September was not a good month for D.C. United. I mean, sure, the 3-0 win over Arabe Unido that clinched a spot in the CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinals was fun, as was the second half against Montego Bay United. In MLS play, however, the viewing was dire: A fortunate draw against the lowly Colorado Rapids was followed by a home loss to Columbus Crew SC and a discouraging defeat against the Montreal Impact.
The poor performances meant that United's goalkeeper Bill Hamid was thoroughly tested in every league match, and in all likelihood this bad month could have become truly horrific if not for the club's first-ever Homegrown signing. Our staff responded to that by naming him our Player of the Month in the most lopsided vote we've had yet:
Ben Bromley
It was a bad month for most D.C. United players, especially in MLS play. However, there is one person continues to play excellent soccer, even when his teammates aren't up to his equal: Bill Hamid. Without Hamid, the losses would have been even worse and the draw might have become a loss. Combine that with the fact that he made the provisional roster for the CONCACAF Cup and Hamid is the only player worth talking about in September.
blazindw
The only bright spot in a month of bad for United, in my opinion, is the man donning the 28 shirt. Bill Hamid, despite his defense failing at several times, kept his team in matches and is the reason we don't have a 6 game losing streak in the league instead of a 6 game winless streak. Through it all, we are lucky he's back healthy and performing at an elite level.
Ryan Keefer
Will echo my colleagues for Hamid, in part because of the six goals he gave up, half were to a Golden Boot contender (in Kei Kamara) and two others were to Didier freakin’ Drogba, and he made a couple of the goals closer than they had any right to be. Virtually the only one this month in League play that took care of his business in any reasonable form.
Adam M Taylor
It's Bill. In a month where the team somehow regressed further from the low bar of August, the homegrown goalkeeper was actually competent. And competence is the standard this month.
leanneelston
POTM is Hamid for sure. When the team is down and no one else is playing particularly well, Bill is always the one keeping things from being truly terrible. DCU would be so much worse off if he weren't in goal, which means that, as the lone bright spot, he gets the nod for an otherwise bad September.
Steven Streff
Hamid. Was United's most consistent player in a month without a win in league play.
On top of all these votes, I stuck with Hamid for the second straight month:
United wasn't good in September, which gives Hamid much more of an opportunity to show just how good he is. This one wasn't even close for me, even though Hamid played just in just 3 of the 5 games the club had this month. I wish we were in a position where Hamid's play was not such a major factor for United, but the reality is that he is our answer to the seven-figure DPs in MLS.
This being DC, there had to be some kind of dissent. It's worth noting how reluctant said dissent is, though:
touchline (voting for Jairo Arrieta):
I'm voting Jairo Arrieta for POTM. I voted Hamid last month, which also wasn't a great month for the team. I can't keep going back to Bill. Arrieta gets my vote because you can count on him to inject some life into a game and shift the momentum to DCU -- because he often looks like the hungriest guy out there.
That's how we saw things in a very frustrating month. Let us know in the comments if you side with the Hamid bloc or if you have someone else in mind.