10/25/2010 12:00 PM -

AUSTIN, Texas (www.austinaztex.com) — It was confirmed today that the Austin Aztex have accepted an offer from a UK led consortium to acquire the Aztex USL franchise, which involves the relocation of the team to the City of Orlando, Fla.

“We have been actively seeking to broaden the investment base for the Aztex for the past 12 months. It has proven extremely difficult given the economic climate,” Aztex President Phil Rawlins said. “Our first and overriding preference was always to keep the Aztex in Austin. But after we exhausted all our options this has not proven possible.”

“I know the new investors very well — they are football people and have been interested in working with us for some time. They like what we have achieved on the field and in the community,” he continued. “However, they made it very clear that their investment was contingent upon the team relocating, citing Austin’s lack of a soccer specific stadium with any corporate facilities, the inability to sell alcohol at games and the geographical isolation of the team within the new USL-Pro League. In short, they didn’t see Central Texas as the right market for the team and their future plans.”

And into the picture walked the Orlando.

“Together with the City of Orlando, the new owners approached us about relocating the franchise to Central Florida. As much as we would have loved to keep the Aztex here, it’s proven impossible to find local business leaders who are willing to invest alongside us and who believed in this market.”

The team will relocate in time for the beginning of the 2011 season and will play in the new USL-Pro League. Head Coach Adrian Heath and all the retained players will be making the move with the team.

“This is a very, very bittersweet decision for us. The fans in Austin have given us fantastic backing and fully deserve pro soccer. I know many of our fans and their families personally and they will know that our decision to relocate has been taken with a very heavy heart. I know many people will be bitterly disappointed but we have been left with no local options of backing.”

“I would like to thank all the loyal Aztex fans for their support over the past three years. However, the new investors made it very difficult for us to turn down their offer. They bring much needed additional capital, expertise and connections. They have plans to add another professional sports team to the franchise which will give us year round revenue potential. Their goal is to build up the soccer operations so that we can pursue an MLS franchise in the next few years.”

No need for a “read it all” link, that’s the whole thing. I’m crushed, but after a weekend waiting to be crushed, honestly a little relieved, too.

I’ll have another post or two of my own here to wrap things up in the coming days, as I process what’s happened and work the bile out.

Austin is a classic example of what detractors call “the franchise model”: the idea that sports clubs should be moved from community to community based on whichever community is willing to offer the largest incentive. Most soccer fans rail against it furiously, and back in England Milton Keynes‘s club has never been accepted after the city stole the old Wimbledon team to satisfy their ambitions [Wikipedia history lesson - ed.]. But Portsmouth‘s example, one of an owner who buys a club to be a billionaire celebrity rather than for love of the sport or the city, is no less dangerous. Whether the club is moved to Orlando or wound up, it is cut off from the fans who raised it up and cherished it.

Just two years ago, Austin owner Phil Rawlins rang in his new club by saying “My goal is to make the Aztex a community-based club that the Austin area can be proud of.” Pulling up stakes and taking his team to Florida after two years of decent, growing attendance and a competitive team is not exactly compatible with that aim. Rawlins was born in England and in fact sits on the board for Stoke City: presumably he’s heard a thing or two about the franchise debate in England. The idea that he’d try to emulate it is appalling.

Read it all.

Note: There will be a 1:00 PM CT press conference in Orlando on Monday, Oct. 25, revealing details of the new USL PRO team there. Aztex fans will gather at Mister Tramps on 183 at 6:00 PM CT to, well, we’re 100% not sure yet. Sob inconsolably, probably.

It’s likely USL will announce next week that Rawlins has found new investors from outside the US and will move to Orlando and join the USL Pro League. They will also form a relationship with Steve Donner, formerly with the Rochester Rhinos and the Orlando Titans Lacrosse team.

As previously stated (more than once), I don’t deal in rumors here. However, the frenzy that quickly broke out on blogs, Twitter and the Aztex BigSoccer forum was met with deafening silence from the Aztex front office all day.

