De Santis will serve as head coach of the USL All-Stars against the Championship League club, after being proclaimed USL D1 Coach of the Year last season. He will be assisted by Laurie Calloway, coach of the Rochester Raging Rhinos who finished second in last year’s Coach of the Year vote. In his third season as Montreal’s head coach, the Impact has lost only once in 11 games and is battling for first spot in the standings.
“It’s always an honour when you get recognized in this way, for me and the players too,” said De Santis. “Other Impact players deserved to be there as well, and Greg Sutton was one of them if he hadn’t been injured (fractured index finger).”
Gervais was picked on the league’s honorary All-League teams over the last four seasons. He was the league’s Defender of the Year in 2003 and 2004, and a finalist in that category in 2005. He has been selected four times of the Team of the Week so far this year. He recently became the 7th player in Impact history to reach the 10,000 career minutes played mark.
Vincello won the Impact’s Unsung Hero award in 2005. He has played at least 20 games in each of his first six USL seasons, with the Toronto Lynx (2000-2003) and the Impact (2004 and 2005).
This season, Vincello and Gervais have both helped the Impact come up with nine shutouts in 11 games so far this season.
“Gabriel has been steady for years now, he’s had a number of awards. And it’s nice for Mauricio to get the recognition he deserves, pointed out De Santis. He is an underrated player. He’s probably been the best left fullback in the league for the last couple of years. It’s just a shame that our other defenders, Nevio Pizzolitto and Adam Braz, who are having stellar seasons as well, couldn’t be there. But you have to take some players from other teams as well.”
With three players each, the Miami FC, the Rochester Raging Rhinos and the Virginia Beach Mariners are the best-represented clubs on the USL All-Star team, which has 18 players.
The All-star players were picked by the USL, in consultation with De Santis and Calloway. Players from the Vancouver Whitecaps and the Seattle Sounders were unavailable for selection due to scheduled friendlies with their club.
The Impact (6-1-4) will play its next game this Friday, July 7, 2006 against the Vancouver Whitecaps (6-2-7) at Claude-Robillard Sports Complex (8 pm, FSW, RDS, CJAD 800, Sport Plus XM-172).
USL ALL-STAR TEAM
G Matt Nelson – Virginia Beach Mariners
G Scott Vallow – Rochester Raging Rhinos
D Dustin Branan – Minnesota Thunder
D Gabriel Gervais – Montreal Impact
D Frank Sanfilippo - Rochester Raging Rhinos
D Scot Thompson – Portland Timbers
D Mauricio Vincello - Montreal Impact
D Mauricio Segovia – Puerto Rico Islanders
M John Ball - Rochester Raging Rhinos
M Omar Daley – Charleston Battery
M Jamie Dodds – Toronto Lynx
M Steve Shak – Virginia Beach Mariners
M Zinho – Miami FC
M Petter Villegas – Puerto Rico Islanders
A Jason McLaughlin – Atlanta Silverbacks
A Mario Rodriguez – Miami FC
A Romario – Miami FC
A Greg Simmonds – Virginia Beach Mariners
Head coach - Nick De Santis – Montreal Impact
Assistant coach - Laurie Calloway – Rochester Raging Rhinos
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Source: Patrick Vallée, Montreal Impact
Info: 514-328-3668 (ext. 27)
