Heat Add Pair from Monterrey
Written by admin, Apr 28, 2014, Comments Off
Duo Joins Laredo in Search of Championship
Courtesy Vanessa Guajardo,
LAREDO, Texas – Players are arriving for training in preparation for the Laredo Heat’s 10th Premier Development League season, and the 26-man roster is filling out . The additions include a pair of 20-year-old Monterrey, Mexico, natives.
Although the entire team hasn’t reported yet – due mostly to the conclusion of most colleges and universities spring semesters still pending – several are training with the team, the club announced Thursday.
From Monterrey, goalkeeper Jorge Ortega and center back Alan Reyna join the Heat from F.C. Excelsior – a second division club in the Federacion Mexicana de Futbol Asociacion. The pair began in the Tigres de Monterrey youth program and join the Heat as Under-23 foreign-born players.
The PDL allows its teams to carry 26 players on their rosters, but only eight may be over 23 years old and only 10 can be non-U.S. citizens.
“I’ve come to join the Heat because of their winning tradition and, in short, we’re here to compete for a championship,” Ortega said via a translator. “We’ve been all working together, and although I am far from home, this team has quickly become my family – my brothers.”
Reyna shares many of the same experiences with Ortega, also joining Laredo from Excelsior. He’s played in several backline positions, but prefers to feature as a center back.
“I feel comfortable with attackers coming right at me,” Reyna said through a translator. “I enjoy outworking my opponents and from being here with the Heat, I can see that they do too. I think we are all here to compete for a championship – the first since 2007 – and we can’t wait to get started.
“I know the Heat have always been successful, but this group feels very disciplined and focused on one goal: a national championship.”
Both Ortega and Reyna join the team through a mutual connection, Heat longtime regular and current coach of Laredo Community College, Juan de Dios Ibarra. Ibarra played for a decade with the Rayados de Monterrey before joining the Heat in 2006.
The Heat will continue filling out their roster per PDL requirements over the next three weeks in preparation for the upcoming U.S. Open Cup – to begin on May 14 – with the location and time to be announced once teams from around the country qualify for the open allocations offered by U.S. Soccer.
The PDL regular season opener will see Laredo host the Houston Dutch Lions at the TAMIU Soccer Complex on May 17 at 8 p.m. Last season, the Dutch Lions and the Heat played twice, opening the season with a 2-2 draw in The Woodlands. In their second match, the Heat beat the Dutch Lions 5-0.
