Friday, July 6, 2007 | 6:57 a.m.
In a driving rainstorm one night last season, Leslie "Yorky" Southern stood under an umbrella off the northeast corner of Peter Johann Memorial Field to watch the UNLV men's soccer team.
As was the norm in 2006, the Rebels lost. They won only one game in coach Mario Sanchez's first season, and there were few fans there that rainy night.
"Anyone who does that ... I think that says a lot about the person he is," Sanchez said. "The greatest tribute to a man is someone who is loyal through the good and bad. That's pretty unique."
Southern was one of the program's most loyal fans. He died June 15 at age 82. The native of Yorkshire, England, was buried June 23 at Desert Memorial in a red Rebels jersey, with an English national team cap on his stomach.
At UNLV matches, he sat next to Ken Johann, the patriarch of the UNLV program. Those two became fast friends when they met in Las Vegas more than 40 years ago. They also attended UNLV basketball and football games.
On the pitch, Southern enjoyed talking about the latest exploits on England's national team and at Huddersfield Town, his favorite team in Yorkshire. He proudly showed off Huddersfield match programs at UNLV games.
Off the pitch, he laughed easily. A week or two after e-mailing a joke to friends, he would poke one in the ribs on seeing him to make sure the joke, and its uproarious punch line, had been received. He'd erupt in laughter all over again.
In Yorky's memory, donations may be made to the UNLV men's soccer team at UNLV foundation, c/o men's soccer team, Rebel Athletic Fund, 4504 S. Maryland Parkway, Box 450030, Las Vegas, NV 89154.
It will be impossible to see Johann sitting solo at soccer matches this fall and not think of Yorky.
"Like Ken, he was a huge supporter, not only of UNLV soccer but UNLV athletics," Sanchez said. "He loved the school, loved what athletics were all about. He shared a passion for soccer with Ken; they were two peas in a pod on the sideline."
Not so honorable
Mayor Oscar Goodman may not have helped the cause of bringing a Major League Soccer franchise to Las Vegas.
MLS Commissioner Don Garber and Deputy Commissioner Ivan Gazidis stopped to talk with Goodman before heading to see a match in Salt Lake City.
Hizzoner didn't seem to acquit himself, or maybe even the city, well, according to a report in The Salt Lake Tribune.
The mayor had read a report on David Beckham, the English football star who's coming to play in Los Angeles, and asked the MLS duo, "Who is this Beckham guy?"
"So we have a long way to go," Garber told the reporter.
Goodman's lack of pull outside his downtown jurisdiction and his past very public disinterest in MLS make it questionable why the MLS brass would even seek his blessing.
The Las Vegas Sports & Entertainment Group hopes to land a franchise by the 2010 season.
Mark Noorzai, the head of a group of investors, met with Garber to discuss the group's Las Vegas plans, which include a retractable-roof, soccer-specific stadium.
Finally
Danny Cruz, Mario Sanchez's hot-shot recruit who starts his UNLV career this fall, will either play on the national team at the Under-17 World Cup in South Korea this summer or the Under-18 team that will participate in the Pan Am Games in Brazil.
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