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Old 08-11-2014, 09:19 PM   #1
bbgunn
College Benchwarmer
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Osaka, Japan via Honolulu, Hawaii via Birmingham, Alabama
Aloha Means Soccer (FM14)

PRELUDE



There's nothing quite like a sunset in Hawaii. Such a beautiful thing. I was lucky that the balcony to my second-floor apartment faced west toward the Waianae mountain range. I didn't have a view of the ocean, but I did have a view of the mountains, and that often sufficed when I needed to wind down after a long day.

As I sat on the lawn chair on my balcony, watching the sun descend behind the mountains, drinking a sugar-free iced tea with just the right splash of lemon, my cell phone rang. It was Kimo Thompson, one of my best friends. We went to the same high school together, West Honolulu High School. We played soccer there, then we both got soccer scholarships to the University of Hawaii and played there as well. I guess I had a bit more potential than Kimo did; he couldn't get a pro contract, and he stayed in Honolulu and went into business, but he continued to play soccer for local amateur teams, and he remained connected to the soccer world. Eventually, he became the organizer for the largest adult amateur league in the state.

Meanwhile, after graduating from college, I didn't get any consideration from any Major League Soccer teams, but I did sign with Orange County in what was then called the A-League, the league right under MLS. I injured my hamstring early on, though, and missed most of the season with recurring hamstring problems. After the season, the club let me go.

Over the next couple of years, I tried latching on to any sort of professional team. Lower level teams in the USA and Canada. Japan. Puerto Rico. But nothing really worked out, so in 2004 I came back to Hawaii. With my teaching degree in hand, I was able to teach physical education at my alma mater, West Honolulu High School. The next year, my old soccer coach retired, and I was chosen to take over the soccer team that I played for as a student.

We did well. It took some time, but we built a powerhouse. We shocked the mighty private school soccer teams to win two state championships the last two years. I realized that I really enjoyed coaching soccer, and I began to think about the possibilities at higher levels. Could I coach collegiate soccer, or even for a professional team?

I talked about my ambitions with Kimo one morning about a month ago at a sports bar as we watched Chelsea-Aston Villa. Kimo, a very charismatic guy, had all sorts of connections. He said, "Braddah, if you really serious about this, let me see what I can do for ya."

I hadn't heard from Kimo since then... until I got that phone call.

"Howzit, braddah?" I answered.

"Hey, B.B., I got you a good gig, cuz."

"You serious?"

"Yeah. And you won't believe where."

"Wait... where are you sending me, Kimo?"

"Aloha Stadium."

"You stay joking, braddah. Stop fooling around."

"No joke, cuz. Some people are starting up a team here in Honolulu. It's called the Islanders. A semi-pro team. They're ready to go, but they need a manager. They're really impressed with your work at West Honolulu, and they think you can do a good job for them."

My heart started racing. "A pro team... here... in Honolulu?"

"Semi-pro."

"This is awesome, man! Mahalo, braddah!"

"No prob, cuz. But you need to meet with Mr. Armstrong, the chairman, tomorrow."

And just like that, I was the new manager of a semi-professional team in Honolulu. It would be the highest-level soccer team in Hawaii since Team Hawaii in the old NASL in 1977. But this is no first-division team. This is a sixth division team.

The official name for the team is Honolulu Islanders FC. They play at 50,000-seat Aloha Stadium, although I'm not sure how they're going to fill that place. Even the University of Hawaii football team doesn't sell out. Anyway, the Islanders play in the Gold Coast Division 2, which is part of the sixth division of the eight-level U.S. soccer pyramid. That league consists of teams all around the western United States and Canada. Right above the Gold Coast Division 2, in the fifth division, is the Gold Coast Premier League, again consisting of western teams. If you keep going up, you have the USL-PRO 2 WEST, then the USL-PRO (the lowest nationwide league), then the NASL, and at the top, MLS. (All the teams in the seventh and eighth divisions are amateur.)

Of course, it's way too early to talk about promotion to MLS. I'm just excited to be managing a somewhat professional team here in my hometown!
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U of Hawaii | U of Alabama | Montreal Impact | Montreal Canadiens | West Ham | West Indies cricket | Portland Trail Blazers


Last edited by bbgunn : 08-11-2014 at 09:32 PM.
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