POV-FS Out Loud! - The Vocal Minority Podcast, Episode 84 #StokeHappens

Hamstring all healed, the good folks over at VM were kind enough to have me back on to chat a little TFC, Philadelphia Union, and Voyageurs Cup, as well as all the usual frivolities that come with the podcast.

Check it out – direct download, iTunes

POV-FS Out Loud! The Vocal Minority Podcast - Episode 81 #RedMoustaches

The good folks over at VMP were kind enough to (finally) grant me my season debut on the show – it's award-winning now, if you haven't heard.

As for a brief rundown of the topics, if memory serves we discussed the loss in Chicago, the announcement of the first summer friendly, Duncan and I debated the bending of the space-time continuum, as per a specific refereeing decision in Colorado (not sure if that made it past the editing room floor to be honest), as well as all the usual pageantry of Bitchy Blanks, Would You Rather, and so on.

Plus I got to steal a CAW or two in the process. Random sidenote: CAW also stands for Canadian Auto Workers and I saw one of their economists, the one from the TV, on the subway prior to recording, which I suppose is something.

It's great fun chatting with some friends, so I hope you enjoy.

The episode page can be found here. Or it can be downloaded directly from this link Or there's a thing called Soundcloud which is apparently pretty cool. And of course, if you don't want to have to remember to download every week, iTunes works – and if you're not into that, I'm sure you have some other way of getting that taken care of (do people still use RSS?).

Now to ice that hamstring.

POV-FS Out Loud – Episode 59 of The Vocal Minority Podcast

The good folks over at VMP were kind enough to have me back on, despite my stepping on certain toes (Ca-Caaw!), to take part in a hefty post-mortem with Toronto FC’s season dashed against the rocks.

Plenty of topics were covered, from losses, to personnel, management, where things went wrong and what could happen over the next few months.

Was surprised how much we had to say about the club that keeps on disappointing….

Check it out – Soundcloud, browse through the whole library, and get involved in the conversation, including this week’s Bitchy Blank: In lieu of playoff tickets, TFC fans will receive (blank) this post-season?

POV-FS Out Loud! Episode 56 of the Vocal Minority Podcast #Momentum

The good folks at VMP were kind enough to call me off the bench once more for a little Toronto FC chat, reflecting on the Chivas win, looking forward to the weekend match against Portland, and getting medieval with a solution to TFC’s curse, amongst myriad other things.

Check it out here, and/or follow on Twitter, listen on Soundcloud, subscribe on iTunes, get involved in the conversation or contribute Bitchy Blanks at Waking the Red and be sure to stop by The Yorkies to check out the good work going on over there.

POV-FS Out Loud! – Friday, September 19th Edition of Anthony Totera’s Red Card on NextSportStar.com

Anthony was kind enough to have me back on the show to discuss several MLS topics, including Toronto-Chivas, the playoff race, and some young stars to watch over the closing few weeks.

It’s always a good time, be sure to check it out and peruse the archive for a wonderful selection of opinions for all parts of the game.

Check out how the predictions went here

POV-FS Out Loud! – Episode 53 #NonDisclosureAgreements of the Vocal Minority Podcast

The good folks at VMP were kind enough to have me on again, this time taking up the role of curmudgeonly Northerner, as ‘New Duncan’.

It was a special edition, dissecting the latest round of upheaval at Toronto FC – talking Ryan Nelsen, Tim Bezbatchenko, Greg Vanney, Jermain Defoe, and the rest of the gang at the club.

Check it out – and subscribe on iTunes to have it delivered directly to your computing box each week.

POV-FS Out Loud! – July 31 Anthony Totera’s Red Card

Anthony was kind enough to have me on the show to talk a little Toronto FC, after their disappointing result in DC, and a little Tesho Akindele, as the young Canadian impresses in MLS

Check it out

Got it; got it; need it; got it; need it…The Economics of Panini Stickers

    The Economist dug into the secrets behind the much-beloved World Cup albums in their series, The Economist Explains.

    In an effort to rekindle the joy of youth, I myself have been indulging a little bit of packet opening – it is quite fun, after all.

