TheKottonmouthed1555362307 Posted December 23, 2009 Share Posted December 23, 2009 quote:Vancouver Whitecaps FC announced today the signing of midfielder Jonathan 'Jonny' Steele from United Soccer Leagues First Division (USL-1) club Puerto Rico Islanders. The club also announced today the signing of defender Greg Janicki from Major League Soccer (MLS) side D.C. United. Both players have agreed to one-year contracts - plus an option - with the North American Soccer League outfit. Steele, 23, comes to Vancouver with six years of experience as a USL-1 player. A native of Larne, Northern Ireland, Steele's most productive seasons in the league were with Puerto Rico. The midfielder won the 2008 USL-1 Most Valuable Player award and was the league's assist leader during his first season with the Islanders, as the Caribbean club claimed the Commissioner's Cup title as USL-1 regular season champions. In 2009, the midfielder made the USL-1 All-League Second Team after helping Puerto Rico to a third-place finish in the regular season standings. Steele also appeared in the first two editions of the CONCACAF Champions League, with the midfielder helping the Islanders to the semifinals of the 2008-09 competition. In his two seasons with Puerto Rico, Steele made 56 USL-1 regular season and playoff appearances for 4,786 minutes of action, scoring seven goals and adding 18 assists in that time. Prior to his spell with Puerto Rico, Steele appeared in USL-1 with Syracuse Salty Dogs (2004) and Rochester Rhinos (2005 & 2006) before spending the 2007 season with USL-1 expansion club Carolina RailHawks. He also played in the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) with Kansas City Comets, Baltimore Blast, and Philadelphia KiXX, having won the 2005-06 MISL title with Baltimore. Steele also represented Northern Ireland at youth international level, having appeared in all three group matches during his country's hosting of the 2005 UEFA European Under-19 Championship. Janicki, 25, joins the Whitecaps following a spell with D.C. United, having initially joined the MLS club on a developmental contract in September 2008. Born in Rochester, Michigan, and raised in New Baltimore, Michigan, the defender made 10 MLS appearances for 638 minutes of action before his release from the Washington, D.C., outfit last month. Janicki's only goal for the club came in the group stage of the 2008-09 CONCACAF Champions League, as United lost 4-2 at home to Honduras' Club Deportivo Marathon on October 29, 2008. Before his spell in MLS, Janicki started his professional career in 2008 with USL Second Division club Pittsburgh Riverhounds. With the Pennsylvania-based outfit, the defender recorded one assist in 14 appearances. He also played two seasons in the USL Premier Development League with Michigan Bucks (2006) and West Michigan Edge (2007). A college standout at Michigan State University, Janicki was named to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America/adidas All-Great Lakes Region Second Team and the All-Big Ten First Team during his senior year with the Spartans. http://www.whitecapsfc.com/archive/feature12230901.aspx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RS Posted December 23, 2009 Share Posted December 23, 2009 Steele is good. Janicki sucks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calgary Boomer Posted December 23, 2009 Share Posted December 23, 2009 Steel is a HUGE pickup. Watch the set plays dramatically improve with Steele and Sanchez. I wonder if the Whitecaps will vulture some more players from Puerto Rico...which seems to be in limbo with the USL/NASL situation. Bill Gaudette anyone? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calgary Boomer Posted December 23, 2009 Share Posted December 23, 2009 quote:Originally posted by Rudi Steele is good. Janicki sucks. Wow. Thank god you're not a scout. He's played in 7 MLS games. Care to share why you think he sucks? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheKottonmouthed1555362307 Posted December 23, 2009 Author Share Posted December 23, 2009 Yeah the jury is still out on Janicki especially since I think he would still be behind Pejic and Zourab. One thing Janicki will bring is some more size standing at 6'3''. The Caps now have some good Defensive depth in Pejic, Zourab, Trafford, Williams, Bellisomo, Knight and now Janicki. Thompson and Pozniak both have options for 2010 still I believe. I doubt Parke is back though. Steele will be a great addition to the Midfield and like previously mentioned the set plays will be vastly improved with Steele and Sanchez. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr.Impact Posted December 23, 2009 Share Posted December 23, 2009 Vancouver is going about their business the right way, in building depth for their upcoming MLS debut. Both Steele and Sanchez are MLS quality. Add the young players they developed along with some MLS signings, and you have the Seattle Sounders Version 2.0. Gaudette would be an excellent number 2 on any MLS side for the simple fact that he would help develop younger keepers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheKottonmouthed1555362307 Posted December 24, 2009 Author Share Posted December 24, 2009 quote:Originally posted by Mr.Impact Vancouver is going about their business the right way, in building depth for their upcoming MLS debut. Both Steele and Sanchez are MLS quality. Add the young players they developed along with some MLS signings, and you have the Seattle Sounders Version 2.0. Gaudette would be an excellent number 2 on any MLS side for the simple fact that he would help develop younger keepers. Yeah I'm definitely getting excited for the upcoming season and how some of the residency guys who made the jump last year adjust to the significant minutes they are sure to receive this season especially Orgill and Edwini-Bonsou. