(Photo by Victor Tan / New Day Review)
In their second season, Orlando City B failed to make the playoffs for a second-consecutive season after doing so in their inaugural campaign last year. On Wednesday, the team announced a roster update that included declining options from seven players.
OCB have declined the options of defenders Zachary Ellis-Hayden, Zach Carroll and Fernando Timbó; midfielders Jordan Schweitzer, Danny Deakin and Austin Martz; and forward Michael Cox. The contracts of goalkeeper Jake Fenlason, defender Scott Thomsen and midfielders Paul Clowes and Lewis Neal have also expired.
“I’d like to thank all the players for their efforts over the course of the year,” OCB head coach Anthony Pulis said, per the team’s press release. “They’ve been a fantastic group to work with day in and day out. I’d like to wish all the players good luck with their future endeavors.”
Of the players whose options were declined, Cox and Ellis-Hayden were the only two players returning from OCB’s inaugural season in 2016. This past season, Cox started 10 of his 17 appearances for 922 minutes, tallying two goals and three assists. Ellis-Hayden started 19 of his 24 games for 1,843 minutes and scored one goal.
Deakin, the club’s 2017 MLS SuperDraft pick, spent most of the 2017 season with OCB after being loaned down from the first team. He started 12 of his 20 appearances for 1,028 minutes. His lone goal of the season was an equalizing penalty kick against the Tampa Bay Rowdies in a 1-1 draw on July 13.
Despite his contract’s expiration, Neal, OCB’s 36-year-old captain for the past two seasons, expressed a desire to play after the United Soccer League Lions’ season-finale loss to the Rowdies.
“I have no idea what next year holds for me,” Neal said after a 2-0 loss to Tampa Bay on Oct. 12. “I’m in the same boat as Ant, and I’ll have to wait and see what comes from the front-office people, what direction they wanna take and what they would like to do with me.
“I mean, personally, I would like to continue playing. I mean, 36 aside, I feel like I can still play with these young guys day in and day out on a weekly basis, and I certainly have that desire and that passion to still wanna go out there and train every day and play, so, you know, I don’t wanna stop playing, but it’s not always in my control, that, unfortunately.”
For more on OCB, as they look to rebuild their roster during the offseason, follow Victor Tan on Twitter at @NDR_VictorTan.
