Bring the AFL to Boston

Massachusetts Pirates to be officially announced tomorrow

2017-11-14T07:29:00.000-05:00

It's now official, there will be a new arena football team in Massachusetts. The NAL expansion team will be known as the Massachusetts Pirates and they will be owned by Hassan Yatim of the Yacto Energy Corporation. The press conference will be held at the DCU Center’s Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Pavilion at 3 p.m. tomorrow which is also open to the public.

The team structure as listed by ThisweekinWorcester.com:

Owner/CEO - Hassan Yatim
Team President of Football Operations/Back-up QB - Jawad Yatim
VP of Football operations - Rick Buffingron

So I'm looking forward to this as this is probably the closest I'll get to a team in the AFL for now. In response I'll start a new blog to follow this new team on a near day-to-day basis and track it like I did with the Marauders special and archive each game via news articles and box scores. This blog will remain up but I'll keep it to mostly AFL related news while I work on the other one since it's a bit of a hassle to change the url.

NAL coming to Worcester?

2017-10-12T12:19:00.000-04:00

After a long hiatus it looks like there might be a new team in Worcester in the NAL or the National Arena League. A leak from Instagram that was caught by Google search has shown that there will be football played at the DCU Center in 2018. An article from insidethearena.org shows that the team will be called the Massachusetts Pirates and will be owned by former Surge coach Rich Buffington. If true, this announcement comes as a bit of a surprise considering the lack of any coverage from the Telegram and Gazette.

Albany looking at getting a team

2017-03-14T11:23:00.001-04:00

In a Times Union article posted today it seems the general manager of the Times Union Arena is in early, light discussions with the AFL about possibly getting an expansion franchise for 2018. They are looking at having someone replace the Albany Devils of the AHL since they are moving to Binghamton next season. They are also having talks with the NLL about adding a team as well. This might be a hard sell considering Albany doesn't have a NHL team nor a NBA team of which to get an owner from since that seems to be the type of owner the AFL is currently interested in getting.

Also mentioned in passing was talk of Tampa Bay owner possibly owning a second team in Orlando which might mean the Predators could be resurrected. This should be taken lightly considering the guy from Albany is saying this.

St. Louis ‘Highest Priority’ in Expansion

2016-11-15T12:37:00.000-05:00

Shortly after announcing that Baltimore is joining the league next year, Commissioner Scott Butera has talked about how getting a team in St. Louis is a top priority ever since the NFL skipped town earlier this year. The article doesn't have the Baltimore news so you can see how closely these two things were announced.

There is nothing solid for now but considering how the league has been wanting owners from the NBA and NHL to run these teams, it's a safe bet that they are looking at Tom Stillman and company also known as St. Louis Blues Hockey Club, Inc. to buy and run the team considering there is no NBA team in St. Louis to contend with for ownership.

There's an interview with the Commissioner about this on the site so check that out if you want to know more.

Expansion to Baltimore for 2017

2016-11-14T11:20:00.000-05:00

At least there's some light in the tunnel as Baltimore will be getting a team for the 2017 season, so there will be at least five teams that will be in the league.

Name of said team hasn't been decided yet but they will be owned by MSE (Monumental Sports & Entertainment) which is the same group that owns the other new team in the Washington Valor so details on how that will work out will be interesting. The Baltimore AFL team will be playing out of the Royal Farms Arena in downtown Baltimore.

AFL To Go To Four Teams In 2017

2016-10-21T10:41:00.001-04:00

What an offseason so far with the AFL dropping over half of the teams that played in 2016 going from eight teams to three with the expansion Washington Valor which makes it a four team league going into 2017.

Fates of the departed:

Arizona Rattlers are jumping to the IFL
Orlando Predators suspended operations
Portland Steel and the LA KISS folded
Jacksonville Sharks are creating their own league after IFL rejection

Rumor were swirling that this was a move in order to clean-up the league of teams that were doing some well known shady activity such as paying players under the table in order to circumvent the salary limits. These moves also removed almost all of the non-NBA/NHL owners aside from the Soul which aligns to how Commissioner Butera wants the league to be operated.

As for 2017 the remaining four teams would be playing a 12 game schedule if this report is to be believed which means all teams will play four games against the other three teams. Also travel expenses will be a lot cheaper for teams as all of them are located in the eastern time zone.

If there is a 2018 and beyond this might be the best chance for a Boston team if the league looks to build up their east coast presence before heading out west

New League To Have Teams In New England

2016-09-05T10:47:00.000-04:00

There hasn't been much news to report about other than the yearly commissioner interview during the Arena Bowl where new teams are rumored to come but this time there is some interesting news occurring in the lower levels of indoor football.

Vermont was set to have a team in the AIF (American Indoor Football) but then the league decided to close up shop 10 days later, so they tried to find a new home and they did in a newly created league called the CAN-AM Indoor Football League along with newly created teams in New Hampshire and Connecticut.

