Matchday Madness: Crew vs Shitcago

It was a rough day at Crew Stadium; the boys were unable to find a rhythm and gave up a heartbreaking goal at the end of the game. Then the kicker, I get back to my car after the game and someone's knocked my side mirror off my car. Like I said, it was a rough day.

















-Ultra

Propaganda: Massive History

History is more logos and names, History is actions. The Columbus Crew have real history, both on and off the field. Unlike many of the johnny-come-lately clubs in MLS we have been here from the beginning and will be here til the end.



-Ultra

Propaganda: No Quit

The 2011 Columbus Crew are shaping up to be one of those teams that refuses to lose. They put in the work, and make the other team quit. They stoke the fires and hang on tough in games where lesser teams would cave and give up. The embody the saying "Never give up, Never Quit". In honor of that never say die attitude here's another desktop for ya.




-Ultra

Mobile Propaganda: Capital City Crest

More propaganda for your phone, now ya can keep repping The Cap City Crew everywhere you go.



-Ultra

Propaganda: The Capital City Crew

Soccer is a game made up of many elements; Speed, Power, Accuracy, Vision, and even a bit of Luck and Magic among others. To honor some of our more dedicated and favorite players on this incarnation of The Capital City's soccer team I've cooked up a new wallpaper for those of you who are interested. I plan on following up with tributes to more players both past and present in the future so hopefully we'll see more on this subject sometime soon.



-Ultra

Ultra Merch: HSH 5th Year shirt

So awhile back I posted a few of my ideas for the Hudson Street Hooligans fifth year T-shirt. Now thanks to the work of the wonderful guys running HSH the design has taken root and become reality. It was featured on the Ohio News Network program CrewXtra being worn by Crew legend and fan favorite Duncan Oughton. So if you're in the capital city stop by the HSH bar down on the corner of Summit and Oakland and pick up your own.







-Ultra

Propaganda: Legacy

There's been a lot of talk around the interwebs about all the new teams joining up in MLS. Everyone's been oohing and awwing about their fans and how wonderful they are blah blah blah. Don't get me wrong It's nice too see the packed stadiums and it's great to see the excitement around the league, however... If there is one thing that drives me crazy, is the contempt that these new fans seem to show for their forebears. They're joining a league as it is reaching peak popularity and standing on the shoulders of the hard work put in by the league's original '96 clubs. So to honor the legacy of The Massive Club. THE original team in MLS here's a new piece of wallpaper propaganda adorned with the names of just a few of the Crew's stand out players.



-Ultra

Propaganda: 11 players, 1 goal

So it's been awhile since I put out a new wallpaper and figured it was time to remedy that situation. So without wasting any more of your time here is the new bit of propaganda and what is currently adorning the desktop of my laptop.



-Ultra

Crew vs Vancouver: first contact

The Crew has kept their record of never losing to a Canadian club (whiskey not counted) intact on the back of Emilio Renteria's brace in their 2-1 victory. This was the first game in over a year that I did not take in from the Nordecke. Instead I was on the stage enjoying the beer garden and view from behind the goal. So here's a few pictures to take in of the pre-game and game itself, enjoy...




















-Ultra

Crew vs TFC: View from the Bar

So finally after over a month without my own laptop I finally have it back. This is a soccer blog so I won't go into the details of my ordeal but lets just say I will never be buying a Dell Computer again after all of that hassle. Onto the game!

It was finally that time of year again, The Massive club were taking on Terrible FC up in the land of ice and snow. This yearly guarantee of at least a point on the road came a good time of the year, Easter Weekend. This meant the usually small crowds that are associated with this were not our problem and we could watch from the comfort of our local bars. I took in the game down at the Hudson Street Hooligans bar on Summit and Oakland. The bar is a members only club that can be joined for just 20 bucks, for which you plenty of goodies to make it worth the trouble. I highly recommend checking it out sometime if you get the chance, It is the only supporters owned bar in the USA and a great place to catch a game.










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-Ultra

Technical Difficulties

So I haven't been posting a lot lately and there is a reason for it; my Computer has totally crapped out on me. The poor old gal is five, very rough, years old and has been broken for a few days now. So while I wait for it to get back from Dell all fixed and new I've been relegated to an old mac which I do not like very much. The result is me not being able to mess around on my photo editor and come up with new imagery right as the season gets started. So please do bear with me I should be up and cranking out new stuff in a week or so and I will try to come up with some other content (most likely videos or photos) and post them from here as well.

