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Delicate optimistic about Rhinos' season By Jared Smith If one thing is for certain the recent off-season for the Rochester Raging Rhinos as been quite a show. Most sports franchises prefer their demonstration to take place on the field showcasing a quality team. Unfortunately this off-season hasn’t been like any other for Flower City’s hometown team. With Rhino fans worrying about an impending season cancellation the Adirondack Sports Club, lead by owner Rob Clark, ended everyone’s fears with a promise of a new age of Rhinos’ soccer. For Rochester resident and star forward Mathew Delicate, the announcement of new era of Rhinos soccer couldn’t have sounded sweeter. “I think all the players, fans and staff are excited that soccer in Rochester is going to continue with the Rhinos name,” Delicate said about the off-season changes. “There was a lot of doubt about the season and the future of the team but now with a new owner we can try and make our own history.” From 1998-2002, the Rhinos won three post-season and regular-season United Soccer League titles. Fans still remember players such as Doug Miller and Lenin Steenkamp turning Rochester into a soccer city. However, since their last regular-season title in 2002 the new crop of Rhinos has struggled to make a name for themselves. In the past five years, the Rhinos have not captured a division title and have only made the USL finals once. Delicate would like this recent trend to change… and quickly. “It will take a lot of hard work,” said Deli about trying to position this new period of Rhinos soccer among the historic ones. “It will take a lot of successful season as an individual and a team. We’re going to have to pull together as a team and play some exciting soccer.” Scoring eight goals and three assists in 2006, Delicate showed Rhino fans that he has the ability to become an elite player and is ready to make his own history as a Rhino. “There has been a lot of pressure from the fans who expect and demand good soccer and championships,” said Delicate about a city that historically averages over 11,000 fans per game. “When you’re playing in front of thousands of people you need to perform.” Last season, Deli had a tough time performing as he missed over a month with a broken jaw. His return in late August sparked a strong individual finish as he tallied 13 points. Unfortunately Delicate’s personal success was not enough to keep the Rhinos from bowing out in the USL playoff quarterfinals. The Rhinos’ third leading scorer has been determined to return to the post-season to change the teams’ recent struggles. “A big goal of mine is to score goals in the regular season but that doesn’t mean a lot if you can’t score in the playoffs,” insists Delicate. “I would trade a lot of those goals for a couple goals in the playoffs.” Training hard in the off-season with a personal trainer, the former Academic All-American for Virginia Commonwealth, says he has aspiration to score between 15-20 goals this year. If he reaches that mark he will have plenty of post-season points to pass around. “I’ve stayed very active,” says Delicate who has produced 18 and 20 points seasons when healthy. “But with no competitive soccer for me to play it will be great to get back out on the field and start getting match fit again.” “It’s nice to have everything behind us,” says Deli who moved his family from Richmond, Virginia to Rochester a few seasons ago. “I look forward to playing at PAETEC Park and hopefully we can get fans packed into the stadium and play some good soccer.” So no more worries Rochester soccer supporters, you can feel at ease. The hoopla is over, soccer is here to stay and when No. 7 jogs onto PAETEC Park’s green grass on May 5th, the real show is about to begin. |
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