Professional athletes are creatures of habit. So when the only coach the Houston Dynamo have ever known, Dominic Kinnear, decides to change zip codes after nine years, it's no surprise that the question on everybody's mind is: What’s next?
“The unknown is the scary part for us players because you never know what type of coach is going to come in here,” Dynamo captain Brad Davis said after Thursday’s game. “We’ve known the style that we’ve had for nine years. There’s a lot of unknowns and what-ifs and things we think about.
“I think this change could be good for us. The organization’s at an opportunity to go in a different direction if they want too,” Davis continued. “Let’s look at it as a positive moving forward with the things that are going to happen to this organization. That’s what we’re trying to do.”
Houston’s players have seen the writing on the wall since the rumors and reports of Kinnear’s move first surfaced. After Thursday’s game, a 2-1 loss to the New England Revolution and Kinnear’s final home game as Dynamo coach Davis admitted that the talk was “difficult” to deal with, but the club kept a professional attitude and wished the boss well.
Even though there is one game left on the schedule (Oct. 24 at Chicago on NBCSN), the fact that the news is already official has propelled everyone to ponder the future. And there are no answers just yet.
“Going into the offseason it’s a little bit different this year than years past. There’s a certain edge about it,” goalkeeper Tally Hall, who is rehabbing an ACL injury, told MLSsoccer.com. “There’s a new coach coming in, a new technical director coming in, and you don’t know whether those guys are going to think you’re the best guy for the job or the worst guy for the job.
“Moving forward the players don't have any say so I’m going to grab a bag of popcorn and see how it all goes down.”
Reports have the club filling a newly formed technical director role that will aid club president Chris Canetti in identifying Kinnear’s replacement. And whoever fills those roles will have their work cut out for them. The club’s coming off a disappointing season that includes a franchise high in losses (16) and goals conceded (56).
“It’s been a difficult year, it really has, and I don’t think anybody’s going to deny that,” Davis said. “We hold ourselves to a high standard. Nobody’s more disappointed the way things went this year than the guys in that locker room.”
With Kinnear moving on, the club will get a chance to address the shortcomings with someone new at the helm.
“As much as Dom’s been the only coach and had success, if you look at the future of the Houston Dynamo I think there’s some optimism moving forward. That’s the way the industry works,” Hall said. “I’m looking forward to earning my stripes in front of another coach.”
Darrell Lovell covers the Houston Dynamo for MLSsoccer.com.