If this league plays in 2017 with at least one of the three teams existing, they would be the first indoor team to play in New England since 2008 where the New England Surge played in the now folded Continental Indoor Football League.

There's a bunch of information on the Vermont Bucks team since they have a website and everything. They'll be hopefully playing their games at the Gutterson Fieldhouse in Burlington.

As for the other two all I could find was that the New Hampshire team is called the Brigade and will be located in Nashua and that the Connecticut team is called the Chiefs like a bunch of other teams via google search and will located in New London.

Not the best news but you got to start somewhere right?

The AFL Comes To Washington

2016-03-11T07:37:00.000-05:00

It was announced Thursday that Washington D.C. will be getting a team for the 2017 season. The team will be run by Ted Leonsis’s Monumental Sports & Entertainment. The official announcement won't come until Wednesday. Washington will become the league's ninth team and will play their home games at the Verizon Center.

So that's one expansion down, three to go I hope.

League To Expand By Six In 2017

2015-11-21T10:27:00.001-05:00

In a flurry of announcements last night we learned that there will be six teams joining the league in 2017, three of which come from an unexpected area in the country of Mexico. Where the three teams will be located has yet to be announced but I'm willing to risk it and say Mexico City will be one of them. As for the other three teams, two have been confirmed in Washington D.C. and Sacramento according to ArenaFan and the third one has yet to be confirmed but rumor says San Antonio. It was also said that another ten NBA/NHL owners are interested in a team so there is a chance for a future Boston franchise.

In other league news, New Era and Under Armor became new league sponsors for 2016 along with a major technology company which has yet to be named. ESPN and CBS Sports Network are returning as the TV sponsors and in the future the league hopes to be on the "largest television broadcaster in Latin America and Mexico" which might be Univision and the broadcaster will also own the three Mexican teams. Also there is no update on San Jose, their status for 2016 and beyond is still up in the air.

To read more about the impact of these moves and more go read this article over at ArenaFan where they go over all the information that we've learned over the past few days. Next time I might do a list of the ten other expansion wannabes so look forward to that.

San Jose Bites The Dust And Four New Teams In 2017?

2015-11-18T13:44:00.000-05:00

Well it looks like another team has hit the buzz saw as the current AFL champions San Jose SaberCats will not be defending their title next season as their ownership has dropped out of the league due to unknown circumstances. This marks the first time since 1988 that the champion did not play the following season aside from when the 2009 season was cancelled. Though the folding is not official as of yet as the league has stated that they are looking for new ownership to take over so it's unclear if the league will have eight or nine teams in 2016 though it looks like for now that the number will be eight.

Enough of the bad news, here is some good news. The league is looking to increase the number of teams for the 2017 season by at least four. Here's the portion of the article that talks about this specifically:

The AFL is expected to expand to as many as 12 teams in 2017.

“Hopefully, there will be even more than that,” Butera said. “We could add a bunch of teams tomorrow, but we want people who are in it for the long haul. We’re looking for quality, not quantity.”

The league’s new business model involves ownership with other sports interests. By dovetailing into existing NBA and NHL franchises, the AFL would be able to utilize stadium leases and front-office management teams already in place.

The league is trying to attract ownership groups that already run NBA and NHL franchises in order to build a more sustainable league where teams won't be dropping out like flies every offseason. There is even speculation that in 2017 the league will implement a salary cap in order to improve competitive balance in the league and remove any possible cheating that might have occurred in the past. In theory this would help the league improve it's image and allow for the potential new ownership groups to control cost better than they would have in the past due to actually owning the arenas instead of just renting and potentially prevent large losses like the ones the league had to deal with last season with Las Vegas and New Orleans.

What does this mean to me and other people who want a Boston-based team? Well if there is going to be a Boston team then odds are the owner will most likely have to be someone in the Jacobs family as they are the ones who own the TD Garden.

Expansion Details To Be Finalized Soon

2015-10-13T12:02:00.001-04:00

So it seems there will be at least one expansion team in 2016 as the league has extended the exclusive signing period due to a possible delay in finalizing the expansion approval.

Rumor suggest that one of or the only team in question is another San Antonio team which would be owned by the San Antonio Spurs being possibly coached by former Talons coach Lee Johnson. The expansion team would be officially announced on October 30th if the rumor is true.

Some other rumors at least that's what they are until the league announces them officially:

• There are discussions about moving the season back to starting in February as well as moving some games to Monday and Thursday nights.
• If the season schedule doesn't change, and it starts in April, the Soul will likely be forced to play part of its home schedule (as much as four or five games) at other venues due to the Democratic National Convention and renovations to the Wells Fargo Center.
• There are talks about changing to a 16-game schedule.
• There will be new TV deals announced soon as well as other partnerships (i.e., merchandise).
• Expect at least two new teams. Possibly three. League is confident in ownership groups moving forward.

