Orlando City Cleans Up on 2012 USL PRO Regular Season Honors
Orlando’s Dennis Chin claims a pair of USL PRO honors.
TAMPA, Fla. – USL PRO announced the league’s statistical award winners for the 2012 season on Monday, honoring a pair of players from regular-season champions Orlando City and another from the runner-up Rochester Rhinos. Orlando City forward Dennis Chin claimed a pair of awards, winning both the Goal Scoring and Scoring titles after a standout second season for the Lions.
Chin scored Orlando’s first goal of the season just three minutes into their opening contest against Charlotte, and went on to finish with 11 goals as he played in each of the Lions’ regular season contests. Chin edged out the Charleston Battery’s Nicki Paterson, who had 10 goals, for the Goal Scoring title, and his two assists allowed the 25-year-old to also finish as Scoring Champion with 24 points in as many games, one point ahead of the Wilmington Hammerheads’ Corey Hertzog.
Chin’s Orlando teammate Miguel Gallardo earned the Goals-Against Average award for the second consecutive season, with the 2011 USL PRO Goalkeeper of the Year finishing with a GAA of just 0.780. Gallardo was one of three goalkeepers in USL PRO to finish with a GAA below one, with Rochester’s Kristian Nicht finishing second at 0.909 and the Charleston Battery’s Andrew Dykstra third at 0.950.
Rochester’s J.C. Banks denied Orlando a clean sweep of the statistical honors as the Rhinos midfielder took the Assists title with eight in 22 games. In his second season with the Rhinos, Banks had a breakout season, also scoring five goals, as he earned Team MVP honors. Orlando City’s Kevin Molino finished one behind Banks with seven, while Hertzog and Banks’ teammate Danny Earls finished tied for third with five.
All three award winners, and their teams, will await their opponents in the semifinals of the USL PRO Playoffs, with the Charleston Battery, Richmond Kickers, Wilmington Hammerheads and Harrisburg City Islanders set to open the postseason Saturday. The No. 4 seed Kickers will host the No. 5 seed Hammerheads at City Stadium at 7 p.m. ET, while the No. 3 seed Battery will host the No. 6 seed City Islanders at Blackbaud Stadium at 7:30 p.m. ET.
USL PRO 2012 Regular Season Honors
Scoring Champion
Dennis Chin, Orlando City
Goal Scoring Champion
Dennis Chin, Orlando City
Assist Champion
J.C. Banks, Rochester Rhinos
Goals-Against Average Champion
Miguel Gallardo, Orlando City
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Orlando seems to have it all this year.
…and last year.
They have done an outstanding job having only lost 1 game the entire season. They won the regular season with roughly 30% more points than the runner-up Rochester. To put that in perspective it would be like someone winning the EPL by 30 points.
i think after this year the rest of the teams are going to go hard
orlando city right now is a monopoly and they see that lets hope the tampa flames and phoniex can give orlando a run for their money
That’s why Orlando BELONGS in the NASL and not that crappy 3rd division league
(now removing tongue from cheek)
that is true but lets see what tampa flames and phoniex can bring next year
I agree that Orlando City should move up to NASL but at the same time they choose to be in 3rd division. Orlando isn’t going to move unless they feel they would be better off in the other league.
It all comes down to the USSF and there inability to get their house in order. The USSF needs get all 3 leagues to come together and create a vision of the future that has MLS, NASL and USL-Pro working together.
I would love to see NASL and USL-Pro become strong Professional leagues with MLS. The stronger the 3 league get the better it becomes for US Soccer. Maybe One day we can have Pro / Rel but that is along way from becoming possible.
With USL-Pro the teams that are lagging behind Orlando need to step up. Or Orlando is going to win the USL-Pro league ever year.
Personally I would love to see Orlando and San Antonio go up against each other to see who is the better team in a home/away match.
@DanWolf
You would stipulate that Orlando should or would move up to a less professional league that loses more money than USL Pro. Yeah, makes a lot of sense. I would bet that USSF is very happy with D1/D2/D3 at this point. Each brings something to the table in a way that works.
Relegation is not going to happen in the US, and you should very well know that.
@Negative Nancy
Never say never. Things can change if the right situation came up. It’s Definately not now but it is possible in the future. I’m not saying its going to happen I’m just saying that it is possible.
On Orlando, If you go back read what i wrote. Orlando has now reason to move up. They obviously like being the the tallest person in a tall short person contest. They have that right, but at the same time there is also a chance that Orlando fans might get bored with the USL-Pro competition. Orlando needs a challenge and i suggest that Orlando and San Antonio (as of right now) face off in a Lower Division Championship.
