Ralston figured out early on how to make his game work in just about any situation in this League. That was apparent in his Rookie of the Year season with Tampa Bay in 1996, and as his game matured he continued to show that he always belonged in the starting lineup.
Unfortunately for too many MLS players, there's just not an appropriate exit strategy. Ralston's career deserves to be honored by more than a wave after paperwork cost him his last start in a secondary competition. It also deserved better than leaving MLS for the second division earlier this season.
Like a lot of other players, the value for a veteran that isn't going to threaten a European move is whatever MLS wants it to be. That normally translates to a pay cut. Ralston tried to work around that by dropping a division and going home to St Louis. It didn't pan out, and Ralston returned to MLS for a single game before calling it a career. As he said, "it’s not as easy as it used to be."
Classic Ralston, a player that was never going to put himself forward with hype and always expected to be out there contributing.
The work rate tag that followed him overlooked what he really had to offer. Game after game and season after season he made teams better. Though he was never the face of the club, with Tampa Bay and New England he was the club. Without Ralston, they're never quite as good, something that would've been obvious in a league with free agency where those other teams would've decided his monetary value.
Ralston had his chances at an MLS Cup during the Revs' runners-up years, but he spent the 2008 and '09 seasons trying to hold the core of the Revolution together. Without him, they're quite simply not the same team. Operated at a discount, New England competed over those years because of high value players like Steve Ralston.
Should the rumor linking him to the open assistant coaching slot in Houston prove to be true, maybe that's how he gets his Cup. As a coach rather than a player, valued as someone who can offer the drive, intensity, and professionalism that makes teams better from the bench and the training ground.
His exit as a player also carries with it the appropriate end of the Tampa Bay Mutiny story. Ralston made 177 appearances wearing the bat logo, playing in front of small crowds in a mammoth stadium, and looking like a guy who would've gladly done that for the rest of his career. He's the last of the players that really factored in Tampa Bay. For all the flash of a Roy Lassiter or Carlos Valderrama, it's appropriate that Ralston is the one who kept playing, kept doing what Thomas Rongen saw when he drafted him 18th out of Florida International for the first MLS season.
Moving on, DC or Harrisburg will be taking the final US Open Cup semifinal slot later tonight at the SoccerPlex in suburban Maryland. Whether or not anybody outside of those two fan bases still realizes there's one more Open Cup quarterfinal remaining to be played is a good question.
The rest of the field was decided a couple of weeks ago, and one would assume the Columbus Crew are waiting on DC and hoping for Harrisburg. If it's DC, either the Crew or United will finally have to go on the road in this competition.
Including their two MLS bracket qualifiers, DC United will have played four games where they decided the venue. Columbus has hosted two USL-2 teams to make it to the semifinals. One wonders if either of their stories change by actually having to play away games.
Europe
Is the World Cup too big? -- from The Guardian's Jonathan Wilson: It is an irony of Fifa's money-making splurge that it tends to keep the big teams apart.
Is Fabio Capello really the new Wally with a Brolly? -- from The Daily Mail's Martin Samuel: That is what is happening to Capello.
Fulham hope to finalise Jol deal after Ajax prolong talks -- from The Independent's Mark Fleming: Jol's motives in holding these talks with Ajax remain unclear.
Fulham locked in talks as angry Martin Jol speaks out -- from The Evening Standard's James Olley: Jol, who still has a house in London, is thought to have a release clause in his contract.
The Football Association attempts to charm England fans by slashing ticket prices -- from The Telegraph's Rob Stewart: "We’re working on a game-by-game basis."
Celtic to hold talks with veteran keeper David James -- from BBC Sport: "We are still a long way off."
Beggars can’t be choosers, but Walter Smith wants three specific items from the summer sales -- from The Herald's Graeme Macpherson: This, then, is a time to be pragmatic.
Americas
Ralston: ‘I wish I could do it forever’ -- from The Boston Globe's Robert Mays: "What amazing moments I’ve had being a part of this."
Union's Le Toux still a dreamer -- from The Philadelphia Inquirer's Bob Ford: Still, there are moments.
Freddie Ljungberg, Sounders FC divorce appears nearly final -- from The Seattle Times' Joshua Mayers: Last weekend the team curiously gave him two days off leading up an international friendly against Scottish club Celtic FC.
No guarantee World Cup success will buoy MLS coverage -- from USA Today's Michael Hiestand: The networks are pitching in.
US soccer could use a new system for college-age players -- from The Washington Post's Zach Berman: Rongen said there are exceptions.
Humble agility -- from The Columbus Dispatch's Tom Reed: "Soccer takes me to a different place."
Cheer and loathing at root of healthy fan rivalry -- from The Province's Marc Weber: "I think largely there really has to be cooperation."
Ticket sales lagging for Inter Milan-Manchester City 'friendly' at M&T Bank Stadium -- from The Baltimore Sun's Don Markus: and Koppelman doesn't expect a crowd of more than 35,000 unless there's a huge walk-up.
Comments, questions, solutions to problems that have yet to present themselves. Please, tell me all about it.
