Don't miss the action this Saturday
Home Game Double Header: W-League v Pali Blues 5pm, Mens v SFV Quakes 7:30pm

Game broadcasted Live on 1400AM KKZZ at 7PM

Game Highlights to be broadcated on Timewarner Cable TV channel 25

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TOP WOMEN’S LEAGUE IN USA COMES TO VENTURA

Fusion Ladies open USL W-League Season at Buena High School Stadium on Saturday May 10^th

Ventura County Fusion brings top-level competitive women’s soccer to Ventura County for the first time ever and promises to put stars from around the world on display at Buena High School Stadium over the summer after the Fusion ladies open their season in the most elite women’s league in the nation on Saturday May 10^th, kick off 5:00pm.  

Fusion’s opponents in the USL W-League will be the Pali Blues, featuring three Australian internationals from last year’s Women’s World Cup and former US international Jill Oakes.  Since the collapse of WUSA, the women’s professional league, the USL W-League has become the highest level of play available to women in the US and Canada and each year attracts the best international players from countries all over the globe. 

Ladies’ Head Coach Michelle Myers is excited about the start of the new season and about assembling her squad.  “We’re going to be juggling the roster for the first few weeks because not all our players are available at the same time, but once we get all the pieces put together I think we’re going to have a very good team,” said Myers.  Myers is currently working with a pool of 32 players that includes players with Division One college experience, USA junior internationals, and several local girls returning to play on home turf.   Missing for the first three games will be headliners Kasey Moore (Texas) and Ashley Nick (USC) who are with the USA u-23 National Team in Germany until May 21^st.

“The girls have shown a great attitude and worked hard in training.  You can’t fault their enthusiasm.  We have one player who has commuted from Orange County for every training session and one player who has moved here from Hawaii for the summer just to play for us.” 

The commuter with the 150-mile round trip is Madison Klovstad, a speedy goal-scoring forward from Texas A&M who was part of the Aggies’ Big 12 Conference Championship team. Shari Nishikawa lives in Kaneohe and has been working at the Honolulu Zoo as a zoo-keeper after graduating from Loyola Marymount University where defensive performances earned her a  “Player of the Year” accolade.  They are joined by two more members of USC’s 2007 NCAA Women's Soccer Championship team, midfielder-forward Megan Ohai and defender Kasey Johnson. Johnson and Ohai have been in national pools since the age of sixteen.  “Both women were invited to join the USA u-20 national squad this summer,” said Myers, “but chose to play here so they could do some other things as well.” 

Returning to scenes of former glory are at least two members of the Buena High School team once ranked No. 1 in the country, Emily Cressy (Kansas Univ) and Katie Gibson (CSUF).  Yeraldy Hurtado (Long Beach State) may also put in an appearance during the season. Other local players include former Ventura College standout Allie Avina of Somis (UCSD), Tenley Garcia of Oxnard (Holy Names, Oxnard College), Sienna Kluck of Thousand Oaks (Ventura College) and Sarah Stoltz of Ojai (UCSB).  

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Fusion Fanzone Podcast # 3 

http://101soccer.com/media/shows/FusionFanZonePodcast3.mp3

Interview with Head Womens Coach Michelle Myers, Head Mens Coach Graham Smith and Man of the Match Rodrigo Lopez

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SOCCER FEAST IN VENTURA ON SATURDAY

Fans Treated to Double-Header as Fusion

Ladies open USL W-League Season, Fusion Men play 2^nd game of season

Ventura County Fusion gives local soccer fans a feast on Saturday May 10^th with the first of three scheduled double-headers at Buena High School Stadium.  The Fusion ladies will play their inaugural game in the USL-League, kick off 5:00pm, and the Fusion men will play the second game of their Premier Development League season in the second-half of the double-header under lights, kick-off 7:30 pm.

Fusion’s opponents in the USL W-League will be the Pali Blues, featuring three Australian internationals from last year’s Women’s World Cup and former US international Jill Oakes.The men face local rivals San Fernando Valley Quakes who pipped Fusion to a play-off place in last year’s final PDL run-in.  Fusion tied Bakersfield Brigade 0-0 last Friday at Buena in the first game of their 2008 season.After seeing a great attendance for the men’s home opener, Fusion officials hope that local fans will rally in the same numbers for the women.  The double-action promises great value at 15 for adults and $8 for children.

