All posts by David Fellerath
David Fellerath ·
8 Feb 2010, 10:34 PM ·
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The roster updates from the Cary offices of the Carolina RailHawks have been trickling in. There have been heartening re-signings, most notably that of quicksilver Guyanese winger Gregory Richardson. Also back for another season: stalwart defensive midfielder Amir Lowery, goalkeeper Eric Reed, the aggressive midfielders Brian Plotkin and Joseph Kabwe, and defender Caleb Norkus. Right back Greg Shields—currently on loan to Partick Thistle of the Scottish second division (according to the gratifyingly transparent Web site of the Glaswegian club, we know that his loan expires March 31)—seems to be slated for a return, as well.
Today brought two pieces of news. First was the surprising retirement of 2009 team defender of the year Jeremy Tolleson. Only 27 years old, the Atlanta native has elected to hang up his boots and become a missionary in Honduras. Tolleson began last season on the sidelines, recuperating from a foot injury. His return came at a fortuitous time, however, when central defender Jack Stewart was lost for the season with a broken leg. Tolleson subsequently partnered with Mark Schulte to anchor the league’s best defense; despite being only 5-foot-9, he effectively positioned himself to snuff out attack after attack, and also proved to be a dangerous attacking weapon with his long balls forward (3:18).
It’s disappointing to lose a player of his caliber, but one can’t help but be impressed by his willingness to walk away from a sport that has surely dominated his life for 20 years. Although it’s true that Division 2 soccer players in America are paid little more than missionaries (and perhaps D2 soccer players are secular missionaries, spreading love for a game that pays them less than they could make doing almost anything else), it still comes as a start to fans that an athlete could have a calling above playing sports for a living. Our hat is off to you, Mr. Tolleson, and Godspeed.
Tolleson’s departure will intensify interest in whether Stewart will return to the club. Continue reading »
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer AC St. Louis, Amir Lowery, Brian Plotkin, Caleb Norkus, Caleb Patterson Sewell, Claude Anelka, Daniel Paladini, Jeremy Tolleson, Joseph Kabwe, Josh Gardner, Mark Schulte, Martin Rennie, NSC Minnesota Stars, schedule, Steve Ralston
David Fellerath ·
5 Feb 2010, 5:43 PM ·
2 Comments
From the camera of Indy photographer D.L. Anderson: Duke forward Miles Plumlee is fouled hard by Georgia Tech’s Gani Lawal in the second half of Thursday’s game, won by the Blue Devils 86-67. Read Grayson Currin’s account of the game here.
ACC, Basketball, Duke Gani Lawal, Georgia Tech, Miles Plumlee
David Fellerath ·
14 Jan 2010, 8:51 AM ·
1 Comment
John Cunliffe, 2007 MLS Combine MVP, in a 2009 game against the Vancouver Whitecaps (Photo by Rich Bostwick)
No, the RailHawks aren’t picking players in today’s MLS SuperDraft, to be held in Philadelphia at 2 p.m. However, recent history shows that the RailHawks and other D2 teams can expect to see some of these highly touted first- and second-rounders in the next couple of years.
Thanks to a blog I encountered on the Internets, I now know that three players who performed so well in recent MLS combines that they were named MVP of the thing are now Carolina RailHawks. That’s right. Here’s the list of recent combine MVPs:
- 2005: Luke Kreamalmeyer (drafted by RSL, joined RailHawks in 2009)
- 2006: Brian Plotkin (drafted by Chicago Fire, joined RailHawks in 2009)
- 2007: John Cunliffe (drafted by Chivas USA, joined RailHawks in 2009)
- 2008: Eric Brunner (drafted by Red Bull New York, joined Miami FC, now with Columbus Crew)
- 2009: Stefan Frei (drafted by Toronto FC, made 26 appearances in 2009)
- 2010: ?
Obviously, being named MVP of a brief meat market scouting combine is no sure ticket to D1 stardom. (Indeed, in a post on Tuesday about the combine, Ives Galarcep made a passing reference to Kreamalmeyer’s award.) But the three future RailHawks all proved to be solid performers in D2 and could perhaps feature again in the MLS. And no doubt there will be a number of draftees today who will find their niche in D2 rather than the MLS.
