Luke Rodgers terminated, Spartans revise roster for Week 4

A nearly three month old visa saga ended today with Luke Rodgers being denied a U.S. work visa indefinitely. As a result, his MLS contract was terminated.

Spartans also suffered a setback last weekend when Juan Agudelo was injured while playing for the U23 national team and required surgery. As a result, the Chairman has dropped both Rodgers and Agudelo and has signed Luis Gil.  Spartans also announced a revised lineup for week 4 action.

Danny Koevermans
Bernardo Corradi
Jack Jewsbury
Juninho
Sair Sene
Wells Thompson

Seb Grazzini

Luis GilJon Busch

Subs:
Casey Townsend
Graham Zusi
Sean Johnson

Spartans week 4 line-up

Danny Koevermans
Bernardo Corradi
Jack Jewsbury
Juninho
Sair Sene
Wells Thompson

Seb Grazzini

Graham Zusi

Jon Busch

Subs:
Casey Townsend
Luke Rodgers
Sean Johnson

U-23's Out of Contention, Agudelo Injured

A late blunder by Spartans goalkeeper Sean Johnson caused the Men's U-23 team to crash out of Olympic qualifying last night in the Group A final against El Salvador.

Needing a win to advance, Johnson failed to make an easy block in injury time and let El Salvador tie it 3-3. El Salvador advances. Given the recent performance of new signing Jon Busch it remains to be seen whether Johnson will regain his starting position once he returns to BSL league action.

In other news, Spartans striker Juan Agudelo was injured in the Olympic qualifying match against Cuba. Agudelo, who undergoes surgery in New York on Wednesday, will be out for at least 6 weeks.

Spartan's Notch First BSL Win

The Spartans notched their first BSL win this weekend in a 5-0 rout over Burud Town. Points came from everywhere with Sair Sene and Casey Townsend getting goals, two assists from midfield playmaker Graham Zusi and a clean sheet from new signing Jon Busch.

The Chairman said, "We were pleased to see Sair and Casey open their accounts this weekend - clearly these two know how to score goals. Once Bernardo and Danny come into form I think this team can compete amongst the best in the BSL."

The Spartans roster had been depleted with players away for U-23 National Team duty and striker Luke Rodgers still tied up with visa issues. Spartans will feature in the Game of the Week in Week 4 against the  undefeated Saints. 

Week 3 Lineup

Grazzini
Koevermans
Zusi
Jewsbury
Sene
Corradi
Townsend
Juninho
Busch

Week 2 Lineup

Starters:
Jack Jewsbury
Juninho
Chad Barrett
Seb Grazzini
Sean Johnson
Graham Zusi
Juan Agudelo
Danny Koevermans
Saer Sene

Subs:
Casey Townsend
Brian Mullan
Luke Rodgers

UPDATED - Week 1 Spartans Lineup

Week 1 lineup:
Starters:
Graham Zusi
Danny Koevermans
Juninho
Chad Barrett
Juan Agudelo
Brian Mullan
Saer Sene
Casey Townsend
Sean Johnson (GK)

Subs:

Jack Jewsbury
Luke Rodgers

Seb Grazzini

Spartans Announce Final 2012 Squad

Today the Spartans 1612 Football Club announced its final squad for its inaugural BSL season.

Expansion Draft:
Danny Koevermans

First Round (12th Overall): Graham Zusi
Second Round (24th Overall): Jack Jewsbury
Third Round (36th Overall): Sair Sene
Fourth Round (48th Overall): Juan Agudelo
Fifth Round (60th Overall): Luke Rodgers (pre-draft trade)
Sixth Round (72nd Overall): Sebastian Grazzini (pre-draft trade)
Seventh Round (84th Overall): Juninho
Eighth Round (95th overall): Chad Barrett
Ninth Round (106th Overall): Sean Johnson
Tenth Round (115th Overall): Brian Mullan
11th Round (117th Overall): Casey Townsend

Initial media reaction was mixed. While some journalists credited the management with some shrewd signings, others pointed to several players with no previous MLS experience (Sene, Townsend).