Antigua Barracuda F.C.
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| Full name | Antigua Barracuda Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Barracudas | ||
| Founded | 2010 | ||
| Dissolved | 2014 | ||
| Stadium | Stanford Cricket Ground | ||
| Stadium capacity | 5,000 | ||
| Owner | Gordon Derrick | ||
| League | USL | ||
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| |||
Antigua Barracuda were an Antiguan professional soccer team based in St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda. Founded in 2010, the team played in the USL Pro, the third tier of the American Soccer Pyramid.
The team played its home games at Stanford Cricket Ground (colloquially known as "Sticky Wicket Stadium") in Osbourn, Saint George Parish until the 2013 season when they became a traveling team. The team's colors were sky blue, white and black.
History
The team was originally set to join the USL First Division in 2011,[1] but was later announced as being a founding member of USL Pro and its International Division after the USL First and Second Divisions dissolved in 2010 to make way for the new league.[2]
The club's first official game took place in April 2010, a friendly against the Puerto Rico Islanders. Approximately 1,000 people attended the event.[3]
The club arranged two further friendlies with Montreal Impact, the first of which took place on 17 April 2010 at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium[4] with the second scheduled to be held on 4 September at Saputo Stadium in Montreal. They also arranged exhibition matches against Jamaica's Tivoli Gardens and Harbour View for May.[5] On August 20, 2010 Barracuda FC announced the cancellation of the friendly matches because of funding difficulties. Impact President Joey Saputo subsequently made an accusation of a serious lack of professionalism on the part of the Antiguan club.[6]
On 23 September 2010, United Soccer Leagues formally announced that Antigua Barracuda FC would join the newly formed USL Pro in 2011 alongside Sevilla FC Puerto Rico and Club Atlético River Plate Puerto Rico as founding members of the league's tentatively named Caribbean Division, which was later officially unveiled as the International Division.[7]
The team played its first competitive game on April 17, 2011, a 2–1 home loss to the Los Angeles Blues. The first competitive goal in franchise history was scored by Tamorley Thomas[8]
The 2013 season saw the club lose each of their 26 games, tying the North American professional sports record for futility, as well as being the only time an association football club managed to have a winless season. The club withdrew from the USL Pro on January 6, 2014, due in part to the lack of a home venue and the accompanying financial reasons.[9][10]
Stadium
Barracuda played their home games at the Stanford Cricket Ground in the village of Osbourn in Saint George Parish in Antigua. The stadium was originally built to host the Stanford 20/20 cricket tournament in 2006, and was temporarily converted for soccer usage for Barracudas games. The stadium's nickname, "Sticky Wicket Stadium", came from the adjoining restaurant complex.
Players and staff
Final roster
Where a player has not declared an international allegiance, nation is determined by place of birth. Squad correct as of July 6, 2013.[11][12]
Coaches
Tom Curtis, 2011 – 2012 [13]
Fernando "Nando" Abraham, 2013 [14]- Adrian Whitbread, 2013 [15]
Record
Year-by-year
| Year | Division | League | Regular Season | Playoffs | CFU Club Championship | Avg. Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 3 | USL Pro | 6th, American Division | Did Not Qualify | Did Not Qualify | 1,189 |
| 2012 | 3 | USL Pro | 11th Place | Did Not Qualify | 4th Place | 883 |
| 2013 | 3 | USL Pro | 13th Place | Did Not Qualify | 7th Place | † |
† All games played on the road.
References
- ↑ Barracuda FC To Join USL First Division Archived May 29, 2010, at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ "Sevilla, River Plate Join USL PRO". www.uslsoccer.com. 2010-09-23. Archived from the original on 5 November 2010. Retrieved 2010-10-25.
- ↑ "Barracuda V Islanders Match Game One". Antigua Sports. Retrieved 29 April 2010.
- ↑ "The Impact will face Antigua Barricuda FC". Impact Montreal. March 19, 2010. Retrieved 29 April 2010.
- ↑ "Byers wants long future with Impacts". Antigua Sun Online. 26 April 2010. Retrieved 28 April 2010.
- ↑ http://www.rds.ca/impact/chroniques/304713.html
- ↑ "Sevilla, River Plate Join USL PRO". www.uslsoccer.com. 2010-09-23. Archived from the original on 5 November 2010. Retrieved 2010-10-25.
- ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-10-11. Retrieved 2012-10-11.
- ↑ http://odfcnews.com/2013/11/17/usl-pro-teams-fold-mls-field-squads-team-partnership/
- ↑ Baptiste, Neto (January 6, 2014). "Antigua Barracuda quits USL". Antigua Observer. Archived from the original on January 8, 2014. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
- ↑ "Antigua Barracuda Official Roster". United Soccer Leagues. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
- ↑ Baptiste, Neto (16 April 2013). "Cudas sign additional players following opening loss". Antigua Observer. Retrieved 18 April 2013.
- ↑ Baptiste, Neto (23 October 2012). "Tom Curtis Resigns". Antigua Observer. Retrieved 25 October 2012.
- ↑ Baptiste, Neto (5 April 2013). "Cash strapped ’Cudas’ confirm USL participation". Antigua Observer. Retrieved 6 April 2013.
- ↑ "Barracudas Appoint Whitbread". United Soccer Leagues (USL). 12 June 2013. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 12 June 2013.