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USL Monterey Bay FC

MBFC Agrees to New Contract with Hugh Roberts

December 8, 2022 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Monterey Bay FC News Release


SEASIDE, Calif. - Monterey Bay F.C. announced today that the club has agreed to terms with Hugh Roberts on a new one-year contract with an option to extend for a further year, pending league and federation approval. Captain of the Crisp and Kelp in 2022, Roberts' return secures the fourth and final member of last season's starting back line ahead of the club's sophomore campaign in USL Championship.

The Olney, Maryland native led an impressive defense for the Union that caught its stride near the middle of the campaign and finished the year with 11 shutouts. He logged 2,735 minutes across all competitions and started in 30 of his 31 total appearances, with the lone appearance off the bench coming in U.S. Open Cup play.

"It's great to have Hugh back, he had a really good season with us. He is a natural, experienced leader," said Monterey Bay F.C. Sporting Director and Head Coach Frank Yallop. "It's great that we've got all of the back four that had a great stretch of games and a ton of clean sheets last season. We have a good foundation now."

Roberts recorded three goals and one assist for the Crisp and Kelp last season, including the game-winning goal in the 90th minute in Oakland on March 26 to secure the first win in club history with a 3-2 result. In addition, Roberts recorded a team-high 124 clearances, 40 interceptions, 29 blocks, and 28 tackles. He also represented the Union in USL Championship's Team of the Week on two separate occasions last season: week 3 and week 23.

Now entering the 10th campaign of his professional career, Roberts finished the 2022 season ranked third all-time in USL Championship history with 18,627 career minutes played and 7th all time in USL Championship history in career appearances with 233. Roberts needs just 1,451 minutes to climb up to second in league history next season, and just 10 appearances to climb into fifth all-time in that category.

"It feels great to come back, we have some unfinished business to take care of. Last year was an amazing first year, but we're returning a lot of guys and we're ready to make another powerful run," said Roberts. "We feel like we just started our season those last three months, so we're really just getting started. We have big goals and high expectations this year. The defense ended on a strong note, and the offense just got clicking. The last couple of results were unfortunate, but all of us have an unfinished business mentality coming into this season, trust me. We're going for a playoff run, more importantly a home playoff game - we want to bring trophies to this city."

Roberts continued, "We love the home atmosphere here and there's nothing better than that. We're hungry and we're ready to bring some excitement to you guys for a full season this time, rather than getting started in May. We want to see everybody supporting us and cheering us on. We need you guys, and we can't wait to see you all out there. I'm also excited to make my way throughout the community to see everybody again, so come say hello to me, I can't wait to make an impact here."

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