| Grass Stains Leave Their Mark on Sudwerk By Joseph Hunter Andre Press Sports Writer DAVIS, Calif., June 10 -- It wasn't the South Korean national team backed by 60,000 wildly cheering supporters, but DARSL's Grass Stains exhibited the same athleticism as the "Red Devils" on Friday night, as it mercilessly outran and outattacked FC Sudwerk on the way to a 7-1 victory. Sudwerk, which has endured a rocky first season in Davis' premiere adult league, battled back after a discouraging first half in which Grass Stains rippled the net six times without answer. The red-and-black played "The Greens" even in the second half, scoring once and fending off their potent offense to allow only one goal. Like the U.S. national soccer team, Sudwerk appeared to suffer a letdown the game after it surprised the soccer world. The red-and-black drew 2-2 with highly regarded Penoral on May 31 and received praise not unlike that showered upon the U.S. after its historic defeat of Portugal. On Friday, though, Sudwerk was overpowered by Grass Stains' speed and energy in a display that presaged the South Korean dominance of the U.S. national team in World Cup action on Monday. Ramal Werdna, the president and CEO of FC Sudwerk who flew to South Korea 10 days ago to talk with U.S. national team coach Bruce Arena, said the media mischaracterized the purpose of the private meeting between the two men. "I was there to discuss strategy, not to patch up any personal dispute," Werdna said. "Bruce and I had the same concerns going into these big matches with faster, more fit opponents. We had similar game plans, but obviously Bruce learned from our result." In contrast to Sudwerk, the U.S. national team managed to eke out a 1-1 draw despite being outplayed and outhuscled for an entire 90 minutes. The two games were alike, Werdna said, but he noted that Grass Stains had better finishers than the South Koreans. "It's tough to stop a team when they get lots of chances and convert on them," Werdna said. "I applaud goalie Chris Lief, who got quite a workout and made several dazzling saves. He and Brad Friedel are in a class all their own." Lief, who will be on leave much of the summer for Sudwerk-approved tryouts with European clubs, said he was pleased when the final whistle sounded. "Those are the hardest shots I've faced this season," Lief said. Kevin Khalaf, Sudwerk's star striker, added to his impressive spring tally sheet by notching the red-and-black's only goal. Sweeper Patrick Chandler, who was sidelined with a sore knee on Friday, is expected to be back in the lineup this week. Midfielder Andreas Agocs, however, may be forced to break the club's longest running consecutive games played streak, which stands at 18, due to sore heels. Sudwerk has three games remaining in the spring season and faces the Cosmos at 7 p.m. on Friday. ## |