Struggling Breakers Waive Weimer, Igwe, and Enyeart

Something had to give with the Boston Breakers off to a 1-5-4 start and they decided to shake up the roster, waiving Tiffany Weimer, Chioma Igwe, and Michelle Enyeart.

Weimer had signed as a free agent during the winter after spending last season with FC Gold Pride. For the Breakers, she had appeared in 7 matches, starting two of them. She does not have any goals this season.

Igwe came over to the Breakers from Chicago. She had made six starts for Boston.

Enyeart had not seen any action after suffering a severe injury last November while at the University of Portland.

Boston Breakers-The Offseason So Far

In the 3rd installment on WPS teams in the offseason, we'll look at the Boston Breakers.

When Last We Left Them...

The Breakers finished in 5th place with 25 points, just a point behind 4th place Sky Blue and out of the playoffs. Like Gold Pride and Chicago, they played very well early in the season and after defeating Los Angeles on May 2, they looked like they would challenge the Sol for 1st place. However, a May/June slump sent them back in the pack. Still, with just two weeks to go in the season, they were in good shape for the playoffs at 7-6-4. They never got another point, falling to LA in a must win match on the final day of the season as the Sol netted two 2nd half goals to defeat Boston 2-1.

The Breakers boasted a solid defense, but scored only 18 goals. Leading scorer Kelly Smith had injury issues, but still managed a fine season in spite of rarely being 100% physically. Boston only scored more than one goal on 3 occasions and not at all after June 21. Their midseason goalkeeper change to Allison Lipsher made their defense even stronger, but scoring just one goal total in their last four games doomed their playoff chances.

Roster Moves

If you could choose one word to describe the Breakers' offseason it would be eventful. Although they still have a core from last year's team, their 2010 roster will be quite different from that of 2009. Gone are Angela Hucles (retired), Heather Mitts (free agent), Amy Rodriguez (trade), Kelly Schmedes (expansion), Sue Weber (expansion), and Candace Chapman (free agent). That's two of their 3 USWNT allocations, the number one choice in the 2009 draft, and three other key players from their 2009 roster. Add to that Sophia Mundy, who was recently signed by Atlanta and Nancy Augustyniak Goffi, who reportedly has retired and we're talking about over one-third of the team' starts for last season.

The trade of Rodriguez was not a surprise as there appeared to be some friction between her and head coach Tony DiCicco for much of the season. She played only 61 minutes over the final 6 games of the year and it was a foregone conclusion that she would not be back with Boston in 2010. Boston traded Rodriguez and their 1st round pick to Philadelphia for the number 2 and 11 picks in the 2010 draft. The trade should work out well for both parties with Boston gaining a high draft choice and Rodriguez getting a chance for a new start.

Likewise, Heather Mitts signing with Philly was no surprise. However, the retirement of Angela Hucles caught a lot of people off guard. Hucles is just 31 years old and had helped lead the US to an Olympic Gold Medal just a year earlier.

Boston quickly moved to fill some of those gaps by signing Tiffany Weimer and Leslie Osborne, two of the more coveted available free agents. Both spent their 2009 seasons with FC Gold Pride. Osborne, an USWNT allocation herself, started 18 games for FCGP and was a stalwart at midfield. She is a hard tackling defensive mid who should help strengthen the Breakers' center. Osborne has 61 caps and 3 goals for the US National Team.

Weimer, started last season in fine fashion, scoring a goal and adding 3 assists in her first four games. But she rarely started after midseason and Gold Pride waived their option on her for 2010. She is a highly creative forward and should help the Breakers' offense in 2010. The Breakers also signed Erika Sutton, a Florida State alum, who saw action in one match for Boston as a short term player due to roster depletion as a result of national team call ups. There is also a strong likelihood that Brazilian forward Fabiana could be back with the Breakers in 2010.

Current Roster

Goalkeepers (1)-Allison Lipsher.
Defenders (3)-Amy LePeilbet, Alex Scott, Erika Sutton.
Midfielders (6)-Kristine Lilly (MF/F), Mary-Frances Monroe, Kasey Moore, Leslie Osborne, Kelly Smith, Maggie Tomecka.
Forwards (3)-Christine Latham, Jennifer Nobis, Tiffany Weimer.

Additions-Osborne, Sutton, and Weimer.
Subtractions-Amy Rodriguez (traded to Philadelphia), Sue Weber (drafted by Philadelphia), Kelly Schmedes (drafted by Philadelphia), Angela Hucles (retired), Heather Mitts (signed by Philadelphia), Candace Chapman (signed by Gold Pride), Sophia Mundy (signed by Atlanta), Nancy Augustyniak Goffi (retired).