Moving the season start back to February and having two less games would be a nice move considering the players would like to tryout for the NFL and I'd rather not see teams get depleted during the playoffs considering that this past season didn't end until the end of August. A good example would be the 2006 season in which the season started in late January and ended by mid-June giving players a chance to get ready for NFL training camps.

The possible new TV deals will be interesting to hear as the league is currently with ESPN and CBSSN. My guess is that CBSSN might be dropped for NBCSN or Fox Sports 1/Fox Sports 2.

As for the new teams I hope there's at least three unless the league is going to realign since it would be silly to have a two team division. Rumored team number one is San Antonio since that's the only city with any chatter behind it. As for the other ones I would guess a team somewhere in the northwest to take Spokane's place and a team somewhere in the northeast to fit in with Philadelphia and Cleveland. We'll find out soon enough,

League To Focus On Expanding To Northeast And The Mdwest

2015-08-25T13:05:00.001-04:00

In the latest interview of AFL Commissioner Scott Butera, we learn that future expansion will be more focused on the eastern corridor of the country rather than the western push that we've seen in the past few years with Portland, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas. Of course that doesn't mean there can't be any expansion west of the Mississippi just expect there to be more eastern expansion teams for a while. With Iowa leaving last year and Spokane most likely leaving next week, I'm willing to guess that smaller cities won't be in the league anytime soon since you need big league money to contend with the rest of the league.

The relevant part of the interview:

FS: How many teams do you expect to play in the AFL next season?
SB: It's really more about the quality of the teams than the numbers. We are going to add systematically in markets. We are going to be focused on the Northeast and Midwest. We are looking for the right owners so it depends on us finding the right people to be part of this great organization.

Tune in next week when we find out the fate of the Spokane Shock and hopefully some expansion news in the upcoming months.

New Orleans Could Come Back With New Owner

2015-08-11T08:15:00.001-04:00

Well if somebody has money and knows how to run a team it sounds like New Orleans could be saved. That's basically the gist of the article as Commissioner Butera said what needed to be done to save arena football in New Orleans.

Just to pad out this article there is also a story out of Las Vegas about how the Outlaws aren't going out without a fight despite the lack of money at certain times for specific things. It's a good read if you want to see some excuses from people who seem to not know how a sports team should be operated.

Spokane To Follow In Iowa's Footsteps To The IFL?

2015-08-11T07:48:00.001-04:00

Well as if the news about New Orleans and Las Vegas wasn't bad enough, now we have Spokane who is looking to evaluate themselves and see if staying in the AFL is right for them in 2016 and beyond.

It seems most of their issues have to do with the league as the league is not doing what they think they should be doing as seen in this snippet below:

Naini, who was heavily involved in the hiring of first-year AFL commissioner Scott Butera, listed three key objectives: generating mass sponsorships at the league level, generating revenue through media and digital rights and requiring teams to follow player salary rules.

Naini said there has been little or no progress toward those objectives. Sponsorships continue to lag and the league pays to have games televised on CBS Sports Network and produced for broadcast on ESPN. He added, “I don’t think anything has been done relative to cheating (paying players beyond AFL rules).

“In Scott’s defense, I would say the league had been left with so many hidden landmines that he’s been basically firefighting most of his tenure,” said Naini, who purchased the Shock from Brady Nelson prior to the 2014 season. “But you have to make progress. I’ve told him unless I see light at the end of the tunnel, it’s a failed proposition in the long term, and even in the shorter term as we’ve seen this season (with Las Vegas and New Orleans).”

Spokane’s ownership group hasn’t made a decision but Naini said the AFL needs to demonstrate “tangible progress.”

So it looks like if Spokane is going to stay in the AFL, commissioner Butera is going to have to fix the ship by fixing the salary cheating and increasing off the field revenue which might be difficult if they plan to stay on CBSSN and the ESPN networks.

What's interesting that I found in this article is that I get paid more than IFL players do despite being only a part-time worker. Not something the players are going to like that's for sure,

VooDoo, Outlaws Cease Operations

2015-08-10T07:29:00.001-04:00

Announced by the league yesterday, the Las Vegas Outlaws and the New Orleans VooDoo have ceased operations which means as of now there are only ten teams in the league. The Portland Thunder is a beneficiary of this move since they are now in the playoffs since Vegas dropped out.

New Orleans wasn't much of a surprise since they haven't been doing well for a couple years now but Vegas was a bit of a surprise since they were an expansion team at least until week nine when attendance dropped like a rock and stayed there for the rest of the season.

Butera Speaks About Expansion

2015-07-30T09:21:00.000-04:00

In a recent interview with ArenaFan, Commissioner Scott Butera touched on what he and the league would like to see in terms of future expansion. Obviously nothing mentioning specific locations but it does look like the league might attempt some international expansion to either Canada, Mexico or both.

