Gallerie » nine months without playing a full 90 minutes. He

As Manchester United were edging Manchester City in a five-goal thriller, Juventus were triumphing in the Turin derby and Barcelona squeaked home 1-0 at the Nou Camp, thousands of miles away in California something far more soccer-significant was occurring. The post-match fireworks were purchased. Final preparations were in place. The FIFA president was in town. It was April 6, 1996. Spartan Stadium, the home of San Jose State University, was about to play host to the inaugural match in Major League Soccer when the hometown Clash took on D.C. United in front of a sold-out crowd approaching 32,000. You have to trace it all the way back to American Independence Day, 1988 for when the first MLS seeds were sown. This was the day the US beat back other bids, including one from Brazil, for the rights to host the 1994 World Cup finals. Those rights came with a caveat, one condition from the world governing body: FIFA mandated the United States Soccer Federation to structure a top-flight league. Easier said than done. The year before those 1994 World Cup finals, which eventually would go on to draw a record number of fans, MLS hired its first employee - Mark Abbott. A lawyer by trade, Abbotts soccer connection came via a law colleague, Alan Rothenberg, who was also the president of the USSF. With Rothenberg appointed as CEO of USA 94, it was left to Abbott to draw up MLSs constitution. Then, in his spare time, Abbott criss-crossed the nation in the search for founding investors. A total of 10 clubs took part in that inaugural season. D.C. United, defeated 1-0 during the season opener in San Jose, would eventually go on and be crowned champions when they beat the Los Angeles Galaxy 2-1 in the first MLS Cup. Saturday afternoon in Seattle, MLSs 19th season gets underway when the Sounders, a club like the Whitecaps celebrating their 40th-anniversary, entertain the current champions, Sporting Kansas City. To show the measure of how far MLS has journeyed in the intervening years, MLS Cup 1996, which was played in Foxboro, Massachusetts, attracted a crowd of just over 35,000. Today, the Sounders claim that same amount of supporters in season ticket holders. This is not to say that MLS has not had its share of let downs and disappointments. The leagues worst moment happened just ahead of the 2002 season with contraction occurring and gone were the Miami Fusion and the Tampa Bay Mutiny. Long gone, though, are the days MLS teams were merely tenants in NFL buildings - begging their landlords to go easy on the rent and allow them access to the stadiums to play matches on days and at a time of day which were most preferable to attracting in the fans the league so desperately needed. Like all sports teams who look to build on the previous seasons accomplishments, MLS will, as well, in 2014. Nobody needs reminding that we are in a World Cup year and the momentum those previous tournaments have provided the league. As it did for South Africa 2010, MLS will shut down for the opening fortnight of group games this June. During this time, the league has mandated each of its clubs, along with the players to be active in their communities. One of Toronto FCs newest designated players, Jermain Defoe, was part of Englands squad for their World Cup warm-up friendly against Denmark at Wembley in midweek. You can be guaranteed that, come the conclusion of Brazil 2014, a number of other players will make the transition to MLS. The most famous of the class of South Africa 2010 to do just that was Thierry Henry, who went into that World Cup still a Barcelona player. Three days after the World Cup final, Henry was introduced as a member of the New York Red Bulls (who visit the Whitecaps on Saturday, live on TSN at 7:30pm et/4:30pm pt). This year is also a pivotal one for soccer in Canada and not just for our three MLS clubs. In January, the Canadian Soccer Association announced it will bid to host the 2026 World Cup finals. In August, we host the FIFA U-20 Womens World Cup finals and, in April, the Ottawa Fury kick off their inaugural NASL campaign. As for our three MLS clubs, Toronto FC have set the bar awfully high. Whilst they sit out the opening weekends fixtures and have a final week of preparation before opening their season in Seattle next Saturday, nothing short of a playoff berth will suffice. With new head coaches at the helm in Vancouver and Montreal, expectations are less lofty. The so-called opinion makers across the league have already written off their chances to make the post-season. However, thats on paper and we all know matches are won and lost on the pitch. Flying under the radar could work to their advantage. As MLS has blossomed and flourished over the years, it has given rise to allow the soccer-playing kids right across North America to dream and believe that they, one day, can fulfil their childhood ambitions. Tell