Former Vancouver Whitecaps prospect and Victoria, B.C., native Simon Thomas has impressed English side Huddersfield Town enough that he was offered a one-year contract last week.
The goalkeeper went on trial with the League One outfit at the tail end of the English 2010/11 campaign, and on Friday the team offered him a deal, having been impressed with his performances in training sessions and practice matches.
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“England and Europe was always the goal,” Thomas said during a phone interview with Canadian Soccer News. “From day one, that’s always where I said I wanted to play. I think I said that during my time with the Whitecaps as well – I always wanted to be over [in England] playing. My priority is to get my foot in the door, get playing and progress. It’s a dream right now.”
Standing at 6’3”, Thomas grew up idolizing the likes of German goalkeeper Oliver Kahn, Chelsea starter Petr Cech and Manchester United’s Dutch ‘keeper Edwin van der Sar.
In recent years, the 21-year-old Thomas played his soccer with the Vancouver Whitecaps, going through their residency program from 2008-2010. He was eventually released last year, but credits Mike Salmon, the Whitecaps goalkeeping coach during that period, for accelerating his growth as a player.
“I feel like my development really took off to the next level when I met Mike Salmon at the Whitecaps,” Thomas said. “He was instrumental in changing my game up and teaching me. He believed in me and put confidence in me that I could step up to the next level. I can’t say enough good things about Mike Salmon.”
Salmon, 47, said Thomas’ release from the Whitecaps “was in his best interest.”
“It wouldn’t have done him any good whatsoever to stay with the Whitecaps, because he wouldn’t have got the games he needs and he wouldn’t have developed at the same rate,” Salmon said by phone on Friday. “The fact that he’s been given an opportunity [in England], he’ll definitely get games, and play with better players and against better players. I can only see his game going forward.”
Salmon, best known in England as Charlton’s No. 1 goalkeeper from 1989-99, used his connections in the United Kingdom to set up a number of trials for Thomas. While a trial at Charlton didn’t work out for Thomas, a former teammate from Salmon’s days at the club, John Vaughan, now goalkeeping coach at Huddersfield, liked what he saw.
“[Vaughan] saw things in him that I saw in him,” Salmon explained. “His attributes without doubt are his attitude, and – he’s probably the bravest ‘keeper I’ve ever worked with. Day in, day out, he puts his body on the line. He makes saves that other ‘keepers wouldn’t even think about going for. He throws his body at everything and makes some unbelievable saves.”
Vancouver Whitecaps assistant coach Colin Miller echoed Salmon’s thoughts after the team’s practice on Friday.
“I’m not surprised that he’s been picked up,” Miller said. “His attitude was fabulous, he’s brave, and he just needed games. I think he could become a good goalkeeper. The first thing that stood out was his bravery – he stopped so many balls with his face, I thought he should have put the gloves on his teeth! His commitment to being the best he could be was impressive.”
Thomas now looks forward to competing for a place in Huddersfield’s starting lineup, but he hasn’t forgotten about where he’s come from. He was quick to acknowledge key figures from his time as a player in Victoria.
“My club coaches were fantastic -- Mark Brittain, Chris DeGroot – they believed in me,” Thomas said. “I put ownership [for this progress] on my goalkeeping coaches in Victoria. I mostly dealt with Bob Stankov. He was and still is a major part of my development. Raegyn Hall was there too, and he brings a different aspect to my goalkeeping. I met those two through Shel Brodsgaard’s Island Keeper’s clinic, so that was massive.”
When asked about the prospect of eventually playing for the Canadian national team if he proves himself in England, Thomas displayed the workmanlike attitude his former coaches at the Whitecaps couldn’t stop talking about.
“I’ve always wanted to wear the Canadian badge on my chest, but right now I need to focus on the baby steps and get established over here and get playing. I believe everything will come in time. It’s just about getting up and working every day at practice.”
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Martin MacMahon is a broadcast journalism student at the British Columbia Institute of Technology. He covers Vancouver Whitecaps FC for a number of soccer websites.
Follow him on Twitter: @martinmacmahon