In scanning the recent first and second rounds of the MLS draft, I see that a number of picks ended up with the RailHawks: Cunliffe (2007, No. 7 overall); Nate Norman (2007, No. 21); Plotkin (2006, No. 20—three behind Jozy Altidore!); Jack Stewart (2005, No. 10); Josh Gardner (2004; No. 13—five behind Clint Dempsey!); David Stokes (2003; No. 5); Chris Carrieri (2001; No. 1).
Let’s look at another sampling of future prospects: the history of Generation Adidas (and its forerunner, the Nike-sponsored Project 40): There are definitely some future stars there (Tim Howard! DaMarcus Beasley!), but there are others, of course, who went on to relative anonymity, including two who more or less ended their careers with the RailHawks: the aforementioned Stokes and Carrieri.*
What all of this shows is that forecasting which college stars will become top-flight first division pro players is a highly inexact guessing game science. Who knows how Danny Mwanga of Oregon State, who is projected as the No. 1 overall pick, will pan out for the expansion Philadelphia Union? Or Teal Bunbury, winner of the 2009 MAC Hermann Trophy, awarded to the best college player in the country?
Here’s another interesting local angle to today’s draft: Seven of the top nine projected selections featured in the 2009 NCAA College Cup that was held in Cary, NC, last month.
- Tony Tchani (Virginia)
- Ike Opara (Wake Forest)**
- Teal Bunbury (Akron)
- Corben Bone (Wake Forest)
- Zach Loyd (North Carolina)
- Blair Gavin (Akron)
- Zack Schilawski (Wake Forest)**
The draft today promises to be fun. And of course, it will be interesting to look back on it a year or two from now to see how today’s stars of tomorrow ultimately fared.
UPDATE NO. 1 (Jan. 15, 2010; 10:46 a.m.): The Richmond Kickers of USL’s second division announced Thursday that Carrieri, who played for them in a part-time capacity last year, will play full-time this season.
UPDATE NO. 2 (Jan. 15, 2010; 10:48 a.m.): Opara, a 6-foot-2 defender who went to Jordan High School in Durham and then Wake Forest University, was selected third overall in the MLS SuperDraft by the San Jose Earthquakes. Schilawski, a forward and native of Cary who had an illustrious career with CASL, Cary High School, the Cary RailHawks U23 PDL team and Wake Forest, was taken by the New England Revolution with the ninth overall pick.
Carolina RailHawks, NASL, Soccer, UNC-Chapel Hill Blair Gavin, Brian Plotkin, Corben Bone, DaMarcus Beasley, Danny Mwanga, Generation Adidas, Ike Opara, John Cunliffe, Luke Kreamalmeyer, MAC Hermann Trophy, MLS combine, MLS draft 2010, NCAA College Cup, Teal Bunbury, Tim Howard, Tony Tchani, Zach Loyd, Zack Schilawski
David Fellerath ·
8 Jan 2010, 9:36 AM ·
12 Comments
Selby Wellman (photo courtesy of Carolina RailHawks)
We spoke with Selby Wellman, majority owner of the Carolina RailHawks, after yesterday’s press conference in which Sunil Gulati, president of the United States Soccer Federation, announced a provisional agreement to keep Division 2 soccer going in 2010. Wellman spoke to us from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where the North American Soccer League is holding its annual general meeting.
Among the highlights:
- Wellman said at least 11 teams will play in NASL in 2011, including a franchise to be announced within a couple of weeks.
- He said there are representatives of four prospective franchises also present in Fort Lauderdale.
- He acknowledged being the last holdout from the provisional agreement that was announced yesterday.
- NASL is filling league office positions, interviewing candidates in Fort Lauderdale this week.
- He acknowledged the possibility of playing on the fall-to-spring FIFA schedule, but said it is a low priority for now.
- Suggested some form of promotion/ relegation could occur within four to five years.
Triangle Offense: How do you feel about the news today?
Selby Wellman: Tremendous.
Seems like Gulati made clear this was a short-term arrangement.