Until, finally, this content-free statement:

“The organization is aware of the rumors that have been circulating about the future direction of the Aztex. In these difficult economic times, the ownership group has been working hard to pursue additional investors to secure the long-term future of the club and continues to do so. At this point in time, there is nothing concrete to report on that front, but we will continue to pursue all of our options and will make an announcement as soon as anything is solidified.”

Without actual, concrete news to report, I hesitate to further spread the panic many of us feel at the prospect of losing pro soccer in Austin. But while nothing is official yet, that non-denial statement from the Aztex cannot be ignored.

I fear the worst, and am plumbing new depths of the phrase “gutted” tonight. Rumor has it that an official announcement will be made on Monday, so I either need to move on to the next stage of grief or seriously stock up on liquor for a long weekend.

I’ll refrain from writing more until I have more (any?) facts to bring you.

Though their time on the field has come to an end, the Austin Aztex accomplished a lot this year, and had tremendous success. And though they couldn’t put together the scoreline they needed last night, they went out in fine form, reminiscent of their peak this summer.

It was yet another beautiful evening for pro soccer at House Park. The early sunset helped make it one of the coolest games of the year. The clear skies capped a perfect record of perfect weather at Austin home games this year. We’ve had the threat of rain a few times, but never a drop since the Aztex moved to House.

The crowd of 2,872 was a little on the light side. But for a playoff game that wasn’t included in the season ticket package, and given that some 70,000 people were down at Zilker Park for the Austin City Limits Festival, that’s not too shabby. Those in attendance were treated to a cracking good game, played with good skill and intensity on both sides of the ball.

The one downer in the supporters’ section was the guy with the euphonium. Props to the guy for dragging that big horn into the game. But as he continued to blow long, low tuneless notes on it throughout the game, I began to realize how bad the vuvuzelas must have been at live games in South Africa. Bring the horn back next year, bro – but play Reveille or some Sousa or something.

In the calm reflection of the day after, the taunts and jeers we direct at opposing players are usually faded and half-forgotten. Sometimes, however, there are exceptions: such is the case for Montreal’s Nevio Pizzolitto. The fact that this unsportsmanlike jerk wears the captain’s armband for the Impact is a serious blemish on the reputation of an otherwise worthy opponent. He seems to have more aptitude for the theatre than for sport; may he realize the wisdom of a career change soon.

Here’s a rundown of other post-match coverage:

• box score — USSF

  Attendance: 2,872

• Yesterday in the Playoffs: Rochester Loses the Hard Way; Montreal and Carolina Don’t — Eighty Six Forever
  

  The best viewing for the neutral came in Austin, Texas, when the Aztex tried to overturn a 2-0 series deficit against the Montreal Impact. Both teams are known for their scoring and it was the Montreal attack which struck early: in the fourth minute, big Ali Gerba somehow emerged from behind his marker on a Philippe Billy free kick and neatly defected Billy’s ball past Austin’s Miguel Gallardo.

• Aztex Record-Setting Season Comes to an End — AustinAztex.com
  

  At the open of the second half with Austin tied 1-1, Gerba gave his team a 2-1 lead in the game, but more importantly, a 4-1 aggregate lead in the series.

  Despite being with the Impact for only the second half of the season, Gerba’s total of 13 goals puts him at third in the league.

  Austin fought back valiantly all night and constantly pressured the Montreal defense causing Coach Marc Dos Santos’ heart to “skip a beat.”

  “What we did tonight was beat an excellent team,” he said. “Austin’s offense is a coach’s nightmare.”

• Montreal Defeat Austin, Head to Next Round of Playoffs — The NASL Fanatic
  

  Gerba put the Impact ahead again four minutes after intermission, as he beat Gallardo with a low shot after receiving a pass from Impact midfielder Leonardo Di Lorenzo. But the Aztex had no quit in them, and came back to tie in the 58th minute as USSF D2′s second leading 2010 scorer Eddie Johnson beat Jordan from a pass by midfielder Lawrence Olum. The hopes of the Aztex fans were growing again, as the team needed two goals in the final half hour of the game. Jordan had to leave the contest because of a groin injury, and was replaced by Srjdan Djekanovic, who played almost half the Impact’s regular season games. Djekanovic was able to shut down the Aztex the rest of the way, and veteran Eduardo Sebrango gave Montreal the win in the 89th minute with a high shot that became his sixth Impact’s game-winner.

