Welcome E. Ababio!(draft thread)

Adding defensive depth. I like it. And Bravo and co. have done a fairly good job with picking players in the past, so hopefully this is another good one.

 

Like he can play LB or RB according to write-up I saw.

 

per JoeSoccerFan, 1/12/11

HERE

 

Sounds like an athlete - played both forward and defender in college. And continues Smith's trend of adding African talent to the team http://tarheelblue.cstv.com/sports/m-soccer/mtt/ababio_eddie00.html

 

So that's Ghana, Cameroon, and Gambia we've got covered?

 

With the second round pick the Rapids took defender Colin Givens from Michigan State.

 

Joe Mauceri's comments on Givens from the combine:

(In case you've not noticed, Mauceri's now blogging at BS as JoeSoccerFan.)

 

Draft is now complete, Colorado did not make a move to get a 3rd round pick.

We have a 2nd and 3rd round pick in next week's Supplemental draft. I still like Boxall but having picked up 2 defenders today I'm not sure he's a good pick.

 

So in addition to the starting four from MLS Cup, we now have Ababio, Givens, Palguta, and Marshall for the back. Don't know how it looks qualitatively, but from a quantitative perspective, we're much better off than we were before.

 

Didn't the Rapids trade a 4th rounder as part of the Wallace deal? What happens now?

 

That became the 1st round of next week's supplemental draft, so we don't pick until the 2nd round.

 

I thought I saw that Ababio could play RM since he has good ball skills. Not sure why Boxall fell but I would not mind it if they picked a 3rd D up.

 

We may have the best overall group of defenders in all of MLS !

 

I know it might be a bit of wishfull thinking but I'm choosing to take these picks as a good indicator that Omar is coming.....if only that if he doesn't come back, our forward depth is in BIG trouble

 

I think the Ababio pick was based on pure athleticism. I wonder if there are any plans in the works to try him out as more of an attacking player (perhaps even to add depth at forward)?

Givens is a defender through and through and will be very useful coming off the bench with the long season ahead.

 

Agree, without Omar our depth at forward is sketchy. Interesting to note, Joseph Nane played the majority of his college career as a striker.

 

I also tried "going there" back when Nane was traded to Colorado but it was met with resistance.

Clearly these two players, Ababio and Nane, are one trick ponies.

 

Actually when you tried "going there" and you were asked as to why you thought Nane could become a striker you never mentioned any experience he had at the striker position or any other reason you thought he could be turned into a striker, which is why you were met with resistance.

rapidfan, in one line, contributed more logic to the idea of turning Nane into a striker than you ever did.

 

Whatever Jasonma.

What was clear is that you, at that time, had no idea that Nane could be a forward and I did.

There was no reason for me to tell you his history.

You could've found out on your own.

I don't want to derail this thread. I was just pointing something out to rapidfan.

Please, Jasonma, carry on with your day.

 

According to ODU's website, he was listed as a midfielder for at least three of four years (PDF roster for one of the years, and it crashed my browser). His 10 goals and 8 assists in 81 games played for his college career would seem to indicate that he was indeed a midfielder. And in his best year, he scored 6 goals, 4 of which were from PKs. Not exactly stellar stats for a striker.

Now, he certainly could play striker if we needed help, but I think we'd probably have more luck with Akpan or Amarikwa.

 

They're into the 2nd round of the Supplemental Draft. Rapids have the last pick in the 2nd and 3rd rounds so we should have a new player in the next 15 minutes or so.

 

And that player is Philip Bannister a forward out of Loyola University.

 

http://www.loyolagreyhounds.com/sports/m-soccer/mtt/bannister_phil00.html