With the second scrimmage of this preseason tour is in the books, the trip now officially has a “winding down” feel to it. Only one training session and one preseason game against the RailHawks on Saturday remain before the Revolution shifts into regular season mode. The guests of the last week, Marko Perovic, Andres Raad and Gareth Williams have departed, leaving the club with a three fewer bodies for the remainder of the trip.

Thursday’s training session was a regeneration day, mostly light drills for about 90 minutes. Edgaras Jankauskas was absent from training due to an unspecified illness. Mauricio Castro was out again, still nursing his right ankle and Cory Gibbs took the day off for rest. Kevin Alston and Darrius Barnes also missed a portion of training. Alston is on his way back from a hamstring injury and Barnes is still out with a quad strain. Matt Reis worked on his knee and shoulder from the sideline and Taylor Twellman caught a flight back to Boston yesterday for a previously scheduled doctor’s appointment.

The guys warmed up with some passing and dribbling drills below overcast skies and ash falling from the sky - yes, ash, falling from the sky. There must have been a brush fire or something in the area. We were unable to find out if it was controlled or not, but it was strange to see black swirling pine needles falling from the sky. No need to worry though, we were not in any immediate danger.

Toward the end of training, one goal was dragged up and the team engaged in a shooting drill - good work for keepers and kickers, working on scoring with both feet. Lastly, coach Steve Nicol embedded a little strategy session toward the end of training. The guys worked the ball up both sidelines and practiced centering and finishes.

It is fair to say that most will be ready to head home soon, especially since we heard about the sun returning. St. Patrick’s Day just does not have the same feel from a hotel room in the Bible Belt as it does in Beantown. The young guys and newbies were a tad disappointed to miss out on the Irish festivities, but perked up when I explained how we “observe” Patriots Day in the Bay State.