• Austin Aztex end season with loss — Austin American-Statesman
  

  Montreal knocked Austin out of the playoffs with a 3-2 victory in the second leg of their opening-round series. The score pushed the aggregate to 5-2 in favor of the Impact, sending Montreal into the semifinals against Carolina and abruptly ending an Aztex season during which the team sat atop the league standings for much of the year.

  “I’m disappointed for the players because they’ve worked hard all season,” Aztex head coach Adrian Heath said. “My players have done me proud this year.”

• Video: Aztex-Impact Playoff Quarterfinals, 10-9 at Austin (3:17) — AztexSoccer on YouTube

So that’s it for 2010. As posted previously, there are some wrinkles to smooth out before we know for sure what league and which opponents the Aztex will face in 2011. Regardless, we can look forward to Coach Heath, the squad he assembles and the entire organization continuing to bring the excitement of live soccer to Austin.

Here’s to this season, next season, and many more to follow. Go Aztex!

Well, that’s not the first game result we wanted to see.

But it’s not the end yet, either. Remember, this Aztex team has one of the highest goal differentials in the league this season (13). The trick will be getting back to the groove they were in earlier in the year, when they were racking up all those goals. And they’ll have their chance to get that groove, Saturday night at House Park.

First, here’s a rundown of other post-match coverage from the first game, in Montreal:

• box score — USSF

  Attendance: 7,962

• Impact Repeat 2-0 Performance in Quarterfinal First Leg — AustinAztex.com
  

  Austin had few other chances in the latter part of the first half other than a volley by Johnson, but that was when Montreal really turned up the heat. The Impact came closest to getting on the board with a shot by Eduardo Sebrango that seemed destined for the back of the net, if not for a miraculous sprawling save by Gallardo to punch it wide. Gerba then sent the Impact into the half up by a goal.

• Montreal Defeats Austin, Carolina and NSC Minnesota Draw in Wednesday Night Playoff Action — NASL Fanatic
  

  “The effort from everyone was excellent today,” said coach Marc Dos Santos. “A 2-0 victory was a fair result in my opinion. They [Austin] put a little more pressure in the second half, but they were not able to create scoring chances against us. Defensively, we offered up another excellent performance. We now have to prepare for the next game and we must be willing to do whatever it takes to win the second leg. Nothing is won yet.”

Which brings us quickly, again, to the next Aztex match. The second leg of this playoff series will be played here in Austin, kicking off at House Park on Saturday evening at 7:30. Sure, ACL Fest is going on, but duck out for a couple of hours (you won’t miss anything, the band lineup is even lamer than usual this year). Pre-game festivities will begin, as always, at The Tavern around 5:30.

This is it! To keep from being eliminated, the Aztex will have to either win outright in regulation time by 3 goals, or at least win by 2 to force the contest to extra time, and then penalty kicks if necessary. Then they’ll go on to the semifinals, to face either the Carolina Railhawks or the NSC Minnesota Stars in the next round. They just need to find the back of the net 3 times first.

As mentioned above, this is a team that can get those goals. Three of the players on the league’s top 10 point leaders list play for Austin (Eddie Johnson, Maxwell Griffin and Jamie Watson). And we’ve seen goals from lots of other players besides them, as well.

These guys can do it on Saturday night. It will be an absolutely perfect night for live soccer in Austin. Come out and see it happen for yourself! Go Aztex!

All playoff rounds will be two-leg, home-and-away series, based on total aggregate goals across both games. Away goals are not worth more. The tie-breaker, if needed, will be extra time after the second game, followed by penalty kicks if necessary.

The first leg of this round between the Aztex and the Montreal Impact will be played tonight, Wednesday, Oct. 6 in Montreal. Kickoff is 6:30 CT. Join the Aztex organization, the Chantico’s Army supporters’ group and all of Austin’s soccer fans at Mister Tramps to watch tonight’s game.

