Post by 50yardfan on Jul 8, 2008 22:10:32 GMT -5
DAYTONA BEACH -- The Daytona Beach ThunderBirds, the area's ArenaFootball2 team, will play their final home game Thursday night and disband at the end of the season, management said Monday.
Amid speculation that the running of the team will be turned over to the league this Thursday, the local ownership of Gale Lemerand and Kevin and Zack McDonald released a statement.
"Management of the Daytona Beach Thunderbirds is disappointed to announce that Thursday will be the last home game played in the Ocean Center. Many critical negative conditions have led to this unfortunate but necessary decision," the release states. "The decision to cease football operations after the 2008 season had nothing to do with the Thunderbirds win/loss record. Certainly management hoped for more wins, but we are proud of the exciting moments coach Gary Compton and our fine players brought to Daytona Beach this season."
Kevin McDonald, minority owner and finance administrator for the ThunderBirds, said the two main reasons for disbanding the team were unfavorable playing dates from the Ocean Center and numerous unknown costs they were not made aware of until after the decision had been made to go forward with an af2 organization.
The ThunderBirds, 2-11 in their inaugural af2 season, will play the Florida Firecats in their home finale Thursday, but sources say the league will take over the running of the organization after that.
Officials from the af2 did not return phone calls for this story, but previously said they would discuss the matter Thursday.
"Nothing has never been said definitively to me. I just know that the league was taking over. We, players and coaches, are employees of the league. They haven't told me anything else. They just told me they're stepping in," said Compton, also the team's director of football operations.
"With whatever's going to happen, I would like to have been explained it a little bit so I kind of know. I do have a bad taste in my mouth a little bit over it. I understand how it works. From the personal end I think it was kind of handled in a bad way (by ownership). They shouldn't badmouth the league at all, because the league has been around a long time and they're going to be around a long time after they're gone."
In the last week the team was moved from its apartment complex to a DeLand hotel and there were accusations by Double D Video Productions, which films and broadcasts the team's games, of unpaid announcers.
Kevin McDonald said that according to team accounting records Double D Video Productions has been paid. The af2 league paid for the production of Sunday's 62-41 home loss to South Georgia.
Daytona Beach opened the season with former Arena Football League star Herkie Walls as its coach, but he was fired two games into the season and Compton brought in. He won his fourth and fifth games with players that he inherited.
The ThunderBirds played all of their home games Mondays, Thursdays and Sunday afternoons with the exception of one Friday night contest. With the exception of one Sunday afternoon game, all of their away games were contested on the more-desirable Friday and Saturday nights.
"In general they were poor (home) dates, but they've always been poor dates," said Kevin McDonald.
The Daytona Beach team played in front of average road crowds of 4,265 and their home crowds averaged 1,555 -- although they increased by more than 500 per game over the last three games. Sunday, a season-high crowd of 2,673 people were in the stands.
"Very poor dates were made available to schedule home games this year," the release by management said. "Promises of better availability when current construction is complete have failed to materialize. In fact, available 2009 dates are even less desirable then 2008 and it is now anticipated that the availability will get worse rather than better in the future.
"The cost of leasing the Ocean Center is near the most expensive in the af2 league. Current construction activity has been very negative to fan attendance."
The Ocean Center is undergoing a major addition, one that will more than double its size, which makes parking a premium at current events. Ocean Center officials were unavailable for comment Monday.
As for the future of the team, that apparently remains up to the league.
Daytona Beach will close out the season on the road with games at Tennessee Valley and Florida and where the team will be next season -- and if it will be -- remain unknown.
"It's an unfortunate deal and a bad business deal. As far as I know we're going to finish out the year," said Compton. "I signed a two-year contract with this team and the league, so where we play and whether we play is up to the league."
buddy.shacklette@news-jrnl.com
www.news-journalonline.com/NewsJournalOnline/Sports/Headlines/sptTHUN01070108.htm
Amid speculation that the running of the team will be turned over to the league this Thursday, the local ownership of Gale Lemerand and Kevin and Zack McDonald released a statement.
"Management of the Daytona Beach Thunderbirds is disappointed to announce that Thursday will be the last home game played in the Ocean Center. Many critical negative conditions have led to this unfortunate but necessary decision," the release states. "The decision to cease football operations after the 2008 season had nothing to do with the Thunderbirds win/loss record. Certainly management hoped for more wins, but we are proud of the exciting moments coach Gary Compton and our fine players brought to Daytona Beach this season."
Kevin McDonald, minority owner and finance administrator for the ThunderBirds, said the two main reasons for disbanding the team were unfavorable playing dates from the Ocean Center and numerous unknown costs they were not made aware of until after the decision had been made to go forward with an af2 organization.
The ThunderBirds, 2-11 in their inaugural af2 season, will play the Florida Firecats in their home finale Thursday, but sources say the league will take over the running of the organization after that.
Officials from the af2 did not return phone calls for this story, but previously said they would discuss the matter Thursday.
"Nothing has never been said definitively to me. I just know that the league was taking over. We, players and coaches, are employees of the league. They haven't told me anything else. They just told me they're stepping in," said Compton, also the team's director of football operations.
"With whatever's going to happen, I would like to have been explained it a little bit so I kind of know. I do have a bad taste in my mouth a little bit over it. I understand how it works. From the personal end I think it was kind of handled in a bad way (by ownership). They shouldn't badmouth the league at all, because the league has been around a long time and they're going to be around a long time after they're gone."
In the last week the team was moved from its apartment complex to a DeLand hotel and there were accusations by Double D Video Productions, which films and broadcasts the team's games, of unpaid announcers.
Kevin McDonald said that according to team accounting records Double D Video Productions has been paid. The af2 league paid for the production of Sunday's 62-41 home loss to South Georgia.
Daytona Beach opened the season with former Arena Football League star Herkie Walls as its coach, but he was fired two games into the season and Compton brought in. He won his fourth and fifth games with players that he inherited.
The ThunderBirds played all of their home games Mondays, Thursdays and Sunday afternoons with the exception of one Friday night contest. With the exception of one Sunday afternoon game, all of their away games were contested on the more-desirable Friday and Saturday nights.
"In general they were poor (home) dates, but they've always been poor dates," said Kevin McDonald.
The Daytona Beach team played in front of average road crowds of 4,265 and their home crowds averaged 1,555 -- although they increased by more than 500 per game over the last three games. Sunday, a season-high crowd of 2,673 people were in the stands.
"Very poor dates were made available to schedule home games this year," the release by management said. "Promises of better availability when current construction is complete have failed to materialize. In fact, available 2009 dates are even less desirable then 2008 and it is now anticipated that the availability will get worse rather than better in the future.
"The cost of leasing the Ocean Center is near the most expensive in the af2 league. Current construction activity has been very negative to fan attendance."
The Ocean Center is undergoing a major addition, one that will more than double its size, which makes parking a premium at current events. Ocean Center officials were unavailable for comment Monday.
As for the future of the team, that apparently remains up to the league.
Daytona Beach will close out the season on the road with games at Tennessee Valley and Florida and where the team will be next season -- and if it will be -- remain unknown.
"It's an unfortunate deal and a bad business deal. As far as I know we're going to finish out the year," said Compton. "I signed a two-year contract with this team and the league, so where we play and whether we play is up to the league."
buddy.shacklette@news-jrnl.com
www.news-journalonline.com/NewsJournalOnline/Sports/Headlines/sptTHUN01070108.htm