This Week With The Force

Published on March 2, 2004 under Major Indoor Soccer League 2 (MISL 2)
Cleveland Force News Release


Cleveland named Force defender Omid Namazi as the interim head coach for the remainder of the 2003-04 season replacing former coach Andy Schmetzer. Omid will also continue to play on the field for Cleveland for the remainder of the season. Namazi, who was acquired by Cleveland in a trade with the Philadelphia KiXX on December 19, is no stranger to the coaching ranks in the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) as he guided the KiXX as a player and head coach for five seasons. In his five seasons, Omid posted a regular season record of 84-54 and a playoff record of 9-10 as well as capturing the 2002 MISL Championship. Namazi left the KiXX during the 2002-03 season to become the head coach of the San Diego Spirit in the now defunct Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA). In his lone season with the Spirit, Omid guided the team to a record of 8-6-7 and their first trip to the post-season where the team fell in the semifinals to the Atlanta Beat.

GOALKEEPER SHINES:

Force goalkeeper Jim Larkin showed why he deserved to be at the MISL All-Star Game on Sunday afternoon. Larkin, who was the starting goalkeeper for the MISL International squad, recorded 10 saves and allowed just two goals in 30 minutes of action. Jim had numerous saves that were the best of any of the four goalkeepers in the game. Jim has now appeared in three All-Star Games and has recorded 32 saves.

LOOKING FOR NUMBER ONE:

Cleveland will be looking for its first win this season versus the two expansion team in the St. Louis Steamers and the Monterrey Fury when the Force takes on both teams this weekend. Cleveland has dropped the first two meetings with the Steamers, including the last meeting on January 31 in the final minute of the game by a final score of 6-5. The Force will face the Fury for the final time this season on Sunday and Monterrey has defeated Cleveland in the three previous three contests. The Force fell to the Fury by a final of 5-3 on February 6.

FORCE TAKES SIX PLAYERS:

The Force selected six players in the MISL Amateur Draft held last Friday during the All-Star Weekend in St. Louis. Cleveland selected forward Kirk Harwat (Territorial Round) out of the University of Akron, forward Tim O' Neill (1st Round) out of St. John's (Pa.) University, midfielder Ian Pilarski (1st Round) out of Cornell (N.Y.) University, forward Siad Ali (2nd Round), forward Oskar Tilly (3rd Round) out of Long Island (N.Y.) University and forward Neil Krause (4th Round) out of Boston College.

MISL EXPANDS WEST:

The MISL announced the addition of one team for the 2005-06 season in the City of Stockton, California. The MISL currently has nine teams in the United States (including one existing West Coast franchise in San Diego) and Monterrey, Mexico. The franchise in Stockton, located just 40 miles from Sacramento, will be owned by businessman John Thomas, the MISL's first minority owner. Thomas' company, Regent, is developing a new arena and hotel complex in Stockton. The arena will be the home of the MISL franchise as well as expansion teams in the East Coast Hockey league (ECHL) and Arena Football League2 (AF2).

SECOND BOBBLEHEAD NIGHT:

The Cleveland Force and Huntington Bank will host the second bobblehead night featuring the defender John Ball on Sunday, March 14 as the Force takes on the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) Western Division Dallas Sidekicks at the Convocation Center at Cleveland State University. The game is scheduled to start at 7:05 p.m. and the first 2,500 fans age 14 and under will receive a complimentary John Ball Bobblehead courtesy of Huntington Bank.

TOUR D' FORCE:

The Force will be holding its third stage on the Tour D' Force at the Soccer Sportsplex in North Olmsted on Tuesday, March 16. The 60-minute training session will feature a full team practice and autograph session starting at 6:00 p.m. This is a perfect chance for fans to meet their favorite players and get autographs and pictures with them.

ITINERARY:
3/1/04 Practice 10-12:00 Force Fitness Institute
3/2/04 Practice 10-12:00 Force Fitness Institute
3/3/04 Practice 10-12:00 Force Fitness Institute
3/4/04 Practice 10-12:00 Force Fitness Institute
3/5/04 Practice 10:30-12:30 Force Fitness Institute
3/6/04 Force at Blast 7:35 p.m. Family Arena
3/7/04 Force at Fury 6:35 p.m. Monterrey Arena
-- All Practice Times or Locations Are Subject To Change --

Directions to the Force Fitness Indoor Soccer Facility in Warrensville Heights: The facility is located across from Thistledown Race Track on Northfield Road. From the West: Take Route 480 East to Northfield Road Exit and take a left on Northfield. The soccer center will be a mile and half down on your right-hand side. From the East: Take 480 West to the Miles Road Exit and take a right onto Miles. Proceed to Northfield Road and take a right; the practice center will be a mile down on the right.

FORCE RADIO NETWORK:

Cleveland Force fans will be able to follow the club all season long on the Force Radio Network. All thirty-six regular season games, as well as all playoff games will be aired. The flagship station for Force soccer is WHK 1220 AM in Cleveland and WHKW 1440 AM in Warren. Thesportsking.com will be streaming all the games live on the Internet at www.thesportsking.com

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Major Indoor Soccer League 2 Stories from March 2, 2004


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