Other Free Agents from 2009 roster-Abby Crumpton, Fabiana, Kristin Luckenbill, Ashley Phillips.

Internationals-Scott, Smith, and Latham with 2 slots open (Fabiana is likely to be one of them).
Draft Picks (in first 3 rounds)-Nos. 2, 11, 16, and 25.


Needs to Address

Even though they had trouble scoring in 2009, the Breakers' number one need has to be defense. They have two of the world's best in Scott and LePeilbet, but they lost 42 of the team's 80 defensive starts with Mitts, Goffi, Chapman, and Weber. With the number 2 pick in the draft, it would appear to point to Whitney Engen, North Carolina's all-everything defender. Engen is a four year starter for the Tar Heels and the consensus best defender in the coming draft. After playing two years at forward for UNC, she made the transition to defense look easy.

Scoring is still a need, even if Fabiana is on board for the 2010 season. The foursome of Fabiana, Latham, Nobis, and Weimer only scored a total of 5 goals last season. Kelly Smith led the team in scoring with 6 goals, but injuries and call ups limited her late season output. Kristine Lilly will be back and is still an amazing player, but another scorer would certainly be in order for Boston.

As with several teams, Boston also needs to address the backup keeper situation. As stated earlier, there will be several keepers available in the draft and last year's developmental keeper Ashley Phillips could still be in the picture.

The Breakers must do better in this year's draft. They possess 3 of the top 16 picks. Out of their 2009 draft class, only Jenny Nobis and Kasey Moore are still with the team. Boston has a lot of talented players to build around with Smith, Scott, Lilly, LePeilbet, and Osborne, but they must still fill in the gaps around that talent. Perhaps fittingly, the Breakers' 2010 home opener will be against Philadelphia. Mitts, Rodriguez, Schmedes, and Weber will return to Boston to play against their old team.

WPS Draft Revisited-FC Gold Pride

For the second installment on the 2009 WPS draft, we'll take a look at FC Gold Pride.

Who They Drafted
1st round (#3)-Christina DiMartino, UCLA; 2nd round (#12)-Carrie Dew, Notre Dame; 3rd round (#17)-Tiffany Weimer, Penn State; 4th round (#26)-Marisa Abegg, Stanford; 5th round (#31)-Ameera Abdullah, Florida; 6th round (#40)-Leigh Ann Robinson, San Diego; 7th round (#45)-Brandi Chastain, Santa Clara; 8th round (#54)-Allison Whitworth, Auburn; 9th round (#59)-Alissa Oldenkamp, Arizona State; 10th round (#68)-Stacie Alberico, San Jose State.

Strategy
FC Gold Pride started by taking two young players, both with extensive experience on the US Junior National Teams, with DiMartino and Dew. They followed that by taking the 2nd oldest player taken in the first three rounds and one with international club experience, Tiffany Weimer. In later rounds, they took two of the oldest players drafted, Brandi Chastain and Stacie Alberico. There doesn't seem to be any preference as to age, geographic area, or position. Although Gold Pride did pick several players from the traditional west coast powers, they also looked east for a few of their picks.

Current WPS Status
For FC Gold Pride, 7 of their 10 draft picks are still on the roster, 3 were released.

Full time starters (4)-DiMartino, Dew, Weimer, Robinson.
Part time starters & other full roster players (2)-Chastain, Whitworth.
Developmental players (1)-Abegg.
Released (3)-Abdullah, Oldenkamp, Alberico.

What They've Done
DiMartino-9 G, 9 GS, 774 Min, 9 shots, 4 SOG
Dew-8 G, 8 GS, 638 Min, 1 goal, 2 points, 4 shots, 2 SOG
Weimer-10 G, 8 GS, 583 Min, 1 goal, 3 assists, 5 points, 14 shots, 5 SOG
Robinson-10 G, 8 GS, 705 Min, 1 goal, 2 points, 3 shots, 2 SOG
Abegg-2 G, 1 GS, 126 Min
Chastain-3 G, 53 Min, 2 shots

Whitworth-1 G, 1 GS, 90 Min, 6 saves, 2.00 GA

Total Offensive Output-42 G, 34 GS, 2879 Min, 3 goals, 3 assists, 9 points, 32 shots, 13 SOG.
Total Goalkeeper Output-1 G, 1 GS, 90 Min, 6 saves, 2.00 GA.