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Listen To Fusion Podcast show # 2  

http://www.101Soccer.com/media/shows/FusionFanZone2.mp3

Interviews with Head Coach Graham Smith, Team Captain Alfonzo Motigalvon and Goalkeeper Logan Frank.

EXCITING CHANGES FOR OPENING DAY 

Changes in Roster, Coaching, Organization Mark Start of Fusion’s New Season

 Local Boys mix with Players from Around the Globe

Ventura County Fusion, beginning its second season in the USL Premier Development League, has announced changes to its player roster for Opening Day on May 2^nd 2008, together with advances in club organization. Head Coach Graham Smith hopes that the new roster, once again combining local talent with international flavor, will keep Fusion’s momentum building after an impressive inaugural year.

The first game of the new season for the Fusion’s men’s team will be at Buena High School Stadium when Bakersfield Brigade supply the opposition, kick-off 7:30pm. 

Fusion is proud to report that six familiar players will be missing on Opening Day, having moved on to professional careers at MLS clubs: Chance Myers, Nelson Pizzaro (Kansas City Wizards), Johnny Alcaraz (Houston Dynamo), Eric Avila (FC Dallas), Vardan Adzemian, Greg Folk (Los Angeles Galaxy).  “It’s sad to lose some familiar faces from last year,” said Head Coach Graham Smith, “but it’s great to see them lining up in the MLS.  That’s what we’re all about, development. 

Smith has brought in replacements from around the globe. Headlining the new-look Fusion will be goal-scoring midfielder Lee Stevens, imported from England, where he played in the 2007 FA Vase Final at the new Wembley Stadium in London for defeated finalists AFC Totton of the Wessex League.  Stevens also played for Salisbury City, Swindon Town FC and Southampton FC.

Stevens is joined by defender Henrique de Paula of Itauna, Brazil.  Henrique has appeared in his home country’s Second Division but more recently was a key member of the Marshalltown (Iowa) Community College men’s soccer team that claimed a third place finish in the 2007 National Junior College Athletic Association national soccer tournament.  A second Brazilian defender joins the squad in Guilherme Mitorvitch of Santos, Brazil, who now lives in Santa Clarita and plays with the men’s team at Los Angeles Masters College.

Midfielder Jean Alexandre arrives from Verrettes, Haiti, by way of Lynn University, Florida, where he was named the Sunshine State Conference Player of the week after scoring his team’s game-winning goal in double-overtime in the regular season finale.  20-year old midfielder Rodrigo Lopez joins Fusion from Chivas USA, where last season he made 5 appearances in the MLS after signing from Club Deportivo Guadalajara (Mexico).  Jamaican Sylan Wignal, who made the all-Division One NCCAA team in 2007 as a defender with Los Angeles Masters College, can also use his 6” 4” frame to play center-forward.

Jaime Ambriz highlights a group of players with local connections.  He is a former Rio Mesa High School student whose goal-scoring talents have taken him from UCSB, where he was leading scorer 3 years in a row, to Switzerland’s First Division (Concordia Basel, FC Winthertur, FV Lyss) and to the USL Division One with Portland Timbers. In Switzerland, Ambriz scored a league-leading 24 goals for Lyss during the 2002-2003 season.  Midfielder Brian Jones, twice a winner of the Marmonte League Championship (2005, ’06) with Westlake High School and a State Championship winner with Samba in 2005, now plays at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, and Fillmore High School and Oxnard College product Sergio Garcia starts his first season with Fusion after scoring the winning goal against Columbus Crew during Fusion’s winter season of exhibitions.

They are joined by Jones’ Cal Poly team-mate Anton Peterlin, the versatile Chris Pontius from UCSB, central defender Joe Buppert from Santa Barbara City College, and attacking full-back Armando Guerrero from Lompoc.

“I’m thrilled at the prospect of working with these new players as well as the returnees that we think have a chance of making it in the future too,” said Coach Smith. 

