I'm very proud of the season our club has just finished. We missed out on our series championship by a bit, but we've accomplished many things we can be proud of. Normally during the course of the season I shy away from making any public statements about the state of the team or of specific players. But between seasons it seems appropriate for me to let the members of the club know what my opinions are of our players and our prospects for the future. I'll run down each player and briefly say what I thought of their performance this season as well as what I expect of them next season. Coach Leavitt will be doing the same later on for the youth academy.
Stanton Zimmer - When we brought him in early in the season we expected him to compete for the starting job. Instead of competing he seized the job as his own and never let go. Our decision to let him play through a rough patch of form early on paid off. By the end of the season he was a rock for us. I hope he stays with the club for the rest of his career.
Bart Driscoll - Bart has had his best season yet for us and rattled in 6 goals. But with additions like Yazzie and Horne it's been hard for Bart to bring his defensive work up to their standard. Fantastic work, but he needs to solidify his defensive play or be content with less playing time.
Larry Yazzie - Larry is another player who we had to be patient with at first. But we were well rewarded in the end. 5 goals and solid defensive play. His name is written in pen on the lineup sheet.
Michael Novak - We always knew Michael was a special player but he didn't really get a chance to show it last season with the injury. With 10 goals in all competition he scored more than most of our forwards. He never missed a start and I don't expect him to miss many next season.
Bob Horne - Bob did everything you want from a midseason acquisition. He fit right into the squad and became the undisputed leader of the defense. His injury at the end of the season was very unfortunate. He should be recovered for the start of the next season and continue to be the heart of our defense.
Andrea Elba - He underperformed last season and in many ways redeemed himself this season. He's not the flashiest player on the field and his midseason injury cut his productivity. But he's been consistent. He might have to make way for younger players to come up and get some experience with the first team. Andrea's been a real pro but he's not an integral part of our plans for next season.
Anselmo Cruz - Another one of our original players who had hard luck in our first season who was able to really blossom this season. He only missed one game all year and has in my opinion been our best and most consistent player. Frankly his spectacular wing play has made it plain that the players we've tried on the other wing are not up to his standard. Anselmo is a young player who I hope is with this club for a long time.
Adam Isaac - Adam had a very rough start to the season. He was not particularly impressive last season, so he knew he was going to have to start producing the goods. But he had that breakout game in our home match with Flying Monkies. After that he never looked back. He's been in fine enough form to relegate yours truly to the substitute's bench.
Jamie Whittington - It's hard to evaluate my own play but here goes: I've had a very good run since I've been with this club. This season I scored 12 goals in all competitions for best on the team. But towards the end of the season my form has dropped off at the same time that other forwards on the team have been stepping up. I think I will play a smaller on field role next season.
Antoine Draper - When you wear the number 10 you have a special responsibility not only to win but to entertain. Antoine scored 8 goals from midfield and was the engine of our offense. For my money he was a very close second to Cruz for the team's MVP. Hopefully he'll be around for many more seasons.
Chris Goodacre - Chris is a fine player who has improved a good deal from last year. But one thing this club needs very badly is for someone to step up and claim the starting winger job opposite Anselmo Cruz. Chris has played well enough and 4 goals in 6 matches from the wing in nothing to sneeze at. But he didn't claim the starting job consistently and that is troubling.
Tyson Russell - I don't think I've ever known a player more snake-bitten that Tyson. He spent the majority of this season injured and even after he recovered his form eluded him. He only started 2 matches but did manage a single goal in that time. I still believe he has talent but we can't wait forever for it to come out of him. I've made a decision to try and allow Tyson to play his way out of his current poor form. This strategy paid off with Stanton and hopefully we will be just as happy with Tyson.
Dave Bergman - This youngster has been a long term project all the way and is probably still a season away from consistent first team minutes. But he did make 3 starts this season and notched a hattrick on one of those games. If Elba moves on Dave's goal should be to take that 3rd inner midfield position.
