Player Roster Beefed Up with Edgy Locals

TAMPA, FL - As if playing DIV 1-3 college soccer or Cinco 5v5 Premier League wasn’t enough of a challenge, a group of local players took the plunge towards stardom and tried out for the Strikers pro squad over the past several months. With nothing to lose but maybe their pride, over 100 players took a shot at competing for a roster spot at two of the Striker workouts. 

The Strikers, who are led by none other than former Bucs, Super Bowl winning kicker Martin Grammatica, as their Head Coach, looked over the players with a scrutinizing eye in the hot Florida sun. Flanked by his staff of Chris Ruiz and Chrys Christou, both local coaches in the area, they spent hours working out what would be a potential core of both men and women players who would be signed to pro contracts for the upcoming National Indoor Soccer League (NISL) season. 

Grammatica echoed what he and his coaches were thinking, “We were excited by the turnout and the talent that made the commitment to be out showing what they can do and make a pro roster.” Grammatica of course has been around soccer his whole life and he understands not only the nuances of a pro player but the desire and dedication it takes to play at the pro level. “Some of these men and women come in with more savvy than experience, others come with resumes from college programs and national teams. At the end of the day, it all levels out and you have to adapt your skill set and experience to the indoor game, which is new to most of these players.” 

The Strikers will hold another Open Tryout December  10 and encourage any local players with a desire to play pro indoor soccer, to come out and participate in what will be the last local tryout event before the season. Training Camp 2023 will be held in January at Cinco Soccer in Tampa. With player personnel operations in full swing, Grammatica and staff have their hands full selecting and narrowing down the roster for both the men’s and women’s teams. College seniors from both UT and USF have made their way onto the roster with more expected in the near future. 

The Strikers begin their season January 29 and season tickets are on sale now. All home games will be played at the Yuengling Center on the campus of USF. For more information on all things Strikers, go to www.tbstrikers.com .