Goalkeeper Logan Frank, who was lost to injury midway through last season, is one of those returning along with Bryan Hill, the Oxnard resident who took over the goalkeeper position.  UCLA stars Brad Russin and Jason Leopoldo, who also lost most of last season to injury, will both be back.  Fusion fans will also recognize Gabe Chavez, Gabe Gonzales, Dillon Barna, Dylan Riley, Hagop Chirishian, Gurgen Adzemian, Richie Alcaraz and Danny Barrera, who recently came back after playing for 6-months in Europe.  The Farfan twins, Mike and Gabe, will also return.  Alfonso Motagalvan, who played 730 minutes for the Fusion in the PDL last season, is club captain for the 2008 campaign.

“A big factor for us this year”, said Smith, “is the development of our men’s u-20 team, coached by Ross Greaney.  All of our younger players who don’t get much opportunity to play in the PDL can be kept active and prepared for moving up into the full PDL team.” 

Another development is the introduction of Ole Mikkelsen as Smith’s Assistant, replacing Rudy Ybarra, who has other commitments.  “Ole has done it all, from being the top scorer in UCLA history to playing professionally in the old NASL.  He’s an A-licensed coach and a great mentor for the young players.”

Season tickets for Fusion’s 2008 PDL campaign are priced at $80 adult and $40 youth.  This includes admission to 3 double-headers when the Fusion ladies’ team hosts W-League games on the same day.  Combined season tickets for both men’s and women’s leagues are just $99 and $49. All tickets can be bought online through the club’s website at www.venturacountyfusion.com. 

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New Fusion Powerhour Radio Podcast Show #1

http://www.101Soccer.com/media/shows/FusionPowerHour.mp3  

FUSION LAUNCHES “SUPER CLUB” YOUTH ACADEMY

Local players are first in State to get path from Youth to Pro-Level all in one organization.

Ventura County Fusion, the exclusive Premier Development League soccer franchise for Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties, has announced the launch of its ground-breaking Fusion Youth Soccer Academy in February 2008.

The Academy is a fantastic concept for the local soccer community.  It will provide a structured and progressive pyramid from youth leagues all the way to full professional, giving local youngsters a unique opportunity to advance from beginner to the highest levels of the game.  The Fusion’s flagship ladies’ W-League team will give local girls a chance to progress and play at what is currently the highest level of women’s soccer in the USA.  The Fusion men’s PDL team has already seen six players from last season’s roster move on to professional leagues around the world.

With its plans for top quality coaches, guest coaches from Europe and South America, a program of soccer camps and tournaments, opportunities for the best players to train with professional clubs abroad, a proposed affiliation with a top European club in the works, and the potential to feed into the professional system through an extensive network of personal (and professional) connections, Fusion is able to provide an enhanced environment for youth soccer that cannot be found anywhere else in Southern California.  (In fact, it) exists in few places in the United States.

The Fusion Youth Soccer Academy will be spearheaded by a Board of Directors that includes Graham Smith, Fusion Head Coach and a former Director of Chelsea FC in the English Premier League; Ole Mikkelson, Fusion Director of Operations, Assistant Coach, and UCLA’s most-goals record holder; Ranbir Shergill, Fusion’s Founder and General Manager; Harold Edwards, CEO and President of Limoneira Company; and Martin O’Doherty, Founder and former President of Real California FC.  To serve the best interests of its youth members, the Academy will be a Non Profit organization 501 (c) (3).

The Board’s strong management skills and substantial soccer pedigree are intended to provide long term stability as the Youth Academy seeks to attract and develop the best players in and around Ventura County (for years to come). The Academy will seek a balanced approach to sport, believing that all players should receive a positive and rewarding experience through the game of soccer whether they are going to advance to collegiate or professional careers (or play recreationally). The) Academy intends to introduce the same curriculum used in the academies of professional European clubs to make sure that (Fusion players are on the same footing as their international counterparts with whom they may eventually play).

Teams and players from Ventura County and Santa Barbara areas are welcome to join the Fusion Youth Academy. The Academy will hold free classes for players aged 8 to 11 with an interest in playing club soccer every Sunday from 3:30pm to 5pm in Kimball Park, Ventura, beginning February 10th 2008.  Tryouts for older players will be announced shortly.  For more information call 805-256-0925 or go to www.vcfusion.com.

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Fusion to Give Fans Bonus 

By Joe Curley, Ventura County Star, Wednesday, January 30, 2008

With so much of the talent from its inaugural season in demand by Major League Soccer clubs, the Ventura County Fusion will now see how its second edition measures up on the playing field.  The Fusion announced it will host a pair of exhibition matches next month at Buena High against MLS opposition preparing locally for the upcoming season.

