Galaxy/United running blog

Hollywood United, that is.

This match is all for charity, folks, with the proceeds going to the ongoing efforts to help those displaced by the California wildfires.

HU starters: Anthony LaPaglia, Oliver Biaggi, Richard Gough, Frank Leboef, Alexi Lalas, Chris Henderson, Maricio Cienfuegos, Jorge Campos, Joe-Max Moore, Jason Boyce
Galaxy starters: Lance Friesz, Cobi Jones, Chris Albright, Troy Roberts, Kyle Veris, Ante Jazic, Kelly Gray, David Beckham, Israel Sesay, Carlos Pavon, Edson Buddle
3- nothing much so far - the Galaxy are actually in their own half a bit. Oh, wait, Pavon just passed to Buddle for a header attempt. Way wide. It was from way outside.
5- Cobi with a shot in the box. It deflects off a defender.
7- Beckham with a nice pass to Sesay- who wastes it with a soft pass to Buddle that is too weak and gets picked off. Galaxy flurry in United's box, but the crosses miss everybody. United clears.
9- LeBeouf tackles ball away from Cobi. HU counter get free kick. Gray clears. Sesay and Beckham lead counter.
10- GOAL! Sesay passes back to Beckham, who smacks a low shot towards goal from 25 yards. LaPaglia dives, but the ball beats him into the corner. Galaxy 1-0
13- CK Galaxy, gets cleared.
14- GOAL! Cobi still has the wheels to beat defenders to a free ball. He sends a through pass to Buddle, who breaks free of the defenders and scores calmly past LaPaglia coming out.
15- Bianchi with a hard shot towards goal. Friesz does well to catch it.
16- The Riot Squad are chanting "One more year" every tiem Cobi touches the ball.
18- Beckham serves a cgeat cross into the area, but his general manager calmly clears it out.
20- Cobi dribbles in, Beckham makes the overlapping run, but his cross overshoots Pavon.
22- GOAL! Long Beckham pass up to Pavon, who heads the ball down to Buddle, who beats Alexi and another defender and shoots from just inside the box.
23- Wynalda comes in for Campos.
24- Gray with a tackle at the top of the arc on Bianchi. FK goes over the bar.
26- Steve McClaren is here at this game, according to others in the press box. I can't see him from where I'm at.
27- GOAL! LeBeouf scores! Nice hard shot from way outside, but it got the benefit of two deflections that send Friesz scrambling and missing on his dive as the ball made it to the side netting.
29- Joe-Max takes a corner for HU. LeBeouf and Roberts go up for it, with Roberts being phycially agressive. LeBeouf wants a call, doesn't get it. Welcome to MLS soccer.
32- GOAL! Beckham and Buddle work the give and go on the counter. Buddle lays the ball back for Beckham, who is still outside the box when he hits it past LaPaglia.
33- Sesay is marking LeBeouf on a play - LeBeouf won the World Cup with France (1998 when Sesay was eight.
35- PENALTY! Wynalda goes down in the box. It was a very soft foul by Albright. I'm surprised it was called at all. Beckham argues with the ref. That's hilarious. LeBeouf puts away the PK to the left of goal.
37- SAVE! LaPaglia saves a shot from Cobi. Not too shabby.
39- GOAL! Buddle skins both Henderson and Lalas with a couple of moves, jukes a diving LaPaglia and puts the ball into the net. Hat trick.
GOAL! Jazic long pass on a counter to Cobi, who touches the ball down just inside the box and calmly chips LaPaglia. Nice touch.
42- Lalas header the other way gets saved by Friesz.
44- Galaxy corner. Becks takes.
45- GOAL! Joe-Max catches Friesz leaning the wrong way and smacks a 30-yarder into the goal.

Halftime - Galaxy 6-Hollywood United 3
Beckham and Gough walk off the field together, chatting. The press box is buzzing about how serious Beckham is for this match.
46- Harmse from way outside. LaPaglia dives for the save. Beckham, Veris and Roberts are the only Galaxy holdovers from the first half.
48- Landon Donovan is on, Josh Tudela is on, Kevin Harmse, Pete Vagenas, Chris Klein, Mike Randolph, Mike Caso.
51- HU lookig more organized this half. Donovan with a leading pass for Klein, but Klein puts his cross over the end line.
52- Beckham shot from way outside saved by LaPaglia. Corner taken by Becks
GOAL! Pete volleys straight into goal from the arc. WOW. GOAL of the night. That was amazing. The press box is arguing. Some say he volleyed the corner straight in. I think it took a deflection in the box, but we don't have the benefit of replay. It never touched the ground, that's for sure.
56- GOAL! Beckham with a nice lateral pass to Caso, who redirects the ball into the goal.
59- GOAL! Beckham pass to Klein, who smacks the ball past LaPaglia on the near post.
61- Beckham is wearing the armband, since Cobi left at halftime.
63- Beckham is playing on the right, by the way.
65- Alan Hopkins is on the field for HU.
68- Beckham is going the full 90 I guess to prove his fitness to McClaren. Of course, the pace of the game has slowed down.
69- GOAL! Peter Gail scores for United. He took the shot just at the edge of the penalty arc after a deflected cross popped out to him.
70- Wynalda comes off for Yari Alhutt. Lalas comes off for Viv Campbell. LaPaglia comes off for Brian Burde.
72- Donovan pass to Harmse's feet in front of goal, but Burde just gets to it.
74- Donovan overshoots Beckham on a breakaway pass. Beckham doesn't look happy about it. He'd have been in alone on goal.
75- GOAL! Klein off the crossbar, but Caso is there to clean up and put the ball in the net.
76- GOAL! Klein gets behind the defense - Donovan finds him with a nice lead pass and Klein picks his spot.
78- Beckham off the crossbar! This leads to a flurry in front of goal, and the Galaxy get a free kick near the box. Beckham finally cracks a smile as Vagenas pretends to want to take it, pleading for it. Beckham takes, but doesn't quite get it around the HU wall.
81- Donovan in the box - but Burde saves - well, Donovan kind of kicked it into him.
82- GOAL! Harmse works a nice give and go with Donovan, breaking into the box to score.
83- Beckham leaving the match. Sesay come in for him.
Sorry guys, work calls, can't blog the rest of the game.