Wolves already planning for 2025
It has been a little more than two months since the St. Catharines Club Roma Wolves earned promotion to the Premier Division of League1 and plans are already in the works for next season.
Roma head coach Federico Turriziani has been supervising tryouts and has been in contact with players from last season as well as others hoping to suit up for the Wolves.
“We can’t sign players until December so our goal is to work on a season review with the players that we had in the past,” Turriziani said. “Now we’re starting to talk with players. I believe we need five players that can help us to be competitive in the Premier Division because it’s not so easy for us now. The message that I want to share with everybody, the club included, is that what we’ve done last year is hard to repeat.”
Turriziani said he hopes to keep the nucleus of last season’s squad intact.
“I already have spoken with almost everybody. I want to keep the core of the majority of this group because they deserve it and because everybody at the end of the day has contributed to our promotion,” he said.
Newcomers need to have the proper attitude, Turriziani said.
“We will try to find these four or five players that are ready and available at the beginning of the season,” he said. “That can give us a plus. But for me, the group is important. The players have to fit in our philosophy, in our group. Because the secret last year was the group. At the end, we were very tight. The rhythm, the intensity, the effort was amazing. That was our secret. So the new players, even if they are good, they have to arrive and fit in our roster.”
Two tryouts have already been held with a third scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 28 from 9:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. at Youngs Sportsplex in Welland. Cost is $30. Players can register at www.romasoccer.com.
Turriziani said there has been no lack of interest.
“I’ve received e-mails or texts from players who want to come to tryouts, who want to come to play for us,” he said. “Playing in the Premier League gives us the opportunity to have more chances to recruit players. And with Hamilton getting relegated, now we have the opportunity for the players to drive because we have the category now, the high-end category. And of course everybody knows what we have done and everybody now wants to be part of it because they saw our game day.”
Next year’s schedule is slated to begin in mid-April to avoid teams losing players to university at playoff time.
“We have to be ready with the resources, with the players and with the club with the mentality next year we have to fight to first save the category,” he said. “I want to tell everybody, advise everybody, that it will be hard next season. That’s why we have to be ready right away because last year we started not well. We lost points, we lost games at the beginning. And next season, if you start in the same situation, you risk a lot, because then when you’re down, it’s not easy to come up and come back.”
The Premier Division consists of 12 teams. The bottom two teams will be relegated down a division.
Turriziani returned home to Italy following the season and recently received a prestigious National Sports Award at an event which was broadcast nationally.
“There were so many important people there, people that won the World Cup, people that won the World Championship, people that won the medals, gold medals, Olympic Games, everywhere. With what we’ve done here I was part of this event and I want to share it because it makes me proud of St. Catharines, the club, all of the region.
“It was a very, very nice night.”
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