The 11’s top 11 stories of 2011 24 Dec 2011 So, when it comes to picking the year’s best stories, I let the numbers speak for themselves. I went back through the analytics and looked at the 11 stories you, the readers, kept reading and re-reading.
FC Edmonton exercises option on Lam’s contract, as the club waits for JEF United decision 21 Oct 2011 FC Edmonton will find out on New Year’s Eve whether or not midfielder Matt Lam will be returning to the NASL club or staying in Japan. But, FCE president Tom Leip confirmed that the club has exercised the option on Lam’s contract. If Lam comes back, FCE would have him on the books for the 2012 season.
Canadian Matt Lam ready to return to JEF United, to “help fans escape the chaos” of earthquake 23 Mar 2011 Matt Lam had just returned home from a training session when the earthquake struck. Even though Chiba, a suburb of Tokyo, was nearly 400 kilometres from the epicentre of the 9.0 temblor that triggered the tsunami that has claimed thousands of lives, the Canadian midfielder — and his mother, who was visiting at the time — they understood the gravity of the situation. “The whole building rocked back and forth,” said Lam, who is back in Edmonton, training on his own, after his club, JEF United, decided to send players home after the quake. “Even though we were 350, 400 kilometres from the epicentre, we could really feel the shake.”
JEF United says players are OK; when will Matt Lam play again? 14 Mar 2011 Matt Lam is safe and sound, but he won’t be playing anytime soon.
Surprise move: FC Edmonton’s general manager resigns 5 Mar 2011 Mel Kowalchuk has announced his resignation as the general manager of FC Edmonton. The team, which leaves Monday for the Arizona portion of its preparations for its first NASL season made the announcement Friday.
FC Edmonton plans to ride the wave of Matt Lam popularity 20 Feb 2011 Matt Lam may be gone (for now) but he's definitely not forgotten. Lam is a member of JEF United — for this season at least — but the team that loaned him out will try to turn the Canadian midfielder’s move to Japan into a public-relations coup. FC Edmonton plans to keep its fans updated on Lam's progress in the Japanese second division.
Big in Japan: Another FC Edmonton player leaves for JEF United 7 Feb 2011 FC Edmonton is looking more and more like the farm club of JEF United. On Monday, the club announced that local product Matt Lam will leave on loan to the Japanese second-division side, following former FC Edmonton coach Dwight Lodeweges and Dutch veteran midfielder Sander Van Gessel.
FC Edmonton loses midfielder van Gessel to Japan 17 Jan 2011 Like former coach Dwight Lodeweges and assistant Hans Schrijver, van Gessel had a clause in his FC Edmonton contract that allowed him to leave the club if a better offer came along. So, he is following his former coaches to Japan, FC Edmonton announced Monday.
