February 27, 2008 10:43 PM
Niko sent to Columbus for defender Tim Ward
The Rapids have acquired defender Tim Ward and a third-round pick in the 2009 supplemental draft from the Columbus Crew in exchange for forward Niko Hernandez.
“Tim is a young defender who will add to the depth we have on our back line,” Rapids coach Fernando Clavijo said in a statement. “We would also like to thank Nicolas for his contributions to the club the past two years.”
Ward was drafted by New York in 2005. He has appeared in 30 first-team games (17 for the Crew) and has recorded three assists in his three-year career. The Saint Louis University product also has represented the United States on the U-17, U-18, U-20 and U-23 levels.
Check out his bio from the Crew Web site, while the page is still up.
Here's the link to a blurb by The Columbus Dispatch. The most interesting thing about it, though, might be the link below to the story "Mohawk haircut gets Ohio kindergartner suspended from school." I recommend that.
During his career with the Rapids, Niko scored eight goals and added seven assists in 51 games.
ALSO IN RAPIDS NEWS: The du Nord blog, the WeWantRapidman blog and Marcelo Balboa all report that the Rapids are working on a deal to bring Brazilian forward Reinaldo to Colorado from Australian club Queensland Roar. Apparently Clavijo also told Balboa on "From the Pitch" that the club is looking at Brazilian Rafael Dos Santos.
EVEN MORE RAPIDS NEWS: The good folks at Class VI found the following tidbit online: The June 14 game Rapids against Toronto (originally scheduled for Dick's Sporting Goods Park) will be played in Canada, and the game Aug. 9 (originally slated for Toronto) will now be played in Commerce City. The short version: The teams swapped home dates. Read the blog entry at the Globe & Mail's site here.
I haven't received any notice about this from the Rapids, but the schedule on their Web site already reflects the change.
(Sources: Colorado Rapids, The Associated Press, Columbus Crew, WeWantRapidman, Class VI, Globe & Mail)
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