Milan Kojic - Toronto Lynx, 1999-2000, 2002

 Rick Titus - Toronto Lynx, 1997-1999

 Milan, a Serbian-Canadian from nearby Hamilton Ontario, joined the Toronto Lynx in 1999. He quickly made an impression as a dependable player on defense, starting 26 out of 28 games in his first season. At 6'3" he was also used as the 'point man' for set plays scoring two goals that season, both off free kick headers. Kojic had another standout year in 2000, leading the Lynx to one of the lowest goals-against totals in the league. The highlight of his season was a dramatic goal against the Richmond Kickers in the A-League quarterfinals, which clinched the playoff series for the Lynx.

Milan spent the 2001 season with division rivals the Montreal Impact before re-joining Toronto in 2002. His solid defensive play was one of the bright spots that season for the Lynx. Milan further developed his passing ability and skill in the air to become a dangerous two-way player. His two goals and four assists in 2002 is the highest single year point total for a Lynx defender.

Just after signing a new contract with the Lynx for 2003, Milan was transferred to FK Haugesund of the Norwegian First Division. As a starter for Haugesund, he has become one of their leading players, helping to turn around a team that finished 9th in 2002 to one that is challenging for a promotion spot in the Tippeligaen (Norway's premier division).

Milan has also represented Canada at the Under-17 and Under-20 level.

Rick Titus is a striker's worst nightmare. The tough hard-working defender, born in Mississauga, Ontario, quickly became a fan favourite for the Lynx in their first season. A former Varsity soccer player with the University of Toronto, Rick was the Toronto Lynx Defensive Player of the Year in 1998. After spending two seasons with the Lynx, Rick went on to play for several other clubs in the A-League, eventually settling with the Vancouver Whitecaps. He established a reputation as an 'iron man' during his stint with Vancouver, and earned A-League Defender of the Year honours in 2001.

Rick's superb man-marking skills caught the eye of MLS scouts and he signed with the Colorado Rapids as a Discovery Player for the 2002 season. He started 27 games for the Rapids that season, on the way to winning the MLS Defensive Player of the Year award in 2002. Rick came back to the A-League in 2003 with the Charleston Battery, helping the team win their first A-League championship.

Though born in Canada, Rick is of Trinidadian heritage. He played in two Gold Cup qualifier games for the Trinidad and Tobago national team in 2002.

Dwayne DeRosario - Toronto Lynx, 1997

Chris Pozniak - Toronto Lynx, 1999-2001

Born in Scarborough, Dwayne was a member of the "Original Eleven", who took to the field on April 12, 1997 in Jacksonville, Florida as the Toronto Lynx played their first-ever regular season A-League match.  He caught the eye of European scouts with his stellar play in Lynx colours and was transferred to FC Zwickau of the German League.

He has made numerous appearances for the Canadian National Team national team including the 1997 Under-20 World Cup and the 2001 Confederations Cup. Dwayne also scored the winning goal in a 2-1 victory over South Korea to clinch third place for Canada in the 2002 Gold Cup tournament.

Dwayne became an instant hero in the United States on October 20, 2001 when he scored the MLS Cup winning goal in overtime for the San Jose Earthquakes. In 2003, he along with former Lynx player Pat Onstad, reached the MLS Cup final with San Jose, leading the club to their second championship in three years and recording an assist in the finals victory.

Chris is an up and coming star in Canadian soccer.  He joined the Lynx in 1999 as an 18-year old and wowed the fans with his skills and exciting play. He represented Canada at the 2001 World Youth Championships in Argentina and at the 2001 Francophone Games in Ottawa. His play at these tournaments and for the Lynx was key in allowing him to follow in the footsteps of Dwayne DeRosario and Paul Stalteri when he was transferred to Orebro of the Swedish First Division.  He played a key role in their campaign to stave off demotion in the 2002 season and was a starting defender for the club in 2003.

Pozniak, a North York native, is one of several current and former Lynx players with experience in the Canadian National teams program. In the past year Chris played three games as captain of Canada's Under-23 (Olympic) team. In the same time period he also made six appearances with the senior national team including playing the entire match against the United States on January 18, 2003.

Pat Onstad - Toronto Lynx, 1997

Paul Stalteri - Toronto Lynx, 1997

 Pat joined the inaugural Lynx team for their third game in Worcester, Massachusetts on May 2, 1997 and promptly led the team to their first ever win, 3-1 over the Wildfire.  The club would not lose again until June 21, a stretch of 10 games, an A-League record. Along with forward Darren Tilley, he represented the club at the 1997 A-League All-Star game in Rochester.  An injury shelved him during the stretch run and he missed the playoffs, which hurt the upstart squad's chances of claiming the title.  The club lost 7 of 8 games after his injury and were swept out of the playoffs by Montreal.

