Showing posts tagged “USL-2”
David Fellerath ·
12 Feb 2010, 9:45 AM ·
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Just in: The Carolina RailHawks have signed Matt Bobo, who was first-team USL defender in 2009 with the Charleston Battery. The arrival of the central defender ensures a strong partner for RailHawks captain and All-League second-teamer Mark Schulte.
The Charleston Battery elected to stay out of this winter’s dispute over the future of second-division soccer by self-relegating to USL-2. One has to wonder whether the Battery’s seclusion in a lower-revenue, six-team league is related to the fact that two of its highest-profile players have departed the club this week: Bobo and former RailHawk back Frankie Sanfilippo, who returned to his original club, the D2 Rochester Rhinos, yesterday, after playing only one year of what was reportedly a multiyear contract.
Press release after the jump. Continue reading »
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer Charleston Battery, Frankie Sanfilippo, Matt Bobo, USL-2
David Fellerath ·
25 Nov 2009, 10:52 AM ·
1 Comment
WECT of Wilmington, N.C., reports that despite flickers of optimism that a buyer could be found for the troubled USL-2 Wilmington Hammerheads, those hopes appear to be dashed and the USL is proceeding with the 2010 season without this North Carolina market.
This brings the number of teams apparently playing in the USL-2 next season to eight, a figure that reflects last week’s announcements that the Charleston Battery would self-relegate to the lower division, and that Tampa and Crystal Palace Baltimore would jump from the USL to the upstart, revived North American Soccer League.
The disappearance of the Hammerheads is a loss for the USL-2, certainly, but it’s also a loss for North Carolina soccer fans. Wilmington is a solid small market with an excellent stadium, and a healthy intra-state rivalry emerged last season between the then-USL-1 Carolina RailHawks and the Hammerheads. Jamie Watson, last year’s USL-2 player of the year, played in the Port City for a season, scoring 12 goals in 16 appearances. He’s now under a two-year contract to the Austin Aztex of the USL-1, which currently consists of either five or six teams (Austin, Rochester, Puerto Rico, Portland, the expansion FC New York and, perhaps, Cleveland).
According to WECT, David Irving, the highly regarded coach of the Wilmington Hammerheads for the past 12 seasons, is now free to seek other employment.
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer David Irving, Jamie Watson, USL-2, Wilmington Hammerheads
David Fellerath ·
7 Oct 2009, 4:25 PM ·
1 Comment
The United States Soccer Federation has not issued a ruling on the validity of the contracts that the USL tried to nullify last Friday, according to an agent with a stake in the situation. The agent also predicted that if six or seven teams leave the USL-1 under the Teams Owners Association banner, the rest of the USL-1 will follow.
This agent, who represents soccer players at all levels in the United States including the USL-1, requested anonymity but otherwise offered a candid and non-alarmist take on the dispute between the United Soccer Leagues and the dissident TOA.
On the issue of the validity of contracts, the agent said that US Soccer told him, “‘There’s been no ruling. Right now, the players are still under contract.’” (For more on the USL standard contracts, including a copy of same, see Brian Quarstad’s post at Inside Minnesota Soccer.)
The agent said that he thinks the issue of the player contracts is a relatively minor one. By the time there’s arbitration or mediation, he said, the dispute over the fate of the USL-1 as we now know it will be resolved.
“It’s a moot issue,” he said. “One way or another, the Carolina RailHawks will be playing next year.”
The agent said that the clubs will argue, in his view “compellingly,” that they had used standard contracts for the sake of efficiency, but that their contracts were significantly modified with bonus clauses and other addenda. They’ll also argue that, as the ones paying the players, they are the owners of the contracts.
(As an editorial aside, it’s worth pointing out that any reconciliation between the TOA and the USL would involve the latter recognizing the former’s contracts, but if the TOA goes its own way, the USL has effectively renounced its interest in those contracts.)
The agent did suggest that one important effect of Holt’s letter was to galvanize support for the TOA. “Tim Holt’s letter went a little too far,” he said. “I could sense sympathy shift toward the TOA.”
He also suggested that for players at a club like Carolina, “If the contracts are ripped up, the players [at Carolina] aren’t likely to get a better deal anywhere else.”
He added, however, that there are players at other clubs that might like to take the opportunity to leave.
He also raised the possibility that, should the TOA proceed with a new league, there may be a couple of USL-2 teams poised to go along with them. Under that scenario, the USL would rebuild with the teams it has left and add a couple of stronger PDL teams, as well.
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer Contracts, Tim Holt, TOA, USL-1, USL-2, USSF
David Fellerath ·
6 Oct 2009, 12:22 PM ·
2 Comments
WECT in Wilmington, N.C. is reporting that the Wilmington Hammerheads, regular season champions of the USL-2 in 2009, are out of the league. It appears to be unrelated to the turmoil in the first division, having more to do with the finances of team owner Chuck Sullivan, who took over the club prior to the 2008 season. The report notes that the franchise reportedly encountered difficulties paying players on time, but that those obligations have now been met.
We’re knee-deep in other work today, but we’ll be keeping an eye on this.