The most interesting part is on the number of teams the Commissioner wants to have by 2019. He said he would hope to have as many as twenty-four American teams within three years which would double the current size of the league which would be the largest three year expansion period since the 1995-97 stretch in which eleven teams were added via expansion albeit a bunch of them also folded with that same three year period. Also to note that he would also like to expand by two or three teams for 2016.

Of course we have all heard this song and dance before but even if they only get half of what he hopes to get, an eighteen team league would be almost what the league was back before the 2009 bankruptcy when the league had nineteen teams which was the largest the league had ever been.

Here's the part of the interview regarding expansion:

AM: Let’s talk about expansion a little bit. I know we spoke about this when we had the pleasure of interviewing you earlier in the season. You were sort of targeting regions, and obviously we can’t talk about specific markets at this point. What is a realistic goal for expansion in the next year, two years, and down the line for the Arena Football League?

SB: I think if we can get two or three teams for the next season, that would be a pretty good start. But really I would like to double the size of the league, from twelve to twenty-four teams, in let’s call it a three year time frame. Now I am not, and my partners are not, going to support bringing on a team just because we want a dot on the map or we are trying to hit some kind of goal. It really has to be finding the right owner. So if we are able to secure the right ownership group with the criteria we’ve discussed, then we will move forward on that. If we’re not, then we will wait. But ideally, we would like to see the league double in size domestically over the next three years. And then if we can also add some international expansion, that would be great too. And international isn’t necessarily just China. We think there are some good opportunities closer to home, particularly in Mexico and Canada, which we are pursuing as well.

AM: What type of time frame are you talking about for the international side of this?

SB: I would say that we have started working on those fronts right now. If we could have something that would at least show that we are moving along those lines next year, that would be great. But really when you are looking at new franchises, I believe that it should be a two year lead time. I think it kind of takes about a year to put your team together, put your structure together, unless you are somebody, or an entity, that already has an existing operation. For example, our Cleveland franchise. They run four teams. So if you have a situation where you have an owner that runs multiple teams and can just plug in, then they can certainly start a team within a year or if somebody buys an existing team, that can happen. But if you are really starting from scratch, it really is two years. And internationally there are some things that we would need to figure out in terms of how the players are hired, cross border travel, and how people get paid. So there are some complexities in doing that that we would have to figure out. So I think realistically it is a couple of years down the road.

So going by that, odds are that a potential Boston franchise would most likely to be owned and operated by the NHL's Boston Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs since they also own the TD Garden. Getting to twenty-four teams I hope would have to involve getting into the northeast which has been AFL-free since 2008 when the New York Dragons were around and for the curious New England has been AFL-free since 2000 when the New England Sea Wolves played in Hartford.

League Takes Over Control Of Outlaws And VooDoo

2015-07-17T07:14:00.002-04:00

A couple of days ago the AFL has announced that it has taken over the operations of the Las Vegas Outlaws and the New Orleans VooDoo. A few days later the league announced that the game between the two in Las Vegas in week 18 has been canceled. Both franchises are basically zombie teams right now just going through the motions until the season ends where they'll be either folded or sold for likely relocation. Going with that we have a report of a potential Texas group looking at buying the VooDoo and moving them to possibly Austin.

So if Vegas is out, the Texas moves occurs, and excluding any potential expansion here's what the league could look like in 2016:

National Conference
West
Arizona
Los Angeles
Texas

Pacific
Portland
Spokane
San Jose

American Conference
South
Jacksonville
Orlando
Tampa Bay

East
Philadelphia
Cleveland

I would assume that unless another western team pops up or Vegas stays that a Texas team would replace Vegas in the West division given that they are closer to Arizona and Los Angeles than Cleveland and Philadelphia. So if they need a 12th hopefully they look at the northeast so Philly and Cleveland don't have to go cross country just to play a divisional game..

Marauders done in Worcester (OTDI '94 #93)

2015-07-13T11:21:00.000-04:00

And that's a wrap. It's the end of an era as we come to the end of 'On This Day in 1994' with the official death of the Marauders franchise whose rights will be kept in cold storage for a couple of years until 1997 when the rights get bought by a group from Iowa.

Nothing more to say about this since it is kind of depressing.

Article after the jump

WORCESTER - The Mass Marauders hope to be back in business next year, but probably with a new name and a new city.

Gordon Kaye, executive vice president of the team that called Worcester home last summer, said he and owner Joe O'Hara hope to sell their Arena Football League franchise by September.

"We have the rights to 10 markets, eight exclusive and two non-exclusive in Canada, in which to sell the franchise," Kaye said.

He said no one locally has expressed interest in purchasing the Marauders, whose players have found homes with other Arena Football League teams. A buyer would not get the rights to those players.

