The Club Makes the First Official Roster Announcement of the Season

Morgan Purvis, ArmadaFC.com | Jan. 17, 2017

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville Armada FC have announced that Bryan Burke, Kevan George, Nicklas Maripuu, Danny Barrow, Jemal Johnson, Derek Gebhard, and Charles Eloundou will be returning for the 2017 season.

“We began to establish a very distinctive style of play in the last 14 games of the 2016 season,” said Head Coach Mark Lowry. “Keeping this group of players, with this ability and understanding of the way we play, will help us build on that foundation for 2017.”

Defender Bryan Burke played 20 games in 1,624 minutes with the Armada FC in 2016. He completed 607 passes, sent 77 crosses, and created 19 scoring chances.

Kevan George clocked 2,401 minutes and started in 27 games. The midfielder completed 1,152 passes creating 13 chances for scoring. He totaled 50 clearances, six blocks, and intercepted 81 passes.

Forward Danny Barrow made 14 appearances for the Armada FC last season and was named to the NASL Team of the Week two weeks in a row.

Midfielder Nicklas Maripuu came to Jacksonville from Swedish club IK Sirius in June 2016. He started in 14 of the 15 games he played for Armada FC. He maintained an 89.6 percent passing accuracy and created 11 chances to score.

“We had some great progress and played fantastic soccer in the last part of the 2016 season,” said Maripuu. “I can't wait to continue to build on that and play in front of the Armada fans again."

In his second season with the Armada FC, Forward Jemal Johnson started in 18 of 24 games he played and totaled 1,506 minutes. He made two goals after taking 27 shots and putting 9 on target. He finished with a team-high four assists and was named to the NASL Team of the Week twice.

Forward Derek Gebhard completed two assists in his 12 appearances. His final assist led to the Armada FC victory over the Tampa Bay Rowdies in the last home game of 2016.

Charles Eloundou played in 29 of the 32 total games Armada FC played in 2016 and clocked 1,729 minutes on the field. The forward made 61 total shots, 27 shots on target and tied for team-high six goals. He made the NASL Team of the Week twice and was nominated several times for NASL Play of the Week.

“We are very happy to bring back a core group of players for the 2017 season who will help the new additions settle in to the culture of the club,” said Technical Director Nathan Walter.

This is the first announcement of the Armada FC’s 2017 roster. The club will make additional announcements in the coming days.