The 2016

Ottawa Fury FC Ottawa Fury Football Club was a Canadian professional soccer club based in Ottawa, Ontario. The club competed in the North American Soccer League and USL Championship and played its home games at TD Place Stadium. The Ottawa Fury FC were di ...

season was the club's third season at the professional level, and its last in the

North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League (NASL) was the top-level major professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984. It is considered the first soccer league to be successful on a national scale in the ...

before its subsequent move to the

United Soccer League The United Soccer League (USL) is an organizer of various professional and amateur soccer leagues in the United States league system. It currently organizes its Championship, League One, and League Two for men, its Super League and W Leag ...

Off-season

Staff

On 20 November 2015,

Paul Dalglish Paul Kenneth Dalglish (born 18 February 1977) is a Scottish former professional footballer. Playing career Dalglish, son of former Scotland international Kenny Dalglish, was born in Glasgow though spent his childhood in Liverpool where his fa ...

was announced as the club's new head coach, replacing

Marc Dos Santos Marc Dos Santos (born May 26, 1977) is a Canadian soccer coach who is an assistant coach for Los Angeles FC in Major League Soccer. He was previously the head coach of Montreal Impact in D2 Pro League and the Vancouver Whitecaps FC, was North ...

who had moved on to a head coaching position with

Swope Park Rangers Sporting Kansas City II is a MLS Next Pro club affiliated with Sporting Kansas City of Major League Soccer. For the 2022 season they will play their home games at Kansas Jayhawks, Rock Chalk Park at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas, ...

and an assistant coaching position with

Sporting Kansas City Sporting Kansas City is an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Kansas City metropolitan area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The ad ...

. On 2 December 2015, the Fury announced that assistant coach

Martin Nash Martin Nash (born December 27, 1975) is a Canadian soccer coach and former player. A five-time all-league selection in the USL-1 and its predecessor, the A-League, Nash has won four league championships, two with the Rochester Rhinos in 2000 ...

and goalkeeping coach

Bruce Grobbelaar Bruce David Grobbelaar (born 6 October 1957) is a Zimbabwean former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper, most prominently for English club Liverpool between 1981 and 1994, and for the Zimbabwean national team. Regarded as one of ...

had been re-signed for the 2016 season. A week later it was announced that technical director Philip Dos Santos had left the club for other opportunities and that former Chelsea academy coach Darko Buser had been promoted to the position.

Roster moves

On 17 November 2015, the club announced it had re-signed 2015 NASL Golden Glove winner

Romuald Peiser Romuald Désiré Peiser (born 3 August 1979) is a French former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He serves as goalkeeping coach of Canadian club Atlético Ottawa. Football career Peiser was born in Phalsbourg, Moselle. After ...

to a two-year contract. On 14 December, the club announced it had officially released

Drew Beckie Drew D. Beckie (born September 30, 1990) is a Canadian former professional soccer player who currently serves as the team manager for Canadian Premier League club Atlético Ottawa. Early life Beckie was born in Regina, Saskatchewan. When he was ...

, Andrew Wiedeman,

Tom Heinemann Tom Heinemann (born April 23, 1987) is an American former professional soccer player who is currently an assistant coach for Major League Soccer club Chicago Fire. Career Youth and college Heinemann attended Christian Brothers College Hi ...

Uğur Albayrak Uğur Albayrak (born 8 June 1988) is a German footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian fo ...

Oliver Oliver may refer to: Arts, entertainment and literature Books * ''Oliver the Western Engine'', volume 24 in ''The Railway Series'' by Rev. W. Awdry * ''Oliver Twist'', a novel by Charles Dickens Fictional characters * Ariadne Oliver ...

Nicki Paterson Nicholas Stephen "Nicki" Paterson (born 19 January 1985) is a Scottish former footballer who plays as a midfielder. Career Early career Paterson grew up in Motherwell, and was a member of the academy at Scottish football club Motherwell, befo ...

and Aly Hassan, and had picked up contract options for Rafael Alves,

Carl Haworth Carl Haworth (born July 9, 1989) is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a forward and right-back for Atlético Ottawa. Club career Early career Haworth began playing soccer at the age of four with Barrie SC, where he would play al ...