Pat spent 2 seasons in the Scottish Premier League for Dundee United and played for the Rochester Rhinos from 1998 to 2002.  He was also in net when Rochester captured the 1998 A-League title and was named A-League Goalkeeper of the Year following the 1999 season. During 1999, Pat also led Rochester to a surprising U.S. Open Cup championship by recording a shutout in the final against the Colorado Rapids. Currently, Onstad plays for the San Jose Earthquakes and has proven to be one of the top goalkeepers in MLS, earning Player of the Week honours on May 13, 2003. He went on to lead the 'Quakes to the MLS Cup, stopping a penalty shot in a 4-2 win for San Jose in the final.

Pat has represented Canada at the international level 35 times, recording an impressive 15 shutouts. With Craig Forrest out of action, Onstad started in goal for all eight of Canada's World Cup Qualifying matches in 2000 He ranks third all-time in appearances for Canadian goalkeepers.

Toronto-born Paul was the offensive force in the Lynx' first season, leading the club with 7 goals in only 16 games.  He led the club to an A-League record 10-game winning streak on their way to the playoffs.  He was rewarded for his play when German Bundesliga team Werder Bremen signed him following the season.

Stalteri played for Bremen's reserve team from 1997-99. He made his first team debut in the first game of the 2000-01 season, scoring a goal and being named the team's Man of the Match. In doing so he became the first Canadian to start in a Bundesliga game. Later on that season Stalteri also scored two goals for Bremen in UEFA cup competition. He is now a regular starter for the club and has shown himself to be a versatile player as a forward and in the midfield.

Paul has also had a prolific career with the Canadian National Team over the past several years. He has played for Canada at the Under-20, Under-23 and Senior Team levels and is 7th in all-time goal scoring for Canada. Paul has represented Canada 41 times at the national team level, fourth among active players. Most notably he was among four former Toronto Lynx players on Canada's roster at the 2000 Gold Cup. Stalteri played a key role as the team captured first place in the tournament, Canada's first title in a major international competition.

Marco Reda  Toronto Lynx 1998-2002

Nikola Budalic   Toronto Lynx 2002

 Marco Reda, a native of Woodbridge, joined the Lynx after representing Canada at the 1997 FIFA World Youth Championships. In his first season with Toronto, he was used primarily as a substitute, and late in the season he earned a spot as the Lynx starting centre-back.

Marco developed his skills playing for the Lynx and for Canada's Under-23 national team in Olympic qualifying during 1999. After the 2000 A-League season, where he was a important part of Toronto's semifinal playoff run, Marco was scouted by English First Division club Gillingham FC and went overseas for a 3-month tryout with the team.

He returned to the Toronto for the 2001 season when his solid defensive play and skill in the air had established him as one of the best defenders in the A-League. In 2002 Marco was named captain of the Lynx. That same year, his play attracted attention from scouts when the Lynx hosted Bundesliga team 1860 Munich for an exhibition match. Reda's play on defense led the Lynx to a surprising 1-0 shutout win in that game.

Shortly afterward, Marco was transferred to Norwegian First Division team Sogndal on a one-year loan, and quickly adapted to playing professionally in Europe. In his first season with Sogdnal he was named MVP of the club for 2002 and joined the team permanently on a two-year contract.

Kitchener Ontario's Nikola Budalic was selected by the Toronto Lynx in the first round of the A-League 2001 College Draft following a stellar collegiate career at James Madison University. That year Budalic decided to continue his education back home at Wilfred Laurier University where he led the Golden Hawks Soccer Team to the CIS title (Canadian University Championship). In order to maintain his CIS
eligibility he did not turn pro that year but instead played for Glen Shields in the CPSL in Ontario.

When Niki made his debut for the Lynx in 2002, he quickly made a name for himself in the A-League, surprising teams with his good position play and hard and accurate shooting. He earned Team of the Week honours three times in his rookie season as word quickly spread around the league about Toronto's dangerous new striker. Budalic finished the
season with 12 goals placing him 7th in the league. Following the 2002 campaign the Toronto Lynx recognized Budalic with their Best Offensive Player Award. He was also named 2002 A-League Rookie of the Year as voted by coaches around the league.

Niki's breakout season earned him attention overseas. Just weeks before the start of the 2003 season, the team announced that one of the most exciting forwards ever to don Lynx colours would be pursuing his dreams of playing in Europe. Budalic had been transferred to Orebro SK, a club in the Swedish First Division. That year, he became a starter with Orebro playing alongside another Canadian, former Lynx player Chris Pozniak. While in Europe, Budalic was named to the Canadian men's national team roster for a friendly against the German national team in Wolfsburg, Germany.

