Thanks Omar!

On Sunday Omar Cummings announced that FC Cincinnati's friendly against Valencia CF last night would be his final game as a professional.  He will immediately transition to teh front office working with Cinci's youth club.

Omar was one half of the C+C Goal Factory that combined for 89 goals for the Rapids between 2007 and 2012 (39 for Omar, 50 for Casey) and was one of the starters for the Rapids in MLS Cup 2010.  After that 2010 season (where he led the team in scoring) he got a look from Aston Villa but work permit issues prevented him from more than just a few training sessions in England.  After leaving the Rapids he spent two years in Houston and a year in San Antonio before being part of the inaugural Cincinnati FC squad last year.  He played in 17 games in 2016, scoring 3 times, but this year he only got 37 minutes in 3 substitute appearances in their first 20 games.

Cummings will always be part of the Rapids family and I wish him luck in his future plans.

With this retirement, half the Rapids who saw the field in the 2010 MLS Cup have now retired.  Moor, Larentowicz, and Wynne are still in MLS, Pickens, Kimura, Wallace are in the USL, and Kandji is playing in Finland.

Cummings-Sturgis Trade Follow-Up

Now that I'm back from my holiday travels time to get into this trade that happened at the oddest time I can remember, Sunday morning two days before Christmas.  The Rapids gave up the other half of the C+C Goal Factory, Omar Cummings, in return for allocation money and Nathan Sturgis.

My first instinct is much like the Kimura trade from last year (oddly, Cummings and Kimura were roommates and were considered the Odd Couple of the team).  I understand why we moved Omar but if we got value for him will be dependent on the next moves the team makes.  How much allocation money we got is the real question that will never be answered.  Sturgis is a journeyman MLS player, on his 6th team in 8 years despite being only 25.  He has also played for the U.S. at the U 17, 18, 20, and 23 levels.  Listed as a defensive midfielder he's also played center back on a somewhat regular basis.  Sturgis is a depth player, nothing more at this point.

There has been some talk about how this is a salary cap move as Omar was set to make $250K next year after his new contract.  I'm not saying that's wrong, but his updated salary from the Players Union didn't reflect that after his contract last year.  There could be a significant escalation clause in his contract for next season, but if so the Rapids did a lousy job of handling Cummings.

The updated roster is below.  We currently have 20 signed players plus Avila and reportedly Calderon.  Out of those 20 players only 10 of them predate Pareja's hiring of just under a year ago.  Assuming we get up to 30 players, 2/3rds of the roster will have less than 1 year of experience in Colorado.  Omar Cummings was the last player on the roster brought in under Fernando Clavijo, Pablo Mastroeni is the only player from the Tim Hankinson era, the other 9 were brought in by Smith (they all have rings, so nobody Smith brought in in 2011 stuck).

* = pre-Pareja acquisition
Goalkeepers:
Steward Ceus*
Matt Pickens*

Defenders:
Chris Klute (on loan from Atlanta through late-Sept)
Drew Moor*
Anthony Wallace*
Marvell Wynne*

Midfielders:
Davy Armstrong*
Eric Avila - Unsigned
Tony Cascio
Jaime Castrillon
Jeff Larentowicz*
Pablo Mastroeni*
Brian Mullan*
Shane O'Neill
Martin Rivero (on loan from Rosario Central through 2013)
Nathan Sturgis
Hendry Thomas

Forwards:
Andre Akpan*
Edson Buddle
Atiba Harris
Kamani Hill

Rapids Trade Cummings For Sturgis

More after the holidays but today the Rapids traded Omar Cummings to Houston for Nathan Sturgis and allocation money.

What's Happened To C+C Goal Factory?

Full game recap coming, but a post-game discussion got me to do some research.  Namely people were asking why Pareja seemed to be unwilling to play Casey and Cummings at the same time.  I wondered how much of that was by choice and how much was due to injury so I looked it up.

Only 9 times this season have they both been Probable on the injury report or better, and in each of those games at least one of them was listed as Probable, so they've never been completely healthy  (Casey has been on the injury report every game this season).

