I'm guessing that the 2009 Post-Season is going to be even more interesting for the Carolina RailHawks than last season's big shake up was. There is a rumor going around (which seems fairly substantial to me based on several anecdotal facts) that due to the non-payment of the 2010 playing fees, USL has declared the Carolina RailHawks' USL franchise terminated and has notified its players that they are no longer under contract from a USL club. Of course the player contracts are owned by the team, but are registered with the USL. This is getting really messy and the players are caught in the middle -- not knowing whether they should seek future employment options or count on the RailHawks to come back and honor the option years of their contracts. The only people that are going to win here are the lawyers. I feel really bad for the players that don't have good agents working for them. They are certainly left scratching their heads without an advocate in the matter. It appears players in Miami and Minnesota are in the same boat while the other TOA teams (Portland, Vancouver, Tampa Bay) had already paid their 2010 playing fees before this dispute broke out and are currently not on the USL's hit list. I will keep this thread updated with pertinent news as it breaks.
More on the controversy courtesy of Inside Minnesota Soccer http://www.insidemnsoccer.com/2009/...ontracts-for-minnesota-carolina-and-miami-fc/
All this USL infighting leaves me depressed. What about the common fan? I just want to watch soccer, soccer in a league where everyone gets along.
Well it's going to be interesting for sure what ever happens. The league really can't afford to lose to many teams and this "line in the sand" may just push some other teams to leave as well. I wish I had more info then I do on this.
Just to correct one minor mistake in your first post, Vancouver and Montreal have also NOT renewed for the 2010. No one knows yet if Tampa is renewed (or whatever teams do when they are announced expansion teams for 2 years before playing). So Carolina, Miami, Minnesota, Montreal and Vancouver all seem set on leaving (or have left) the USL.
It's interesting that Montreal and Vancouver haven't been "unlinked" from the USL Clubs website like Carolina, Minnesota, and Miami have. I wonder what we should read into that? I would assume that Tampa paid their playing fees as part of the expansion fee (that's just a guess though)
Good point aimorris. Rachel Ulrich from the News & Observer got some quotes from both the league and the owners in today's paper: http://www.newsobserver.com/sports/soccer/story/125958.html Brian Wellman: "Honestly, this is really no more than a minor distraction for us now in a lot of other things we're doing during the offseason."
Kinda puts a damper on the typical post-season talk as far as what players to keep, what we should be looking for, etc. because we have no idea what this situation is going to do as far as that goes. It also sucks that this is coming after our best year ever.
I've been thinking about the "best year ever" thing for a week now since our season was over. I agree that we had the best regular season finish ever and winning for a change was damn fun, but I'm curious what others felt about the season. There's a couple of things that ring hollow for me after this year. 1) We went exactly as far in the playoffs this year as we did in 2007. 180 minutes and we couldn't even score a goal. 2) The constant changing of players not only on the field but even on the team made it difficult, in my opinion, to connect with the squad. My 8 year old and I were looking through the 2009 yearbook the other night and he started asking me who all these folks in the book were. Players came and went, sometimes with no explanation from the team. I like the fact that we had a deep squad, but I'm not sure that I liked how readily we swapped players into and out of the roster. 3) While the team was winning, the lack of crowds at WMSP definitely was a huge disappointment. I can't really point to any single game this season where I felt the crowd was particularly noteworthy. Remember that final game against Portland last season or the 2-3 game against Vancouver on FSC? I really missed those electric nights where we put 5000+ into the stadium. Thoughts?
Well have Rienne as a coach was an improvement, right? I thought that was an excellent choice when the Hawks went after to him. Although it seemed much sucked for the newly promoted City Stars. :eek!:
More on the USL/TOA situation from David Fellerath: http://www.indyweekblogs.com/sports...lman-usl-actions-unfortunate-and-unnecessary/
I agree with all three of your points. What I meant was that it's easier to build in the offseason when you're starting with a team that went 16-7-7 instead of what we had last season. But who knows how much of the team we'll have left after the dust settles with the USL/TOA showdown. It's going to kill any momentum we might have had. We were more fun to watch this season than the past, we scored a lot of great goals, and we were winning so I don't want to complain too much. The rotation policy does bother me but I'm also a half-hearted Liverpool supporter so I guess I've learned how to deal with it. I do wonder what happened to guys like Diallo and Bundu though. Losing early in the USOC and bowing out very quietly in the playoffs does sting as well too.
Responding to your points... 1) You could even add in that in 2007, we went to the semis of the US Open Cup while this year we were bounced by a USL-2 club. The regular season wins were nice, but what exactly did they get us? 2) YES! I still feel a bigger connection to Jonny Steele and Frankie Sanfillippo than I do to anyone on the current squad. While its great that they were committed to bringing in 26 top quality players, reality in the USL is that you should try to get by with fewer. 3) The biggest question mark for me on the whole season. Where the hell was everyone? Even with the gimmics that were being run towards the end of the season ($1 beer nights, CASL shirt gets you in free). Obviously something was being done different that resulted in about 1,000 fewer people showing up than last year. I'd be curious to find out what it was. While I don't think we're a market that will see 5,000+ showing up for every game, I think that a season average of 4,000 is reasonable.
Interestingly enough, paid attendance was up... http://www.indyweekblogs.com/sports...lman-usl-actions-unfortunate-and-unnecessary/
The paid attendance is up quote is very interesting, and a good sign I think. But if at the same time, it squelches some of the atmosphere by not putting 1500 "free" bodies in the stands, does it pay off in the long run? I don't know, but it is an interesting business question about the long term development and growth of the fanbase in Raleigh/Durham. In somewhat related news, it appears that Wilmington Hammerheads have been kicked out of USL-2. USL's new owners must really be wondering what they've gotten themselves into! http://www.wect.com/Global/story.asp?S=11265308
Got an email today touting season ticket packages/specials for next season. In my opinion, they shouldn't be asking us to invest in an unknown future. I think it is poor form. When they can tell us what league they are playing in, who the teams will be, how many games they will play, what level of competition to expect, etc., then customers can gauge whether they want to invest in a package for next season.
I was thinking the same thing... I had no plans for season tickets anyways because I have to save for a wedding and honeymoon, but I'm not so sure I'd be throwing down the money so early just yet.
I am a bit angry today about the whole Charlie Davis situation so pls take my comments with a pinch of salt... 1) I see the ownership playing hardball and then crawling back into the fold sometime next spring. The rogue owners could form a league but without substantial planning, it is doomed to fail. 2) Option #2 is to fold the operation. We all know that the franchise has been losing money for a while now. I have seen absolutely NO evidence to suggest that paid attendance was up this season. I think they are pulling a fast one here. I also believe that with MLS consolidating its operations in many markets and expanding (trust me folks...they are not going anywhere), the only way a minor league can survive is by operating as a feeder system for these clubs. I do not think commissioner Garber is prepared to sign on loss making operations at this time with MLS being only slightly profitable. 3) The change of ownership DID not do the club any good. Guys like Economides know how to run a football operation and I think he just unloaded the club to a guy with deep pockets and no actual soccer experience. Did not bode well this year. 4) I still cheer for Johny Steele and Frankie Sanfilipo too. Apart from Kupono (maybe...maybe Caleb), I do not think there was anyone in the club that supporters could relate to or care for much. I have pointed this out in my past posts. The squad rotation policy did not do us too much good either. If you cannot connect with the fans, you will not sell tickets. I hope that the Railhawks are back next season. If not....I have no idea what I will do.