Roster Changes; New Goalie And No Place For Diz

Press release from the Rapids today: Looks like Steward Ceus may not quite be ready to back up Pickens. It's also time to say goodbye to Facundo Diz. One of the nicest guys at the Rapids, he didn't really get a lot of chances. Wish him and his family all the best. Maybe the Rapids are lining up another striker to back up Casey and Cummings because the talk is that triallist, Devon Hodges, will not be getting a contract.
The Rapids are due to play Arsenal Reserves today in a crazy schedule that organizes the game against a top team barely 24 hours after landing in the home country.

RAPIDS SIGN GOALKEEPER IAN JOYCE
COMMERCE CITY, Colo. (Tuesday, March 9, 2010) – The Colorado Rapids announced today the signing of goalkeeper Ian Joyce. Per club and league policies, financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Joyce will be added to the club’s senior roster pending receipt of his International Transfer Certificate (ITC). He is expected to join the team this week during the club’s preseason training in London, England.
The Rapids also announced several other roster moves, as the club released forward Facundo Diz and did not offer a contract to 2010 third round MLS SuperDraft pick defender Chad Borak.
The 24-year old goalkeeper and Seton Hall University product has played his entire professional career in England since joining Grays Athletic FC in 2007, then moving to Watford and most recently with Southend United. Joyce spent a brief trial stint with Colorado this preseason in February before signing with the club.
Ian Joyce – GoalkeeperHeight: 6-3
Weight: 200
Date of Birth: July 12, 1985
Hometown: Kinnelon, NJ
College: Seton Hall
Last Club: Southend United (England)
Roster Status: Senior
Transaction
MLS
Colorado Rapids – Signed goalkeeper Ian Joyce; released forward Facundo Diz and did not offer a contract to defender Chad Borak.

No More Juice as Rapids Slim Roster

Justin Hughes, one of the unluckiest players for the Colorado Rapids, now has to rethink his soccer future after being waived from the club this afternoon. The Rapids had to make themselves roster compliant by today and decided to waive the unfortunate goalkeeper. Cesar Zambrano and Kwame Sarkodie were also waived. Hughes, aka The Juice, was out injured all last season. A badly injured groin initially kept him on the sidelines for much of the season. Just as he was about to come back, he promptly injured a shoulder in training and never made it onto the pitch. When you think of all the difficulties deciding between Bouna and Preston Burpo as to who would play between the posts last season, it would be reasonable to think that Hughes could also have made a strong case for inclusion if he had not been so injured. Now, he is deemed surplus to requirements after a season of inaction. The Rapids decided to sign draft player, Steward Ceus, as another goalkeeper. Maybe the decision is purely financial. Neither Hughes nor Ceus looked likely to get much action with Burpo and Matt Pickens apparently slugging it out as to who will start. Hughes was not on the greatest money but it might have been time to offer him something better and Ceus will undoubtedly be cheaper as a rookie. It's a great shame on a personal note. Justin is a top guy who always treated me with great respect and friendliness. I'll miss him as I know many of the players will. He was one of the most popular players in the squad. We wish him all the best for the future and hope he will comment occasionally on this blog which I know he reads. Good luck Justin.
I didn't know Zambrano and Sarkodie. Zambrano played once for the first team against Toronto last season and performed pretty creditably given the extreme inexperience of the defense that day. Sarkodie played in the Reserves last season as a midfielder. Good luck to them both in their futures. The Rapids now have 22 players on the roster leaving some space for future acquisitions. The Rapids beat San Jose 2-1 today in another preseason friendly - see www.rapidsundercurrent.blogspot.com for details. They play LA on Wednesday and I aim to speak to Gary Smith after the game for some insights.