 Lots of changes on the NPSL Top 5, and some shake ups due to slip ups and off weeks in the UPSL Top 5. The season is in full swing: get ready for changes! 
Feedback and input is always appreciated to make sure this is the best Power Rankings possible, so sound off in the comments and in your retweets and lets work together to make this special! And if you are interested in doing regional, state, and city league power rankings, please contact AP, as we'd love to feature your work and get more people interested in more soccer clubs across the country.  Today in soccer and design, we've got a unique project for you to check out. Icarus FC did some jersey and logo mock ups for eight Native American Nations. It was a long process, making sure everything was done respectfully and in good taste, and the finished results are stunning! Icarus FC is also interested in selling the Navajo jersey (featured above) and donating the profits to a charity supporting Native American Nations. If you're interested in purchasing a Navajo jersey, contact Icarus FC at owner@icarusfc.com and let them know. Once they have received enough 10 pre-order requests, you will be notified that the jersey is now available for purchase.
Hope you enjoyed this latest edition of Soccer And Design. Feel free to leave feedback and comments in the comment section, and let Icarus FC now how they did!
 It was about five years ago that I first wrote about the possibility of a Cascadia representative football team. Things went a little quiet after the initial frenzy of excitement but then came the news that there would indeed be a ‘national’ side representing the Pacific Northwest region in the 2018 Conifa World Football Cup held in London. CONIFA is the organisation for football associations outside FIFA. They give an international stage for football squads representing ‘nations, de-facto nations, regions, minority peoples and sports isolated territories’. For a while I wasn’t sure whether Cascadia would actually make it over to the tournament but a squad consisting of college players, some from a host of lower league US and UK clubs and former Seattle Sounder James Riley got together just a few days ago and have just played their first ever match. It was a little surreal to see the Cascadia side finally take the field – and although preparation has been just about non-existent, the team performed well on Sutton United’s 3G pitch before tiring towards the end of their inaugural match against Ellan Vannin. Against one of the favourites for the trophy, Cascadia played well defensively and produced some nice attacking moves without threatening the opposing goal too much before going 1-0 down around 10 minutes into the match. It didn’t take long for Cascadia to level the score though – some industrious play down the left wing ended with Josh Doughty turning the ball into the net for the side’s first ever goal. An injury to James Riley upset the back line as the game went on and although Cascadia had a large part of the play they just couldn’t translate that into attacking opportunities. The vastly more experienced Ellan Vannin side went on to score three more goals before the end – but a 4-1 score line doesn’t really reflect the balance of play.
An injury to James Riley upset the back line as the game went on and although Cascadia had a large part of the play they just couldn’t translate that into attacking opportunities. The vastly more experienced Ellan Vannin side went on to score three more goals before the end – but a 4-1 score line doesn’t really reflect the balance of play.
Cascadia play the hosts Barawa on Saturday (Cascadia Republic won 2-1) before finishing off the group stage against Tamil Eelam on Sunday (A 6-0 win). With some squad rotation it is not inconceivable that Cascadia might qualify for the quarter finals but it will depend on whether they can transition from defense to attack with more purpose and give themselves a chance of scoring. On a personal note I’m just pleased that something that first piqued my interest all those years ago has now come to fruition. From conversations about a representative side over drinks all those years ago there is now a Cascadia team in an international tournament – and I was there to see them score their first goal. Hopefully they can go on to bigger and better things in the near future.  We're getting into the meat of the non league season for the UPSL and NPSL! That means changes! As more teams become eligible for the Rankings, you'll notice teams with good records disappearing. In order to keep things balanced, I'm limiting the number of teams from any particular division or conference to one, maybe two teams. Otherwise the rankings will be West Coast for quite awhile. Keep your eyes open, too. We have an exciting graphic design project about to be released, and an eyes on the ground report on the debut game for the Cascadia Republic at the CONIFA World Cup in London, England! 
Feedback and input is always appreciated to make sure this is the best Power Rankings possible, so sound off in the comments and in your retweets and lets work together to make this special! And if you are interested in doing regional, state, and city league power rankings, please contact AP, as we'd love to feature your work and get more people interested in more soccer clubs across the country. |
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