Tuesday, November 6, 2007

Smiles all around

It's really a bit difficult to believe how quickly everything went down between Frank Yallop, the L.A. Galaxy and the San Jose Earthquakes. I mean, just a few days ago Yallop was gainfully employed with the Galaxy, gearing up for a trip Down Under while the 'Quakes were coach-less and trying to fill the void before the Nov. 21 expansion draft.

Now, Yallop is gone as San Jose got their man. San Jose's gain is the Galaxy's loss, but just how much of a loss it really is depends on who you ask. All season long, players and Galaxy suits all said Yallop was one of the best coaches in the league. Coaches don't just become bad overnight so if nothing else the Galaxy lost a talented coach.

Seeing it, though, finally brought it home. Here's a picture of Frank Yallop with San Jose GM John Doyle after Yallop was introduced as coach of the expansion 'Quakes. Yallop in his familiar blue still seems eerie.

I was a guest on Around the League in 90 Minutes today and we talked about Yallop's move north a bit. Host Gary Richards said that Yallop seemed to have had the last laugh as he left the Galaxy pretty much hanging. And while I agree, it's also true that most of the blame for 2007 can be placed on Yallop without the coach having the chance to defend himself.