In those 9 games:

4/28 - Chivas: Casey makes his first appearance of the season as a last minute sub for Omar (fans there will remember Class VI screaming at Rapids players to knock the ball out so Casey could be subbed in before the final whistle)

5/2 - @NE: Casey was left in Colorado due to the turf in New England

5/6 - @Dallas: Cummings started but subbed out injured after 14 minutes, Casey subbed in at halftime

6/20 - San Jose: Casey was subbed off for Cummings in the 67th minute

6/30 - Portland: Casey & Cummings start and play 73/74 minutes

7/4 - Vancouver: Casey & Cummings start, Cummings subs off in the 61st

7/7 - @Seattle: Casey starts and goes 67 before Edu subs in, at the same time Cummings subs in for Smith

7/14 - Dallas: Cummings & Casey start and play the full game

7/18 - @Toronto: Casey & Cummings start, Cummings goes 72 minutes

So on 4/28, 5/2, and 5/6 Casey was still recovering from his Achilles injury and understandably didn't start, by the time he got serious minutes Cummings was injured.

On 6/20 Cummings was coming back from injury and only played 23 minutes, you could make a case that Casey could/should have been left in to play with him.

On 7/7 the team was playing its 3rd game in a week, on turf, and both players were probable. While playing both of them at once was possible, without knowing their injury and fitness status I can't fault Pareja for not playing them together.

When playing together Casey has both of his goals and 1 of his assists on Omar's only goal or assist when playing together.

So maybe you fault Pareja for not leaving Casey in on 6/20, a game we lost 2-1 on a Freeman own goal in the 83rd and a PK in the 92rd minute.  Colorado was up 1-0 at home when the Casey/Cummings sub happened.

I find it hard to make a claim that Pareja is resisting playing them together given these numbers though.  When they've been (reasonably) healthy, Pareja has played them together.

Roster Moves and Player Updates

A couple of roster notes from the last couple of days.

• Yesterday Colorado released Josh Janniere in order to make room for Edu on the roster.
• They also placed Ross LaBauex on IR
• Today they announced that Wynne and Cummings will be out about 4 weeks.

So that leaves us with 31 rostered players.  With Wallace on season-ending IR even with everyone else healthy we're still within the 30-man roster limit.

We currently have 7 internationals, Castrillon, Edu, Henao, Rivero, Smith, Yamada, and Zapata.  Smith is currently on IR so we still meet the limit of 6 international spots we currently have.  I've herd multiple reports that he's expecting his green card any day, so once that happens he won't count as an international and we'll be at our limit of 6.

When Edu was signed the Rapids mentioned that they would need to make moves to free up salary cap space. Janniere didn't count against the cap so releasing him didn't help, and players on the IR still count against the cap.  If the Rapids are salary cap compliant then they did some behind the scenes manipulation to get to that point without having to release players.

Rapids All-Time Team: Speed Forward

The starting speed forward for the Rapids All-Time Team is Omar Cummings.

How Acquired: Drafted in the 3rd round (31st overall pick) in the 2007 Superdraft.

Years In Colorado: 2007 through present

This was the trickiest pick of the team. I went back and forth between a 4-4-2 and a 3-4-3, but eventually Cummings won out. (Don't let the titles of the forward positions fool you, I wasn't looking specifically for a Speed Forward but I needed some way to designate each of the forward positions, so the position titles are based on the players not the other way around.) Omar has been one half of the best strike duo in MLS the last 2+ seasons as his work with Casey has led to a "thunder and lightning" approach for the Rapids offense which the fans have nicknamed the C+C Goal Factory. In his 4+ seasons Cummings is already the 4th leading scorer in team history and he'll probably pass Spencer for 3rd by the end of this year. This despite not being a regular starter until his 3rd season.

Cummings is probably the best player actually developed by the Rapids in their history. Colorado has had good players sign with the team, like Conor Casey, and had players start in Colorado and then leave to become even greater, like Shawn Bartlett. Cummings is really the first player to develop as a Rapid and he looks poised to move on to a top-level club. His trial with Aston Villa this offseason went well enough that Villa and Colorado agreed on a loan deal for him, with rumors of a possible purchase if it went well, but Jamaica's place just outside the top 70 of the FIFA rankings meant that Cummings would have to appeal to get a work permit, a long process that would have used up most of his loan time. The only other player to develop in Colorado and move immediately to anything resembling a top club was Marcus Hahnemann's move to Fulham, but they were a Championship side at that point.

I expect this to be one of the more debated picks in my All-Time Team, and I can 't really disagree. There are a number of names that could have taken the final slot, both at forward or in midfield/defense in a different formation. The potential Cummings has shown and his combination with Casey up front give him the edge in my opinion.

