| HeraldNet - Snohomish County's online news source |
 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2010 3:51 am |
||||||||||
 |
||||||||||
|
||||||||||
|
||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||
Sports 
|
|||||||||||
Henderson: Sounders found the perfect fit The former Cascade H.S. star and current Sounders' technical director played for the Sounders FC's new head coach at UCLA. SEATTLE -- Of all the soccer coaches Chris Henderson played for during his national and international career, none was quite like Sigi Schmid.As a college coach who lured Henderson to UCLA 20 years ago after his stellar career at Cascade High School in Everett, Schmid was a man who cared about his players as people. At the professional level, he led the L.A. Galaxy and Columbus Crew to Major League Soccer championships with his eye for talent and ability to mold it into a winning team despite an overall lack of superstars on most of those teams. "Sigi knows more about individual details of players in this country than anyone I've played for," Henderson said. "You name a player, he'll tell you how he runs, what foot he uses, what his strengths and weaknesses are. He has a unique way of getting the most out of each guy." Tuesday, the expansion Seattle Sounders FC of the MLS introduced the 55-year-old Schmid (whose first name is pronounced "Siggy") as their coach during a news conference at Qwest Field. Henderson, 38 and two years into retirement as a player, now is the Sounders' technical director. He said Schmid is the perfect man to pull together a roster containing expansion draft picks and two signature signings, goalkeeper Kasey Keller and midfielder Freddie Ljungeberg. "Each player needs to be treated and motivated in a different way, and Sigi has a good way of bringing the team together," Henderson said. "That shows with the success he's had at each level." Schmid's record is impressive. He coached the Galaxy to a 79-53-12 record from 1999-2004 and won the MLS championship in 2002. In his third season after taking over a rebuilding Crew team, he went 17-7-6 this year and won the league championship. Between 1980 and 1998, Schmid coached UCLA to a 322-63-33 record, 17 NCAA tournament appearances and three national championships -- including the 1985 title when the Bruins beat American in a record eight overtime periods in the Kingdome. Schmid was back on roughly the same piece of ground Tuesday at Qwest Field, where the Sounders will play from mid-March through October. They open March 19 against the New York Red Bulls. "In our minds, he is the best coach in Major League Soccer," Sounders general manager Adrian Hanauer said. The Sounders held in-depth conversations with six coaching candidates but zeroed in on Schmid when his contract with the Crew expired. It took some extraordinary measures to get him. The Columbus franchise accused the Sounders of tampering after they spoke with Schmid early this month. An MLS ruling on Friday cleared the Sounders of that charge, but they still had to pay the Crew to free the coach from a non-compete clause in his contract that would have kept him from coaching another team in 2009. "The main selling point in coming here is the organization, the support and the commitment to the sport (by Sounders ownership)," Schmid said. "It's also a big plus being on the West Coast." He was born in Tuebingin, Germany, but moved with his family to Southern California in 1956 when he was three years old. He grew up in Southern California and played soccer at UCLA. The Sounders job also reunites Schmid with his younger brother Roland, who lives in the Seattle area. Schmid broke into tears during the news conference when he thought about that. "We've been apart for a long time," he said. "We've always had a special bond. Part of it is my mother passed away at an early age -- he was 13 at the time and I was 23. It's great to know he'll be here on a consistent basis." Despite taking over an expansion team, Schmid said his task here may not be as difficult as the one he took over in Columbus three years ago. "Columbus was a complete rebuilding job," he said. "This situation here, with the signings they've made and the players they picked up in the expansion draft, the base is a little bit stronger than it was in Columbus in my first year. We want to be competitive in every game right from Day 1, but we also have to understand we are an expansion team." Schmid says he developed many of his coaching principles by watching John Wooden's UCLA basketball practices. "The soccer lockerroom was in Pauley Pavilion and I would watch the last half-hour of basketball practice. He got the most out of every player," he said. "I also had the benefit of watching Pat Riley work with the great Lakers teams because they worked out at UCLA all the time. Every sport is the same. You're managing individuals." Notes: The Sounders said they had sold 18,100 season tickets as of Tuesday. They also had sold 67 suites at Qwest Field. … All of the Sounders' games next year will be televised on KING or KONG. Kevin Calabro, the longtime voice of the Seattle SuperSonics, will be the play-by-play announcer. … Schmid said he has had a longtime friendship with Brian Schmetzer, coach of the 2005 USL champion Sounders, and will consider bringing him into the organization. |
- Sorry, Hawkeye; M*A*S*H gets bowled over
- Former Whidbey student shot
- County archive software paid for but waiting for set-up
- Ruling expected on Sultan beating statement
- ‘Roadkill’ caucus seeks a voice for centrist Democrats
- Police seek witnesses in two accidents
- PAWS calls out for critter care-givers
- Boeing has a busy test schedule
- Ex-Boeing engineer jailed for espionage
- Morning mystery: What happened to House Bill 3181?
- Lynnwood sets height limit on grass: 8 inches
(10) - State Senate votes to toss I-960's tax-raising hurdle (9)
- School levies in Snohomish County all passing, Marysville bond failing (6)
- A tidy lawn could be law in Lynnwood (4)
- County archive software paid for but waiting for set-up (3)
- Vote on school levies by Tuesday (3)
- Two suspects sought in Everett shooting that injured two (3)
- North Sound Christian girls winning with just six players (2)
- Schools do well in levy elections (2)
- Everett man charged with assault in attempt to circumcise son at home (2)
- Jackson girls outlast Meadowdale owdale
- OBT raises barre in children’s program
- Junior firefighters
- School levies passing
- Mavericks topple Wolfpack
- Get a second look at Second City Feb. 13
- Sports Briefs
- Warriors advance 11 to regional meet
- Arlington's Cascade Valley Hospital celebrates expansion, national award and 100 years of service
- Business Licences Feb. 2010
- Technology tips for launching your own business
- Business Events Feb. 2010
- Tech Talk: No excuse today for going without a Web site
- State already raising fees and rates that restrict business growth
- Some legislators again targeting people’s initiative petition rights
|
 
|
|
|
|
| TODAY'S TOP JOBS |
| View All Top Jobs |
| Top Cars |
|
| Top Homes |
|
|
ADVERTISEMENT |
|
|
|Contact Us
|Advertiser Services
|Home Delivery
|Newsstand Locations
|Classifieds
|Feedback
|About the Company
|Work@the Herald
|Site Map |
|
COMMENTS | Be the first to comment
Log in or register to post a new comment.
To read other terms and conditions, click here