In 2004 the coaching staff of the Montreal Impact (which included long-time Lynx head coach Peter Pinizzotto) brought Budalic back for another stint in the A-League. Despite impressing in nine early season games, Budalic had difficulty getting sufficient playing time on a Montreal team stacked with veteran forwards. In order to continue his development, Nikki's playing rights were sold to another Scandinavian team, this time FK Haugesund of the Norwegian First Division. With
more playing time and a longer season, Budalic did well in Norway, appearing in 14 games during 2004.

Though Nikola Budalic's playing career has brought him to different teams in different countries over the past few years, one can expect that the young former Lynx star has more travels and a promising pro career ahead in the future.

Adrian Serioux - Toronto Lynx 1999-2004

Atiba Hutchinson - Toronto Lynx 2002

Scarborough's Adrian Serioux played with the Malvern Youth soccer club, Pope John Paul II Secondary School and the University of New Haven before joining the Toronto Lynx for the 1999 season.

Adrian was on the Lynx roster from 1999 to 2004 and was a constant in the starting line-up for six seasons and a big part of Toronto's reputation as a tough defensive team during that period. He is a pure athlete – tenacious and hard working. He has good tackling, good ball control skills, and a remarkable throw-in ability. During his time with the Lynx he became know as one of the most aggressive man-markers in the A-League.

One of his best seasons for the Lynx was in 2000 when his solid defensive play helped Toronto reach the League semi-finals. He was the Toronto Lynx Defensive Player of the Year in 2000 and was named an A-League second team All-Star. As a result, he was scouted by MLS but ended up staying with Toronto where the coaching staff recognized his attacking instincts and moved him into midfield.

Toronto fans knew they had a gem in Serioux and many wondered when he would be called up to represent Canada. With a new men's national team head coach, Frank Yallop, he finally got this long-overdue opportunity and was invited to a development camp in Vancouver in July 2004. The camp included exhibition games against Hearts (Scotland Premier League) and Milwall FC (English First Division). Serioux was so impressive that Milwall invited him to England for a trial and
immediately negotiated a transfer from the Lynx. Adrian made a huge impact in his debut for Milwall with a 2-0 win over Leicester. He was a force in midfield, generated scoring
opportunities and set up the game's second goal. In the days following his start, the British press raved about his abilities, especially his long, accurate throw-ins.

Serioux got his chance to represent Canada in international competition in 2004 making two appearances for Canada's national team in the World Cup Qualifying.

Atiba Hutchinson is a Canadian soccer success story. Much of the credit for his development goes to the coaching that he received in his youth in the Brampton Youth Soccer club and also to the Canadian Soccer Association's national teams programs at the Under-20 and Under-23 level. As a player on the Toronto Lynx roster, he was able to hone his playing skills for a brief period before acquiring a professional position
overseas.
Hutchinson spent most of 2001 and early 2002 training with Canada's U20 and U23 national teams and represented Canada at the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship in Argentina. Back home, Atiba played high school soccer for Notre Dame Secondary in his hometown of Brampton. He declined soccer scholarship offers from NCAA schools opting instead for the Lynx because of the higher calibre of play.

Before joining Toronto, he played briefly for York Region Shooters of CPSL as a forward showing his scoring potential. He was signed soon after by the Lynx and moved up to A-League. Atiba joined the team in mid-season debuting on the road in Montreal as a sub. His impressive pace and control showed he was up to the challenge of playing at the A-League level. Hutchinson played in Toronto's final 4 regular season games and then went to Sweden for trials. During his short tenure with the Lynx, he was used mainly as an attacking midfielder on the right wing, but his skills allowed him to play comfortably at almost any position.

Atiba was transferred from the Toronto Lynx to Osters IF of the
Swedish First Division in January 2003. During 2003 he was one of their best players scoring 6 goals – a remarkable accomplishment for a midfielder playing on a struggling team. He also played for Canada U20 in 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship and showed his versatility performing well in a defensive role. Canada posted their best showing ever at the WYC, narrowly losing to Spain in the quarterfinals. Hutchinson was named to the tournament all-star team.

After the WYC, there was interest from clubs in MLS and throughout Europe – Atiba's performance even earned him a tryout with Udinese of Italy's Serie A. However, he decided to continue his career in Sweden, where he was already a fan and media favourite. Osters had been relegated the previous year so the team transferred Hutchinson to Helsingborg in Sweden's Premier League (Allsvenskan).

In addition to playing for his club team in 2004, Hutchinson played for Canada's Under-23 national team in qualifying games for the 2004 Athens Olympics. He has also played for Canada's senior men's national team 10 times in international competition. Recently, he was involved in Canada's World Cup Qualifying games, scoring in a September 10, 2004 match in Honduras.