To anyone wondering, consider this confirmation that the Flyers will stick around in the BSL for the upcoming season. With Marco Di Vaio retired, all DP slots are up for grabs. Make any reasonable offer. Draft picks and allocation cash will be considered.
Look for an announcement regarding the team's Retention Player soon.
Showing posts with label Offseason. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Offseason. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 7, 2015
Thursday, February 13, 2014
Season Schedule and Announcement
The BSL Front Office has officially released the league schedule for the upcoming 2014 BSL season. It features the now standard twenty-two games before two months worth of playoff action including the BSL Cup and Majors Cup.
The Rose City Flyers begin and end the season with last season's upstarts, the Orange County Zodiac. Also of interest is a home and away separated by a week with Spartans 1612 in weeks ten and twelve. The Flyers front office is already eying that one as a way to climb the standings rapidly (or solidify their place at the top). In addition, the Boys in Red will face Alliance replacements the Ohio Toffees in weeks seven and fifteen. That's unfortunate because it's likely the first time front office will have a handle on things by then.
Finally, Rose City would like to announce this season's new kit updates! The sponsor will remain, as ever, Powell's City of Books but a new look will be appearing on the pitch this season. Check it out below and tell the ownership what you think in the comments.
The Rose City Flyers begin and end the season with last season's upstarts, the Orange County Zodiac. Also of interest is a home and away separated by a week with Spartans 1612 in weeks ten and twelve. The Flyers front office is already eying that one as a way to climb the standings rapidly (or solidify their place at the top). In addition, the Boys in Red will face Alliance replacements the Ohio Toffees in weeks seven and fifteen. That's unfortunate because it's likely the first time front office will have a handle on things by then.
Finally, Rose City would like to announce this season's new kit updates! The sponsor will remain, as ever, Powell's City of Books but a new look will be appearing on the pitch this season. Check it out below and tell the ownership what you think in the comments.
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
Flyers Acquire Diego Fagundez
Fagundez arrives in exchange for First Round pick
Trickles and hints of rumors have been floating around all winter about who the Flyers might be looking to bring to the Rose City this off season. Those rumors amped up when only one DP was announced, leaving some names that have been with the club for a while like Mauro Rosales and Marvin Chavez on the outside looking in. Today however, it's confirmed. Diego Fagundez, the New England Revolution/Alamo City Battle striker who put up twenty points in the BSL last season will be making his way to the Rose City as the team's second DP. In exchange, the Flyers sent the Battle their highly coveted first round pick.
In addition to some startling hair, the striker's numbers in MLS last season startled some themselves. Seeing some minutes the year before, he's become one of the most important cogs in Jay Heaps' increasingly dangerous side. He's safe too. He's been signed to a multi-year contract within MLS where he can continue to grow and start scoring for the Flyers.
"We looked at it as an opportunity," the Flyers General Manager said when asked. "We had a good first round pick for sure, but that translated into a trade for basically anyone in the league. Instead of chancing it on the draft, we opted to pick up a guy we were sure we were looking for, who's a known quantity. Diego is a top notch guy and a rising star in both MLS and the BSL."
This brings the Flyers confirmed lineup for 2014 to three including Fagundez, Marco Di Vaio who himself put up twenty-two points last season, and the squad's first Retention Player, Aurelien Collin. Together they form the backbone of a squad looking to set things right from last season, get back into the picture for the BSL Cup, and earn the Rose City's first birth in the Majors Cup. It's a group that's just the right mix of young and experienced.
"Marco [Di Vaio] is likely retiring at the end of this MLS season and so it's important to both have a strong squad to send him off with a bang, and have some concept of where we're going once he's gone," the Flyers Head Coach explained. "We were increasingly relying on older guys or guys not getting much time last year in addition to a slew of injuries. We're starting this season off differently. We've had discussions about where to go from here and we have a strong idea of who else we'd like to have wearing the Red and Black."
