Showing posts tagged “Wilmington Hammerheads”
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 ·
29 Oct 2009, 7:22 PM ·
4 Comments
Can Gregory Richardson, shown here scooting past USL-1 player of the year Cristian Arrieta of the Puerto Rico Islanders, lead the RailHawks into a successful new league? (Photo by Jeremy M. Lange)
In an interview Thursday afternoon, Carolina RailHawks president Brian Wellman confirmed that the dissident group of USL-1 club owners known as the Team Owners Association (TOA) would be submitting an application to the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) to form a new league.
“We’ll be submitting an application to USSF for a new league as soon as tomorrow,” Wellman said in a phone interview from Charleston, S.C., where he was meeting with Andrew Bell, president of the USL-1 Charleston Battery, to coordinate the scheduling of friendlies next season.
“Nothing’s changed as far as the teams go,” Wellman said of the composition of the proposed new league. The TOA consists of five former USL-1 clubs (Minnesota , Miami FC, Montreal, Vancouver and Carolina) and three ownership groups (in Atlanta, Tampa Bay and St. Louis).
Wellman suggested that the TOA has heard from other member prospects, as well.* “We have at least one conversation a day with people representing new markets. Even without media coverage [of the dispute], there’s a lot of interest in the league.”
Furthermore, Wellman left open the possibility that the new league might follow the FIFA calendar, playing during the winter months.
If the TOA settles on a winter schedule, Wellman said, “It wouldn’t be this winter. It would start sometime in the summer, and prorate as our fiscal year went along.” Continue reading »
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer Alec Papadakis, Atlanta, Christian Arrieta, CONCACAF, Daniel Paladini, EPL, FIFA, Gregory Richardson, Mexican first division, Miami FC, Minnesota Thunder, Montreal Impact, New England Revolution, NuRock, St. Louis, Tampa Bay, TOA, USL, USSF, Vancouver Whitecaps, Wilmington Hammerheads, Winter schedule
David Fellerath ·
6 Oct 2009, 7:28 PM ·
Comment
Wow. It’s starting to look like we could be seeing a profound moment in the history of American club soccer—even if Jack Bell of The New York Times‘ Goal blog hasn’t noticed anything yet, busy as he is. Fortunately, there’s a platoon of bloggers and full-time reporters at work on these stories.
I was buried with my normal editorial responsibilities today, but this is what came over the Twitter wire:
- J. Mike Blake of the Cary News seems to have been first out of the gate with the news that the USSF had stepped in to order a meeting today between representatives of the Team Owners Association and the United Soccer Leagues. We haven’t heard anything about how that meeting went down.
- In USL-2 news, WECT television in Wilmington, N.C. reported that the Wilmington Hammerheads had been kicked out of the second flight due to the alleged failure of its owner, Chuck Sullivan, to meet his obligations to the league.
- And finally, the biggest fish of the day was hauled in, wet and flopping, just in the last hour or two by Inside Minnesota Soccer’s Brian Quarstad. The thing to which I refer would be a copy, an actual replica, of the notorious email sent by the USL last Friday to Carolina, Miami and Minnesota. It’s a sharp-toothed thing that bears further scrutiny. Here are the money grafs:
Section 5 of the USL Standard Contract for Professional Players requires that the Club “shall operate a professional soccer team in USL” and further states that “Should Club fail to operate a professional soccer team within USL, this contract shall be terminated.”
Consequently, all Players under Contract with the (Team Name) have been released by USL. The U.S. Soccer Federation has been advised of the same and has also released all Players from their USL Contracts and USSF Registrations.
We’re going to show this to our lawyers (leave your assessment in the comments, please). But non-lawyers following this case have noticed three things. First, we’d like to see a copy of the USL Standard Contract for Professional Players. Second, there seems to be a disagreement about whether the USSF has released the affected players. This letter says yes, the RailHawks’ Brian Wellman says no. And third, the same RailHawks official characterized this communication as being a “middle-management” (same link, scroll down) kind of thing. The signer of this letter identifies himself as Tim Holt, president of USL.
