Tony Meola named MISL Goalkeeper of the Week

October 29, 2007 - Major Indoor Soccer League 2 (MISL 2)
New Jersey Ironmen News Release


NEWARK, NJ-The Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) announced today that New Jersey Ironmen goalkeeper Tony Meola has been named the MISL Goalkeeper of the Week. The former U.S. National Team netminder played the entire game in goal for the Ironmen this past Friday, helping the team to a 7-4 win over the Orlando Sharks in the first game in club history.

"We had our backs against the wall, but we weathered the storm," Meola stated about the hard-fought victory over Orlando. "Orlando has a good team, and they came at us."

Meola tallied ten saves on the evening. After shutting out the Sharks for the first three quarters, Orlando got on the board in the fourth frame with a pair of two-pointers. During the final two minutes of the contest, Meola turned away of flurry of shots to preserve the opening day win for the Ironmen.

"Tony is excellent with his feet, and that is a very important aspect of the indoor game," Ironmen Head Coach and Vice President of Soccer Operations Omid Namazi stated. "He plays really big in the goal which cuts down the angles. He actually has all of the necessary components to be a very good indoor goalkeeper."

Meola feels that Namazi has played an important in role in teaching the indoor game to not only him, but also other outdoor veterans on the team that are going through the conversion.

"Omid is doing a great job of teaching everybody this game," Meola commented. "He put together a great group, and it is not surprising that all of the players enjoy being here."

Meola last played indoor soccer with the Buffalo Blizzard of the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) during the 1994-95 season. The NPSL disbanded in 2001, and the six surviving teams went on to form what is the current MISL.

Meola played every minute in goal for the U.S. National Team during the 1990 and 1994 World Cup, including a 2-1 victory over Columbia to advance to the second round in 1994. The 1989 NCAA Hermann Trophy winner (awarded to the top collegiate soccer player in the country) enjoyed a ten-year career in Major League Soccer (MLS) with the New York/ New Jersey MetroStars (now known as Red Bull New York) and Kansas City Wizards. He shattered the MLS record by tallying 16 shutouts in 2000 en route to being named the MLS Goalkeeper of the Year. He also led the Wizards to the league championship that year, and he was named the MLS Most Valuable Player for the season and the MLS Cup.

The Ironmen will host a 15-match home schedule at Prudential Center this season. The club will face the Detroit Ignition in their home debut on Saturday, December 1st. Joining the Ironmen as an honorary captain for the historical outing will be soccer legend Pelé. The Ignition are coming off a successful season in which they were the 2007 MISL Championship Series runners-up. After reaching the finals in just their first season, Detroit fell to the Philadelphia KiXX in the MISL championship, 13-8.

Ticket lines are open now for season, individual and group ticket packages. Do not miss your chance to see Pelé help kick off the Ironmen's home slate on December 1st! Call 1-800-IRONMEN today to secure your place in New Jersey Ironmen history!



Major Indoor Soccer League 2 Stories from October 29, 2007


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