Irish international Kevin Doyle is with the Rapids squad in California. Richard Fleming caught up with him, and covered a variety of topics, including the offseason, preseason, a consistent Rapids roster, and meeting Seattle Sounders FC on Fourth of July.
Richard Fleming: As a seasoned pro, do preseasons get any easier?
Kevin Doyle: Yeah, easier, I think, from when I first started. You know it’s a lot more football now, a lot more tactical, a lot more getting your fitness by chasing balls so it doesn’t seem difficult, but you’re doing just as much, but when you’ve got a football in there it’s doesn’t seem as tough. (In Europe) The first two weeks (of preseason) you probably wouldn’t touch the ball, to be honest with you, so it’s definitely more enjoyable these days.
RF: How much of that time away was needed, and what I mean by that is, spending quality time with the family, spending time with extended family, being able to recharge the batteries. Tell us how important that is for a professional sportsperson.
KD: It’s brilliant, ya know. Not just the football. No interviews, no (pause) nothing. I went back to Ireland with my wife and kids, and we really enjoyed a great time there, ya know just doing all the stuff you don’t get to do for 10 months of the year, so it’s just a relief. We had a long, tough season last year. We had a reasonably good season. Everybody was happy at the end of the season but it was a long, long season. We were in the playoffs, every game’s a big game, and you’re constantly concentrating. There’s not much of a ‘down time’ all season long, so it really is all about, I mean - in my case - just forgetting about soccer, forgetting about football, ya know really not thinking about it. (I) go off on some runs, and enjoying some runs and stuff, nothing too strenuous, and then just looking forward to coming back, so when you do come back you’re ready to go again and be happy to be kicking a ball around.
RF: People may have heard the number over the past few weeks, the average turnover of the Rapids’ roster over the last few years has been 44%, so when you’re turning over almost half of your roster, that’s tough. That’s not been the case for the Rapids during this offseason. Tell us, from a player’s stand-point, how important it is to have consistency in that locker room going forward.
KD: Well, it just means you don’t have to re-learn again. Every season you'd have to re-teach and go through the same things trying to integrate new players, but that’s not the case. We’ve got a couple of new players, but they’re good, experienced players, and it’ll be easy for them. Obviously we’ve got a lot of lads on trial and things like that; good young players who are new here, but the main squad is the same, so we don’t have to start from square one, and Pablo doesn’t have to go back over the same stuff with us, (which) should bode well for us for the rest of the season. We want to back up last season, and be as good as last year. It’s gonna be difficult to repeat, to go the entire league season unbeaten at home is gonna be hard to follow that up, but that’s the aim, to be there or thereabouts once again next season, and to make the playoffs, obviously, but to back-up last season and not make last season just a one-off.
RF: How much is it - concern is probably not the right word - but how much are you guys wary that you may a little bit of a target on your back this season? (You’re) not so much of an unknown quantity?
KD: Yeah. From the first game we will be. It’ll be different. Ya know, last season when half the season was over and we were one of the top couple of teams it obviously got harder for us, but we kept going and we still got the results and stayed up there, so this season - probably from day one, first game - people are gonna want to, ya know, beat us and let’s hope that that’s the way it is and we do well and we’re successful. You’re a target for other people, and you should enjoy being in that position, I think, and people sort of (have the) psychological thing, or whatever, (of) even coming to Colorado now. Last season everyone spoke about altitude and how hard it is. I’ve said before to you, ‘they weren’t saying that the year before’. No-one spoke about how difficult it was to come down here. (We) really put that in people’s heads and hopefully that continues this year and benefits us, with people coming there defeated before they even make it to Colorado.
RF: Tim Howard might not be around for the first few games, but Dillon Serna’s coming back - hopefully - off his injury. What’s the mindset with you guys that, in a sense, you’re almost getting a new player back in Dillon Serna, but you might have to wait a little while for Tim Howard?
KD: Yeah, Tim’s been here all preseason and he’s not kicking, he’s not striking the ball, but he’s doing all the hand stuff, all the goalkeeping stuff, apart from kicking, so he’s not going to be a million miles away at the start of the season. If he doesn’t make the start of the season (then) it won’t be too long, but obviously we’ve got Zac (MacMath) who was fantastic last season when he played, so it’ll be fine, and Dillon as well, it’ll be great to see Dillon. He’s been joining in in bits of preseason. He’s been out six months now so he’s obviously very eager. He’s a very good player, and he’ll be refreshed to come back and he’s worked on different things; I think with his weight, I think you can tell his upper body strength has come on a lot, so he did a lot of stuff to improve himself and I’m sure people will see that when he makes it back to the pitch.
RF: A few offensive-minded players - Alan Gordon, Jaime Siaj and Peguy Ngatcha - what do you make of those guys so far?
KD: Actually everyone’s been really good. Ya know, anyone who’s been new to the squad in preseason has really settled in, and just in training there’s no issues, whether it’s fitness or ability to play. Last year we had some trialists in and they weren’t probably as fit as they could’ve been. Anybody we’ve signed looks the part, so it helps, and that’s when we’re doing our 11v11 in training and there’s no-one holding anyone back, we’re going for it, and Gordo’s experienced, very experienced player coming in that’s only going to help us as well, so it’s nice to see some new faces as well. (We had a) long season last year, and when you’re in each other’s pockets for so long it’s nice to have new faces just to change the dynamic a little bit and have something else to talk about.
RF: And finally, fans and the media do, but as a player when the fixture list - as we call it - when the schedule comes out, is there a game, is there a destination that caught your eye from the 2017 schedule?
KD: Not really. I’ve been here a year-and-a-half and I’ve been to nearly all of the teams, so …
RF: Well, you have a new stadium in Orlando, and two new teams in Atlanta and Minnesota …
KD: That’s true. (We) go to Atlanta and Minnesota. Look forward to going there. Orlando’s new stadium looks as though it’s going to be very impressive so yeah, those fixtures, but the only fixtures you used to look for when I was in England was where we were playing on Boxing Day, then when we were playing, and then whether we’d be at home on Christmas Day, so we don’t really have that issue here, ya know we’re not playing through the holidays, or anything, so I’m not one to look through the fixtures unless there’s something like that, so …
RF: You've got the fourth of July game, Seattle here (at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park) …
KD: Fourth of July game, yeah, at home. That’ll be a good one. We always have that one at home. This’ll be my third Fourth of July game here, and the atmosphere’s fantastic. It’s just a great day. From my perspective, to come over from Europe and to see what Fourth of July’s all about, and they make such a show of it in Denver for us, (with) the fireworks. The family love it. So, obviously back in Denver, we want to get one over on them (Seattle) this time, and make up a little bit for last season.
