Observations: EPL Round 29, FA Cup, Friendlies
by Paul O'Donnell
On the weekend the FA Cup quarterfinals took center stage with Ocean City affiliate Reading FC, the only non-EPL club remaining in the competition, faced Aston Villa and a London Derby had Fulham v Tottenham as feature matches of the quarter final round. Embattled Portsmouth confronted Birmingham City while a now shaky Chelsea looked to regain their posture versus Stoke City even as they watched Man United regain the top spot in the EPL table. 
O'Donnell's Observations: EPL Round 28 recap
by Paul O'Donnell
Ten to go when this week's matches are in the books and United gets a chance to close the gap on the leaders when they face West Ham on Tuesday at Old Trafford. With the Carling Cup final on the weekend United's match of the round gets played early and Aston Villa's match with Hull is postponed.
O'Donnell's Observations: EPL Round 27
by Paul O'Donnell
The Champions League last 16 knockout round action kicked off on Tuesday with Man United in Italy to face AC Milan and Real Madrid faced off with Lyon in France. The United contest with AC Milan featured the Red Devils former star winger David Beckham against his old mates and boss.
Observations: EPL Round 26, FA Cup Round 5
by Paul O'Donnell
With the FA Cup Round 5 action on the weekend the EPL matches fell in the mid-week. Chief among the contests had sagging Arsenal hosting Liverpool and Aston Villa looking for a big win at home over Man United. Leaders Chelsea went to Goodison Park where Everton would like nothing more than an ambush of the table toppers after producing a less than satisfactory performance against their neighbors (Liverpool) the last time out. Despite playing with the man advantage for over an hour the Toffees were tentative and failed to produce the pressure needed to make the extra man count in the big derby. Speaking of tentative, Man City were ambushed by Hull and the first goal in the EPL for Jozy Altidore who was impressive for the Tigers. Tevez and friends will need to do much better to stay in the run for 4th.
Observations: Landon Donovan's first Mercyside derby, Jozy Altidore scores for Hull (Video)
by Paul O'Donnell
The real feature of the week: the big derby games on the weekend included Landon Donovan’s first Merseyside Derby at Anfield and a pivotal Gunners-Blues encounter at Stamford Bridge. Not to mention Jozy Altidore scoring his first English Premier League goal against Manchester City.(VIDEO)
O'Donnell's Observations: EPL Round 24 and more
by Paul O'Donnell
Internet service provider issues knocked me out of the box recently. The problems are on the mend but I wasn't able to keep in step with the mid-week games in particular so a comment or two is in order.
In the big match of the week the Carling Cup Semifinal Manchester Derby was a thrilling match and unfortunately for City they lost their advantage and a trip to Wembley losing 3-1 (4-3agg) on a Wayne Rooney goal in stoppage time. Go figure. A United deserved win and will face Villa next month for the trophy.
O'Donnell's Observations: FA Cup, EPL Round 22
by Paul O'Donnell
Fixture congestion now becomes the shrill cry and the weather man says more postponements to jam the schedule could be in the forecast. Transfers during the winter window will also feature some surprises, both those made and those put off.
Ocean City FC announces "Name That Team" contest
Best fan suggestion before February 7 deadline wins prize
Ocean City’s PDL team is looking to their great fans for a new identity. After 13 seasons, the club dropped the name "Barons" after severing ties with the South Jersey Barons Youth Academy. The club is now known simply as "Ocean City FC." With 2010 marking the beginning of a new era, the club is asking fans to submit their suggestions for a new team name for the Ocean City-based PDL team and all of their Super Y-League teams.
Observations: Big Freeze hits England hard
by Paul O'Donnell
The cold and snow in the northwest caused the Carling Cup semi's 1st leg scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday to be postponed but the snow didn't stop the match at Stoke. Fulham boss Roy Hodgson thought it should have. In the end he lost more than just the points in the wind and snow.
O'Donnell's Observations: FA Cup Third Round recap
by Paul O'Donnell
As usual there are some very interesting games on hand as EPL clubs enter the world’s largest open cup competition. What was once a spirited rivalry, Leeds United versus Manchester United, the two haven’t faced one another for five years. Leeds, leading the League One table headed for promotion, will savor their appearance at Old Trafford as an indication of their progress and more important, their prospects.
O'Donnell's Observations: EPL Round 20 recap
by Paul O'Donnell
The first round of the 2nd half of the season, Round 20, is spread across three calendar days as six matches are played on Monday and two each on Tuesday and Wednesday. On Monday table toppers Chelsea, in the midst of a blue funk, welcome Fulham to Stamford Bridge with their margin at the top reduced again to just two points over Man United who do not play their match of the round until Wednesday.
O'Donnell's Observations: Boxing Day recap
by Paul O'Donnell
Half way through the season, Boxing Day truly is a pivotal point of most EPL campaigns. Man United often mounts a run at this stage of the season while others have a history of saging badly. The flurry of games centered around the holiday season is a tradition regardless of the loud protests from managers such as Wenger. You’d think he’d know better after all his years at Arsenal but he puts out the same diatribe every year just ahead of the crunch. It has to be said there is a good deal of logic and common sense in his message but he surely must know that it falls on deaf ears at the FA and wins him few fans.
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