-Ultra

Tifo Idea: Dalek

Just a few more quick two stick Tifo ideas for this season. I've been watching a bit of Doctor Who lately and I figured a Dalek is vicious enough to go along with the COBRA and Imperial logos I've seen at games. I've left them black and white this time since that'll pry be easier for stencils or projectors when making them.





-Ultra

Preseason Blues

March 19th marks the start of the 2011 MLS season for the Columbus Crew and for neurotic fans, like myself, this is both an exciting and stressful time. It's a time when we start to find out what this team is really like, and if what we've seen up to this point in preseason really matters.

Now normally I'd say preseason results are largely meaningless in any sport, and even more so in MLS. The games are played by weird grab bag rules with unlimited subs, 30 to 60 minute periods and all sorts of guest and trail players. Usually this makes the preseason nothing more than glorified try outs. This year though feels a bit different. Perhaps its because of the massive roster overhaul,or perhaps it's because it was early start back in the CCL, but this year preseason feels like it matters. The new look Crew of 2011 has no real identity, and it would seem these preseason games would be the time to establish one.

The trouble has been a plague of injuries sweeping through the locker room. Having key guys like Marshall, Hesmer, Gaven, O'Rourke, Francis and Gruenebaum out means that the new guys are left on their own to figure out who this team really is. This of course isn't exactly groundbreaking news, but it's exactly the kind of stressful situation that makes preseason so draining. Crew fans are notoriously bi-polar (spending just a few weeks on the bigsoccer.com message boards can show that to anyone)and having your team get beaten repeatedly with a corps of new players is no help for our fragile psyches.

Couple these beatings with a miserable away leg in the CCL and a lack of any signings that are known commodities and a dreadful outlook tends to sneak in.

The only saving grace maybe in the knowledge that this has happened before. In 2008 the team had a average to sub-par preseason, and had just come off three straight disappointing seasons. Yet that Crew was able to rally and become one of the best teams in MLS history.

Do I think this year will be a repeat of that magic? Of course not.
But I can hope that some sort of middle ground is found and this team can prove that I had no need to worry or have these preseason blues.

-Ultra

Tifo Ideas: Nordecke on Tour

So the Crew open the season on the road against the old foe DC United. Since it's a paltry eight(ish) hour drive down to our nations capital there should be a fair number of Crew fans there in away support. With that and the other road trips that will be made this year, either organized or not, here are a couple of two stick banner ideas for those who hit the road to support the Massive. For a good set of instructions on how to make these into two stick banners check out this link and send a big thanks to "Thoma Gol" for info.




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-Ultra

February wallpaper round up.

It's now March first, The Crew have played their first game of the new year and the regular season is just a few short weeks away. So to start off this new month here's a recap of the wallpapers that got cranked out of the propaganda machine since the last time we had a round up like this. February was the players month with most of the images celebrating the recently departed one last time before we dive into the new season. Much like a clip show there's nothing really new about this post, more just putting the last few all in one place to keep from having to jump around too much.












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-Ultra

Propaganda: Matrix

I was looking for a change of pace for my computer background so I threw this together fairly quickly and was rather pleased with how it came out. I'll try to come up with something a little more original sometime soon, I've been rather swamped lately and haven't had the free time I'd like to put things together. Anyway here's the latest desktop, hope ya enjoy...

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-Ultra

Columbus Legends: Duncan Oughton

Duncan Oughton is a true Columbus Legend. He spent his entire career with the Massive club and made Columbus his adopted home. A true fan favorite when not showing off his skills on the pitch he was making people laugh off of it. His sense of humor and personable nature helped him become part of the heart and soul of the team. While he has retired from his playing days he has moved up to the Crew Front Office continuing his work in helping Columbus stay Massive.

Duncan Oughton, the kiwi of Columbus.


