Defenders of the Banc - The LAFC Podcast

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In our first episode since the departure of Chicho Arango to Pachuca, the boys have a ton to talk about. The preseason swings into Indio (with no drums or flags allowed!), as LAFC takes on the Wayne Rooney-led, Wooden Spoon-winning D.C. United. Chicho is gone, but we welcome back a familiar face, add another Defender of the Banc (it will ALWAYS be The Banc), and bring on another new(ish) keeper. 

 LAFC announces a new COO, LAFC 2 announces (sort of) a preseason friendly, Kevin Baxter absolutely torches Carson, the Black and Gold are worth a BILLION, Gareth Bale plays Pebble, and the 1st annual Flex Community Cup is a rousing success! It’s been two weeks, but the Defenders are in mid-season form! Enjoy 229!

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It's Episode 228, and there is PLENTY to talk about! The boys are back in Burbank, and we are beyond excited for the 2023 Preseason to get underway!

In this episode, JT and Larry are back, Gareth Bale and Sebas Mendez are gone, and the rumors for Chicho and Mahala are in full effect. Houston has a problem on their backline, LAFC needs a midfielder (or three), and ADAMA DIOMANDE is back in MLS (and with Bob!). 

Also on this episode, Nathan Ordaz turns 19, Max Bretos gets a bite at the Apple, and LAFC pays out several investors, including Filly's favorite, Tony Robbins. 

Defenders, we hope to see you all out in Coachella, especially for the Toronto match and the return of Dio! Until then, we'll get our stuff together for Episode 229!

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Defenders! The boys are indeed back in town! LAFC has returned to the Performance Center, and Filly and Scarf are BACK in World Famous Filimonster Studios! 

On this episode, we chat about all the transactions in the 2023 off-season so far. Latif is gone, and Scarf is crushed. Filly may have less representation from the five boroughs at the Banc if the Will Kuntz rumors are true. Ryan Hollingshead and the most Black and Gold mustache of all time are back! Aaron Long has entered the building! And unlike last year, LAFC actually selects a few guys in the MLS SuperDraft. It's a busy offseason, and we are well underway! 

We remember Pelé, we celebrate Messi, and we look at all things LAFC in Qatar. We also take a look at the schedule, including St. Louis entering the fray, away days at Nashville, Charlotte, and Austin, and a game against New England that, all of a sudden, means much, much more in March. 

We are so happy to be back, and we can't wait for the season to kick off in just 49 days! So much more to come in the next few weeks, so stay tuned, Defenders!

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On a very special and very different episode of Defenders of the Banc, we partner with LAFC and the good people at Santa Monica Brew Works for an incredibly entertaining watch party for the USMNT's maiden voyage in the 2022 World Cup, their match against Gareth Bale and Wales. 

Listen along with the Defenders as we watch the 1-1 draw between the United States and Wales. We bring on a TON of guests, including Rich Orosco, Jimmy and Cassie Lopez, Tony from Heart of LAFC, Len Lanzi, Chris Lafferty, George Salameh, two incredibly well-spoken middle schoolers, Luca and Sebastian, and two guys who played soccer with Haji Wright at Culver City Middle School! It's an absolute blast!

Again, a HUGE thank you to LAFC for asking us to be a part of this special day, to Santa Monica Brew Works for being a wonderful host, and to our sponsor, FLEX, for being there every step of the way!

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LAFC has won MLS Cup! LAFC has won MLS Cup!!! After a match now considered the best final in MLS history, and the most intense emotional roller coaster in a 5-year history of intense emotional rollercoasters, LAFC has won MLS Cup!

The matchup was #1 in the West, LAFC, against #1 in the East, the Philadelphia Union, for the first time in an MLS Final since 2003, and it lived up to every bit of the hype and billing. The two best teams produced an all-time great match, filled with improbable moments, incredible performances, and a storybook ending that Hollywood couldn't begin to script. Say it with us one more time: LAFC has won MLS Cup!

LAFC drew first blood, as Kellyn Acosta bent a free kick off of midfielder Jack McGlynn's head and past Andre Blake for an early 1-0 lead. Philadelphia equalized just before the hour mark off a great feed from Jose Martinez to Daniel Gazdag, and the drama had just begun. LAFC looked to have won it off a bit of set magic in the 83rd minute. Carlos Vela found Jesus David Murillo with a beautiful corner kick, and LAFC looked to be on their way to glory! But just 2 minutes later, Jack Elliott found a header of his own off a set piece to level the match at 2 and send us into Extra Time. 
 
Seven minutes into the first 15-minute period, Carlos Vela came off for Gareth Bale. Yes, Bale, the Welsh superstar who had played just 176 Black and Gold minutes since September, would be asked to replace the Captain. The first 15 minutes came and went without much fanfare, but, as Samuel L. Jackson said in Jurassic Park, "Hold on to your butts."

After a horrific injury to Maxime Crepeau on a play that likely saved a sure Union goal and resulted in a straight red for Crepeau, the former Union product John McCarthy entered the match in the 117th minute of the MLS Cup Final. Because of the injury, we would see 9 full minutes of stoppage time. Four minutes in, McCarthy would make one fantastic save on Julian Carranza, but the ensuing rebound would be put home by Elliott for his second goal of the match, and one that surely looked to be a Cup winner.

LAFC, Chiqui Palacios, and Gareth Bale had other ideas, however. After a 1-2 between Ilie and Chiqui, Palacios raced to the goal line, flicked a beautiful cross into the box towards a streaking Bale, who got perfect position on the 6'6" Elliott and headed it home for a 127th-minute equalizer!!! LAFC had found a way to get it to PK's! 

