Very rarely does someone from Attleboro get the opportunity to play for a major professional championship but this Sunday night at 9 PM, former Attleboro High player Geoff Cameron and the Houston Dynamo will try to take home the MLS Cup from David Beckham and the LA Galaxy. As if that isn’t a difficult enough task the Galaxy has the benefit of playing at home in the Home Depot Center, where they lost only one game in 2011. The Dynamo will also be without the man that sparked their offense all season, MVP candidate and MLS Best XI Brad Davis, who won’t be able to play due to an injury picked up in the semi-final win over Kansas City.
It seems like there’s a lot stacked against Houston in the finals, but if you speak to Cameron about the challenge don’t expect anything but confidence, “People said that we couldn’t win without him [Davis], that we weren’t a complete team, but I think everyone stepped their game up when he went down against Kansas City. It was 0-0 when he went off and Adam (Moffat) took the set pieces and we scored on a set piece and then we scored a run of play goal. Obviously he’s a big part of our team, but at the same time we’ve got a lot of players that can step up and play the role and that’s what we can do.”
Heading into the playoffs there wasn’t a lot of chatter about the Dynamo despite the club’s history of MLS Cup titles and they continue to fly under the radar even into the title game. Of course lining up against internationals with the notoriety of Landon Donovan, Robbie Keane, and David Beckham makes it difficult to get much press but Cameron believes this could work to the Dynamo’s advantage, “they’re supposed to win so for us, we have nothing to lose. Let’s just go out there, have fun, kick butt, and leave it all on the field.”
Cameron is an Attleboro native who learned the game playing on local fields and playing pickup games at the Armory on Park St. His talent got him onto the varsity practice field while he was still in middle school, eventually leading to two years with the Bombardiers and off-seasons playing with the club team Bayside United. His skills advanced quickly and he chose to play two years at Providence Country Day before turning in an all-A10 performance while at URI. But for Cameron no matter where his career leads him it’s imperative to remember his roots and the man that kick started his love for the game, Attleboro High coach Peter Pereira.
“I’ve been very, very close to him for a long time, most of my life. He still gets up in the morning and opens up the armory and gives a place, an opportunity, for the kids to play pick-up soccer. For me there’s nothing better to see than that. He has the heart and the love of the game and he just spreads it out to give people an opportunity to play. That’s a fantastic thing that he does personally and he’s been a close friend of the family for a real long time and I can’t thank him enough for the support that he’s given me and the things that he did for me. There’s nothing better that I can do in return than to come back and help him out, showing up, and hanging out with the kids. Any way I can be a role model and any advice I can give the kids is the best thing for me.”
One of the players that has benefited from the advice that Cameron gives out on his frequent visits to Bombardier practices is junior midfielder Dominik Machado, currently part of the New England Revolution developmental squad. Machado is taking advantage of an academy system that Cameron didn’t have and the current MLS all-star makes sure to keep the potential MLS player grounded, “I told him 100 percent always remember where you came from because if you ever forget that then you’ll end up becoming nothing. I just said stay focused, stay humble, and stay hungry. If you’re hungry then you’ll accomplish a lot of things.
Discipline, dedication, and desire, if you have those then you can accomplish anything you want in life.”
If Geoff Cameron ever forgets that mantra he need only look at the tattoo on his arm as a reminder. That discipline and desire became critical to his career when he suffered a PCL tear and missed nearly four months of the 2010 season. After a rehab stint that was nearly half as long as expected he finished the 2010 season strong. At the beginning of 2011, Dynamo Coach Dominic Kinnear moved Cameron into the midfield but two months ago decided the defense needing shoring up and since the move back to his natural position at central defender the Dynamo have caught fire. Houston will enter the MLS Cup with a 263-minute shutout streak.
Cameron’s move back to central defense for his club team has coincided with a change in management at the national team level and the calls for him to represent the US as it heads into World Cup qualifying next summer have increased considerably. This isn’t something that has gone unnoticed by the player himself, “I hear that all the time, even guys on our team who play for their national teams say ‘why don’t you play for yours’ and I simply say I don’t know man. I’m just going to wait for my opportunity and obviously my ultimate goal is to make it into the World Cup in Brazil.”
One of the best routes into the national team set-up, whether Bob Bradley or Jürgen Klinsmann is the coach, is to play regularly for a team in Europe. Prior to the injury last season there were rumors of potential European suitors and now that he is back playing at a high level those rumors should increase when the European transfer window opens again in January. While Cameron’s focus is intently on his team and this Sunday’s final there is always the individual goal to play on the biggest stage.
“In talking with my agent there are some teams interested over in Europe but like my agent said, he wants me to stay focused on the season and win a championship. Obviously one of my goals in life is to play in Europe. I had the opportunity to play for Nottingham Forest in the Championship [the 2nd tier of British soccer] for a bit last off-season after my injury, to stay sharp, and I thought it helped me out this season playing center-mid and center back. Going into pre-season I felt really good so the experience over there was amazing and I’d 100 percent love to play over there, so that’s one of my goals but at the same time I have a guaranteed contract for next year and we’ll see after that.”
For now Geoff Cameron will put aside concerns about the national team and the call of Europe to focus on the opportunity to win the MLS Cup. All that stands in the way is the league’s best team, on their home field, with three international stars, but the Dynamo defender isn’t in awe. He’s ready to work, “Make sure whenever Beckham has the ball just pressure, pressure, and make him uncomfortable. Don’t give him time to look up and just hit a ball to a free spot because he can put a ball on a dime. The same thing with Landon and Keane, you got to be wary of those guys because they’re clever. They have experience, so you just can’t give them time on the ball and you have to make them uncomfortable. That’s one thing we do, we’re committed, we don’t stop, and we’ll keep running.”
The MLS Cup will air on ESPN Sunday night at 9 PM from the Home Depot Center in Carson, CA.
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