Well, I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving holiday . . . . Now, it is back to the grind, right? UGH!

My Thanksgiving was anything but routine, but suffice to say, my family and I have A LOT to be thankful for today and in the future! However, this warm and fuzzy feeling is tempered by the news that our former coach, Bob Bradley, is heading over to Chivas USA? Hmmmmm . . . interesting.

Well, at the least, it will be an even more interesting rivalry next season between the Metros and Chivas USA. I can see the headlines now . . . “Bradley Gets MoJo’s Goat,” “Chivas USA Cannot Find ‘MoJo’ on the Road,” or “Metros Ferment Goat Cheese!” OK, so I should not quit my day job, and will never have a career covering the MLS, or the Metros, for that matter.

No worries. For now, MetroNation is where it is at for me. However, I would be remiss by not letting you know that the “Fifth Official” weighs in again on recent MLS and Metro headlines. We hope to have this column as a regular feature next season. The negotiations are heated, but I think we can close the deal in time, right AJ?!

Did you know that the MetroStars, as an organization, FINALLY won some hardware . . . at the NATIONAL level?! Yeah, I am serious!!! KUDOS to the Metros’ youth movement!! Also, did anyone notice that the Reserves finished second out of 12 teams?! One might argue that none of this matters, but in context of the league-wide grassroots effort, it is EXTREMELY significant!! It seems to be paying dividends for the Metros, which is another sign of better times ahead.

Hang in there, Metro faithful!! There is LOTS more to come!

TIME IS RUNNING OUT TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF OUR EARLY-BIRD METRONATION SEASON-PASSPORT OFFERING!! It is the best deal you will find anywhere in Giants Stadium, unless your name is Alexi Lalas!

YIRB,
MetroNation

Indeed, it is easy to complain about things that “coulda, shoulda, woulda . . .” However, a recent e-article was brought to my attention by none other than, Angry Metro. Frankly, I thought it was quite well written and inspiring. It helps put things into perspective for “today’s MetroStars fan.” In any case, it is obvious that the MFO is still busy, even in the off-season.

We, too, are busy with the off-season preparations for 2006. Be sure to check out our extremely discounted 2006 season-ticket offering. Meanwhile, as the Thanksgiving holiday draws near, we want to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving! We are ready for 2006!!!!!!!!!!

YIRB,
MetroNation

PS
For those who watched the MLS Cup on television . . .

THE “FIFTH OFFICIAL” MAKES THE CALL!!

Actually, this is not the first time our bongo-banging, Brazil-loving, formerly long-haired, Citizen computer guru (Watch it, Phil, you have competition!) has blogged. However, we just have not unveiled his ramblings to the MASSES, yet! He has been putting up little blurbs of his own for little over a month now.

While I, the “Chief” enjoy some down time from my periodic dissertations about MLS, its personalities, players, and the Beautiful Game, in general, I encourage other points of view from our esteemed Citizenship. OK, maybe “esteemed” is going overboard in this case . . .

So, without further ado (NOT “Adu”), the “Fifth Official” (a.k.a., AJ Kelton) makes his debut on the MetroNation.net! A sign of many good things to come for MetroNation!!!

Yours in Red and Black,
“Chief”

PS
For the record, I could not watch The Cup Match because 1) I was preoccupied with business in San Diego (YES, on a Sunday), and 2) Nobody would change the channel because they did not want to miss their “meatball” game . . . GRRRRR!!!!!!!! However, thank God for wireless Internet . . . I am glad the Revs lost! Mr. Kraft can take some consolation in the fact that the Patriots beat Miami, but again, who cares about “meatball?”

PPS
I closed with “Chief,” instead of “MetroNation,” because I never really felt comfortable speaking on behalf of our ENTIRE Citizenship. Now that we have another willing contributor, we will blog based on each other’s respective views! Cool, eh?

HAAAA!!!!!! Made you look!

