Schulte

A-League guy, if I'm not mistaken.

 

5th round draft choice my Tampa Bay Mutiny, MLS is 2000

aroudn 2/9/2004 it was reported "Schulte plans to stay in school and graduate in May before making a commitment to professional soccer"

Mutiny retained his rights in 2000 while he played for Minnesota Thunder, A-League.

http://www.socceramerica.com/article.asp?Art_ID=53748
released pre-season from Mutiny camp in 2001

he might have had a "call-up" or two to MLS since but I don't think he ever made any team roster

likely stayed in A-League since, possibly playing indoor (many there do), but I don't have those details

 

http://www.mnthunder.com/bios/mark_schulte.shtml

 

Some more quotes, not all new (I think). Presumably Schulte has already worked out an EU passport somehow.

From Gradi: "None of our central defenders are really dominant in the air. Steve Foster is the best we have but we have nobody really powerful. Somebody like that would make a big difference to us.

"Also, to expect Billy [Jones] to play in the team all season with a touch of glandular fever is a very tall order. We are still looking for someone who is going to come in and put on a challenge.

"If Mark turns out to be the one, it has come right out of the blue. He has done very well in training and impressed the players and the staff, so we might just have struck lucky.

"I have already told him that if we are to sign him then he needs to be the next player in, and good enough to put pressure on the defenders already in the side. He said he agrees because there is no point him just sitting around the place."

http://iccheshireonline.icnetwork.c...e=dario-eyes-american-airforce-name_page.html

I'm still looking for info on that reserve match.

 

Unsurprisingly, Mark wasn't mentioned in Notts County's write-up of this week's reserve match at Crewe, which was meant to be Schulte's tryout. However, assuming he played we know at least that Crewe won 2-0.

http://www.nottscountyfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10426~590245,00.html

 

Came across this on the BBC...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/c/crewe_alexandra/4014439.stm

 

I am really rooting for this guy to make it, but it is a bit confusing what this would mean. Based on DeMerit and Schulte (if he makes it), I'd say Coca-Cola League needs to start heavy scouting over here for players.....there are lots more where that came from..

O....I guess when Richmond kicked Nott. Forest ass, the coach probably mumbled that anyway...

 

Who else are they going to scout? Nearly everyone playing regularly in the nats is already in Europe. That leaves a few players who are eligible for European ancestry I suppose. No doubt there are a few who never knew they were eligible, like Howard for instance. Which makes the first question in every scout's mouth: "Who's your Daddy?"

 

I bet there is 6-8 players (at least...very conservative) at that level in the US that qualify for Euro pass (or could go where its not so necessary)...

Italian, Irish has fairly broad guidelines, etc..

 

Interesting. Schulte played exclusively at right back for the Thunder, never as a central defender. I'm pretty sure he was on the A-League best 11 one year at right back as well, although don't hold me to that. He's certainly tall enough to play in the center though. And he hits a booming, but not necessarily real accurate, free kick. Which is nice.

I have never heard anything about him having any EU passport qualifications, although I don't know that anyone ever asked. When he went to Iceland he had talked to some local fans about it, and it seemed like he was doing it more as a chance for adventure and to live abroad and just as a cool experience, as it was in hopes of advancing his career financially or in terms of playing in a better league.

He always seemed like a super nice guy, though, so here's hoping he finds success wherever he ends up.

 

I keep waiting for a country to become a passport haven for all the non-Euros waiting to get their foot in the door.

Someone mentioned somewhere on these boards recently that Belgium had a 3-year residency requirement before issuing a passport which would would qualify a player for the EU work status.

I would speculate that this would be very beneficial to some of the newer EU members from the East who who could then become feeder leagues for the EPLs and La Ligas.

That was the means for Emanuel Olisadebe, though I doubt that he went to Poland from Nigeria to obtain a citizenship and the EU work permit, as Poland wasn't even a EU member back in 1998.

 

i remember this guy. i drafted him in the american bigsoccer draft. he's a stud (gooch's size). that's all i know about him.

 

http://www.crewealex.premiumtv.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10414~592496,00.html

Looks like Mark played yesterday for Crewe's reserves. He "operated at his preferred fullback," rather than in the center, which makes sense to me. No other mention of him in the match report as to how he looked or anything like that.

