Portland Timbers (USL)

Football club infobox
clubname = Portland Timbers


fullname = Portland Timbers
nickname = The Timbers
founded = 2001
ground = PGE Park
capacity = 19,566
chairman = flagicon|United States Merritt Paulson
manager = flagicon|New Zealand Gavin Wilkinson
league = USL First Division
season = 2008
position = 11th
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rightarm1=355E3B
shorts1=355E3B
socks1=355E3B
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pattern_b2=
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leftarm2=FFFFFF
body2=FFFFFF
rightarm2=FFFFFF
shorts2=FFFFFF
socks2=FFFFFF
pattern_la3=_whiteborder
pattern_b3=_vneckwhite
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American = true|

Portland Timbers is an American professional soccer team, founded in 2001. The team is a member of the USL First Division, the second tier of the American Soccer Pyramid.

They currently play at PGE Park in Portland, Oregon. The team is currently coached by Gavin Wilkinson. The team's colors are green and white.

This incarnation of the Timbers is the third in US soccer history; they took the name of the local franchise which was an entry in the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1975 to 1982.

Timbers History

Timbers I: NASL

"For more information, see Portland Timbers (NASL)." In 1974, the North American Soccer League awarded an expansion franchise to Portland, Oregon. The new team, named the Timbers, began play in the 1975 season. In their inaugural season, the Timbers went to the championship game Soccer Bowl but lost to the Tampa Bay Rowdies 2-0. It was during this magical season that the Timbers endeared themselves to the City and Portland became known as "Soccer City USA". While the Timbers boasted some of the league's best fan support, they sometimes struggled on the field. Despite going to the championship game in their first season, they missed the play offs in 1976 and 1977. In 1978, they went to the Conference Finals before falling to the New York Cosmos. The team folded at the end of the 1982 season as player salaries outpaced team revenue. These Timbers established soccer as a sport in the greater Portland area. Their legacy lives on in the current Timbers following and the many thousands who continue to play and follow the game. Many of these Timbers continued to live in the area after their playing careers and helped establish the soccer as a vital local sport.

Timbers II: WSL/APSL

"For more information, see F.C. Portland."

In 1985, a local amateur Portland club, F.C. Portland, became a charter member of the Western Soccer Alliance (WSA). In 1989, the team adopted the name Portland Timbers, becoming the second Timbers team and the WSA became the Western Soccer League (WSL). This time the Timbers lasted only two years, 1989 and 1990, before folding. However, in 1990, the WSL merged with the American Soccer League to form the American Professional Soccer League the predecessor of the A-League. While this iteration of the Timbers lasted only two years, it had five significant players, national team goalkeeper and University of Portland alumnus, Kasey Keller; former NASL Timbers player John Bain, who also coached the team; Scott Benedetti who would return as a star of the A-League/USL Timbers; future MLS player Shawn Medved; and finally Peter Hattrup who is best known as a member of the Seattle Sounders.

Timbers III: USL

Through the 2003 season, the Timbers compiled an inconsistent record, qualifying for league playoffs two out of the three years. They have, however, established themselves as one of the best-drawing teams in the A-league, averaging attendance above 5,000 in each of their four years of existence.

In the 2004 season, the Timbers finished first in the Western Conference, with a record of 18 wins, 7 losses, and 3 draws (57 points). However, they were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by their long-standing rival, the Seattle Sounders.

2005 proved to be a bittersweet year for the Portland Timbers. A sweet end of the year playoff run ended by a bitter playoff loss once again to arch-rival Seattle Sounders. However, many exciting moments went along with the 2005 season:
*A 6-1 thumping of the Atlanta Silverbacks on September 8, 2005
*Portland being the only team to give the Montreal Impact a home loss
*Timbers players Scot Thompson, Hugo Alcaraz-Cuellar, and Dan Antoniuk all won league awards

2006 was a very disappointing season for many reasons for the Portland Timbers, and their fans.
*The team finishing tied for last in the table with a franchise worst 7-15-6 (27 points) record.
*Offensive production was last in the league as the club only netted 25 goals.
*Losing their derby with heated rival Seattle Sounders.