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leftcoastkicks Posted December 24, 2009 Share Posted December 24, 2009 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masster Posted December 24, 2009 Share Posted December 24, 2009 quote:Originally posted by TheKottonmouthed Thompson and Pozniak both have options for 2010 still I believe. I doubt Parke is back though. At least try to get your information correct, buddy. Thompson left the Caps halfway through last season and it has already been announced that Pozniak will not be around in 2010 because he didn't want to come back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RS Posted December 24, 2009 Share Posted December 24, 2009 quote:Originally posted by Calgary Boomer Wow. Thank god you're not a scout. He's played in 7 MLS games. Care to share why you think he sucks? Because he's a terrible man-marker, poor positionally and his lack of skill on the ball is a huge liability. Jakovic had to bail him out numerous times before Tom Soehn realized that Janicki was simply not at an MLS level. He may look better at NASL/USL level, but for a team looking to the MLS future (especially with Soehn rumoured to be joining the Caps as TD) his signing is certainly a surprise to me. Janicki is at the same level of Marco Velez, IMO. Steele, on the other hand, is a player that could really boost Vancouver's level of play. Did I pass your scouting test, now? [8)] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheKottonmouthed1555362307 Posted December 24, 2009 Author Share Posted December 24, 2009 quote:Originally posted by masster At least try to get your information correct, buddy. Thompson left the Caps halfway through last season and it has already been announced that Pozniak will not be around in 2010 because he didn't want to come back. clean the sand out of your vagina buddy then post. I made one minor mistake give me a break. I forgot Thompson went off to go into sales or something. I hadn't heard anything about Pozniak though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Streets Posted December 24, 2009 Share Posted December 24, 2009 Now now Southsiders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calgary Boomer Posted December 25, 2009 Share Posted December 25, 2009 quote:Originally posted by Rudi Because he's a terrible man-marker, poor positionally and his lack of skill on the ball is a huge liability. Jakovic had to bail him out numerous times before Tom Soehn realized that Janicki was simply not at an MLS level. He may look better at NASL/USL level, but for a team looking to the MLS future (especially with Soehn rumoured to be joining the Caps as TD) his signing is certainly a surprise to me. Janicki is at the same level of Marco Velez, IMO. Steele, on the other hand, is a player that could really boost Vancouver's level of play. Did I pass your scouting test, now? [8)] Well, you've given your assessments based on 10 MLS games, of which you've seen how many in person? I'm guessing maybe 1? So no you didn't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RS Posted December 26, 2009 Share Posted December 26, 2009 quote:Originally posted by Calgary Boomer Well, you've given your assessments based on 10 MLS games, of which you've seen how many in person? I'm guessing maybe 1? So no you didn't. WTF? So I'm not supposed to have an opinion on a player because I haven't seen him in what, 50 games? 60? What arbitrary number would you assign that would allow me to form an opinion on a player? Why don't we just shut down this whole forum, since most people here haven't seen every player they post about a certain pre-determined (by you, apparently) number of times before coming to their own conclusions? By the way, how many times have you seen him play, coach? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RS Posted December 26, 2009 Share Posted December 26, 2009 quote:Originally posted by Calgary Boomer Well, you've given your assessments based on 10 MLS games, of which you've seen how many in person? I'm guessing maybe 1? So no you didn't. WTF? So I'm not supposed to have an opinion on a player because I haven't seen him in what, 50 games? 60? What arbitrary number would you assign that would allow me to form an opinion on a player? Why don't we just shut down this whole forum, since most people here haven't seen every player they post about a certain pre-determined (by you, apparently) number of times before coming to their own conclusions? By the way, how many times have you seen him play, coach? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettermirror Posted December 26, 2009 Share Posted December 26, 2009 Frankly, time will tell....Caps have released a lot of players this off season and couldn't rely on residency to pick up the slack. If they don't do well ahead of MLS they will have marketing issues. Boomer - give yer head a shake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettermirror Posted December 26, 2009 Share Posted December 26, 2009 Frankly, time will tell....Caps have released a lot of players this off season and couldn't rely on residency to pick up the slack. If they don't do well ahead of MLS they will have marketing issues. Boomer - give yer head a shake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jeffery S. Posted December 26, 2009 Share Posted December 26, 2009 I figure everyone the Caps sign is on trial this year. All of them. Those proving they can keep up or step up, great. The kids show an upward curve? Keep them. They are still going to pick up players in the draft and waived, and are going to likely sign outside the continent as well. So I figure the Caps can take maybe 12-14 from the lower division maximum, including development players. You want to end the year before you step into MLS shoes with a "team", 9 NASL starters and few others. But you are going to have to sign key players in every position, except perhaps keeper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masster Posted December 27, 2009 Share Posted December 27, 2009 quote:Originally posted by TheKottonmouthed clean the sand out of your vagina buddy then post. I made one minor mistake give me a break. I forgot Thompson went off to go into sales or something. I hadn't heard anything about Pozniak though. This coming from the same guy that suggested