the first goal in Crew history scored by a Crew player -- might still be the greatest goal in MLS history. I'm going strictly on memory here, but I remember Bo Oshoniyi punting the ball downfield, McBride taking a touch with his head, basically playing himself behind the defense, then volleying the ball before it touched the ground. Again, this one should make the documentary.
2. Not to scare any of the Quakes, but here's a look at the lineup of the last expansion team to take the field for an MLS opener. Greg Sutton, Miguel Canizalez, Andrew Boyens, Jim Brennan, Marco Reda, Paulo Nagamura, Carl Robinson, Andy Welsh, Richard Mulrooney, Alecko Eskandarian, Edson Buddle. A little math shows you pretty quickly that only four of those players remain with Toronto FC. Of course, last time I checked, Mo Johnston is not in charge of San Jose ... not yet, anyway.
1. A column like this needs a prediction. I think Yallop and the Quakes will pull it off and become the first expansion team in MLS history to beat an established team in its first-ever MLS game. I'm predicting a 2-0 scoreline with Kei Kamara (five preseason goals) and Gavin Glinton scoring the goals for the Quakes. It will be a sweet night in LA for Yallop and Joe Cannon, who records the clean sheet for his 47th career win for San Jose.
Jeff Bradley is a senior writer for ESPN The Magazine. Send your comments and complaints (200 words or less, please) to Jeff at jbradleyespn2003@yahoo.com and he promises to read (but not respond to) all of them. 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.
