Chicago Fire » About Your Blogger

New Blogger

irish_steve — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 19:44:41 +0000

Hello fellow Fire fans!
My name is Steve and ill be taking the reins as the new Fire blogger for The Offside. Let me tell you a little bit about myself. I’m a college student living in Chicago. I am originally from Ireland and moved to US 11 years ago. I’ve been going to Fire games since year 1 an have attended most home games since 2002. Since 2002 I have followed the Fire on over 20 away trips to Dallas, Columbus, Kansas City, Toronto, New York, DC, Denver and San Jose just to name a few! I stand in the Section 8 and am a member of the Whiskey Brothers supporters group. I wrote for the Aston Villa blog on this site for about 6 months before taking on this role. I look forward to writing this blog and hearing from all the Fire fans out there. Look out tomorrow for a rundown of all the Fire news from this week and my first match preview for the massive game against Dallas on Sunday!

NFR: In which I read my inadequacies into the Official Record, effectively forever

Sean — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 02:45:22 +0000

(Sorry to butt in here. This is Sean’s internal editor. I don’t usually do this, but I just wanted you the HILARIOUS SHIT Sean has been typing and erasing for the last hour. I’ll talk in these handy parenthetical devices.)

The last month has been barren, dessicated, a landscape of twisted metaphor ending in eventual collapse from overwritingfatigue. (Joyce scholars, descend! DESCEND!)

I’m troubled by my growing empathy with the Fire. While our lads were staggering through a lossless lack of spark (where you going with this, bub?)

Perhaps my powers have now become complete. Perhaps, during my hours of Football Manager and thinking about the Fire’s roster, I had somehow transcended mere humanity, and in so doing had established control over the fortunes of that becalmed organization. It was only my melancholy which had held back the Fire! Only my moping! Lesson learned, universe! God as my witness, I shall NEVER … MOPE … AGAIN!! (Wow. Just … wow.)

(Point is, I guess, that both Our Lad and Our Lads have had less-than-stellar first halves of the summer. And it’s left for me to say that, me, the internal editor, the guy who never gets to say anything. Not that I’m really saying this. I think. Or … wait … I am.

(Ok, I’m not.

(…

(Fine. I am.)

I’m working on it! Damn.

Sean — Sat, 24 May 2008 00:49:20 +0000

Here I was, plonking along, writing my preview for this year’s first meeting between the Forces of Truth and Light (a/k/a the Fire) and FC Rough Beast Slouching Toward Bethlehem (a/k/a the Red Bulls). And, lo, did a great light shine down, and a link did appear, and the words of Tommy-boy Dunsmore did speak forth from the gloom:

Given the Red Bulls usual attendance on Sunday matches [Osorio] should not be hard to spot, especially with the giant 666 [I, Tom Dunsmore, servant of the Lord] has learned he recently had tattooed on his forehead.

Damn. I was breaking out the man-love jokes again, and Backdraft goes and calls Osorio a servant of the Beast.

Time to up my game. More soon.

Portrait of the blogger as a middle-aged soccer geek

Sean — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 23:36:02 +0000

Hey fanaticos! It’s time for that another pre-season tradition: Welcoming the new blogger to the Chicago Fire Offside!

Obviously, I’ve got some serious shoes to fill. Tom Dunsmore has moved on to greener pastures. Johnathon did an admirable job handling the playoff denouement, despite its downbeat ending. And now … me.

My name’s Sean Spence, and I live in southeast Michigan. (That’s right, I’m not a local.) I grew up in northern Indiana in the 70s and 80s rooting for the Bears and Cubs and knowing not a thing about the beautiful game. The hook was set in college, however, and at this point I’m basically soccer-afflicted.

When I’m not watching the game or playing it, chances are I’m playing a game that simulates the game. Yes, I’m one of those soccer geeks that tries all the online manager games. Yes, I play Football Manager. Yes, I’ve edited my copy of Pro Evo Soccer so the names are kosher. I even have another blog where I talk about all that stuff.

My sincerest apologies

Johnathan — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 07:25:32 +0000

I know, I know. I’ve been meaning to be better about this. Life has been getting in the way of writing here, but that’s no excuse.

I’m going to get back into the swing of things. My sincerest apologies.

- Johnathan

tap tap Is this thing on?

Johnathan — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 20:01:50 +0000

Hi, my name is Johnathan, and I’ll be taking over writing duties from Tom for the Chicago Fire blog. Tom did a great job and I hope that I’ll be able to do just as well.

I look forward to using this soapbox as much as possible and I greatly encourage and appreciate any and all feedback. I hope you enjoy reading my mundane observations as much as I enjoy writing them.

Thank you and enjoy.

- Johnathan

What a Time to Quit

Tom — Sat, 20 Oct 2007 14:29:14 +0000

My timing here is highly contrary, a day before the biggest game of the season, but I’m writing to announce I won’t be blogging here any more. Now I’m actually writing my doctoral dissertation and teaching at the same time, I have to limit my time for writing on soccer, and that means giving priority elsewhere, I’m afraid.

It’s been a fun year blogging here on the Fire: thanks to the great Offside community run by Bob, and all you great fellow Offside bloggers and commenters. Whoever takes over this space will find me stopping by often enough.

If you have some strange desire to read my ramblings on soccer outside of this space, I still update my own blog, pitchinvasion.net, regularly. I also write in a somewhat proper fashion for the newspaper Chicago Sports Weekly, covering football in the Chicago area — that includes the Fire, of course.

Let’s hope the Fire see me off with a playoff-clinching result tomorrow.

Blanco and Beckham article

Tom — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 16:37:37 +0000

Please don’t mistake me for a real journalist, but I do actually have an article in print on the Blanco signing in this week’s Chicago Sports Review, an excellent local sports publication. In it, I compare the significance of Blanco’s arrival to that of Beckham’s and cover the different reactions of Hispanic-Americans and Fire fans.

You can view the article on their website here, or download a PDF of the article in print format here.

The article barely scratches the surface of what I have to say about the Blanco signing and the Hispanic community in Chicago, but luckily for you guys, I have unlimited space to work with on this very blog…