Season Preview: Analyzing the Draft

The draft is over and the BSL season is preparing to kick off on March eighth along with MLS. Rose City will face last year's newbies Orange County in Week One and the Boys in Red are prepared to bring it. First though, let's take a look at the draft through the eyes of the Flyers coach.

Rose City's draft this year is almost certainly the best group put together to kick off a season in the three years the Flyers have been around. The inaugural draft class was downright bad as has been noted here and elsewhere. The first pick produced one point all season and the BSL Cup was won by the tireless work of guys who came on board in the middle of the season. Perhaps more important than anyone else from that group is Marco Di Vaio who still occupies one of Rose City's DP slots. Year two was a stronger class on paper, but too large a percentage of the picks spent time on the bench injured, especially at the beginning of the year. Guys like Alan Gordon and Martin Rivero, while having a strong pedigree didn't see the field often enough to make the impact they needed to.

This year's class appears to be different. There are a few risks that were taken in full knowledge, but, top to bottom, the group is far more capable of scoring goals in large quantities than any Flyers team before.

Marco Di Vaio (F - MTL) - The headliner, club favorite, member of the old guard. Di Vaio challenged for the Golden Boot in MLS last season, putting twenty goals in the net and he's expected to do it again. It may be Marco's last season of professional soccer, but he's still got it when it comes to finding space, hanging off a defender's shoulder, and putting it on frame. Look for him to put up numbers for Rose City.

Diego Fagundez

Diego Fagundez (F - NE) - The newcomer, the kid, the hope for the future. Fagundez is only nineteen, but he's already proven that he knows what he's doing. He scored twenty points in the BSL last year, just two short of Di Vaio, and he's the main target for the attack in New England. He's got a nose for goal and an entire, well improved New England team looking to get him the ball in dangerous spaces. Look for him to put up significant numbers this season and to stay with the Flyers for a long time to come.

Maxi Urruti (F - POR) - The wildcard. Urruti spent part of last season with Toronto before moving to Portland and joining the Timbers' forward corps. He scored just once. But he hasn't played anything close to a full season yet. With Ryan Johnson now plying his trade in China, Urruti is the closest thing the Timbers have to a target forward. Look for him to either be scoring big goals already or out on his ass inside of two months.

Giles Barnes

Giles Barnes (M - HOU) - The stalwart. Barnes isn't a forward, but that didn't stop him from being worth thirteen BSL points last season. He remains a steady rock in the midfield for Houston, one of MLS' most consistent teams. Look for him to make up for others when someone has a bye week or has to step out for a slight knock. He'll most likely be there all season long, chugging away. This guy was a steal for the fourth round.

Saer Sene (F - NE) - The risk. Sene won't be suiting up at the start of the season. He's still recovering from the horrific injury he suffered in the box last October. You're unlikely to see him in the Starting XI until at least May but, unlike the entire broken roster of last season, the Flyers are okay waiting this one out. He was good for ten points in just 1200 minutes last season so, if he even comes close to repeating that performance once he's back the risk will have been worth it. He was picked up very late.

Jaime Penedo (GK - LA) - The brick wall. Penedo rolled into LA last season and saved the Galaxy from themselves (and Carlo Cudicini). He performed well and, with a solid back line of guys like DeLaGarza and Gonzo in front of him and a full preseason with his team behind him, look for a lot of clean sheet points. No more keeper juggling for the Flyers. He was taken in Round Five while most others waited two or even three rounds later to pick up their netminders for just this reason.

Robbie Findley

Eric Alexander (M - RSL), Robbie Findley (M - RSL), Ned Grabavoy (M - RSL), Lamar Neagle (F - SEA), Marcelo Sarvas (M - LA), Jeff Larentowicz (M - CHI) - The boys. These guys are the meat of the club. They aren't flashy (though they all could become so, potentially) and they don't put up the numbers of guys that go in the first or second round but each of these guys are a threat to contribute to the scoreline any given week. This is a major improvement for Rose City who's previous rosters had a lot more chaff than this. Expect a higher APG this season mostly because of these guys right here. If anyone turns into a superstar, expect it to be Neagle, who had twelve BSL points last season. If anything stops him it'll be chemistry with Seattle's much turned-over roster.