The second leg will be Saturday night at 7:30, here at House Park. You can get half-off (almost) tickets to that game through Eversave, until midnight tonight.

Eddie Johnson and Jamie Watson will both be back on the roster for the playoffs, though Michael Callahan is still out after the blow to the head and 33 stitches he got on Sep. 25.

From Aztex site’s pre-game report:

Austin finished off the regular season with a 15-7-8 record and had the second most wins, the second least losses and second best goal differential of the 12 teams. The Aztex scored nine more goals than the next best offensive squad, the Carolina RailHawks, and sat atop the league table for the majority of the season before see-sawing with Rochester toward the end of the year.

The Aztex closed out the year with 12 points in their last 10 games to secure their place at the top half of the bracket, while Montreal’s sixth seed was the product of a slow start and furious finish. The Impact closed out the year 6-1-0, skyrocketing up the table to third in the NASL Conference standings, just two points behind Vancouver and four behind Carolina, who finished second in the league.

Contrasting Montreal’s furious finish with Austin’s recent run doesn’t look good. The Aztex dominated most teams for most of the season — including beating Montreal 2-0 in the season opener — but their results have not been nearly as strong lately. It’s hard to argue that the Impact don’t have the momentum heading in to these two games.

Will the red & white be able to rally? Will they pull out of the skid we’ve seen the last month or so? Will they claim the league trophy to make up for letting regular-season title slip away? We’ll start finding out tonight!

This is the way the season ends, not with a bang, but with a whimper.

Here’s a rundown of post-match coverage:

• box score — USSF

  Attendance: 12,608 (note, that’s the number of “spectateurs“, which must be metric or something)

• Aztex Falter in Season Finale; Lock Up Third Seed — AustinAztex.com
  

  Just three minutes after the goal, the game took a serious turn for the worse for Austin when Patterson was shown a red card for unsporting behavior, putting the Aztex down a man for the rest of the match. Without the help of one of its two forwards, the Aztex mustered just one shot on goal in the first half, and five overall in the game.

• Montreal Defeats Austin 2-0; Rochester Claims Top Playoff Seed — NASL Fanatic
  

  The actual match today seemed almost anti-climatic, although a large crowd of over 12,600 at Saputo Stadium were delighted with the result. Both coaches rested key players, but Austin looked relatively flat throughout the game, especially after forward Randi Patterson was red-carded in the 20th minute. Having played a tough match in Carolina on Friday night, the Aztex displayed little of the offensive flair that has been their hallmark in 2010. The Impact, eager to please their crowd, scored the only goal they needed six minutes after Patterson’s ejection, as Frenchman Anthony Le Gall scored his first goal in an Impact uniform on a shot from the right of goal, with an assist on a long pass by defender Patrick Leduc. Montreal dominated possession throughout the match as Austin played without leading scorers Eddie Johnson, Jamie Watson and Maxwell Griffin (Griffin made a brief cameo appearance late in the match).

• AUSTIN 0 IMPACT 2 — MontrealImpact.com
  

  “We did exactly what we needed to do to win today,” declared Impact defender Philippe Billy. “The victory was the perfect way to end the regular season. It allows us to keep our momentum and will create some great team spirit for Wednesday, because we know that wins usually lead to more wins. It will be crucial to start the playoffs at home, in front of our fans. We’ll have to fight hard to show up in Austin in the best position possible.”

• Photos (11): 2010/10/03 Austin @ IMPACT — MontrealImpact.com

  [Unfortunately, there's no way to link directly to that page of photos. If it's still within the first few days of the match, they'll probably be the first pictures you see there. After that, you'll have to click through their archives to find them.]

Having lost the top of the league and the first seed in the playoffs, the Aztex won’t face the Puerto Rico Islanders, a team that they’ve never beaten on the road, and against whom they’ve struggled at home. Instead, they’ll face the Montreal Impact, a team that they’ve never beaten on the road, and against whom they’ve struggled at home. The first of the two-game series will be in Montreal this Wednesday, Oct. 6, and the second will be in Austin on Saturday evening, Oct. 9.

