Forge FC (Hamilton) launch/2019 offseason thread

[to70]

4 hours ago, deschamp86 said:

 

This tweet from the resort they stayed at refers to Smith as Forge Team Manager. Not sure if its true or if it is a mistake the resort made

She is the resort GM. Tthe tweet came from the resort.

[deschamp86]

39 minutes ago, to70 said:

She is the resort GM. Tthe tweet came from the resort.

Yeah I understand that. It says "Here with Jelani Smith, Forge-Team Manager" then goes on to refer to Martha Richardson as the resort General Manager

[Lord Bob]

I'm very sorry but Forge has finished dead last in the 2019 CanPL.

https://twitter.com/ForgeFCHamilton/status/1118648468862644228?s=19

Edited April 17, 2019 by Lord Bob
hey apparently Twitter embeds don't work

[Zem]

1 hour ago, Lord Bob said:

I'm very sorry but Forge has finished dead last in the 2019 CanPL.

https://twitter.com/ForgeFCHamilton/status/1118648468862644228?s=19

I expected the mascots to be terrible, but not THIS terrible jesus christ

[Cheeta]

I honestly don't know what to write.  I need another drink.

[shamrock]

8 hours ago, Lord Bob said:

I'm very sorry but Forge has finished dead last in the 2019 CanPL.

https://twitter.com/ForgeFCHamilton/status/1118648468862644228?s=19

Thank God Sparx came out after the legalization of marijuana...Or maybe there's a direct link between those show events. 

[Blackjack15]

Aleksa Markovic, (1997) 22 year old midfielder who 20 games over two seasons with FK Zemun in the Serbian Superliga and just being released in December, born and raised in Hamilton but dual citizen. Called up into U20 Camp in January 2017 by Rob Gale. He's back home now with no place to play. You know it's common and repeated story that Canadian soccer players go from pros to unattached and disappear In the end, and this league serves it purpose and all. Unfortunately you will still have really good high caliber guys that for whatever reason (most likely coaches preference, who he knows) isn't signed to a contract. Well this is one of those cases. No disrespect to Bobby, he's done fantastic and brought in a lot of former sigma players, but not a single player from Hamilton signed? Wow. I mean no offence Sigma has produce so much that he can make a team out of alumnus, it's true. But It's worth saying that the CPL gave all 7 coaches a list of the 200 beat Canadians playing abroad, North America, Europe's lower leagues, Asia, South America, etc. And you're telling me this one goes Under your nose? Come on man. If there were 12-14 teams, majority Canadians who are playing pro elsewhere would have a place to play. As well as form new pros here at home, but there has to be the right mix. I hope this kid can find somewhere to play this season but seems unlikely as Canadians are under valued everywhere, truthfully if you're good but average; clubs will always pick local players ahead of a foreigner even when you have a passport of that country. Canucks have so much things against them, not only is this league gonna help them make a living and showcase the best that we got after the NT but will give guys U23 the experience they need to be better positioned when they make the jump to a better league, 2-3 full seasons in their belts as opposed to going over there as a 18 year old on trial with no pedigree. Things will change, but a player like this cannot fall through the cracks, he's much better than that Kadell Thomas guy who did fuck all last year in L10, unlike the MVP goal scorer, Anthony Novak - he earned it

[deschamp86]

I don't get why everyone gets so uppity about mascots. They are for the kids. Who cares

[Unnamed Trialist]

13 hours ago, Lord Bob said:

I'm very sorry but Forge has finished dead last in the 2019 CanPL.

https://twitter.com/ForgeFCHamilton/status/1118648468862644228?s=19

I love that mascot, it is fun and goofy. What did you want, something really corny? Like a guy dressed up like a blacksmith?

From someone who, in general, hates all mascots, cheerleaders, and other fake rooting tools. 

[Admin]

It would have been more realistic if he strapped the egg into a seniors scooter for Hamilton rather than a VW van.  Those are for Pacific FC.  I call cultural appropriation. Forge can't steal Pacific's vibe. 

 

 

[BuzzAndSting]

7 hours ago, Blackjack15 said:

Aleksa Markovic, (1997) 22 year old midfielder who 20 games over two seasons with FK Zemun in the Serbian Superliga and just being released in December, born and raised in Hamilton but dual citizen. Called up into U20 Camp in January 2017 by Rob Gale. He's back home now with no place to play. You know it's common and repeated story that Canadian soccer players go from pros to unattached and disappear In the end, and this league serves it purpose and all. Unfortunately you will still have really good high caliber guys that for whatever reason (most likely coaches preference, who he knows) isn't signed to a contract. Well this is one of those cases. No disrespect to Bobby, he's done fantastic and brought in a lot of former sigma players, but not a single player from Hamilton signed? Wow. I mean no offence Sigma has produce so much that he can make a team out of alumnus, it's true. But It's worth saying that the CPL gave all 7 coaches a list of the 200 beat Canadians playing abroad, North America, Europe's lower leagues, Asia, South America, etc. And you're telling me this one goes Under your nose? Come on man. If there were 12-14 teams, majority Canadians who are playing pro elsewhere would have a place to play. As well as form new pros here at home, but there has to be the right mix. I hope this kid can find somewhere to play this season but seems unlikely as Canadians are under valued everywhere, truthfully if you're good but average; clubs will always pick local players ahead of a foreigner even when you have a passport of that country. Canucks have so much things against them, not only is this league gonna help them make a living and showcase the best that we got after the NT but will give guys U23 the experience they need to be better positioned when they make the jump to a better league, 2-3 full seasons in their belts as opposed to going over there as a 18 year old on trial with no pedigree. Things will change, but a player like this cannot fall through the cracks, he's much better than that Kadell Thomas guy who did fuck all last year in L10, unlike the MVP goal scorer, Anthony Novak - he earned it

Before we start blaming Forge are we sure this kid is actively pursuing a contract?

[Lord Bob]

3 hours ago, Unnamed Trialist said:

I love that mascot, it is fun and goofy. What did you want, something really corny? Like a guy dressed up like a blacksmith?

From someone who, in general, hates all mascots, cheerleaders, and other fake rooting tools. 

[youllneverwalkalone]

I think all mascots should frighten children, like Gritty. Otherwise, total fail.

[Alex D]

16 minutes ago, Lord Bob said:

Why is Sparx a molester. Poor guy is trying to offer him a jersey to stop touching his junk. 

[Blackjack15]

6 hours ago, BuzzAndSting said:

Before we start blaming Forge are we sure this kid is actively pursuing a contract?

He is, Forge should at least sign one local player from Hamilton and hasn't. It's really too bad, the media out there doesn't even care or simply doesn't know the Canadian player pool as well as we do, but Markovic wasn't brought to Bobby's attention and now he's going from a former U20 Youth International, Serbian Superliga footballer to unattached and retired. This league was created to stop that, but even then we can't help everyone. I do wonder if Smyrnothis even looked at the list of the 200 best Canadian players playing abroad mostly in Europe's lower leagues and just went off by his own wish list. This kid was playing tier 1 in Europe! How many Canadian players can we say that about? Oh and he's from Hamilton don't mean to mention it for 10th time

 

[BuzzAndSting]

2 minutes ago, Blackjack15 said:

He is, Forge should at least sign one local player from Hamilton and hasn't. It's really too bad, the media out there doesn't even care or simply doesn't know the Canadian player pool as well as we do, but Markovic wasn't brought to Bobby's attention and now he's going from a former U20 Youth International, Serbian Superliga footballer to unattached and retired. This league was created to stop that, but even then we can't help everyone. I do wonder if Smyrnothis even looked at the list of the 200 best Canadian players playing abroad mostly in Europe's lower leagues and just went off by his own wish list. This kid was playing tier 1 in Europe! How many Canadian players can we say that about? Oh and he's from Hamilton don't mean to mention it for 10th time

 

Just to be clear... you say he is looking for a contract, has his agent contacted anyone at the CPL? You also say he’s going to retire, that doesn’t seem to make sense. 

Yes, the media has no idea about the player pool and they don’t care. There’s no market for stories about kids like this.

If this kid has a decent agent and he has a desire to play in the CPL there’s no reason to believe he hasn’t been given consideration. This is a league that went across the country looking for players, why would they turn down an experienced pro? The only logical conclusion is money.

[BuzzAndSting]

Just looking at his stats, something happened in September. He went from getting minutes every week for 3-4 months to missing 15 games in a row. Are we sure he’s not injured?

 

[Blackjack15]

 

10 minutes ago, BuzzAndSting said:

Just to be clear... you say he is looking for a contract, has his agent contacted anyone at the CPL? You also say he’s going to retire, that doesn’t seem to make sense. 

Yes, the media has no idea about the player pool and they don’t care. There’s no market for stories about kids like this.

If this kid has a decent agent and he has a desire to play in the CPL there’s no reason to believe he hasn’t been given consideration. This is a league that went across the country looking for players, why would they turn down an experienced pro? The only logical conclusion is money.