Absolutely. This is nothing more than a 2010 transition. After two and a half years of work, we are going to launch North American Soccer League for 2011. And during this transition year we will launch our league. It’s a lot of work to launch a league and that’ll be our focus at the league level, to launch a league this year. The transition is nothing more than a way to compete on the field. There are nine NASL teams and three USL teams. Three of the NASL teams will play in the USL Conference, but they are members of the NASL body and they will be playing in the NASL in 2011.
Are the three NASL teams playing in the USL Conference going to have to, on any practical level, going to have to answer to the USL, or is the division just cosmetic?
No. It’s totally cosmetic. All of us report to the USSF, in terms of administrations, scheduling, disciplinary actions, things like that. That’s on the field. Off the field, the USL will run their business—and they have three teams in that business—and we will run our business-and we have nine teams in that business.
You’re having a general meeting [in Fort Lauderdale] right now. Do you have nine teams meeting there?
We have nine teams and we have four visiting teams that are prospects that would like to consider joining our league.
They are there to consider you or you to consider them?
Both. Meet everybody, chat with them, start talking about 2011 and joining the NASL.
Is Atlanta one of them?
No, Atlanta is already a member of NASL. They’re not part of the nine, though. We have nine team that will play in 2010. Atlanta will rejoin the league in 2011. They’re number 10. We’ll have an announcement of another franchise within the next two weeks that will start in 2011. That will be 11. Then we have four others here who are talking with us and will be meeting with us about 2011.
Can you tell us which markets they represent?
No, I really wouldn’t. But I can tell you they’re major markets. It wouldn’t be right to share that at this time. Continue reading »
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer Atlanta, Baltimore Crystal Palace, FIFA calendar, Harminder Paul Singh, NASL, promotion/ relegation, Rochester, Selby Wellman, Sunil Gulati, Tampa Bay, US Soccer, USL, USSF
David Fellerath ·
7 Jan 2010, 5:20 PM ·
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There will be soccer in Cary this season after all.
After months of uncertainty surrounding the status of second-division soccer in the United States, officials with the United States Soccer Federation and representatives of two contending organizations announced today that the United Soccer Leagues and the nascent North American Soccer League would soldier through a provisional season under an unusual compromise arrangement. As part of this temporary resolution, all pending claims between the leagues and its parties will be dropped.
The two leagues will play a season divided into two conferences, the USL Conference and the NASL Conference. Each conference will have six teams, with the Carolina RailHawks falling into the NASL Conference.
| USL CONFERENCE |
NASL CONFERENCE |
| Rochester |
Montreal |
| Portland |
Vancouver |
| Puerto Rico |
Crystal Palace (Baltimore) |
| Minnesota |
St. Louis |
| Austin |
Carolina |
| Tampa Bay |
Miami |
A few things to notice about this provisional arrangement: Continue reading »
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer Alek Papadakis, Carolina RailHawks, D2, Division 2, MLS, NASL, New England Revolution, Sunil Gulati, TOA, US Soccer, USL
David Fellerath ·
7 Jan 2010, 2:05 PM ·
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Indy intern Sarah Ewald attended last night’s basketball game between N.C. State and Holy Cross and sent us this report.
RBC CENTER/ RALEIGH—The number 23 carries all sorts of mystical associations: An arts writer such as myself might think of Jim Carrey’s not-such-a-thriller of 2007 that was dedicated to that number. Basketball mavens of course associate it with His Airness over in Chapel Hill. Here in Raleigh, Wolfpack forward Tracy Smith is the proud owner of this prime number, and he was, yes, prime time all the way, leading his squad to an 87-70 victory over Holy Cross.
The 6-foot-8 sophomore led the attack with 19 points, including a cool 9-of-10 performance on the foul line, to help the ‘Pack recover from its stunning loss to Florida Sunday, courtesy of an ESPN-highlight-reel 65-foot buzzer beater.
As it happens, tonight was my first visit courtside of any major college basketball game, so I focused on the view from my seat in the press box. While Smith was a game-long focal point, he and forward Dennis Horner tag-teamed on a few plays. Horner particularly favored a certain spot on the wing. He dropped two through the net from this location on the pine floor.
