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Putrus returns to Chill fold ready to agitate opponents again

THUNDER BAY -- He may be five years older than when he left, but don’t expect Anthony Putrus to be any less physical or any slower than when he left.
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Anthony Putrus scored seven goals in 53 games with the Thunder Bay Chill between 2007 and 2011. (Leith Dunick, tbnewswatch.com)

THUNDER BAY -- He may be five years older than when he left, but don’t expect Anthony Putrus to be any less physical or any slower than when he left.

Now 30, the American-born Putrus last played for the Thunder Bay Chill in 2011, three years after helping lead the Premier Development League team to a championship in 2008.

In the interim he’s played in the Philippines and returned to school where he earned a chiropractic doctorate.

All the while, Thunder Bay has been in the back of his mind. He couldn’t be more excited about the opportunity to don the Chill kit and hopefully help the team return to championship form.

“It just worked out really well timing wise,” Putrus said on Friday, after being introduced along with his teammates at the Chill’s season-opening news conference.

“I’ve always thought about coming back … I was presented with the opportunity and it made sense. You have the rest of your life to work. I have a limited amount of time left in my legs to play. So I’m glad they were able to have me back.”

It’s long been said, perhaps too often, that age is just a state of mind.

At some point it catches up, but Putrus actually looks like he might be in better shape than he was during his heyday with the Chill.

A graduate of California’s Notre dame de Namur University, Putrus arrived in Thunder Bay in 2007, spending three seasons with the Chill before leaving for a year in 2010.

He dressed 53 times for the Chill over four seasons, 13th most in team history, scoring seven times.

“I feel like I’m still going to bring the same thing that I brought back when I was playing here previously – just brining intensity, experience and a winning mentality to the team,” he said.

“I know we have a lot of wonderful technical players. We have everything on the team already. I’m just there to help bring experience.”
Of course he’s still bruise and bang when needed.

“I really enjoy that type of game. Some people shy away from it, but that’s what I bring to teams. I also like to bring the technical part. I’m kind of more known for the physical play and I’m OK with that.”

Coach Giovanni Petraglia said Putrus is the type of player the Chill were missing in 2015, a season that saw the team return to the PDL playoffs, take a 2-0 lead against Michigan in their playoff opener, only to have the Bucks storm back for a 3-2 win.

“We hope that Anthony is going to do that job,” Petraglia said. “I am totally sure that he’s going to do it. I can tell from the first week of sessions. When we were about to sign Anthony I talked with (director of soccer operations) Tony (Colistro) and I was sure Anthony was the player we were looking for.”

The Chill will take on the Winnipeg Lions Saturday night and Sunday afternoon in a pair of friendlies at Fort William Stadium.

Their home opener is June 10 against Des Moines.



Leith Dunick

About the Author: Leith Dunick

A proud Nova Scotian who has called Thunder Bay home since 2002, Leith is Dougall Media's director of news, but still likes to tell your stories too. Wants his Expos back and to see Neil Young at least one more time. Twitter: @LeithDunick
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