The kid doesn't have an agent, okay? He represents himself, Ive met him and seen him play. Well he was released from a club in Serbia (His second home) and no one offered him a contract in the CPL (Canada) the two countries rejected him and he may or may not make the effort to go on trial in Europe since he has a EU passport, he was in talks with a club in Germany (regionalliga) but that's only subject to if the opportunity comes or doesn't. Right now he's back home weighing his options, one of them is to go to school in the fall and give up pro soccer in the meantime. Which is a shame! This guy should have never gone under the radar 

Of course the media doesn't care. IMO it should be a crime for the CPL clubs not to have at least one homegrown player, it's about Canadians as a whole yes, but local talent matters a lot. The community can say one of their own is on the pitch, friends and family can go watch etc. And theres a storyline there

You think this kid cares about money? He doesn't okay, he would be living at home, now hell be watching on TV knowing he was better than a few of the of bobbys guys for example, it's just one player but this cannot happen in the future

7 minutes ago, BuzzAndSting said:

[BuzzAndSting]

15 minutes ago, Blackjack15 said:

 

The kid doesn't have an agent, okay? He represents himself, Ive met him and seen him play. Well he was released from a club in Serbia (His second home) and no one offered him a contract in the CPL (Canada) the two countries rejected him and he may or may not make the effort to go on trial in Europe since he has a EU passport, he was in talks with a club in Germany (regionalliga) but that's only subject to if the opportunity comes or doesn't. Right now he's back home weighing his options, one of them is to go to school in the fall and give up pro soccer in the meantime. Which is a shame! This guy should have never gone under the radar 

Of course the media doesn't care. IMO it should be a crime for the CPL clubs not to have at least one homegrown player, it's about Canadians as a whole yes, but local talent matters a lot. The community can say one of their own is on the pitch, friends and family can go watch etc. And theres a storyline there

You think this kid cares about money? He doesn't okay, he would be living at home, now hell be watching on TV knowing he was better than a few of the of bobbys guys for example, it's just one player but this cannot happen in the future

Okay well it seems obvious but he needs an agent.

If he was cut by his Serbian club it seems to add to the already existing question marks. 

Seeing as you seem to have some inside knowledge, has he contacted any within the CPL? If he has was their any context as to why they weren’t interested? Did he attend the open trials?

Seems like a lot of spin to be claiming that the CPL is somehow to blame for “not offering him a contract” and then blaming it on the fact that he’s not one of “bobbys guys.”

[toontownman]

6 hours ago, Alex D said:

Why is Sparx a molester. Poor guy is trying to offer him a jersey to stop touching his junk. 

Ha. I thought he was simply offering the Jersey to cover him up from exposing himself. 

"Come on son, we know there is a lot of excitement sparx, but cover yourself up. There's women and children present."

 "keep looking sparx in the eye... dont look down.. dont look down.."

[Big_M]

2019 theres just too many possibilities to bounce back to even put a small part of not playing or retiring on other people..how many players went from pro contract to L1O and back pro or to lower league in europe or to australia new zealand..Quillan Roberts,Johnny Grant, Joseph Di Chiara..how many times did Cebara go for months to over a year without a contract to finally bounce back and get a team..and on top of that he has a EU passport..I mean come on

[shamrock]

A Serbian passport is not an EU-passport. And while I agree that Hamilton should sign at least 1 hometown-player, things just didn't work out this time. If he keeps going at it, even in L1, surely new opportunities will present themselves. 

[nolando]

14 hours ago, Lord Bob said:

Cool, they've got their very own Puberty Monster! Or, wait, is it maybe a Hormone Monstress?!?

[Blackjack15]

8 hours ago, BuzzAndSting said:

Okay well it seems obvious but he needs an agent.

If he was cut by his Serbian club it seems to add to the already existing question marks. 

Seeing as you seem to have some inside knowledge, has he contacted any within the CPL? If he has was their any context as to why they weren’t interested? Did he attend the open trials?

Seems like a lot of spin to be claiming that the CPL is somehow to blame for “not offering him a contract” and then blaming it on the fact that he’s not one of “bobbys guys.”

Yeah the majority of guys don't really have agents they just go to their "parents" country with a few contacts in hope of landing a contract, sometimes it works out and sometimes it doesnt. 

I did ask him if any teams ever reached out to him and he said no

He was released by his club in Serbia in December, and the open trials were from September to November - Hamilton being October 1 & 2. So it's not possible for him to have been as you can see

No the league is not to blame, it's the clubs head coaches who sign the players at the end of the day. It's unfortunate and quite frankly frustrating to see a guy like this and so many others go to waste, before it was because there was nowhere on go and now he just fell through the cracks or was identified but not picked. All 7 coaches resort on the Canadians they do know

Like I said before the league did however provide a list of 200 Canadians playing in europes lower leagues and around the world to the coaches and some coaches used that info but most did not. Pacific signed ex whitecaps, FC Edmonton signed u of a guys, academy graduates and Edmonton native pros, cavalry is pretty much foothills, valour - lots of former U20 youth Canada players from rob gales time, forge is sigma, HFX is a mix of everything, and York 9 is GTA based.

Im very happy and couldn't be prouder of this league forming, but the coaches need to look at ALL Canadians not just the ones they know. Because otherwise this happens, a talent is overlooked because of no familiarity, with 10-12-16 teams and beyond this will be fixed 

[Blackjack15]

@BuzzAndSting He did not contact the league and the league did not contact him. I'm sure it's not as easy as just reaching out to get noticed or interest, like you said most of this is through agents, contacts, within the inner circles of Canadian soccer and who the coaches know