World Cup countdown – prolific Buddle worthy of selection?

With huge questions marks hanging over the final composition of USA’s strikeforce in South Africa, one player has been simply on fire in the MLS.

Edson Buddle, who will be 29 on May 21, has catapulted himself into contention for selection with his scintillating performances for LA Galaxy.

Buddle scored twice in a 3-1 victory over Philadelphia Union at the weekend. He has now bagged nine of Galaxy’s 10 goals this season, as the franchise claimed its fifth win in six MLS matches.

Buddle’s career can best be described as somewhat checkered. It has included a number of off-field issues, injuries and patchy form. To date, he has just one full international cap to his name -- earned in a friendly against Venezuela in 2003 -- so inexperience is definitely against him.



However, his game intelligence and work ethic have improved since then, along with his nose for goal.

Most teams will bring four strikers to the World Cup. As it stands, only Jozy Altidore -- and maybe Brian Ching -- can consider themselves likely to be named forwards in the USA squad by Bob Bradley.

It is highly unlikely that regular Charlie Davies will now make it, following his injury in a car crash that killed a passenger last October.

His progress from a broken leg, a dislocated elbow, a broken nose, multiple facial fractures and a ruptured bladder has been remarkable, but it was recently announced that he will not line out for his French club Sochaux before the end of the season, as had been anticipated.

So who else is in contention? You’ve got Herculez Gomez, in form with Puebla in Mexico, and also deserving of consideration; the home based Robbie Findlay (Real Salt Lake) and Conor Casey (Colorado); Kenny Cooper (Plymouth, England); and Eddie Johnson (Aris, Greece).

There is also the possibility that Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey could slot in up front if required, so Bradley could go with just three strikers and add another creative midfielder to the squad such as Alejandro Bedoya.

Buddle would probably best fit as a replacement for Altidore, rather than a partner, due to his style, but is definitely a tempting proposition as it stands.

The US training camp opens on May 15 and Bradley is expected to include around 26 to 28 players. It will convene at a destination expected to be on the east coast.

US. Soccer is expected to announce its list of camp invitees in the next couple of days, while FIFA will release each of the 32 participating teams’ preliminary selections of 30 players on May 11.

USA will then play two friendlies against the Czech Republic in Connecticut on May 25 and against Turkey in Philadelphia on May 29. The team will leave for South Africa the following day.

Whether Buddle’s on the plane remains to be seen, but he should at least be given an opportunity – along with Gomez -- to prove his worth during the two friendlies.

It may not be a European league that he’s lighting up, but having a red hot and in-form goal poacher in your squad who is scoring with more regularity right now than Calvin Borel wins Kentucky Derbies may not be such a bad idea.

Fab foursome aiming for Midwest glory

Four southern Indiana players can help punch their team’s ticket to the US Youth Soccer Midwest Region tournament in Ohio without having to win State.

Nick Blackwell, Matt Kelecy, Daniel Wilburn and Jordan Vejar have been in great form with Javanon ’94 in the prestigious Midwest Regional League.

All four see plenty of playing time with three of them typically starting on defense (Blackwell, Kelecy, and Vejar), while Wilburn is usually deployed as an outside midfielder/forward.

Blackwell, who won a regional championship with New Albany High School in the fall, has taken over as the team’s central defender.

Vejar, who plays at Jeffersonville HS, and Kelecy, at Floyd Central, are two of the area’s top high school scorers are finding their niche on this team on defense as outside fullbacks.

Wilburn, of Providence, is somewhat of a utility player, able to fill many roles depending on what the game conditions necessitate. Usually, he’s used at either midfield or forward, where the team can utilize his speed and aggressiveness to generate offense.

With all four going to different schools, you’d expect some rivalry between the players, but we are told they are good buddies on and off the field, trusting each other in practices and games.

The MRL provides the highest standard of competitive play for youth teams in the Midwest region in five age groups from U14 to U18.

Javanon ’94 has played six of its scheduled seven games – winning four against Michigan Jaguars (3-2), Michigan Vardar (3-0), Galaxy 93/94 Blue of Illinois (3-0) and Minnesota Thunder (2-1).

Its losses have come against Chicago Fire Juniors Development Academy (1-0) and Lou Fusz Gold of Missouri in Evansville on Sunday (2-1).

However, victory against Blast FC of Ohio in Cincinnati on May 22 would see them clinch the U16 Premier Division Red title.

That would give Javanon an automatic berth to the Midwest (Region II) Championships from June 26-30, where they would join champions from 14 state associations, including Indiana and Kentucky.

If the boys miss out on the Midwest title, coach Derek Willis’s charges still fancy their chances of winning the Kentucky State Open Cup.

Preliminary rounds of the competition, which features a number of other local players, begins in Lexington on May 28, with the finals being held in Bowling Green on June 5 and 6.


Above: Jordan Vejar, Nick Blackwell, Daniel Wilburn and Matt Kelecy are blazing a trail with their Javanon ’94 team mates in the Midwest Regional League.