It’s midday in Nashville and Gary Smith is sitting upstairs in his home study. It’s not where he usually would be and it’s not where he wants to be. An unprecedented world event means soccer coaches are, like everyone, adjusting to a new normal.
“When you’re in the everyday, working, coaching, media, planning, matches, debriefing, your brain is working a million miles an hour, “ says the 51 year old. “It is abnormal, that you just come down two or three gears…personally I do feel a little bit lost if I’m honest.”
Some solace is offered by a glance to the book shelf where a framed football sits, signed and encased. It represents the greatest achievement of Smith’s soccer career, something he yearns to repeat one day in Nashville. It’s the match ball from the 2010 MLS Cup Final. Smith’s Colorado Rapids upset the odds, winning through the playoffs and lifting the Cup with a 2-1 win over FC Dallas in Toronto, Canada. It was Coach Smith’s daughter Millie, then just a six year old, who grabbed the ball and it’s been a part of the Smith household since wherever they’ve travelled on both sides of the Atlantic.
Smith’s journey to the top of MLS a decade ago was an unusual one. How did he even end up in charge of the Rapids? How has the league changed during his nine year absence? And just how much would he like to beat Real Salt Lake?
Early impressions of MLS were mixed for Smith who arrived in Colorado in 2008 on a mission from sister club Arsenal to set up a scouting network. “ I walked into a preseason camp for the Rapids, they were in the early stages and down in Fort Lauderdale, facilities were fantastic, that was my first impression, wow we’re in Florida the sun’s out… this is a bit special."
The impression didn’t last long. He saw a level of professionalism below what he was used to. At the time, it all felt a bit “non-league-esque” for a man who had played and worked at Arsenal, Fulham and across the English Football League.
Nevertheless, the Rapids thrashed LA Galaxy 4-0 in their opening game of the 2008 season. “I remember scratching my head thinking everything I’ve ever thought about this game I’ve got completely wrong! We absolutely demolished LA Galaxy.”
It wasn’t to last and Smith’s football brain wasn’t deceiving him. The lessons of pre-season caught up on the team, he felt. Head Coach Fernando Clavijo resigned after a difficult run of results and with a third of the season to go. Smith did not consider himself an obvious candidate, initially as an interim boss. “I didn’t know the league well enough. It was going to be my first head coach’s job. The Chief Executive said “well if you don’t take it, everyone you know and who you like here is going to get the sack at the end of the season anyway.” So, was he an accidental manager? “I was almost last man standing!”
It was a life changing moment for Smith, setting him on a course to join a select group of English managers who had won domestic titles overseas. The 2010 MLS Cup success would define his tenure in the Rockies, but it was a game in 2009 which was the catalyst for what would follow.