FIRST REFUSAL

"If there are buyers in Worcester who are interested and would come to the table, they would have right of first refusal," Kaye said. "We would give them preference and would be looking to sell a Worcester franchise from between $750,000 to $1 million. If we sell elsewhere, we will be looking at a $1 million to $1.5 million price tag."

Elsewhere could be in Boston at the new FleetCenter, which is scheduled to open in September.

"We're still in the first month and a half of putting the franchise on the market," said Kaye. "The FleetCenter has to be considered a likely candidate just because it's a new building. We would like to see the team sold by September and play in 1996."

MARAUDERS TERMINATED

ArFL officials terminated the Marauders in early February after the Worcester team had threatened to sit out the season if league commissioner Jim Drucker were not removed by Feb. 28. Drucker and O'Hara had been involved in a physical confrontation in September 1994 in Orlando, Fla.

The league did not replace Drucker, but instead terminated the Marauders.

O'Hara filed suit against the league, and on June 8 the parties reached a settlement. Particulars were not disclosed, other than the Marauders getting the right to sell their former membership in the league in certain areas until Sept. 30, 1998.

The exclusive area includes Massachusetts, the District of Columbia, Maine, Connecticut (except for a 50-mile radius around Hartford), Maryland (except for a 75-mile radius around Philadelphia), New Hampshire, and New Jersey (except for a 75-mile radius around New York City and a 75-mile radius around Philadelphia). CAN SELL IN N.Y.

Also, the Marauders have the right to sell within the state of New York (except for a 75-mile radius around New York City, a 75-mile radius around Albany and a 75-mile radius around Buffalo), Rhode Island, Vermont and Montreal.

O'Hara also has non-exclusive rights to sell the Marauders' former membership in Toronto and Vancouver.

While Kaye and O'Hara are looking to sell the Marauders, both hope to be part of the management team.

"We don't want to get out of the game," said Kaye. "We feel we have a great deal of knowledge and we could handle the football aspect of the team. That could be part of the deal."

Kaye felt that he, O'Hara, coach Don Strock and the rest of the organization did an "excellent job" getting theMarauders up and playing in such a short time last year (the franchise moved from Detroit just a couple of months before the season began).

The Marauders went 8-4 during the regular season and won a playoff game before losing in the semifinals.

The team averaged 7,371 fans for its six home games at the Centrum, ranking the Marauders eighth in the 11-team league. The team lost money - O'Hara said the break-even attendance figure was 9,000 - but the amount has not been disclosed.

"We were confident that we could continue the success this year, but we didn't get that opportunity," said Kaye. "We felt we had established a fan base and had built some momentum.

"We do hope that there isn't ill sentiment from the fans in Worcester," said Kaye. "Worcester is still a great city, and the Centrum is an ideal venue for Arena football.

"One problem we had was that we didn't get corporate support. That wasn't Worcester's fault per se. In order to draw at the gate, you have to have corporate support. Without it, it's not humanly possible to make enough money. A new owner coming into Worcester would have to evaluate that."

Kaye said he and O'Hara would like to have the team sold by Labor Day.

"We don't want to put the new owners into the tough position we were in when we got things started last spring in Worcester," said Kaye. "We do have the field system and equipment in storage, just no players."

Works Cited

Burgin, Sandy, and &. G. S. Telegram. "Mass Marauders Not Likely to Stay // Worcester Buyers would have First Shot." Telegram & Gazette: D6. Jul 13 1995. ProQuest. Web. 9 Feb. 2015 .

Possible Future Expansion In The Northeast

2015-02-28T10:47:00.001-05:00

In a couple of podcast interviews one by the league itself and ArenaFan, Commissioner Butera laid down some framework into possible locations for future league expansion. Basically he said the following regarding expansion:

Future owners must have enough wealth and desire to support a team for a long period not just 1-3 years like we've seen with Chicago, San Antonio, etc.(no more cheapskate owners)
Possible 4-8 team expansion in the future(not all at once of course)
Ideal locations for future franchises would be in the Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, and the Northeast(for example Washington D.C., Baltimore, Chicago, Detroit, Boston, and New York)

Of course for now this is nothing but talk for now but it seems Butera is the kind of guy the league needs to get back into the national spotlight and potentially profit from it rather than go bankrupt.

Marauders Out For 1995 (OTDI '94 #92)

2015-02-16T07:55:00.000-05:00

And that's the end of the Marauders. O'Hara confirms that the Marauders won't be playing in 1995 which in minor league sports is a death sentence since almost nobody ever returns from the hiatus.

Like I said before this is pretty much it for On This Date In 1994 aside from what will be the conclusion of the lawsuit in July. I got nothing else so I hope you enjoyed this look back at the only AFL team to ever exist in Massachusetts and look forward to some other content at some point.

WORCESTER - Joe O'Hara, president and general manager of the Mass Marauders, yesterday confirmed what was virtually certain - that the Arena Football League team will not play in the Centrum or anywhere else during the 1995 season.