Cummings and Nyassi get callups

Omar Cummings has been called into the Jamaican National Team for their games on Friday March 25th in Jamaica and Sunday March 27th in El Salvador. Sanna Nyassi has been called into the Gambian National Team for their game in Equatorial Guinea on March 29th. Both players will miss the trip to LA for the game against Chivas USA on March 26th. Hopefully Folan will be ready to partner with Casey by then.

Omar Cumming(s) home

Yeah, I know, way too obvious of a headline. If you haven't heard, Omar Cummings' training/trial in England has completed and he's returning to Colorado next week for the start of training camp. Aston Villa worked out a loan deal with him and the Rapids, but it fell apart when Cummings was unable to obtain a work permit for the UK. The United Kingdom has strict immigration laws and in order for a player to get a work permit their country needs to be in the top 70 of the FIFA rankings. Jamaica is currently 72nd. There is an appeal process and Omar probably would have won the appeal, but its a lengthy process (a month or so) and with his loan only going until the beginning of the MLS season two months from today (yay!) Aston Villa decided it wasn't worth the effort.

This probably puts an end to any threat of Cummings getting transferred before the beginning of the season as well, which is good for Colorado. We'll have our full starting XI from our MLS Cup victory back to start the season, barring injury. I'm sure Cummings is on the radar of a couple of teams now, and a good start to the season and a decent showing for Jamaica in this summer's Gold Cup could see him leaving mid-season, or next off-season.

Rapids News & Notes

OK, after two weeks off for the holidays and a hard drive melt down we're back. Luckily its been pretty quiet lately so there's not that much to catch up on.

• The Rapids sign Tyrone Marshall to a one year deal with a one year option.

I like the short term nature of the contract, but the real key to this will be the salary number (which we'll see when the union releases the salaries in March). If its less than 6 figures its a good move to boost our reserves on the back line. If its more than 6 figures we've probably overpaid.

• Colorado reportedly wants $3 million for Cummings.

This isn't far from what I expected, and I'm guessing the Rapids, if they have floated this number, is floating a number higher than their actual minimum. my thought was that $2 million or more would be enough for sure, and they might take around $1.5 million depending on what other plans they had. Anything less than $1 million is a non-starter though. My bet is that Villa won't offer much more than $1.5 million if they even try to buy him, so thee Rapids may have a big decision to make.

• The Rapids may be former Rover Matt Derbyshire.

As a Blackburn fan I've of two minds on this one. The skill he's shown would be welcome at Commerce City, but watching him play for Rovers I never got the impression that he put it together on a consistent basis. I would assume he's being considered only as a replacement for Cummings. If Omar comes back I don't see how the Rapids can justify spending big money to bring in a player like him when Casey and Cummings are the clear starters.

Later this week is the Superdraft where the Rapids have the 18th and 36th picks (having traded away their 3rd round pick already). A week later will be the Supplemental Draft, now 3 rounds, and the 4th round pick the Rapids traded will actually be the first round pick in that draft, to they'll have the #36 and #54 picks. #54 would be the last pick, MLS' equivalent to the NFL's Mr. Irrelevant but without all the ceremony. There's usually plenty of wheeling and dealing around the drafts, so we'll see what happens.

Season Review - Forwards

Finally getting to the final part of the season review, the forwards.

Andre Akpan - Akpan only had one appearance this year but got some good experience while on loan to Tampa in the USSF Division II. He'll probably feature in the reserve division next year, and push Amarikwa for the forward spot on the bench until Kandji returns.

Quincy Amarikwa - Quincy was acquired early in the season from San Jose, and became the go-to option off the bench up front until Kandji was acquired. Unfortunately he appeared to be speed with no ball control. While he was great to run at defenses it was quickly obvious that he needed more time to become any type of threat, something borne out by his stats (1 goal and no assists in 13 appearances). Amarikwa will partner with Akpan in the reserve league, but probably not be a real threat for the first team unless his play increases greatly. I would expect the Rapids to either bring in another striker or draft one to challenge Akpan and Amarikwa next season.

Conor Casey - One half of Colorado's C+C Goal Factory, Casey had another great season, finishing with 14 total goals and 6 assists, the best combined total on the team. Despite the disappointment of not making the squad for South Africa Casey kept his head up and made 29 appearances, missing one game due to yellow card accumulation. He capped the season off with a goal and set up Kandji's attack for the own goal in MLS Cup, earning MLS Cup MVP honors.