, Marcel DeBellis,

Paulo Jr. Paulo Xisto Pinto Júnior is a Brazilian musician best known as the bassist for heavy metal band Sepultura. He joined Sepultura after Roberto Raffan left the band in 1984, becoming Sepultura's second bassist. Although no original members are ...

and had re-signed Brandon Poltronieri. The following day, management announced the transfers of Richie Ryan,

Siniša Ubiparipović Siniša Ubiparipović ( sr-Cyrl, Синиша Убипариповић; born 25 August 1983) is a Bosnian-American former professional soccer player. Early life Ubiparipović was born in the town of Zenica, at the time part of SR Bosnia and Herz ...

and Ryan Richter. On 16 December, it was announced that Canada national team captain

Julian de Guzman Julian Bobby de Guzman (born March 25, 1981) is a Canadian association football, soccer executive and former professional player and coach who currently serves as the Sporting Director for the New York Red Bulls in Major League Soccer. A midfie ...

and Canadian youth international

Mauro Eustáquio Mauro Antunes Eustáquio (born 10 February 1993) is a Canadian soccer coach and former professional player who played as a midfielder. He is the head coach of Canadian Premier League club York United. Born in Portugal, he represented Canada at ...

had re-signed with the club. On 18 December 2015, the Fury announced their first three new signings of the off-season; Jamaican centre forward Dennis Chin, and two of manager

's former players from the

Austin Aztex The Austin Aztex were a soccer team based in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 2011 as a member of the Premier Development League, the team played the 2015 season in the United Soccer League, the second tier of the United States soccer p ...

, American midfielder Lance Rozeboom and Brazilian defender

Fernando Timbó Fernando de Moraes Sanfelice (born 29 May 1990), known as Fernando Timbó, is a Brazilian footballer who plays as a centre-back and left-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an Glossary of association football terms#O, o ...

. On 12 January 2016, the club announced the signing of Northern Irish midfielder

Jonny Steele Jonathan Steele (born 7 February 1986) is a Northern Irish professional footballer. He has also received three caps for the Northern Ireland national team. Early life Steele was raised in a Catholic family along with three brothers in the pr ...

. The same day it was announced that Brazilians

and Rafael Alves had been re-signed through 2017. The following day, it was announced that

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

international

Kyle Porter Kyle Neville Porter (born January 19, 1990) is a Canadian professional soccer player. Club career Vancouver Whitecaps Porter grew up in nearby Mississauga, Ontario and attended John Fraser Secondary School, St. Joan of Arc Catholic Secondary ...

had been signed by the club. On 14 January, the club announced the signing of Rich Balchan and recent

USL USL may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Underground Sound of Lisbon, a Portuguese dance music project * Urban Strawberry Lunch, a band from Liverpool Companies * United Spirits Limited, India * Former United States Lines shipping company C ...

champion

Onua Obasi Onua Thomas Obasi (born 24 September 1988) is an English footballer and coach who is the head coach for the Empire Strykers in the Major Arena Soccer League. He is a versatile player who plays left back, centre back and defensive midfielder. ...

The following day, Ottawa announced the signing of English midfielder James Bailey. In the same press release, it was announced that Irish centre-back

Colin Falvey Colin Falvey (born 20 June 1985) is an Irish former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. He is currently the assistant coach at USL League One side Northern Colorado Hailstorm. Career Ireland Falvey was born in Cork. He was a ...

had been purchased by

Indy Eleven Indy Eleven is an American professional association football, soccer team based in Indianapolis, Indiana. Founded in 2013, the team made its debut in the North American Soccer League (2011–2017), North American Soccer League (NASL) in 2014, b ...

for an undisclosed fee. On 18 January, the Fury announced the pre-signing of Argentine midfielder

Gerardo Bruna Gerardo Alfredo Bruna Blanco (born 29 January 1991) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a midfielder. He was on the books of Real Madrid and Liverpool as a teenager but never made a senior appearance for either club. He has sp ...

from

Football League Two The English Football League Two, simply known as League Two and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Bet League Two, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League Two is the fourth division of the English Football League (EFL ...

Accrington Stanley Accrington Stanley Football Club is a professional association football club based in Accrington, Lancashire, England, that compete in the , the fourth level of the English football league system. They have spent their entire history playing a ...

for the end of the 2015–16 English football season. On 2 February, the club announced the signing of two Canadian players, midfielder

Mozzi Gyorio Mozesh "Mozzi" Gyorio (; born August 1, 1989) is a Canadian soccer player. Early life His parents were born in Gunaroš in today's Vojvodina, Serbia. His family moved from Yugoslavia to Hungary when he was two years old. Two years later, the fa ...

and goalkeeper Andrew MacRae. On 4 February,

Miami FC Miami FC is an American professional association football, soccer team based in Miami, Florida that competes in the USL Championship, the second tier of the American soccer pyramid. The club began play in the North American Soccer League (201 ...

purchased defender

Mason Trafford Mason Trafford (born August 21, 1986) is a Canadian former association football, soccer player who most recently played for Canadian Premier League club Cavalry FC. Besides Canada, Trafford has played in the United States, Finland, and China. C ...

from the club through a clause in the player's contract which required the Fury to transfer him if a certain minimum fee was offered. On 11 February, the Fury announced the signing of American centre-back Kyle Venter from the

Tulsa Roughnecks Tulsa Roughnecks may refer to any of four distinct professional soccer teams: *Tulsa Roughnecks (1978–1984), the original top-flight team that played in the North American Soccer League from 1978 to 1984. *Tulsa Roughnecks (1993–2000), the team ...

