The news week started out with a bang today with the announcement that Kristine Lilly will not be competing in 2008 as she is expecting her first child. Congratulations to the Heavey's.

Lilly's absence opens up a spot on the Olympic roster and means that someone else will be wearing the captains armband. I guess we will find out who when the team takes the field against Canada in the Four Nations Tournament on January 16th.

I've managed to catch the FNT via the internet for the last couple of years and expect to this year as well. I'll post the details when smarter people than I get it figured it out.

Leslie Osborne has launched a slick new website that is worth checking out. If you're a Mac user, open it in Firefox as it doesn't seem to like Safari at the moment.

Expect some news from the women's professional soccer league next week. They will be cluing us into their progress during the NSCAA Annual Convention in Baltimore.

I just listened to Greg Ryan on Fox Fone In. I promised in Issue 10 I was done with the bus and hoped to have written my last word about goaliegate so I'm not going to delve into it again. I will only ask if it is really fair to a team who now answers to a new coach, to put all this out there now when they are looking to move forward?

Pia's staff is starting to come together. Phil Wheddon, has been retained and will coach the 'keepers. Penn State coach, Erica Walsh will serve on a part time basis and Helena Andersson will serve as the team’s Strength and Fitness coach.

The Four Nations roster won't be released until tomorrow.

Finally, we are busy working on Issue 11 and it will be loaded with good stuff. We're exploring the theme of "Serious About Enjoying Soccer" and are looking for some anecdotes along the line of "You Know Your Taking Soccer Too Seriously When ...". So, if you have an hilarious or scary tale about some over the top behavior of a soccer parent, coach or player who clearly needs to lighten up, we want to hear it. Post it on the blog, or email it to me at gayle@fairgamemagazine.com. Be sure to leave youe name and if we use it, we'll give you credit in the magazine.

I had a chance to speak with new U.S. Women’s National Team head coach, Pia Sundhage, between matches at the semis of the 2007 NCAA Women’s College Cup last night. I found her to be a warm and candid interview. She hedged on a few things, mostly regarding details of how her coaching staff is shaping up, but was generally forthcoming. I’ll post the interview in Q&A format next week after I get back from College Station, but here are a few tidbits to chew on until then.

As to the mini-camp roster and the World Cup players that aren’t on it:

• Stephanie Lopez is getting married next week. (As a side note, Lindsay Tarpley is also getting married next week, but will participate in some of the camp.)
• Angela Hucles is on a humanitarian aid trip in Africa and will miss the mini-camp with Pia’s blessing.
• Pia joked that Kristine Lilly was old and needed the extra rest. She expects her in the January camp regardless of her plans for 2008. She “absolutely” wants Lilly on this team.
• Marci Jobson has taken the head-coaching job at Baylor University and has officially retired. I am scheduled to talk with her later today.
• Tina Ellerston is expecting her second child. She has not retired and will attempt to come back after her child is born.

Sundhage indicated that we could see a few personnel changes from the Word Cup roster, but that there is not time for a complete overhaul.

Her perspective on the team’s play in the World Cup was that the attack was too direct and one-dimensional. She said there was discussion amongst the international coaches that shutting down Wambach would neutralize the U.S..

Greg Ryan has been very helpful in the transition and has provided insight into the player’s she has inherited. She is getting input from others more familiar with the college ranks and youth players as to who deserves a look.

That’s all for now. Check back next week for the full transcript.

U.S. Soccer has announced the the Women's National Team will hold it's last camp of 2007 and first under new coach Pia Sundhage next week. Click here for a peek at the full roster. Kristine Lilly's name is missing along with a few other members of the World Cup team. A team staff is also listed that includes Mark Krikorian, Erica Walsh and Phil Wheddon.

As tempting as it was to look into my crystal ball and offer some speculation as to what it all means, I got in contact with Aaron Heifetz, the WNT's press officer instead to get the facts. Here's the scoop:

• The coaching staff listed is for this camp only. Sundhage will put her permanent staff together before the next camp in January. That doesn't preclude anyone on the list from becoming part of her permanent staff.
• Nothing is to be read into Lilly's name not being on the roster other than Lilly is tired and is taking a break. She has yet to decide if she will compete for a spot in 2008.

The only tiny bit of speculation I will offer is that I suspect the reason why none of the "final four" players are on the roster is that Sundhage will have an opportunity to see them play this weekend during the semi-finals.

It's official. Pia Sundhage is the new U.S. Women's National Team head coach. We "stopped the presses" at Fair Game in anticipation of the announcement so you'll find an article on the hire in Issue 10. It might just arrive in your mailbox a few days later than you were expecting. We spoke with Kristine Lilly today to get her reaction to the news for the article and offer this sneak peak at her response.

