Stats & Analysis

PART I: Delirium   PART II: Forwards   PART III: Attacking Mids & Wingers   PART IV: Center Midfielders   PART V: Fullbacks

CENTERBACK

From 2012 to 2015, Josh Rogers was the chief organizer of Detroit City’s defense and was instrumental in holding the back four together. In the wake of his retirement, his absence was evident last year. City allowed the second-most goals of any team in their division (21), only ahead of last-place Dayton (27). That may be more of an indictment on the team as a whole rather than any one position in particular, but centerbacks are the heart of the defense and fixing the problem begins with them. Both of last year’s starters return, but they will have to fight off a group of promising new players if they are to keep their jobs.

Now entering his fourth season with City, Seb Harris is a regular starter who’s taken over from Rogers to become de facto leader of the back four. His height (6’3”) and timing make him one of the best headers of the ball in the league, and he has good speed and athleticism for someone his size. This is never more on display than when he makes runs forward while playing out on the right:

Go ahead and pencil him in at one spot for now, but he’ll have to maintain a high level of play throughout the season in order to stay there.

There was much disappointment amongst supporters when the initial round of roster announcements was made and Omar Sinclair was not included. It all worked out in the end, though, as Sinclair is now officially back with the club for his second season. In 2016 he started 10 matches and led the team in minutes played with 903. Though not as large or imposing as Harris, he showed great recovery speed and looked pretty comfortable when playing the ball out of the back.

He did seem a little overmatched at times last year when going up against bigger, more physical strikers, but for someone coming off of his freshman season at Saginaw Valley, he performed admirably. Having another year of growth and development in college should pay dividends this summer. Just like Seb, he will face much more competition than he did last year thanks to the addition of three experienced newcomers.

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PART I: Delirium   PART II: Forwards   PART III: Attacking Mids & Wingers   PART IV: Center Midfielders

FULLBACK

The fullback position has undergone an almost complete overhaul from 2016. Alex Isaevski and Tyler Stephens are both off pursuing professional careers overseas – Isaevski in Macedonia, Stephens in New Zealand. Matt Nance, who made 4 starts a year ago, will also not return.

The lone constant is mainstay Zach Schewee, now one of just two City players who have been around since the beginning (the other being Cyrus Saydee). Schewee is a rock-solid two-way player who usually flies under the radar, except for the occasional moment of pure swagger.

He began his City career playing left back opposite of Zeke Harris, then moved over to the right with the emergence of Isaevski. He may be better-suited to that spot, but I think he’ll slide back to the left with the addition of…

Adam Spinks, who has to be the most unique recruit Pirmann has ever brought in. We’ve seen him go get guys from Washington and Iowa, but he truly went off the beaten path to find an English national playing professionally for Europa Point FC of the Gibraltar Premier Division. Thankfully, Spinks isn’t a total mystery since he has a recent, non-grainy highlight video:

He’s a right back all the way and looks really good going forward to join the attack. And while Gibraltar doesn’t exactly have one of the top leagues in the world, it still gave him the valuable experience of playing against paid professionals. Unless something changes, he’s probably the starting right back come May 12th.

Continue reading “Season Preview 2017: Fullbacks”

PART I: Delirium   PART II: Forwards   PART III: Attacking Mids & Wingers

CENTER MIDFIELD

For most of 2015 and 2016, Detroit City’s predominant center midfield pairing remained constant. As with several other positions, though, there could definitely be a shake-up this year. With the players that have been added, there will be an unprecedented level of competition and the two starting spots are by no means set in stone.

I’ll begin with the incumbents. First and foremost is Dave Edwardson. He’s a box-to-box type of player who’s geared a bit more toward defense and well-known for his crunching tackles.

Flying into the weekend like… #DCTID pic.twitter.com/5zbNveHXv0

— Detroit City FC (@DetroitCityFC) March 31, 2017

He’s also capable of the occasional spectacular goal (yes I know I used this video in last year’s preview but c’mon, it’s too awesome not to include again – video taken by Kelly Haapala).

Now firmly entrenched in the captaincy, he’s the unquestioned leader of the team, the beating heart in the middle that makes everything go.

