The Galaxy kicked off the week on Wednesday with a game against the Colorado Rapids at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.  Donovan earned his third game-winning assist of the season as in the 21st minute, he sent a free kick to the left corner of the six-yard box for forward Alan Gordon.  An unmarked Gordon got underneath the service and placed a header past Colorado goalkeeper Matt Pickens for the game-winner.

Donovan began Saturday’s effort in the 22nd minute of the game as he slipped a pass back to midfielder Michael Stephens, who sent a through ball to forward Jovan Kirovski as he was running toward the top of the area.  Kirovski unleashed a rocket of a shot that goalkeeper Kasey Keller was unable to stop, giving the Galaxy a one goal lead midway through the first half and Donovan his fourth game-winning assist.

The Galaxy doubled its lead and Donovan notched his second assist in the 52nd minute.  Donovan sent an arching corner kick to the near post, six yards out, and defender Omar Gonzalez got above the defense to place a header just inside the right post.

Donovan’s third assist came off another set piece just five minutes later.  In the 57th minute, he placed a free kick, taken from the left side of the field, over the heads of the Seattle defense.  The ball bounced just outside the six-yard box and defender Todd Dunivant capitalized on the opportunity by sending a diving header past Keller.

The Galaxy forward has assisted on five of teammate Edson Buddle’s nine goals in 2010 and Buddle returned the favor Saturday by setting up Donovan for his first goal of the season. In the 67th minute, Buddle carried the ball along the right sideline, cut inside toward the 18-yard box, and sent a pass through the box for Donovan running into the area.  Donovan redirected the cross just inside the right post from less than six yards out to score the Galaxy’s fourth and final goal of the match.

Donovan has consistently contributed to the LA attack throughout the 2010 season with an assist in all but two of the Galaxy’s eight matches.  He currently leads the league in assists with nine.

CSN vote: Donovan. This is how the most critical member of the US men’s national team should be playing in the lead up to the World Cup. Donovan has often vanished at altitude, but he didn’t last week. He was an easy pick for the top spot.

The other: The runner-up on the ColoradoSoccerNow ballot was Bobby Convey. He drew the foul that reduced New York to 10 men on Saturday, and then he chipped in three assists for the San Jose Earthquakes in a 4-0 rout.

Winter Storm Warnings and the threat of up to a foot of snow in the area in the next 24 hours led to the cancellation, according to the short announcement from the Rapids.

“In looking at the potentially hazardous weather that is predicted to transpire over the next 24-48 hours, the Rapids and Sounders felt it was in the best interest and safety of fans, players, coaches and staff to cancel the match rather than risk any potential adverse situation,” according to the Rapids.

Fans who purchased tickets to the match have three options, the announcement noted. Fans can either have their ticket purchase donated to UNICEF relief efforts in Haiti, exchange for a ticket to Opening Day, or request a full refund.

In addition, Fans planning to donate health and hygiene products to Project CURE may bring their items to the Rapids office any time Monday-Friday 8:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m. or to any home game this season. All items collected during the season will be donated to Project CURE in support of their Haiti relief efforts, according to the club.  

 The Rapids’ Supporters Terrace kickoff event, which was due to be held in conjunction with the Rapids Supporters’ preseason Kickoff Party prior to gates opening tomorrow night, has been cancelled as well. For information on a possible rescheduled date for the Kickoff Party, fans can log onto the supporters’ website www.NoFanAlone.com.  

The cancellation of the club’s first planned charity match puts the kibosh on an evening of friends and drink and the first match of professional soccer in the mountains since fall. I was looking forward to all of the above.

While winter drags on with the coming storm, I continue to be worried about the outlook for the coming season. The possibility of a player strike, which could be crippling to the highest level of the professional game in the U.S., looms large next week.

I fear a strike could be coming because one of the leading voices among the players — one credited with averting a national team players strike previously — is not as motivated to keep such an event from happening this time.

Yes, I’m talking about Landon Donovan. He’s enjoying his loan to Everton, and finally tasting success overseas. A strike here won’t keep him from playing in England. In fact, it could easily extend his EPL dalliance. As a player readying for World Cup 2010, he will probably see greater benefit facing off against the Premier League’s best, rather than returning to the Galaxy this month. I can’t blame him for not pushing to get a new collective bargaining agreement in place between MLS and its players.

