Forge FC (Hamilton) launch/2019 offseason thread

[DigzTFC]

9 hours ago, -Hammer- said:

Really, I think that's the only criticism you can make, that we're all getting Sigma alumni, and potentially not casting the net as wide as possible.

It's not a criticism.  It's an observation.  Sigma FC has been "THE" best academy in Ontario in terms of professional player production for the last 5-10 years.  Hiring Bobby was the smartest move Forge could make.  I would imagine Forge will open up a lot of eyes with their international signings given Sigma's vast network of relationships in Europe.  He will also be able to replicate the academy model in Hamilton

Edited January 16, 2019 by DigzTFC

[1996]

42 minutes ago, DigzTFC said:

It's not a criticism.  It's an observation.  Sigma FC has been "THE" best academy in Ontario in terms of professional player production for the last 5-10 years.  Hiring Bobby was the smartest move Forge could make.  I would imagine Forge will open up a lot of eyes with their international signings given Sigma vast network of relationships in Europe.  He will also be able to replicate the academy model in Hamilton

Remember Bobby owns Sigma it’s a business for him, it’s a pay per play academy. Maybe for now Forge just use Sigma as they academy for now as long Bobby is with Forge. 

[BringBackTheBlizzard]

1 hour ago, 1996 said:

Remember Bobby owns Sigma it’s a business for him, it’s a pay per play academy. Maybe for now Forge just use Sigma as they academy for now as long Bobby is with Forge. 

I'd definitely be wary if the Sigma trend at the Forge stretches much further than it does now given what happened when TFC management got too close to one player agent (Barry MacLean) in TFC's early years.

[baulderdash77]

For now I’m not too worried.  This year is a bit of a bridge year anyways as lots of players are signed in other leagues.

Year 1 CanPL is not going to be year 10 CanPL.

[-Hammer-]

10 hours ago, deschamp86 said:

Anyone that criticizes Forge for picking up a core of Sigma players is absolutely bonkers. Most of these guys played together growing up and will have chemistry, and they all know how Bobby S wants to play

Did you actually read my post? Not only did I ask for a grain of salt, but I explicated stated that I understood the coach getting his own guys who he previously worked with, and that I had no doubts that they would perform.

[-Hammer-]

7 hours ago, DigzTFC said:

It's not a criticism.  It's an observation.  Sigma FC has been "THE" best academy in Ontario in terms of professional player production for the last 5-10 years.  Hiring Bobby was the smartest move Forge could make.  I would imagine Forge will open up a lot of eyes with their international signings given Sigma's vast network of relationships in Europe.  He will also be able to replicate the academy model in Hamilton

I sincerely do hope so, and really Bobby has more then ample roster room to put that observation to bed quite easily. So far I've been pleased with everything he's done thus far.

[-Hammer-]

6 hours ago, BringBackTheBlizzard said:

I'd definitely be wary if the Sigma trend at the Forge stretches much further than it does now given what happened when TFC management got too close to one player agent (Barry MacLean) in TFC's early years.

I wouldn't quite go that far, I mean Sigma is still one of the top (if not the top) academies in the country, and it's a lot more understandable here. He's the coach, he knows how to evaluate players and which players he needs, as opposed to an agent, where a good manager should be able to see through that agent's smoke and mirrors and acquire talent.

[Kent]

3 hours ago, -Hammer- said:

I wouldn't quite go that far, I mean Sigma is still one of the top (if not the top) academies in the country, and it's a lot more understandable here. He's the coach, he knows how to evaluate players and which players he needs, as opposed to an agent, where a good manager should be able to see through that agent's smoke and mirrors and acquire talent.

I think BBTB was saying this because I think Bobby is also an agent. Someone correct me if I am wrong.

[shamrock]

4 hours ago, Kent said:

I think BBTB was saying this because I think Bobby is also an agent. Someone correct me if I am wrong.

Well, if he wants to be a manager, he can't be an agent. 

Having good contacts is a positive, but with both positions there's a clear conflict of interest. 

[BringBackTheBlizzard]

Doesn't just have to be him for there to be a potential conflict of interest. The concern would be if the surname Smyrniotis starts appearing as an agent for more of the players signed than seems reasonable:

https://www.transfermarkt.com/chris-nanco/profil/spieler/189025

https://www.transfermarkt.com/tristan-borges/profil/spieler/402531

https://www.transfermarkt.com/kyle-bekker/profil/spieler/218451

https://www.transfermarkt.com/nick-mavromaras-amp-costa-smyrniotis/beraterfirma/berater/3618

[deschamp86]

13 hours ago, -Hammer- said:

Did you actually read my post? Not only did I ask for a grain of salt, but I explicated stated that I understood the coach getting his own guys who he previously worked with, and that I had no doubts that they would perform.

Yes I actually read your post. If you are going to post things like, "take this with a grain of salt" because you don't want people to question your opinions, what is the point of posting at all?

And I wasn't specifically trying to target your comments, there was a number of comments questioning the moves, and yours was just the most recent I had read before posting.

