Justin Smith

[Obinna]

I can see us using Smith the same way the United States uses James Sands. Sometimes he's a CB, sometimes he's a 6. 

[dyslexic nam]

24 minutes ago, Obinna said:

Fair point on the ages. Waterman and MacNaughton may have just a single cycle in them, and it's not even clear yet if the latter is even up to snuff (I have no doubt Waterman is). Halbouni is almost 4 years older than Smith with seemingly a lower trajectory. I definitely see the desire to blood a talented 19 year old to be the cornerstone for years to come. 

I can be convinced into a different position, but right now my view is that Smith projects as a midfielder. Admittedly there's recency bias on my part, having observed him twice as a midfielder (and 0 as a defender), but at some point last season Nice stopped listing him as a defender and started listing him as a midfielder, didn't they? That may suggest he breaks into Nice as a midfielder, where there may be less pressure (if you know what I mean). If you want guys playing the same position for country as for club (some believe it's less important than others), the signs seem to point to Smith being a midfielder for Canada. 

But all of that said, I wouldn't mind too much if Herdman built around him at the back. It's hard to hope for seeing what he's doing at the moment, but again that's recency bias for you (well, for me actually lol).

I am probably just frustrated from coaching my U15 team lol.  All the kids want to be attackers - or at least attacking mids.  Meanwhile I am left with like 3 kids who actually choose to play defence because most kids seem to think that if you have any talent on the ball you are too good for defence (where you apparently are supposed to stick the kids that can’t play footy).  Thus I have a naturally evolving resistance to the idea that good/skilled players shouldn’t be in defence.    

 

[Obinna]

33 minutes ago, dyslexic nam said:

I am probably just frustrated from coaching my U15 team lol.  All the kids want to be attackers - or at least attacking mids.  Meanwhile I am left with like 3 kids who actually choose to play defence because most kids seem to think that if you have any talent on the ball you are too good for defence (where you apparently are supposed to stick the kids that can’t play footy).  Thus I have a naturally evolving resistance to the idea that good/skilled players shouldn’t be in defence.    

 

That's pretty funny, but I get it! I think kids grow out of that with time, though probably not fast enough to save you from frustration this summer

[dyslexic nam]

8 minutes ago, Obinna said:

That's pretty funny, but I get it! I think kids grow out of that with time, though probably not fast enough to save you from frustration this summer

Yeah, it is shaping up to be a pretty terrible season…

[Obinna]

6 minutes ago, dyslexic nam said:

Yeah, it is shaping up to be a pretty terrible season…

Just show them video of Vitoria hitting sublime free kicks top shelf in Liga NOS. 

[dyslexic nam]

9 minutes ago, Obinna said:

Just show them video of Vitoria hitting sublime free kicks top shelf in Liga NOS. 

Part of the problem is they just don’t care that much about soccer.  I have a team of hockey players who needed something to do in the summer. 

[Obinna]

2 minutes ago, dyslexic nam said:

Part of the problem is they just don’t care that much about soccer.  I have a team of hockey players who needed something to do in the summer. 

Ah I see the predicament. Just let them enjoy themselves then I guess, defense be dammed. Pull on your TFC shirt, shave your head, and channel your inner Bob Bradley. All scoring, no defending!

[Unnamed Trialist]

8 minutes ago, dyslexic nam said:

Part of the problem is they just don’t care that much about soccer.  I have a team of hockey players who needed something to do in the summer. 

They don't have high soccer culture because if they did, they'd have defensive heros. At their age they should be past that business of wanting to score, wanting to shine. I saw it here only amongst the least mature players at age 12-13. Excellent goalkeepers who refused to play in goal. My best defenders often had a dad who played, had some who were from rougher family backgrounds.

Football culture and character. 

[matthew]

I think he could easily end up being a CB at the end of the day. He looks like he would be perfect to play as a libero in a back three, but honestly, playing as a 6 in front of a back four isn’t terribly different these days. He looked very sharp for Nice in the midfield last pre-season, starting against Dynamo Kyiv and then getting a late 10 minutes v AC Milan. They were pre-season friendlies, but you could see his speed of thought was strong and obviously he has some skill and composure on the ball.

I was kind of hoping he would get a look with Herdman, but when you haven’t made your first-team debut yet I can’t argue him being left out. The fact he could cover two spots is tempting in my eyes, but he’s probably not quite ready yet. But he has to be close. It’s nice to see him come out for the U20s and wear the armband. It would be great if he could start earning some first team minutes with Nice.

I watched France play Serbia at U21 level and France’s midfield was Caqueret, Thuram and Camavinga… transfermarkt rates that midfield trio as worth 97 million Euros. And their central defence pairing of Badiashile and Fofana are worth 70M Euros. I’m really high on Smith, but the French youth teams are a whole different class.

