Photo by Monique Schoenfeld, Town Crier
Kris Menzel tries out for the Silicon Valley Ambassadors soccer team last week. The midfielder from Los Altos helped De Anza College win a state title this past season. Menzel is one of 28 players remaining of the 70 who tried out for the team. The Ambassadors will cut down to 20 this week in preparation for the start of their season May 1 against the Central Coast Roadrunners. General manager Silvian Centiu said he hopes to draw at least 1,000 fans to the home opener. This is the Ambassadors' first season.
Town Crier Staff Writer
Silicon Valley Ambassadors will call Foothill College their home beginning May 1
In just 16 days, the stadium at Foothill College in Los Altos Hills will become a soccer field of dreams for a group of amateur players.
Twenty young men who aspire to play professionally will take a step toward soccer stardom as members of the Silicon Valley Ambassadors. The Peninsula-based team kicks off its inaugural season with an 8 p.m. home game on May 1 against the Central Coast Roadrunners.
The Ambassadors are the newest member of the United Systems of Independent Soccer Leagues (USISL), a minor league organization with teams throughout North America. The Ambassadors will play in the USISL's Premier Development Soccer League (PDSL), which is two divisions below the pro ranks.
Those who excel at the PDSL level can move up to an A-League semipro team like the San Francisco Bay Seals or the California Jaguars. The next promotion would be playing in the big show - Major League Soccer (MLS). That means a job with a team such as the San Jose Clash or Los Angeles Galaxy.
However, jumping from the PDSL to the MLS doesn't happen overnight. Members of the Ambassadors, who range in age from 18-23, may need a few years to hone their skills before they're ready to move on. And in all likelihood, a majority of them will never get beyond the A-League.
But all of these players believe they will eventually make it to the top, according to Ambassadors head coach Joe Silveira.
"An athlete's goal is always to play at the highest level," said Silveira, who played professionally for the San Jose Earthquakes in the 1980s. "The players out for this team want to play in the MLS and some may get that opportunity down the road."
Ambassadors goalkeeper coach Tim Hanley, a Los Altos resident who also works with the Clash, said the new team should be a good breeding ground for the area's promising young players.
"It's a real grass roots program and it will allow college kids to develop their skills," said Hanley, who played on the Earthquakes with Silveira. "Some of these players are really good and they have a future in the game."
Los Altos resident Kris Menzel hopes he's one of those players. The Homestead High graduate is coming off a sensational season at De Anza College, where he helped the men's team capture the state title. The midfielder dreams of donning a Clash uniform one day and knows a summer job with the Ambassadors could help make it happen.
"It would be so sweet to play for this team," said Menzel, who will continue his college career at Fresno State next fall. "I really want to be there for the opener."
The Ambassadors hadn't finalized their roster when the Town Crier went to press, but Menzel seemed to be a good candidate for inclusion. Silveira estimated 70 players came out for the team and Menzel was among the 28 survivors at the end of last week. The Ambassadors expect to keep 20 players on the final roster, which will be announced this week.
"I think they're looking at me as a positive so far," Menzel said. "Every time out, I've started at half."
Other potential players with local connections include former Foothill standouts Jose Barnabe and Fabian Garza. Both play midfield.
Most of the athletes vying for roster spots play at area schools like Stanford, Cal, Santa Clara, San Jose State and De Anza. At least one foreign player, French-born midfielder Rafan Kaba, is expected to make the squad. The Ambassadors may also add a player from Romania before the start of the season.
The Ambassadors have a Romanian connection in team founder Silvian Centiu. The Romania native bought the rights to the new franchise last November by paying $30,000 to the USISL. The 33-year-old acts as team general manager, publicist and assistant coach.
Centiu said he has two main goals for the 1998 season: break even financially and compete for the PDSL national championship.
So far, he likes where the team is headed on both fronts.
"We are working very hard, but a lot is in place," said Centiu, a software engineer manager at Oracle. "The team is excellent and the tickets and sponsorships are going well."
The Ambassadors are selling tickets ($16 general admission, $6 for children and seniors) through Ticketmaster and the team box office at Stanford Shopping Center. Centiu is predicting that at least 1,000 people will attend the home opener. Twenty-two companies - including Netscape - have agreed to sponsor the Ambassadors, according to Centiu.
As for the on-field product, Centiu believes his team will be fun to watch.
"The players are young, fast and easy to work with," Centiu said. "We don't have a lot of experience, but Joe will use that to our advantage. He is just an awesome coach."
This isn't the first time Silveira, 38, has built a team from scratch. He guided another amateur team, the Palo Alto Firebirds, to a national title in their debut season of 1992. Silveira was named National Coach of the Year for his efforts.
Can he work the same magic with the Ambassadors this year?
"My goal is to do the best we can do, which is win a national championship," Silveira said. "Whether that's realistic or not, I really don't know. It may be a long shot, but I said the same thing with the Firebirds."
To make the playoffs, the Ambassadors will need to finish among the top four teams in the six-member PDSL Pacific Division. The Ambassadors play a 21-game schedule, which includes road trips to Southern California, Nevada and Arizona. The regular seasons ends July 26 with a home game against the Reno Rattlers.
For more information on the Ambassadors, call 579-3529.