Vancouver Whitecaps FC announce the re-signing of defender/midfielder
Chris Pozniak
- pending international clearance. Pozniak - who will join the team today in Rochester, New York - has agreed to a deal for the remainder of this season with Vancouver, plus an option for 2010.
The club also announced today that defender
Jeff Parke
will be leaving the Whitecaps in order to pursue other soccer options as per the agreement he signed with the club at the end of March.
Pozniak returns to the 'Caps after playing for Dundee FC of the Scottish First Division during the 2008-09 season. As a member of The Dark Blues, the 5-foot-11, 175-pound defender/midfielder made 22 league appearances, scoring one goal. He also made one Scottish FA Cup and one Scottish League Cup appearance for Dundee last season.
During his first spell with the Whitecaps last season, Pozniak appeared in seven regular season matches. In 570 minutes of action for the club, Pozniak scored one goal and added one assist. He also started both of Vancouver’s first two matches in the 2008 Nutrilite Canadian Championship.
Prior to joining the 'Caps last year, Pozniak made four appearances with Chivas USA of Major League Soccer, while in 2007, he played in 22 matches for MLS club Toronto FC, where he registered three assists.
Pozniak began his professional soccer career with hometown club Toronto Lynx (then of the USL A-League) at the age of 18 in 1999. After a three-year stint with the Lynx, Pozniak transferred to Örebro Sportklubb of the Swedish top-flight Allsvenskan in September 2001. In March 2004, Pozniak signed for two seasons with F.K. Haugesund of Norway's second-tier 1.Divisjon.
Pozniak, who was born in Kraków, Poland, and immigrated to Canada with his family in 1990, has been capped by Canada at the U-20, U-23, and senior international levels. He earned his first senior cap in the 2002 CONCACAF Gold Cup against Haiti. The defender/midfielder has since earned 24 caps for his adoptive country, which included an appearance in Canada’s 1-0 friendly win over Cyprus on May 30.
Parke joined the Whitecaps after a brief training spell with Seattle Sounders FC of Major League Soccer back in March. This followed his third-round selection by Seattle in the MLS Expansion Draft last fall. Prior to his training stint in Seattle, the native Downingtown, Pennsylvania, spent five seasons as the starting centre back with New York Red Bulls of MLS.
This season with the Whitecaps, the 6-foot-1, 180-pound defender appeared in 11 regular season and Nutrilite Canadian Championship matches for 824 minutes of action.
Vancouver's next match is tomorrow - Friday, July 31 - at Marina Auto Stadium in Upstate New York versus Rochester Rhinos. The game is set for a 5 p.m. PDT kickoff and can be seen live on Fox Sports World Canada. The Whitecaps return to Swangard Stadium on Friday, August 7, at 8 p.m. PDT to take on Charleston Battery. Tickets are available by calling Ticketmaster at 604.280.4400 or by visiting whitecapsfc.com/tickets.