[Jack1997]

I see your guys point in not wasting talent at CB but last night I was looking at the nice team it’s much more likely for him to break through as a CB and we have no reason to think he wouldn’t be a great CB, tackling looked good was doing well staying calm so there’s a good chance he’s a incredible CB look at a guy like van dijk or alaba, you could play those guys in the midfield cause of their skills and smarts and they’d be incredible but CB is needed to so you can’t put all the ball playing CB at CDM or there would be no good CB. I think if he breaks into nice or the Qatar squad it will be as a CB and it’s always valuable to have players who can play multiple positions.

[toontownman]

Inconsequential as soon as the Tom Holmes case has been solved. Mark Watson is assisting.

Yao probably looks the best of the young bunch and is constantly improving at Cavalry. Halbouni has a big season coming up but could be a huge piece for us. Jury is out on Knight-Lebel but there is definitely something about him, maybe not pace but he is in a good spot to develop. Dunn has had a rough run of injuries but if he can sort himself out I still think he has potential. Someone will likely emerge out of the woodwork too. So many are so young and most a decade away from their peak years at CB. Always hard to judge.

CM is a sleeper depth problem so I am not worried about Smith slotting in there.  

Edited June 22, 2022 by toontownman

[The Beaver 2.0]

8 hours ago, dyslexic nam said:

Part of the problem is they just don’t care that much about soccer.  I have a team of hockey players who needed something to do in the summer. 

Been there, not doing that again.  Best player I ever coached was an elite hockey prospect. He scored goals at will, was always the fastest and strongest kid on the field, could run for miles, and learned whatever you taught him so damned fast. But soccer was just a way to stay fit until training camp began.

[dyslexic nam]

8 hours ago, The Beaver 2.0 said:

Been there, not doing that again.  Best player I ever coached was an elite hockey prospect. He scored goals at will, was always the fastest and strongest kid on the field, could run for miles, and learned whatever you taught him so damned fast. But soccer was just a way to stay fit until training camp began.

I have one of those.  Has only played soccer for one season before this one but is clearly the most athletic of the bunch.    Big, strong and can overpower people - but just hasn’t played enough soccer to know the game.  

[InglewoodJack]

You guys think that's tough? I grew up playing baseball where 80% of my team were guys just killing time until the hockey season. At least there's somewhat of a soccer culture here, and even if you don't like soccer, running around and kicking a ball is easier to get into than baseball where for most of the game you're either sitting on the bench or standing still in the field. Whenever we'd go deep into the playoffs, we'd have to account for some of our best players skipping games because their hockey teams started training.

[Obinna]

9 hours ago, The Beaver 2.0 said:

Been there, not doing that again.  Best player I ever coached was an elite hockey prospect. He scored goals at will, was always the fastest and strongest kid on the field, could run for miles, and learned whatever you taught him so damned fast. But soccer was just a way to stay fit until training camp began.

Reminds me of a guy I played club soccer with named Teddy Purcell. Hockey fans may remember him as a former LA Kings and Edmonton Oilers winger. The guy was elite at both sports. After U-15 he gave up soccer all together but considering how far he went with hockey I suspect he was just a hockey guy playing soccer to keep fit. Interestingly, he never fit the stereotype of being fast and strong. He was actually short (had a growth spurt later) with good speed (but not great), but the guy had an absolute wand of a left foot and had fantastic technique, with silky ball control and a great first touch. If he had the desire he could have earned a NCAA div 1 soccer scholarship or better, but in the end I think he actually played hockey at that level (never went the CHL route I don't think) and then he eventually snuck into the NHL where he stuck for 6 or 7 seasons, if I recall correctly. I doubt he regrets his choice, as being a professional hockey player is far more lucrative than being a professional soccer player, especially back then.

And this will come as no surprise to you @dyslexic nam, but in soccer he was an attacker

[N1ckbr0wn]

I think the versatility of Smith will benefit us in both positions. Let’s wait and see where he pans out best.

as for all your kids, when I made the step from house leagues to rep team/academy team, you drop all the extra bs. Kids realize they have to slot in where they fit or they’re not going to make it. Also Eliminates the off season hockey player thing 

[jhoops__]

Dude looks like the real deal…

[sose]

if he gets some first team mins in the fall (be it at Nice or on loan) then i would like to see him get a look in Sept on the sr. team.

[Shway]

10 hours ago, Obinna said:

Reminds me of a guy I played club soccer with named Teddy Purcell. Hockey fans may remember him as a former LA Kings and Edmonton Oilers winger. The guy was elite at both sports. After U-15 he gave up soccer all together but considering how far he went with hockey I suspect he was just a hockey guy playing soccer to keep fit. Interestingly, he never fit the stereotype of being fast and strong. He was actually short (had a growth spurt later) with good speed (but not great), but the guy had an absolute wand of a left foot and had fantastic technique, with silky ball control and a great first touch. If he had the desire he could have earned a NCAA div 1 soccer scholarship or better, but in the end I think he actually played hockey at that level (never went the CHL route I don't think) and then he eventually snuck into the NHL where he stuck for 6 or 7 seasons, if I recall correctly. I doubt he regrets his choice, as being a professional hockey player is far more lucrative than being a professional soccer player, especially back then.