Aurelien Collin (D - SKC), Jordan Harvey (D - VAN), Drew Moor (D - COL) - The defense. These three defenders all regularly get shots on goals or assists and, occasionally, will tap one in themselves on a set piece or a lucky sitter. They have the quality to cross into the box on the attack and pick up assists that way. They're also all extremely important to their teams. Collin did well enough last season to be Rose City's Retention selection. Expect them to see a lot of minutes. Don't look for them to score a lot, but every point counts.

Even the filler here, for lack of a better term, is of a higher quality than any previous Rose City team. Everyone has made a mark on the league and provides contributions to their home clubs. Even more importantly, they all saw regular minutes last season and, though that can sometimes change, it's an important starting place. You won't ever score points if you don't see the field. Were there guys who got away? Sure. That's the nature of the draft. However, there's a solid club here. Every season requires luck as well as skill, but this is a good jumping off point. There's a team in the now and some eyes cast toward the future as well. Look for Rose City to compete again. Sophomore slumps are for sophomores. If that's really true, look for a win over the Zodiac this coming weekend.

Today's Draft Haul

Flyers Add More Talent

The Flyers continued their strong draft today by  Jaime Penedo, Marcelo Sarvas, and Lamar Neagle in rounds five through seven. It seems like the team is deeper than ever with a list of guys who are all capable of adding points to the board any day of the week.

Penedo, the Galaxy's savior last season when he came in on a free transfer to fix their serious keeper issues, is a strong netminder who, when paired with a strong Galaxy backline, is a threat to keep a clean sheet every week. He stops shots on reflex like few else in the league and, if the Galaxy are in top form, could provide the Flyers with more than one point on occasion. No longer will keeper issues trouble the Rose City.

Sarvas breezes by Jeff Parke 

Marcelo Sarvas, who spends time up in midfield from Penedo is one of the fulcrums of LA's strong attack. Last season it was not uncommon to see him figuring out a way to put points on the board when guys further of the field were sputtering. Finally, Lamar Neagle sees play both up top and on the left wing in every system the Seattle Sounders have run in the last two years. A breakout campaign last season netted him twelve points in the BSL and he could very well do better this year.

Keep up to date on the BSL draft and who will be wearing the Red this season by watching this space.

Flyers Looking Strong in Draft

Flyers add Urruti, Barnes, and Findley in First Four Rounds

After finishing the preseason with three very strong players, Rose City has come out of the gates and added a ton more quality with their first three draft picks. Added to the roster are Houston stalwart Giles Barnes, USMNT player Robbie Findley, and Timbers front man Maxi Urruti.

Of the three, Urruti is the biggest risk, scoring only one goal in his short time in the league last season. However, he's looked strong in preseason play, is well fitted for Caleb Porter's possession and pressure offense, and has now had an entire preseason to mesh with his teammates. Everyone in the Timbers' front four should put up big numbers in assists and goals this season.

Barnes and Findley are more known quantities. Both have EPL experience and put up numbers regularly. Barnes finished the previous BSL season with 13 points and Findley had eight. Both are important parts of their teams' attacking strength and both are proven to be dangerous.

The draft is going well, with plenty of strong performing players left to pick up in the next few rounds. Check back here for more.

2014: A New Season

It's a new season in the Rose City!

After taking the league by storm in its first season, the Rose City Flyers experienced the classic Sophomore Slump. A poor draft coupled by a squad plagued by injuries at the beginning and end of the season spelled doom for the Boys in Red. A lot of games were lost by one goal or by poor lineup choices and the front office promises that this season will be stronger.

 "We've always made strong acquisitions during the season, but for our short time in the league, we've never made a splash during the draft. That's one thing we're looking to change and change quickly," a team representative said when questioned. "Finding the strongest option at our draft position has been something we've struggled with. Hopefully, with a high draft number after two seasons near the bottom, our club can make some strong choices."

To start that transition to season three, the club is happy to announce their first news regarding returning players. Marco Di Vaio will, once again occupy one of the club's Designated Player spots and backline bruiser Aurelien Collin will be the clubs first Retention Player under the league's new rule.

"Marco has been one of the strongest players we've had since he entered the league a year and a half ago. He's clinical, puts up points, and is always a threat. Likewise, Aurelien came through for us more times last year than anyone else. We're happy to see him returning to the club this season," the club's manager said when questioned at the season starting press conference.

