Details of the Ottawa Fury FC camp, the team’s exhibition schedule and their latest player signings were announced at a press conference this morning at Complexe Branchaud-Brière in Gatineau.
Reigning PDL goalkeeper of the year Chad Bush and former Montreal Impact player striker Pierre-Rudolph Mayard were unveiled as the newest Canadian players for the Fury’s debut NASL season.
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Players have been arriving over the past few days and will all report for a week of medicals on Feb. 24. Training camp will begin March 3, with exhibition games coming on Mar 15 at Branchaud-Brière against York University, in Rochester against the PDL Rhinos on March 21 and again at home against Syracuse University on March 31.
Two more exhibition games will be played in Florida ahead of the season opener.
“It’s been a challenge to book exhibition games in the region where we are but we’re very happy with the ones we’ve booked,” said head coach Marc Dos Santos.
The team will spend 11 days training in Florida ahead of their NASL opener against Fort Lauderdale.
“We think it’s important to be on natural grass and to be in an environment where we’re going to play our first game,” said head coach Marc Dos Santos.
Bush, who has roots in Hull, is the second GK in the squad and will battle Marcel DeBellis for the starting job.
“I think for me signing my first contract is something I’ve thought about for a while,” said Bush, “and to be able to do it for my home town club is something I would have done happily a few years ago, but, now that it’s reality it’s really something special for me.”