Lewis Center — No four words warm the heart of many northerners stuck in sub-freezing temperature like “Pitchers and Catchers Report”. However, for Ohio soccer fans, insert the phrase “Training at Superkick”. For the past week, many have wandered into this massive indoor sports facility, guided down the long halls by the sound of 5 a side games, finishing drills, and fitness exercises, to watch America’s Hardest Working Team get back to work. Somewhere in the frigid cold air of
Recently, Derrick Smith had a chance to sit down with the 19th overall draft pick in the 2011 MLS SuperDraft, Jeb Brovsky. An accomplished player at Notre Dame University, Brovsky impressed so many people at the Combine in Miami a few weeks ago, that Whitecaps FC staff and fans have high hopes for the young Colorado native. The Whitecaps had an excellent draft, selecting Brovsky in the second round. Technical Director Tommy Soehn spoke highly of Brovsky, saying he was
Jason Herrick started the day on which he would see his dreams fulfilled or dashed by watching TV and browsing the Internet. On January 13, the Chicago Fire drafted Jason Herrick, a University of Maryland forward, in the third round of the MLS SuperDraft. “It feels awesome,” Herrick said. “I’ve worked my whole life for this. It’s a dream come true.” From his first moment playing soccer, Herrick hoped to play professionally. “I’ve always pushed for that,” Herrick said. “I knew, if I
ROUND 1 1-Vancouver, Michael Boxall, Defender, University of California-Santa Barbara 2-Portland, Spencer Thompson, Forward, University of California-Irvine 3-LA, Daniel Keat, Midfielder, Dartmouth College 4-NY Red Bulls, Jimmy Maurer, Goalkeeper, University South Carolina 5-Philadelphia, Ryan Richter, Forward, LaSalle University 6-New England, Hunter Christiansen, Midfielder, University of Tulsa 7-Houston, Evan Newton, Goalkeeper, Old Dominion University 8-Toronto, Jimmy “JC” Banks, Midfielder, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay 9-Chicago, Amani Walker, Forward, University of California-Irvine 10-Kansas City, Sam Scales, Midfielder, Ohio State University 11-Seattle, Josh Ford, Goalkeeper, University of Connecticut 12-Portland, Robby Lynch, Midfielder, University of Evansville 13-Toronto, Steven
The Cosmos continue to make moves to be the 20th MLS club. As part of the revival of the world’s most legendary soccer club, The New York Cosmos today announced that iconic footballer Eric Cantona has been persuaded to come back into the game as Director of Soccer with overall responsibility for all soccer-related matters, which will include the proposed first team. Despite many attempts by numerous soccer clubs to lure the Manchester United Player of the Century back into the
Beattie is an attacking player that can play at the next level. The past 12 months in soccer have never been at a greater high. With the U.S. Men’s National Team at the World Cup, the addition of new soccer-specific stadiums and franchises in the MLS, and the success of soccer in Ohio at the national level are just a few on the short list. With an estimated 67,000 registered soccer players in the state of Ohio alone ranging at
UConn's Greg King should go early in Tuesday's MLS Supplemental Draft. As the dust settles from the 2011 MLS SuperDraft floor, talented players like Greg King, Dustin McCarty and many others were left unsatisfied, knowing that they were not selected in the first three rounds. Their collective dream of being an MLS player has not been totally ruled out, but rather has been put on hold for a few days. While it’s no guarantee that any of the draft picks,
Vancouver – The future may hold the answer to Vancouver’s success in the draft. Omar Salgado has the biggest upside of any player in the draft pool, but he may be years from contributing. Akron’s Michael Nanchoff is a bit of a reach at #8, but Notre Dame teammates Jeb Brovsky and Bilal Duckett were good value picks in the second and third round respectively. Portland – The pick of Darlington Nagbe at #2 was a no-brainer. Nagbe has loads of
ROUND 1 1. VANCOUVER – FWD Omar Salgado, U.S. U-20 National Team 2. PORTLAND – MID Darlington Nagbe, University of Akron 3. D.C. – MID Perry Kitchen, University of Akron 4. CHIVAS – DEF Zarek Valentin, University of Akron 5. PHILADELPHIA – GK Zac MacMath, University of Maryland 6. NEW ENGLAND – DEF A.J. Soares, University of California 7. HOUSTON – DEF Kofi Sarkodie, University of Akron 8. VANCOUVER – MID Michael Nanchoff, University of Akron 9. CHICAGO – DEF Jalil Anibaba, University of North Carolina 10. KANSAS CITY – FWD