we cut Dero, Bernier, Friend and Klukowski from the national team. Please keep sharing your intelligent insight with us because it is always worth a laugh. Merry Christmas to you too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calgary Boomer Posted December 27, 2009 Share Posted December 27, 2009 quote:Originally posted by bettermirror Frankly, time will tell....Caps have released a lot of players this off season and couldn't rely on residency to pick up the slack. If they don't do well ahead of MLS they will have marketing issues. Boomer - give yer head a shake. Why should I give my head a shake? I can't contradict a generic assessment of a player? That's just stupid...as are Rudy's comments about a player he thinks he can peg after 1 or 2 games. It's utterly idiotic sometimes the crap that spews from people's mouths. If you're going to say someone is crap...don't come on here pretending to be the all knowing and say "he can't man mark" or some cliche critique you could probably use on any player. Have specific reasons. I don't know anything about the player...I can honestly say I've not seen a single game. So I'm not going to come on here and dismiss him like he's pub player. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loyola Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 You are on a fan forum CB. Unless we are talking about a 10 caps plus MNT player, or a TFC/MTL/Van player, there's a big chance people here haven't seen too much of a player when giving an opinion. So, take Rudi comment as what it is, just the opinion of a fan. He thinks he's crap, fine. If you think he's good well tell us why but don't start an argument because you think Rudi hasn't seen enough of Janicki to have a valid opinion. It's often just a question of perception. Ask Red Star Belgrade fans about Jakovic and they'll tell you he's crap. While here people think he's pretty good and represent the future... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RS Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 quote:Originally posted by Calgary Boomer Why should I give my head a shake? I can't contradict a generic assessment of a player? That's just stupid...as are Rudy's comments about a player he thinks he can peg after 1 or 2 games. It's utterly idiotic sometimes the crap that spews from people's mouths. If you're going to say someone is crap...don't come on here pretending to be the all knowing and say "he can't man mark" or some cliche critique you could probably use on any player. Have specific reasons. I don't know anything about the player...I can honestly say I've not seen a single game. So I'm not going to come on here and dismiss him like he's pub player. What I find funny is that you didn't challenge my position that Steele is a good player. This despite my having seen him in action (on TV or in person) less than I have Janicki. Why is that? Regardless, loyola is spot on. This is a fan discussion board, and I'm hardly the first person to post an opinion on a player that others may not have seen. What's your beef with this particular opinion? I'm not pretending to be all knowing, I simply stated my opinions on the two players in question, albeit in a very brief manner. If I'm not supposed to post opinion on certain players, then we may as well shut down the forum completely, because that is 90% of the discussion here. As to the "quality" of my assessment, I didn't realize I needed a high level coaching license to submit an opinion on a fan board. Seriously. I'm going to assume based on your location that you've rarely (if ever) seen any TFC players live, save perhaps the Canadian vets on the roster. Using your same logic that you used against me, I kindly ask you to refrain from ever posting an opinion about any of them until you've seen at least ten TFC games in person. P.S. What I post doesn't come out of my mouth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VPjr Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 Janicki is a classic "soccer athlete". Big, Strong and fairly clueless. I think Rudi's Marco Velez comparison is pretty fair. I don't recall seeing posts from DC United fans on Big Soccer crying when their club released him last month, that's for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RS Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 quote:Originally posted by VPjr Janicki is a classic "soccer athlete". Big, Strong and fairly clueless. I think Rudi's Marco Velez comparison is pretty fair. I don't recall seeing posts from DC United fans on Big Soccer crying when their club released him last month, that's for sure. He really has no soccer brain, which is why the guy next to him who did (Jakovic) had to bail him out on so many occasions. It's no coincidence that DC's defence looked a lot better without Janicki in the lineup (and I saw about 20 DC games last year on MLSnet or GolTV, as I tend to pay close attention to other MLS teams with Canadians). No way does Janicki make it past this upcoming season with the Caps, unless they are really desperate for bodies in defence. He is not an MLS-level defender. Steele on the other hand is in with a shot to move up woth the Caps to MLS in 2011. I don't know if he's starting lineup material, but he's at least on the level of Seb LeToux or Roger Levesque as a solid sub on the bench of an MLS club. I think he'll dominate NASL with a solid midfield core beside him, however. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr.Impact Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 Steele was USL-1 MVP in 2008, so yeah at 23, he's better then both LeToux and Levesque. I'd compare him to Osvaldo Alonso of the Sounders. Both can start, and hold their own in MLS. Dwayne DeRosario was 22 when he scored 15 goals for the Richmond Kickers in 2000, before moving on to San Jose the following season. NASL/USL-1 has some excellent players, MLS teams that do their homework, and sign these players are more often satisfied then dissatisfied. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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