I’m sure you would be fine with that.
Orlando chose to do that because if they started losing games fans wouldn’t come. So we will see Orlando the champion of D3 for the next 5 years.
i say miami should come nasl
call themselves ac miami
this will lead to a trifecta rivalry of tampa miami and fort lauderdale
almost like tottnaham, arsenal, and chelsea
No salary cap + No pro/rel is asinine in lower division soccer especially USL.
at least NASL is grooming teams to self promote to MLS if they meet standards.
It figures; I make one harmless joke, and this is what it turns into. Oh, when will I ever learn?
Maybe I should try subliminal messages; I hear they’re all the rage!
Orlando City has already begun to advertise for next season’s USL season. They won’t be moving up to the NASL.
Furthermore, I am not so sure USL is as on stable footing as NASL. Some USL clubs spend upwards of 30% of their travel budget on their trip to Antigua alone.
I know of one GM who preferred to forfeit his team’s matches in Antigua just to cut costs. It didn’t happen but it came close…..
Pro/rel won’t happen in the U.S. for years ( if ever ) to come. Let’s move on please…..
If USL teams want to compete against OC they have to spend a lot of money…OC has a player budget of $2 million.
If they don’t spend they will not be competitive and a uncompetitive league looks like USL with OC having a 20 point advantage at the end of the season.
@WSW
Their payroll is high, but not $2,000,000. That would insinuate an average player payroll of $100,000 a year, which is better than the average MLS player.
OC is into player development, and player contracts. Being in USL Pro provides the platform for this. The profit potential would be diluted if OC went to that league formerly known as the TOA.
As usual, it is all about the bright green brick road.
In order to for a League to develop long-term viability it has to address 3 simple basics:
1) A governing system which includes representation from all parties with vested interest (that includes fans & perhaps even governmental representatives).
2) An administrative system that promotes absolute equality between teams, so that the only variation is the product on the pitch.
3) A reward system that promotes the interests of the team, player, club (owner), and fan; in that order.
I don’t think any of our top leagues (MLS, NASL, USLPro, USL PDL, NPSL) prove a truly thoughtful and comprehensive approach. MLS & NASL are closer to sustainable models. The USLPro will always have a ‘wannabe’ status as long as they don’t truly become a ‘national’ league or salary equality. The PDL and NPSL are actually closer to serving their specific purpose then the upper 3 leagues, but I believe the system must improve for the support of the club (owner).
Just some thoughts.
@Fotbalist
What you present is not simple, by any stretch of the imagination, and in many ways, is more socialist by approach than anything.
1) A governing system which includes representation from all parties with vested interest (that includes fans & perhaps even governmental representatives).
No entrepreneur (meaning team owner et al) should need “government representatives in a governing “system” for a team. No entrepreneur is going to place control of his business up to a fan. He will listen to the fan and accommodate him, but have him dictate the terms of the arrangent? No way.
2) An administrative system that promotes absolute equality between teams, so that the only variation is the product on the pitch.
Such as the New York Yankees against Oakland? There can never be “absolute” equality, as you put it. And there never will be. Do you think Stoke City is the same as Manchester?
3) A reward system that promotes the interests of the team, player, club (owner), and fan; in that order.
Now you are dreaming. The player is nothing more than a tool to be used for the benefit of the club and to attract the fans. If the player can attract more fans than the club can on it’s own, then that player (say Beckham) gets more moolah. The club already has incentive through profit motives to ensure that the interest of the fans is considered.
I don’t think any of our top leagues (MLS, NASL, USLPro, USL PDL, NPSL) prove a truly thoughtful and comprehensive approach. MLS & NASL are closer to sustainable models.
Really now? NASL, a group that is kept on life support only by the good graces of a Brazilian firm is a sustainable model? On what grounds do you make this statement?
The USLPro will always have a ‘wannabe’ status as long as they don’t truly become a ‘national’ league or salary equality.
Last time I checked, the USSF does not have a ‘wannabe’ status. Further, I don’t think the NASL “8″ teams can consitute a ‘national’ status either, unless they are solidly entrenched in markets on both corners of the coast.
I think wrongful conclusions come from poor research and a bad understanding of fundamental business issues.
@bart – You keep saying that it is less costly for Orlando City to stay in D3. If they had a normal D3 salary structure for players and coaches you might be right. But as I’ve pointed out before, Orlando has to be flying to most of its matches now. Between that, and instantly having four road games a year they could bus to, maybe even six with Atlanta if travel costs were that big of a concern, plus the fact that only a fool would believe the team would draw the same or smaller crowds for OCSC against the likes of the Cosmos, Rowdies, and Strikers, as they do against LA, Antigua, and Dayton, plus not needing to significantly upgrade their player payroll – and I think you can make a pretty fair case that short term it wouldn’t be a whole lot different, and long term, I think being in the NASL might actually improve their bottom line if the league continues growing and being more successful.