“Retire” is hardly the appropriate word after only being the “Chief” for one season! For example, if Corey of ESC said he was retiring after 10 seasons without an Open or MLS Cup, that would be more believable. However, I think he would rather die than retire from supporting the Red and Black (Corey, please correct me if I am wrong, here!).

The reality is I retired my “Chief Metro” jersey, which you ALWAYS saw me wearing before during and after MetroStars matches, even at the “post-game” and “watch” parties. It was something I had thought about doing long before the [premature] end of the Metros’ season. Accomplishing so much in our inaugural season, I wanted the MetroStars Front Office to have an enduring reminder of this special and memorable MetroNation “birth-season.” With all the team-autographed merchandise the Front Office facilitated getting for us throughout the season, I thought it was time for us to reciprocate. Specifically, I offered my [MANY] game(s)-worn “uniform,” autographed by the Charter Citizens (see Citizen Roll Call), to Alexi, which he graciously accepted.

Not to be forgotten is Christina “C-Lo” Lombreglia, who served as our Front Office liaison for most of this season. Her attention to detail and follow-through was outstanding and a big part of our success this season. From securing tickets for expected and even unexpected guests, to alerting us about parking lot issues in advance for MetroGate, to facilitating the acquisition of autographed MetroStars merchandise, Christina was a pleasure to work with. However, I am not sure the reverse is true . . . -GULP- Anyway, she weathered my fragmented thought processes and frequent requests, as one would expect from any professional in the sports and entertainment industry. Consequently, she was quite surprised when I awarded a personalized, etched-glass crescent featuring our logo, corporate seal, my signature, and a brief inscription. She was very humble, but deserved it all!

Speaking of awards, several weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to be invited to the MetroStars Awards Banquet at the Weehawken Chart House. It was a very fine affair, and I donned a tux featuring all the official colors of the MetroStars shield (tastefully, of course). This was the ONLY time after the season began that I did not wear my “Chief” jersey. Although out of chronological sequence, I thought it would round out this last update to our “Sights and Sounds” online album, at least for a while. Keith Furman of “firstrowidiots” far exceeds my skill as a photographer/videographer, as you can tell by his photo montage of this event. Thanks, firstrowidiots!!

Doing the title of this update some justice, I must speak to the VERY FRESH news of MoJo’s official hiring as the new MetroStars Head Coach!!! A press conference is pending. Finally, we get to scratch the word “Interim!” GEEZ! I do not know anybody who disagrees with Alexi’s assessment of MoJo’s value to the club and what he means to the players. Importantly, MoJo achieved seemingly the unthinkable (at the time) under HIGH pressure and EVERYTHING at stake. If anybody does disagree, show yourself!!! Seriously, this is really good news, and should bode well for 2006. I really think MoJo has a “chemistry” with the team and the fans, which goes a LONG way towards building on Alexi’s “Super Club” concept. I still need to think that one over . . . Anyway, best wishes to MoJo et al, and a heartfelt “Thank You” to Bob Bradley. We also wish him well. (As an aside, things were not easy for young Mike Bradley on or off the pitch, before and during the hoopla over his dad. Being a professional athlete is a tremendous responsibility for an 18 year-old, and I thought he dealt with all the necessary and unnecessary pressures quite well. We look forward to seeing you in even better form in 2006!!)

Now, while we are all enjoying some down time, we will be busy in the off-season preparing for 2006. Some of us will watch the MLS Cup this Sunday, while others cannot bear to watch, knowing that our Boys in Red and Black deserve to be there just as much as Landon or Taylor. Regardless, soccer is a celebration of life and sport. So, whatever you do this weekend, and those remaining until Opening Day 2006, enjoy family, friends, the holidays . . . ENJOY LIFE!

We have got surprises planned in the not too distant future, so keep your eyes on MetroNation, because we have got our eyes on you!

YIRB,
MetroNation

PS
Be sure to catch our “Other Boys” of “different stripes” against Scotland, featuring our own Eddie Gaven on the roster!!