Do you want to know what’s really funny about today’s Carling Cup action?
Last July, Coca-Cola Championship side Burnley FC came to North Carolina to take on the Cary Railhawks U-23 team — not the Carolina Railhawks, mind you, but the Railhawks’ Premier Development League side, which consists of mostly local college players. And guess what? The U-23s beat Burnley, 2-1.
Today, Burnley went to Stamford Bridge and faced a Chelsea side that got an early goal from Didier Drogba. But guess what? Burnley managed to secure a 1-1 draw after 120 minutes, and Chelsea ended up losing on… wait for it… penalty kicks.
Seriously, how do the Blues only manage one goal in 120 minutes against a side that couldn’t get past a bunch of college kids in North Carolina? The Railhawks U-23s didn’t even make the PDL playoffs! If that had happened in a league tie, Big Phil would be on the hot seat faster than an English tabloid editor can say, “Who cares what Khaldoon Al Mubarak told Mark Hughes? That bollocks doesn’t sell papers!”
There was talk last summer that the Clarets and the Railhawks would forge some sort of partnership, though it was unclear what that partnership would entail, or whether it was even possible after Chelsea and CASL made their own pact. The Railhawks’ press conference tomorrow suddenly seems like a really good time for the club to announce a partnership with Burnley, doesn’t it?
And if they can’t get Burnley, hey, there’s always Real Unión, right?
4 responses so far ↓
1 another joe // Nov 12, 2008 at 11:01 pm
Dave, were both of those games played with full strength sides?
2 Dave // Nov 13, 2008 at 1:21 am
It would appear so. Ten of the starters and all three of the subs from the Carling Cup match against Chelsea played against the Railhawks U-23s.
Granted, we’re comparing a preseason match with a mid-season match, and we know how that is just by seeing how Mexican clubs performed in the CONCACAF Champions League compared to SuperLiga. Plus, Burnley’s been in pretty decent form lately — 10 points from their last 15 — and they’re currently 5th in the fizzy drink mixer.
Still, to go to Stamford Bridge and get a W? Cup ties aren’t getting any less crazy these days.
3 Burnley, who beat Chelsea yesterday, lost in July to the under-23 squad of the Carolina Railhawks. - The Run of Play // Nov 13, 2008 at 8:37 am
[...] Today in the transitive property: Burnley, who beat Chelsea yesterday, lost in July to the Carolina … In « Previous Post Leave a comment… [...]
4 Brian // Nov 13, 2008 at 8:41 am
And since we know that Chelsea coach Ray Wilkins was actually boasting in the press yesterday about how Chelsea would never devalue the Carling Cup by fielding a reserve team, we can assume that they were at full-strength, too. Which means the remaining only question is about the Railhawks’ U-23s.