Houston Dynamo trialists Steven Morrissey and Lester Peltier were greeted on Tuesday by temperatures in the 40s with gusting winds. Not optimal conditions for a training session, especially when you are starting a two-week trial in hopes of earning a contract in Major League Soccer.
While the weather was a shock, the pair showed energy in the session, which included some fitness work and short-field games.
“They worked hard, and that's what we're looking for,” said Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear.
Intently focused on impressing the coaches, both Morrissey (pictured above) and Peltier said the cold was not a distraction.
“I came out and tried to give 100 percent and tried to convince [the team] that I want to play in Houston," said Peltier, a 22-year-old Trinidadian midfielder.
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Both players bring an attacking element to the field, which is what grabbed Kinnear’s attention and prompted him to invite the pair.
“They are attacking players,” said Kinnear. "From what we understand, they are quick guys, and that is what we are looking for now."
During the training session, the Dynamo worked mainly on connecting passes and moving the ball well. It’s something that Peltier, who has had trials with some top European clubs such as Arsenal, believes fits his game very well.
“[Kinnear] does some things with the ball, and that is the type of game I like to play, which is to pass and move,” said the Trinidad and Tobago international. “I like the style of Houston; they play really compact and fast.”
Morrissey’s 10 goals this season – up nine from last year – for Portmore United have him atop the scoring list in the Jamaican Premier League. The 24-year-old is hoping to be the answer to Houston’s search for another striker, as well as the second Jamaican in two years to successfully trial with the Dynamo. Jamaican midfielder Lovel Palmer joined the team on trial during last year's preseason and went on to play 26 league games for the Dynamo.
Peltier and Morrissey will have the first of two chances to show their attacking skills in a match setting when the Dynamo scrimmage Houston Baptist University on Saturday. Both players are also expected to be with the club when they travel to Corpus Christi, Texas, to play FC Dallas on February 12.
Darrell Lovell covers the Houston Dynamo for MLSsoccer.com. Follow him on Twitter at @Dynamoexaminer.