Trickles and hints of rumors have been floating around all winter about who the Flyers might be looking to bring to the Rose City this off season. Those rumors amped up when only one DP was announced, leaving some names that have been with the club for a while like Mauro Rosales and Marvin Chavez on the outside looking in. Today however, it's confirmed. Diego Fagundez, the New England Revolution/Alamo City Battle striker who put up twenty points in the BSL last season will be making his way to the Rose City as the team's second DP. In exchange, the Flyers sent the Battle their highly coveted first round pick.
"We looked at it as an opportunity," the Flyers General Manager said when asked. "We had a good first round pick for sure, but that translated into a trade for basically anyone in the league. Instead of chancing it on the draft, we opted to pick up a guy we were sure we were looking for, who's a known quantity. Diego is a top notch guy and a rising star in both MLS and the BSL."
This brings the Flyers confirmed lineup for 2014 to three including Fagundez, Marco Di Vaio who himself put up twenty-two points last season, and the squad's first Retention Player, Aurelien Collin. Together they form the backbone of a squad looking to set things right from last season, get back into the picture for the BSL Cup, and earn the Rose City's first birth in the Majors Cup. It's a group that's just the right mix of young and experienced.
"Marco [Di Vaio] is likely retiring at the end of this MLS season and so it's important to both have a strong squad to send him off with a bang, and have some concept of where we're going once he's gone," the Flyers Head Coach explained. "We were increasingly relying on older guys or guys not getting much time last year in addition to a slew of injuries. We're starting this season off differently. We've had discussions about where to go from here and we have a strong idea of who else we'd like to have wearing the Red and Black."
Thursday, February 21, 2013
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.
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!
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| 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!
Monday, February 4, 2013
Di Vaio announced as final DP Selection
In a short note today, Rose City has followed through on their initial offseason plans and labeled Marco Di Vaio as their third and final Designated Player. The club was in some negotiations, but it seems that Di Vaio's short season here last year hasn't convinced the other BSL managers of his value yet.
"We're very glad to have our three biggest names from our first successful season back with us," the Flyers' manager said when asked about this latest advancement. "These are quality guys who show up every week and give it their all. Having three guys like this that you know you can count on, and who haven't jumped ship from MLS or had their circumstances change in any substantial way since the previous season, that's what gives a team stability. It's important."
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| Di Vaio, giving the people what they want! |
"We're very glad to have our three biggest names from our first successful season back with us," the Flyers' manager said when asked about this latest advancement. "These are quality guys who show up every week and give it their all. Having three guys like this that you know you can count on, and who haven't jumped ship from MLS or had their circumstances change in any substantial way since the previous season, that's what gives a team stability. It's important."
Di Vaio will take Rose City's final Designated Player slot. Mauro Rosales and Marvin Chavez were previously named the teams first two DPs.
Saturday, January 19, 2013
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.
"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.
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| Nagbe puts one in versus the 'Caps. |
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.
Monday, January 14, 2013
Rose City Announces Two DPs
The Rose City Flyers are proud to announce that they're tentatively marking Marvin Chavez and Mauro Rosales as two of this upcoming season's Designated Players. Both players were key in the club's success last season and they don't appear to be going anywhere either for Rose City or their respective MLS teams.
Obviously, should something happen to either of these players (injury or transfer) before the BSL DP deadline, the club could choose someone else. However, it looks good to see both of these outstanding players suiting up for the Boys in Red again this season.
"Having a significant part of our offense back wearing our colors again this season is a truly great place to start," the Flyers coach said when asked about the announcement. "Both Mauro and Marvin put up numbers last season and were always a threat to score at any moment. Nothing about how they're being played in MLS seems to indicate that we should expect anything different from them this year."
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| Chavez |
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| Rosales |
Obviously, should something happen to either of these players (injury or transfer) before the BSL DP deadline, the club could choose someone else. However, it looks good to see both of these outstanding players suiting up for the Boys in Red again this season.
"Having a significant part of our offense back wearing our colors again this season is a truly great place to start," the Flyers coach said when asked about the announcement. "Both Mauro and Marvin put up numbers last season and were always a threat to score at any moment. Nothing about how they're being played in MLS seems to indicate that we should expect anything different from them this year."
