FC Buffalo

FC Buffalo

Full name	FC Buffalo
Nickname(s)	Blitzers
Founded	2009
Stadium	Robert E. Rich All-High Stadium Buffalo, New York (capacity: 4,000)
Owners	Nick Mendola Scott Frauenhofer Brent Garner
Head Coach	Brendan Murphy
League	National Premier Soccer League
2012	5th, Great Lakes Conf. Playoffs: DNQ
Home colors Away colors
Current season

FC Buffalo is an American soccer team based in Buffalo, New York, United States. Founded in 2009, the team plays in the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL), a national amateur league at the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Midwest Division - Great Lakes Conference.

The team plays its home games at Robert E. Rich All-High Stadium. The team's colors are blue, gold and white.

History

Founding and Inaugural Season

FC Buffalo joined the NPSL as an expansion franchise in 2009 and took part in its first competitive season in 2010. While not a continuation of either franchise, FC Buffalo follows in the footsteps of two other recent Buffalo-based teams that competed in the NPSL: Queen City FC and Buffalo City FC. The team is owned by a group of six Buffalonians: Joshua Batten, Scott Frauenhofer, Brent Garner, Donny Kutzbach, Nick Mendola and Ray Siminski.

The club had a contest for fans to submit a nickname and after much debate and thousands of votes cast, "Blitzers" was chosen. The vote was aided by Buffalo native and CNN broadcaster Wolf Blitzer airing an interview with owners Nick Mendola and Scott Frauenhofer discussing the contest.

ESPN correspondent Vincent Thomas commented: "Although the "Blitzers" nickname has ended up being a pretty deft marketing move, it's more legit than a ploy. The term blitz comes from the German word for lightning, which is all over the team's logo and the city's municipal flag. And, of course, there's a mutual fondness between Blitzer and his hometown."

The Blitzers finished their opening campaign with six wins, two draws and four losses. They were the only team to defeat the Keystone Conference champion FC Sonic.

Subsequent Seasons

On Dec 8, 2010, the Blitzers announced they had parted ways with head coach Jim Hesch. Ten days later, they announced via their web site that they had inked Daniel Krzyzanowicz to coach the club into the future. Krzyzanowicz helms a Medaille College program that has made the NCAA tournament five times and reached the Sweet Sixteen in 2010.

The 2011 season was up-and-down, with the Blitzers winning five, drawing one and losing six. During the season the Blitzers took on the Bedlington Terriers F.C. in a friendly match at All High Stadium in the inaugural Bedlington Cup. Due to the connection of Robert E. Rich, Jr. to Buffalo, NY and Bedlington, England. The friendly was arranged and the Terriers traveled to Buffalo for the match. The Blitzers won 5-1 in front of a sell out crowd. The match was filmed and later made into a BBC documentary called Mr Rich and The Terriers

The team's mascot Wolf Blitzer was unveiled at the Winter Wolves fund raiser. 2012 Season tickets were sold at the event. The unique feature of the 2012 season ticket is that it consists of a special season ticket holder's scarf that will function as admission to the season's home matches.

FC Buffalo saw its first player drafted into Major League Soccer on January 17, 2012 when midfielder Krystian Witkowski was claimed in the second round of the supplemental draft by the Philadelphia Union. He was waived by the team later in the season.

On November 20, 2012, FC Buffalo signed its third head coach, Brendan Murphy. The Buffalo native was a national champion as a player at St. Lawrence and was an invaluable asset to three collegiate programs as an assistant coach.

The team saw a player drafted into Major League Soccer for the second-consecutive year, as second-leading scorer Mike Reidy was selected 71st overall in the 2013 MLS Supplemental Draft by Sporting KC.

Reverve Team

Due to high turnout during tryouts for the 2013 season a reserve team was fielded for the first time. The FC Buffalo Reserves will compete in Buffalo & District Soccer League’s (BDSL) Championship Division.

Colors and badge

The team take inspiration for their colors, royal blue and yellow gold, from classic Buffalo Sabres uniforms. The badge features a crest with a soccer ball inside a circle of electric flashes under the team name and founding year. The logo is reminiscent of the municipal flag of Buffalo, NY.

Players

2013 Roster

Source: [1]

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 2 MF John Grabowski 3 DF Josiah Snelgrove 4 MF Alex Stephan 7 MF Pablo Ordonez 9 FW Andy Tiedt 11 DF Casey Derkacz 13 MF Ryan Walter 15 DF Steven Carcaterro 17 MF CJ Scirto 19 DF Jake Rinow 23 GK Kareem Gray 23 MF James Wheeler 28 MF Chris Walter

No. Position Player DF Kolby Banker MF Richard Craven DF Nick Garcia MF Peter Marlette MF Osvaldo Morales FW Ian Mort MF Bobby Ross MF Anthony Rozzano DF Mitchell Skrabacz FW John Taggart MF Jeff Thomas

Notable former players

• Daniel Stevens now with Palloseura Kemi Kings
• Krystian Witkowski now with Philadelphia Union
• Kendell McFayden now with Rochester Rhinos
• Mike Reidy now with Sporting KC
• Tony Mermigas former player for Buffalo Blizzard
• Gary Boughton now with Rochester Lancers (indoor)

Year-by-year

Year	Division	League	Regular Season	W-L-D	Playoffs	Open Cup
2010	4	NPSL	3rd, Keystone	6-4-2	Did not qualify	Did not enter
2011	4	NPSL	5th, Keystone	5-6-1	Did not qualify	Did not qualify
2012	4	NPSL	5th, Midwest-Great Lakes	1-7-4	Did not qualify	Did not enter
2013	4	NPSL	Midwest-Great Lakes			Did not qualify
Total				12-17-10

Honors

International Friendly

• Lord Bedlington Cup
  • Winners (1): 2011

In inaugural competition, defeated Bedlington Terriers F.C. of England's Northern League, 5 - 1

Rivalries

• Supporters of FC Buffalo, Detroit City and AFC Cleveland formed the Rust Belt Derby modeled after the Cascadia Cup. The winner of the Derby is based on the head to head record of the Midwestern Conference clubs during regular season NPSL matches. Cleveland won the inaugural Rust Belt Derby on June 23, 2012 following a 1-1 draw with Detroit.
• FC Buffalo claim as their top rival Erie and the sides compete in the EC (Erie County) Derby. To Date FC Buffalo have six losses and just one tie against Erie.

Head coaches

• Jim Hesch (2009–10; 6W-2D-4L)
• Daniel Krzyzanowicz (2010–12; 7W-5D-13L)
• Brendan Murphy (2012–present; 0W-0D-0L)

Stadia

• Robert E. Rich All-High Stadium; Buffalo, New York (2010–present)

Fans

• FC Buffalo's supporters group is currently known as "The Situation Room"; named after Wolf Blitzer's CNN news program. TSR currently resides on the left hand side of All High Stadium; their sole purpose is to create an atmosphere that is the loudest, most unique and inclusive of any fan base in the City of Buffalo.
• TSR stands behind FC Buffalo's vision of a truly community based team that all Buffalonians/Western New Yorkers can take pride in.

External links

• Official Site
• FC Buffalo Twitter
• The Situation Room Official Supporters Site
• Buffalo soccer team to be named after local hero