Season review

February

Pre-season training camp began on Monday, 15 February with indoor training at the Branchaud-Brière Complex in

Gatineau Gatineau ( ; ) is a city in southwestern Quebec, Canada. It is located on the northern bank of the Ottawa River, directly across from Ottawa, Ontario. Gatineau is the largest city in the Outaouais administrative region of Quebec and is also p ...

. At the start of training camp, it was revealed that

had released

, allowing him to join the Fury in time for pre-season and avoid an overly long playing season. The Fury played their first pre-season match against the academy team on the 19th, an informal game consisting of two 36-minute halves with different lineups. Supplementing the first-team lineup was American trialist forward

Miles Byass Miles Patrick-Anthony Byass (born December 13, 1991) is a retired American professional soccer player. Club career Youth and amateur While in high school, Byass played for Arsenal Soccer Academy in Temecula, California. He was recruited by the L ...

, as well as four academy players:

Jeff Addai Jeffrey Kwabena Addai (born May 11, 1993) is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder for Luxembourgish club Marisca Mersch. Career Tulsa Roughnecks After playing for both Ottawa Fury and VfR Mannheim, Addai would sign w ...

, Dario Conte, Emad Houache and Ndzemdzela "Zoom" Langwa. The primary focus of the match was fitness, and despite multiple good scoring opportunities for the first team, the game ultimately finished in a scoreless draw. A week later, the club played its first pre-season match against another club, travelling to

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

to play reserve side

Toronto FC II Toronto FC II is a Canadian professional soccer team based in Toronto, Ontario, that competes in MLS Next Pro, a third tier league of the United States soccer league system. It is the reserve team and minor league affiliate of Toronto FC as we ...

. Ottawa scored first in the match off a penalty drawn by

in the 30th minute, with new arrival

converting the spot kick. At the half, Dalglish substituted all outfield players. In the 60th minute, keeper

was substituted in favour of Andrew MacRae. The Fury lost their lead in the 85th minute as

Sal Bernal Salvador Bernal Flores (born August 13, 1992) is a Mexican former footballer. Early life Bernal was born in Mexico and moved to the United States at age seven, earning a work permit through the DACA program. Bernal played youth soccer with Neus ...

drew TFC level. In the final minutes of the match, centre forward Dennis Chin sealed the win with a spectacular diving header off a cross by trialist

. In addition to Byass, the Fury fielded Academy fullback Zoom Langwa in place of

who had not yet arrived at camp. Goalkeeper Marcel DeBellis was also rested for the match due to a knock. The club then travelled to

Casa Grande, Arizona Casa Grande (O'odham language, O'odham: ''Wainom Wo:g'') is a city in Pinal County, Arizona, Pinal County, approximately halfway between Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona, Tucson, in the U.S. state of Arizona. According to the 2020 ...

for outdoor training and two friendlies the following week.

March

In the afternoon of 2 March, prior to a friendly against

, the club announced the acquisition of Brazilian forward

Pablo Dyego Pablo Dyego da Silva Rosa (born 8 March 1994), known as Pablo Dyego, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays for Novorizontino. Mainly a right winger, he can also play as a right-back. Club career Dyego is a youth product of Fluminen ...

on a season-long loan from

Fluminense Fluminense Football Club () is a Brazilian sports club based in the neighbourhood of Laranjeiras, in Rio de Janeiro, being the oldest football club in the state since its foundation in 1902. It competes in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, th ...

and of Canadian international

Marcel de Jong Marcel de Jong ( , ; born 15 October 1986) is a Canadian former professional Association football, soccer player who played as a left-back. Club career Early career De Jong played for amateur side VV De Valk, De Valk and joined the PSV Eindh ...

on a permanent deal. Both new signings appeared as substitutes in the second half of the match. The first half began quietly and ultimately ended 0–0 with each team having one scoring chance. At the half, Ottawa changed all its players but Rafael Alves. In the 63rd minute, the game broke open as the recently signed

supplied a cross to compatriot

who scored the match's opening goal. Three minutes later, Dyego added his own with a volley which caught Indy keeper

Keith Cardona Keith Francis Cardona (born November 7, 1992) is an American professional soccer player. Career Youth Cardona grew up in Glen Rock, New Jersey and played soccer at Glen Rock High School before switching to a club team. Cardona spent time playi ...

off his line to make it 2–0. In the 74th minute

was fouled in the box, resulting in a penalty which was converted for the second match in a row by

. This scoreline would hold, but not before

was forced off due to a knock after colliding with the opposing keeper. Academy player Zoom Langwa again made a start in place of

and

also appeared later in the match as a substitute for Alves. The Fury concluded their trip to Arizona with a dominating 4–0 win over

Real Salt Lake Real Salt Lake (RSL) is an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Fou ...