Either way, I have a feeling you guys will be winning the league (pretty early to say since you only have a few players on the roster). So far the signings have been what I view from afar as ideal. There are a number of other players that played with Sigma that I could also see signing in the near future if they haven't already signed such as Jonathan Grant, Dominic Samuel, Giuliano Frano, Justin Stoddart, Mo Babouli, Kadell Thomas etc . I had even thought that they may have been able to get Emery Welshman and Manjrekar James if not for recent changes in their club situations. The core seems to be solid, and Bobby does have a number of contacts with clubs in Netherlands and Belgium which I feel like he will use to his advantage to fill in holes once the roster is fairly set.

[KW519]

Cameroonian Internationl signed from MNUFC

https://canpl.ca/article/forge-fc-inks-cameroonian-international-bertrand-owundi

Edited January 17, 2019 by KW519

[Chad_Impact]

2 minutes ago, KW519 said:

Cameroonian Internationl signed from MNUFC

Wow

[-Hammer-]

3 hours ago, deschamp86 said:

Yes I actually read your post. If you are going to post things like, "take this with a grain of salt" because you don't want people to question your opinions, what is the point of posting at all?

And I wasn't specifically trying to target your comments, there was a number of comments questioning the moves, and yours was just the most recent I had read before posting.

Either way, I have a feeling you guys will be winning the league (pretty early to say since you only have a few players on the roster). So far the signings have been what I view from afar as ideal. There are a number of other players that played with Sigma that I could also see signing in the near future if they haven't already signed such as Jonathan Grant, Dominic Samuel, Giuliano Frano, Justin Stoddart, Mo Babouli, Kadell Thomas etc . I had even thought that they may have been able to get Emery Welshman and Manjrekar James if not for recent changes in their club situations. The core seems to be solid, and Bobby does have a number of contacts with clubs in Netherlands and Belgium which I feel like he will use to his advantage to fill in holes once the roster is fairly set.

Yes, I agree that it's fine to question my option, especially when I've already communicated that my opinion is questionable, however your post basically said "I'm crazy, because the high performance and synergy that you said will happen, is going to happen"

Anyways, having guys with a history should in theory mean the Forge will have a lot more synergy the other teams, but given Halifax signed though three guys from Trinidad who played together, I wouldn't say that's a guarantee. 

[Big_M]

Owundi never appeared for Minnesota..was a backup when he was sent to usl..and he never played in the cup of nations, he played in the african nations championship which is for players playing in their domestic league so hes far from the 1st national team..appeared in 2 0-1 losses and stayed on the bench in the 3rd game which was a 1-1 draw and Cameroon finished last of the group..so his quality is to be seen

[Keegan]

We’ll see but optically its good for the league.  A 25 year old with 3 caps for Cameroon is a decent get - that’s not a country short on talent. 

[deschamp86]

8 minutes ago, -Hammer- said:

Yes, I agree that it's fine to question my option, especially when I've already communicated that my opinion is questionable, however your post basically said "I'm crazy, because the high performance and synergy that you said will happen, is going to happen"

Anyways, having guys with a history should in theory mean the Forge will have a lot more synergy the other teams, but given Halifax signed though three guys from Trinidad who played together, I wouldn't say that's a guarantee. 

Fair enough. Questioning sanity could have been exaggerating a tad. And its true, it appears that so far a lot of teams are building players that will be somewhat familiar with each other:

Pacific FC - Vancouver WFC II

Cavalry FC - Calgary Foothills

HFX Wanderers - FC Montreal/Santa Rosa

FC Edmonton - FCE Academy

Forge FC - Sigma FC

I still think that at this point a team like Forge and even Cavalry will still have an advantage chemistry wise

[MM3/MM2/MM]

14 minutes ago, Keegan said:

We’ll see but optically its good for the league.  A 25 year old with 3 caps for Cameroon is a decent get - that’s not a country short on talent. 

His MLS salary was $67,500.00

[toontownman]

On paper that is a great get. On the pitch we shall see. As mentioned its great PR for the league though and hopefully one of a couple of signings like this at each club. 

I am liking how the pieces and the bigger picture are coming together and more in focus as these signings come. 

 

[matty]

were his caps official? the all came in qualifying for the african nations championship which is a cup for the best players in the domestic leagues.

 

NEVERMIND answered elsewhere

Edited January 17, 2019 by matty

[yellowsweatygorilla]

Someone posted this on twitter. He's #16 .. not a great game.

[Big_M]

 

[Keegan]

Not great looks but I mean, using goal highlights to judge a defender is never going to put then in a shining light.  I’d like to see an actual highlight tape before passing judgment.

In that Charlotte match he looked like he didn’t want to be out there.. 

[Kent]

52 minutes ago, Keegan said:

Not great looks but I mean, using goal highlights to judge a defender is never going to put then in a shining light.  I’d like to see an actual highlight tape few games before passing judgment.

In that Charlotte match he looked like he didn’t want to be out there.. 

Fixed.

[Ansem]