Foley on trial with New England, Foley was a player brought in using Adrian's english football contacts it would be sad to see him go and would leave a huge offensive and defensive gap.
Intru, I agree about Foley. Unfortunately, I am afraid he may go to Carolina to be with Clarke instead of returning here should MLS not work out. I have not seen Ramos and Marrero play. Both are forwards. Can one or both of them bring balance to our attack with Fana on the other side? This assumes Adlery will be the center striker / attacker. Perhaps with our new signings, we can attack with some Caribbean flair.
Wen talking about Ramos and Marrero I see more potential than current attacking strength they need to first develop into the NASL style of play. Which will probably take a will, they will not be immediate offensive threats. Adrian will have to either find a strong attacking midy or forward to replace Foley.
Intru, this is response to one of your comments on the thread about the stadium. Like you, I'd like to get a look at the current roster, who they have signed and where the holes are. I bet they have picked up a number of players. But it would be nice to know for sure. Also, they may be watching the MLS tryouts to see who may become available. Hopefully, in the next week or so we will read about the signings and get an idea of the team. I have faith that Andy, Whitt and the FO will put a very competitive team on the field.
With the call up list for the Nat team today we also got the news that Marco Velez will not be suiting up and will instead by assistant coach. Is this sign of a possible retirement, he has been injury prone this last couple of season and his already in his thirties.
I love Marco and his family. But I think his playing days are over. The last game I attending at JRL I got there early (real early). Marco and Alexi were doing fitness work. It was painful to watch Marco run. To me, he is still the face of PR football. I hope that both the Federation and the Islanders will find a suitable role to keep him involved.
In less than two weeks the Islanders' training camp opens. At that point, we can shut down this thread and open one for the 2012 season. Whoopeee! I am ready for the season. I bet when we take the field this year's team will have the nucleus from last year's team along with some new, young faces (with lots of energy). Right now the real question is, "Where do we play until JRL is ready?"
The Red Bulls arrived in Arizona with two new names as trialists, and two more added competitors for the goalkeeping spot. While venerable Frank Rost announced his retirement, GM Erik Soler and coach Hans Backe brought in two more young Americans to compete with the pair they already acquired this offseason. Ray Burse is a 27-year-old MLS veteran who has nearly three dozen league starts under his belt with the Columbus Crew and FC Dallas. Most recently he has been with the Puerto Rico Islanders. At the moment, the Red Bulls have just two keepers on the roster, Jeremy Vuolo and rookie Ryan Meara from Fordham. They could use a third, even to serve asa No. 3 keeper.
The Islanders are really cutting it close with their roster, just 5 players listed on their website. Anyone in the know about how and when they will fill it out? Maybe they're just waiting for some quality cuts from mls or other teams?
I feel more like the club is tightening their belt financially and it's making it harder for the club to sign players. There's also mention that they may not have a open try-out this year. Their head of communications said that they will begin training in early March. Thinking that preseason will be agains a bunch of local college squads maybe a game against Bayamon FC. There are seven players sign as of now: Cunningham Fana Marrero Ramos Needham Wilson Addlery
There is usually a delay between signing players and the official announcement. However, I agree. It would be nice if the FO would share with the fans who they have signed. Based on Jay Needham's interview, I think they will bring back the nucleus of last year's team. If the Islanders have cut their budget, they may also be re-negotiating with some players. Before those negotiations can be complete, the players will look at their other options. But with most leagues already in their Spring season (Apetura or Clasura depending on hemisphere) and the MLS about to start, there are not many options left for the players. I bet we won't know the roster or players invited to camp until the opening day of training.
Thursday, 3/8/2012, 2:00 PM Universidad del Turabo Tuesday, 3/13/2012, 2:00 PM Blazers Thursday 3/15/2012, 4:00 PM Puerto Rico under 20 National Team Tuesday 3/20/2012, 2:00 PM Caribbean University Friday 2/30/2012 TBA Bayamon FC http://www.prislandersfc.com/index.php?id=153&newsid=1783
things aren't looking good at all, where are the players are we going to play a indoor match next week? there's only 7 god damn players on the roster!
Intru, patience is a virtue. I think we will be pleased come Monday when workouts start. If not, I'll be out of virtue and pissed as well. In Needham's interview, he talked about the club bringing back the nucleus from last year's team. Whit talked about an iminent signing in his interview. I don't know why it is taking so long to let us know, but I bet we have more than 7 on the roster. I have faith that Andy, Whit and the FO will put a competive on the field. Like the construction at JRL stadium or a lot of other rebuilding projects on the island, it takes time for stuff to happen. Come Monday time will have run out. I hope our patience will be rewarded and we can start worrying about something else.
The preseason match for Thursday has been postponed, the islanders seem to be cutting it closer than usual.
Vazquez is a defender played NCAA just graduated, I think Perez is a midi he plays for PR Sevilla Fc locally
I'm all for more puerto ricans but if the number of locals in the islanders grows without other teams to take some of the nat team players, it going to be really hard forthe islanders around wc qualifiers
I agee with Intru. If the players get called up for the Digicel Caribbean Cup this year and Gold Cup next year, we may wind up like last year, when our third sub was the back up goalkeeper. I have felt more Caribbean and, if possible, Puerto Rican talent should be included on the team. But to make it work for everybody, Whit and Campos and the Islanders FO and the PR Football Federation need to be on the same page for player development and call ups.
My friends, I understand that this is the last day we will need to use this thread. Today, the Islanders started player physicals and assessments. Tomorrow, they hit the field. At last, the 2012 season (or at least its preparations) will be underway. It will be very interesting to see who is with the team and who has moved on. Unless Intru beats me to it, I'll start a new thread for the 2012 season tomorrow.