Holy Cross have the perhaps-questionable nickname of the Crusaders (but hey, the Wolfpack used to be the Red Terror!), and they brought some muscle down from their home base in Worcester, Mass. Like Mike Cavataio, for instance. The crowd, quoted later at 10,205, quickly noticed the aggressiveness of the 6-foot-4 sophomore guard—and that he was unafraid to use his elbows. He earned the ire of the home crowd as one particularly vociferous ‘Pack fan screamed, “No. 5, you have a big head”—one of the sillier of the night’s heckles. Continue reading »
ACC, Basketball, N.C. State dennis horner, Farnold Degand, Holy Cross, Javi Gonzalez, Julius Mays, Mike Cavataio, Sidney Lowe, Tracy Smith
David Fellerath ·
13 Dec 2009, 12:40 PM ·
1 Comment
Jordan Graye, after missing his penalty kick against Akron. (Photo by Rob Rowe)
WAKEMED SOCCER PARK/CARY–Temperatures dropped below freezing Friday night at WakeMed Soccer Park right around the time Brian Ownby scored a golden goal to lift the Virginia Cavaliers over Wake Forest in the semifinal of the 2009 College Cup. Three hours later, it was even colder as a diehard contingent endured 110 minutes of scoreless play between the undefeated and No. 1-ranked University of Akron and the fifth-ranked UNC Tar Heels before the Zips (23-0-1) won on penalty kicks when UNC defender Jordan Graye shanked his effort over the goal.
The night’s real drama came in the sudden-death overtime of the first game between the Demon Deacons and the Cavaliers (18-3-3). The winner came in the third minute of overtime as Ownby, a sophomore from Glen Allen, Va., took a long pass from Jonathan Villanueva. Ownby, whose playing time has been limited by a hernia, beat Wake’s Anthony Arena and Ike Opara, chipped the ball past Wake Forest’s keeper Akira Fitzgerald and tore off his jersey on his way to embrace his teammates on the sideline.
At the center of the field, Wake Forest’s senior striker Zack Schilawski stood still, stunned. Wake had equalized in the game’s 70th minute on an unassisted foray by All-American midfielder Corben Bone, and the Deacons seemed to have the momentum going into overtime. Now the game was over, and Schilawski stood still for a long time, moving only when opposing players came over to console him.
It was a tough end for the Cary native’s amateur career. An All-American at Cary High, he was also a member of the Cary Clarets, the team of college amateurs that plays in the USL’s Player Development League (PDL).
As it happens, I witnessed one highlight of Schilawski’s amateur career that’s not on his online Wake Forest bio. It occurred on the same field in the summer of 2008, when his PDL team, then known as the Cary RailHawks, defeated a visiting side from the English Coca-Cola Championship, a team called Burnley FC. After Burnley struck first with a goal by midfielder Wade Elliott, Schilawski leveled after exploiting an error by Graham Alexander, then as now his team’s defensive mainstay. The RailHawks clinched the game in the 76th minute on a goal by N.C. State’s Tyler Lassiter, off an assist from Wake Forest’s midfielder Bone. Continue reading »
ACC, Carolina RailHawks, Duke, N.C. State, Soccer, UNC-Chapel Hill, Uncategorized Add new tag, Akira Fitzgerald, Akron Zips, Brian Ownby, Burnley, Cary Clarets, Cary RailHawks, Corben Bone, Jonathan Villanueva, Jordan Graye, NASL, NCAA championship, PDL, Teal Bunbury, University of Virginia, USL-1, Wake Forest, Zack Schilawski
David Fellerath ·
11 Dec 2009, 10:40 AM ·
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Lots of soccer on our plate today! Let’s take it one at a time.
- The UNC Tar Heels (16-2-3) are three of the ACC teams in the NCAA soccer College Cup, which kicks off tonight at 5 p.m., when Virginia plays Wake Forest.
Then, at 7:30 p.m., the Tar Heels play the undefeated University of Akron Zips. If the UNC men are going to complete the double after the women secured the national championship last weekend, they will have to get past the nation’s only undefeated team. The Zips’ attack is led by super-sophomore striker Teal Bunbury, who has 17 goals this season, Darlington Nagbe (10 goals) and Anthony Ampaipitakwong (8 goals).