The Fusion will host Real Salt Lake on Friday, Feb. 8, at 7:30 p.m. and the Columbus Crew on Monday, Feb. 25, at 7 p.m.  Tickets will be $12 for adults and $6 for children. The Fusion is offering a two-game pack for $20 and $10 via its Web site."It's a great way to kick off the season," said Fusion general manager Ranbir Shergill. "It's not often you get pro team in the area, so it's nice. It gets the excitement going for the soccer fans."

In a soccer version of the Dallas Cowboys' renowned summers in Thousand Oaks and Oxnard, both clubs will set up preseason training camps at Oxnard College in preparation for the upcoming MLS season.  Real Salt Lake, featuring longtime U.S. international defender Eddie Pope and U.S. youth international goalkeeper Chris Seitz, a Thousand Oaks High graduate, is expected to arrive today and hold its first training session this afternoon.

The Crew, highlighted by former Argentine international Guillermo Barros Schelotto, who scored 106 goals for powerful Boca Juniors, and veteran U.S. international Frankie Hejduk, will arrive Feb. 20.  "It rocks, man," said Oxnard College soccer coach Ross Greaney, a Fusion assistant coach. "This is why we treat Oxnard College like the world-class training facility that it is. It's great when these top teams come and we get to watch how they work."

Thanks to head coach Graham Smith, a former licensed FIFA agent, the Fusion has been working on putting something like this together since its inception.  "We're excited to be able to assist them in their preparation for the MLS season," said Shergill. "It's something we've always wanted to do."  After finishing a win away from USL Premier Development League's Southwestern Division title in its first season, the Fusion played a memorable friendly against Everton of the English Premier League at the Home Depot Center in Carson.

"This is what it's about," said Shergill. "Bringing teams in, getting exhibition games, creating more and more opportunities for the younger players to play in these games and showcase themselves." The Fusion certainly was a showcase in its first season. The club had four players from its debut season drafted by the MLS, including the No. 1 overall draft pick, fullback Chance Myers of UCLA and Thousand Oaks High, who went to the Kansas City Wizards.

Midfielder Eric Avila of UC Santa Barbara was selected No. 19 overall by F.C. Dallas. Two more Fusion players were snapped up in Thursday's supplemental draft — midfielder Johnny Alcaraz of Westmont College went No. 14 to Houston, defender Greg Folk of UCLA went No. 32 to the Los Angeles Galaxy.  In addition, forward Tino Nunez of UCSB, who the Fusion cut last spring, was drafted by Real Salt Lake and could play against his former team next month.

"This shows what great strides Fusion has made since its inception," said Smith. "MLS teams are using our contact base and getting a good workout playing against a Fusion 11. "It's a tremendous opportunity for our players to put themselves in the shop window for a professional career."

Both clubs feature exciting young talent expected to figure in the future of the U.S. men's national team. Seitz and Robbie Findley of Salt Lake and Robbie Rogers, Eddie Gaven and Tim Ward of Columbus have all been named to the U.S. Under-23 team in preparation for the 2008 Olympics. Seitz is already the first choice Under-20 goalkeeper ahead of this summer's FIFA World Youth Championships in Canada.

Both visiting clubs drafted UCSB products in the first round of the recent MLS Superdraft. Real Salt Lake selected midfielder Ciaran O'Brien No. 5 overall and the Crew followed with defender Andy Iro. The Fusion, which held its annual tryouts earlier this month, expects several players to return for its second season, including goalkeepers Logan Frank and Bryan Hill; defenders Folk, Brad Rusin, Alex Carmona, Dylan Riley and Dylan Barna; midfielders Jason Leopoldo, Alfonso Montalgalvan, Vardean Adzemian and Gabriel Gonzalez; and forward Hagop Chirishian.

UC Santa Barbara midfielder Chris Pontius, Cal Poly midfield Brian Jones, a Westlake High product, and Santa Barbara City forward Mark Knight, who led California community colleges with 28 goals, could be among the new names.  Mark Draycott, who led the team with 10 goals last season, is currently playing with his local English club, Swindon Supermarine. But the door is cracked open for his return. "There is an outside chance," said Smith. "He had such a good time with us last year."

