Good Read

This is the second article I've seen in this publication by Lisa Sari. Her talents extend well beyond the soccer field, she is a very good writer. There is also a pretty good article by Garrett S. in this issue, but they don't have it electronically, at least not that I could find. I'll see if I can find the other article by Lisa S. in their archives.


http://www.up.edu/portlandmag/2007_fall/chair.htm

OK, it's not the other Lisa article, but it's fun.

http://www.up.edu/portlandmag/2006_spring/gracenjoy/gracenjoy1.html

It turns out there is a scanner here at work with something called OCR recognition that let me scan this article by Garrett, save it, copy and paste it here - what will they think of next? It is quite an article.

ON- THE- B L U F F
Garrett Smith '91
Coach, Pilot Women's Soccer
2007 National Coach of the Year

"I vividly remember the two promises [the late great] Clive Charles made to me when I visited campus as a recruit, twenty years ago - a soccer stadium and a national title. You got to be kidding me, I thought. I mean, all there was where Merlo Field is now was a goalpost cemented to the ground and a dirt patch where the keeper stood. But soon enough we were in the final four, and then came Merlo Field, and then all this...
"I started coaching women when I was a senior here, a city team of sixteen-year-olds, which led eventually to my marriage - Christina came to watch a niece of hers who was playing for me, I didn't do any coaching that day - and to our three children, and back to The Bluff to help Clive.
"For me Pilot women's soccer as we know it was born in 1993, after North Carolina hammered us here. That's when Clive envisioned our style - possession ball, the constant free flow, terrific defense, the way everyone on the field is an attacker and defender and ballhandler, even the keeper. Everyone's comfortable with the ball, everyone's a quarterback, everyone can score. That's a style that's fun to watch, but it's also fun to play, and it's completely a players' game at this level. That's why I sit quietly on the sideline and watch. There's no time to convey information even if I had anything wise to say. I'd ruin the flow of the game. Plus they know more than I do anyway. They solve their own problems, pretty much, and they are intent not on wins but on national titles.
"The secret to our success, I think, is the culture of the team. The best players in the world want to come here, and every recruit hears a lot of talk about culture and fit and academic rigor and incredibly hard work, and it's all for real. They all play defense, they all work hard in class, they're all proud to represent their country if they are called to national or Olympic teams, and they all rag their coach. Relentless humor - boy, there's a DNA thread straight from Clive, eh?
"My favorite moments? Oh, a Friday night playoff game at Merlo, under the lights, a cold, wet night - that's Pilot soccer at its best, for me. The electricity of the atmosphere, the roar of the crowd, the intensity of play - that's glorious. But I suppose my favorite moment ever was the minute after we won the 2002 title. Clive's face.. every player, every fan, every person in the stadium turned and looked at him. His face shone. If you saw that you would never forget it as long as you lived. And looking back on it now I have to admit he was right - we did win a national title, and we do have a stadium. He kept his promises to me..."

Nicely done, A_Fan! I haven't seen that issue of Portland magazine yet, or if I have, I missed that article. Thanks for posting it!

I can't say enough good things about Garrett Smith... just a terrific guy all around, and definitely the perfect guy to carry on the legacy of Clive.

Like I said in my very first post here, I'll never forget the look on Clive's face. In the post game interview at the end of the championship video, Clive turned to Milbrett and said, "Tiffeny came to Portland when it wasn't cool, and the reason we won this is because of her." I guess we can say the same about Garrett. It looks like Clive taught him well.