    Fans lucky enough to attend Toronto FC’s last match prior to the World Cup break would have been able to get their hands on a free edition of the album – the packs however, will cost you.

    It is available in podcast, or written form, here.

    Expensive stuff – needless to say, most albums will be left sadly unfinished; happy hunting!

POV-FS Out Loud! – The Vocal Minority Podcast, Episode 35 #Foreshadowing

The Crew over at VMP, comprised of friends from Waking the Red and The Yorkies, were kind enough to have me on this week’s episode in the role of New Tony, as Old Tony has gone missing over in Blighty.

A review of the opening two months of TFC's season, a chat about the Ottawa Fury Voyageurs Cup debut experience - and my $2-bus ride, and plenty of other pearls of wisdom neatly daubed across the hour.

Do check it out – follow on twitter – subscribe on iTunes – and all that jazz.

It’s great fun; let them know what you think about the show as well, catch up on old episodes, contribute to the bitchyblanks to win great prizes (prizes consist of admiration and appreciative nods and hmms – not and hmms may not be as enthusiastic as one desires).

Good Listens – MLS Podcast Round-Up

    Highlighting a trio of North American podcasts from the past week or so:

Good Listens – MLS Podcast Round-Up

    A new feature to POV-FS highlighting a trio of must-hear North American podcast gold from the past few days:

From the Bookshelf – Philippe Auclair’s New Book “Thierry Henry – Lonely at the Top: A Biography”

    Out just in time for Christmas, Mr. Auclair’s latest work looks at the life and career of France and Arsenal striker Thierry Henry.

    Given the extreme attention to detail and endless hours of investigation employed in his previous biography, of Eric Cantona, one can only assume it to be a similarly striking work.

    A lengthy interview with Off the Ball of Ireland’s Newstalk 106-108 on Tuesday (December 18th) discusses the scope of the project – give it a listen either on their popup player or via iTunes.

POV-FS Out Loud – Soccer Made in Portland: Episode 61

    Ever wonder what sort of voice belongs to these innumerable words?

    Well, now is your first chance to catch a listen.

First Person View - Viva La Mexico

    The rebranded Liga MX Torneo Apertura 2012 kicks off tonight.

Keith Law - On the Trouble of Getting Players to Play in Toronto.

    Speaking on his time in Toronto under JP Ricciardi the General Manager of the Toronto Blue Jays, he stated that Ricciardi believed strongly that the Blue Jays had to over pay to attract talent north of the border. Mr. Law himself believes that aside from tax consideration (an increase of 10% or so) there was very little evidence to back up that assertion. Though he admits it is something that would be impossible to quantify and thus prove.

Quote of the DWW*

     Today: A double dose of quotations.

     Firstly, Mr. Schaad puts his finger on something I’ve been thinking all season long; the Toronto Sports Media are a bunch of cannibals. While, Mr. Lenarduzzi responds to the statement that BMO Field has lost some of its ferocious magic.

Concussions in MLS

     A good result for Chivas USA on Sunday night was made even better by the return of defender Michael Lahoud, who overcame post concussion issues to assist his team in earning that jaw dropping 2-3 victory in New York against the Red Bulls. Concussions have become a serious issue in the sporting world in the past few years, the NHL and NFL are taking extreme measures, such as protective legislation and increased medical oversight to ensure the safety of their players.

    At the moment, there are 6 MLS players out of action for concussions and post-concussion symptoms: Jimmy Conrad (Chivas USA), Devon McTavish (D.C. United), Calen Carr (Houston Dynamo), Thorne Holder (Philadelphia Union) Patrick Nyarko and Michael Videira (both Chicago Fire). Jimmy Conrad, perhaps the highest profile players currently out, definitely the most entertaining and garrulous of the bunch, recently discussed his situation on his podcast. Making light of the situation as he usually does, Jimmy expressed the confusion and concerns associated with the condition, his desire to get out on the field, the indeterminate nature of the injury and the ramifications of collective damage suffered for one’s post professional career.