EL SEGUNDO HERALD June 18, 2015 Page 5 Bob Flynn: A Legend in His Own Time USA Women Take Center Stage By Adam Serrao It’s hard to believe that it has already been four years since the United States Women’s soccer team lost in the 2011 World Cup final to Japan on penalty kicks. That is, however, precisely where the U.S. Women’s soccer team is expected to be: in the final. Though it has been a long and hard 16 years now since we all saw Brandi Chastain rip off her jersey in pure joy and excitement when the Women’s team of 1999 beat China to win the World Cup Final at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, there is still no grading curve existent. Either the team advances to the final and wins it all, or their run in this year’s World Cup is labeled as an unsuccessful one. Up to this point, it has been clear that the women of the U.S. team have needed just a bit of time to adapt to the grand stage of the World Cup. With the potential of the team and the talent that is on it, however, this World Cup team may just be one of the best in U.S. Women’s history. There is no question that our own U.S. Women’s World Cup soccer team ranks up there among the best in the entire world. That, however, does not explain the 16-year World Cup drought that the team and all of its fans have been experiencing. Naturally, the U.S. isn’t going to win the Cup every year that they compete, but there is reason to believe that this year’s team will not leave the tournament empty handed. “We’re ready to move forward and try to take the Cup and bring it back to the U.S.,” Defender Meghan Klingenberg said. “We put in way too much time and effort to let something like that slip.” The time and effort that Klingenberg speaks of has now been put in under three different coaches. Tom Sermanni took over for Pia Sundhage after she won a gold medal as coach of the Women’s team in the 2012 Olympics and later left to coach her native team of Sweden. Sermanni didn’t seem to be doing so well at the helm, so Jill Ellis took over and now looks to lead this team to glory in this year’s Cup. If this team is going to get its taste of glory, it will have to learn from its prior experiences and leave the demons of the past behind. Since tasting victory in 1999, the U.S. women’s club has finished in third place twice in 2003 and 2007 and has finished as the runners-up in their 2011 penalty-kick matchup with Japan. “I know the expectations,” said coach Ellis. “It’s been a long time. That’s the focus, that’s the goal, and that is what we plan to do.” The team’s most popular and perhaps best player, Abby Wambach, put it best when speaking of the team’s new goal. “All of us have to be willing to be forever disappointed in not winning,” she said. “That’s what it takes. You have to be willing to give in to it. You have to completely allow yourself to be crushed by something; it’s like love. If we give in to it, then I think we have a chance to do this.” The teams love for the sport and for each other certainly goes unquestioned. The only issue left at hand is their ability, or lack thereof, to both leave their past behind and improve on it for future success. If the way this year has gone so far for the Americans is any indication of how they will do in the World Cup, then things are looking up. In ten matches so far this season, the U.S. has only been defeated one time at the hands of France in the 2015 opener. The U.S. women though, have a rough schedule ahead of them in the Cup. With Australia, Nigeria, and Sweden all in their group, the U.S. find themselves part of the only group in the tournament with three teams in the top ten of FIFA’s world rankings. Furthermore, if Ellis’ squad will look to get past the knockout rounds, they will most likely have to defeat other dominant teams such as Germany, host nation and rival Canada, and the aforementioned France. It certainly doesn’t figure to be easy, but the real team that should be feared in this year’s World Cup is our very own United States team. Though they begin the Cup in the socalled “Group of Death,” this Women’s team will literally feature different generations of players that will not only serve to scare, but also defeat any other team in the tournament. Players like Wambach, Christie Rampone, Megan Rampino, Alex Morgan and Morgan Brian are only a few names of many that demonstrate just how diverse this team is. 15 of the 23 women on the team have World Cup experience. 14 of those women were on the runner-up team that came oh-so-close to running away with the Cup in 2011. The experience is there and the talent on the team has never been questioned. Now, the execution is the only thing that must be conquered. Other team’s like Germany, Brazil, Canada and Japan are all chomping at the bit to get a piece of the U.S.A. Will players like Abby Wambach come through again, this time in what will likely be her last World Cup competition ever? There is only one way to find out. Grab your red, white and blue flags, clothing, and apparel and get out there to support the American Women’s World Cup soccer team. This could be the year that they finally bring the trophy home to the U.S. once again. • By Gregg McMullin Photos courtesy of Gregg McMullin Those who know the history of Bob Flynn know that he was an incredible athlete growing up in El Segundo. But more than that he was a real friend, a passionate person and a great human being. He loved to tell stories Bob Flynn (center) prepares to sign his professional baseball contract as Kansas City Athletics scouts Al Zarilla (left) and Art Lilly look on. of his playing days, his friendships with so many former Major Leaguers but most of all he loved being around others. Oh, he could have bragged about how good he was but that was never the focus. He could have told you of wrestling a 400 pound bear and being one of just two people to take it down; the other was former NFL great John Matuszak. He could have told you of hauling pier pilings from the defunct Pacific Ocean Park pier to help build a landmark bar here in town. If you visit the Fish Company on Grand Avenue you’ll see just how massive these pilings are. There are stories of how far Flynn could hit a baseball at Rec Park. Some say they saw him hit a ball onto Pine Street. Others swear they witnessed baseballs breaking windows to the building in centerfield. Flynn just smiled when he was asked about how far he hit a baseball. When you run down the list of El Segundo’s greatest athletes Bob Flynn certainly is near the top of that list. As good as Pete Beathard (NFL), Keith Erickson (NBA) and Kemer Brett (Major League Baseball) were in the 1960s, Flynn may have been the best. George Brett may be in the Hall of Fame but there are those who say Flynn would have been waiting for him at the front door had an injury not derailed his career. Kirk Brown played against Flynn in Little League and they had remained friends through out the years. “When Bob was in town he made it a point to stop in and say hi; he was like that,” said Brown. Brown had the opportunity, or as he says the misfortune, to face the hard throwing Flynn in Little League. “I was a nine year old and Bob was a 12 year old. He threw so hard nobody could hit him and really nobody wanted to face him because he threw that hard. I think we were afraid to get hit even though he had good control.” If there was any question about how strong Bob Flynn was, well, here’s the proof. ESHS has never had the javelin throw in track & field. See Bob Flynn, page 14
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