Rowdies Midfielder Luke Mulholland Named Player of the Month

Mulholland also won the award in April and is the only player to be recognized twice in 2013 with the monthly honor.

The Englishman scored three times in four games, including two game winners in October. Against the San Antonio Scorpions, Mulholland slotted home a penalty with 14 minutes to play to secure a 1-0 win and also calmly converted a spot kick to beat Florida rival the Fort Lauderdale Strikers 2-1 and win the Coastal Cup. 

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“Luke has had another tremendous year, culminating in October's excellent performance,” said Rowdies coach Ricky Hill. “One thing with him is that over the course of the year he plays at his maximum potential at all times and I am glad that he is being recognized by the league for his efforts.”

Mulholland said: “It's an honor to be recognized by the league once again with this award. I would like to thank my teammates and coaching staff as if it wasn't for their efforts I would not receive this honor. We gave it our all during the season, but we are disappointed that we didn't make it to the Soccer Bowl as it would have been a great gift for our fans.”

Mulholland signed with the Rowdies on January 24, 2012, after a successful late season run with the NASL champion Minnesota in 2011. He joined the Stars in September, making his debut in a 2-1 loss to Tampa Bay on September 6.

Mulholland moved up to NASL with Minnesota following a very successful rookie season playing for Wilmington Hammerheads, where he led the club with nine goals and was second on the team with five assists. His performances for Wilmington earned him the league’s Rookie of the Year award as well as a nomination for the league's Player of the Year award.



Prior to joining the Hammerheads, the Preston, England, native played four seasons for the Wingate University Bulldogs. Mulholland made 73 appearances for the Bulldogs, scoring 37 career goals and tallying 26 assists. In 2009 he was named First Team All-American and South Athletic Conference Player of the Year.

In total, eight players were nominated for the October NASL Player of the Month award, which included NASL games played on November 2. The other candidates for recognition were:

Kyle Reynish, Goalkeeper, New York Cosmos
Pablo Campos, Forward, Minnesota United FC
Daryl Fordyce, Forward, FC Edmonton
Enzo Martinez, Midfielder, Carolina RailHawks
Marcos Senna, Midfielder, New York Cosmos
Martin Nuñez, Midfielder, Fort Lauderdale Strikers
Tomasz Zahorski, Forward, San Antonio Scorpions

Previous winners of the NASL Player of the Month award in 2013 were Tampa Bay Rowdies midfielder Luke Mulholland (April) Minnesota United FC forward Simone Bracalello (May), San Antonio Scorpions Striker Hans Denissen (June), FC Edmonton midfielder Chris Nurse (August) and Tampa Bay Rowdies forward Georgi Hristov (September).