And these are the things I will be wondering about as I shovel my driveway on Friday and Dick’s Sporting Goods Park remains dark in the snow.

Tickets will be available at the Dick’s Sporting Goods Park box office, by calling 303-53-HORSE, at the kiosks at any Colorado Dick’s Sporting Goods location or online at TicketHorse.com.

Single-game tickets start at $20.

Information on all ticket prices and single-game promotions can be found on the team’s official Web site.

RAPIDS PRESEASON ITINERARY: The Rapids have announced their full itinerary for preseason training, which includes trips to Phoenix and London. After four weeks of training at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, the team will get its first taste of training outside of Colorado when it travels to the Casa Grande Performance Institute, just south of Phoenix, from February 21-27. The club’s Arizona excursion will be highlighted by several exhibition matches against other Major League Soccer clubs. Details of those matches will be announced at a later date. The Rapids will then conduct one week of practice sessions at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park upon returning from Arizona before heading back on the road for another eight days. For the third time in four years, the Rapids’ preseason plans will include a trip to London. The team will be hosted by Arsenal. The partnership between the Rapids and the Premiership club was formed in 2007 and allows the Rapids to practice at Arsenal’s facilities. The team’s England trip will be from March 7-14 and will also include several matches against English opponents, who will be announced at a later time. The trip to England will be followed by four days of training back at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, after which the team will host fellow Western Conference side Seattle Sounders FC in Major League Soccer’s first-ever Charity Shield match on March 19. Proceeds from this match will be donated to UNICEF to aid relief efforts in Haiti.

RUGBY AT DICK’S: Dick’s Sporting Goods Park will serve as the home venue for the Denver Barbarians rugby club during the team’s spring 2010 USA Rugby Super League matches, the stadium announced today. The Barbarians will host league champion San Francisco Golden Gate on March 14, the Dallas Harlequins on March 27 and the Chicago Lions on April 17.

MLS COLLECTIVE BARGAINING EXTENDED: Major League Soccer and the Major League Soccer Players Union have agreed to continue to negotiate through February 25, as they work toward reaching a new collective bargaining agreement.

CHANGING THE LAYOUT: The Rapids have announced their plans for the creation of the new Supporters Terrace behind the north goal at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park. Using the stadium’s unique design, this new Supporters Terrace will become an adult-oriented area designed to allow for the exuberance of the Rapids’ most passionate fans. This move to create a new section of the stadium specifically to appeal to the Rapids’ adult demographic was conceived in conjunction with the Rapids’ existing supporters club leaders and will allow for their voices and energy to be felt in a whole new manner. Historically in soccer, the term terrace has referred to the traditional standing area behind the goals of a stadium, particularly in the United Kingdom, that offered a cheaper alternative to sitting in the stands and a more popular spectator area for members of the working classes. The Rapids’ Supporters Terrace will be the first true terrace area of its kind in Major League Soccer and will aim to expand upon the experience found in terraces overseas. Flags, banners, instruments, singing and other passionate support of the team at home games will all be encouraged, making the Supporters Terrance the place to be for Colorado’s most enthusiastic soccer fans.

Rapids striker Conor Casey is training with the U.S. men’s national team in preparation for friendlies against El Salvador on Feb. 24 in Tampa, Florida, and against the Netherlands on March 3 in Amsterdam. These are the team’s last matches before it names its roster for the World Cup. Good luck, Conor (and good luck to all the players). The El Salvador match will be broadcast at 5 p.m. (Mountain time) on ESPN Classic and Telefutura. The Netherlands match will be on ESPN2 and Galavision at 12:30 p.m. (Mountain time). Casey has 19 career caps with the national team and scored his first two international goals in the U.S.’s 2010 World Cup qualifying win against Honduras on October 10. He also has one assist in international play. He also played 30 minutes in a 3-1 loss against Honduras on January 23, the United States’ first match of 2010.

