Poland: Wroclaw Panthers star players have left the team

Poland’s defending champions and heavy favorites to win Poland’s Liga Futbolu Amerykańskiegotitle in 2018 have suddenly lost their key players as the playoffs approach. According to the club, quarterback Timothy Morovick and defensive back Desmond Cooper have left the team without explanation.

The club issued a brief statement without going into any detail:

On behalf of the management of Panthers Wrocław we would like to inform that on June 26th 2018 Timothy Morovick and Desmond Cooper resigned unlawfully from their signed contracts breaching the provisions of the aforementioned contract, resulting in damages for the Club in terms of image and finances, but first of all – making our work and achieving the sport result really challenging.

Presently the team is focusing on preparing for the play-off phase and good performance during the LFA semi-finals (and in final game if we qualify), which be played exclusively by Polish players.

The implications of this are huge for a team that has dominated in Poland for the past three years.

Morovick was by far the leading passer in the country and led his team to back-to-back undefeated seasons in Poland. The team has lost just two games in his two seasons, both to Austrian powerhouse the Swarco Raiders. He joined the Panthers after spending the 2016 campaign with the Albershausen Crusaders in Germany.

Cooper is an ex Jacksonville Jaguar safety and before joining Wroclaw this season, the Wake Forest and UNC Charlotte defensive back  was outstanding for Denmark’s Søllerød  Gold Diggers in 2017, helping them reach the Danish final. He attended the Jacksonville Jaguars training camp and was the first ever graduate of UNC Charlotte to sign with an NFL team.

The Panthers, who don’t plan against until July 7, have no plans at this point to sign replacement imports since the roster deadline was May 15.