Sporting Director Denis Hamlett said the tough decisions were made in the best interest of moving forward and letting new players step up.

Hamlett said the choice to part ways with Bradley Wright-Phillips and Luis Robles, among others, led the organization to put the leadership of the team in different hands, like Ryan Meara, Kemar Lawrence and Aaron Long.

“They’re guys with experience, with years under their belt, and have been in big games, in big moments,” Hamlett said. “Now it’s passing the baton to those guys that can take that leadership role. We feel confident that we have a core of guys that can continue to carry that along.”

Hamlett pointed to Meara as one of the players the club knows they can rely on.

“We have a high level of confidence in Ryan,” Hamlett said. “He’s shown that he’s waited for his opportunity and he’s stepped up when he’s been called upon.”

Moving forward, Hamlett said the team has money to spend and know they have to add players to strengthen the team all across the pitch.

“We have set up ourselves with our budget that we are in a good position to bring players in to make this team stronger,” Hamlett said. “We want to get back to the level and the standard we are accustomed to, which is being a team that competes for championships.”