When Danilo da Silva stepped onto the field in July, he became the third da Silva (or Da Silva) to play for the MetroStars. And while it is too early to say whether Danilo will become a solid player or will drop of into obscurity, there is no question where the fates of the first two Da Silvas (or da Silvas) lie.

Cristian da Silva joined the MetroStars as their first ever discovery signing. Previously in the USISL, he made his Metro debut in their second game, after the Metros cut first-game starters Danny Barber and Ken Hesse (in fact, da Silva wore Hesse's jersey on his debut). And while the revolving door that was the Metro squad began to rotate upon Cristian's arrival and didn't stop for the rest of the season, he somehow survived. And then survived another year. And then started another.

It's not that da Silva was horrid; that he definitely was. But in the sea of forgettable faces and names why was he one of the few marginal 1996 players who lasted until 1998. (Jeff Zaun and Matt Knowles also come to mind, but they were both better players than Cristian.) When da Silva was released in June of 1998, his Metro totals stood at 39 games, 22 starts, no goals, and a solitary assist. Perhaps it was his capability to play a number of spots on the backline and in the midfield that led to him staying so long. For those early Metro teams, it wasn't mediocrity that was rewarded; often a notch below mediocrity was enough to survive.

After he left Metro, da Silva was part of the 1999 Staten Island Viper squad (together with Rob Johnson) that upset his former team in the Open Cup (but since 1999 never happened, let's move on...) Cristian is currently the head coach at St. Joseph Regional High School in Montvale.

The expectations for Nino Da Silva were considerably greater than that of his namesake's. A son of a Brazilian national team player, a standout on the US youth teams, Da Silva was one of the first Project-40 players in league history when he was assigned to the Kansas City Wizards in 1997. One substitute appearance in his rookie year, one in his second, and eight games, three of them starts, in his third, saw his KC career end with a whimper. But nevertheless, when Metro picked Nino off waivers before the 2000 seasons, some thought that a change of scenery would help resurrect his career. It didn't. Da Silva would play three games off the bench for the Metros, totaling 25 minutes. This website even game him a Metro of the Week honor for a game versus San Jose, when Nino hustled... and everyone else was awful. Perhaps his greatest contribution to Metro lore was clearing up #13 upon his waiving in April, which was then taken over by Clint Mathis.

After failing to score a goal or record an assist during his time in MLS, Da Silva has had a successful indoor career. He earned Rookie of the Year honors in the MISL and scored over a hundred goals in a league where Matt Knowles was its version of Pele. This year, he was seen playing the role of Eddie Souza in "The Game of Their Lives", the story of US's victory over England in the 1950 World Cup.