ArFL officials terminated the Marauders' membership in the 16-team spring-summer league in early February, but O'Hara filed suit and received a temporary restraining order from a New York judge Feb. 7 that he said put his team "back in business."

Yesterday O'Hara conceded he is out of business for 1995 anyway.

"It now appears that we will be involved in a protracted lawsuit that will extend well into - and perhaps beyond - the league's 1995 season," O'Hara said in a statement.

"Thus, rather than hold out any false hope to our fans and sponsors, we have decided to announce that the MassMarauders will definitely not be playing in the ArFL in 1995."

O'Hara had threatened to sell or lease the team if ArFL Commissioner James D. Drucker, with whom he had a physical confrontation the night of the ArenaBowl '94 game in Orlando, Fla., was not replaced by Feb. 28.

"I originally indicated to the Board of Directors that I had placed the Marauders on inactive status because of the widespread administrative and fiscal improprieties that I had uncovered in Commissioner Drucker's management of the league," O'Hara said.

The Marauders president noted, however, that instead of replacing Drucker, the ArFL Board of Directors supported Drucker, terminated the Marauders and rejected all of his settlement offers.
O'Hara said he's not been told what will happen to the Marauders players, but he has requested that they be moved en masse to another team.

"I am also uncertain as to whether we will be able to rekindle the level of support that we were able to build in the Worcester area after we sit out the 1995 season," he said.

"Obviously, Commissioner Drucker's attempt to terminate our team has made it impossible for us to play in Worcester in 1995 regardless of what happens in our lawsuit against the league.

"Whether we could return to this area in 1996 is a question that really cannot be answered at this point in time."

The Marauders had been scheduled to begin their second season in May and officials said 700 season tickets had been sold.

Former Bay State Bombardiers owner John Ligums said Feb. 6 he had negotiated with Drucker to put an expansion franchise in Worcester, but that his last offer was rejected by the league's executive committee.

Works Cited
"Marauders Staging a Mass Rereat // O'Hara Gives Up '95 Fight; Maybe in '96?" Telegram & Gazette: D1. Feb 16 1995. ProQuest.Web. 6 Feb. 2015 .

I don't own this article, it's for educational, historical, and reference only.

Marauders Legally Un-kicked Out (OTDI '94 #91)

2015-02-08T07:54:00.000-05:00

Who said lawsuits never work. The team is still alive at this point even if it took a judge to do so. The expansion plan was also denied as the judge stated that there can be no expansion team in the state until this is settled.

This won't be settled until July with the very last article so I'm done with this stuff for now.

A New York judge yesterday issued a temporary restraining order preventing the Arena Football League from revoking the membership of the Mass Marauders, team owner Joe O'Hara said yesterday.

The ruling by Judge Joseph Harris of Albany County also prevents the league from putting another team in Massachusetts, O'Hara said. A full hearing on the lawsuit, which was filed yesterday by O'Hara, is not expected for three to four weeks.

O'Hara said the ruling does not necessarily mean the Marauders will play this season at the Centrum.

"As far as the court is concerned, we're back in business," O'Hara said. "My attitude has not changed. As long as Jim Drucker is commissioner and until the (alleged) improprieties are cleared up, I don't want to be an active member of the league."

Arena football officials kicked the Marauders out of the league last week after O'Hara threatened to sell or lease the team if Drucker was not removed Feb. 28.

Works Cited

"Reprieve for Marauders?" Telegram & Gazette: D1. Feb 08 1995. ProQuest. Web. 6 Feb. 2015 .

I don't own this article, it's for educational, historical, and reference only.

No Expansion Team For Worcester (OTDI '94 #90)

2015-02-07T11:26:00.000-05:00

Well so much for plan B as the league denies the plan to have a new franchise in Worcester replace the Marauders who were kicked out of the league earlier that week. The potential owner was John Ligums who used to own the Bay State Bombardiers a CBA team back in the 80's. The least I can say is that at least they tried.

TIL the expansion fee in 1994 was $750,000.

Former Bay State Bombardiers owner John Ligums said he has been negotiating with Arena Football League commissioner James Drucker to put an expansion franchise in Worcester, but his latest offer was rejected yesterday by the league's executive committee.

ArFL officials terminated the Mass Marauders' membership in the league last week after owner Joe O'Hara threatened to sell or lease his team unless the league forced Drucker's resignation. Despite the ArFL's termination action, O'Hara said he still considers the Marauders part of the league. The Marauders played at the Centrum last season.

COULDN'T COMPROMISE

Ligums said he and Drucker were negotiating over the $750,000 expansion franchise fee.

"We couldn't reach a compromise," said Ligums, a Milton stockbroker.

Reached at league headquarters, Drucker declined comment, but a source familiar with the discussions with Ligums called him "the last best hope for the situation."