Patrice Bernier when he was a prospect in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League that one day he would share a flight with the 1993 Stanley Cup-winning captain of the Montreal Canadiens, Guy Carbonneau. The Impact left for Dallas yesterday morning where they open their season on Saturday night. Bernier is now the captain of a club that just so happen to play in one of the best attended leagues in all of world football. Then, share a thought for Matt Besler, who will lead the MLS Cup holders Sporting KC out onto the pitch in Seattle on Saturday afternoon. During that inaugural MLS season in 1996, Sporting KC were known as the Kansas City Wiz. Playing their matches out of the NFL Chiefs Arrowhead Stadium , where a nine-year-old Besler served as a ballboy. You can reach and follow Noel Butler at:Noel.Butler@BellMedia.ca and @TheSoccerNoel on Twitter Cheap Air Max 97 White . -- James Harden scored 31 points, including 25 in the second half, and the Houston Rockets dug out of a double-digit, first-half hole to beat the Orlando Magic 101-89 on Wednesday night. Cheap Air Max 95 Womens . For Sweed, a second round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2008, this will be his second go around in the CFL after previously having spent time with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. http://www.airmaxsneakersonsale.com/cheap-air-max-270.html . Wayne and Cindy Tuck of Ilderton, Ont., closed out round-robin play earlier in the day with a 7-3 win over Finland but needed a win over Austria to reach the final eight. Cheap Air Max 2019 .J. Hardy finally got in on the fun Saturday, against a likely opponent. Cheap Air Max 200 Mens . This is not some token job for a prominent, popular former player. All of those areas need a lot of work, so Molitor is going to be busy. "Hes certainly got a history and knowledge and a high baseball IQ," general manager Terry Ryan said.Andy Carroll had a quiet transfer deadline day. He trained, prepared himself for his first home start of the season and got rid of some overdue baggage, finally shaving off his overgrown beard. It was three years to the day since he was the most expensive British signing in history. January 31st, 2011 changed the Gateshead lad forever. Playing and scoring goals for his boyhood club, Newcastle United, Carroll was enjoying the dream life - on the pitch. Off it was a constant battle. That Andy Carroll came with some serious baggage. Multiple assault charges finally saw him granted bail on the condition of him moving to a permanent residence, rather than a hotel. Newcastle teammate Kevin Nolan took him in and put a curfew on Carroll to help him stay out of trouble. "I said he could stay, I cleared it with the Mrs, of course, first, Nolan later reflected. She was down in Liverpool a lot of the time so we were like roommates. He was a pretty good cook. Pasta with tomatoes, chicken; things like that." On the field, Nolan wanted nothing changed and loved making runs from midfield to get on the end of a knockdown by the big striker. Back at the family home, issues around Carroll continued when his car was set on fire in the driveway and graffiti was written all over the garage door. The Nolan family stuck by him as the midfielder revealed to the Guardian, back in 2010: "Andy has got to be indoors for 10.30pm and he has got to be in bed by 11pm. Wed already got the kids on curfews, so its no trouble to enforce.What I have learnt about Andy, though, is that hes always asleep at the wrong time, like when I get him up early to do the school run with me. He gets up at 10 to eight and we leave at five past. We then have our breakfast at the training ground. I dont know if he likes it but thats the way it is." Carroll would later see the assault charges dropped and as he moved out of the Nolan household, he did with much less baggage. Nolan told the Daily Mirror in 2012: "When you look back on it now, it was bizarre him staying with us, but it worked. In our family, thats what we do for our friends. Ive been brought up like that by my mum and dad. "I know Andy was very grateful for what we did for him, thats why were so close. He has his family there for him but sometimes you need other people as well." Carrolls 35 million pound move to Liverpool in 2011 was called a dream move by Nolan, who was obviously delighted for his mate, but the dream soon turned out to be a nightmare for Carroll. It was not a move that came too soon for him. It was simply a move that should never have come at all. Liverpool captured the Englishman on the day they let Fernando Torres leave. The 35 million pound figure they paid was never what Carroll was worth. It was simply a number Newcastle, on the final day of the transfer window, would allow their goal scorer to leave for. Incredibly, Liverpool took the bait and Carrolls life changed forever. Sure, there were some good moments, such as scoring