NASL Week in Review for 3/11/2011

All eight NASL teams kick off their 2011 regular season on April 9, less than a month away, and each club continues to work to build their roster and coaching staffs. In Minnesota, the NSC Stars announced that Brian Cvilikas and Matt VanOekel have returned to the club for another season, while Carl Craig also returns as an assistant coach.  The Montreal Impact have added another experienced goalkeeper, signing Evan Bush. The Atlanta Silverbacks have added central midfielders Lucas Paulini and Jordan Davis, defender Tyler Ruthven, and goalkeeper Felipe Quintero, while FC Edmonton added defender John Jonke. The Carolina RailHawks have re-signed Cory Elenio and Matt Watson and added Kithson Bain from Tranmere Rovers along with Khano Smith and Stephen Glass, and three former Carolina D2 rivals: Chris Nurse, John Krause and Brian Farber.

NSC Minnesota Stars

Stars coach Manny Lagos welcomes back Brian Cvilikas and Matt Van Oekel to the 2011 version of the Stars. Cvilikas is a 6’3″ forward who played in 28 matches for NSC Minnesota in 2010, scoring 5 goals and adding 2 assists. The Colorado native played professionally for the Wilmington Hammerheads and Minnesota Thunder before joining the Stars last season. Cvilikas, 26, was drafted by the New York/New Jersey MetroStars in 2006 after finishing his college career at Old Dominion University.

“Brian has qualities no one else on our team does, and he’ll be a danger to our opponents whenever he’s on the field,” Lagos said. “He has also been dedicated to training and improving as a professional during his time in Minnesota.”

Van Oekel, 24, played his college ball at Rutgers University. The Virginian joined the Minnesota Thunder in 2008 after an impressive combine, and played in 6 matches in goal for the Stars in 2010. Lagos will also have Carl Craig assisting him on the sidelines again in 2011. The Englishman from Newcastle had experience coaching at the youth levels before joining the Stars.

Montreal Impact

The MLS-bound Impact have taken two big steps to strengthen the club’s goalkeeping position this winter following the retirement of Brian Jordan. First, they acquired veteran Bill Gaudette from the Islanders, and now they have signed former Crystal Palace Baltimore goalkeeper Evan Bush, who had been in the club’s preseason camp.

Bush, 25, played 25 games for the lowly Baltimore side last season, keeping 7 clean sheets and performing well despite the team’s troubles on and off the field.  The Ohio native played college ball for the Akron Zips, and has PDL experience with the Cape Cod Crusaders, Cleveland Internationals and the Chicago Fire Premier side.  Bush played in 7 matches for the Cleveland City Stars in 2009 before joining Crystal Palace Baltimore.

Atlanta Silverbacks

The Silverbacks continue to build up their roster following two years on hiatus by signing another experienced player from Mexico and three more youngsters. Goalkeeper Felipe Quintero,31, played for the Silverbacks from 2006-2008. The Monterrey native began his career in the Chivas de Guadalajara youth system, and has been with Mexican clubs such as Irapuato, Angeles de Puebla, Ciudad Juarez and Queretaro.

Being a goalkeeper in Quintero’s family is a tradition. Six family members have been goalkeepers over three generations. Quintero’s grandfather, the late Francisco Quintero Nava, played for Chivas de Guadalajara and represented Mexico in the 1948 London Olympic games.

In addition to the goalkeeper position, the Silverbacks got help in the midfield and backline. Lucas Paulini is a 6’1″Argentinian midfielder who played at Virginia Commonwealth University. Jordan Davis, 28, is also a midfielder, and the 5’10″ player has experience with the Atlanta Silverbacks U-23 team after playing at Georgia State University. Tyler Ruthven, like Davis a Georgia native, is a 6’2″ defender who has pro experience with the Harrisburg City Islanders, appearing in 8 matches in 2010. The 22-year-old has also played PDL ball for the Colorado Rapids U-23 and the Chicago Fire Premier after finishing his college career at the University of South Carolina.

“Adding these three players really strengthens the middle of the field for us,” said Silverbacks Director of Soccer Rodrigo Rios, referring to Ruthven, Paulini and Davis. “Each of them are extremely skilled, but that isn’t all they bring to the team – these three guys play a very physical game that will benefit us greatly.”  Silverbacks Goalkeeper Coach ’Gaucho’ Pinho added that “there isn’t a lot in professional soccer that Felipe (Quintero) hasn’t seen before.  It’s going to be very helpful for our team to have such a veteran leader on the field.”

