DeSantis and Sutton finalists for A-League awards
Published on September 15, 2004 under USL First Division (USL-1)
Montreal Impact News Release
MONTREAL, September 15, 2004 â Montreal Impact head coach Nick DeSantis and goalkeeper Greg Sutton will be joining defender Gabriel Gervais as finalists for league awards to be handed out at the 2004 A-League Championship Banquet, Thursday evening in Laval. DeSantis was nominated for the A-League Coach of the Year honour and Greg Sutton, for the Most Valuable Player award, Wednesday. Gervais was selected as a candidate for the Defender of the Year award on Tuesday.
Also up for the Coach of the Year award is Portland Timbers head coach Bobby Howe. The other two finalists for Most Valuable Player are Dante Washington of the Virginia Beach Mariners, as well as Portland's Alan Gordon, also in the running for Rookie of the Year honours.
On Tuesday, Peter Luzak of the Richmond Kickers was announced as the other finalist for the Defender of the Year honour, while his teammate McColm Cephas was up for the Rookie of the Year award.
All awards were voted on by A-League coaches and general managers.
The A-League Championship is Saturday, September 18 in Montreal at Claude Robillard Sports Complex (7:00 pm, live on Fox Sports World, RDS, CKAC).
COACH OF THE YEAR
In his debut as a head coach after two seasons as player-assistant coach for Bob Lilley, DeSantis led the Impact to a 17-6-5 season in 2004 as the team broke Rochester's 1998 single season shutout record of 18 with 19 shutouts during the regular season. The team also went undefeated for 12 games (8-0-4) to start the season, a club record, and then clinched the Eastern Conference regular-season title with eight straight shutouts in July and August, also a new club record. The club also tied a club record for fewest losses in a season (6).
The Timbers' only head coach, Howe had a breakout season, leading the club to a team-best 18-7-3 mark for the regular season league title. The Timbers led the league in offense with 58 goals on the season, 14 more than second-place Milwaukee and Richmond. The team also ranked sixth in the league in fewest goals allowed (30). Through four seasons, Howe has yet to have a losing record.
A-LEAGUE MVP
Sutton had a record year, tying former Rochester Rhinos netminder Pat Onstad's league record of 16 shutouts in a season, set in 1998. Sutton's league-low goals against average of 0.54, which earned him the Goalkeeper of the Year honour for the second straight year, is the third lowest in A-League history for a season of 20 or more games.
Washington was crowned Scoring Champion after finishing the season with 40 points on 17 goals and six assists. He also finished in a tie with Portland's rookie striker Alan Gordon for the Goal Scoring Championship. Washington was second in goal scoring last season with 18.
Gordon, also a finalist for Rookie of the Year, finished tied with Washington for the Goal Scoring Championship with 17 goals on the season. He ranked third in points with 35.
USL First Division Stories from September 15, 2004
- DeSantis and Sutton finalists for A-League awards - Montreal Impact
- Gervais finalist for A-League Defender of the Year - Montreal Impact
- Kickers Announce MVP Awards - Richmond Kickers
- Timbers' Howe, Gordon finalists for postseason honors - Portland Timbers
- Dante Washington Named Finalist for 2004 A-League Player of the Year - Virginia Beach Mariners
- 2004 A-League Coach of the Year, MVP Finalists announced - USL-1
- U.S. U-17 88's Men's National Soccer Team returns to Florida after facing Silverbacks - Atlanta Silverbacks
- Battery sets winter schedule - Charleston Battery
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