TWO SEASONS

Ligums, 44, moved the Bay State Bombardiers of the Continental Basketball Association from Brockton to the Worcester Auditorium for the 1984-85 and 1985-86 seasons. Ligums then sold the franchise to a group in Pensacola, Fla.

Ligums said he had talked to Drucker and Centrum general manager John Wentzell about purchasing an expansion franchise, not the Marauders.

"The Marauders are R.I.P.," he said.

RESOLVED SOON

A source close to the discussions said the league wanted the matter resolved by the end of the owners' meetings in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., on Thursday, but Ligums said he wanted to gauge interest in the team among the business community, Centrum officials and fans before committing himself.

"If I had a commitment for 5,000 season tickets, I'd make a commitment yesterday," said Ligums.

ONLY TWO MONTHS

"The best way to go about this is to do what the (NFL expansion team) Jacksonville Jaguars did," said Ligums. "They took two years to go to chamber breakfasts, make speeches, drum up interest. But instead of two years, we have two months, which is a very formidable obstacle."

Ligums said he had contacted former Bombardiers general manager Steve Warshaw about joining him in Worcester if he buys an ArFL franchise. Warshaw is currently vice president of operations for the Red Penguins hockey team in Moscow.

HONOR TICKETS

Ligums said if he ends up putting an expansion team in Worcester, he'd honor the tickets purchased from theMarauders.

Marauders officials say they have sold 700 season tickets for the upcoming season, which is scheduled to begin in May.

Ligums said he attended a Marauders game at the Centrum last summer and liked what he saw. If he ends up putting an expansion team in Worcester, Ligums said he'd give his son, Jeb, a sophomore placekicker at Roxbury Latin, a tryout.

Works Cited

Doyle, Bill, and &. G. S. Telegram. "ArFL Pot Still Boiling // League Nixes New Expansion Bid by Ligums." Telegram & Gazette: D1. Feb 07 1995. ProQuest. Web. 6 Feb. 2015 .

I don't own this article, it's for educational, historical, and reference only.

Marauders Kicked Out From League (OTDI '94 #89)

2015-02-05T07:50:00.000-05:00

Well so much for that ultimatum, the league has decided to kick the Marauders out of the league which prevents O'Hara from even selling the team but don't worry O'Hara will sue in order to get back in not that it will amount to anything though.

A weird thing that comes from this is that O'Hara thinks he doesn't have to adhere to the lease with the Centrum because the team got kicked out so there's another lawsuit waiting to happen but you'll never here of it, from me anyway.

On a side note the Marauders had around 777 season ticket holders if you believe the numbers in the last two stories.

Arena Football League officials have terminated the Mass Marauders' membership in the spring-summer indoor league, the troubled team's owner confirmed yesterday.

Owner Joe O'Hara said he has received two letters in recent days from Ron Kurpiers, the Arena league's deputy director, informing him that the Marauders were no longer part of the 16-team league.

The ArFL offices in Florida were closed yesterday and league officials could not be reached for comment. An independent source confirmed the team had been kicked out.

SCHEDULED TO BEGIN

The Marauders were scheduled to begin their six-game home season at the Centrum in May. The team said it has sold 700 season tickets for the upcoming season.

O'Hara said the league's termination action did not follow "due process," and he still considers the Marauders part of the league.

The league's move followed an ultimatum from O'Hara last week to fellow owners that they force the resignation of commissioner Jim Drucker by Feb. 28 or he would sell or lease the team, possibly to interests that would take theMarauders elsewhere.

CLEAR-CUT ATTEMPT

O'Hara said he believed the league's action was an effort to deny him the opportunity to inform other owners of financial improprieties that O'Hara maintains have occurred during Drucker's reign as commissioner, which began last June.

"I believe what is happening is there is a clear-cut attempt by Mr. Drucker to silence me, much as other companies have attempted to get rid of other whistle-blowers," O'Hara said. "He wants to silence me and prevent me from putting forth facts to the rest of the owners."

O'Hara expects legal action to ensue, saying he would not let his team be taken "without putting up a substantial fight."

He also said he believed he was not bound by the five-year lease he signed with the Centrum last year because the league was not permitting the team to perform.

Asked whether O'Hara's actions were a ploy to get out of the lease, Centrum general manager John Wentzell said: "I certainly hope not, to be honest with you. I really don't know what his motivation might be beyond the reason he has given in writing (irreconcilable differences with Drucker)."

Wentzell said legal action against O'Hara was a possibility. "We have not at this juncture taken any legal steps, although that is something that we could do."

Works Cited

Nathan, David E., and Sports Editor. "Arena League Kicks Out Marauders." Telegram & Gazette: D1. Feb 05 1995. ProQuest. Web. 6 Feb. 2015 .