Shergill said the Farfan brothers, attacking midfielders Michael and Gabriel who took part in some of the best goals of last season, are expected to sign professionally. But the twins from Cal State Fullerton could first suit up against Real Salt Lake. "They may or may not be available for the season, but they could be available to play Real Salt Lake," said Shergill. "We're still on the hunt for more quality players."  The Fusion will open the PDL season by hosting the Bakersfield Brigade on May 2 at Buena High.

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Fusion Player #1 Pick in 2008 MLS Super Draft

Chance Myers of Thousand Oaks, California, who was rostered last summer with Ventura County Fusion in the USL Premier Development League, is one of 23 players named by U.S. Under-23 Men’s National Team head coach Peter Nowak to participate in the team’s second training camp of 2008 from Jan. 26 – Feb. 2 in at the IMG Academies in Bradenton, Florida.

In addition, on January 18th Myers was named #1 Draft Pick in the MLS Super Draft in Baltimore, signing a professional contract with the Kansas City Wizards.  

The week-long national camp will be Nowak’s final chance to train and evaluate players before selecting the team that will compete in CONCACAF Men’s Olympic Qualification from March 11-23, 2008, in Los Angeles, Tampa and Nashville. Myers will be competing for a place to play in three games of the group stage in Tampa against Cuba on March 11, Panama on March 13 and Honduras on March 15. The eight-team tournament will send the two finalists to the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

Myers attended Thousand Oaks High School where helping his team to two CIF titles led to him being named Ventura County Player of the Year and the 2005 Marmonte League Offensive MVP.  He won Parade All-America and NSCAA/Adidas Youth All-America honors in High School before committing to UCLA, where he was a first-team all-PAC 10 Honoree.

For Fusion, Myers played 11 times with 3 assists out of a possible 15 games, taking leave of absence to tour Argentina with the men’s USA u-20 national team.   

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Myers selected first coach of Fusion women's team

By Joe Curley,  Friday, December 21, 2007

Ventura County Fusion soccer club announced Thursday it has hired Loyola Marymount assistant coach Michelle Myers as the first head coach of the Fusion women's team.

The Fusion, which fielded a men's team in the United Soccer League's Premier Development League last summer, will also begin play in the W-League, the top women's league in North America, next May.

Myers, a LMU graduate, just wrapped up her 12th season on staff, helping the Lions consistently amass some of the nation's top recruiting classes. She's also coached in Cal South's Olympic Development program since 1996, winning six regional titles and two national championships.

"Michelle was the obvious choice because of her success in the women's game," said Fusion general manager Ranbir Shergill. "She's coached at the college level, she's coached at ODP and she's been responsible for a large part of the female talent that has emerged from Southern California."

Myers currently is the assistant coach for the Cal South girls '91 state team.  "It was important to have a coach that would be known and respected by the players," said Shergill. "We felt that Michelle had all the right qualities. She was our No. 1 target from the get-go."  Myers, who played collegiate for four years at Santa Clara University, also coached at Rancho Santiago Community College in 1995 and Santa Ana's Mater Dei High from 1992 to 1995.  "I'm excited," said Myers. "It's about time to have something like this in Southern California because of the amount of talent we have out here. There isn't much after college for the female player to do. "I think it's going to take off and build into something special."

Fusion fans can expect from the women's team the same type of skillful play the men's team produced last summer.  "I like to play the game the way it was supposed to be played," said Myers. "I've always been a student of the game. I believe in a possession-oriented game and being organized on defense. Our hope is to spread things out offensively, take care of business in the 18-yard boxes and make it a game that people want to watch."

Former Pepperdine assistant coach Kristy Walker, an assistant coach for the U.S. Under-15 national team, will be Myers' assistant. "Kristy and I have always been looking for an opportunity to work together," said Myers. "We've coached against each other many times. We've always said that we'd like to work together."

Work has already begun putting together a roster that will be anchored by local players.  "I got back to the Final Four this year and you watch USC win with nine Southern Californians on the field," said Myers. "We have such a wealth of talent. Other clubs may be looking to bring in foreign players, but I don't see that as the route that I want to go.  "I want this to be an opportunity for people who have grown up here or maybe were college players in this area."