WECT Sports has learned that the United Soccer League has opted to remove the Wilmington Hammerheads from its list of franchises. Senior Director of Franchise Development Matt Weibe confirmed the move on Tuesday.
“We have discontinued our relationship with Chuck Sullivan,” Weibe said. “The USL is a franchised based league, where certiain requirements must be met and in this case they were not met.” When asked what those requirements were, Mr. Weibe said WECT would have to contact Mr. Sullivan.
The Wilmington Hammerheads played the USL-1 RailHawks three times in 2009—two friendlies and an epic clash in the 2nd round of the US Open Cup, won by the Hammerheads in PKs. RailHawks players Aaron King, Andriy Budnyy and Caleb Patterson-Sewell all did loan stints there last season.
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer Aaron King, Add new tag, Andriy Budnyy, Caleb Patterson Sewell, Chuck Sullivan, USL-2, Wilmington Hammerheads
David Fellerath ·
27 Aug 2009, 6:15 PM ·
4 Comments
UPDATE: News outlets are reporting that the RailHawks organization were part of an ownership group that includes Traffic Sports, the Brazilian company that owns Miami FC, that tried and failed to purchase the USL. We hope to have more soon.
After last night’s game between the RailHawks and FC Miami, we spoke to Carolina RailHawks president Brian Wellman about the progress of Nike’s long-rumored sale of the entire United Soccer League pyramid. Wellman acknowledged that the league, 98 percent of which is owned by Umbro, was for sale.
“There’s a lot of silence right now from the league, which means something’s going on, we just aren’t sure exactly what’s going on. And the bid is for the entire USL.”
Today, Atlanta-based NuRock Soccer Holdings announced its purchase of the entire USL pyramid, including USL-1, USL-2, Premier Development League and W-League. Terms were not disclosed, but Nike and its subsidiary Umbro will continue to have a long-term sponsor relationship with the USL.
NuRock is led by Chairman Rob Hoskins and CEO Alec Papadakis. The former is a real estate developer, while the latter is a franchise attorney and veteran player for the Atlanta Chiefs and the Boston Minutemen, both of the old North American Soccer League. NuRock Soccer Holdings also holds USL-1 franchise rights in Atlanta, Ga. and Birmingham, Ala.
The deal promises to address a persistent source of concern among the club owners of the USL, that the league is in urgent need of better, more aggressive marketing and development.
From the press release:
“We are delighted to close this transaction with NIKE and begin a partnership with Nike’s leading football brands which will sponsor and support USL, and all of its leagues, for many years to come. Together with USL Management, we are excited about the opportunity to grow the size and visibility of USL, and to help develop and train the future generations of soccer athletes in the United States”, said Alec Papadakis, CEO of NuRock Soccer Holdings.
Last night, Wellman agreed that better marketing is a priority.
“We are in favor for a new ownership group to move the league forward, whether it’s St. Louis or another group,” Wellman said. “We’re in favor of dealership to lead the league in a new direction, with corporate sponsorship and TV contracts and raising the level of the league to a much higher standard.”
Here’s the entire release.
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer Alec Papdakis, Brian Wellman, Carolina RailHawks, Nike, NuRock Soccer Holdings, Rob Hoskins, Umbro, USL-1, USL-2
David Fellerath ·
1 Jul 2009, 8:15 AM ·
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Caleb Norkus and Sallieu Bundu celebrate Brian Plotkin's goal. (photo by Rich Bostwick)
WAKEMED SOCCER PARK/ CARY—The RailHawks fielded a reserve-heavy lineup and beat a Panamanian national squad composed of same, 1-0, on a Brian Plotkin strike in the 59th.
I wasn’t there for the goal. I was at the office late, and only caught the last 20 minutes. Here’s Rachel Ullrich’s account in the N&O.
I wasn’t the only one who wasn’t there—about 2,000 other WakeMed regulars were missing, too. In truth, the party was elsewhere. Round 3 of the US Open Cup was being held, and MLS teams were going down in flames to teams from the USL:
- USL-2 Wilmington, which defeated Carolina two weeks ago, beat the Chicago Fire 1-0
- The Harrisburg City Islanders, also of USL-2, defeated New England Revolution 2-1
- The USL-1 Rochester Rhinos defeated the Columbus Crew 1-1 (5-3)
- The USL-1 Charleston Battery beat Chivas USA 3-1
Only D.C. United and Kansas City avoided defeat last night, and KC did so just barely, beating the Minnesota Thunder 3-3 (4-2). And tonight, the USL-1 has two more opportunities to knock out MLS sides. Both are regional matchups: USL-1 Portland Timbers versus the brand-new MLS side Seattle Sounders, and the expansion USL-1 Austin Aztex versus the MLS Houston Dynamo. The Portland-Seattle one will be a battle royale, and we plan to watch it tonight (DirecTV subscribers may even want to try hunting around on your back channels for the feed from local television in Portland). [UPDATE: The indefatigable Jarrett Campbell has tweeted: The game will be on channel 687, Fox Sports NW, at 10 p.m. ET] Continue reading »
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer Brian Plotkin, Chicago Fire, MLS, Panama, U.S. Open Cup, upsets, USL-1, USL-2, Wilmington Hammerheads