And also for the 1000th time, all that means exactly squat if Rawlins continues to have a bug up his arse about the NASL. Orlando could be coming to a crossroads soon. Every indication for a long time has been that NY2 comtinues to be the league’s goal for team #20, and they’ve put a LOT of time and resources into making it happen. Hell, they’re getting a stadium built in NYC, rather than the normal routine of accepting an ownership group that already has brokered their own stadium deal. If the league decides that 20 is going to be the number for awhile, that t hey’er going to have that pause Garber has talked about, then how soon can Orlando realistically think they could have an opportunity to get in? All signs point to 2015 for NY2. So what, Orlando is thinking they can stand pat in D3 with their operation as it is now until, say, 2017, maybe longer? Doesn’t seem realistic, especially if you’re wanting to sustain fan interest for that long.
I don’t know about anyone else but I am quite impressed with Bart’s HTML skills.
@ Bart
I really appreciate your approach to examining my opinion statement. You have indicated that I’m ‘dreamer’ which I’ll grant you I am. In fact, I always start with the best possible option then I see where adjustments must be made. Other people prefer the opposite approach: starting with the worst possible option and adding things that might (or might not) work.
All the points I offered, are simple, and fairly, statements NOT definite conclusions. Therefore details and conclusions (and compromises thereof) would have to reached by many people working together.
Lastly, I will only address a couple of your points. You qualified my opinions as ‘socialist’ while in fact I offered them ‘cooperative’. Trust me, I’ve got NO love for socialism or communism. A couple of people who know me personally and comment on IMS can attest to that fact. In addition. you concluded that my opinions come from “poor research” and “bad understand of fundamental business issues”. That’s pretty bold of you.
However, I appreciate you commenting on my thoughts. I still think the ideas I proposed have merit, and even possibility. It’s only through conversation that 2 (or more) people reach good decisions. It seems that you were somewhat irate; thus, I hope you are able to be calm next time I (or anyone else) posts something completely out of the ordinary.
nasl is supported by a brazilian firm to keep the league afloat
mls was like that with aeg when they owed multiple clubs
for nasl we are waiting for that type of moment that each club has a distinct owner and stable
brian i heard when Minnesota played in the metrodome it was huge crowd
is it too expensive to rent out
and i wanted ask brian because you are close with the team and region – has minnesota stars and david downs contact the vikings owner for possible ownership
also no orlando in nasl miami instead a triple florida rivalry – tampa bay, fort lauderdale, and miami
miami team name- AC Miami
@BQ
I appreciate the compliment. You have no idea how hard it is to do the HTML stuff while handcuffed to a pole and whipped by your bride.
The subliminal attention to this alone is most difficult, especially in my responses to DanWolf.
@ Strikers Return
OC may “want” MLS, but will be perfectly happy being involved in player contracts on a long term basis, if that is what makes them money.
@Fotbalist
I appreciate your stance and wish the world were that simple.
@Bill Gates and @ Al Gore
You guys invented the internet and websites with HTML. How does one underline in HTML? Stop acting like the rich people we know you are and get with the program.
It will be interesting to see how long OC is willing to stay in USL. and it’s the funny the rate they update their news with the word MLS fans will think they are going up year after year.
i think orlando will be usl pro forever because i feel like an expansion team from miami will do a sneak attack
@John you mean Miami will be in MLS before Orlando?
@John – Ugh…don’t make me break out my American club soccer will never work in Miami speech again….. Listen, if you want MLS in South Florida, come to Lockhart every game, and try to bring as many others with you as you can. The only way MLS wil EVER work in South Florida is through the Fort Lauderdale Strikers. Period. Done.
@Bart – I’m sure I didn’t read your last response to me correctly…
“OC may “want” MLS, but will be perfectly happy being involved in player contracts on a long term basis, if that is what makes them money.”
Umm….what? Are you putting forth the idea that Orlando not only would be ok with not eventually making it to MLS, even though their ENTIRE pitch to their fanbase and anyone else that would listen has consistently been that their reason for moving the team to Orlando was because they felt it was their best chance of getting into MLS, but if they don’t make it, they’re happy in D3 and their business model will be developing and selling players? What?!? You got some ‘splainin to do on that post chief……..
