The 2000 Columbus Crew season was the club's fifth season of existence and their fifth consecutive season in Major League Soccer, the top flight of soccer in the United States. The first match of the season was on March 18 against Tampa Bay Mutiny. It was the fifth season under head coach Tom Fitzgerald. The Crew's USL A-League affiliates this season were Cincinnati Riverhawks, Indiana Blast, Milwaukee Rampage, Pittsburgh Riverhounds and Rochester Raging Rhinos.
Roster
Technical Staff
Non-competitive
Preseason Columbus brought multiple non-roster invitees to preseason camp. These included Steve Armas and Mario Longo who later signed contracts with the Crew. It also included Joenal Castma, Phil Karn, Gerardo Reinoso, Horacio Melgarejo, Ian Checcio, and Nikoli who did not sign with the team.
Midseason The Crew played a variety of friendly matches during the regular season. They invited non-rostered players Chuck Browder to play against Kansas City Wizards and Chumski Momose to play against Pittsburgh Riverhounds.
Competitive Overview
MLS
Standings
Central Division
Overall table
Results summary
Results by round
Match results
MLS Cup Playoffs
The Columbus Crew failed to qualify for the playoffs in this season.
U.S. Open Cup
Statistics Appearances and goals Under "Apps" for each section, the first number represents the number of starts, and the second number represents appearances as a substitute.
|colspan=12 align=center|Players who left Columbus during the season:
Disciplinary record No. Pos. Name MLS U.S. Open Cup Total 1 GK Mark Dougherty000000 2 DF Mike Lapper401050 3 DF Mike Clark600060 4 DF Mario Gori500050 5 DF Matt Chulis200020 6 MF Todd Yeagley500050 7 MF Roland Vargas-Aguilera201030 8 MF Miles Joseph200020 9 FW Dante Washington100010 10 MF Brian Maisonneuve000000 11 FW Jeff Cunningham300030 12 MF Jason Farrell100010 13 DF Ancil Elcock500050 14 MF John Wilmar Pérez400040 15 DF Mike Duhaney101020 16 MF Steve Armas200020 17 FW Brian West500050 18 GK Matt Napoleon000000 19 MF Robert Warzycha610061 20 FW Brian McBride100010 21 MF Mario Longo000000 22 DF Dominic Schell000000 23 DF Mirosław Rzepa110011 24 MF John DeBrito700070 33 GK Matthew Nelson000000Players who left Columbus during the season: 16 MF Rob Smith000000 23 FW Christof Lindenmayer000000 33 GK Chuck Browder000000 33 GK Greg Connel000000
Clean sheets
No. Name MLS U.S. Open Cup Total Games Played 1 Mark Dougherty30025 18 Matt Napoleon11211 33 Matthew Nelson0000Players who left Columbus during the season: 33 Chuck Browder0000 33 Greg Connel0000
Transfers
In Pos.PlayerTransferred fromFee/notesDateSource DF Mike Duhaney NY/NJ MetroStars Traded for Thomas Dooley January 28, 2000 FW Dante Washington Dallas Burn Traded for a first round draft pick in the 2000 MLS SuperDraft February 6, 2000 MF Roland Vargas-Aguilera Tahuichi Academy Drafted in round 2 of the 2000 MLS SuperDraft. February 6, 2000 MF Brian Winters Portland Pilots Drafted in round 3 of the 2000 MLS SuperDraft. February 6, 2000 FW Christof Lindenmayer Loyola Greyhounds Drafted in round 4 of the 2000 MLS SuperDraft. February 6, 2000 DF Dominic Schell Mobile Rams Drafted in round 5 of the 2000 MLS SuperDraft. February 6, 2000 MF John Wilmar Pérez Deportivo Cali Allocated by Major League Soccer March 7, 2000 MF Miles Joseph NY/NJ MetroStars Traded for a second-round pick in the 2001 MLS SuperDraft May 3, 2000 MF Mario Longo MLS Project-40 Acquired from MLS Project-40 via lottery May 8, 2000 MF Steve Armas Raleigh Capital Express Signed via discovery June 3, 2000 DF Mirosław Rzepa Odra Opole Signed via discovery August 9, 2000
Loan in Pos.PlayerParent clubLength/NotesBeginningEndSource GK Chuck Browder Indiana Blast Short term agreements May 6, 2000July 11, 2000 May 10, 2000July 22, 2000 GK Matthew Nelson Cape Cod Crusaders Short term agreement September 6, 2000 End of Season
Out Pos.PlayerTransferred toFee/notesDateSource MF Andy Williams Miami Fusion F.C. Traded for a first round draft pick in the 2000 MLS SuperDraft January 3, 2000 DF Thomas Dooley NY/NJ MetroStars Traded for Mike Duhaney January 28, 2000 DF Billy Thompson Retired Placed on waivers February 21, 2000 MF Brian Winters Portland Timbers Placed on waivers March 14, 2000 GK Juergen Sommer New England Revolution Traded for a third-round pick in the 2001 MLS SuperDraft and future considerations. March 14, 2000 MF Rob Smith Retired May 4, 2000 FW Christof Lindenmayer Hershey Wildcats Placed on waivers June 3, 2000 DF Dominic Schell Nashville Metros Placed on waivers November 1, 2000 MF Steve Armas Atlanta Silverbacks Placed on waivers November 1, 2000 DF Mirosław Rzepa Stomil Olsztyn Placed on waivers November 1, 2000 MF Jason Farrell Seattle Sounders Contract expired December 31, 2000
Loans out Pos.PlayerLoanee clubLength/NotesBeginningEndSource DF Dominic Schell MLS Project-40 Multiple short term agreements. April 8, 2000 End of Season MF Steve Armas MLS Project-40 Multiple short term agreements. April 8, 2000 End of Season MF Mario Longo MLS Project-40 Multiple short term agreements. April 8, 2000 End of Season GK Matt Napoleon MLS Project-40 Multiple short term agreements. April 8, 2000 End of Season FW Christof Lindenmayer MLS Project-40 Multiple short term agreements. April 8, 2000 June 3, 2000 DF Dominic Schell Cincinnati Riverhawks Short term agreement MF Steve Armas Cincinnati Riverhawks Short term agreement FW Brian McBride Preston North End September 10, 2000 March, 2001 DF Ancil Elcock Joe Public F.C. November 1, 2000 March, 2001
MLS Draft picks
Draft picks are not automatically signed to the team roster. Only those who are signed to a contract will be listed as transfers in. The picks for the Columbus Crew are listed below: Round Pick Player Position College 221 Roland Vargas-AguileraMFTahuichi Academy333 Brian WintersMFPortland445 Christof LindenmayerFWLoyola University Maryland557 Dominic SchellDFMobile
Awards
MLS Player of the Week WeekPlayerOpponent(s)Link 18 Dante Washington New England RevolutionKansas City Wizards
MLS Player of the Month MonthPlayerStatsLink July Dante Washington 5 goals
2000 MLS All-Star Game Reserves DF Dante Washington FW Brian McBride DF Mike Clark
Crew Team Awards Most Valuable Player – Robert Warzycha Defensive Player of the Year – Mike Clark Scoring Champion – Dante Washington Man of the Year – Robert Warzycha Coach's Award – Roland Vargas-Aguilera Goal of the Year – Robert Warzycha Humanitarian of the Year – John DeBrito Hardest Working Man of the Year – Mario Gori
References