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Obscure Metro Files: Inaugural Draft (Part 2)
January 24, 2006
6) Ted Gillen, midfielder, Richmond Kickers (USISL)
Believe it or not, Gillen was capped for the US, playing in three matches in 1988. One of the players that surprisingly survived the post-Eddie Firmani midseason purge, he played in 16 games for Metro, including a playoff match that he started. Gillen retired in early 1997 and is currently a coach at Match Fit Academy and at Toms River High School East.
7) Zach Thornton, goalkeeper, Loyola - Maryland
The lone member of the draft class still in MLS, the behemoth goalkeeper was drafted as a backup and insurance policy for Tony Meola. Thornton would actually record the first win in Metro history, in a shootout against Tampa Bay, but would only play in six matches in two years behind Meola (he did miss some time with the Olympic team in 1996). Chicago took him in the 1998 expansion draft seemingly to backup Jorge Campos, but Thornton displaced the Mexican international and led the Fire to the MLS Cup and Open Cup double in the team's first year. He has been with the team since (minus a short sojourn at Benfica), and has proved to be one of the best keepers in MLS history.
8) Eddie Soto, forward, Los Angeles Cobras (USISL)
The first player on this list never to play a minute in MLS, Soto was a top scorer at Cal St-Fullerton before spending time in the USISL. He didn't make the Metro roster, and went on to play beach soccer and then back to the minors, playing for the Orange County Zodiac and Wave. Interestingly, he was re-drafted in MLS, as Dallas took him in the second round of the 1998 Supplemental Draft. Soto never made the Burn roster as well, and went on to spend three years as an assistant at his alma mater, before taking a similar role at the women's program at Long Beach State.
9) Giovanni Savarese, forward, Long Island Rough Riders (USISL)
Even the worst drafts have their gems, and the Metros got theirs in Savarese. Still the Metro all-time leading scorer with 44 goals in 96 matches, what more needs to be said? He is currently the head of Metro youth development.
10) Pat O'Kelly, defender, North Jersey Imperials (USISL)
In a disturbing trend that would resurface at other points in Metro history, the former Seton Hall star, twice first-team NCAA All-American, O'Kelly retired rather than play for Metro. In retrospect, it was probably a wise decision. He later played in the USL for the Central Jersey Riptide.
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