Monday, January 7, 2013
Working on Next Season
It's still early in the offseason but if you ask the Flyers Front Office, it's never too early to get to work. The biggest problem the team suffered last season was inconsistency. Sometimes the team would go off like in their 7-0 BSL Cup Semi-final stomping of Gateway United. Other times, the whole team would fizzle like in the numerous games in which they scored only one or two points. This is the reason that the Flyers finished what was an otherwise impressive first season with only a 2.5 APG. So what can be done to improve the squad overall while solving this problem as well? Let's break it down.
Step One - Improve the overall quality of the squad.
The big names on the Flyers' roster definitely delivered this season. First and foremost, Mauro Rosales put up 13 points through the regular season and BSL Cup play. Marvin Chavez put up 9 points of his own. Finally, Marco DiVaio managed six points from his first start during week fifteen onward.
On the other hand, the squad had several regular contributors who either failed to score, or only found the back of the net once. Guys like Steven Beitashour, Adam Moffat, Justin Braun, Alejandro Moreno, and Kosuke Kimura regularly took up starting spots but never seemed to put up points.
This is the big rub. Having stars who put up major points can send you far in this league. But it doesn't get you far enough. Stars get hurt, they don't make their MLS team's lineup because of CCL play, or their MLS team simply has a bye week and you have to make do without them. That's where overall squad quality comes in. Having a whole roster of guys who can score on any given week, even if they don't score every week, makes the difference. They win you games your stars aren't playing in. And they win you games against teams who can match you star for star, but don't have the squad depth you do. Darlington Nagbe scored five times during the regular season and added two more during the post season. Mike Magee put five on the board as well. These types of journeymen players do the hard work behind the scenes.
Step Two - Stay Spread Out
One of the ways a team's stars don't play is if their MLS team has a bye week. Nobody from that team's playing. Sometimes this plays to a team's advantage if they get to dodge the opposition's big star. Sometimes it goes the other way. In any case, when combined with an all around quality squad, making sure the team doesn't take a major hit from any given bye week a team can put up more points than its opponents. Generally, having more than a couple players from a single MLS team on the roster is a poor idea. As a result, not only is putting together a BSL winning squad about finding quality for your full squad of players, it's about finding it among many different MLS teams so that you have access to that quality all the time.
What it boils down to is learning how to evaluate players at all levels of the game. How much playing time can they expect with their club? How often do they score? Are they assist machines and so, score in BSL play as often as many of the top level strikers in MLS? These are all questions that budding managers for BSL clubs would do well to pay attention to. Sometimes it's hard, but spending time to become a great talent evaluator is one of the best ways to end up at the top of the table.
Step One - Improve the overall quality of the squad.
The big names on the Flyers' roster definitely delivered this season. First and foremost, Mauro Rosales put up 13 points through the regular season and BSL Cup play. Marvin Chavez put up 9 points of his own. Finally, Marco DiVaio managed six points from his first start during week fifteen onward.
On the other hand, the squad had several regular contributors who either failed to score, or only found the back of the net once. Guys like Steven Beitashour, Adam Moffat, Justin Braun, Alejandro Moreno, and Kosuke Kimura regularly took up starting spots but never seemed to put up points.
This is the big rub. Having stars who put up major points can send you far in this league. But it doesn't get you far enough. Stars get hurt, they don't make their MLS team's lineup because of CCL play, or their MLS team simply has a bye week and you have to make do without them. That's where overall squad quality comes in. Having a whole roster of guys who can score on any given week, even if they don't score every week, makes the difference. They win you games your stars aren't playing in. And they win you games against teams who can match you star for star, but don't have the squad depth you do. Darlington Nagbe scored five times during the regular season and added two more during the post season. Mike Magee put five on the board as well. These types of journeymen players do the hard work behind the scenes.
