After the match concludes, we have beers at Against the Grain which is conveniently located right outside the Slugger Field gate. Make sure you order a pint of the Coopers-inspired Ball Control! $0.50 from every pour (on home match days) of Ball Control goes to Shirley’s Way, a most excellent local charity helping families of those afflicted with cancer.
WHO, AGAIN?
The Eleven of Indianapolis. I’ve been pretty preoccupied with Cincinnati and the coaching search this week so I haven’t had much time to build up much ill will toward the Eights Elevens. OOOHHHH I HATE THE ELEVENS SO MUCH BECAUSE THIS RIVALRY GOES SOOOOO DEEEEEEEEEP. Indiana prides themselves on being a basketball state, much like Kentucky does, so I’m surprised they didn’t try and work that into their legend somewhere. I know Louisville City has a lot of fans from southern Indiana, and that’s wonderful. I’m sure they’re all wonderful people. But I can’t stand Indiana, and neither can a lot of their own citizens for various good reasons such as Mike Pence and also Mike Pence. Here are some fun anecdotes from actual Indianapolis residents about their chosen city:
Pat:
The only good thing about being from Indianapolis is the ability to be absolutely astounded by the natural or constructed scenery of literally anywhere else. I visited New Mexico for the first time this summer and was ready to move there within an hour.
Kevin Kernen might tell you that Indiana’s not that flat, but no one’s tried riding a bike across it since maybe ever so it’s a distinction that makes little difference to those of us trying to get to Chicago.
Caleb:
Indianapolis leads the entire nation in the category of football jerseys tucked into jeans.
I haven’t checked to see if this rings true with their soccer fans, too, but I’m going to run with it until proven otherwise.
Alex:
Indiana is the Alabama of the North.
Indiana is decidedly not in “the North,” it’s more in “the middle I guess”, but the point is harsh and perhaps fair. People go to Alabama on purpose, though, because Gulf Shores has some nice beaches and the state as a whole is worth visiting if only for some decent football and barbecue. Indiana’s leading contribution to the national cuisine is nothing, which is why their soccer team is so mediocre. It’s science! A talisman of Indianapolis’s lack of anything interesting to do is their city’s plan to build a park so that residents can sit and look at the interstate, presumably so they can yell at folks in the left lane to slow down.
To be fair to the Elevens, which I don’t like, Indy beat Morados in their first USL contest this season. That was not fun. City did not play well in that game, and neither did Indy, really, but most of us might have forgotten about that because it was an excuse to start drinking earlier on Derby Day than usual. Now, the Nines Eleven have our complete attention. zzzzzzzzzzzzz
Sorry. I mentioned on the podcast this week that Indy has some good attacking pieces in Soony Saad and Jack McInerney, and that’s true. I didn’t mention Ayoze Garcia (he just goes by Ayoze), though, and I definitely should have because the diminutive Spaniard has just as many goals as those other guys (four), five assists, and is the team’s leading chance creator. And he does all of that playing left back.
Indy kind of plays a 4-3-3 with fullbacks pushing up and two outside attacking mids trying to get McInerney the ball. That he only has four goals on the year speaks to how effective that is. That said, they’ve scored 25 goals on the season and have at least eight different goalscorers, so even if the plan doesn’t work, they still have managed some decent results. Indy also plays better on the road than they do at home, something else to watch for.
City will be without Spencer, Ballard, and Alexis this game thanks to red card suspension. Any time the Triumvirate or John Hackworth wants to add another body to this roster so Paolo, Paco, Kyle, Oscar and Speedy’s legs don’t literally fall of them before September would be fine. Let’s go get three points.
VAMOS MORADOS, VAMOS A GANAR!
