FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Newly-named New England Revolution head coach Jay Heaps will be formally introduced at a press conference tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. at Gillette Stadium, where he will be joined by Revolution President Brian Bilello and General Manager Michael Burns.
The press conference will be streamed live on revolutionsoccer.net, and will be archived on the site later in the afternoon.
TEAM NOTES
Revolution names Jay Heaps head coach
The Revolution named Jay Heaps the sixth head coach in club history on Tuesday, making him the second-youngest active head coach in MLS (35 yrs., 105 days) behind D.C. United’s Ben Olson (34 yrs., 196 days) … Heaps is the first former Revs player to take the club’s reins and the first New England native to coach the club … an 11-year Major League Soccer veteran and club legend, Heaps anchored the Revolution’s defense from 2001 until his retirement at the close of the 2009 season.
Zak Boggs wins MLS W.O.R.K.S. Humanitarian of the Year award
For his weekly cancer research work in Dr. Marsha Moses’ lab at Children’s Hospital Boston, midfielder Zak Boggs was named the MLS W.O.R.K.S Humanitarian of the Year last week … Boggs has been a fixture in Moses’ lab since 2010 – when a concussion sidelined him for the entire second half of the MLS season – and has also been a regular visitor to patients at Children’s Hospital through the team’s monthly visits.
Holiday Multi-Game Packs on Sale Beginning Thursday, Nov. 17
Multiple-game ticket packages go on sale beginning Thursday Nov. 17, offering fans the chance to purchase discounted tickets and select seats before individual game tickets go on sale to the public … beginning at only $80, holiday packages – including four and six game plans – also include pre-sale opportunities for Gillette Stadium concerts and special events as well as an additional holiday Revs gift, subject to availability … fans ordering a six-game mini-plan pay for five games and receive the sixth game free.
YOUTH NEWS
Youth teams play pre-season friendly
The New England Revolution Under-18 and Under-16 teams each fell in a preseason friendly against the Philadelphia Union youth teams on Sunday, Nov.13, at ForeKicks in Marlborough, Mass … one week of preseason training remains until both teams begin their fourth season as part of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy … this weekend, the teams kick off their 2011-12 schedule at Durfee High School in Fall River, Mass., where they will host Met Oval on Saturday, Nov. 19, before playing the New York Cosmos on Sunday, Nov. 20.
Media Day set for Nov. 29
The New England Revolution Under-18 and Under-16 teams will hold a media day in conjunction with their training session on Tuesday, November 29 … held in the Dana Farber Field House on the grounds of Gillette Stadium, the training session will be one of the teams’ final before the 2011-12 U.S. Soccer Development Academy Winter Showcase, held in Sarasota, Fla., Dec. 2-6 … media will have the opportunity to speak with the U18 and U16 players and their coaches, and also get b-roll and photos.
UPCOMING DRAFT INFORMATION
2011 MLS Expansion Draft
Wednesday, Nov. 23 - via Conference Call
With Montreal entering MLS in 2012, the league will conduct the Expansion Draft on Wednesday, Nov. 23 … existing teams will protect 11 players from their rosters, with exclusions for some Home Grown players … Montreal will then make 10 selections from among the exposed players … existing teams must submit their protected lists to MLS on Monday, Nov. 21.
2011 Re-Entry Draft, Stage 1
Monday, Dec. 5 - via Conference Call
All 18 teams competing in 2012 will have the opportunity to augment their rosters through the Re-Entry Draft, which begins on Monday, Dec. 5 … players who are not made qualifying contract offers by their current clubs are available through a draft process for pre-determined salaries to the rest of the clubs … by virtue of their 17th-place regular-season finish (tied for 17th, but holding the season series tie-breaker with Vancouver), the Revs will have the second overall selection in the Re-Entry Draft.
2011 Re-Entry Draft, Stage 2
Monday, Dec. 12 - via Conference Call
The second stage of the Re-Entry Draft will be held one week following Stage 1 … players who were available but undrafted in Stage 1 are available to teams through the same draft order as Stage 1 … in the week between Stage 1 and Stage 2, undrafted players are able to re-negotiate their salaries with MLS and are then available to teams at the new salary rates … like Stage 1, the Revs will have the second selection in each round of Stage 2 of the Re-Entry Draft.
2012 MLS SuperDraft
Thursday, Jan. 12 – live in Kansas City, Mo.
MLS will conduct its annual college draft on Thursday, Jan. 12, in Kansas City, Mo. … players who have exhausted their collegiate eligibility, as well as Generation adidas players, and potentially a select number of young international players, will be available to the 18 teams … this year, the SuperDraft was shortened from three rounds to two rounds … barring any trades, the Revs are expected to hold the third overall pick in both rounds of the SuperDraft … a full listing of the teams’ draft positions – including any positions swapped in trades - will be released closer to the draft.
2012 MLS Supplemental Draft
Tuesday, Jan. 17 – via Conference Call
MLS will conduct the annual Supplemental Draft on Monday, Jan. 17 … eligible players who were not selected in the MLS SuperDraft are available to teams …this year, the Supplemental Draft was expanded from three rounds to four rounds … barring any trades, the Revs are expected to hold the third overall pick in each of the four rounds of the Supplemental Draft … a full listing of the teams’ draft positions – including any positions included in trades - will be released closer to the draft.