Step Two - Stay Spread Out
One of the ways a team's stars don't play is if their MLS team has a bye week. Nobody from that team's playing. Sometimes this plays to a team's advantage if they get to dodge the opposition's big star. Sometimes it goes the other way. In any case, when combined with an all around quality squad, making sure the team doesn't take a major hit from any given bye week a team can put up more points than its opponents. Generally, having more than a couple players from a single MLS team on the roster is a poor idea. As a result, not only is putting together a BSL winning squad about finding quality for your full squad of players, it's about finding it among many different MLS teams so that you have access to that quality all the time.
What it boils down to is learning how to evaluate players at all levels of the game. How much playing time can they expect with their club? How often do they score? Are they assist machines and so, score in BSL play as often as many of the top level strikers in MLS? These are all questions that budding managers for BSL clubs would do well to pay attention to. Sometimes it's hard, but spending time to become a great talent evaluator is one of the best ways to end up at the top of the table.
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Looking Forward
By all accounts, the Flyers have had a dream season, especially as an expansion franchise. However, the team's failure to qualify for the Majors Cup means that football season is over in the Rose City. Is it too early to start thinking about next season? Never. Let's take a few moments and look at what next year's team might look like.
Positives
First lets look at a few things that Rose City did right this year. Primarily, the strength of this team was in having a large number of strong, young players who could put up points during any game. The team wasn't one dimensional, relying on one or two players to provide all of the offense. The Flyers had eight different players add at least five points over the season and Mauro Rosales added thirteen all by himself. Marco Di Vaio's six looks like it could have been a similar total had he played MLS all season. This is the type of offense this team wants to continue building next year, looking for strong contributions across the lineup so that missing any one player doesn't prove to be a problem.
The keys to achieving this will be twofold. One, retaining the top performers from last year including Rosales, Chavez, and Di Vaio will be of prime importance to the continued success of the team. Two, retaining or acquiring dangerous young players who can, at any time, have a breakout game will also be important. This year that included Darlington Nagbe and Mike Magee. Adding more players like this to the lineup while avoiding players who show promise but fail to deliver will be important.
The Flyers also capitalized on being a team that drew very few cards this year. While their opponents racked up a total of 27 cards (red cards count as two), the Flyers were only responsible for 18. Though stats for the whole league haven't been compiled, it's fair to say that this was a big contributor to the Flyers winning as many games as they did while scoring relatively few points in the early going part of the season.
Not So Much
We've discussed what went right for Rose City but just as important, if not more for a team is looking at what went wrong. Far and away, there are two things that the Boys in Red need to get better at if they want another successful season next year. The first is an issue that only the Front Office can work on, and that is Lineup Failures. The Flyers started out the season with one in Week One and, though it didn't cost them the win, it did set a poor precedent. Lineup Failures are like spotting your opponent points before the game even kicks off and sooner or later, you'll get burned by one. The Flyers expect to see ZERO LFs listed in the box score during the 2013 BSL season.
The second issue that needs work was much more widely discussed this season and that is Rose City's low PPG. The average number of points the team scored was a point of league discussion as early as halfway through the season. The early middle part of the season was dominated by wins with scores like 2-0, 2-1, and 1-0. That's luck and while it's good to have, it's no replacement for skill. The Front Office addressed the issue and it did get somewhat better by the end of the season with Rosales returning from early season injury, the addition of former La Liga player Marco Di Vaio, and the heating up of Darlington Nagbe. However, it's almost impossible not to improve on 2.2 PPG for the first half of the season. The team finished at 2.5 PPG for the regular season and 2.7 for all games played. The one bright spot here is that the team was only shut out once all year (and that was the result of a Lineup Failure).
Improving the PPG issue is part luck and part science. Finding and acquiring players who regularly put points on the board is easier as a second year team. The expansion system leaves a front office with limited options before the draft and poor draft positions. Having a roster to choose DPs from could potentially have a big impact on this statistic. It is worth noting that the team's regular season average is well within the norm for expansion franchises. It's also considerably better the the 1.0 displayed by fellow 2012 expansion franchise KC Quest. The other teams that made the playoff cut had strong DP choices like Theirry Henry, Landon Donovan, Kenny Cooper, David Beckham, and Robbie Keane. Above and beyond that potential, increased planning immediately before the draft (especially with a low draft position once again) will be required to solve this issue.
