Chattanooga Football Club goalkeeper, Gregory Hartley, has committed to return for the 2016 season.
CFC is Chattanooga’s National Premier Soccer League Team. At the NPSL Final in July over 18,000 fans came to support Chattanooga's club.
Chattanooga Football Club Manager Sean McDaniel offered a statement on Gregory Hartley’s commitment to return.
"Greg's return brings so much more than great goalkeeping to us. His veteran leadership and community involvement are the foundation of what makes him so valuable to the club and the entire city of Chattanooga."
Hartley has been with CFC for the past four years and will be returning for a fifth year. He has represented the club very well and achieved many awards during his career. A few of his awards are as follows: NPSL Golden Gloves (2015, 2014), All-NPSL Team Goalkeeper (2015, 2014, 2013) and NPSL Supporters XI Goalkeeper (2013).
Hartley has returned for several years and calls Chattanooga his “home away from home.”
“CFC isn’t just a normal amateur soccer club. From the coaching staff, game day personnel, be it coordinating the game or even videoing the game and also the people behind the scenes that not many people have met or even know about and also our amazing fans. These are the things that keep me coming back. Yes, the soccer standard is very high and we always want to make it to the final, but it’s the smaller things that help too. This club makes you feel not just like a player but like a superstar. They treat you and everyone else that walks into that changing room at Finley Stadium like family.”
Hartley’s favorite part of CFC is the overwhelming support that the club gets from the Chattanooga community.
“The feeling I get when I hear the crowd chant my name is always amazing. The amount of love and respect we get from the community is fantastic and knowing that the fans want me back every season means the world to me. Being a goalkeeper isn’t a glamorous thing, I don’t score goals, I don’t provide assists for the team, I just stop the ball from going in the goal and somehow the fans continue to make me feel like I am a big asset to the team.”
The Chattahooligans are the official support group for CFC and two of them expressed their opinions on Hartley’s return.
“Gregga is an outstanding goalkeeper and his talents and leadership can only be positives for the team. Not to mention the fans love him. He's a good three or four inches shorter than most coaches would even consider. But it goes to show that in sports, size isn't always a big deal,” said Ernie Dempsey.
“I firmly believe that if he was closer to 6'5" than 5'6", Hartley would be a Premier League caliber keeper. His genetic misfortune has been a great blessing for CFC. I don't know that I've ever seen anybody come closer to reaching their fullest athletic potential,” said Tim Todd. --30--