Hey Dunny, how are things going? Could you start off by introducing yourself and what’s your “claim to fame” these days?

Things are good man, thanks for having me on. Ahh, the dreaded “claim to fame”… Pretty sure I haven’t made a mark in the big scheme of things, but I’m a former professional soccer player (footballer). Near the tail end of my 9 year career my ex-college and US Olympic Team teammate (and a guy I’ve known since I was about 8 years old) Ben Hooper and I were getting pretty frustrated with the lack of clothing in the United States representing and telling the stories of the game; So we started a company called Bumpy Pitch and more recently (in the last two years) a separate website under the BP umbrella called The Original Winger. The website focuses more on the daily side of the lifestyle and culture of the game. I have also been very fortunate to start a career on the broadcasting side of the game with Fox Soccer Channel where my duties include being a Color Analyst, Sideline Reporter, Play by Play and the odd Studio show, covering Major League Soccer, the US National Team, Copa Libertadores, UEFA and English Premiership etc.

No doubt that your love of soccer/football is something that has truly manifested itself in your life beyond just the pitch. Of course much like myself and growing up in Canada, North America just isn’t your typical breeding ground for football professionals but you seem have to branched out from player to cultural purveyor. What were your initial experiences playing soccer as a kid? Did you ever feel as though there wasn’t a lot of traction in doing anything soccer-related? When you were growing up, what were the options of taking it seriously in hopes of making a career out?

Looking back from my point of view, there was absolutely no hope or a future in soccer until the United States qualified for the 1990 World Cup and even then, it took hosting the event in 1994 for America to really sit up and notice what possibilities this game could bring.

I’ve got to give full credit to my step-dad Roger for originally exposing me to the game as he pretty much had me playing every sport possible. With two years in AYSO (Everyone Plays!) under my belt, I wanted to see if I could compete with the kids at the club level. That allowed me to play with the older kids and learn how to use both my strengths and weaknesses as an overall athlete and then relate them to whichever sport I found myself competing in. But just after I turned 13, I was cut from the team and it was a massive blow to my world.

That’s where my own “Michael Jordan Story” comes into play and when I decided that this was the game I would be focusing on for as long as I could. I ended up doing pretty well throughout high school, found myself at Cal St. Fullerton and within 3 semesters I had been invited to be a part of the United States U-20 team that was heading to the U-20 World Cup in Malaysia (in ’97), as well as being offered a professional contract with MLS (Major League Soccer). I accepted the offer after speaking with my parents (knowing it was more of a respect thing rather than them having any say, especially since I wasn’t on a scholarship) and I was selected by the New England Revolution.

But as far as “hoping” to become a professional soccer player… I knew that I wanted to prove to that coach who cut me and all of my teammates that they were wrong. And that was the point in my life that has put me on the path I find myself on today.

What was it like for you the day you signed your first contract with the MLS? Was your desire to prove everybody wrong something that was an ongoing goal that set to define your life beyond just soocer based on that one instance? From a playing standpoint, what is your proudest moment on the pitch?

It was a bit surreal. Current Arsenal Chief Executive Ivan Gazidis was one of two members of MLS to fly out from New York to my parents house in Southern California and my poor mom was in full-on deep cleaning mode for a few days before. But not being on a Scholarship at Cal St. Fullerton and being in camp with the United States U-20’s right before the World Cup, I had no desire to go back to school and waste my own time and money (since I also had to work to make ends meet) on something I couldn’t commit to fully. Being a pro was all that I could see for myself.

I definitely think that desire has been ingrained into everything that I do. I’ve never really known what I was doing and pretty much still don’t. I just try to stay aware of everything around me and surround myself with good people I can learn from.

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