With all this said, it goes without saying that Rose City is fully expecting another strong season next year. Major club goals include defending the BSL Cup and qualifying for the Majors Cup. As of this moment, the club intends to acquire the maximum number of allowable DP slots and trade aggressively to build a club with just as much luck, but much more consistency for its second season. The Front Office is happy to entertain any and all trade offers in the off season.
Positives
First lets look at a few things that Rose City did right this year. Primarily, the strength of this team was in having a large number of strong, young players who could put up points during any game. The team wasn't one dimensional, relying on one or two players to provide all of the offense. The Flyers had eight different players add at least five points over the season and Mauro Rosales added thirteen all by himself. Marco Di Vaio's six looks like it could have been a similar total had he played MLS all season. This is the type of offense this team wants to continue building next year, looking for strong contributions across the lineup so that missing any one player doesn't prove to be a problem.
The keys to achieving this will be twofold. One, retaining the top performers from last year including Rosales, Chavez, and Di Vaio will be of prime importance to the continued success of the team. Two, retaining or acquiring dangerous young players who can, at any time, have a breakout game will also be important. This year that included Darlington Nagbe and Mike Magee. Adding more players like this to the lineup while avoiding players who show promise but fail to deliver will be important.
The Flyers also capitalized on being a team that drew very few cards this year. While their opponents racked up a total of 27 cards (red cards count as two), the Flyers were only responsible for 18. Though stats for the whole league haven't been compiled, it's fair to say that this was a big contributor to the Flyers winning as many games as they did while scoring relatively few points in the early going part of the season.
Not So Much
We've discussed what went right for Rose City but just as important, if not more for a team is looking at what went wrong. Far and away, there are two things that the Boys in Red need to get better at if they want another successful season next year. The first is an issue that only the Front Office can work on, and that is Lineup Failures. The Flyers started out the season with one in Week One and, though it didn't cost them the win, it did set a poor precedent. Lineup Failures are like spotting your opponent points before the game even kicks off and sooner or later, you'll get burned by one. The Flyers expect to see ZERO LFs listed in the box score during the 2013 BSL season.
The second issue that needs work was much more widely discussed this season and that is Rose City's low PPG. The average number of points the team scored was a point of league discussion as early as halfway through the season. The early middle part of the season was dominated by wins with scores like 2-0, 2-1, and 1-0. That's luck and while it's good to have, it's no replacement for skill. The Front Office addressed the issue and it did get somewhat better by the end of the season with Rosales returning from early season injury, the addition of former La Liga player Marco Di Vaio, and the heating up of Darlington Nagbe. However, it's almost impossible not to improve on 2.2 PPG for the first half of the season. The team finished at 2.5 PPG for the regular season and 2.7 for all games played. The one bright spot here is that the team was only shut out once all year (and that was the result of a Lineup Failure).
Improving the PPG issue is part luck and part science. Finding and acquiring players who regularly put points on the board is easier as a second year team. The expansion system leaves a front office with limited options before the draft and poor draft positions. Having a roster to choose DPs from could potentially have a big impact on this statistic. It is worth noting that the team's regular season average is well within the norm for expansion franchises. It's also considerably better the the 1.0 displayed by fellow 2012 expansion franchise KC Quest. The other teams that made the playoff cut had strong DP choices like Theirry Henry, Landon Donovan, Kenny Cooper, David Beckham, and Robbie Keane. Above and beyond that potential, increased planning immediately before the draft (especially with a low draft position once again) will be required to solve this issue.
With all this said, it goes without saying that Rose City is fully expecting another strong season next year. Major club goals include defending the BSL Cup and qualifying for the Majors Cup. As of this moment, the club intends to acquire the maximum number of allowable DP slots and trade aggressively to build a club with just as much luck, but much more consistency for its second season. The Front Office is happy to entertain any and all trade offers in the off season.
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