 

"A strong team featuring Williams, Richard Walker, Mark Roberts, Moses, McCready, Bell, Luke Varney; James Robinson, Jones; Andy White and Rix, along with trialists Mark Schulte and Singapore winger Ahmad Latiff Khamarudin beat Notts County reserves at Reaseheath last week. Goals in each half from midfielders Bell and Robinson sealed the victory. Moses, McCready and Rix all came through 90 minutes."
http://iccheshireonline.icnetwork.c...020&headline=out-of-the-shadow-name_page.html

"American trialist Mark Schulte, now considered a fullback, impressed during a 5-2 win for Crewe reserves over Port Vale reserves on Monday."
http://iccheshireonline.icnetwork.c...20&headline=kenny-set-for-exit-name_page.html

Both stories from the 24th.

 

Looks like Mark won't be able to sign due to the work permit issue.

http://www.crewealex.premiumtv.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10414~600225,00.html

Basically says he did quite well in the trial and they wanted to offer him at least a short term deal, but cannot, since he can't get a work permit.

"He has been getting better and better and we would have offered him something," Dario said today.

"But unfortunately it doesn't look like he is going to get a work permit, which is a real shame. We have had a solictor looking into it, but he has basically said that it's not worth bothering because he won't get one."

In order to receive a work permit Schulte would have needed to be a regular at International level with the USA or have a European passport, but unfortunately it has transpired that he has neither.

So I think it's great that he did well there, since as I said before Mark always seemed like a really nice guy and I wish him all the best. But - this just makes me wonder - how can it "transpire that he has neither (a bunch of US caps or a European passport)"? I mean, how hard is that to know at the very beginning going into all of this? It's pretty obvious he has exactly 0 US caps, and it seems that simply asking him would answer the question of whether he has a Euro passport or not.

Maybe they were confused and thought he had a cap from this "National Game XI" match against England - where he scored a goal and then later got sent off and conceded the penalty that decided the game.

http://www.thefa.com/England/NationalGameXI/NewsAndFeatures/Postings/2002/03/2108.htm

 

Well it may not matter now if he can't get a work permit... but here's from his bio on teh Thunder pages... (thanks SeattleFan - I just put it here because some won't click the link)

Mark Schulte
6'3
205 pounds
Born Oct 4, 1977
Hometown Brecksville, OH

He was a 2nd Team All A-League selection in 2002
PDL Co-defender of the year in 1999 while with the Twin Cities Tornado where they won the Heartland Division Championship.
One of 17 players selected to United Soccer League's all-star team where he scored the lone goal on a header against the England National XI in England in March of 2002

 

This is just bizarre. A lot of trouble could have been saved with a three-minute questionnaire -- from Mark's perspective, meanwhile, he could have spent these last weeks trying to catch on at a team that can actually employ him.

Well, maybe he just enjoyed the ride. And the exposure can't have hurt. Still, I'd love to hear an explanation from his agent on this.

 

Wow, thanks for including the bio because I was wondering if this is a kid that I used to play against. And it is! Funny stuff, he was mediocre when we were in high school and now, out of all the guys we used to play with, he and I think only three others are still playing professional, and those guys in the A-Leauge and indoors. It is truly incredible how late in fact you can improve, because this kid was not a special player, not even a good player, hell, I made the state team over him every year. Not that he's scoring goals at the San Siro, but it goes to show that just because you're not dominating as a teenager it doesn't mean you can't have a somewhat succesful professional career.

 

I went to a Pro-Am being put on in Woodbury, MN with a friend this week and got to see Mark Schulte play. My friend talked to him a bit and it sounds like he'll be returning to IBV next year. He was pretty excited over the fact that he'll get to play in the UEFA Cup next year.

 

I was surprised to see that he's back in the U.S. now, and went the full 90 for Columbus over the weekend. I wouldn't have thought that someone plying his trade in the Icelandic first division could walk right into a starting spot on an MLS team, but maybe I've just been underestimating Icelandic soccer...

 

I can't speak to the quality in Iceland, but based on some anecdotal information I've seen the two leagues are probably pretty competitive from a financial perspective.

 

I don't think you can say he walked right into a starting spot, unless on his stroll he injured Hedjuk and pulled the groins of Herdsman and Wingert Sorry for that mental image.

 

That would be cold... then again, he is coming from Iceland. (OK, that's a Roger de Bris quality pun).

 

Good point -- I forgot about those guys.