Springfield Synergy FC is an American soccer team based in Springfield, Missouri, United States. Founded in 2006, the team plays in the Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Heartland Division of the Central Conference.
The team plays its home games at the Cooper Sports Complex,[1] where they have played since 2011. The team's colors are maroon and sky blue.
History
Springfield Synergy FC was born out of the ashes of the old Springfield Storm franchise, which had relocated to Glendora, California to become Los Angeles Storm at the end of the 2006 season. The ownership group of the Storm franchise, which included local businessman Doug Fiester and former professional players Chris Hanlon, Armen Tonianse, and Brett Thomas, launched the new team in early 2007, and began play that year.
The team started 2007 quite strongly, winning two of their first four games (3-1 over Colorado Rapids U23's and 3-2 over St. Louis Lions), but quickly found life in the PDL difficult. June was tough for the team, losing five of their seven games, and conceding nine goals in their three matches against Thunder Bay Chill; their final points of the season came with a 3-1 win over Sioux Falls Spitfire on June 23. As if early elimination from the playoff race wasn't enough, July saw the team suffer two 8-0 demolitions by Des Moines Menace and in the last game of the season at St. Louis Lions, bringing a difficult freshman year to an ignominious close. Demize eventually finished sixth in the Heartland Division, a full 21 points behind champions Thunder Bay Chill. Brett Thomas was the team's top scorer, although he only tallied three goals.
If 2007 was difficult for Springfield, then 2008 was the stuff of which soccer nightmares are made. Beginning with their 2-0 opening day defeat to Colorado Rapids U23's, Springfield's season was an uphill battle to maintain sporting respectability in the face of overwhelmingly better opposition. The team managed to score just 8 goals all season, and were regularly on the receiving end of some gratuitously large scorelines at the hands of their opponents. Des Moines Menace beat them 7-0 in just the second game of the season; Colorado Rapids U23's put another 6 past them in mid-June; the St. Louis Lions beat them 4-0 in mid-July, and they were outclassed 5-1 by the eventual national champions Thunder Bay Chill in the penultimate game of the season. Their visit to Springfield was a bright moment in the Springfield season with the home team leading the game 1-0 until the 88th minute, only for the Thunder Bay Chill to score two late goals to take all three points. Springfield didn't manage to tally a single point all year, losing all of their 16 games; the closest they came to getting points on the board was the 3-2 defeat to St. Louis Lions in early July, when they were 2-1 ahead at the half, but allowed St. Louis to come back and score their winner 8 minutes from time. Daniel Foerster, Nebojsa Opacic and Brett Thomas were Demize's token top scorers, with two goals each.
Players
Current roster
As of June 8, 2011.[2]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Notable former players
This list of notable former players comprises players who went on to play professional soccer after playing for the team in the Premier Development League, or those who previously played professionally before joining the team.
Year-by-year
| Year |
Division |
League |
Regular Season |
Playoffs |
Open Cup |
|---|
| 2007 |
4 |
USL PDL |
6th, Heartland |
Did not qualify |
Did not qualify |
| 2008 |
4 |
USL PDL |
6th, Heartland |
Did not qualify |
Did not qualify |
| 2009 |
4 |
USL PDL |
7th, Heartland |
Did not qualify |
Did not qualify |
| 2010 |
4 |
USL PDL |
6th, Heartland |
Did not qualify |
Did not qualify |
| 2011 |
4 |
USL PDL |
7th, Heartland |
Did not qualify |
Did not qualify |
| 2012 |
4 |
USL PDL |
4th, Heartland |
Did not qualify |
Did not qualify |
| 2013 |
4 |
USL PDL |
6th, Heartland |
Did not qualify |
Did not qualify |
| 2014 |
4 |
USL PDL |
4th, Heartland |
Did not qualify |
Did not qualify |
| 2015 |
4 |
USL PDL |
4th, Heartland |
Did not qualify |
Did not qualify |
Head coaches
-
Armen Tonianse (2007-2008)
- Chris Hanlon (2009)
- Logan Hoffman (2010)[15]
-
Julio Reyes (2011)
- Chris Hanlon (2012)
-
Sean Fraser (2013) [16]
-
Ian Henry (2014) [17]
- Andrew Bordelon (2015-present)
Stadia
Average attendance
Attendance stats are calculated by averaging each team's self-reported home attendances from the historical match archive at http://www.uslsoccer.com/history/index_E.html.
- 2007: 224
- 2008: 224
- 2009: 138
- 2010: 193
References
External links
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| | Teams | Midwest | |
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| Rocky Mountain |
- Avery Brewing FC
- Colorado Blizzard
- Denver Dynamite
- Real Colorado Edge
- Rocky Mountain Bighorns
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