but didn't earn an invitation to stay on.)
But there they will be under the bright BMO lights on Thursday, lining up on opposite sides of the midfield stripe before kickoff on the grounds inside Toronto's Exhibition Place. It's but one of the intriguing matchups to monitor as Major League Soccer's All-Stars target a fifth consecutive win in the showcase series against foreign opposition.
(The matchups are tentative, as neither West Ham manager Alan Curbishley nor MLS boss Steve Nicol is obligated to share their intentions -- which means both coaches will be in it to win it Thursday.)
Beckham vs. Etherington:
Even if he's far less decorated, Etherington can be a difference maker. He has occasionally turned those dashes up and down the wing into game-turning performances, as when he hit for a hat trick against Wimbledon back in the stretch run of his sterling 2003-04 season.
The former England youth international, who sometimes struggles to fend off Luis Boa Morte's challenges for the starting spot, had three goals in 15 appearances during last year's injury-blighted campaign at West Ham.
Beckham, meanwhile, will have to focus a little harder to lift those seeing-eyed deliveries off the BMO FieldTurf. Beckham has improved his ability to cope with artificial surfaces since last year. Still, he never looked 100 percent comfortable last week as the Galaxy battled the New York Red Bulls on the carpet at Giants Stadium. The manner in which Beckham strikes free kicks, corner kicks and long deliveries from the run of play requires that plenty of the ball's surface to be available; some artificial turf surfaces don't provide quite enough, although BMO's FieldTurf plays better than most.
Craig Bellamy vs. Jimmy Conrad:
Conrad has battled some of the game's best while wearing a U.S. national team shirt. He was summoned to hold off Italian marksmen Luca Toni and Francesco Totti back when things looked dire for the United States in that memorable, heroic World Cup night in Kaiserslautern.
So he won't be intimidated by the combustible Bellamy, but he will have plenty to cope with. The powerful striker from Wales combines pace and a fiercely combative spirit. Conrad is likely to partner with either Jim Brennan or Pablo Mastroeni if Nicol opts for a four-man back line.
Bellamy is back from an injury-shorted season. He seems likely to partner with young striker Dean Ashton, who made his England debut last spring against Trinidad & Tobago. Ashton scored 11 times in 24 appearances last year for West Ham in a season that was also shortened by injury.
There might not be a lot of rest for the MLS defenders; Nicol brought only four of them, although Pablo Mastroeni can (and probably will at some point) play in the back, as he has lately for Fernando Clavijo at Colorado.
Shalrie Joseph vs. Mark Noble:
Whatever formation Nicol chooses (his preferred 3-5-2 or a 4-4-2 that might match up better with the Hammer), you can bet that Shalrie Joseph will man the holding role in midfield.
There, the New England Revolution heart and soul will likely do battle with Mark Noble, a home-grown West Ham talent. Like Joseph, he's known for all-out effort, getting the job done through an indomitable combination of skill, grit and stamina. Tackling hard and chasing harder, Noble immediately endeared himself to Hammers fans during his West Ham debut back in 2005, as he bravely passed the test against combative Tottenham center midfielder Edgar Davids.
Juan Toja vs. Julien Faubert:
There's a lot going on here. Faubert made just four starts last year after a celebrated $11 million move from France's Bordeaux in the summer of 2007. Now, he's getting a chance to establish a toehold in the midfield at Upton Park ahead of more heralded types who are coming back from injury, well-known fellows such as Kieron Dyer and Freddie Ljungberg.
He's likely to be on the right Thursday, where he'll probably oppose Toja, who may soon join a short list of MLS players who capped their careers here during an All-Star Game. A move to Steaua Bucharest in Romania could be ahead for the long-haired Colombian, who highlighted his year and a half with FC Dallas at last year's All-Star happening.
Faubert will be supported along the right by West Ham fullback and captain Lucas Neill, the veteran Australian international in his third season at Upton Park.
So, what will he give Thursday? Will Faubert begin digging in, finding the extra something and holding his ground? Will Toja be distracted by the impending move to Eastern Europe? If Toja performs anything like last year, as he scored one of two goals against Celtic, Faubert will have his hands full.
Landon Donovan vs. Anton Ferdinand:
The "other" Ferdinand, Anton, now 23, is beginning to emerge from his brother Rio's long shadow. The younger Ferdinand may never quite escape the comparisons to his older brother, but now in his sixth season at Boleyn Ground, he's developed into a steady presence in the center of West Ham's defense. He'll likely partner on Thursday with Calum Davenport, who moved across London from Tottenham in January of 2007.
They'll both have to be tip-top to cope with Donovan, who seems to enjoy these opportunities to combine his pace with a new variety of playmaker. Donovan will most likely take up a second striker position, just as he does for Los Angeles. From there, he'll look to get balls from Christian Gomez or Cuauhtemoc Blanco in the attacking midfield position. Plus, any time Beckham gets control along the right, his first option will often be to find Donovan streaking toward goal or into the corner.
Kenny Cooper vs. Robert Green:
Where will the West Ham United goalkeeper's mind be? Last year's player of the year at Upton Park is having a tiff with management, upset over compensation. He said so publicly last week, eliciting a quick, sharp and equally public retort from West Ham officials.
So, Cooper will look to exploit any gaps in concentration from the young English 'keeper. Combined with Donovan, the young pair of U.S. attackers has 21 goals in 31 matches this year.
Steve Davis is a freelance writer who has covered Major League Soccer since its inception. Steve can be reached at BigTexSoccer@yahoo.com. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author's, and not necessarily those of Major League Soccer or MLSnet.com.