@striker return
damn you just killed me but hey a fort lauderdale vs miami match will be cool to watch its like arsenal vs tottanaham
some one in miami form the team AC Miami-Please shoot i will even e-mail you the kit
but the truth is mls expansion is in a standstill because they want new york
first of building a stadium in new york is expensive but i heard mls will build it for 300 mil
and auction it off to the highest bidder
mind you the start base bid will 400 – 300+100 expansion fee
i think thats stupid
houston dynamo built theirs for less that 100 mil
i say the mls should get the politicians to reserve the space for a soccer stadium then the cosmos can build one on top of it they don’t have to go to mls and stay with nasl because the structure is better
it will be like the epl vs the German league base on structure
what garber needs to do is focus on these four teams stadiums
d.c untied-theirs should be in d.c specifically
i had an idea to call their stadium founders park the stadium will have the same arcthecture like the white house, congress, and lincoln memorial and because d.c united is the most successful club out of all the founders, it can also be like a america version of wembly it seats 40000 and this were USMNT play their home games and this were the USOC play the semi finals and finals
new england – i say their stadium should be in boston and call themselves the boston revolution
new england stadium problem is similar to minnesota stars its all about if people are willing to drive far to watch games
san jose earthquakes-this team could win supporter shield this year and yet i dont hear garber talking about the stadium sitiiuation
Columbus crew – their stadium is outdated their has been some fans chatter i think columbus need to remodel theirs
Chivas USA- i don’t like the idea of sharing stadium chivas need a stadium of their own a stadium is another way of a club identity
chivas should rebrand themselves LA Aztecs
@ John
Wow! You make a lot points there. I agree with most of them, and I especially like your diversified thinking on these points. Thanks!
thanks man their is so much mls has to do but garber is distracting himself and i hate how nasl is a good organization but so many people over look it. Like when i heard george soros bought a stake in man u ipo i was like damn another wealthy donor gone his money could have been put into mls or nasl instead of paying the glazer family debt
@ Strikers Return
Yup, you read it correctly. There is always a Plan “B” and in this case, if the MLS goal is not met, OC will be perfectly happy remaining in USL Pro and enhancing their profit center through player contracts.
What do you think that OC would do if MLS turns out not to be an option? Just quit? The answer is not simply moving to NASL. That would be absurd.
oc wont quit they will raise the usl pro profile and compete heavily is the usoc
@Bart So why is it absurd for OC to go to NASL let;s say in year 2015 after they have won the league yet again, isn’t that called progression.
@Bart – You’re even crazier than I thought if you legitimately think that “Plan B” for Orlando if MLS doesn’t come to fruition is to stay at D3 and sell players to make a profit overall. That’s crazy talk for countless reasons……
@WSW
Your premise is that NASL is a “natural” step up from D3. That is a flawed perception for a number of reasons already put forth on this site.
@Strikers Return
You say that is crazy talk, but you don’t say why. This is no crazier than assuming Miami will ever get a MLS franchise.
@Bart – You think given Orlando’s current operating expenses, probably the highest in D3, and probably on par with most NASL teams, thus part of the argument of why not move up, that once MLS is no longer a possibility and that lowers their fanbase (don’t even try to tell me it won’t), you really think they will make enough money selling players to MAKE A PROFIT?!? No chance. Even now with the crowds they, allegedly pull in, I can’t believe they are making a profit. Rawlins ever been on record saying they are? If he is I’d love to see it. Have they sold any players since they moved to Orlando? Why wuold they suddenly become a machine that cranks out prospects and sells them at such a rate that that alone would make them profitable?
As for your second statement, I guess you really don’t read everything I write, shame on you chief. You could be enlightened. LOL As I told John earlier, Miami SHOULD not get an MLS franchise. It would not work for 100 reasons. They only chance of MLS in the South Florida market would be some major money getting behind the Strikers, actually advertise and market this team properly, do some renovations to Lockhart, and announce they want to make a bid for MLS. Then you’d see our crowds surpass Orlando’s, and we’d be a front runner behind NY2. But unless that very specific set of circumstances is met, it’ll never work. Some dope who thinks he is so smart that he can ignore the history of the game in our area and the dynamics of the market might TRY someday to put a team down in Miami, just because he has a lot of money and rich guys think they’re smarter than the rest of us or can succeed where others have failed. But it will fail, it will destroy the Strikers, and it will kill any chance we have ever again for pro soccer in this market.
Strikers Return and Bart are just two of the reasons that this is my favorite soccer website! On the globe. In the known and unknown universe.
@ Strikers Return
I don’t think you understand global economics. Parking players in the US with the anticipation of selling their contracts either to MLS or overseas makes a lot of sense, even Traffic understands and wants to do this, in fact that is why they bought into your beloved Strikers to begin with. That is where the real money is.
