Analyzing the sked…

In 2008, the San Jose Earthquakes pinned their playoff hopes on a spate of home games late in the season. If the 2009 schedule is anything to go by, an early run of home dates places a premium on getting off to a good start.

Four of the Quakes’ first five games are in the Bay Area, with their sixth match an away date at Seattle. Included in the season’s opening weeks are a March 28 encounter with Houston, as well as an April 18 match against the Los Angeles Galaxy at the McAfee Coliseum, with or without David Beckham. Manager Frank Yallop is on record with regards to the importance of being tougher at home, and a poor start similar to their ’08 campaign could doom their playoff chances before the season has barely begun.

San Jose faces two particularly difficult stretches during the campaign. A three game road trip in May that will take them to New York, Houston, and Columbus is daunting in terms of distance as well as the quality of the opponents. But perhaps even tougher is the three-game road stretch that concludes the season. The Quakes will end the season at Toronto and then two trips to the Home Depot Center against Chivas USA and the Galaxy. Yallop will be praying that his team’s playoff fate doesn’t rest on getting results from those games, although if the Quakes are in the hunt, chances are it will go down to the wire.

The biggest opportunity to get rich at home, aside from the opening month, is a four-game home spell in late July and early August when the Quakes host D.C. United, Seattle, Columbus, and Kansas City.