U.S. TRAINING CAMP ROSTER
GOALKEEPERS: Troy Perkins (D.C. United), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake), Zach Thornton (Chivas USA)
DEFENDERS: Kevin Alston (New England Revolution), Jonathan Bornstein (Chivas USA), Omar Gonzalez (Los Angeles Galaxy), Chad Marshall (Columbus Crew), Michael Orozco (Philadelphia Union), Heath Pearce (FC Dallas), Marvell Wynne (Toronto FC)
MIDFIELDERS: Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Geoff Cameron (Houston Dynamo), Brad Davis (Houston Dynamo), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders), Eddie Gaven (Columbus Crew), Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA), Dax McCarty (FC Dallas), Chris Pontius (D.C. United), Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew)
FORWARDS: Conor Casey (Colorado Rapids), Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo), Jeff Cunningham (FC Dallas), Robbie Findley (Real Salt Lake)

The league released its 2010 schedule on Wednesday, and the Rapids won’t meet defending champion (gag, cough) Real Salt Lake until the final two months of the season. The Rapids travel to Utah for their first meeting, on September 25. After that match, there will be only four fixtures remaining (one of which is against RSL).

There’s no way to tell which team would benefit from such scheduling. If one or the other has fallen out of contention by that point, would the other be able to climb in the standings because of these two games? Or would the also-ran be able to successfully play the role of spoiler?

The only thing that’s certain is the history between these clubs is growing more bitter by the year. And the two late dates have the potential to be important in the standings and the playoff race, and that’s no doubt how MLS would like it. 2010 marks the fourth consecutive year that the teams have finished against each other.

The Rapids play a 30-game schedule, two games each (one home, one away) against 15 other clubs. The opener, as we already knew, is March 26 against Chivas USA at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. The home opener is April 3 at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park against Chicago.

We also knew the league would take a two week break, June 11-24, for the World Cup.

Here’s what we learned:

The Rapids got a Fourth of July match again, this one against the Red Bulls. The Fourth falls on a Sunday, so there’s no reason this one shouldn’t sell out (unless casual fans aren’t able to forget the fireworks fiasco of ’09).

The expansion Philadelphia Union (with former Rapids defender Jordan Harvey) will make its first visit to Colorado on July 21.

Oddly, the Rapids will face the Red Bulls on September 11 in New York. That could be a surreal setting on the ninth anniversary of the terrorist attacks.

Colorado has no more than two consecutive road games and no more than two straight at home.

MLS runner-up Los Angeles will visit on May 5. Will David Beckham make his second appearance in uniform at Dick’s?

To see the full schedule, check out our Schedules/Results page, updated for 2010.

To see all the Rapids, W-League and college results from Colorado in 2009, go here.

Single-game 2010 Rapids tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. February 16 at the Dick’s Sporting Goods Park box office, at 303-53-HORSE or at ColoradoRapids.com. Rapids full-season ticket holders will have an opportunity for a special advance sale of single-game tickets, beginning at 10 a.m. February 8.

Other highlights of the MLS schedule:

- Seventy-five percent of all MLS games will be played on Saturdays; 85 percent of MLS games will be played on weekends.

- A two-week break in the MLS season aligns with the group phase of the FIFA World Cup. The last match before this break is D.C. United at Seattle Sounders FC at 10 p.m. ET (ESPN2).

- Red Bull Arena will host its first League match March 27, when the Red Bulls face Chicago.

- The first MLS game to be played on natural grass at BMO Field in Toronto will be April 15.

- On Sunday, June 27, Philadelphia Union will open the ninth stadium built specifically for an MLS club. The grand opening of the venue in Chester, Pa., will be a match against Seattle.

- The 2010 MLS All-Star Game will be at Reliant Stadium in Houston in late July or early August.

We, at ColoradoSoccerNow.com, loves us some WeWantRapidman. When I worked at the Rocky Mountain News, I called Nick Thomas the most dogged Rapids reporter in town, and that label still holds true.

Keep up the good work, mate!

OMAR PASSES THE ROCK: Rapids striker Omar Cummings collected an assist on Luton Shelton’s 28th career goal for the Reggae Boyz as Jamaica beat Canada 1-0 in an exhibition game on Sunday in Kingston. Dwayne De Rosario, one of my faves, wore the captain’s armband for the visitors.

