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Minnesota Thunder
Full name	Minnesota Thunder
Nickname(s)	Thunder
Founded	1990
Ground	James Griffin Stadium, St Paul, Minnesota
Capacity	6,000
Chairman	Djorn Buchholz
Manager	Amos Magee
League	USL First Division
2006	12th
Home colours 　 Away colours

The Minnesota Thunder is a professional men's soccer team based out of St Paul, Minnesota. In 2006 the Thunder competed in the USL First Division and the U.S. Open Cup.

The club was founded in 1990 as an amateur American men's soccer team. It became a professional team in 1994 joining the United Soccer Leagues; it currently plays in the 12-team First Division. The Thunder won the 1999 A-League championship, but lost in the finals in 1998, 2000 and 2003.

Contents 1 Colours and badge 2 Stadium 3 Supporters 4 Current squad 5 Notable players 6 Notable coaches 7 Achievements 8 Year-by-year 9 Trivia 10 Minnesota Lightning 11 External links

The Thunder badge has the logo of a capital 'T' and a soccer ball in front of a shield that reads "Minnesota Thunder" and "Pro Soccer".

The Thunder currently play the majority of their home matches at James Griffin Stadium, also known as "The Jimmy", in St Paul. The move to this stadium in central St. Paul was made in 2004 in an attempt to reduce overhead costs and market to a more urban and ethnic crowd.

The Thunder's first home field was the National Sports Center in Blaine, Minnesota, where they played until 2003. The National Sports Center as well as the Metrodome are also occasionally used as home fields. Macalester Stadium at Macalester College in St. Paul has also been used for games in the past.

There is a group of active fans loosely grouped under the name the Dark Clouds. The supporters will typicially tailgate before the game and during halftime, sit behind the opposing bench during games, stand and chant throughout the entire game, and occasionally travel with the team on road games.

Roster as of December 21, 2006

No. Position Player 1 GK Nicolas Platter 2 DF Brett Branan 3 MF Freddy Juarez 4 MF Alfredo Esteves 6 MF Kevin Friedland 7 MF Chris Brisson 8 MF Nate Winkel 9 FW Aaron Paye 10 FW Nathan Knox 11 MF Godfrey Tenoff 12 FW Tyrone Gordon

No. Position Player 13 DF Dustin Branan 14 FW Leo Gibson 15 DF Michael Wilson 16 MF Ansu Toure 18 FW Melvin Tarley 19 MF Kiki Lara 21 DF Matt Schmidt 23 GK Joe Warren 24 MF Zafer Kilickan 25 DF Brian Kallman 26 MF Terry Alvino FW Sasha Gotsmanov

• Tony Sanneh
• Manuel Lagos
• Amos Magee
• Don Gramenz
• John Coughlin
• Gerard Lagos
• Kevin Anderson
• Mark Abboud
• John Swallen

• Buzz Lagos (1990-2005)
• Amos Magee (2006-)

• A-League Championship:
  • Winners (1): 1999
  • Runners-up (3):1998, 2000, 2003
• U.S. Open:
  • Semi-finals (1): 2005
  • Quarter-finals (1): 2004

Year	League	Reg. Season	Playoffs	Open Cup
1994	USISL	1st, Midwest	Final	Did not enter
1995	USISL Pro League	1st, Midwest East	Final	Did not qualify
1996	USISL Select League	2nd, Central	Semifinals	Did not qualify
1997	USISL A-League	5th, Central	Did not qualify	Did not qualify
1998	USISL A-League	2nd, Central	Final	Did not qualify
1999	USL A-League	1st, Central	Champion	2nd Round
2000	USL A-League	1st, Central	Final	3rd Round
2001	USL A-League	6th, Western	Did not qualify	Did not qualify
2002	USL A-League	2nd, Central	Conference Semifinals	3rd Round
2003	USL A-League	2nd, Central	Final	3rd Round
2004	USL A-League	3rd, Western	Quarterfinals	Quarterfinals
2005	USL First Division	10th	Did not qualify	Semifinals
2006	USL First Division	12th	Did not qualify	2nd Round
2007	USL First Division	N/A	N/A	Did not qualify

• The Thunder have defeated four MLS teams in 2004 and 2005.
• The official mascot of the Minnesota Thunder is Thor.

In 2005, the club created an amateur women's team named the Minnesota Lightning to compete in the W-League starting in the 2006 season.

• Official homepage
• Supporters' homepage
• Dan's Soccer Zone, history of Minnesota soccer

v • d • e  United Soccer Leagues First Division
Atlanta Silverbacks | California Victory | Carolina RailHawks FC | Charleston Battery | Miami FC | Minnesota Thunder | Montreal Impact | Portland Timbers | Puerto Rico Islanders | Rochester Raging Rhinos | Seattle Sounders | Vancouver Whitecaps |
Soccer in the United States v • d • e
National federation National Team: M, W Venues, (cap) List of clubs League system SSS Champions History
Competitions in American Soccer
MLS USL First Division USL Second Division PDL Super-20 MISL NPSL/WPSL PCSL Open Cup W-League College Soccer Y-League