Carolina RailHawks

Coach Martin Rennie and the RailHawks organization are getting their roster together in preparation for another successful season. Cory Elenio and Matt Watson return for another season with the RailHawks. Elenio, 24, played in 21 matches for Coach Rennie last season after spending two years with the Columbus Crew. The 6’1″ midfielder played at the University of Evansville before turning professional. Matt Watson is an Englishman who joined the RailHawks in 2008. Before that, he played with the Richmond Kickers, and indoors with the Baltimore Blast. The forward had 2 goals and 5 assists in 32 games for Carolina in 2010.

The RailHawks are also adding new players. Kithson Bain is a 5’10″ striker from Grenada who played in 10 matches for English League One side Tranmere Rovers in 2009-2010. Bain, 28, also has 33 international appearances for the Grenada national team, scoring 15 times for his country. Khano Smith, 30, was a member of the successful New England Revolution teams that featured Taylor Twellman, Steve Ralston and Shalrie Joseph.  The 6’3″ winger played in over 80 games for the Revs between 2005 and 2008, and also played for the NY RedBulls and English League Two team Lincoln City. Smith has made 33 national team appearances for Bermuda, scoring 10 goals. Scottsman Stephen Glass also brings veteran experience to the RailHawks midfield. Beginning his professional career in 1994 with Aberdeen, Glass, 34, also played for Hibernians and Dunfermline in Scotland along with Watford and Newcastle United in England. Glass has scored 31 goals in his career.

The RailHawks also have signed three players with USSF D2/ USL-1 experience.  Chris Nurse is a 26-year-old midfielder who played in 18 games for the champion Puerto Rico Islanders last season. Nurse played for the Rochester Rhinos in 2009 and has played non-League football in England. Former Portland Timbers midfielder Brian Farber has also joined Carolina. Farber also saw time with the Minnesota Thunder and has played indoor soccer in the MISL and PASL also since ending his college career at Oregon State. Rennie also brought in defensive help in the form of John Krause, 27, who played 73 matches for the Puerto Rico Islanders between 2007 and 2009. The former Vanderbilt Commodore played in Vietnam in 2010, and has made two appearances for the Puerto Rican national team.

Farber and RailHawks veteran forward Sallieu Bundu both scored in last Friday’s win over Wake Forest University. The RailHawks gained a second preseason win by defeating UNC-Wilmington 2-0. Rennie partnered newcomer Krause with Brad Rusin in central defense for part of the match, noting that the two “could be a really good pairing.”

FC Edmonton

Canadian defender John Jonke has been signed by FC Edmonton. The 24-year-old native of Scarsborough, Ontario has played for the Toronto Lynx in the PDL and the University of Louisville. Jonke started his professional career with Finnish club AC Oulu, scoring the winning goal in his June, 2009 debut with the club. Jonke also played for Crystal Palace Baltimore in 2010.

FC Edmonton lost its first preseason game to FC Dallas 3-0, after just heading to Arizona for training a couple days before. In their next preseason match, Edmonton drew 1-1 with the University of New Mexico. American trialist Daniel Antoniuk scored for Edmonton while Jaswinder Gill and Lance Parker shared time in goal.  The two teams meet again this Saturday.

NASL News

It has been announced that former FC Tampa Bay midfielder Long Tan has signed a contract with the Vancouver Whitecaps of MLS. Tan started 22 matches for FC Tampa Bay in 2010 and is the first Chinese-born player to find a place in the MLS.  FC Tampa Bay also announced a “Select a Seat” day on March 20 at Al Lang Field for their fans.

The Puerto Rico Islanders have announced that the “Maradona & Friends” tour will make a stop in San Juan’s Hiram Bithorn Stadium on May 14 to play a friendly against the Islanders. World-renowned former player Diego Maradona and a contingent of former Argentinian internationals are touring and playing friendlies to raise money for charities. The Autism Center of Puerto Rico and La Casa Cuna San Cristobal will be the charities benefiting from the friendly match.

The Islanders announced on the NASL website that star players Noah Delgado, Nicholas Addlery, David Foley, Jonathan Faña, Cody Laurendi, Richard Martínez, Marco Vélez, and Jay Needham, among others, will be involved in the match.