Can Akron complete their 23-0-0 dream season by wresting the championship trophy from the dominant ACC? We shall see, but here’s a little bad news for UNC: Akron’s defense has not yielded a goal in its three tournament games.
- Not coincidentally, area teenage soccer prospects from around the nation are playing this weekend at the Capital Area Soccer League’s “CASL visitRaleigh.com National Soccer Series Boys Showcase.” Approximately 7,000 players from 335 teams across the country will be competing for the attention of hundreds of college coaches. Here’s the coverage in the N&O, which is too polite to call the event a meat market!
- And finally (for now): The Damned United opens in area theaters tonight. It’s a great movie, check it out. Here’s the review we published in the Independent this week.
ACC, Soccer, UNC-Chapel Hill Akron Zips, Anthony Ampaipitakwong, CASL showcase, Damned United, Darlington Nagbe, NCAA College Cup, Teal Bunbury
David Fellerath ·
9 Dec 2009, 9:48 AM ·
3 Comments
We have to pay tribute to the work of Miami-based Kartik Krishnaiyer and Minnesota’s Brian Quarstad, who’ve done a phenomenal job staying on top of the complex developments concerning the future of lower-division soccer in America. For a fascinating, wide-ranging discussion of how we got here and where we might end up, listen to this podcast in which Quarstad and Krishnaiyer are joined by host Richard Farley and fellow guest Kristian Vazquez, a blogger who follows the Puerto Rico Islanders.
After three months of turmoil, the dispute between the United Soccer Leagues and the upstart North American Soccer League, of which the Carolina RailHawks are a part, is coming to a head. Today is the deadline set by the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) for the two rivals to submit unspecified additional information so that the federation can make a ruling on NASL’s application for official sanction.
Yesterday, the USL filed a lawsuit in Hillsborough County, Florida, against three of its former teams who are now aligned with NASL: Baltimore Crystal Palace, Tampa and Rochester. (Kartik got this one and promises additional reporting today.)
Also yesterday, Jeff Cooper and the St. Louis ownership group announced the name of their proposed new NASL team: AC St. Louis. They also got attention with their two coaching announcements. The manager will be Claude Anelka, brother of Chelsea striker Nicolas, while the director of player development will be Francisco Filho, a 69-year-old Brazilian trainer who is said to have nurtured such superstars as Eric Cantona and Thierry Henry.
It was the former choice, however, that raised eyebrows: As was quickly discovered, Anelka’s limited coaching experience includes an eight-game stint at second-division Scottish side Raith Rovers that led to The Guardian including him on its list of 10 worst soccer managers of all time. One would hope that Anelka nonetheless impressed Cooper with his coaching acumen and that this isn’t merely an attention-getting novelty signing.
However, the more immediate question is if, when and how Anelka and the rest of the NASL will get to take the field and prove themselves. We’ll see what reporting we’re able to do; in the meantime, keep an eye on The Kartik Report and Inside Minnesota Soccer.
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer AC St. Louis, Claude Anelka, court filings, Francisco Filho, Jeff Cooper, NASL, podcast, USL, USSF
David Fellerath ·
7 Dec 2009, 10:23 AM ·
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The sister of Duke’s freshman guard Andre Dawkins was killed Saturday in a car accident in West Virginia.
WRAL reports that Lacey Dawkins, 21, died in an accident involving multiple vehicles on Interstate 77 near Pax, W.Va. The Dawkins’ mother, Tamara Hill*, was also in the car, but there’s no word on her condition. Four other people were injured in the wreck, WVNS-TV reports.
The West Virginia State Police was unable to release more information, but the person who answered our telephone call expressed familiarity with the area of the accident and said that weather conditions Saturday were poor.
The Duke basketball team is in the middle of a break in its schedule before play resumes in Durham next Tuesday, Dec. 15, against Gardner-Webb.
* Initial reports gave the elder Dawkins’ name as Pamela. A statement by Duke University spokeman Matt Plizga indicated that the Dawkinses were traveling to Durham for Saturday’s game between Duke and St. John’s. No update was available on the condition of Tamara Dawkins.
ACC, Basketball, Duke Andre Dawkins, car accident, Lacey Dawkins, Pamela Dawkins