New Players Trickle In

After a mild draft day goof-up (last season started with an LF, remember) Rose City got off to a solid start along with the rest of the league yesterday. The Flyers picked up San Jose's seasoned Alan Gordon, the fiery upstart in Philly, Jack McInerney, and a potential bomb in Raphael de Sousa, DC United's new DP Striker from Brazil.

Jack McInerney

Gordon has been a standout in the no-one-left-behind race for strongest forward on last year's Supporter's Shield winning 'Quakes. Pair him with a recovering Marvin Chavez, and sometimes when the Earthquakes score once, Rose City will score twice.

McInerney was a breakout in what was an otherwise down year for Philadelphia last season. With Sebastian Le Toux back in the mix for the Union, the young striker may see fewer minutes, however, he should make up for it in stronger technical play and things he can pick up from the aging Frenchman.

Finally, de Sousa is a bit of an enigma to much of the league still, but he's worth a DP salary and coming out of Brazil. You can bet he won't be sitting out many games and will be using some fancy footwork to try and find the back of the net for DC.

For the moment, these are your new Flyers. Welcome to the team boys, there's plenty more on the way!

Nagbe Shipped to Gateway United

In a move that's sure to spark some league discussion, Rose City is prepared to announce that they're shipping Darlington Nagbe to Gateway United in exchange for Gateway's second round pick. That second round pick falls as the 21st player taken in this year's BSL Draft and, as the manager of the Flyers indicated, the talent level in MLS has risen to the point that that could be a valuable spot.

Nagbe puts one in versus the 'Caps.

"With this move, we now control two of the first twenty three draft slots for the coming year," the spokesperson for the Flyers FO said. "Our manager is right. There's an incredible depth of talent in MLS and the pool only got deeper with the BSL's new rules about defenders. We think that we're going to do well."

Nagbe was one of the team's stand out young players, scoring five points in the regular season and two more in the playoffs to help Rose City lift the BSL Cup in their inaugural season. In addition, he could carve an even deeper path through defenses this season with his mentor, Caleb Porter, arriving at the helm of a reinvigorated Timbers team.

"Yeah. Parting with him's tough, no doubt about it," the Flyers manager agreed when asked about the controversial move. "We all sat down and had a chat and the conclusion was that, outside of our DP selections, that the only way to succeed in this league is to have a strong draft. Although he's a good player, he hasn't really hit enough of a stride to be in the discussion for our final DP slot so we took the value where we could find it. We wish Darlington all the best and would love to see him playing for the Boys in Red again in the future."

How many more moves will be made before the deadline for the Flyers? Will they look to move up the draft charts once again? Can they successfully defend their hard won silverware? Stick around. It's going to be a wild ride.

BSL Draft 2012

The BSL 2012 Draft is officially underway with a mix of solid players, newcomers, and speculation going in the early rounds. Rose City traded their first round pick a few weeks ago along with their 7th round pick in the acquisition of CJ Sapong and picked up a second 5th round pick as well. Look for those in a while.

We're currently in the second round and Rose City has officially added more fuel to the "Keepers Matter" fire that was discussed on the league's main page earlier in the week. With their second round pick, Rose City took Bill Hamid (DC) who's one of the league's top keepers and a regular for the USMNT as well. Check this page to stay up to date.

Justin Braun joins the Flyers in Round three, though the coach admitted that she had her eye on several players and that it was a very tough decision.

The Draft is now complete with all of Rose City's picks listed below. It looks like a good crew.

Second Round: Bill Hamid
Third Round: Justin Braun
Fourth Round: Darlington Nagbe
Fifth Round: Mike Magee, Marvin Chavez
Eighth Round: Sammy Ochoa
Ninth Round: Bright Dike
Tenth Round: Josh Wolff
Eleventh Round: Maicon Santos

BSL Expansion Draft

Stepping up to the podium in the crowded press room the Rose City Flyers General Manager made the announcement we've been waiting for. Leaning in to the microphone she said a few simple words.


"Rose City names Mauro Rosales as our Expansion Draft pick." She added, "We believe that his prolific scoring ability but also his skill in creating chances for his teammates will be a strong asset in the Flyers' first BSL season."

Let the draft begin!