2016 Tulsa Roughnecks Season Thread

[DowntownDan]

I got an email from the Roughnecks that David Irving was "reassigned" to the front office and that they'll be hiring a new coach.  Also saw that Ottawa and Tampa Bay moved from NASL to USL.  With Rayo OKC folding is the NASL dead?  Could the remaining teams merge into USL and the league move to Tier 2?  It would make sense, in my opinion, for the USL teams that are alone in their markets (Tulsa, OKC, St. Louis) to be in a Tier 2 division, and for the farm teams that share their MLS market (Portland, Seattle, Vancouver) to their own Tier 3 division.  Those teams get very low attendance since they are in MLS markets.

[davideinstein]

NASL will struggle, it's a cycle. They have a new team in San Francisco and another one likely coming in Chicago.

Regarding the Irving move, who promotes a terrible head coach? The Roughnecks. That's who.

[MostSeriousness]

http://www.chicago-fire.com/post/2017/02/15/chicago-fire-announce-tulsa-roughnecks-fc-new-usl-affiliate

This looks promising

[TulsaRufnex]

Problem is, the Fire have been horrible for nearly the past decade, and it was St Louis who terminated the affiliation with Chicago, not the other way around.
Meanwhile, Orlando opens at their new soccer specific stadium this weekend....


This new stadium has an upper deck twice as big as the lower... reminds me of a certain soon-to-be-torn-down stadium at the fairgrounds which could have been remodeled for a fraction of the cost Tulsa county taxpayers will cough up to tear it down and replace it with a BMX facility.

Sad.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WGCe9_Jj7s

[RecycleMichael]

Orlando is a very large and wealthy area. It is also one of the most international cities in America.

The Orlando soccer crowd and Tulsa soccer crowd are not the same.

The Orlando stadium was financed very interestingly. A guy in Brazil financed the stadium offering investors who had $500,000 to be a partner. Each partner from Brazil and others from China each got annual dividends, two season tickets, and a United States green card.

https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/17/sports/soccer/orlando-soccer-stadium-foreign-investors-visas.html?_r=0

[TulsaRufnex]

Orlando's a bit Mickey Mouse for my tastes.
Would be nice to see Tampa Bay return to MLS as the Rowdies.

I believe Tulsa's fanbase would respond and wholeheartedly support a competitive local MLS team in surprisingly good numbers if ever given a fighting chance.
To this day, I believe Tulsa is a better soccer town than Denver (Commerce City), KC (Johnson Cty KS), Dallas (Frisco, TX) and that team in Houston currently playing in front of tons of empty seats in its own downtown soccer specific stadium.

Problem is, ONEOK was NOT built to accommodate professional soccer in any meaningful way.
Having to sit on the third baseline is a total slap in the face for any Roughnecks FC season ticket holder.
The sooner soccer is no longer played at the baseball park at ONEOK the better.

[Laramie]

Agree with TulsaRufnex that Tulsa's fanbase would support a competitive local MLS team if given the chance.   You had decent attendance numbers considering the dismal performance of the Roughnecks.  Keep in my that the Athletic fan base pulled from the soccer community.  

It not far-fetched to think that an MLS franchise in T-town would be that big of a risk.  Factor in that the Roughnecks & Athletics combined probably draw close to 10,000.  

Now, good minor league attendance isn't always a great gauge; however it does indicate that potential exists.

[shavethewhales]

Unfortunately OKC is already beating us to the punch as usual. They are preparing to build a big new soccer specific stadium right in their downtown area. They will get the MLS expansion - and Tulsa will be expected to be part of OKC's fanclub as usual.

But at least the Roughnecks are poised to do better this year. New coach, new players, and new affiliation to work with. At least it will probably be watchable this year.

[Laramie]

Unfortunately OKC is already beating us to the punch as usual. They are preparing to build a big new soccer specific stadium right in their downtown area. They will get the MLS expansion - and Tulsa will be expected to be part of OKC's fanclub as usual.

But at least the Roughnecks are poised to do better this year. New coach, new players, and new affiliation to work with. At least it will probably be watchable this year.

Nothing concrete yet with OKC Energy FC's purchase of the Producers Cooperative Mill's toxic 31 acre site which will require some major clean up. They are exploring TIF (Tax Increment Finance district) funding to help develop office & mix-use residential on the site.  

Now, that Rayo OKC is out of commission, Energy FC's ownership will examine the potential stadium construction which is 7 to 10 years away.  Funk-McLaughlin wants to see if the fan base maintains stability.  NASL Rayo OKC & USL Energy both televised all home & away games in 2016.

OKC will not likely get expansion unless MLS goes beyond their targeted 28 teams; relocation looks like their only option.

2016 Soccer Attendance:  https://www.kenn.com/the_blog/?tag=soccer-attendance

[TulsaRufnex]

[Conan71]

What constitutes an ineligible player at this level?

[TulsaRufnex]

What constitutes an ineligible player at this level?

International clearance which can take awhile...

USL Rewind: Roughnecks forced to forfeit game
by Ridge Mahoney, April 4th
https://www.socceramerica.com/article/72900/usl-rewind-roughnecks-forfeit-game-because-of-ine.html

The Transfer Process
http://www.ussoccer.com/About/Federation-Services/Intl-Clearance.aspx
Below is the applicable regulation, since this Canadian player played in Croatia before playing for Roughnecks FC.

4. ITC Request – Any player over the age of 18 who has been previously registered to a club in another country cannot be registered to a club in the United States until U.S. Soccer has received an International Transfer Certificate (ITC) from the player's former association. To initiate this process, the player must complete and submit an ITC Request form to U.S. Soccer, who will then request the ITC from the national association with which the player was most recently registered.

[TulsaRufnex]

Today will decide if St. Louis builds a soccer stadium (and gets an MLS expansion team)
Ryan Rosenblatt @RyanRosenblatt
Apr 4, 2017
http://www.foxsports.com/soccer/story/mls-expansion-st-louis-soccer-stadium-vote-040417?sf67841717=1

St. Louis Stadium Ownership Group Has Big Money — and No City Residency
by Caitlin Lee March 30, 2017
http://m.riverfronttimes.com/newsblog/2017/03/30/st-louis-stadium-ownership-group-has-big-money-and-no-city-residency

[TulsaRufnex]

Source: Louisville City FC stadium will be built in Butchertown
Danielle Lerner , @Danielle_Lerner Published 6:05 p.m. ET April 11, 2017
http://www.courier-journal.com/story/sports/soccer/louisville-city-fc/2017/04/11/source-louisville-city-fc-stadium-built-butchertown/100341300/

Louisville City FC's development plans will also include a retail and office district around the stadium, according to a news release issued in January when the club hired global architecture firm HOK for the stadium design.