Josh Saunders

Football player infobox| playername= Josh Saunders
fullname = Josh Saunders
nickname =


dateofbirth = birth date and age|1981|3|2
cityofbirth = Grants Pass, Oregon
countryofbirth = United States
height = height|ft=6|in=4
currentclub = Los Angeles Galaxy
clubnumber = 22
position = Goalkeeper
youthyears = 1999-00 2001-02
youthclubs = CS Fullerton
California
years = 2003
2003–04
2005–06
2007–2008
2008–
2008–
clubs = San Jose Earthquakes
→ Portland Timbers "(loan)"
Los Angeles Galaxy
Puerto Rico Islanders
Miami FC
→ Los Angeles Galaxy "(loan)"
caps(goals) = 00 0(0)
40 0(0)
00 0(0)
22 0(0)
27 0(0)
01 0(0)
nationalyears = 2008–
nationalteam = Puerto Rico
nationalcaps(goals) = 02 0(0)
pcupdate = 4 October 2008
ntupdate = 21 January 2008

Josh Saunders (born March 2, 1981) is an American soccer goalkeeper who has enjoyed stints in both MLS and the USL First Division (formerly the A-League) and had split his time between Los Angeles Galaxy and the Portland Timbers prior to being released by the Galaxy during the 2007 pre-season. During his senior season at the University of California, Berkeley, he became the first keeper ever to be named Pac-10 Player of the Year. He is currently on loan with Los Angeles Galaxy.

He formerly played for the Puerto Rico Islanders, making his debut in a 2-1 victory over the Rochester Raging Rhinos on 14 April 2007.

In 2008, Saunders made his debut with the Puerto Rican national team.

Major League Soccer

In 2003 Saunders had two stints on the roster of the San Jose Earthquakes, but did not appear in an official match. Since 2005, Saunders has been on the Galaxy roster without appearing in a game, serving as a third-choice keeper behind Kevin Hartman and Steve Cronin. He has, however, logged 15 minutes as a substitute in a game for the Galaxy reserves.

In 2007, Saunders and three other players were waived from the LA Galaxy. [ [http://la.galaxy.mlsnet.com/news/team_news.jsp?ymd=20070201&content_id=82861&vkey=pr_lag&fext=.jsp&team=t106] Los Angeles Galaxy Media Relations, "Los Angeles Galaxy waive four players" 02/01/2007 ] Some bloggers suspected this was due to the massive expense of acquiring soccer star David Beckham [ [http://www.soccerjones.com/?p=551] Soccerjones.com, "ReAL Salt Lake, I’ve Got A Keeper For You" 02/21/2007] . During the 2007 pre-season Saunders trained with the Chicago Fire in Florida having a successful run for several weeks of play, before signing for the Islanders. [ [http://web.mlsnet.com/news/team_news.jsp?ymd=20070213&content_id=83623&vkey=pr_chf&fext=.jsp&team=t100] Chicago Fire Media Relations, "Scoreless draw for Fire vs. Crew" 02/13/2007]

USL

Between his stints at the Earthquakes and the Galaxy, Saunders played on loan with the Portland Timbers. In 2003, his first year on loan, he played every minute of Portland's remaining 16 games, allowing only 15 goals, giving him a 0.90 GAA for the season. The next year, he started 24 games and posted a 1.11 GAA with six shutouts. Chief among his feats was a 363-minute scoreless streak, which, until recently, was the longest in Timbers history.

On April 11, 2008, he signed with Miami FC. He was later loaned to Los Angeles Galaxy in September, 2008, joining them for the remainder of the MLS season.

College

Saunders spent the final two seasons of his collegiate career at Berkeley after spending the previous two at Cal-State Fullerton. He was named a First Team All-Pac 10 selection in each of his two seasons with the Golden Bears. He has a B.A. in American Studies.

Notes and references