(Guest post brought to you by Shane Evans)
When asked to write a guest post for Phinally Philly, I jumped at the chance. An associate editor at Goal.com by day and a Philadelphia sports fanatic by night (actually, that’s more of a 24-hour obsession), I am as ingrained in the sports community in this town as the next guy.
The latest team to hit the scene in Philly has been the Union, Major League Soccer’s 16th franchise. Slowly building their team over the last few months, they went from creating an identity in their name and logo, then to the expansion draft and to currently Thursday’s MLS SuperDraft.
I was in attendance for the draft at the Convention Center and was lucky enough to snag myself a press credential to get full access to the players, coaches and poorly-made complimentary ham sandwiches. Part of the job, you see.
Given that I was pretty close to the action and got to speak with a few of the Union’s selections, the Phinally crew thought a guest post would be appropriate so I could drop some knowledge on how everything went down.
So here’s my first ever post for Phinally, which comes in the form of a rundown of Philly’s first ever draft selections. For those of you who counted, we had six through four rounds. That’s Andy Reid-esque.
Danny Mwanga, Oregon State (1st Round, 1st overall): The best pure striker in the draft, Mwanga deserved to get selected first overall. A dominating force at Oregon State, Mwanga is big, hardworking and lethal. He didn’t get the recognition he deserved as his school didn’t make a run in the NCAA tournament, but don’t let that fool you, this kid is a beast.
In 18 games last season, the Republic of Congo native netted an impressive 14 goals and chipped in two assists. He’s strong on the ball and surprisingly quick for a guy of his size (6’ 2”, 175 lbs). He’ll fit right in with team manager Peter Nowak’s aggressive style and should be effecting working off of strikers Alejandro Moreno and Sebastien LeToux.
Amobi Okugo, UCLA (1st Round, 6th overall): A commanding midfielder with a fiery personality, Okugo expects a lot of his teammates. The classic ‘high-motor’ guy, Okugo will be all over the pitch making things happen. He may unsettle some of the established veterans in the squad with his forceful attitude, but he’s joining a newly-forged team and there isn’t really any chemistry to upset. Will work nicely and has ‘Nowak’ written all over him.
Jack McInerney, USMNT U-17 (1st round, 7th overall): In a move that some people are calling a reach given his age, 17, and his disappointing performance in the 2009 U-17 World Cup back in October, the Union grabbed a tricky forward to mix with Mwanga and co. He is young and he is small, but has a huge upside and will give the Nowak an intriguing project to work on as the Union move forward. Personally, I think it’s a solid pick-up and he could blossom into one of the league’s best a few years from now.
Toni Stahl, UConn (2nd round, 17th overall): The oldest player the Union selected at 24, Stahl should jump right in and compete for a starting spot in midfield. A native of Tuusula, Finland, the lanky Stahl (no relation to hockey family, thankfully) could have been a first round pick but slipped a bit and was snatched up with the second round’s first selection. Could turn out to be the steal of the draft.
Kyle Nakazawa, UCLA (3rd round, 33rd overall): Another player from out west, Nakazawa may be fighting for a roster spot by the time the season rolls around. One of his biggest positives is his versatility as he can score from the midfield. 12 goals last season for the Bruins, Nakazawa can certainly drop in a few from deep and is great on set pieces, two qualities coaches relish in their midfielders.
Brian Perk, UCLA (4th round, 49th overall): The first goalie taken, nearly 50 picks in, Perk definitely dropped down the list as he was a standout in each of his four seasons with the Bruins. The third player selected from UCLA, Perk finds himself buried on the depth chart behind former first-rounder Chris Seitz and expansion draft selection Brad Knighton. Could be trade bait for a team in need of a keeper.
And there you have it folks, the Union’s six selections in this year’s MLS SuperDraft. In the last two days the size of the squad has been nearly doubled giving Nowak and the rest of the technical staff something to mold before the season starts in just over two months.
I can honestly say, looking back at the draft class, the club has done as well as any team in recent MLS draft history. They picked up a solid group of young, unique players that can be molded under the tutelage of one of the league’s best managers. It hardly feels like it’s real, but the Union are here, and with every passing day they become more of a complete team ready to do battle in MLS this season.
For more of Shane’s work, head over to Goal.com and check out his two weekly columns on the English Premier League, “The Full English” and “Fish & Chip Shots.” He can also be reached at shane.evans@goal.com or on Twitter @shanevans.
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