future glory, when a young team with a young coach can do great things as they evolve.
Read more on how varying teams aim for glory and how those first steps help set the path.
You may have noticed Jimmy Conrad was in Portland recently with KICKTV. He spoke with Merritt Paulson. He received chainsaw lessons with Timber Joey.
However.
Perhaps the biggest moment of all was Conrad actually attending the Cascadia Cup showdown between the Timbers and Seattle Sounders at JELD-WEN Field on Saturday. There were bagpipes, there was facepaint, there was yelling and as part of his indoctrination to the experience, Conrad became a full fledged member of the Timbers Army, No Pity scarf and all.
While we often post here in The Backcut about news and interesting soccer tidbits, cool events with team partners, and other assorted ephemera, this Saturday, August 11 presents a particularly easy way to mix your love of Timbers with beer and helping out a great cause.
Join defender David Horst and goalkeeper Jake Gleeson--Gleeson freshly returned from London 2012--along with Timbery Joey at Widmer Brothers Brewing at 929 N Russell Street this Saturday from 5-8pm for a special "Brother's Day" event. There will be live music, prizes - including a pair of 2013 season tickets, plus for $20, you get two Timbers Reserve League tickets for the match against the San Jose Earthquake Reserves on Aug. 26, two drink tokens to Brother's Day, and a Timbers scarf and keychain.
All proceeds from the 21 and over event's beer sales and special ticket packages benefits Big Brothers Big Sisters Columbia Northwest--one of the Timbers Stand Together Pillar Partners.
Sounds like a great way to spend a Saturday evening.
Long is the list of numerous and creative Timbers Army chants that are used to thunderous effect on matchdays.
But the TA is also well known for their commitment to their town through a robust and developed community outreach programs. Whether it be helping through Operation Pitch Invasion and their efforts to repair and improve soccer fields throughout Portland or their work at fundraising for the unique Harper's Playground project, the TA volunteer efforts run deep.
Tomorrow, the Timbers Army are helping put on a unique show that combines their famous chants with distinctive art. Partnering with Portland design collective Factory North and a host of other talented designers and artists, the Timbers Army are putting on Art Takeover: Operation Harper's Playground aims to raise money for the still under construction Harper's Playground in North Portland. The Harper's Playground project is an initiative aiming to build a fully accessible playground for children and adults of all abilities can come together to play.
Perhaps the coolest part of all this? Each poster created is built and designed around a unique phrase pulled from the litany of famous Timbers Army chants. And at only $30 a print, each item is a steal of a deal. The list of artists is impressive including OMFGCo, Jolby and Justin "Scrappers" Morrison. Visit their website for a full list of designers and get a sneak peek of some of the posters to be on display. There's a total of 30 artists with editions of 50 made for each handpulled artist signed and numbered print.
So what are you waiting for? Head to Coava Coffee on 1300 SE Grand Avenue tomorrow anytime between 8am-6pm (or a special 21+ 7-10pm reception the same night) and get your poster then come Sunday to cheer on the Timbers as they take on FC Dallas at JELD-WEN Field.
Watch the great video for a complete rundown of the whole shebang:
The fans have spoken!
The first four food carts to serve at JELD-WEN Field through the Portland Timbers Food Cart Alliance (PTFCA) have been chosen via Facebook fan vote. The first food cart will serve at the August 5 match.
Each food cart will offer a selection of their specialty items at the Soccer City Grill concession stand on the east side of the stadium.
Here are the winning food carts for the next four home matches:
August 5 – 808 Grinds (Twitter)
About: 808 Grinds is the creation of Jensen Yip and Kevin Scolfield. The food here offers up flavors that have influenced Hawaiian food for years like teriyaki, ginger, wasabi and others. Their menu features traditional Hawaiian dishes like Kalua pig and Shoyu chicken served with rice and traditional mac salad.
August 25 – The Frying Scotsman (Twitter)
About: British fish and chips prepared fresh daily in Portland, OR by Scotsman James King. The recipes they use have been handed down through generations in Scotland. Chef James King hails from Ayrshire, UK, on the west coast of Scotland.
Sept. 15 – Big Ass Sandwiches (Twitter)
About: Big-Ass Sandwiches is exactly what it sounds like: Delicious, ample sandwiches filled with home roasted meats and homemade ingredients, sure to squash big hunger in its tracks. This new Portland food cart is owned and operated by husband and wife Brian and Lisa Wood. Located downtown on the corner of SW 3rd & Ash Street, they serve up one-of-a-kind sandwiches to the people of Portland, who are already delightfully in the midst of what can only be described as an outright sandwich revival.
Applications for PTFCA will be accepted for the remainder of the season. Another fan vote for the remaining two home matches will run in early September.
Stay tuned for more details on each food cart as the season goes on. First up: 808 Grinds!
Photo: Portland Timbers
You are the definition of RCTID. You’re there at the game in the rain. In the sun. In the cold. In the heat. Win lose or draw you cheer your heart out.
You understand the unique relationship between team and city.
And yet somehow, you don’t have season tickets.
This is your chance. With over thousands of people still on the waiting list trying to get season tickets, this is your opportunity to jump to the front.