G=Games; GS=Games Started; Min=Minutes; SOG=Shots on Goal; GA=Goals Against Average.

The Players

Christina DiMartino-Though often overshadowed by her midfield teammates, DiMartino has played well for FC Gold Pride. In the game I saw her play in person, there were periods where she seemed to be all over the field. She maneuvers well in tight space and is good at distributing the ball. She is probably the best young player in the league with the ball at her feet. Her size prevents her from being a force in the air and she can be muscled off the ball on occasion, but her quick feet can also dispossess opponents. Her skills probably fit Gold Pride as well as any team in the league as they concentrate on passing and possession. I don't know if she will ever be a great player, but she can be very, very good.

Carrie Dew-Talk about a roller coaster season, Dew has had one. I thought she was an excellent pick at #12. She started the first game at holding midfielder and did a nice job frustrating Kelly Smith for the 1st half of that game. She followed that with a goal against Sky Blue. Then she missed nearly two full games because of injury, but seemed to be settling in after that, until.... She had a rough time of it againt the Sol, getting called on a foul and penalty, and was beaten a few times by the speedy LA attackers. Then came the double yellow card against Washington and suspension. Like Rachel Buehler and Leslie Osborne, she goes in strong on the tackle, but she needs to be more discriminating as to when she uses that talent. Dew's height and athleticism make her a natural in the air. I still think she was a solid pick and a good player. Her main position in college was center back, but she has also been used at defensive mid with Gold Pride and I wonder if that might ultimately be her better position.

Tiffany Weimer-No player burst onto the WPS scene with a bigger splash than Weimer. Her 1st half against Boston in the opener was a great half of soccer. She has excellent ball skills and can be a magician at times. About the best compliment I can pay her is that she thinks like a Brazilian, always looking to create and in fact, she did spend time with Santos. Sometimes, it seems like she attempts to do too much with the dribble, but that could be because the mids are slow in support. She had a goal and three assists in her first four games. But then, what happened? She was very quiet against Athletica and then spent a large portion of the next three games on the bench. In her last 5 games, she has attempted only 2 shots. I hope that Weimer can bounce back from this lull, because she is truly a joy to watch when she's at her best.

Marisa Abegg-Abegg started the year as a developmental player, but she saw her first action against the Freedom, followed by a start and a full 90 against Chicago due to Dew's suspension and Wilson's injury. She and former teammate Allison Falk helped to form one of the best back lines in college soccer at Stanford.

Leigh Ann Robinson-The 6th round pick has contributed nicely to Gold Pride, playing in all 10 games and starting eight. Like teammate Kandace Wilson, she can be dangerous making overlapping runs, although she doesn't quite have Wilson's blazing speed. She scored the game winning goal, coming off the bench in the 2nd Sky Blue game with a nice run and beautiful finish. It seems to me, at least at this point in her career, that she is much more comfortable going forward than defending.

Brandi Chastain-You have to take your hat off to any player that can compete in this league at age 40. She's still in top shape, although the amount of quality minutes that she can give has surely declined. She's been bothered with injuries, but has looked pretty good in the games she has played and she just missed scoring a goal on a header against Los Angeles.

Allison Whitworth-With Nicole Barnhart's call up, she got the start against the Sol, not exactly the easiest debut. She played outstanding, making several nice saves and keeping her team in the game. It was impressive that the young keeper didn't let the penalty rattle her and she actually seemed to gain confidence as the game wore on. She makes sound decisions and has good height and quickness. She could be a prime target in the expansion draft.

Summary
Gold Pride has gotten a lot out of their draft. DiMartino is already a good player and has one of the best skill sets of any young player in the league. Dew was a solid pick and with some experience, she should be a fine player for many years. Weimer could have been the steal of the draft at #17, but she needs to be more consistent. Gold Pride also did pretty well in the bottom half of the draft with Robinson and Whitworth. Abegg, given time and experience, could develop into a nice player. Quite frankly, I was shocked that Abdullah didn't make the team. The one thing I can perhaps fault this group on is their consistency.

I think perhaps the biggest problem is that, with Wilson's injury, Gold Pride is now getting absolutely zilch out of the October draft. Therefore, several of these players are being pushed into roles before they have had time to develop. I'm puzzled that they didn't keep Jill Oakes, injury or not, to give them more depth and experience on defense, which may have helped young players like Dew and Robinson. Still, it's a pretty good draft when you can get four starters out of it.