Fusion to field women's team in '08

By Joe Curley, Ventura County Star, Wednesday, December 19, 2007  

Not content to be a one-year wonder, Ventura County Fusion soccer club announced Tuesday the creation of a women's team that will play in the W-League, the top women's league in North America.  The Fusion women's team will begin play in May in a reshaped Western Conference. The team will announce a head coach later this week. Tryouts begin next month at Ventura College.

"Part of our goal at the outset was having the complete club-level pyramid, being an all-embracing club," said Fusion general manager Ranbir Shergill. "A big part of our presence in Ventura County was that we cater to the women's game. It's something we've thought about since we started."

The announcement is a sign the Fusion, the closest thing the county has to a professional sports franchise, plans to be a summer fixture for local sports fans for years to come.  "It shows our long-term commitment to the franchise, to the community and to the game," said Shergill.

The W-League is part of the United Soccer Leagues, which also includes the Premier Development League. With a roster that included nine players who played for UCLA and UC Santa Barbara in the NCAA Division I men's national title game, plus 10-goal English striker Mark Draycott, the Fusion men's team was 9-4-3 in its inaugural PDL season last summer, one win from a Southwest Division title and postseason berth. 

The Fusion hopes to build on that success in the W-League, which has filled the void for professionals and internationals since the 2003 collapse of WUSA, yet still maintains "open" status that allows elite collegiate players to participate without compromising their amateur status.  The Fusion will be one of 17 clubs that play in both the PDL and W-League. Shergill said the club will host at least three men's and women's doubleheaders this coming season and have an announcement soon on the development of its youth academy.

"It's a natural progression toward completing the top-to-bottom pyramid model that every soccer organization in the U.S. is striving for," said Shergill.  The W-League sent 54 current and former players, representing nine countries and 17 franchises, to the Women's World Cup in China earlier this year, including Formiga (Brazil) and Faye White (England). U.S. internationals Cat Whitehill, Lindsay Tarpley and Heather O'Reilly won the 2005 W-League title with the New Jersey Wildcats.

The team will play a 12-game schedule in a conference that includes two other expansion franchises in Southern California, the Palisades Blues and the Los Angeles Storm, three existing teams in Colorado and two historic teams in the Pacific Northwest, the Vancouver Whitecaps and the Seattle Sounders.

"We've finally tapped into the California market, which is where we've struggled," said Kristin Lettiere, the W-League's Director of Operations. "We're thrilled that we've finally got some teams in the Southern California area.

"It's one of the biggest things we've been working on for the last three years."  The Western Conference includes the Vancouver Whitecaps, for which U.S. international Tiffeny Milbrett and Canadian superstar Christine Sinclair, who tied for the most goals in the 2002 Women's World Cup, are current and former players.

Sinclair is expected to spend the season preparing for the Olympics with the Canadian national team.  "I haven't heard from a lot of teams lately," said Lettiere. "They'll get as many big names as they can. Honestly, it depends on which countries are in the (Olympic) tournament."

The local response was triumphant.  "I haven't heard about it, but I think everyone would be interested in that," said Oaks Christian senior Kelsea Smith, who has committed to Pepperdine. "That's exciting. It's about time."  "It's a great opportunity for women that love the game and want to pursue it," said Buena High senior Amelia Mathis, who will play soccer for UCLA next year.

"Of course I think it's a wonderful opportunity for girls who continue to aspire to play at the next level," said Vince Thomas, who coached Mathis on two national championship youth club teams with the Camarillo Eagles. "I would love to see it grow into something that's lasting." The last two Western State Conference Most Valuable Players both said they'd try out.

"I'm so excited," said former Ventura College star Sienna Kluck. "I think we'll have a great team."  "For sure, I love soccer and anytime I can support it or go out and play, that's something that I'm interested in," said Moorpark College sophomore Jessica Zuehlsdorf. Kelsey Davis, the Thousand Oaks native who keeps goal for University of Portland, has several friends who play for the Whitecaps.

"Anytime that you can get a team like this locally, it's awesome for the younger kids to look up to and for players my age to compete on," said Davis.  The U.S. Under-23 national team goalkeeper was certainly interested in learning more about the team. "If I decide to come home this summer, it's cool that I have a team for play for," said Davis.

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Fusion developed bond in first year

By Joe Curley, Ventura County Star,

Sunday, August 19, 2007 Nearly a month after the season ended, Ventura County Fusion general manager Ranbir Shergill got a phone call. His first-year franchise had been selected by a local publication as the region's best sports team.