Will Leavitt - Will is in much the same position as Dave Bergman. He's a young player who's progressed nicely but will now have to progress even further to keep his spot. Will made a nice run of 3 consecutive starts near the end of the season and scored 2 goals in that time. If Elba moves on Will will compete with Dave for a starting job.
Charlie Melendez - Lost his occasional starting job completely to Stanton Zimmer. Even as a backup keeper I think Charlie is not performing as well as we need. We will be looking for an upgrade here, finances permitting.
Norbert Carlton - Along with Chris Goodacre he had a chance this past season to claim a starting winger spot, but hasn't. That competition will continue and if we don't see a clear winner I will be looking to the transfer market and Norbert will likely be on his way out.
Curt Hamby - Curt might have taken the arrival of Horne and Yazzie as a bad omen for his career, but instead he's responded by beating out Bart Driscoll for the 3rd starting defender role. Despite his youth Curt is a limited player who will likely have trouble holding on to his starting spot in the long run. But he has heart and that's one thing this club can't get enough of.
Francis Miner - Francis has never had a consistent starting job and it looks like Bergman and Leavitt are progressing fast enough that they will keep it that way. Francis is a solid reserve player and a competent spot starter. You need good foot soldiers on your roster. But like Elba he will probably have to make way for a youth movement in the middle of the park.
Benny Porter - No one in this entire organization has more heart and desire to win than Benny Porter. He's never been the most technically gifted player, but he's the soul of our locker room. Despite some pretty fierce competition he recorded 4 starts this season and scored 2 goals. His time at the club is limited and he knows it. But I have complete faith that Benny will make the most of that time.
Evan Williams - This former rock of our defense was displaced by Bob Horne and never really recovered his confidence. He went from full time starter to making only occasional appearances with the reserves with unsettling speed. If he can recover he can be a valuable reserve defender and occasional starter. If not his career might be in jeopardy.
Jeb Jordan - Jeb has been a good kid to have around. But the truth is he's been a reserve player mostly due to lack of funds to find a more experienced player. He's only started 2 competitive games in his career. He's the kind of not-professional-quality player whose service we very much appreciate, but as we continue to progress will have to rely on less and less.
Frank Whaley - Frank occupies the first of our youth academy protected spots. He's got great creativity for a youngster but his passing needs a lot of improvement. He's performed admirably with the reserves and I think he may have a career in football ahead of him. I'm not sure that it's going to be with CPH.
Francis Wilson - Francis occupies the second of our youth academy protected spots. He's only just been promoted from the youth academy and hasn't seen the field yet. We're hoping he can show us something.
Nathaniel Tackett - Whaley and Wilson are officially occupying the two protected youth academy roster spots. This will likely leave Nathaniel as the odd man out. He's still officially on the squad but without the youth academy protection he's going to struggle to stay on. We've tried him in several spots. He will get a few more chances with the reserves, but if he can't capitalize on them he will likely have to move on.
George Lin - The youth camp initiative was not supposed to be a means to find any new players for the senior team. To find a quality player like George was an incredible stroke of luck. He climbed the ladder quickly and finished the season with 2 consecutive starts with a goal in each game. I'm not sure he'll be able to keep his starting spot long term. But this season he was good enough to keep me on the bench and to take longtime reserve player Morgan Dowdy's roster spot.
Patrick McNeil - Another unexpected find from the youth camp initiative. He's fit in well with the reserves, but at his inner midfield position I don't think he has what it takes to break into the first team. Even though he might be a slightly better player he may be the first player who is a casualty of the protected roster spots for youth academy grads.
Leonardo Escandón - With Whaley and Wilson now on the roster Leonardo will be the first youth academy to be bumped from the two protected roster spots. He's currently transfer listed and will be cut if no takers are found. He's a good kid and we tried him in a lot of spots with the reserves. Despite his fine run with the youth team he's just not of sufficient quality to be a pro. We wish him well.
Morgan Dowdy - Morgan was a scrappy player with our reserves for the past two seasons, but we explained to him his limited chances for first team action and he decided to pursue a career outside of football. We wish him the best.
