In a Crew career that spanned from 1997-2000, midfielder Jason Farrell was a regular starter on those near-miss Columbus teams of the late 1990s. He currently lives in his hometown of Seattle and recently came back to Columbus to participate in the Legends Game this past October. Despite living in Sounders country, he’s still primarily a Crew fan, so here is what he had to say about the Crew being saved…

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On how he feels about the Crew being 100% officially saved:

In a word?  Ecstatic.  To be sure, I most definitely wasn’t among the longest tenured players in Crew history. but I did spend some formative years in Columbus. I was lucky enough to go on to play in a few different cities at a few different levels, but there is no question that my years in Columbus shaped me the most as a player and as a man. So to see the chaos that transpired over the past year was tough for me, especially being so far removed from it over here in Seattle.  Here’s the funny part…when I heard what the Crew supporters were organizing behind the scenes to save our club, I had complete faith that the Crew were never leaving Columbus. Easy for me to say, I suppose. But suffice it to say that I was not shocked to see the awesome Crew fans take the battle to the front lines and emerge victorious. Ecstatic is a pretty good word for my feeling for the final result.

On Dr. Pete now being part of the ownership group with the Haslams:

Maybe the best thing I can say about Dr. Pete is that he was always….there. He was just a big part of the fabric of Crew history and will now be a bigger part of its future. I can think of no better person to have stepped in and done what he has done. I had a few run-ins with Dr. Pete and (former head athletic trainer) Amy (Baer) in the training room and at his office, but when I think of Dr. Pete, I don’t always think of him as just dispensing medical attention, but rather being a part of the Crew family.

On the successful fan-led #SaveTheCrew movement:

I was pumped to get word of the last Legends weekend for a couple reasons. Obviously, reconnecting with the guys was fabulous. But I was more excited to see all the fans that I just KNEW would be present. I hadn’t been back to Columbus since I left after the 2000 season and it was amazing to see many of the same faces. I live and work in another passionate MLS city and I can tell you this…no fans compare to the fans in Columbus and I can’t wait to get back there again soon.

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A MASSIVE SEASON is now available as an ebook.