There will be more, surely much more, to come.
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer Brian Wellman, Chuck Sullivan, Jack Bell, the holt letter, Tim Holt, TOA, USL Standard Contract for Professional Players, USSF, Wilmington Hammerheads
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 ·
22 Jul 2009, 1:29 PM ·
Comment
Some personnel news out of Cary this morning, courtesy of RailHawks journalist Tim Candon:
Striker Andriy Budnyy and goalkeeper Caleb Patterson have been sent to Wilmington for an overnight loan. The USL-2 Hammerheads are trying to protect their spot in first place from the visiting Richmond Kickers. The Hammerheads, who performed heroically in June and early July, making it to the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open Cup after beating the RailHawks in the second round, are now groaning with injuries. Budnyy and Patterson will help plug gaps left by an ankle injury to striker Jamie Watson and a possibly season-ending hernia surgery for goalkeeper Daryl Sattler (who, fans may remember, knocked aside penalty shots by Daniel Paladini and Mark Schulte in that June 16 thriller).
One likely result of the loan is that Eric Reed will start in goal this Friday against Charleston instead of Patterson, whose turn it would be otherwise.
Another thought: The Richmond Kickers may have a little ringer up their sleeves, too. Former UNC and MLS star Chris Carrieri appeared for the Kickers against the RailHawks on June 2. He told me then that he’s playing for Richmond on a part-time basis, against their North Carolina opponents. (He lives in Holly Springs.) Perhaps Carrieri, Patterson and Budnyy can all ride down to Wilmington together.
- Greg Shields, the veteran Scottish defender, is safely in Cary and training with the team. He arrived Saturday and caught the end of the Tecos match. Somewhat disconcertingly, he said his family was surprised by the ruckus created by the Tecos supporters:
“We were sitting by the opposing fans. For the kids, it was a wee bit daunting for them, banging the seats all the time. It was a bit different from what we’re used to.”
- Candon also reports that Devon McKenney’s just about fully rehabilitated from a hamstring injury suffered a month ago.
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer Andriy Budnyy, Caleb Patterson, Daryl Sattler, Devon McKenney, Eric Reed, Greg Shields, Jamie Watson, Wilmington Hammerheads
David Fellerath ·
8 Jul 2009, 6:30 PM ·
1 Comment
Gregory Richardson, seen July 3 against the Wilmington Hammerheads. (photo by Rich Bostwick)
Today, the RailHawks made an announcement that those who attended the July 3 friendly against Wilmington must have eagerly anticipated: The signing of Guyanese forward Gregory Richardson. I was (happily) at the beach so I missed what appears to have been an exciting debut by the trialist, who assisted Kupono Low on a goal in the first half of the 3-0 win.
Most intriguing is the fact that Richardson played last season for the celebrated Joe Public FC of Trinidad & Tobago, and became famous in soccer circles for scoring five goals in four games in the 2008-09 CONCACAF Champions League, including a hat trick against the New England Revolution.
His newfound notoriety helped him get a look in the MLS, first with Toronto FC and then with the Colorado Rapids. He didn’t find his footing with either club, finally being waived June 26.
On the RailHawks’ official blog, team reporter Tim Candon confides that coach Martin Rennie was so excited about Richardson that he wanted to keep his trial status as low-profile as possible until the team was able to sign him.
Obviously, the hope is that Richardson will bring a badly needed killer instinct to the final third of the field—the RailHawks’ finishing instincts have been spotty all season.
The RailHawks travel to Charleston Saturday, July 11, for a crucial showdown against the first-place Battery, who are six points ahead of the fourth-place ’Hawks.
The RailHawks’ official announcement is after the jump. Continue reading »
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer Charleston Battery, Gregory Richardson, Joe Public, Wilmington Hammerheads
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
David Fellerath ·
30 Jun 2009, 10:48 AM ·
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Tonight’s game in Cary was supposed to be against the Chicago Fire. The Wilmington Hammerheads forced a change in those plans two weeks ago.