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-Ultra

Going over the top: Columbus' set piece battles

Over the last few seasons there has been one main way for The Crew to net goals: set pieces. Back in 2008 the service of Schelotto and the Ariel prowess of players like Chad Marshall and Alejandro Moreno made corner kicks and final third fouls a dangerous proposition for those opposing the Black and Gold. This high flying attack wasn't the only means of production though. The Crew could still count on goals from the run of play to keep teams honest and prompt those dangerous fouls. The Crew could keep the game moving but still hit hard when the opposition forced a stoppage. In 2009 this fell off but did not entirely disappear letting the team scrape out another supporters shield despite a poor finish to the season. Year two of the Robert Warzycha project though saw the well all but run dry. The Massive club became almost entirely reliant on set piece goals to keep them in matches as the team struggled to find the net from the run of play. This predictability became a major liability, in 2010 if you could stop the set pieces you could stop Columbus.

Since the end of last season the team has undergone a major overhaul. Warzycha is no longer looking to be pegged to lining up in formation and charging headlong for the cross the way he had in season past. The plan is to switch from the classical set piece engagements that got the team bogged down to a more rapid war of movement. Think of it as going from WWI to WWII, from trenches to blitzkrieg. The problem however will lie in it's implementation. Switching styles is never an easy task, the culture of lining up and waiting for the whistle to send you up and over an opponent may have taken too deep of root to work out quickly. The result of which could be a slow and painful start to the season for fans of the Massive club. Given the early results in the preseason many fans may begin to wonder if we're adapting properly. In the first two matches all the Crew's goals have once again come from Set pieces. The question then is when will we see the change in style that was promised after the off-season purge. With limited time and options before the first match against Salt Lake it is unlikely the teams new tactics will be on full display. Warzycha will likely have to "attack the enemy's strategy" as Sun Tzu would say. He'll have to tailor the Crew to take on the Royals before he can tailor the Crew to be the Crew. Something that maybe a problem given his desire to totally shift the team's style and the limited time before First Kick. The good news things are still in their very early stages. The Crew won their third preseason match 3-0 with both Mendoza and Cunningham scoring. Not to mention that often times preseason is a poor indicator of how a team will actually play during the season. However given the frustration last year and with the first Champions League match less than two weeks away people are understandably nervous. They don't want to see another season stuck in the trenches and being forced to go over the top.

-Ultra

Columbus Legends: Frankie Hejduk

Oh Captain my captain...
Frankie Hejduk embodies the spirit of the Massive; he works hard, he tackles hard, he runs hard, and he plays hard. While he no longer plays in Columbus, when someone asks you to picture the Captain of the Crew this is who most of you probably think of. His years of dedication to the team, his unstoppable work rate, his goal in MLS Cup 08 and his beers in the Nordecke. While he's finishing out his career in LA back near his california roots he has said he plans on making his adopted city his home in life after soccer. The man embodies what it means to be a Crew player and for his time with us he will always be a Columbus Legend.


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-Ultra

Columbus Legends: Guillermo Barros Schelotto

I've decided to do a string of Wallpapers dedicated to the greatest men to have donned the Black and Gold. Each will be unique to the player and commemorate his time with the club. To kick things off I'm starting with the man, the myth, the legend; Guillermo Barros Schelotto. Guille joined the club mid-season 2007 and went on to become one of the most Iconic figures in Columbus Crew history. The sublime argentine was named the 2008 MLS Regular season and MLS cup MVP helping to earn Three pieces of hardware in his time with the Massive. Though his contract was not renewed at the start of the season he will always be a fan favorite and arguably the best player ever to wear the uniform. So here's to Barros Schelotto, Columbus' #7 and a true Crew Legend.

Propaganda: Renteria

One of the pleasant surprises last season was the play of Emilio Renteria. The Venezuelan Bulldog powered his way through defenses and put in the work to notch Five goals and earn the adoration of many Crew fans. His strength, hustle, skill and memorable celebrations can now be honored by having him adorn your desktop. Hopefully 2011 will see many more calls on the shoe phone or dances by the corner flag.


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-Ultra

Propaganda: Wallpaper Round Up

Okay so I've posted quite a few wallpapers since I started this site back in 2008; Some of them have been quite good, others god awful. Looking back through my pages lately I realized it's been quite some time since I've had a proper round up of good wallpapers all in once place, so I figured I'd remedy that. So to save you from having to sift through several years worth of blog posts here are my personal favorites all in one place.

Oh and if you're looking for the walls for your smartphone here's the link too those I made for droids.

























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Feel free to comment on which you like/hate or would want to see more of in the future.

-Ultra