FORMER PIONEER GETS TRYOUT: Former University of Denver player Leon Abravanel is participating in preseason training with the Rapids. The Tahoe Daily Tribune, a newspaper I almost worked for years ago, reports that over the next eight weeks Abravanel hopes to secure a contract. Read the whole story here.

“STRONG SILENT TYPE”: Britain’s Telegraph has a profile on Rapids owner Stan Kroenke and his likely influences on Arsenal. The story is here.

WOO-HOO! Major League Soccer is now following ColoradoSoccerNow.com on twitter. We already had D-Ro following us, so this is just gravy!

ANOTHER OF MY FAVES: Steve Ralston has signed with AC St. Louis in the new second-division league that starts in April, according to Tom Timmerman of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Ralston, played at Oakville High and Forest Park Community College in St. Louis. He will be captain of the team and will also serve as assistant coach. The 35-year-old’s contract with the Revolution had run out.

COMING SOON: MLS is scheduled to release the complete 2010 schedule at noon (Mountain time) Wednesday. My guess is the final Rapids game of the regular season will be against Real Salt Lake.

ColoradoSoccerNow.com caught up with Peetz after she had some time to celebrate being picked.

Did you have indications that you would be drafted? Did any specific teams express interest?

I did have some indication about getting drafted, but I knew I was not an obvious pick so I didn’t want to get my hopes up.

What hoops did you have to go through?
I did attend two tryouts to try and get my name out there. I received some feedback but most teams did not give me too much information. As soon as our college season ended, I jumped right into training because this is always something I have wanted to work for. It has been nerve-racking already with the draft, and I know I have a lot more work to put in from here on but I am really excited about it and ready to begin.

What does this mean for you? Has playing professionally been a goal for you?

I am so happy for Estelle and Nikki because I know how hard they have worked for this opportunity and they surely deserve it. Right now, I am just focusing on my training so that I can work to earn a spot in the Boston Breaker’s preseason which starts March 1. Playing professionally has always been a dream of mine, and I am now doing everything I can to make it happen.

Finally, what is your ultimate goal in soccer?

My ultimate goal is to first make the team and second bring the team to a championship. Also, I have aspirations to be a part of the national team one day but I am focusing on the Breakers right now!

REAL COLORADO COUGARS’ HEMMINGS TALKS: Reporter Sam Mustari of the Greeley Tribune has written a fine story about Greeley’s Taryn Hemmings being drafted. Hemmings was a star with Greeley West High School, the University of Denver and the Real Colorado Cougars. Here’s Sam’s story.

AUDLEY INTERVIEWED: DU’S captain Collin Audley recently sat down and spoke to Sean Grybos of the Web site Soccer City FC. The site asked l’il ole me for my scouting report on Audley, based on seeing him play a half a dozen times in 2009 (but don’t be put off by that; it’s a good long interview).

FOX HAS NEW SOCCER CHANNEL: Fox Soccer Plus, a new network intended to complement Fox Soccer Channel, is scheduled to launch March 1. The channel will draw its exclusive match content from top-flight leagues and competitions such as England’s Premier League, Champions League, England’s FA Cup and Italy’s Serie A. Fox Soccer Plus will be offered as a premium service. I’m trying to reach someone at my cable provider (Comcast) to find out what that means.

NEW MLS BALL: Adidas and Major League Soccer have unveiled the new MLS official match ball, which features the same technology as the adidas Jabulani, the official ball of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Adidas has been the provider of MLS match balls since 2006 and has maintained the blue, green and silver color scheme in the MLS logo. The ball is made up of only eight panels, which are thermally bonded and spherically molded, whatever that means. The company has attempted to make the ball perfectly round and accurate.

NEW WPS BALL: Not to be outdone, Women’s Professional Soccer showed off its new official match ball at its draft. The PWR-C 1.10 features a 20-panel construction developed with the aim of improving both shooting speed and flight distance. The ball is abrasion-resistant and water-repellent and, for the first time in Puma’s history, high-frequency-molded, instead of hand-stitched. The ball comes with a two-year shape guarantee and features a new take on the jasmine green color scheme from the league’s inaugural year. It will be used for the first time in a regular-season game when the Washington Freedom face Peetz’s Boston Breakers on April 10.

