In 2010, Omar Cummings was one of the most dangerous forwards in MLS. The past two weeks the Houston Dynamo have seen just what that means up close and personal.
After nearly two years of sporadic playing time, injuries and inconsistent play, Cummings has provided a boost to the club’s attack while filling in for the injured Will Bruin. In back-to-back starts after missing time for personal reasons he has notched two assists and been the pressure striker that clubs around the league struggled to contain while he was with the Colorado Rapids.
“Whenever the opportunity presents itself you just try and put your best out there. It’s been going well,” Cummings told the media Tuesday. “Having consistent games and I think when the team is making a positive push, we haven’t lost a game in three games or so, when you’re making that positive push you feel the momentum and feel the drive.”
Cummings’ best years in Colorado were 2009 and 2010. Those two seasons produced a combined 22 goals and 15 assists. The striker was one of MLS’ best at getting behind defenses and using his speed to apply pressure.
“Speed kills in any league. Whether you’re playing in Champions League or the World Cup or MLS it doesn’t matter, speed kills,” said Dynamo wide man DaMarcus Beasley. “Omar’s been a huge, huge part of that. He holds the ball, he fights and has been very helpful for Giles [Barnes] up top.”
It’s something the Dynamo banked on when they pulled off a deal at the end of 2012 to acquire him. Until recently, however, that quality hasn’t shown up.
Cummings has spent more time than anyone would like in the training room and, when healthy, has been stuck behind Bruin and Barnes in Houston’s pecking order.
With Bruin out with a right foot sprain for the past two weeks, Cummings has finally had a chance to show what he can do on a regular basis. Despite missing two games and being in and out of training due to a personal reason, he responded with two performances reminiscent of his days in Colorado.
Those performances show signs that the striker can, at the very least, be a danger man off the bench once Bruin returns or stick in the lineup to provide an off-speed pitch of sorts to his fellow strikers.
Regardless of his role and the time it took, the Dynamo is finally seeing the dangerous forward they knew they had.
“He’s done well. I thought the first half looked really good. He was running into space and creating problems for them,” said head coach Dominic Kinnear. “We all know that about Omar, his ability to run behind the defense can be a positive for us.”
Darrell Lovell covers the Houston Dynamo for MLSsoccer.com.