Playing next to Edwardson for the past two seasons has been the recent/soon-to-be Saginaw Valley graduate Troy Watson. He’s a defensive specialist through-and-through, and his greatest skill is breaking up attacks without diving in or fouling. And while he hasn’t shown it much for City due to the role he plays, he can also chip in on the offensive end, as evidenced by his pair of game-winning goals last fall for SVSU. As a rookie in 2015, he started all 12 regular season matches. He played in all 12 again last season, but his number of starts dipped to 7.

Continue reading “Season Preview 2017: Center Midfielders”

PART I: Delirium   PART II: Forwards

ATTACKING MIDFIELD & WING

The attacking midfield was Detroit City’s strongest area last season, and there’s a chance it could be even better in 2017. In the starting trio of Jeff Adkins – Tommy Catalano – Cyrus Saydee, City has three players who are in the primes of their careers and have played together extensively. Along with the departed Danny Deakin, they were responsible for some of the best soccer the club has ever played in terms of quick, sharp passing, maintaining of possession, and threatening buildup. They will generate plenty of offense; the hope here is that a striker comes to the forefront who can get on the end of those chances and finish them at a regular clip.

Starting off with the reigning Black Arrow Award winner, Tommy Catalano returns for his third season. With the ineffectiveness at forward last year, he was thrust into that spot for several games and ended up the leading the team in goals with 5. Now, with a boatload of strikers arriving to restock the position, he should be able to move back into a more natural attacking midfield role. He’s played out wide at times, but I think he’s at his best playing above the center midfielders and underneath the striker. There he can make the most use of his passing abilities, as well as his skill shooting from distance.

Although Catalano took home the Black Arrow, I thought Jeff Adkins made just as strong a case for the award, if not more so. He was City’s most consistently dangerous attacker over the course of the season, routinely making opposing fullbacks look silly trying to cover him.

His combination of speed, dribbling ability, and finishing make him an irreplaceable piece in the front four. He’s at the top of his game right now and only seems to be getting better.

Cyrus Saydee looked a bit rusty at the beginning of 2016, but he picked it up in the second half of the season, most memorably in the match at Ann Arbor. There he almost singlehandedly flipped a 1-0 deficit into a 3-1 victory to keep City’s playoff hopes alive. If you’ve followed this club for any reasonable amount of time you know his M.O. by now – small (5’6”) but an elite dribbler and controller of the ball, not to mention a very good passer. Fun fact: he’s been on the team since the very beginning in 2012 and still only just turned 25.

Continue reading “Season Preview 2017: Attacking Midfielders & Wingers”

PART I: Delirium

Note 1: All position previews address the roster as it currently exists.

Note 2: In the case of players who play multiple positions, I’ve listed them at their primary spot (or at least what I think it is based on the information available).

Note 3: Official DCFC Roster page is here.

FORWARD/STRIKER

It’s no fun to start off the position previews on a down note, but the unfortunate reality is that forward was a weak spot for Detroit City in 2016. Javi Bautista and Tyler Channell weren’t able to build on the promise they showed in 2015 and no other striker was able to step up and become a go-to option. Case in point, City’s leading goal scorer for the year turned out to be Tommy Catalano, nominally an attacking midfielder.

To address the need for offense Ben Pirmann went to work and restocked the position with a bevy of new players, but I’ll start off with the lone returner. Tyler Moorman is primarily a forward, but he saw time at nearly every field position last year and is undoubtedly the team’s most versatile player. His signature match came away to Ann Arbor where he started at right back and helped keep prolific scorer Dario Suarez quiet, then moved up to forward and scored the winning goal in a 3-1 comeback. As the tallest atacker on the roster (6’3”), he should see plenty of time in situations that call for a target man up top, and I also expect him to reprise his role as the team’s Swiss Army Knife.

When last we left Shawn Lawson, he was snapping ankles and humiliating defenders en route to scoring the 2014 NPSL Goal of the Year:

After spending 2013 and 2014 with DCFC, Lawson turned out for the Des Moines Menace (2015), Michigan Stars (2016), and Jamaican U-23 national team. He brings some much needed finishing ability to the roster, as well as plenty of creativity.

He showed several flashes of brilliance in his first stint with City, so I’m excited to see what he can do now that he has a few more years of experience under his belt. I’ve penciled him in as my Matchday #1 starter, but he’ll face plenty of competition from Moorman and several talented newcomers.

Continue reading “Season Preview 2017: Forwards”