Chattanooga Football Club had a disappointing end to its 2017 season, as the team was bounced in the Southeast Conference quarterfinals of the National Premier Soccer League playoffs after reaching the NPSL semifinals in 2016 and the championship match the two previous years.
CFC's 1-1 draw Saturday afternoon with FC Dallas of Major League Soccer not only provided an exciting two hours between amateur and professional players inside Finley Stadium, it ignited expectations about the months ahead. CFC is the first NPSL team to play an MLS team to a standoff.
"It's a little unbelievable, to tell you the truth," CFC general manager Sean McDaniel said afterward. "Our guys were phenomenal. This is pretty much our roster for the season. If we can build off of this, maybe we can bring the national championship back here."
CFC has played in the NPSL championship match four times and come away empty on four occasions. Its four title appearances equal the Sonoma County Sol in Santa Rosa, Calif., for the most in league history, and this year could be unique for CFC in that it may be its swan song before leaving the amateur ranks.
In 2019, CFC is scheduled to join the National Independent Soccer Association, which will be a new third-division men's professional league that will open in eight markets. Should that league fail to launch, the franchise still could make an upward move, CFC board chairman Tim Kelly said Sunday.
For now, CFC is about making the most of 2018.
"This is a great way to start our 10th season," coach Bill Elliott said. "I'm grateful that Dallas would open themselves up to play a lower-level club like us and give us the opportunity to compete. They didn't have to do that. I feel really blessed to be a part of something like this.
"I think everybody from the Chattanooga side of things will go home with a positive experience."
CFC will play again March 10, when it hosts Nashville SC of the United Soccer League.
"We'll be fighting the same uphill battle against another pro team," Elliott said. "Who knows what will happen?"
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.