ONTARIO SET FOR ARRIVAL OF THE KING
Fury land three players in day two of Free Agency Period
Ontario, California – With the Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) Free Agency “Live Period” officially underway, the Ontario Fury is pleased to announce it has signed three players for the 2019-2020 campaign, including indoor attacking giant Franck Tayou, also known as “The King”.
Also part of the club’s roster during the upcoming season will be the older brother of the Fury’s newest star, Uzi Tayou, as well as Justin Stinson. Per team and league policies, terms of the agreements were not disclosed.
Arguably the most dominant striker in the MASL in recent years, 29-year-old Franck Tayou topped the regular season charts for both points and goals scored in 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2017-18, taking home three straight MVP awards and leading Soles de Sonora to two Ron Newman Cup Finals. After also leading the league in points-per-game average in his final two seasons at Sonora, the Cameroonian-American moved to another Mexican side, Monterrey Flash, for the most recent campaign and went on to again win the goal-scoring race while reaching yet another championship match.
“I would like to thank Bernie and the entire Fury organization for believing in me. It's been a long time coming and the time is now,” Franck stated. “I feel I have a lot more to prove in this league and to my new club. I have scored goals for Soles De Sonora and for Monterrey Flash but I haven't scored any goals for the Fury yet. The goal here is to make sure people know the Fury is the real deal and I think the mentality from the get go is that we are a team and the team comes first every time.”
Franck Tayou has represented the Stars and Stripes as a member of the U.S. National Arena Soccer Team, the U.S. National Futsal Team and the U.S. National Beach Soccer Team, will be joined in the Inland Empire by his long-time indoor club teammate and older brother, Uzi Tayou.
The duo had already moved from Sonora to Monterrey together prior to last season. Uzi is a defender by trade with 47 MASL regular season appearances over the course of the past three campaigns.
“I’m ready to get to work.” Uzi said in a simple statement.
Another player acquired by the Fury who has two years of MASL experience and saw his stock rise during the recently concluded campaign is forward Justin Stinson. The 21-year-old appeared in all 24 of the St. Louis Ambush’s regular season fixtures and recorded 20 goals, good for second place among his teammates.
Stinson commented, “I can't wait to get out to California and continue my professional soccer career with the Ontario Fury. I feel they give me the best option to continue to grow and develop as a professional player. I look forward to helping my new team.”
Team President Bernie Lilavois was quoted as saying; “This is another huge step in the right direction for our club to be more competitive on the field. Not only did we just add the King of the MASL to our roster but we also added the leadership Uzi Tayou brings to our team and a young, exciting, up and coming talent in Justin Stinson. I would say it was a great day for our club.”
Head Coach Jimmy Nordberg added, “We are very excited to have all three players there with us to enhance our roster. They bring experience, leadership and a winning mentality to help take us to the next level. Can’t wait to see them all wearing Fury red.”
The Fury will kick off the 2019-2020 MASL season this fall at Citizens Business Bank in Ontario. Season Memberships and Group Ticket Deposits are available now by calling the Fury Offices at 909-457-0252 or online at OntarioFury.com
The Fury will also host a special international soccer event as USA takes on Mexico in a battle of National Arena Soccer Teams on Friday May 31st at Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario. Tickets are now on sale on Ticketmaster.com, the Arena Box Office or by reaching the Fury Offices.