the winner at Wembley over Everton in the FA Cup semifinal, but there were some tough moments too and when Kenny Dalglish was replaced by Brendan Rodgers as manager, it was only a matter of time that Carroll would be moved on. Nineteen months after signing at Anfield, Carroll was reunited with Nolan, this time down south at West Ham, agreeing to a season-long loan. "He has learned so much. There is a different lad standing in that dressing room now. There is a man who can look after himself and do the right things on a daily basis," Nolan said. Carroll did enough last season to convince the Hammers to pay Liverpool 15 million pounds and hand the striker a new six year contract. Except, once again, Carroll came with baggage, this time in the case of a heel injury that he picked up on the final day of last season against Reading. The injury proved to be far worse than original thought and with Carroll out for months; West Ham struggled badly, causing mmany to panic, including the clubs co-owner David Sullivan.dddddddddddd. "Had we known he would be out for this long, we would not have signed him," Sullivan told the BBCs Football Focus in December. "We are not a rich enough club to deal with that. You know any player can get injured, but we cant buy a player knowing he is going to be out for half the season. When we signed him we were assured by the medical staff that the very, very latest he would be back was September 1st. That would have meant he would only miss two league games." Sullivan has every right to look after his investments but it seemed a bizarre thing to say publicly. Even if he privately believed it, it is not as if the money spent on Carroll could have gone on another player who would have instantly changed the clubs fortunes. You only have to look at the long list of strikers bought for a lot of money, in the Premier League, to know many do not work out. Injury or no injury, that label is yet to be attached to the now 25-year-old Carroll. The jury still remains out on what he can actually become. On Saturday he started his second game of the season, at home to Swansea, and in the first half showed exactly why West Ham wanted to spend that amount of money on him. Carroll was magnificent, finding pockets of space to hold up the ball and supply wide men, choosing his battles in between Chico Flores and Dwight Tiendalli, to regularly win aerial duels, and then winning two significant headers that set up the games two goals, in a 2-0 West Ham win. The beneficiary? Nolan of course. Like Carroll, the 2013-14 season had been a season to forget so far for the Hammers captain but he had no injury to blame for his torrid campaign. Nolan scored 10 goals from midfield last season and had been expected to score regularly again this season but, heading into Saturday, the 31-year-old had as many league red cards as goals this season (2). After the second red card, against Fulham in December, manager Sam Allardyce had seen enough, fining him two weeks wages (100 thousand pounds), saying: "Our captain was irresponsible. Not just today but for the future because he is suspended. Hes let everyone down and himself. I just dont quite understand where hes lost his cool and why its happened." Nolan sat out seven games through suspension but on Saturday he was reunited with his mate, playing just behind Carroll, giving West Ham fans what they hope to be a glimpse at the partnership that can keep their team in the Premier League this season. Except, once again more baggage comes with Carroll. In the second half on Saturday he was sent off for extending a wild arm to Chico Floress head. Allardyce called it an injustice and plans to appeal against it but if that is unsuccessful Carroll will again sit out for three more games. Once Carroll returns he will have gone nine months without playing a full 90 minutes. He will have three months to not only play a pivotal role in saving West Hams season but also attempt to get on Roy Hodgsons England plane to Brazil. At the moment he appears to be completely off Hodgsons radar but in just 45 minutes on Saturday he showed why he should be more than just considered if he can play regularly. Carroll offers something completely different to the England manager, who has enough quick forwards looking to get in behind a defensive line. Carroll showed against Sweden in Euro 2012 that he can be a real handful for international defenders if the quality of the deliveries into the box is high. West Ham became the final Premier League team to score a headed goal this season on Saturday and if they can improve their crosses and get Carroll heavily involved down the stretch then do not rule out the forward making an unlikely late, successful attempt at the 23rd and final player seat on the plane to Brazil. Time is certainly running out but if Carroll can remove the personal baggage, he may well be packing his own baggage to the World Cup. ' ' '