TORONTO LYNX MEDIA RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

LYNX ACQUIRE TWO FROM IMPACT!

Thursday, May 19, 2005 [TORONTO, ON] -   The Toronto Lynx announced today that they have acquired the rights to defender, Abraham Francois and striker, Sita-Taty Matondo, from the Montreal Impact in exchange for striker, Ali Gerba. Francois, who is an experienced defender in the USL First Division, was a target of the Lynx head coach during the off-season but re-signed with the Impact instead. The 28-year old from Montreal has spent parts of four seasons with the Impact (2000, 2001, 2003, 2005) earning two "Team of Week" selections in 2003 and helping the Impact post the best defensive record in the league. Internationally, Francois has played with the Canadian Olympic team and also won a gold medal with Canada at the 1997 Francophone Games in Madagascar. Coach Busby became familiar with Francois when he was head coach for the Ottawa Wizards in 2002 and the Wizards captured the regular season title, League Cup and playoff title. Francois' athleticism and aggressiveness will be a fine addition to the Lynx defense as they look to turn around the 2005 season after a frustrating 0-5-2 start.

The Lynx also acquired talented Canadian striker, Sita-Taty Matondo, as part of the agreement with the Impact. Matondo has represented Canada at all levels: U17, U20 and Olympic Team. On January 18, 2003, he made his debut with the Canadian World Cup team against the United States. As a rookie with the Impact in 2003, Matondo scored 4 goals in only 696 minutes playing primarily as a substitute. Following his successful professional debut, Matondo joined Landskrona of the Swedish Division 2 before returning to the Impact for the 2005 season. At only 20-years of age, Matondo has only scratched the surface of his playing potential and should be an offensive force for the Lynx for many years to come.

In exchange for Francois and Matondo, the Lynx will part with 2004 leading scorer and team MVP Ali Gerba. Gerba who resides in Montreal will begin his 3rd stint with the Impact and will appreciate being closer to his family. Last season, Gerba scored a Lynx record 15 goals and 34 points. In 24 career matches with Montreal, Gerba has recorded 6 goals and 3 assists. " It's always difficult parting with such a talented player as Ali. But in the end, we try and accommodate the personal needs of our players while at the same time making the necessary adjustments to our roster to improve our performance on the field and continue to provide our fans with high quality competitive play ", says Nicole Hartrell, the Chief Operating Officer of the Club.    

LADY LYNX WELCOME NEW YORK THIS SATURDAY!

Fresh off a victory in their inaugural W-League regular season match, the Toronto Lady Lynx will host the New York Magic this Saturday, May 21 at Centennial Park Stadium with a 4pm kickoff. After a hard-fought, 3-1 overtime victory over the Vermont Lady Voltage on Sunday, the Lady Lynx will be looking to continue their momentum into this weekend's match. Head Coach, Brett Mosen, will finally have his full roster together for their first week of training as a team in preparation for Saturday's match. Substitute striker, Kim Warner of Aurora was the hero of Sunday's match, scoring 2 goals in overtime to lead the Lady Lynx to victory. Her performance earned a spot on the W-League Team of the Week, the first such honour for a Lady Lynx player. After the Lady Voltage took an early lead against the run of play, Canadian international midfielder, Amanda Cicchini, equalized for the Lady Lynx, recording the first goal in franchise history. The Lady Lynx dominated play, outshooting the Lady Voltage 23-5 and displayed the quality soccer expected from the highest level of women's soccer in North America. 

The New York Magic also opened their 2005 season this past weekend with a 2-0 home loss to the defending Eastern Conference Champion, New Jersey Wildcats. Despite a roster stacked with internationals, the Magic trailed by only one goal into the final minute of the match. The Magic boast an impressive roster as well, led by US youth international defender, Nicole Krzysik, the 2004 W-League U19 Player of the Year while playing with the New Jersey Lady Stallions. She is joined in a stellar defense by Welsh International, Eleri Earshaw, and Irish International, Delores Deasley. The Magic also made a splash this week announcing the signing of Jayne Ludlow, the 2004 Premier League Most Valuable Player while playing with Arsenal FC.

"This game will be a tough challenge, but we will be going in a little better prepared after a full week's training with the full squad now that all players have finished with college and university commitments," explained Mosen. "The mood in camp was good after our win, but we realize there are tough games ahead. The fan support last week was tremendous and we hope everyone enjoyed the game enough to want to support us again this week!"