COLUMBUS - Pat Noonan's 10-month stint with the Columbus Crew ended Monday when he was traded to Colorado for the Rapids' first-round selection in the 2010 SuperDraft and allocation money.
The deal matched the one that sent Noonan to Columbus from New England in August. The Revolution received the Crew's first pick in 2009 and money toward an allocation.
Noonan, 28, was playing behind MLS goal leader and 2008 league MVP Guillermo Barros Schelotto at withdrawn forward although he had one start as the target when Alejandro Moreno was on national team duty.
"Frankly, Pat is a good player on the bench behind Schelotto and that's not going to change. We felt it was a win-win for us and him to make the move," said Crew president and general manager Mark McCullers. "At the time when we traded for Pat in August of last year we were getting ready to make a playoff run. We had a roster spot open and the resources. We wanted to make sure that we had a quality player that could step up and help us out if an injury were to happen; someone who could challenge for starting time.
"He was all those things for us but he was too good of a player to be an insurance policy on the bench. There were other teams that had been calling about him and we felt like we had to do a deal when we had the opportunity."
Noonan filled in nicely for the injured Schelotto in three September matches and had a goal and two assists for his only points in 2008. He played 11 matches overall, including six starts.
Although he did not appear in the playoffs, he was a member of his first MLS Cup winner in November after failing to win the title match the previous three years with New England.
"He was a great locker room guy," coach Robert Warzycha said. "He never complained. On the field he does what he does best, which is play. Every time he stepped on the field he was working 100 percent. If he were on the field more his contribution to the team would be much higher. His performance and in practices, he made everyone better.
"I just think in this situation he couldn't give us more playing behind Guillermo. He is a very good player in that position and I think that is the best position for Pat."
With the ageless Schelotto chewing up minutes, Noonan was often used at forward and his last appearance for Columbus came in the 75th minute Sunday for Moreno against Chivas USA.
Noonan missed the first month this season with an injured back and played in five matches with one assist. Ironically, his only point was to set up Moreno in a 1-1 tie at Seattle when he started for Schelotto.
Warzycha said Noonan did not ask for a trade, but "expressed his opinion that he would like to see the field a little bit more than he has right now. We came to the solution that it was right for him to go to a team where he could possibly be a starter. It's good for both of us."
Noonan's departure is good news for reserve forwards Steven Lenhart and Jason Garey.
"It depends on how they do in practice," Warzycha said. "Now it's between three forwards so the percentages that they get on the field are going to be higher. They're all good players. They're absolutely going to see more playing time."
However, McCullers said the team is looking internationally for a striker to take Noonan's spot. Schelotto has 10 of the team's 19 goals and players such as Moreno and Robbie Rogers have struggled to score.
"One of the things we're looking for is a player who can change the dynamic of a game and either contribute goals or cause players to hit the form they had last year," McCullers said.
Craig Merz is a contributor to MLSnet.com.