The photo with the most votes by July 16, 5pm PT wins two 2013 season tickets. That’s TWO tickets that gets you in to all the MLS games at JELD-WEN Field next season.
So get your cameras out and get snapping. Time is running out.
Are you RCTID?
You like soccer. You like going to pubs. You like playing pool. But how do you combine them into the best time AND potentially win a trip to the 2012 MLS Cup?
The Budweiser PoolBall Tournament has the answers.
What’s PoolBall? This:
So now that you’re intrigued, you want to play. While the PoolBall field will be set up at numerous upcoming pub partner viewing parties and home matches for all to play, we have four slots available in a special tournament bracket culminating in a Timbers Army championship match at the Timbers Army Barbeque.
Photo: Budweiser
Just to up the stakes a bit more, the winner of the Timbers Army tournament will then go on to battle the champion of the Seattle Sounders’ Emerald City Supporters group. The winner of that showdown then goes to MLS Cup and will have $2,500 donated to the supporters group of their choice—in this case, the Timbers Army.
Numerous smaller prizes and goodies are available along the way with great swag, scarves, autographed items and more. All you have to do is be 21 and over as of June 30, grab a friend (teams are made up of two players each) and register here. A random drawing of entries will then determine the four slots we have available. The Timbers Army also has a selection of slots available to play here.
Dates of early round bracket play are as follows:
6/30: @ On Deck - Timbers @ Colorado Rapids
7/3: vs. San Jose - @ JELD-WEN Field
7/7: @ Thirsty Lion - Timbers @ Real Salt Lake
7/14: vs. LA - @ JELD-WEN Field
7/21: @ Maher’s Irish Pub - Timbers @ FC Dallas
7/24: vs. Aston Villa - @ JELD-WEN Field
All are welcome to play on the above dates but to be part of the tournament, you must register for the drawing.
Channel your inner Minnesota Fats-Pele love child and sign up!
With the Timbers looking ahead to Saturday's match with Colorado Rapids (6pm PT, KPDX TV, Timbers Television Network; 750 AM The Game / La Pantera 940), many corners of the media are still talking about the incredible environment on display last Sunday in Portland's 2-1 victory over Seattle Sounders FC.
The Portland Business Journal took a look at how MLS worked to promote the game on a national scale and how they're looking to further expand rivalries across the league.
Photo: Craig Mitchelldyer
Today, The Guardian in England published a great examination of the constant game of tifo one-upsmanship between the Timbers Army and Seattle's Emerald City Supporters. With the Timbers Army's massive banner fresh in Portland fan's minds, Graham Parker writes,
[As] the latest banner was raised, and the latest visual gauntlet laid down, it was hard not to respect the sheer dedication and commitment the Timbers Army had put in to honoring one of their club legends [Clive Charles] this Sunday, whatever the origins of the art form in the US. Multiple hundreds of hours of labor go into producing an image that may appear only momentarily, but that has the potential to leave an indelible memory.
Speaking of the hundreds of hours of work put into creating the tifo, be sure to watch this Friday's June 29 Timbers in 30 (6:30pm PT, Fox 12 Oregon) as they'll have a special behind-the-scenes look into how the latest banner was constructed.
The Sporting News sent ace soccer writer Brian Straus here on Sunday to cover the Cascadia Cup battle. Calling the rivalry "among the most intense in American sport," Straus goes in-depth to try to figure out why our corner of the country has bred such an undying competition between the two communities. Comparing the Portland-Seattle clash to other rivalries from around the world doesn't quite work as its roots lie in a different area.
The Glasgow neighbors are divided by religion -- the Protestants support Rangers and the Catholics back Celtic. Elsewhere around the world, great (and occasionally violent) soccer rivalries revolve around politics, economics or geography. In the Pacific Northwest, it’s about civic identity.
Want to know more about how that civic identity operates within the larger ideal of what the very term "Cascadia" means? Portland Monthly's Martin Patail goes behind the deeper concept of the term and how "The Doug"--the green-white-blue flag with the massive Doug Fir emblazoned in the center that can be seen flying at all matches between Portland, Seattle, and Vancouver--is really part of a bigger discussion about a region's "independent state of mind."
It's clear the Cascadia ideal and rivalry therein--be it on the field or off--is stronger than ever.
Image: ESPN
As some of you may have begun to notice, there's a growing buzz about this upcoming match for the Timbers this weekend. Seattle Sounders FC is coming to town and that means Rivalry. That mean Intensity. That means Cascadia Cup.
Though the Vancouver Whitecaps FC sit atop the Cascadia standings on two points having drawn both Seattle and Portland earlier in the season, Sunday's game is the first 2012 meeting between the Timbers and Sounders (2:00pm PT, ESPN, 750 AM The Game / La Pantera 940).
We'll be rolling out all kinds of special Cascadia coverage throughout the week with a look back at memorable moments, stories from supporters, and more. Take a look at Monday's flashback to a classic NASL Portland-Seattle battle to get you started.
ESPN is getting into the act as well. They partnered up with MLS and us to make some unique posters that you may see popping up in many of our local watering holes and pubs. The posters take a particular "angle" on the match (see right).
Moreover, there's a brand new promo that was created to whet your appetite as well:
Are you ready?
