Cleveland City Stars News Release - www.clevelandcitystars.com

Thursday, November 13, 2008

CLEVELAND, OH -- Cleveland City Stars Head Coach Martin Rennie has decided to accept a position with the Carolina RailHawks. Although the entire organization is sad to part ways with the universally respected Rennie, the City Stars are proud to see the head coach continue his promising career at the next level.

The City Stars have been built on the foundation of developing and promoting its talented players, and this exciting development shows that the organizational plan extends to the coaches and front office as well.

"It was a really hard decision to leave Cleveland," said Rennie. "I put all of my energy into the franchise for over two years and now that we have a championship and a great fan base in place, it made it extremely difficult."

"Because of the work that we put in over the past two years, the franchise is in a good position to continue the great work it has done both on and off the field.

"I want to thank all of the players, staff and fans who have supported me and my family throughout our entire time in Cleveland. I look forward to continuing to work with Mark Geissbauer and Aaron Tredway on new projects in the near future."

Rennie, Geissbauer and Tredway have been together since 2005 with the PDL Cascade Surge and the trio was extremely successful in two seasons in Cleveland. Rennie played a key role in bringing the expansion City Stars to Cleveland in 2007 and capped off the inaugural season with USL-2 Coach of the Year honors. Rennie did not slow down in 2008 as he led the City Stars to a second straight undefeated record at home and also recorded the club’s first victory over a USL-1 club by defeating the Minnesota Thunder in the U.S. Open Cup. The monumental second season culminated with a 2-1 victory over the Charlotte Eagles in the USL-2 Championship.

"Though Martin’s departure will certainly be felt throughout the entire CCS organization, Martin is another testimony to CCS’ commitment to the development and promotion of its players, and now coaches, within the ranks of professional soccer around the world," said Executive Director Aaron Tredway. "We are thrilled for Martin and his family and wish God’s richest blessing on their continued success. Though we will now be separated by club affiliation, Martin, Mark and I will remain great friends and colleagues."

Rennie will finish his Cleveland career with a two-year record of 26-7-16, including a combined 6-3 mark in post-season and U.S Open Cup matches. The coach has been nothing but successful everywhere he has been and is sure to continue the trend in Carolina.

"We are all very excited and happy for Martin and this new coaching opportunity," said General Manager Mark Geissbauer. "From day one, Martin played an instrumental role in the foundation of our franchise and our success in Cleveland, but we truly believe that this is the right move for him and his family. I am confident that the RailHawks fans, staff and players will benefit greatly from his coaching and ability to bring out the best in every situation. We will surely miss his talents and leadership within the team, but we all wish him well in this new challenge."

Although it will be hard to replace Coach Rennie, Cleveland Soccer need not worry as the City Stars management has already started the search for a new head coach and have narrowed their focus to a couple of key candidates.

"The search for a new head coach has already been pretty exciting and we can assure our loyal fans and supporters that we will continue our on-field success and have set our goals high for 2009," added Geissbauer. "The current target is to finalize and announce our new head coach prior to the tryouts in late January as we also want to take plenty of time to make the right decision for our team and the city that supports us."

Limited Spaces Available For This Weekend’s 24-Hour Soccer Marathon 

It is not too late to get involved for this weekend’s 24-Hour Soccer Marathon at the Edge Sports Performance Academy in Twinsburg. Teams can register for hour-long time slots and there are still a few slots available. Matches start Friday November 14th at 4 p.m. and run through the last match on Saturday November 15th at 3 p.m.

Teams are $200 to take on the Cleveland City Stars and $100 to take on Ambassadors in Sport. Teams can raise funds to support the ongoing local and international program of CCS and AIS. This includes free camps/clinics, youth education and mentoring programs in Cleveland’s inner-city, high level coaches trainings in Kenya, Haiti, South Africa, and more. Campers will earn 10-percent of their raised funds and can also win prizes from Starbucks, the I-Tunes Music Store, Coldstone Creamery, and Dick’s Sporting Goods.

The event will also include soccer clinics focusing on striking, defending and keeping. Clinics are $20 a piece or $50 for all three. Cleveland’s mascot Crocodinho will be in attendance and available to meet and greet.

Friday will be a special night with games featuring the City Stars players playing against each other at 8 p.m. and 10 p.m.

Don’t miss out on this exciting event. Check out clevelandcitystars.com or contact event Coordinator Mark Reitinger at Marathon08@clevelandcitystars.com for more details.