Photo by Andrew Katsampes/ISIphotos.com
By JOSE M. ROMERO
All that is left to do at re-modeled Jeld-Wen Field is the cleanup ahead of Thursday's home opener for the Portland Timbers against the Chicago Fire before an expected sellout crowd of some 18,600.
The Timbers practiced on their new home turf and inside their transformed home stadium Tuesday, a whirlwind day for team owner Merritt Paulson. Excitement and anticipation for the first MLS game in the Rose City are building, and Paulson, who cited all of the work that went into making MLS happen in Portland, is calling Thursday a day of celebration for the city.
"It's huge. I don't know if there's a superlative that actually captures it for me," Paulson said. "It's going to be overwhelming.
"The home opener is, in many ways, the start of the season."
Only limited single-game tickets remain for some home games, and there is already a waiting list for 2012 season tickets. The stadium, with its new video board and east grandstand, will be ready, but there's no time for a practice run. The first-ever event at newly branded Jeld-Wen Field is Thursday's game.
"It's kind of like a fire drill," Paulson said.
Paulson looks forward to being able to sit down, finally, and watch the action with friends. In his perfect world on Thursday, everything goes well in the stadium and the Timbers win.
"This is more than just three points for me," Paulson said. "It's the culmination, but it's the beginning, because it's about the long-term health of the franchise.
"I certainly feel we can be competitive this year and in future years."
Midfielder Jack Jewsbury is one of the newest Timbers, but he's starting to settle in. The veteran will move his wife and 2-year-old daughter to Oregon in the coming weeks.
"It was time for a change, whether for me or for both (he and Sporting KC)," Jewsbury said. "They (the Timbers) made the transition as easy as it could be."
Jewsbury and teammate Steve Purdy, who knows all about how Portland will support its soccer team after having played for the USL Timbers, can't get away from the buzz around town about the team. It's found at the supermarket or in coffee shops from the Pearl District to suburban Beaverton and beyond.
"People see Timbers gear, they definitely want to come up to you and talk about it," Jewsbury said. "Now it's just up to us to feed off the energy the crowd brings."
There are TV ads and billboards and much more exposure and promotion of the team than there was in USL times. But the product is selling itself.
"I think we're going to have a great home-field advantage," Purdy said. "They (the fans) will bring a lot more energy and a lot more noise."
Purdy said communication has been and will continue to be key at Jeld-Wen Field. Even last season, with a few thousand fewer fans in the stands at the former PGE Park, it was hard to hear teammates talking.
That could affect visiting teams, and even the Timbers, who haven't played in Portland before.
"Even some of us, we don't really know what's going to hit us on Thursdsay," Purdy said. "The Timbers Army (supporters group) will bring all that energy. It's going to be loud the whole game."
The players have learned from their first three games as they try to build chemistry and turn hard work into results.
"We learned we need to be focused," Purdy said. "We're not playing our game as much as we were in preseason. Playing away in MLS, we have to take advantage of any point we can get on the road.
"It's very important to show well and give a good performance (Thursday). There's a lot of hype. ... If we focus on the little details, that's probably the most important thing as a team. Everything else will come. We feel we'll put on a good performance."
Jewsbury said he's excited about the direction the team is headed.
"(Fans') expectations are high and our expectations are high for ourselves," he said. "We're a group of guys that want to fight and battle and get to the playoffs."