Considering the dearth of professional sports locally, the competition for the honor maybe wasn't as difficult as the struggle the Fusion found in its first season in the United Soccer League's Premier Development League.  But Shergill took the news as another sign that the Fusion was growing roots in the community, turning from a first-year curiosity into a potential annual fixture on the local sports calendar.  "It's nice to be out there, you know?" said Shergill.

The Fusion's debut season, which ended July 20 when dreams of a Southwest Division title died with a scoreless draw against the Los Angeles Storm, can be judged on a number of fronts. "I think we did fantastically well," said Shergill. "Success is measured in various ways."

Missing the playoffs, albeit in a competitive division, despite a roster loaded with U.S. youth internationals was disappointing. "We were in the position to win it," said head coach Graham Smith. "That's for sure. But our inexperience and naivety in critical areas of the field let us down. "Basically, we let slip something that was well within our grasp." The Fusion entered the final two games of the season four points away from the league title, with their road schedule complete and a perfect 6-0 record at home.  "We had an extremely young team," said Smith. "I think that the other teams' players were older and that experience might have meant the two points."

But the Fusion certainly played entertaining soccer, especially at home, and that helped build a good reputation with the local soccer community.  "As a club, we have developed a solid fan base," said Smith. "We created a very entertaining product that the people at Ventura County took to."  The Fusion drew an average of 1,100 fans per game, double the PDL average of 550, a figure which resonated at the league office in Tampa, Fla.

"The Fusion were in the top tier of PDL clubs operationally, especially for new franchises," said Lee Cohen, the PDL's Director of Operations. "What they did from an attendance standpoint is phenomenal in the PDL. It speaks volumes to be able to draw that many fans."  Even louder in a developmental league is what the Fusion has done since the end of the season.

"Every player dreams of playing in Europe," said Shergill. "By the end of this fiscal year, we'll have sent six players overseas for trials with European clubs. "That shows that it's been a successful season."  Brothers Gabriel and Michael Farfan are currently in Norway, training with eight-time Norse champion Viking Stavanger. On a trip to Portugal, young striker Hagop Chirishian will train with Sporting Lisbon, the club which developed luminaries such as Luis Figo, Simao Sabrosa and Cristiano Ronaldo, as well as Portuguese first division rivals Belenenses and Estrela da Amadora.  "And these guys are just kids," said Smith. "Hagop is only 17."

Jason Leopoldo and Greg Folk have trained with English League One club Walsall while their UCLA teammate, Brad Rusin, has already been to English Premiership club Bolton. In addition, Leopoldo and Rusin peaked the interest of Everton manager David Moyes by standing out in the Fusion's friendly against English Premiership Everton last month.

In one view, simply the fact that one of the Europe's leading managers was forced to cast his eye on Fusion players means the season was a success. "When we started on the road to PDL heaven it wasn't about winning, it was about fulfilling your obligation as a PDL outfit," said Smith. "You give your players an opportunity to play in the highest level of football and allow them to go even further. If you win, that's a bonus."

Mark Draycott, the English striker who led the team with 12 goals, impressed during a trial with the Portland Timbers of USL Division I, but returned to England because of the league's transfer deadline. He's joined Bath City of the Blue Square Conference South, England's sixth tier. Smith added that Logan Frank, a Westmont College graduate who was a revelation in goal before his injury nine games into the season, was bound for a Major League Soccer contract before separating his shoulder.

Frank said last week that he was planning on returning next season.  The team's braintrust is already planning for next season. Shergill said that while team's ticket revenue "exceeded expectations," he had anticipated "a little more" sponsorship revenue. He's already made a full-time marketing hire to boost those numbers. "Overall, we feel really good," said Shergill. "We're in a growing stage. Some franchises are dead and buried after the first year."

Instead, the Fusion has long-term "possibilities" that include the development of a youth club, a women's team and moving the club into the USL Division I, which would make it a full-fledge professional outfit.  "It might be viable for us to go into (USL Division I) by as soon as 2010," said Shergill.

In the short term, the Fusion will focus on bringing a few professional teams to the county next year. The Galaxy and Everton friendlies last season took place at the Home Depot Center in Carson. "We're hoping to bring a couple of those games to Ventura," said Shergill.

It would seem the permanent foundation for local summer soccer has been fused.

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