I don't own this line, it's for educational, historical, and reference only

O'Hara Issues Ultimatum (OTDI '94 #88)

2015-02-03T07:39:00.000-05:00

Remember that article that claimed that Marauders owner Joe O'Hara and AFL commissioner James Drucker have made peace? That was a bunch of BS as O'Hara gives the other owners an ultimatum to get rid of Drucker by the end of the month or else he will sell the team. It's fairly easy to figure out how this ended. Even O'Hara could figure it out as he is planning to sell the team once it's made official.

On a side not the team lost $500,000 in 1994 and had a 90% season ticket renewal rate.

A personal feud may result in the sale and departure of the Arena Football League's Mass Marauders.

Marauders owner Joseph J. O'Hara said yesterday he has issued an ultimatum to his fellow owners: Force the resignation of league commissioner James Drucker by Feb. 28 or O'Hara will lease or sell the team, possibly meaning the Marauders will leave Worcester.

O'Hara said his relationship with Drucker had "simply reached a point where it was not possible for me, from a business sense, to continue. After 5 1/2 years of involvement with the league, I naturally desire to continue, but it is impossible as long as Mr. Drucker stays involved."

Drucker did not return phone messages left for him yesterday. He succeeded O'Hara as league commissioner when O'Hara brought the Detroit franchise to Worcester last March.

The two were involved in what O'Hara termed a "physical confrontation" during a cocktail party at an Orlando, Fla., hotel hours after the ArenaBowl game in September. A police report said alcohol was involved and listed both as suspects and victims. No charges were filed. O'Hara filed a lawsuit against Drucker, but withdrew it when the two settled their differences in November.

The league owners held a conference call yesterday, but O'Hara was not involved.

"I know what I think that means," said O'Hara, a Saratoga Springs, N.Y., businessman and 1970 Holy Cross graduate. "I do not believe the other owners are going to say get rid of Mr. Drucker and keep O'Hara happy. I believe they will say, "Do your own thing, Joe.' "

"I have a lot of time, money and emotion invested in the Worcester area," said O'Hara, whose team lost $500,000 last year, according to a league source.

OTHER BUYERS

"I have made it clear that the first option will be given to a Worcester group," O'Hara said. "It will have the right of first refusal."

O'Hara said he has talked to two Worcester groups interested in buying the team. "The first calls I made were to two Worcester groups and one is seriously interested," said O'Hara, who refused to divulge any names.

"If that group does not respond, I will look elsewhere."

The Centrum has six home dates for Marauder games set aside for this spring and summer; the season-opener is May 13.

Centrum general manager John A. Wentzell said he "is trying to sift through information right now."

O'Hara, whose team averaged 6,500 fans for its home dates last year, signed a five-year lease with the Centrum last summer.

"In our opinion," Wentzell stated emphatically, "this is not acceptable. There will be football played here."

Wentzell said he would not speculate on what the Centrum or parent company Spectacor might do.

WAITING GAME

"We have a pretty simple request," said Wentzell, "let's play football."

He called this action by O'Hara "very troubling, very disturbing. The beauty of Arena football is it is played during the down side of scheduling and we do have some breathing room (in changing dates).

"More compelling is the effect on fans. Any uncertainty needs to be removed. This is unfair to the fans who support us. They shouldn't have to go through a period of doubt.

"Pardon the pun," concluded Wentzell, "but we're just kind of sitting on the sidelines right now."

The Marauders sent a letter to the league office stating that O'Hara had "voluntarily taken an inactive status (for theMarauders)," according to Gordon Kaye, the team's executive vice president.

Ron Kurpiers, the Arena league's deputy director, said the league would have a response to the situation within 24-48 hours.

The franchise, which has been handling its own season ticket sales, has reported a 90 percent response on renewals and a healthy sale of new season tickets for this season. The season-ticket money is being held in escrow.

Works Cited

Cerasuolo, Dick, and &. G. S. Telegram. "Football Team's Fate Questioned // O'Hara-Drucker Feud Fans Possible Marauders Sale." Telegram & Gazette: A1. Feb 03 1995. ProQuest. Web. 6 Feb. 2015 .

I don't own this line, it's for educational, historical, and reference only.

Marauders Sign Three (OTDI '94 #87)

2015-01-28T07:45:00.000-05:00

For the last of their player transactions the Marauders signed OL/DL Eric Drakes, FB/LB Curtis Eller, and WR/LB Junior Green. Each player would play for someone else in 1995, Drakes went to Orlando, Eller went to Connecticut, and Green went to Charlotte.

It's all down hill from here on.

MASS MARAUDERS--Signed lineman Eric Drakes, fullback-linebacker Curtis Eller and wide receiver-linebacker Green Junior.

Works Cited "TRANSACTIONS." Hartford CourantJan 28 1995. ProQuest. Web. 6 Feb. 2015 .

I don't own this line, it's for educational, historical, and reference only.