Today I begin a series of reviews of our local clubs' 2009 seasons with the City of Destiny's Tacoma Tide FC.
Visit the GOALTacoma.com Tide 2009 Museum Page
It was always going to be a season of great change for Tacoma Tide FC. It was clear from the opening player tryouts that TFC was going to be new except for the name. Greg Howes was brought in as head coach while new clubs popped up in Seattle (Wolves FC) and Kitsap (Pumas) to compete on and off the pitch with the Tide. Tacoma, founded in 2006, had made its way up to become an annual contender in the PDL Northwest Division. The Tide made the playoffs in 2007 and won the NW Division in 2008, along with advancing to the regional final. 2009 was a step backwards for the club.
New Neighbors
From 2006-2008 the Tide had Puget Sound pretty much to themselves. If you were a local college player home for the summer, and wanted to keep improving your game, your only local option in USL/PDL was to hook up with Tacoma. In previous years this had brought some of the best local players to wear yellow. In 2009 Seattle Wolves FC were admitted to the PDL along with the Kitsap Pumas. Suddenly the Tide had competition for college players from the northeast (Wolves) and players willing to lose their college eligibility and sign as pros to the northwest (Pumas). The plan Greg Howes employed was to mix faithful locals such as Rory Agu and Tucker Maxwell with veterans without a club, such as Adam West, Nik Besagno and Leighton O'Brien. The strategy only worked so far and then ran out of steam.
From First to Seventh
The Tide roster looked pretty good on paper, but the club and Howes were challenged to keep the same starting eleven and build team chemistry and morale. Only three players played in all sixteen Tide matches: Agu, Maxwell and West. Still, Tacoma got off to a competitive start by drawing at Seattle and Kitsap before edging Cascade 4:3 in a wild home opener. On May 23 Tacoma's over two-year streak of not losing at Curtis High School came to an end when the Portland Timbers edged the Tide 1:0.
The Tide defense became a shambles in the middle and end of the PDL season. TFC lost 6:3 at Victoria, and then gave up four goals in each of their next two matches as well. The Tide gave up five goals in each of two home matches against Abbotsford and Victoria July 10th and 12th. The season ended with a 4:3 loss to new rivals Kitsap at Curtis High School.
Tacoma finished 7th in the PDL Northwest with a record of 5 wins, 7 losses and 4 draws.
For the second straight year the Tide were led on offense by the 11 goals of local player Rory Agu.
Narrows Bridge Bell
The 2009 season saw the debut of the South / West Sound derby trophy the "Narrows Bridge Bell." The Tide drew the first leg of the Bell 1:1 before over 1,500 fans at the Kitsap Pumas home opener. The Tide lost the Bell when they fell 4:3 on July 19th in Tacoma.
Another Tide Team: Basketball
Further stretching the resources of Tacoma Tide Football Club, the group running the franchise founded the Tacoma Tide Sports Club, and began running a basketball team at the same time they were running the soccer club. The idea is a European one. Even Real Madrid are a 'sports club,' with both soccer and basketball clubs among their assets.
For the Tide (soccer), the basketball club was a distraction for fans and the front office, who now had to focus on trying to be successful on two fronts at the same time. The Tide basketball team drew better than the soccer team, and though much of the promotional material the club designed had both teams' crests and schedules, the soccer Tide seemed lost in the addition.
"Our situation is a complicated one," said Tide Media Director Jon Billings in this earlier Examiner story, "because of our addition of a basketball team to the organization this year. The focus that starting a new basketball program has taken, may have drawn attention away from soccer ticket marketing. That said, our attendance is steadily growing as the season progresses and with the majority of our home matches yet to be played, we have high hopes."
"The basketball team is helping us in a few different ways. First, we do receive some fan support from families that attend a basketball game and then see that we have a soccer option as well. Second, having two teams is a great way to spread our connection to the youth in Tacoma as well as it's family services. We have made numerous school / club / association appearances this year and have had a great response from kids and families in the area. Lastly, having the additional teams as part of our Tacoma Tide Sports Club has added some validity to our organization that sets it apart from some other minor league operations. It's been a positive addition."
Culture and crowds
Tacoma Tide FC have a small set of faithful fans, and can be called a 'family club.' Attendance can occasionally get near 500, and the usual average is around 200 fans per match. The club does sell scarves and has a mascot, "Surf Dude."
Looking ahead to 2010
The Tide will need to be more competitive in getting college players if they hope to jump back up the ladder in 2010. A recent talk with head coach Greg Howes in this article points out a few of the club's challenges. "The main thing the Tide need to do to step up to the pro level, is to make sure the talent pool is there for us to compete with the other top teams in the area and the pro-tier of PDL," said Howes. "The PDL has always been a player development league and am a little dissappointed that they have allowed PDL teams to go "pro". That is what the USL pro tier is for. It really creates a non-developmental aspect to the league, as guys will go get paid and it leaves other teams in a tough position. Spend the money and probably lose money...or field a team that has a tough time competing with other teams in their division. I think if the PDL continues to allow this aspect to the league that the teams in those non-pro PDL will cease to operate, and then you lose the benefits of having proximity to, and rivalries with, other teams. If Kitsap has to travel great distances for every game I don't know if they would be able to stay afloat, considering the revenues that PDL teams bring in. We are evaluting what needs to happen to ensure the Tide can compete with all PDL teams."
With the ULS in turmoil at its top levels, the Tide still don't seem to yet be in a position to consider going fully professional. This leaves them to compete with Seattle Wolves for college talent, and to watch as local college graduates chose to sign with Kitsap Pumas as pros. The Tide had a distinct identity as a club in 2006, 2007 and 2008. They were the region's only entry in the PDL. Now they are one of several clubs. They must find a competitive edge, provide a reason for players to join them and for fans to support them, and make the most of that edge and those reasons, if they hope to compete with Seattle, Kitsap and the rest of the PDL in 2010.
Next up in our 2009 Review series: Seattle Wolves FC
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Rory Agu led the Tide with eleven goals. (Jenni Conner)
Adam West played in all 16 Tide matches in 2009. (Jenni Conner)
Tucker Maxwell played in all 16 Tacoma matches in 2009. (Jenni Conner)
Comments
Thanks again for all the LOCAL coverage. Your Examiner page is a regional treasure!
I have been waiting for three+ years for the Tide to 'go up.' I just don't think the current owners have the money or the desire to do it.
The Tide need to move to the UPS soccer stadium and play Saturday - Sunday afternoon matches there. Better location. Great grass pitch. (But no lights)
South Sound has lots of potential, but the Tide don't seem to have what it takes to take advantage of it. Different stadium is a good idea.
Good market..makes a good point. They need to do more community outreach. Especially in the schools. The high school soccer players are getting hammered on by American football players. They tend to quit the game because they don't want to mess up their academic record. Sad.
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