PAVING THE WAY FOR SPENCER? As expected, Portland Timbers coach Gavin Wilkinson is being kicked upstairs. Geoffrey C. Arnold of The Oregonian reported today that Wilkinson has been named the 2011 Major League Soccer team’s technical director. There has been speculation that the club is interested in former Rapids striker John Spencer as its first MLS head coach.

As a senior, the Grand Prairie, Texas, native registered 12 goals and 30 points in 19 games (all 19 were starts) for the Crimson. He’s listed as 6-foot-0 and 190 pounds by the school’s athletic department. His career total of 127 points is a Harvard record, as is his total of 33 career assists. He finished with 47 goals for Harvard, which is tied with Chris Ohiri for the best mark in school history.

He was Harvard’s captain and was the first runner-up for the Hermann Trophy, which was won by Akron’s Teal Bunbury. It marked the third consecutive season Akpan was a finalist for the award.

Here are some of Akpan’s accolades and achievements during his senior season:
Soccer America’s 2009 MVPs team, College Soccer News’ Team of the Decade, New England Soccer News’ Player of the Year, NSCAA All-America first-team, Ivy League Player of the Year, All-Ivy League first team, Nominees for Soccer News Net Player of the Year, Top Drawer Soccer National Team of the Year, NSCAA All-Northeast Region first team, Academic All-Ivy League team, led the Ivy League in points and goals and was tied for first in assists, Ivy League Co-Player of the Week (Sept. 8), Top Drawer Soccer National Player of the Week (Sept. 20), College Soccer News National Team of the Week (Sept. 20), Ivy League Player of the Week (Oct. 19), College Soccer News National Team (Nov. 2).

Here’s a link to the Harvard athletics Web site’s story about the selection. Here’s a link to the Harvard Gazette’s story.

With the next pick in the draft, the Rapids took midfielder-forward Ross LaBaeux from NCAA Division I champion Virginia. LaBaeux is a Chicago native who is listed at the Cavaliers’ Web site as 5-foot-9, 150 pounds.

He appeared in 19 games for the Cavs, starting 17, and had two goals and four assists for eight points.

Here is a link to LaBaeux’s page on the UVA Web site. And here’s an interview he did recently with goal.com about the MLS combine, the draft and winning the national championship.

With the 40th overall pick in the draft, the Rapids took defender Chad Borak of California State-Northridge.

The senior from Palmdale, California, is listed at 6-foot-0 and 165 pounds. He played at Highland High School in Palmdale and was all-Golden League for three seasons (I mention this because, oddly, I covered Golden League soccer when I worked in Ridgecrest, California).

At Northridge, Borak was an All-Big West defender his senior season, the second consecutive year he earned all-conference honors. He scored the winning goal vs. UC-Riverside on Halloween and had an assist at Riverside two days earlier. He took 11 shots his senior season.

Here’s a link to Borak’s page on the Matadors athletics Web site. And does reading about the draft of Borak count as cultural learnings of America for make benefit glorious nation of Colorado Rapids fans? Was that the first Borak-Borat joke in Colorado? Did I really just do that?

Apologies.

Anyway, with the 56th pick overall, the Rapids took forward-midfielder Chris Cutshaw of Bradley. The senior from Carmel, Indiana, is listed at 6-foot-0 and 164 pounds at the Bradley athletics Web site. Cutshaw scored 32 goals and added 10 assists in 83 games for the Braves. He finished his Bradley career in fifth place in career scoring.

Some of his accolades from 2009 include NSCAA/Performance Subaru All-Midwest Region second team, All-Missouri Valley Conference first team, CollegeSoccerNews.com National Team of the Week (9/7), Soccer America National Team of the Week (9/7), Missouri Valley Conference offensive player of the week (9/8), Busey Bank Kickoff Festival Most Valuable Player, Busey Bank Kickoff Festivall all-tournament team, Hotels at Grand Prairie Classic all-tournament team, Country Scholar-Athlete of the Week (9/9).

Here is a link to his profile at the Bradley athletics Web site. And here is an interview the site conducted with him during his senior season.

And that concluded the Rapids’ draft day.

