The International Flavor of Marshall Men's soccer

Corey Bodden

JMC 303 Assignment 8

 

            It is no secret soccer is a global game. Over 25 billion people watched the 2006 World Cup and more than 715 million watched the final between France and Italy.

            But, soccer in the U.S. is not as popular. According to Joe Gisondi and his book Field Guide to Covering Sports, “Major League Soccer teams average fewer than 20,000” spectators per game and TV ratings are not better.  

            Head coach Bob Gray is no stranger to recruiting overseas and other countries and international players are beginning to take over the men’s soccer team.

            Eight of the 26 student-athletes on the team came to Marshall from another country. These players are: Goran Bractic, freshman forward from Belgrade, Serbia, Scott Doney, freshman forward from Tauranga, New Zealand, Arthur Duchesne, sophomore defender from Piegut Pluviers, France, Nick Edginton, junior defender from Wellington, New Zealand, Ryan Forde, sophomore midfielder from London, England, Daniel Jodah, sophomore midfielder from Mississauga, Ontario, Dominik Reining, freshman goalkeeper from Frankfurt, Germany and Ivan Sekulic, freshman midfielder from Zagreb, Croatia.

            “I’ve been doing for this for 38 years and always had international kids on my team,” Gray, who is in his 20th season at Marshall, said. “It’s actually a pretty easy sell. Marshall is a wonderful school. Our facilities are outstanding now. It’s in a very safe community and a quality education along with a very good soccer conference.”

            Marshall’s new soccer facility, Veterans Memorial Soccer Complex, opened on Aug. 23, 2013. The facility includes Hoops Family Field, where home games are played, and separate training rooms and locker rooms for the men’s and women’s teams.

            All eight players have started at least one game and played in multiple contests. Doney, Forde and Jodah each have one goal on the season and are the only goals Marshall (1-3-2) has scored in six games.

            Minus Reining, the other seven players have attempted at least one shot. International players have attempted 50 of the 67 shots on the season accounting for 75 percent of the production. Of the 20 shots on goal, 19 have been attempted by international players accounting for 95 percent of the production.

            “They bring a different element to the team,” Gray said. “Not only from the talent, but just from culture.”

            Though Gray believes it is easy to sell Marshall to international student-athletes the overall process is not as easy.

            “The difficulty is getting to see them play enough times to be convinced that they’re really going to help us out,” Gray said. “The international paperwork you have to go through just to try and get them admitted into school and through the NCAA Clearinghouse (is difficult).”

            Doney, Forde and Jodah explained why they left their home countries and picked Marshall as their home.

            “I wanted to go further in football,” Doney said. “It’s kind of hard in New Zealand. To get further you need to get out of the country when you’re younger. I also wanted to continue my academics as well. I felt this (Marshall) was the best option for me.”

            “I wanted to carry on playing football. Basically if you go to a university back home you have to choose academics or athletics,” Forde said. “But, here you have the best of both worlds.”

            “I thought because I had been playing where I was playing for a long time that it was time for a change and adapt to certain aspects of the game,” Jodah said.

            The trio said American culture has not been difficult to adjust to, but Forde has not quite adjusted to what he considers the difference between the U.S. and England.

            “(The) size of the country,” Forde said. “You can’t get anywhere without a car here. I’m used to going everywhere (in) buses, cabs (and) taxis.”

            The speed of the game and physical nature of soccer in the U.S. are the biggest changes, the trio said, compared to soccer in their home countries.

            “In the U.S. it’s more physically demanding,” Jodah said. “I’d say it’s more about fitness and I’d say the game is a lot more faster. Personally, I think it’s a lot better.”

            The 18 members of the team from the U.S. have been accepting to the international players the trio said and helped them feel at home.

            “The boys have been really welcoming,” Doney said. “So, I’ve been feeling quite well here. Having another New Zealand guy (Edginton) on the team helped a lot coming over here.”