Union sign two

The Philadelphia Union has signed forward Aaron Wheeler and defender Damani Richards. 

The 6-foot-4 Wheeler joins the Union from Finnish club FC KooTeePee, while Richards, 18, has been a regular with the Trinidad & Tobago U-17 and U-20 National Teams.  Richards will be eligible to play for the Union upon receipt of his visa and ITC.  Per MLS and club policy, terms of the deals will not be disclosed.

Wheeler, 24, played three years of college soccer at Lenoir-Rhyne University before transferring to Towson University prior to his senior year. While at Lenoir-Rhyne, he was a two-time NSCAA All-South Atlantic Region First Team selection and a three-time All-South Atlantic Conference First Team member.  In 2009, Wheeler starred for Union PDL affiliate Reading United (then Reading Rage), leading the league in scoring with 17 goals and earned the PDL Most Valuable Player award.  He has also seen time with FC Tampa Bay and the Fort Lauderdale Strikers.

While a member of the T&T U-20 team, Richards participated in the Caribbean zone of the Youth World Cup qualifiers last year, earning a 2-1 win over Guyana and a 1-0 loss to Curacao.  He also played in four U-17 World Cup qualifying matches in Jamaica, helping the team to a 2-1-1 record.  Formerly with the club, W Connection, Richards spent 10 days on trial with the Union in October, seeing action in the club’s Reserve game against DC United.