To wrap things up, here is a list of all the picks in the first round of the draft:
1. Danny Mwanga, Philadelphia Union
2. Tony Tchani, New York Red Bulls
3. Ike Opara, San Jose Earthquakes
4. Teal Bunbury, Kansas City Wizards
5. Zach Loyd, FC Dallas
6. Amobi Okugo, Philadelphia Union
7. Jack McInerney, Philadelphia Union
8. Dilly Duka, Columbus Crew
9. Zach Schilawski, New England Revolution
10. Blair Gavin, Chivas USA
11. David Estrada, Seattle Sounders FC
12. Bright Dike, Columbus Crew
13. Corben Bone, Chicago Fire
14. Austin da Luz, New York Red Bulls
15. Collen Warner, Real Salt Lake
16. Michael Stephens, Los Angeles Galaxy

I hope you enjoyed reading about the Rapids draft picks … NOT! (Y’see, that was another Borat joke. … Folks, I got a million of ‘em.)

University of Denver men’s soccer player Kris Banghart is among the initial list of 62 college seniors from 44 Division I schools who have been invited to participate in the 2010 adidas MLS player combine.

The annual player combine will be January 8-12 at Central Broward Regional Park in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

After transferring to DU for his sophomore year, Banghart started every game at defender for the past three seasons and served as co-captain as a senior. Banghart was instrumental in anchoring DU’s defense, helping the Pioneers win their first Mountain Pacific Sports Federation championship and their first berth in the NCAA tournament in 2008.

“This is a great opportunity for Kris, and it’s well-deserved,” said DU men’s soccer head coach Bobby Muuss, who also serves as a coach at the combine. “Kris worked extremely hard to make himself better, and his dedication shows up every day. We are proud of Kris and wish him the best of luck.”

The coaching and management staffs of all 16 MLS teams will be in attendance to scout talent at the 2010 adidas MLS player combine, which concludes two days before the 2010 MLS draft. At the 2009 draft, 10 combine players were selected in the first round. The 2010 MLS draft will be January 14 in Philadelphia.

The list of invitees is highlighted by five players who are semifinalists for the 2009 Hermann Trophy: Harvard University’s Andre Akpan, the University of North Carolina’s Zach Loyd, UCLA’s Kyle Nakazawa, Bucknell University’s Conor O’Brien and the University of Connecticut’s Toni Stahl. The Hermann Trophy finalists will be announced December 11, and the winner is announced on January 8.

The initial player list was determined by a select panel of Division I college coaches representing all conferences who nominated and voted for players in conjunction with MLS coaches. Youth players from the Generation adidas program will join additional collegiate players from NCAA Division II and III schools, NAIA schools and Division I alternates to finalize the 2010 combine. The final player list and team assignments will be announced in the coming weeks.

MLS PLAYER COMBINE LIST BY SCHOOL

Boston University
Samuel Appiah

Brown University
Nick Elenz-Martin

Bucknell University
Conor O’Brien

California State University, Northridge
Chad Borak

College of William & Mary
Andrew Hoxie

Creighton University
Chris Schuler
Seth Sinovic

Dartmouth University
Craig Henderson

Depaul University
Steffen Vroom

Drake University
Julien Edwards

Elon University
Steven Kinney

Harvard University
Andre Akpan
Kwaku Nyamekye

Indiana University
Eric Alexander
Ofori Sarkodie

Lehigh University
Adam Welch

North Carolina State University
Olukorede Aiyegbusi
Ronnie Bouemboue

Old Dominion University
Nane Joseph

Penn State University
Jason Yeisley

Quinnipiac University
Frederick Hall

Saint Louis University
Tim Ream

San Diego State University
Nick Cardenas

St. John’s University
Nelson Becerra
Ben Clack

Stanford University
John Moore

Temple University
Joseph Noone

University of Alabama – Birmingham
Two-Boys Gumede

University of California – Berkeley
Tyler Barry

University of California – Irvine
Irving Garcia

University of California – Los Angeles
Kyle Nakazawa
Michael Stephens
Brian Perk
David Estrada

University of California – Santa Barbara
Martin Hadevag
David Walker

University of Connecticut
Kwame Watson-Siriboe
Toni Stahl
Mike Pezza

University of Dayton
Isaac Kissi

University of Denver
Kris Banghart

University of Hartford
Carlos Villa

University of Illinois – Chicago
Jovan Bubonja

University of Louisville
Othaniel Yanez
Fred Braun
Phil Edginton

University of Maryland
Drew Yates
Kevin Tangney

University of Michigan
Mauro Fuzetti

University of New Mexico
Justin Davis

University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill
Zach Loyd
Brooks Haggerty