's locally based academy team.

again opened the scoring for Ottawa off a pass from

in the first half. This scoreline held until halftime, when all of the Fury players other than

were substituted. Early in the second half, Dennis Chin added to the lead after finishing a cross from

Chin The chin is the forward pointed part of the anterior mandible (List_of_human_anatomical_regions#Regions, mental region) below the lower lip. A fully developed human skull has a chin of between 0.7 cm and 1.1 cm. Evolution The presence of a we ...

then set up a goal by

, his first of the pre-season.

Haworth Haworth ( , , ) is a village in West Yorkshire, England, in the Pennines south-west of Keighley, 8 miles (13 km) north of Halifax, west of Bradford and east of Colne in Lancashire. The surrounding areas include Oakworth and Oxenhop ...

then returned the favour, feeding

for the match's fourth and final goal. Striker

did not appear in the match, possibly the result of the injury he sustained towards the end of the previous friendly against

. Academy players

and Zoom Langwa again appeared for the first team. On 10 March, the Fury played a friendly against

neighbours

Rochester Rhinos Rochester Rhinos, formerly known as the Rochester Raging Rhinos, was an American soccer team based in Rochester, New York, United States. The club won the 1999 U.S. Open Cup, marking the only time a non-MLS team has won the U.S. Open Cup sinc ...

. The match consisted of four 30-minute quarters, totaling 120 minutes. In the second quarter,

converted a penalty to give Ottawa a 1–0 lead. Shortly afterwards, Rochester scored to bring the teams level going into half-time. At the break, Ottawa substituted all its players save Lance Rozeboom. The third quarter went poorly for the Fury as the Rhinos added another two goals to go up 3–1. Goalkeeper Andrew MacRae then made a save on a penalty to keep the deficit at two. In the fourth quarter

clawed one back for Ottawa off a pass by fellow Canadian

. Academy player

then supplied a cross to

, who finished late in the game to seal a draw. One week after the

Rhinos A rhinoceros ( ; ; ; : rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls) in the family Rhinocerotidae; it can also re ...

friendly, the club issued a press release stating that

and Kyle Venter had suffered knee injuries that were expected to sideline the players for six to eight months each (expected to return September–November). The club finished its pre-season slate with a 3–1 win over

FC Montreal FC Montreal was a Canadian professional association football, soccer team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada that played in the USL Championship, the third tier of the United States soccer league system. The team served as a reserve team of Major ...

on 19 March. James Bailey scored his first goal of pre-season inside the opening 5 minutes to give the Fury the lead, however recent Fury loanee

Jérémy Gagnon-Laparé Jérémy Gagnon-Laparé (born March 9, 1995) is a Canadian professional soccer player who currently plays for HFX Wanderers in the Canadian Premier League. Club career Early career Gagnon-Laparé joined the Montreal Impact youth academy in ...

clawed one back for Montreal in the 29th minute to finish the half 1–1.

then proceeded to secure the win for Ottawa with a brace in the 57th and 87th minutes. On 25 March, the Fury announced the signing of Israeli winger

Idan Vered Idan Vered (; born 25 May 1989) is an Israeli professional association football, footballer who plays as a winger (association football), winger for Hapoel Petah Tikva F.C., Hapoel Petah Tikva . Early life Vered was born and raised in Ramat Gan, ...

. The following day, it was revealed that Brandon Poltronieri had left the club.

April

Ottawa opened its league season with a match in New York City against the

Cosmos The cosmos (, ; ) is an alternative name for the universe or its nature or order. Usage of the word ''cosmos'' implies viewing the universe as a complex and orderly system or entity. The cosmos is studied in cosmologya broad discipline covering ...

in a rematch of last season's Soccer Bowl. Despite strong spells of possession, the Fury had multiple defensive errors punished by the defending champions, who came away 3–0 winners. On 7 April the club announced it had signed Uruguayan midfielder Bryan Olivera on loan from

for the season.

Squad

Transfers

In

Out

Trial

Friendlies

Pre-season

Friendly statistics

¹ Academy player. ² Trialist.

Competitions

NASL Spring Season

Standings

Results summary

Results by round

Match reports

NASL Fall season

Standings

Results summary

Results by round

Match reports

NASL Combined Season

Standings

Results summary

Results by round

Canadian Championship

Preliminary round

Semi-finals

Squad statistics

Appearances and goals

, - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , colspan="14", ''Players who appeared for Ottawa but left during the season:'' , - , - , - , - , -

Goal scorers

Disciplinary

Awards

Player

References

{{2016 in Canadian soccer Ottawa Fury Ottawa Fury

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

2016 in Ottawa