Yes, my very dear friend and esteemed goombah, the profit in soccer is through slave trading, and it is cheaper to develop a player here in the US than it is in most other places of the world, largely because of the soccer infrastructure we have in this land of 300,000,000 people.
Once a player can be developed, and then sold for $150,000 to $1,000,000 (or more), you can see that it does not take that many sales to get the math.
Alas, here in the US we frown on slave trading, but it is the excepted way of life abroad (not my broad, but “a”broad, as in overseas).
@Bart
On the international Market wouldn’t a D2 player be worth more then a D3 player.
@John
The Strikers are Miami’s Team.
@Bart
Wouldn’t you like to see San Antonio (or who ever wins the NASL soccer bowl) play Orlando (or who ever wins USL CUP) play each other for a bragging rights home away series.
@Bart
NASL IS a step up from USL due too it’s standards set forth by USSF.
yep
Yeah chief…err…Bart, what they said! They use good grammar to, its a fact.
Mike, careful of critiquing grammar. I’m expecting that English is their second language. Everyone has opinions and are entitled to them, even if you may not write the language well. Ideas on the other hand, are up for criticism.
@Dan Wolf So tell me what other sport or league in the world that has a top team in one level league play a lower level league top team, as some sort of measuring stick? (I’ll probably end up eating my words on this one.) If you step back and see the big picture, I don’t think that really makes much sense other than a few people who feel they have something to prove.
@DanWolf
The key issue in a player trade is the player, not whether they came from D2 or D3. In many ways, one could argue that a younger player from D3 has more potential than the traditionally older player from D2.
@WSW
The USSF standards alone does not make D2 a better league than D3, it simply means that the team owners in D2 are required to have a certain amount of liquid assets.
This does not mean that a D3 team owner does not have at least the same amount of liquid assets, and maybe more.
Probably more importantly, and has been hashed out here ad nauseum, NASL does not have 8 team owners that even meet the minimum requirements. On an individual basis, this league don’t cut the mustard, so that dog don’t hunt.
@Bart
So tell me why Cosmos chose NASL instead of USLPro?
and if OC has the same amount of liquid assets how come they don’t want to go to NASL?
The truth is OC is a team on a limited budget, they want to go to MLS the cheapest way possible,they want to build a SSS the cheapest way possible, a far cry from the billionaire owners in MLS.
@Mike and everyone else: Heck, English IS my native tongue and I butcher it daily with my typos and grammatical errors. I’ve made a career out of it.
@WSW: The Barrister, himself can answer your questions from his perspective but since you put it out there, I would like a crack at them:
Cosmos are already playing a level lower than what people expected them to be when they relaunched “the brand”. They already are disappointing the masses by playing at the second division level. I can’t imagine the shock and dismay that would have echoed around the world if it was announced that the Cosmos were going to play in the THIRD division? That would have been an almost guaranteed brand and credibility killer. Even if USLPRO is the best, most storied and sophisticated league in North America below MLS–the Cosmos playing in USLPRO wasn’t going to fly to far without eyes rolling so far in the backs of critics heads that the international New York hipsters may have been on the wrong end of a multitude of civil action suits.
As far as Orlando goes–the moment that the owner decides that he wants to hug and make up with the NASL, you can pretty much make bank of that club moving up. But the thing is that he doesn’t feel like he needs the NASL to achieve his master plan–which has already been widely publicated–he wants to stomp with the boys.
If that bloke doesn’t manage to ever be able to get his club into MLS then I will start calling that club “Rochester Rhinos South”. I’ll be really curious to see how well Orlando is drawing a couple years from now if Donnie G and his crew are able to bring their NYC dreams to fruition and Orlando doesn’t get in. I think it is going to be like what went down in Rochester all over again–with some fans feeling bitter, mislead and frustrated. I think that the honeymoon will be over. Who knows, the gentleman might just decide to pull up the stakes again and move the franchise to somewhere else that he perceives to have more of a future (which would just make them what they are already–a central Florida Aztex. Don’t laugh–it could happen again. I seriously hope not–but it could…
“Even if USLPRO is the best, most storied and sophisticated league in North America below MLS…” And yankiboy is just one of the reasons why IMS is my favorite North American soccer site in the web!
@Bart – No matter your view of world economics, if you honestly think Orlando City will thrive in American D3 soccer selling players you better stop going to hockey games, because you may have already taken one too many pucks to the head…..
@Strikers Return
…”@Bart – No matter your view of world economics, if you honestly think Orlando City will thrive in American D3 soccer selling players…
But Strikers Return, Orlando City IS thriving in American D3 soccer, and it is selling players…….
YOWZA