Birth of the Steel Army
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Anyways for the first hour or so the meeting was pretty much about getting to know one another. I of course was the elderstatesman. Quite a nice range of ages were represented all with the specific purpose of making a go of this thing. So for the first hour I concerned myself with getting to know the other supporters and drinking my absolute favorite thing in the world Tennent's Lager.
The meeting really picked up when a few of the Riverhounds organization entered the Pub around 8:15 PM. The highlight was the fact that General Manager / Head Coach Gene Klein showed up. His presence was not assured as he was attending a player combine in Charleston, South Carolina for the previous three days. It was obvious that Coach Klein was impressed with the turnout and he quickly started to relay as much information about the club's return as he could. One of the biggest questions on everyones mind was when the schedule would be released. The Coach stated that the United Soccer Leagues (USL) Division 2, that's the league we will be playing in next season, schedule was pretty much drawn up but was being held back because there may be some conflicts with the Bermuda Hogges. Not only does Bermuda play in USL D2 but that team is also the national team of Bermuda so there may be conflicts between the USL schedule and World Cup Qualifier dates that need to be determined by CONCACAF and FIFA. Once the World Cup Qualifier dates are set the USL schedule will soon follow. The coach also told us that the Hounds will be playing 8 out of their first 9 matches on the road, a tough start indeed for the returning club.
Coach Klein then relayed to us that right now he is in the process of gathering talent for the club, hence the trip to the combine. He told us that he is a fan of players who are intelligent with the ball. His preferred style of play is to knock it about keeping the ball on the carpet looking to create a controlled attack. I must say at this point I was overjoyed to hear that as I was afraid he may tell us he wanted to defend in depth since he would be starting from scratch. Previous players who had been with the club prior to the hiatus may also be invited back during the preseason. We shall see but I was very impressed with his delivery and explanations on the talent front.
One big time contribution was made by the Riverhounds Vice President of Sales and Operations TJ O'Leary. He told us about his proposed seating arrangement at Chartiers Valley High School Stadium, where the Hounds will be playing their home matches. The plan as it stands now is to have the middle two sections as reserved and the two sections at the ends of the stand to be general admission. His proposal was to have one of the GA areas to have a roped off area reserved just for the Steel Army. We told him that we expect to stand for the entire match and he said that shouldn't be a problem. He said he is also working on securing a bussing contract for the team and would also like to include the supporters group in the travel arrangements for any away matches.
With new ownership now in charge the club is surrounded with more optimism than I can ever remember in recent years. Also this is the first time that actual representatives of the club have reached out to the supporters and met with them and taken in their suggestions. Things are really looking up and all I can say is I cannot wait for the very first Pittsburgh-Cleveland Derby.