On paper, it looked to be David vs. Goliath, as McCarthy, the MLS journeyman, would take on the reigning MLS Keeper of the Year in Andre Blake. But the match is never played on paper; this is Latitude 36 Bermudagrass, and this is the Cathedral of the Black and Gold, Banc of California Stadium. After a miss by Glesnes, McCarthy stoned both Jose Martinez AND Kai Wagner, and with Ilie Sanchez's successful attempt, LAFC would win the shootout, 3-0, and take home our first MLS Cup. One more time, with feeling: LAFC has won MLS Cup!

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It still doesn't seem real, and every time we say it, we have to pinch ourselves, but in just a few short days, LAFC will play for the MLS Cup! Here on Episode 224, Filly and Scarf break down everything related to our tilt against the Union at the Banc!

The Defenders do a deep dive on Philly, highlighting their stars, key contributors, and role players, their preferred formation, a look at their head coach, their club history, and how much our 2-2 draw against them on May 7 of this year really matters. What does LAFC need to do, and prevent the Union from doing, in order to hoist MLS Cup? You'll have to listen to find out!

Also on this episode, does Carlos Vela deserve a Best XI nod? Will we see Gareth Bale in the final? When will we see Olly fly again? And where the heck are we going to tailgate and park?! Take a listen to 224 to find out the answers to all these questions and much more on our 2022 MLS Cup Preview Show!

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After 5 years, filled with near misses, heartbreaks, and some major disappointments, LAFC will finally get their first crack at MLS Cup! It's Episode 223, and we have to pinch ourselves on this one. LAFC is on to the FINAL! 

In a complete and utter decimation at the Banc, LAFC took Austin behind the woodshed for a 3-0 (or was it 4?) beating en route to the Western Conference crown! Goals by Chicho, Mahala, and a lovely gift from Austin's Maxi Urruti provided the offense while a complete team effort on defense secured our first clean sheet in postseason history. LAFC secures their third piece of hardware and the first that can sit permanently in the trophy case, the Western Conference Championship. The boys in Black and Gold now await the Philadelphia Union, in many ways our equal in the East. 

Also on 223, Filly 3:16 makes an appearance, apparently, Moussa Djitte is a house, The 3252 kill it yet again with their incredible tifo skills, and who knew Jamie Camil can crush the national anthem? It's a week of nerves, little sleep, and, hopefully, in the end, an incredible celebration as we await a home-cooked MLS Cup Final, but tonight... we celebrate! 

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It's Episode 222, and it's our Western Conference Final preview episode. LAFC readies itself to take on Austin FC, and the road to MLS Cup continues to run through the Banc. Learn all about the Verde and Black as they get set to take on the Black and Gold!

On this episode, we look at Austin's season: its ups, downs, key players, preferred formation, run of form... you name it, we dissect it here on 222. From Sebastian to Stuver and everyone in-between, this episode is all you need to get ready for the showdown on Sunday!

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LAFC has knocked Carson out of the playoffs (again) behind a spectacular performance by #99 (again), and you can hear all about it here on Episode 221! Though we still have two more wins to go, tonight we celebrate LAFC's 3-2 triumph over the Galaxy!

Somehow, after 17 matches in the Clasico Angelino, this rivalry still gives us magic every. single. time! LAFC went up early, something we thought we must do in order to win, behind a beautiful ball from Carlos Vela and an even better box out by Denis Bouanga to create enough space to finish. Right before the half, Samuel Grandsir draws the visitors back level with a strike from relative distance off a bad clearance. Both sides escape to the locker rooms level at 1. And the fireworks had just begun!

With Captain Carlos coming off after about 75 minutes for Mahala, nervous time had clearly started. But this season's Ghanian game changer made a beautiful run into the box as Ryan Hollingshead's cross came through. Upon getting a small touch on it, the ball found Denis on the back post, and just like that, it's a brace for Bouanga! All LAFC had to do was hold on. Oops.

Super sub Dejan Joveljic's rocket in the 84' drew us back level, but the man who has been our most consistent scorer for the last two seasons, Chicho Arango, would pull a rabbit out of a hat in stoppage! After a perfect Kellyn corner, the ball pinballed to Chicho's feet, and he simply doesn't miss from there! The Banc erupts, LAFC wins, 3-2, and we are back in the Western Conference Final!

Also on this episode, Filly gets the hiccups while his cats run amok, Scarf looks after a player's child (?), and we send some lovely parting shots Raheem Edwards' way. Until 222, enjoy 221!

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Episode 220 is a rare preview pod from the Defenders. The stage is set: LAFC. Carson. Winner plays for the West. And we wouldn't want it any other way!

On this pod, we talk all things... Carson. Yup, you read that right. We deliberate and dissect almost every aspect of the team from just 13 miles down the road in preparation for our playoff tilt at the Banc, from players to watch, depth at each line, and everything in-between.  

We obviously talk a ton of LAFC, too, including who our "X" factor might be, how the "new guys" are fitting in, and what we need to do in order to come away with the W. Yes, it's nervous time around these parts, but we wouldn't want our path to the Cup to include anyone else at this stage of the journey. Bring on Carson!

Also on this episode, we talk salaries, La Masia, and, for a very short amount of time, Brian Rodriguez. Scarf just can't quit him... 

We hope you enjoy this special episode, we'd love to know what you think of the matchup, and, most importantly, we hope to celebrate with you all on Episode 221! 

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