And with the Rochester Rhinos‘ 2-1 defeat of AC St. Louis last night, Austin must win this game to retake the top spot in the league. The red & white have never won in Montreal’s Stade Saputo, but in my opinion, this would be a great time to change that.

The Impact have been on a roll lately, winning five and drawing one in their last six matches. Most recently, they beat the Vancouver Whitecaps 1-0 more than a week ago (match report/box score).

Montreal have also qualified for the playoffs. Their seeding is locked at 6th, and can’t be affected by today’s result one way or the other.

Though Jamie Watson will be unavailable for the game, due to family emergency, and Eddie Johnson didn’t make the trip, we’ve seen the Aztex put together some great play even without some of their marquee players. Here’s hoping they want first place badly enough to step up and take it.

Aztex fans in Austin will gather, as always, at Mister Tramps on 183. Kickoff is 1:00 this afternoon; see you there!

Here’s a rundown of post-match coverage:

• box score — USSF

  Attendance: 2,728

• Aztex Unable to Clinch Title at Carolina; One More Chance at Montreal Left — AustinAztex.com
  

  Austin’s offense started off a big sluggishly in the first half, but an own goal in the 43rd minute sparked the visitors who equalized the RailHawks after trailing for just two minutes. Carolina got on the board first when they lobbed a ball into the box that was inadvertently headed past Gallardo by defender Kieron Bernard.

• RailHawks conquer Aztex — News & Observer
  

  The RailHawks scored the winning goal in the 84th minute, as second-half sub Etienne Barbara buried the ball into the net after a cross from Matt Watson on a 2-on-1 breakaway.

  Barbara, the RailHawks’ leading goal scorer this season who has missed several games with injury, may have scored the most important goal in franchise history to this point.

  Carolina piled on one more goal in stoppage time, as Tom Heinemann‘s blast was mishandled by Austin goalkeeper Miguel Gallardo.

• Carolina Defeats Austin in Friday Night Showdown — NASL Fanatic
  

  It was a tough loss for Austin, who played without injured forward Eddie Johnson. Johnson’s 14 goals are second only to Portland Ryan Pore’s 15 in the league, and his sound, aggressive play has been a hallmark of Austin’s strong attack all season. Austin did welcome the return from injury of midfielder Lawrence Olum, who went the full 90 and partnered very effectively with Yordany Alvarez. Austin’s attack was sparkling at times, but Carolina’s determination and physicality won the night. Austin Coach Adrian Heath had to coach with an eye towards the team’s regular season finale in Montreal Sunday afternoon, and their playoff appearance in the middle of next week. And although Gallardo let in an easy late goal by Heinemann, he kept Austin in the game with his athletic saves. Gallardo isn’t the most orthodox goalkeeper, but the quickness and courage he displayed throughout the contest was admirable.

Next up for the Aztex, Montreal Impact on Sunday (aka tomorrow).

The Railhawks are also playoff-bound, currently holding the top spot in the NASL Conference, which would give them the second seed. They’ve had a pretty strong run lately, winning 3 and drawing 1 of their last 5, though two of those wins were against the dead-last Crystal Palace Baltimore. Their third win, however, and their most recent match, was a 2-1 home win over the Puerto Rico Islanders (match report/box score).

The Aztex will welcome back a couple of players to the squad (Lawrence Olum, Joey Worthen), but unfortunately may have to do without a couple of others (Eddie Johnson, Michael Callahan). The team’s trip continues to Canada on Sunday, to face Montreal, and so they’ll also be without a couple of other players who can’t easily cross the border there & back: Haitian Mechak Jerome and Cuban Yordany Alvarez.

A win on Friday will give Austin the league title (whatever that title turns out to actually be called). A draw or a loss doesn’t ruin their chances, as there’s still the game on Sunday, and there’s still Rochester‘s Saturday match in St. Louis, but a win clinches.

Aztex fans will congregate, as usual, at Mister Tramps on 183 for the watch party, at 6:00. Being a Friday night, without competition from college football, we’ll have the big screen room. There will also be some folks from the Aztex organization there, with some playoff tickets to give away. What better way to end the week? Come on out and cheer on our boys in red & white!