University of Notre Dame
Michael Thomas
Bright Dike
Justin Morrow

University of Portland
Collen Warner

University of San Diego
Ryan Peterman

University of San Francisco
Conor Chinn

University of Virginia
Ross LaBauex

Villanova University
Mike Seamon

Wake Forest University
Zack Schilawski
Austin da Luz

His value to the team can be seen here: He was the only Colorado Rapids player to appear in all 30 games in 2009. And his total of 2,613 minutes of playing time last season was the eighth-highest in Major League Soccer.

I voted for Harvey as the Rapids’ best defender in balloting for the team’s end-of-the-year awards. When the team lost so many wide midfielders to injury during the season, Harvey helped pick up the slack, in addition to his regular duties.

And on Wednesday Harvey gained another distinction in Colorado’s franchise history: first Rapids player to be selected in an expansion draft. The Philadelphia Union picked Harvey with one of its 10 selections.

Each of the league’s 15 teams was allowed to protect 11 players, leaving all others unprotected and available for selection by the Union. Colorado left Harvey, and others, unprotected, and now he’s gone.

Was it the right move? The Rapids protected the following players: Matt Pickens, Julien Baudet, Cory Gibbs, Kosuke Kimura, Drew Moor, Colin Clark, Nick LaBrocca, Pablo Mastroeni, Jamie Smith, Conor Casey and Omar Cummings. Anyone on that list you would’ve taken a chance on losing in favor of Harvey?

Without naming names, I’d answer yes.

Harvey is a young, inexpensive, high-performing defender who has the potential to be a part of Philadelphia’s plans for years to come.

He was originally selected with Colorado’s first pick, ninth overall, in the 2006 MLS supplemental draft (which the league humbly refers to as a supplemental draft; usually, its drafts are named the “MLS Super-Maxi Overnight Draft with Wings” or some such nonsense). In five seasons with the Rapids, Harvey appeared in 45 games with 42 starts for 3,793 minutes, and he recorded four assists.

Here are the other players Philadelphia drafted (in alphabetical order):

Andrew Jacobsen, midfielder, D.C. United
Brad Knighton, goalkeeper, New England Revolution
Sebastien Le Toux, forward, Seattle Sounders
Stefani Miglioranzi, midfielder, Los Angeles Galaxy
Alejandro Moreno, forward, Columbus Crew
Dave Myrie, defender, Chicago Fire
Shea Salinas, midfielder, San Jose Earthquakes
Shavar Thomas, defender, Chivas USA
Nick Zimmerman, midfielder, New York Red Bulls

Five teams did not have a player selected: Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Salt Lake and Toronto.

Among Union coach Peter Nowak’s selections were MLS veterans Moreno and Thomas, who started 17 games for their clubs in 2009. Moreno, a Venezuelan international, just completed his eighth year in MLS, has scored 43 regular season goals in his career and scored in MLS Cup 2008 for the Columbus Crew. Thomas has seven seasons under his belt as a center back, represents Jamaica internationally and was part of Chivas USA’s stingy defense in 2009 that allowed just 31 goals in 30 games.

Philadelphia also selected Le Toux, the first player signed by Seattle. He had led the USL Sounders in scoring and played in 28 MLS regular-season games in 2009.

The 2008 expansion draft proved fruitful for Seattle, which selected Nate Jaqua, Brad Evans and James Riley last year. The Sounders were the first expansion team to make the playoffs since 1998, and they won the U.S. Open Cup.

Philadelphia, Major League Soccer’s 16th team, will begin play in the Eastern Conference next season. It will play its home opener at Lincoln Financial Field on April 10 and open its home stadium, Union Field, during the season.

But as for Harvey … despite all of his playing time in 2009, it feels like we hardly got a chance to know him. I’m sure we’ll see him performing at his highest level twice a season when the Rapids meet the Union. I’m very sorry to see him go, but I’m very optimistic about his chances to be one of the founding fathers of the Philadelphia franchise.