Defender Marc Burch comes to the Sounders in the Re-Entry Draft, while Seattle lost veteran forwards Nate Jaqua and Pat Noonan.
The Sounders FC continued to build their roster for the 2012 season on Monday with an active day in the second stage of the Re-Entry Draft.
Seattle traded into the first position in the draft, sending a third round pick in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft to the Vancouver Whitecaps. They then used the pick to select Marc Burch, a defender who played the last five seasons with DC United.
Their day wasn’t done there, though.
Immediately following Seattle’s pick, the New England Revolution selected Nate Jaqua with the second pick, effectively ending the Seattle career of one of the original Sounders FC players. Then in the third round, the LA Galaxy selected Pat Noonan with one of their six picks on the day.
Burch started his pro career as a striker with the LA Galaxy, but was traded to the Columbus Crew after making just three appearances in 2006. In Columbus, he played under Sigi Schmid for the rest of the 2006 season and the start of the 2007 season, but was then sent to DC United, where he moved to left back and has played ever since.
In his first season he had one goal and three assists in just 18 appearances. He has made 93 appearances in five seasons for DC United, including 17 matches in 2011. He saw limited action in 2010 because of foot injuries, but was otherwise a sturdy contributor for DC United in his time there. He has three goals and ten assists in 103 matches in his MLS career.
Burch, 27, will compete with Leo Gonzalez for the starting left back role for the Sounders in 2012. He was a starter for DC United in consecutive Open Cup finals – a win over the Charleston Battery in 2008 and a loss to the Sounders FC in 2009.
In Jaqua and Noonan, the Sounders lose two veteran scorers. Both had 41 career MLS goals, though they enjoyed most of their success before landing in Seattle.
Jaqua, 30, was an original with the Sounders FC after the forward was taken in the expansion draft in 2008. He had a career-best season with nine goals and seven assists in 2009, but could not repeat that success in subsequent years. He had five assists in 38 appearances in 2010 and 2011, though he was named US Open Cup player of the tournament for his five goals in four matches to help lead the Sounders to their second consecutive US Open Cup title. He has 41 goals and 29 assists in 197 career MLS matches.
Noonan, 31, joined the Sounders midway through the 2010 season and played a good leadership role with the club. He had one goal and one assist in 21 appearances in 2010 and 2011, but hit the highlight reel with an assist to Alvaro Fernandez to set up the only goal in Seattle’s historic 1-0 road win over Monterrey in the CONCACAF Champions League. He has 41 goals and 33 assists in 173 career MLS matches.
Seattle opens the 2012 season March 7 against Santos Laguna in the CONCACAF Champions League, then opens the MLS season March 10. Both matches are at CenturyLink Field.