2007 had many moments for the Timbers. Portland finished second in the league, with first going to rival Seattle Sounders.
*Successful friendlies against Preston North End (2-1), Club Necaxa (1-0) and Toronto FC (4-1) whilst drawing even with the AC Milan Primavera squad (1-1) and winning on penalties.
*Going unbeaten at home during the regular season.

2008 Roster

"as of July 23, 2008"

Year by Year

Kit Sponsors

Coaches

* Bobby Howe (2001-2005)
* Chris Agnello (2006)
* Gavin Wilkinson (2007-)

Notable Players

* Hugo Alcaraz-Cuellar (2002-2006)
* Byron Álvarez (2003-2006; 2008-)
* Mike Chabala (2006-2007)
* Alan Gordon (2004, 2006)
* Bryan Jordan (2007-)
* Brent Sancho (2001-2002)
* Darin Lewis (2001)
* McKinley Tennyson (2002-2004)
* Scot Thompson (2004-)
* Gavin Wilkinson (2001-2006, 2006 as player/assistant coach)
*flagicon|England Sean McAuley (2002)
*flagicon|Scotland Tony McPeak (2001)
* Benjamin Totori (2008)

Club Culture

Fans

The Timbers Army is the center of fan support, and the Timbers with a number of rousing choruses. Timbers fans engage in great amounts of cultural appropriation. There are many other groups that occupy the North End (Woodshed) of PGE Park, some who are a part of the Timbers Army, and some who are not. The team mascot is currently Timber Joe, the replacement for Timber Jim who retired in 2008, a chearleader who wields a live chainsaw around the field, cutting off a slab of a log each time the team scores.

Club Rivalries

Seattle SoundersIn this very intense American soccer rivalry, gameday activities between these clubs usually involve heavy taunting from the crowd, items being thrown onto the pitch, and players clashing with one another. Several cards being given out are a common sight in these derby matches. The two club supporters groups, Timbers Army & Emerald City Supporters, have an extreme distaste for each other, which dates back from when the Timbers entered the league in 2001. Both teams compete in the three way Cascadia Cup derby.

Vancouver WhitecapsThe Portland Timbers also have a rivalry with their Cascadian Cup opponent. Although less intense than the Seattle rivalry, Whitecap-Timber games always involve exciting soccer that the fans cheer extensively about. Both teams compete in the three way Cascadia Cup derby.

Mascot

The team's mascot was a grizzled lumberjack named Timber Jim (aka: Jim Serrill). ^{[http://www.soccercityusa.com/timberjim/whois.htm]} . On January 24, 2008, Jim announced his retirement. His final farewell was a game played against the Puerto Rico Islanders on April 17, 2008, the Timbers home opener, which was won 1-0. [ Timbers long-time icon, 'Timber Jim,' retires [http://www.portlandtimbers.com/newsroom/headlines/index.html?article_id=708] ] . Having served as the unofficial mascot every game starting the second home game of the season, on June 14, 2008, Timber Joe was inaugurated as the new official mascot at an exhibition game vs Juventus Primavera [ Timbers introduce Joe Webber as new mascot, portlandtimbers.com [http://www.portlandtimbers.com/newsroom/headlines/index.html?article_id=850] ] , a game the Timbers won 1-0 ^{[http://www.portlandtimbers.com/newsroom/headlines/index.html?article_id=852]} .

References

External links

* [http://www.portlandtimbers.com/ Official website]
*Fan sites (all ad-free as of October 2005):
** [http://www.soccercityusa.com/timbers/ The Timber Mill]
** [http://home.comcast.net/~kurtds2/ Timbers Army]
** [http://www.timbersfanpage.com Timbers Fan Page]
** [http://timberlog.blogspot.com/ Timberlog] , a fan's blogspot-based weblog
** [http://www.timbersarmytalk.com/ Timbers Army] Internet forum
** [http://www.talktimbers.com/ Talk Timbers] Internet forum