And this will come as no surprise to you @dyslexic nam, but in soccer he was an attacker

This story reminds me of an NHL guy named Steven Stamkos. I played rep soccer with him for 3 years at Markham Soccer Club.Myself, him and another guy were top players for our league…but Steven was just those God given talents that whatever he played he was going pro. He like Teddy had a wicked left foot, was fast, and had feet. Definitely would’ve done something with soccer had he chose that path. Apparently he was really good at baseball too. If anyone knows the show “the famous jet Jackson” that was Steven. 

By U12 he was already labelled the best kid in Canada for hockey, which I found crazy how he was scouted/labelled from so early and well look at him today. 

I still have our team picture in case there are any collectors out there 😏

[Obinna]

2 hours ago, Shway said:

This story reminds me of an NHL guy named Steven Stamkos. I played rep soccer with him for 3 years at Markham Soccer Club.Myself, him and another guy were top players for our league…but Steven was just those God given talents that whatever he played he was going pro. He like Teddy had a wicked left foot, was fast, and had feet. Definitely would’ve done something with soccer had he chose that path. Apparently he was really good at baseball too. If anyone knows the show “the famous jet Jackson” that was Steven. 

By U12 he was already labelled the best kid in Canada for hockey, which I found crazy how he was scouted/labelled from so early and well look at him today. 

I still have our team picture in case there are any collectors out there 😏

Funny enough, I think they were teammates with the Tampa Bay Lightning from 2009 to 2014!

I wonder if they ever talked about their old soccer days? Probably not haha

[archer21]

8 hours ago, Shway said:

This story reminds me of an NHL guy named Steven Stamkos. I played rep soccer with him for 3 years at Markham Soccer Club.Myself, him and another guy were top players for our league…but Steven was just those God given talents that whatever he played he was going pro. He like Teddy had a wicked left foot, was fast, and had feet. Definitely would’ve done something with soccer had he chose that path. Apparently he was really good at baseball too. If anyone knows the show “the famous jet Jackson” that was Steven. 

By U12 he was already labelled the best kid in Canada for hockey, which I found crazy how he was scouted/labelled from so early and well look at him today. 

I still have our team picture in case there are any collectors out there 😏

I played hockey against him growing up. Not in the same league, but in tournaments and stuff. That Markham team was incredible. I think they went a whole season undefeated in our last year, even beating all the Toronto teams that don’t have boundaries and can stack their teams. He was way better than everyone else and they’d just keep him and Michael Del Zotto on the ice all game it felt like. There was never any doubt that Stamkos would be a star in the NHL.

[rydermike]

8 hours ago, Shway said:

This story reminds me of an NHL guy named Steven Stamkos. I played rep soccer with him for 3 years at Markham Soccer Club.

I remember Markham's rep teams being called the Markham Lightning. Funny coincidence that he ended up playing for the Tampa Bay Lightning.

[Shway]

1 hour ago, rydermike said:

I remember Markham's rep teams being called the Markham Lightning. Funny coincidence that he ended up playing for the Tampa Bay Lightning.

They still are!
We wore black and yellow stripes.

 

1 hour ago, archer21 said:

I played hockey against him growing up. Not in the same league, but in tournaments and stuff. That Markham team was incredible. I think they went a whole season undefeated in our last year, even beating all the Toronto teams that don’t have boundaries and can stack their teams. He was way better than everyone else and they’d just keep him and Michael Del Zotto on the ice all game it felt like. There was never any doubt that Stamkos would be a star in the NHL.

The hockey team was Markham Waxers or something right?

[costarg]

11 hours ago, Shway said:

This story reminds me of an NHL guy named Steven Stamkos. I played rep soccer with him for 3 years at Markham Soccer Club.Myself, him and another guy were top players for our league…but Steven was just those God given talents that whatever he played he was going pro. He like Teddy had a wicked left foot, was fast, and had feet. Definitely would’ve done something with soccer had he chose that path. Apparently he was really good at baseball too. If anyone knows the show “the famous jet Jackson” that was Steven. 

Did he play CB?  Do you still have his number?  It's worth a shot.

Edited June 23, 2022 by costarg

[Shway]

1 hour ago, costarg said:

Did he play CB?  Do you still have his number?  It's worth a shot.

🤣 I remember way back when I had him on facebook I did a "hey man hows it going, do you remember me"

He was still at Sarnia Sting at the time. 

Edited June 23, 2022 by Shway