USSF D-2 Pro League Teams Bolstering Rosters

Wesley Charles is on his way to the Montreal Impact after being without a team for almost a year.

We’ve just passed the halfway mark of the USSF D-2 Pro League season and already teams seem to have playoffs on the mind. Several teams made moves this week to bolster their rosters to help improve their records and make playoff runs.

Wesley Charles to Montreal Impact
On Monday the Montreal Impact announced they had signed former Vancouver Whitecap Wesley Charles. The big central defender had not found a team since being released by Vancouver mid-season in ’09 after 2 separate altercations with fellow teammates. Charles was signed by Vancouver in 2008.

The 34-year old Charles is a seasoned veteran playing 10 years in Ireland’s first division. He also made over 90 international game appearances for St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

The Impact were getting thin at central defense with the departure of Italian Stefano Pesoli who was injured most of the season and then failed to reach an agreement on a new contract. French defender Cedric Joqueviel left the club in June for personal reasons.

Chris Schuler to AC St. Louis
Real Salt Lake defender Chris Schuler has been loaned to AC St. Louis. The 22-year-old defender is said to be on loan for a month and possibly more. The 6’4″ center back and St. Louis native was originally drafted by Real Salt Lake in the third round of the 2010 MLS SuperDraft.

St. Louis has been playing better soccer since the release of Claude Anelka as coach and the hiring of Dale Schilly to take his place. But the team’s defense has been giving up leads late in games.

“We are very pleased to be adding a player with this type of ability to our backline,” stated General Manager Tim Owens. “In the past month our team has played very well, and they are now in a position to challenge for a playoff spot. This club has a crowded fixture list ahead of them. Therefore, we felt we needed some more depth in the defense, which is exactly what a player of Schuler’s pedigree brings us.”

Ricardo Sanchez had two good years with the MN Thunder before moving to Vancouver and seeing reduced playing time. He will hope to get more minutes for the Rowdies.

Ricardo Sánchez and Jonathan Steele to FC Tampa Bay Rowdies
The biggest trade of the week (so far) was a surprise move of Ricardo Sánchez and Jonathan Steele from the Vancouver Whitecaps to the Rowdies for future considerations. The 28-year-old Sánchez was signed last November. Steele, who is only 24, signed with Vancouver in December. Both were seeing  playing time as substitutes for Vancouver but neither found a starting role. Sanchez was said to be unhappy with his role.

Sánchez, a native of Guadalajara, Mexico, played for the Minnesota Thunder during the 2008 and 2009 seasons, scoring 17 goals. Previously he had played for the short-lived California Victory.

Before singing with the Whitecaps, Steele had spent two successful seasons with the Puerto Rico Islanders in 2008 and 2009. Then the Larne, Northern Ireland native has played in Division-2 since 2004. He won the USL-1 MVP trophy in 2008 while helping his team to win the Commissioners Cup.

“Steele and Sánchez are both proven playmakers in the league and add leadership and offensive firepower to our squad,” said FC Tampa Bay President Andrew Nestor. “Despite several recent injuries to starters on our team, we are in position to make a title run and the acquisition of these players will help support that effort.”

Daryl Shore new coach for Miami FC
On Monday, the Miami FC Blues announced the hiring of a new coach, Daryl Shore, who has been an assistant at the Chicago Fire for 10 years.  Shore replaces Victor Pastora as head coach who was let go after Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Puerto Rico. The Blues were 2-6-9 under Pastora.