Parker & The Man
Parker & The Man (November 29, 2006)
By Mark Wilson
Nov 29, 2006, 17:36

Ignition Hopes To
Kick Start Soccer

This past summer I got a phone call from John Barley. He identified himself as the Director of Communications for the new Detroit professional indoor soccer club. After my laughter subsided, I realized he was serious. The Major Indoor Soccer League was back in town and I was skeptical.

Barley and Team President Greg Bibb took skeptical out of the mix right away. Not only were they serious, they even had a plan. They were going to do things the right way. “We really think there is a fan base here for what we have to offer,” Bibb said. They dubbed the new franchise, The Ignition. A fancy Web site went up and they hired an MISL veteran to coach. Mark Pulisic is the Harrisburg Heat’s all-time leading scorer and in the team’s Hall of Fame. They secured Compuware Arena as the venue and brought in some savvy people to work operations, marketing and tickets.

The Hantz Group, founded by John Hantz, is a financial holding company in Southfield. Hantz himself is a Detroit resident who attended both Northwood University in Midland and a tiny little college called Harvard. The Ignition would be his first foray into sports ownership. “They are committed to bringing a winner to metro Detroit,” Barley said. With a big time logo, some family fun ideas and even a dance team … the Ignition were ready to bring indoor soccer back again. It was only a few years ago that the Detroit Rockers called it quits. They said they couldn’t make it at Compuware despite having games on television and a team that featured some stellar players. The Rockers finally folded and it seemed we had seen the end of indoor soccer in our area.

Back in 1978, pro soccer came to Detroit in the form of the Express. They had a superstar in Trevor Francis. That lasted for parts of four years before the Express made a beeline for Washington, D.C. Andy Chapman is somewhat of a Detroit soccer legend. He played for the Express and then became a player-coach for the Rockers. He also did the same for the old Detroit Neon of the Continental Indoor League. The England native is still involved with youth soccer in Birmingham.

Still, indoor soccer could never sustain any momentum. The Rockers even won a championship, but it was always a tough sell. Bibb, Barley and Pulisic believed they could change all that. They felt they could put something together right away that would be appealing to all soccer fans, and also piggyback on the World Cup's popularity.

To make this thing really go the Ignition needed some players. Their roster is dotted with guys from Hawaii to Brazil to Michigan. Matt Johnson came over in the expansion draft from Chicago. Goalkeeper Sanaldo and forward Hewerton (pronounced Ever-tawn) are Brazilian dudes who go by one name. Carlos Farias is from Chile. All have vast soccer experience. The “Igs” even have a former Rocker. Droo Callahan is from Brighton who spent the final year of Rockers soccer blocking kicks at Compuware. Callahan is one of the best all-time shot blockers in MISL history. Johnson believes the entire unit is a good mix of players from around the globe. “We are certainly international. So far, all of us get along pretty good,” Johnson said.

Johnson acknowledged that the Igs got, “the talk.” It has to do with the Igs’ dance team. It was the lecture about not fraternizing with the ladies who entertain the peeps during each of 15 home games this season. “That’s OK,” Hewerton said. “We are here to play soccer and win games.” It’s a very political answer for the 27-year-old from Santos, Brazil. I can be the one to say it: The Ignition dance team is hot. If there was no soccer, they would be worth the price of admission. And that’s the other thing, Bibb and his staff have kept the prices very reasonable: a general season ticket costs $340. “There is no doubt our goal is to make it good, affordable, family fun,” Bibb said.

The season runs until April 1, 2007. The Ignition are no April fool’s joke. They’re here to stay.  | RDW

Sports Night with Parker and The Man airs weeknights 7-11 p.m. on Live 97.1 FM; Detroit’s No. 1 late, live, local sports-talk program is hosted by Rob Parker, Mark Wilson and Bernie Fratto.

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