We've seen that when Casey stays healthy all he does is score goals. At 29 he's probably at the peak of his career, but I don't expect a huge drop-off next season, especially is he's paired with Cummings again. Conor is never going to be the creative force in the team, he's your typical back-to-gal striker who can dish the ball to an onrushing Cummings or turn and shoot.

Omar Cummings - Omar was the team MVP IMO this year. 14 goals and 5 assists were second to Casey, but Cummings stepped up in a big way in the final third of the season when the team needed a spark to make their playoff run. He suffered through being played out of position in Smith's 4-5-1 experiment without complaint, but it was the move back to the 4-4-2 that sparked his resurgence. He had assists on both goals in the Columbus playoff series to push the Rapids through to the conference finals, and it was his run to the near post that allowed Koz's goal to sneak through for the winning goal in the Eastern Conference Final.

Cummings is the biggest question mark on the team going into next year. Currently training with Aston Villa, there's a real chance that he will be sold in the winter transfer window. The Rapids already turned down a mid-season offer for him from Necaxa, and reportedly they had an offer recently from another Mexican club. If Cummings returns I expect another successful season from the C+C Goal Factory, and I hope Smith has figured out that he has to play both of them up front.

Macoumba Kandji - Acquired before the trading deadline for the inconsistent and ineffectual Mehdi Ballouchy, Kandji didn't show much in his limited playing time, but was an immediate improvement over Akpan and Amarikwa. In 7 regular season appearances he had 3 assists and 0 goals. Of course he'll always be remembered for his attack in overtime of MLS Cup where he crossed the ball that George John knocked in his own goal for the winning score int he Rapids championship. In the collision with Ugo Ihemelu that happened as he was making the cross Kandji blew out his ACL.

Due to the blown ACL anything we get out of Kandji in 2011 should be seen as a bonus. He won't even be close to 100% until the very end of the season.

Ross Schunk - Ross was the victim of ripping his ACL near the end of training camp this year. After losing a season of development and the additions of Akpan, Amarikwa, and Kandji there just wasn't room for him.

Cummings To England...Temporarily?

The Rapids and Omar Cummings have accepted an invitation for Omar to train with Aston Villa this winter. Right now everyone is saying that this is just some training and they are investigating the possibility of a short-term loan. According to Rapids Managing Director Jeff Plush, Cummings will be in Colorado for the season opener against Portland.

Reading between the lines I'm not as sure. The Rapids have reportedly been approached by a Mexican team this offseason about buying Cummings, and this is after Necaxa made an offer for him in the summer transfer window. Now we find out Aston Villa contacted Colorado about getting a closer look at Omar. I suspect that Aston Villa is thinking more long-term but they need a close-up look at Cummings before they reveal their cards. I wouldn't be shocked to see this turn into a permanent move.

Bouna Time, Cummings, and Pablo to play for National Teams

2 World Cup Qualifiers and a friendly will send some Rapids around the globe on Wednesday. The longest trip will be Coundoul's, who will travel to Tripoli, Libya to join the Lions of Teranga as they face Libya in a warm up for the end of the current round of World Cup Qualifying in CAF. There's a good chance Bouna will see some playing time, as there's not much the Senegal National Team coach needs to learn about the #1 keeper, Tony Sylva.

Forward Omar Cummings will head north to Toronto to join the rest of the Reggae Boyz as they face the Canucks in the first game of CONCACAF's semi-final round of World Cup Qualifying. Omar made his debut for Jamaica last month when they played El Salvador in Dallas, getting a full 90 minutes in for the team. Jamaica is in a tough group, along with Canada they also have the heavily favored Mexico and Honduras,. The top 2 in the group make it to the final round of qualifying.

Pablo Mastroeni will join the Yanks in Guatemala City as they open the round of qualifying against Guatemala. Coach Bob Bradley will be choosing between Pablo and his son, Michael Bradley, for the starting spot at defensive midfielder. In prior games Bradley has gone with two defensive midfielders so its possible they will both start. The U.S. is in a group with Cuba and Trinidad & Tobago, along with Guatemala. The U.S. will face Guatemala again in the final round of games of this stage on Nov. 19th at the Dick.