# 2012–13 Texas Strikers season

The 2012–13 Texas Strikers season was the first season of the Texas Strikers professional indoor soccer club. The Strikers, a Central Division team in the Professional Arena Soccer League, played their home games in Ford Arena in Beaumont, Texas. The team was led by owner James Germany and head coach Chris "Topper" Cogan. The Strikers are Beaumont's first professional soccer team.

## Season summary

The team struggled early in the regular season but split its last six games, amassing a 3–13 record. The Strikers placed fifth in the five-team Central Division and failed to advance to the postseason. The franchise fared better at the box office, placing seventh in the 19-team league for average home attendance.
The Strikers did not participate in the 2012–13 United States Open Cup for Arena Soccer.

## Off-field moves

The team's December 1, 2012, home opener against the Dallas Sidekicks was delayed by nearly two hours as the goals had not been properly installed by gametime. Blaming late shipping from the supplier for the delay, the team gave free popcorn and soft drinks to fans while they waited. The team later announced that anyone with a ticket stub from the delayed game could redeem it for free admission to the December 8 game against the Arizona Storm.

## Roster moves

In early October 2012, the Strikers held two rounds of tryouts for prospective players at the Cris Quinn Soccer Complex in Beaumont. 63 prospects participated in the tryouts as the team worked to fill out a 20-man roster for the 2012–13 season.
On October 30, the team signed Thomas Shenton from Doncaster, England, Mikey Olabarrieta from Honduras, and Texas native Jeff LeBlanc.
The team roster for the regular season finale against the Dallas Sidekicks was partially filled out with players from Vitesse Dallas of the Premier Arena Soccer League.

## Schedule

Win  Tie  Loss

### Regular season

| Game | Day | Date | Kickoff | Opponent | Results | Results | Location | Attendance |
| Game | Day | Date | Kickoff | Opponent | Final Score | Record | Location | Attendance |
| 1 | Saturday | November 17 | 7:30pm | at Rio Grande Valley Flash | L 1–13 | 0–1 | State Farm Arena | 1,758 |
| 2 | Saturday | December 1 | 7:05pm | Dallas Sidekicks | L 3–10 | 0–2 | Ford Arena | 1,078 |
| 3 | Saturday | December 8 | 7:05pm | Arizona Storm | L 4–7 | 0–3 | Ford Arena | 717 |
| 4 | Saturday | December 15 | 7:00pm | at Dallas Sidekicks | L 1–21 | 0–4 | Allen Event Center | 4,768 |
| 5 | Saturday | December 22 | 7:05pm | at Rockford Rampage | L 5–16 | 0–5 | Victory Sports Complex | 266 |
| 6 | Sunday | December 23 | 1:30pm | at Chicago Mustangs | L 1–20 | 0–6 | Grand Sports Arena | 299 |
| 7 | Saturday | December 29 | 7:05pm | Dallas Sidekicks | L 4–16 | 0–7 | Ford Arena | 688 |
| 8 | Friday | January 4 | 7:05pm | Rio Grande Valley Flash | L 1–10 | 0–8 | Ford Arena | 496 |
| 9 | Friday | January 11 | 7:05pm | Chicago Mustangs | L 2–12 | 0–9 | Ford Arena | 385 |
| 10 | Saturday | January 19 | 8:00pm (9:00pm Central) | at Real Phoenix | L 6–10 | 0–10 | Barney Family Sports Complex | 69 |
| 11 | Sunday | January 20 | 4:00pm (5:00pm Central) | at Arizona Storm | W 9–8 | 1–10 | Arizona Sports Complex | 55 |
| 12 | Sunday | January 27 | 5:00pm | at Rio Grande Valley Flash | L 3–12 | 1–11 | State Farm Arena | 1,549 |
| 13 | Saturday | February 2 | 7:05pm | Real Phoenix ♥ | W 13–8 | 2–11 | Ford Arena | 398 |
| 14 | Sunday | February 10 | 3:05pm | Rockford Rampage | W 9–8 | 3–11 | Ford Arena | 409 |
| 15 | Saturday | February 16 | 7:05pm | Rio Grande Valley Flash | L 10–11 (OT) | 3–12 | Ford Arena | 620 |
| 16 | Saturday | February 23 | 7:00pm | at Dallas Sidekicks | L 4–10 | 3–13 | Allen Event Center | 4,856 |
♥ Replacement squad after Phoenix franchise revoked by league.