What is your reaction to the announcement today that Pia Sundhage is taking over as head coach?
I think it’s exciting. When they didn’t resign Greg, I knew there was going to a process to find a new coach. Choosing Pia and starting to move forward is very exciting. The Olympics are going to be here before you know it and it’s great to have a coach in place. I like Pia and I think she’ll do a great job.
Having played for her, what do you think she brings to the job?
The main thing she brings is she loves the game of soccer. Any way she can make an impact on it she will. Being this coach now, she’s going to add her passion for the game, her tactical awareness, and her experience on and off the field. She has experience coaching against us. She coached in the WUSA. She’s just going to bring so many different dimensions and newness. We’ve never had someone outside of our system so that’s something that’s exciting.
How does this announcement play into your decision about retirement?
You’d think it would make it easier. I don’t know if it makes it easier or harder. I do like playing for Pia. I do like her as a coach, so it does add another dimension to it. I think in the end it’s going to come from what’s inside me. I’m still battling with that. I’m excited because I know she’s going to do great. I think the players are going to like her and I would love to be on the field for her again. That would be fun.
So you’re not just holding out on us? You really haven’t decided?
No I haven’t.
How did the team respond to Pia requesting a mini-camp in December since you’ve already broken for the year?
I think they’ll be ok with it, especially if they want to play soccer (laughs). Just kidding. I think with the transition, she wants to get to know players and to get a little camp in before the year ends. I think it’s probably a good thing because she’s got January and then we’ve got qualifiers. There’s quick stuff happening so I think she wants to get a four day or so camp in and get acquainted with some of the players so its not a whole shock in January and do what we can with the numbers that come in.

Photo by Robyn McNeil

The Hope Solo/Greg Ryan debacle could be the best or the worst thing that has ever happened to women’s soccer. I can’t decide. Women’s soccer has certainly gotten more ink in the last week than it has since Brandi Chastain swung her jersey over her head. Of course, the quality of that ink is debatable. In fact, I can’t recall a situation where so much has been written and said based on so little available information.

The heroes and villains in this drama seem to shift with each passing news cycle. Ryan is the villain for distracting his team with a questionable (questionable is probably the most polite thing that’s been said about it) coaching move. Hope Solo is a villain for throwing Briana Scurry under the bus (I know, the under the bus thing is getting old!) with her criticism of Ryan’s decision. Ryan is a villain for keeping Solo away from the third place match. The team is full of vengeful, spiteful, monstrous villains for supporting Ryan’s decision and not supporting Solo. Solo is a hero for having the courage to speak her mind. It goes on and on with the only constant being Ryan as villain.

In recent days, public opinion seems to have shifted to Solo as saint and the rest of the team, led by Kristine Lilly and Abby Wambach, as monsters. Again, this is with very little information available to support an informed opinion.

Let’s review what we know for sure:

• Greg Ryan made a questionable coaching decision to pull his starting keeper from the semi-final match against Brazil and replace her with her back up, a world class keeper in her own right, who hadn’t seen much time in the net since the Olympics and none in this World Cup.
• Solo, the starting keeper, was very upset by this move. We can infer that at least some of her teammates were also upset, but there have been no public statements to support the inference. In fact, the only statement that has been made was that it didn’t divide the team.
• The team, collectively, put in a poor performance and was shelled by a Brazilian team playing the match of their lives.
• Hope Solo gave an emotional, post match interview against advice from her press officer, emphatically stating the coach made the wrong decision, that she would have made the saves that Scurry didn’t and inferring (unintentionally, I suspect) that Scurry was a has been, living on the accomplishments of the past.
• Solo apologized via My Space, to Briana Scurry and to her teammates for her remarks. We don’t know the details of her personal apologies. The public My Space apology reads more along the lines of “I’m sorry I was misunderstood” rather than “I’m sorry for my behavior”. I have a 13-year old son and am very familiar with this genre of apology. It doesn’t usually get him out of trouble either.
• Greg Ryan with input from “team leaders” decided that Solo would not train with the team or suit up for the third place match.
• Team leaders, Kristine Lilly and Abby Wambach, characterized the decision as a team decision as the team felt Solo would be a distraction to their preparation for Norway.
• Solo did not participate in the match or the ensuing medal ceremony.
• Solo was not made available to the media during the duration of the China trip.
• Solo did not fly home with the team.
• She hasn’t spoken to media since.

What we don’t know:

• If the team decision was unanimous
• The content of her apology to Scurry and her teammates. Was it humble and sincere or more forgive me, you misunderstood?
• What has gone on behind the scenes between Solo and her teammates before, during and after this conflict.
• How Solo responded to being left off the team for the Norway match.
• Why she didn’t fly home with the team. Was it her choice or theirs?

Without answers to these questions (which may never come), I’m not prepared to sort the villains from the heroes. And, I’m certainly not prepared to vilify women whose good conduct I’ve observed up close and from afar over a period of years. That includes Hope Solo. I’ll wait for the facts to roll in before I make further judgment.

For now, I’ll enjoy the 15 minutes of fame that this story is bringing women’s soccer, while cringing that this is what it takes for this group of quality athletes and women to get noticed. At least they didn’t have to get naked to catch some attention.