Sebastian "The Hawk" Le Toux

His coaches and the familiar media like to refer to him as "Seba," but here at SoundersBoard we officially christen Sebestain Le Toux "The Hawk." And the hawk certainly swept down on his opponents last night in the US Open Cup play-in game at Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila. (Yeah, so Starfire is not a bad name for a venue, but let's face it... Tukwila? Everything that the Seattle Sounders FC have going for them in terms of their cosmopolitan appeal, their international feel, and their world-class support... is lost at Starfire Sports Complex.)

Two goals, two assists, and an accent so thick he needs subtitles a la Brad Pitt in Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Le Hawk was so money last night he ended up in the sports section of the USA Today, America's most famous LCD newspaper (unwelcomed on hotel-room stoops daily across the nation). There was nothing unwelcome about Le Hawk's showing last night however. A Sounder through and through and arguably the hardest working and most sacrificed man on the pitch.

So has Le Hawk made Sigi Schmid's decision of who will start on Saturday more difficult? Sigi says:

“Always, that’s the way it should be. That’s what he wants to do. You want to have a team that has 17, 18, 19 guys that can start for you, because it’s a long season. You never know who’s going to get hurt, and who’s going to miss, so this is a good game for people to build their confidence. Seb certainly presents us alternatives, and it was nice to be able to play him up front, where he’s obviously more comfortable than he is in a wide position.”

If only Sigi considered that hawks are widely reputed to have visual acuity several times that of a normal human being and attack by sudden dashes from a concealed perch, then the question would be a no-brainer.

A Little Thing Called Desire

I want to eat a whole Dungeness crab for dinner tonight. I want my dog to stop eating dish towels and puking them up in the middle of the night. I want my frickin’ sinuses to clear up.

However, none of those things (well, maybe the last one) would make the list of my desires. The things I long for. That I itch for. That I eagerly pursue. My hunger. My lust and lasciviousness.

Nope. Crab. Dog puking. Stuffy sinuses. Not on the list.

Strangely, it seems that beating Chivas USA was not on the Sounders’ list of desires last night either.

They just seemed a little... well, flat. Like they were jet lagged, or ate too much Mexican food, or expended too much mojo having sex before the match. Like they were forced to share a locker room with the Chivas Girls, a case of champagne, ten dozen raw oysters, and three hours to kill. (For background on this observation, see Freddie Lungberg’s comments on sex before games here. And then add this article to the list of reasons why the Seattle Times should quickly follow the PI into online obscurity and leave real news reporting to even the moderately qualified.)


I know, I’m a superfan. I’m not supposed to criticize. And I’m not, not really. I’m not telling you that they weren’t attacking or didn’t have the right people in the lineup or just couldn’t recover momentum after Montero swung his chip shot wide left in the seventh minute (seventh minute!@$?). All I’m saying is that watching the game was just kinda... blah. Like driving through the Dakotas on your way out West. You know it’s gonna be good, but at this moment, well... it’s not.

Poach Post

Yeah, I know, kinda weak that this post is purely a compilation of other cool info I found elsewhere on the web today. But the fact is that I’m on day six of being frickin’ sick, and I just don’t have it in me tonight.

So, here we go...

First up, Happy Birthday Freddie! Karl Fredrik "Freddie" Ljungberg was born April 16, 1977.

And this photo is all about the tattoo, obviously.

Next up, another priceless photo of our one and only:

Kasey Keller!

Taking us back in time! Remember kids, mullets were still cool back then. Especially when you rocked one while cruising in your Iroc Z28 with the custom paint job (like the one I drove to my junior prom with a case of Boone’s Farm in the hatch. Sweet!).

And finally, a bizarre and slightly uncomfortable segment from a local newscast down in LA. Sigh, local news. You just love to be base, don’t you? Must you always go for the lowest common denominator (LCD)? But I will admit, despite the fact I will be vigorously cheering against these dudes this weekend, I found this video very entertaining.



Props to Laurie over at the Seattle Offside blog for these two items above. Check out her Chivas-Sounders Match Preview for some proper soccer commentary. (You know, the kind you don’t get here.)