Now the Fire are in Wilmington for the third round of the U.S. Open Cup while the ’Hawks play a recently scheduled friendly versus the Panama national team at 7 p.m. tonight. This will be the first time, team officials say, that the RailHawks have played a national team.
The Panamanians are coming off a 2-0 defeat to Honduras in a game that was played Sunday at WakeMed. Attendance for that game was modest, at 3,766, according to the RailHawks office, but still greater than the 2,783 who turned out to see the RailHawks-Puerto Rico game Saturday. (Attendance on Sunday surely would have been better had it not been scheduled on the heels of the U.S. men’s national team’s heartbreaker against Brazil in South Africa.)
Coach Martin Rennie faces an interesting dilemma in tonight’s game. On one hand, he has a struggling team that could use a quality opponent in a friendly to continue to work out kinks, both in the back and the front.
On the other hand, this is an opportunity to give certain performers some badly needed rest, while taking a look at other players—including, possibly, players that are training but not on the roster.
One could see it going either way: The RailHawks don’t play another league game until July 11, thus giving regular players plenty of time to recover even if they’re in the lineup tonight. We’re guessing new players, but we shall see.
The RailHawks play another friendly July 3 at 7 p.m. in Cary, against their good friends, the Wilmington Hammerheads.
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer attendance, Honduras, Martin Rennie, Panama, U.S. Open Cup, Wilmington Hammerheads
David Fellerath ·
18 Jun 2009, 8:21 AM ·
5 Comments
Mark Schulte's throw-ins resulted in two extra-time goals. (photo by Rich Bostwick)
WAKEMED SOCCER PARK/ CARY—What happened Tuesday night? That’s the question. The U.S. Cup dream—an important priority for the RailHawks organization—is dashed for this season, thanks to the gutsy, irreverent and opportunistic play of the Wilmington Hammerheads. There’s no doubt that the RailHawks took Wilmington seriously, but still—no one thought they’d actually lose this second-round game.
And now the only way the Chicago Fire will come near Cary is if they have to connect to Wilmington at RDU.
The game itself was a wild one that featured 33 shots, with at least three that clanged off the cage. Wilmington scored first, and after the RailHawks equalized, Wilmington again took the lead in extra time. But after the RailHawks rallied for the second time—on a Gavin Glinton goal from an Amir Lowery flick of a Mark Schulte throw-in—and went ahead 3-2 in the 118th minute, fans and media began packing it in.
I folded up my notebook and walked down to the field to wait for the final whistle. I wasn’t the only one: Aside from the moans of the 50-strong contingent of blue-clad Wilmington supporters, the atmosphere was one of relief that the home side had survived this second-round scare. An unexpectedly long Tuesday night seemed to be drawing to a close with the rightful winner prevailing.
But there was one problem: The Hammerheads were still playing. Continue reading »
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer Austin Aztex, Caleb Patterson, Daniel Paladini, David Irving, Jamie Watson, John Cunliffe, Martin Rennie, U.S. Open Cup, Wilmington Hammerheads
David Fellerath ·
16 Jun 2009, 4:30 PM ·
Comment
It’s Round 2 of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and the opponent is I-40 USL-2 rival Wilmington. To the winner the spoils: the opportunity to host the Chicago Fire on June 30.
The RailHawks’ Tim Candon has the pregame report here. Although the RailHawks knocked off the Richmond Kickers 2-1 in Round 1 a week ago, they’ve been struggling. They haven’t scored in the last 222 minutes of league play; however, they’ve got a way to go before the offensive futility matches the defensive excellence of earlier this season, when the clean sheet streak reached 416 minutes (including the non-league Richmond game).
Here’s another forecast: the weather.
The RailHawks take the field tonight at WakeMed Soccer Park, Field 2. Kickoff is 7 p.m. We’ll be there, provided that the paper has gone to press and I don’t have to ride on my motorcycle in the rain.
Carolina RailHawks, Soccer Chicago Fire, clean sheet, U.S. Open Cup, Wilmington Hammerheads
