Dallas fans are hoping for a little more to cheer about in 2010. (Getty Images)

After a couple days away from this series we are back, today with my hometown team FC Dallas. So far we’ve looked at Chicago, Colorado, Chivas, Columbus, DC and Philadelphia in this pre-season look in on how each club is looking as they gear towards the new season.

FC Dallas comes into pre-season camp looking pretty good after a solid finish to the 2009 campaign. Schellas Hyndman has made a couple moves and could be prepared to do a couple more before the season starts. Right now there are a few trailists on the pre-season roster but that doesn’t always mean they’ll be there on opening day.

Let’s take a look in now and see what Dallas had done and what else they need to take care of before the new season.

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Jeff Cunningham had reasons to smile late in 2009. (Getty Images)

This season was certainly a tale of two halves for FC Dallas. Things got off to the rockiest of starts that saw fans across North Texas grew more upset with the way things were being run in Frisco while the end of the year sure seemed to show things could actually be headed into the right direction for 2010.

Yes the rocky start to the season was mostly due to the club’s inability to market the team properly to the fans and let’s face it the on-field product just plain stunk. The club didn’t win their third game until the end of June.

But July brought a change, Kenny Cooper bolted town and somehow from there things picked up. It also seemed like the less General Manager Michael Hitchcock was in charge of moves the better the team got. Schellas Hyndman started trading around for his kind of guys. He sent Marcelo Saragosa packing for Atiba Harris. Later on he moved Drew Moor for Ugo Ihemelu. And at the same time he also picked up Heath Pearce on allocation and Kyle Davies from Real Salt Lake the defense started to take shape.

What was even more important than those moves were ones that happened before the season and even one from the season before started to actually cash in. Dave van den Burgh who came over from New York started producing just as he was expected. David Ferreira gave fans a reason to like the partnership with Brazilian club CAP once again as he started to link up with a rejuvenated Jeff Cunningham.

Yes Cunningham certainly enjoyed the ladder half of 2009. It was amazing to see him score 16 of his league leading 17 goals after Kenny Cooper left town for Germany.

While the club failed to reach the post season on the final day of the season with the loss to Seattle the club did provide reason to the fans in Dallas that this club has the ability to really turn things around for 2010.

What Went Right In 2009:
Once Hyndman got his guys in the lineup his defense started to actually defense Dario Sala’s goal. They went from giving up a couple goals a game to shutting teams out when it mattered most. Thanks to Cunningham in the second half of the season the team found it’s offense again. Hyndman started to prove at the end of the year that he may be worth it as a coach after all.

What Went Wrong In 2009:
Despite the nice finish to the season 2009 was still a bit of a disaster for this club. It wasn’t just the on the field issues early on with this club it was the front office digging a deeper hole with the fans of this club, especially the really loyal fan base that has been with the team from the beginning. Decisions not to market the club or improve existing issues within the club left a lot of people this year in Dallas with a bad taste in their mouths. But the decision to let Michael Hitchcock go after the season was certainly a good step for the club. But again it won’t be enough unless the owners start caring a little more about this club and the city it’s in.

What’s Next:
For this club coming up will be trimming the fat of this club. Pablo Richetti has already been shown the door and a trade will most likely come once the window that kind of thing opens again after MLS Cup. Look for the Andre Rocha loan to end and he be sent back to Brazil as well as a few other cuts that made no sense to make in the first place (Daniel Torres, Steve Purdy, etc.). From there I believe the club is looking to re-sign Dax McCarty. At the end of the day this club just needs to continue to build on those solid young players they have and add one or two veteran players to fill the gaps. I really believe this club is a player or two away from really, and I mean really making a run for things in 2010.

The Colorado Rapids are hoping to reach the playoffs and some defensive help should go a long way in correcting some of their inconsistent issues. Today they have traded with FC Dallas for defender Drew Moor in exchange for Ugo Ihemelu, according to both clubs.

The Rapids also pick up a second-round pick and allocation money in the deal.

Interesting deal from a Dallas stand point. Ihemelu is a little more physical than Moor and probably brings a little more speed to the backline. But was he worth a second-round pick and allocation money? That part I question a little bit.

Plus, Ihemelu is a former SMU player under Schellas Hyndman. It also looks like Hyndman is going to start clearing out more players in the coming weeks that don’t fit his system. I expect more deals to be made.

Colorado adds a quality defender to their defense as they look to make the playoffs. Moor should fit nicely in their defense.

In terms of salaries, both were making around the same, Ihemelu with $140,000 and Moor with $132,000 with bonuses adding up to a little over $149,000; which may explain for the allocation money being sent to Colorado.