The 2010 NPSL Final Four in Madison, AL is at the end of the month, and the four clubs that will feature in the championship tournament are becoming clearer. Each region has its own system to select the region’s champion and qualifier for the Final Four; some use the traditional table, and some have a playoff system.
Here is a brief look at how each region is shaping up.
Midwest Region (10 game season, winner qualifies for NPSL Final Four)
Madison 56ers (18 pts, 8 GP)
Chicago Fire NPSL (18 pts, 9 GP)
St. Paul Twin Stars (14 pts, 8 GP)
This past weekend, the Madison 56ers were minutes away from booking their flights to Alabama for the NPSL Final Four before the Chicago Fire NPSL scored two to confuse the issue. It now comes down to this weekend’s matches with Chicago hoping to win on Saturday and hoping the 56ers drop points against both the Minnesota Kings and St. Paul Twin Stars. Meanwhile, St. Paul must beat the Milwaukee Bavarians on the road and hope the teams above them in the standings both lose on Saturday to set up a winner-take-all match in Madison against the 56ers on Sunday.
Northeast Region
Atlantic Conference (12 game season, winner qualifies for Northeast Region championship game)
NY Red Bulls (31pts, 12 GP)
Brooklyn Italians (28pts, 11 GP)
Brooklyn are all but eliminated unless they can pull off a massive victory on July 15th against NY Athletic Club.
Keystone Conference (12 game season, winner qualifies for the Northeast Region championship match)
FC Sonic – Advance to Northeast Region Playoffs vs Atlantic Conference winner
In their last match of the regular season, FC Sonic defeated 2009 NPSL Finalist Erie Admirals 1:0 to qualify by 1 point for the Northeast Region finals where they will take on the Atlantic Conference representative. Sonic will also host the Northeast Region playoff on July 17.
Northwest Region (10 game season, top four qualify for NW Region playoffs)
Sacramento Gold – Advanced to the Northwest Region Final
San Diego Boca – Advanced to the Northwest Region Final
The top four teams in the Northwest Region table advanced to the Regional playoff rounds. In the Region semifinals, the first seed Sacramento Gold avenged an early season loss to the Bay Area Ambassadors in a wide-open 6:3 match to advance to the final where they will meet the surging San Diego Boca who shut out the Real San Jose 4:0 on Sunday in Sacramento.
Southeast Region (8 game season, winner qualifies for the NPSL Final Four)
Chattanooga FC – Advanced to the NPSL Final Four
With a 3:2 win over Pumas of Birmingham this past Saturday, Chattanooga advanced to the NPSL Final Four as the Southeast Region Champion with a game to spare. They will likely bring a strong contingent of Chattahooligans on the one and a half hour drive to Madison, AL as the de facto home team for the championship weekend. This Saturday, the Blues will attempt to break the 5,000 fan attendance mark in their home finale at Finley Stadium on Saturday against Rocket City United. Then, they’ll travel to DC for a tune up for the Final Four by taking on MLS club DC United’s U-20 side at RFK Stadium prior to the first team’s match against English club Portsmouth.
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Does Brooklyn need to make up 9 or 10 goals in the goal difference?