On Thursday, the Panther City Lacrosse Club unveiled the home and away jerseys that they will be debut during their inaugural season in the National Lacrosse League.
“Tonight is a special night for us as we debut our Panther City uniforms for our inaugural season,” Panther City President & CEO Greg Bibb said. “We can’t wait to see a packed Dickies Arena with the stands full of Panther City jerseys and gear. I hope our fans take great pride in these uniforms as they symbolize everything that is great about Texas and our home city of Forth Worth!”
In addition to Bibb, other members of the Fort Worth front office discussed what went into the creation of his team’s new threads.
“Our goal in creating these uniforms was to create something that our players and our fans were proud to wear at our games and around North Texas,” said Panther City General Manager Bob Hamley said. “The bold designs specifically will mimic our attitude and gritty style of play we display on the field. This is just another exciting step for the club as we get closer to hitting the field in December.”
The franchise featured their primary logo prominently in the center of both their home and away jerseys to pay homage to Fort Worth’s nickname, Panther City. The red star above the panther represents the team’s home state’s nickname, the Lone Star State. The arched line above the star and panther head represents an architectural element that is prevalent throughout Fort Worth. Panther City will utilize it’s secondary logo on the jersey’s shoulders. The team’s shorts will feature another mark of the team, the interlocking ‘P’ and ‘C’ of Panther City.
The unveiling also featured members of the franchise’s inaugural roster dawning their new uniforms. Forwards Phil Caputo and Charlie Kitchen can be seen rocking the team’s new look in a video posted on Twitter.
Caputo and Kitchen, along with 14 other players, were acquired by Fort Worth during the NLL Expansion Draft in June. Hamley and Head Coach Tracey Kelusky utilized the draft to add a mixture of youth and experience to the new franchise’s roster. Other notable additions on draft night included forwards Ryan Benesch and Connor Kelly and defenders Matt Hossack and Liam Byrnes.
In addition to building their roster through the expansion draft, Hamley made a splash early in free agency, signing right-handed veteran Jeremy Thompson to a two-year contract. The nine-year vet joins Fort Worth after spending the majority of his career with the Saskatchewan Rush.
“We are ecstatic to add Jeremy to our team,” Hamley said. “This signing was a priority for us as we entered into free agency. Jeremy has a tremendous skillset and has proven to be one of the better faceoff-transition players in our game. We look forward to the impact he is going to have on our team and city.”
In addition to Thompson, Panther City signed a bevy of players to one-year contracts to compete for roster spots during training camp. One of the more notable additions being Texas native, Bryce Wasserman. The former Major League Lacrosse MVP will look to crack an NLL roster for the first time.
The next opportunity for Hamley and Kelusky to mold his roster will be through the NLL Entry Draft set to take place on August 28. Panther City currently holds the 1th pick in the first round.
Panther City will hit the floor for the first time in early December when the NLL kicks off it’s 35th season.
What do you think of Panther City’s new threads? Let us know on social media or by leaving a comment below.
