Ironmen Players a Boon to Palace

Ibrahim Kante - Image from Crystal Palace Website

First place Crystal Palace Baltimore of the United Soccer Leagues (USL) Second Division has benefited from the strong play of two Ironmen players. Forward Gary Brooks is second in the league with five goals scored in only five games played. Brooks has also added an assist to his point total this year.

Brooks' last two goals came this past Saturday against the Western Mass Pioneers. Brooks leveled the match twice in the first half with a goal in the sixth minute and a successful penalty kick just before the halftime whistle.

Palace's other Ironmen player, defender Ibrahim Kante, played hero against the Pioneers with a goal off a free kick deep into second half stoppage time. The goal gave Palace a late 3-2 victory and extended their win streak to five straight. Kante has tallied two goals in five games for the USL-2 side this season.

Both players were named to the USL Second Division Week 6 Team of the Week for their performances against the Pioneers.

Kljestan Trains With Metro

Irons' defender Gordon Kljestan trained with Metro/Red Bull New York last week. Kljestan also started and played 76 minutes in the Red Bull reserve team's 2-1 loss to the Kansas City Wizards reserves on May 18th.

Kljestan was originally taken by the Los Angeles Galaxy in the 2006 MLS Supplemental Draft. He is the only Ironmen player to see action in every match for New Jersey last season.

Irons in the USL

As promised, we will be checking in on our players' progress throughout the off season. A good number of Ironmen ply their trade in the United Soccer Leagues (USL) during the MISL break. The current USL season is less than two months old and it looks like all Ironmen players have been productive thus far. Here's a quick list of Ironmen players' USL First Division teams and stats (we'll check up on the USL Second Division in later posts):

• Dan Antoniuk (Carolina RailHawks) - 2 Goals

• Lazo Alavanja (Charleston Battery) - 1 Assist

• Frederico Moojen (Minnesota Thunder) - 1 Assist

• John Krause (Puerto Rico Islanders) - 1 Goal

• Mauricio Salles (Rochester Rhinos) - 1 Goal, 1 Assist

Local FE 26: Upcoming Plans

Our apologies for the lapse in posts toward the end of the season. We here at the Local FE 26 have been hopelessly bogged down with a number of projects for the past month or so. It was a season of firsts for the team as well as us. Tasks like supporter organization and website maintenance proved to be a bit trickier than first thought. However, we are confident that we have worked out most of the major kinks. We should be up and running at full strength by the time the Irons take to the turf on opening day.

In the meantime, we will keep you posted on any Ironmen related news that comes our way. We will also check in on our players, many of whom play for sides in the USL during the off season. Plus, we will be working diligently on creating the new Local FE 26 supporters' website.

Feel free to post your thoughts in the comments section below. What ideas do you have for the website? How can we make the Local FE 26 a stronger supporters group?

Irons Fail to Deliver in Crucial Showdown

The Ironmen (13-14) dropped a crucial home matchup to the defending MISL champions, the Philadelphia Kixx (12-15), last Thursday night at the Prudential Center. The loss allows the Kixx to cut the Irons’ hold on the sixth and final playoff spot to just one game.

After a scoreless first quarter, the Kixx opened up the second stanza with two straight goals. The first came 3:00 into the quarter when Ptah Myers found the twine for a two-point tally. A completely unmarked Tony Donatelli was able to add another two points to the Kixx’s lead just 1:20 later. Stefan Stokic got Jersey on the score sheet minutes later when he converted a rebound off the boards into a two-pointer. Frederico Moojen followed suit a few moments later off a free kick to even the score at four-apiece. However, Philadelphia capped off the scoring in the quarter when Don D’Ambra broke free from his marker and earned his first goal of the contest.

Philadelphia went up 8-4 in the third, but Irons’ forward Dan Antoniuk closed the gap with a two-pointer about four minutes into the fourth frame. However, it was Kixx defender Pat Morris who scored the pivotal goal of the match when he blasted a three-pointer at 6:58 into the quarter to make the score 11-6. Moojen and Antoniuk each added their second two-pointers of the game with six attackers on the field for Jersey in the waning minutes of the game. But the Kixx were able to seal the Irons’ fate with two three-point open net goals to end the scoring at 17-10.

Irons (13-13) vs Kixx (11-15) Pre-Game

The Irons (13-13) take on the Philadelphia Kixx (11-15) 7:30pm tonight, home at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ. With New Jersey currently sitting in the last playoff spot and Philly only 2 games behind them, this becomes a crucial late-season game for both teams.

Now here is your reminder. This game was originally scheduled for Saturday, March 22, but no worries. Your tickets are still being honored. It’s also Sports Bottle Night, so come on down and get your free one.

Back to the pregame notes:

If the Irons can pull off a win, which we all believe they can, it would be his 150th career regular season win. You hear that Irons? Make it happen.


The Kixx have beaten the Ironmen twice this season. That being said it will not be an easy game. If I have my calculations correct over here… an Iron win tonight, and another win or Kixx loss secures New Jersey a playoff birth.

That’s all for now. We’ll be back with a timelier post-game wrap-up.

Another Tardy Weekend Update

On Saturday, March 15, 2008 the Irons found themselves back at the Rock, and defeated the Chicago Storm 10-9. A definite big win with the playoff battle in full swing. Tiguinho scored the game winner, and acquired the obvious LocalFe26 MVP of the day award.

A day later and a quick plane ride, the Irons dropped a game against the Milwaukee Wave in a heart breaking, crushing defeat. 22-6. I don’t even like to think about it. This leaves New Jersey in the final playoff spot with a tough battle with Philadelphia on Thursday.

So that’s the weekend update. One up. One down. Bring on Philly.