USL PRO Feature
Thursday, February 27, 2014
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – While 2013 was the first season for the groundbreaking partnership between Major League Soccer and USL PRO, the long-time partnership between the Philadelphia Union and Harrisburg City Islanders could certainly be looked at as the model on which the league-wide agreement was based.
Established in 2010, the partnership between the two teams has provided Union players with valuable playing time while on loan. The most recent players to benefit from their time on City Island were a pair of Homegrown products, with Cristhian Hernandez and Jimmy McLaughlin both featuring as the City Islanders had another strong season in 2013.
For McLaughlin, who had five goals in 23 appearances, the experience of not only playing with a talented group, but having success added to the development aspect of the playing time he was able to garner.
“It was great,” he said. “All of the guys on the team are really great guys, and we made some really good friends. Going in there and succeeding as a team is always awesome, and I think the group really meshed together and we all worked hard for each other, and we had a lot of talent on the team as well. It was cool to be part of that and to see the fans come to the games, and seeing their enjoyment always makes it a lot better.”
Both aged 20 as they enter the new MLS season, McLaughlin and Hernandez remain among the youngest players on the Union’s roster, with only 19-year-old Zach Pfeffer their junior. Both were standouts for the Union’s academy side, with Hernandez being named the USSF Development Academy’s U18 Player of the Year in 2011. Making the jump from the academy to the MLS first team, however, is a big step, and Union coach John Hackworth is grateful for what the club’s partnership with Harrisburg offers.
“I think when you have young players that are trying to make a big step from being a youth player, and a very good youth academy player, to make that jump to the first team, but literally to the first division, is a massive jump,” Hackworth said. “Being able to have an affiliation like we have with Harrisburg allows those guys to play in meaningful games, and that’s so important to their development.”
Hackworth also has the aim that Harrisburg will become a place that will allow the Union’s academy players to challenge themselves before they either sign with the club as a homegrown player, or head to college and the Union’s PDL affiliate Reading United to continue their development. With the implementation of new academy rules by USL PRO a season ago that closely mirror those of the MLS Reserve League, Union U18 players would have the chance to train and compete for the City Islanders while maintaining their college eligibility.
“That should be our testing ground,” Hackworth said. “No longer should we sign players straight from our academy without first testing them at the USL level. That’s going to be so important. I think players will get tested, players will get pushed, players will develop and then that allows the first team to make much better decisions on those homegrown players.”
For Hernandez, who had four goals and four assists in Harrisburg last season, the chance to play as part of a very talented City Islanders lineup helped him fit into what the club was hoping he would be able to add. An attacking midfielder, Hernandez created good chances for his teammates, and also took his chances with aplomb when they presented themselves.
“Once we got training, soccer is soccer, on and off the pitch,” Hernandez said. “We all played the same game, and it was just easy to play with Lucky [Mkosana], Sainey [Touray] and Yann [Ekra], all those guys were great players and it was a lot easier to play with them.”
Getting the chance to be part of a group of players on loan was also a help, according to McLaughlin. In addition to himself and Hernandez, Greg Jordan spent most of the season in Harrisburg, while others such as Aaron Wheeler and Leo Fernandes also stopped in for shorter spells of time before returning to the Union.
“I think it’s definitely much easier going over with a couple of guys that you’re good friends with and already really familiar with,” McLaughlin said. “Getting thrown into a brand-new team is never easy, and I think going over with them made the whole transition a lot easier for all of us.”
Now the hope for the Union is that both McLaughlin and Hernandez can make the transition to the first team. With the addition of U.S. international Maurice Edu and Christian Maidana this offseason, the amount of playing time Hernandez and McLaughlin might see this season could again be limited, which could mean more time in Harrisburg.
“It’s a tough team to play for, the Philadelphia Union,” Hernandez said. “We have a lot of good players, and Hack is always trying to give you and opportunity, that’s why we were down in Harrisburg.”
If that’s the case, however, the youngsters will certainly be looking to add to their contributions from last season and make sure that when opportunity knocks at PPL Park, they’re ready to answer.
“Right after the USL PRO season ended last year and we came back to the Union for the last two months or so, personally I felt much sharper and I felt my confidence was much higher from playing those minutes, and succeeding and doing well,” McLaughlin said. “I think it really helped me mentally and physically, and I see it in this preseason as well, and I know it’s the same for Christhian as well.”