Goodbyes Said, Revs Look for New Faces

New England Must Replace Four Key Players

March 27, 2008

By Nick Williams

In previous years during the Revolution’s recent string of Eastern Conference titles, the team was able to bring back the majority of its core players year after year, a difficult and nearly unprecedented feat in today’s age of sports parity.

But this offseason was different for New England. The club lost four key regulars after the Revs’ third straight MLS Cup loss in November, including the second- and third-leading scorers, a versatile midfielder/defender and a mainstay in the defensive third.

Pat Noonan, Andy Dorman, James Riley and Avery John were all allowed to walk away or, in Riley’s case, were selected in the expansion draft.

Taylor Twellman and Pat Noonan won't be making runs like this anymore (Photo credit: Joyce Furia).

Noonan and Dorman left on free transfers to Aalesund (Norway) and St. Mirren (Scotland), respectively, John was let go and is currently without a playing contract and Riley was plucked by the new San Jose Earthquakes in November’s expansion draft. All four started at last 18 games for the Revs last year.

“When you lose four key guys, that’s our biggest adjustment,” said striker Taylor Twellman, who if he had it his way would have been the fifth departure if his transfer to Preston North End wasn’t blocked. “We need to bring the locker room together and make sure there are no cliques.

“But I think we’re gonna be fine.”

So does goalkeeper Matt Reis, who in his 10 years in the league has seen this type of turnover before.

“There’s going to be a period of adjustment,” Reis said. “We’ve got some new players playing some significant minutes for us. We need guys to step up, but that’s the case every year.”

But these aren’t just complementary players the club is replacing. All four have been with the team since at least 2005 and have been on the roster for the past three MLS Cups – all Revs’ defeats.

Noonan and Dorman finished tied with seven goals apiece, good for second on the team. Noonan netted 42 goals in 137 games over five seasons with the Revs, finishing tied with Joe-Max Moore for second place on the club's all-time scoring list behind Twellman. Noonan and Twellman spent most of their time up front together during their time in New England, a fact not lost on Twellman.

“Obviously losing a guy like Pat, where he and I had a good understanding…” Twellman said, his voice trailing off. “Whoever is playing up top, we’ve got to do our jobs. Our strength is there is a lot of competition. That’s a tribute to Stevie [Nicol] and the attitude he brings in.”

Dorman, a sixth-round draft pick out of Boston University played four years with the Revolution, never playing any better than the first half of last season, when the Chester, England native, playing in an attacking midfield role, scored his seventh goal by July 14.

However, Dorman’s season went downhill after he was left of the MLS All-Star roster by Revs’ coach Steve Nicol. His play – and minutes – slowly diminished throughout the year and he finished the season stuck on seven goals and the Revolution’s bench. He didn’t play in the playoffs either, save for a brief cameo as a substitute in the MLS Cup in what will go down as his last appearance in a New England uniform.

And while the Revs plan on second-year players Kenny Mansally and Adam Cristman as well as new addition Mauricio Castro to replace some of that scoring void left by Dorman and Noonan, they don’t have a clear-cut replacement for Riley yet. The dynamic wing was able to shift between midfielder and defender depending on what Nicol needed. His versatility will be missed by the New England coaching staff.

“Losing James gave us a problem,” Nicol said of Riley. “We certainly still need cover, and we’re actively trying to get that cover. Losing James was a blow, but with a new team coming you’ve got to lose a player, whether it was James or somebody else.”

The fourth key departure, John, was a mainstay defender who played in 19 games (18 starts) for the Revs last season. He appeared in 75 games over four seasons in New England, primarily in an outside back role.

His replacement is the surest the Revs have locked up thus far, securing the outside back position when they traded for MLS and United States veteran Chris Albright. The Revs also drafted 6-foot-3 defender Rob Valentino out of San Francisco with their first pick in the MLS draft. While Valentino is best suited to play the middle, he’s capable of manning any position across the back.

It’s the additions like Valentino, Albright and Castro that have returning veterans like Reis at ease regarding both the play on the field and the atmosphere off it.

“I think that we’ve got a really good group of guys,” Reis said. “We have energy guys who are going to get lots of opportunities.”

“Our coaching staff spent more time this offseason traveling trying to replace players and fill the void so to speak,” added Director of Soccer Mike Burns. “We feel like we have players who will add to our team.”

And if any of those players fail to add to the team or don’t fit into what the coaches had in mind, the Revs ensure they’ll find someone who can.

“We are always actively looking, whether it’s internally through trade or internationally somewhere else,” Burns said. “With the number of games we have this year, it’s important we try to get the best 28 players possible."

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