Hey folks, Bonji posting here under Mark's login because mine seems to have disappeared, or at least I forgot it. The Rapids coaching search has been on my mind a lot recently and I've been emailing with some friends in the soccer world about it. Where are the Rapids going to go with this search? Spencer, Mariner, Fraser or Smith? The slate is clean. Surely they're going to take prudent time and talk to some folks once playoff obligations are finished. Surely...
Thanks to Class VI member JasonMa's discovery there is news on the coaching front that has me nervous. It is interesting in that it neither comes from the Rapids nor does it pertain to the head coaching position...directly.
The Rochester Raging Rhinos have released a statement saying player/assistant coach, Stephen Guppy, will be joining the Rapids come the new year as an assistant coach. What?
If it is true that Stephen Guppy has been hired by the Rapids as an assistant coach it certainly implies that the head coach matter is resolved. It implies that Gary Smith is the man for the Rapids in 2009 and beyond. I mean, a properly functioning sporting organization wouldn't hire an assistant without the input of the head coach...right?
Let's assume the previous statement is in fact true; the Rapids are a properly functioning sporting organization. In that case we need to figure out if this hiring is true or not. One unnamed, high level source inside the Rapids says it isn't. That "someone has incorrect information at the moment..." That statement has all sorts of innuendo as well. For the moment... What the heck does that mean? In a moment it will be correct?
Calls to the Rochester Rhinos found their office closed. I attempted to use their website to submit a question to Guppy himself and the form didn't seem to want to work. I called and emailed the Rapids press officer, assuming that is the right person to contact, and he wasn't at his desk. I've emailed a question to Jeff Plush and haven't received a response. Gary Smith's voice mail doesn't even have a greeting or his name on it. All lines appear to be busy right now...and I'm not a real journalist so that is as far as I'm taking it.
I was able to learn that a local media member who covers the Rapids spotted Stephen Guppy at training over the last couple weeks of the season. That person said, "everybody saw him out there." It doesn't seem like Guppy joining the Rapids is that out of the question if he's been hanging around training.
So the Rapids haven't confirmed the news and there is evidence supporting it is possible, but someone in the organization says it isn't true...right now. Clear as mud. Another stunning media relations job by the Rapids. They never seem to be able to handle this stuff as professionals. I don't get it. How hard is it to tell the Rhinos and Guppy to keep a lid on it? Summary, it could be true and as JasonMa pointed out, it clearly implies that the Rapids have made a choice on their head coach.
Let's get back to an earlier question. Are the Rapids a properly functioning sporting organization? When goal keeper coach Leo Percovich was fired earlier this season, then head coach Fernando Clavijo seemed to be left out of the equation. The Rapids said publicly it was Clavijo's decision but he told people in person otherwise. That doesn't seem like a healthy working relationship.
It is no secret that there was tension between Clavijo and the front office. If you ever ran into Clavijo in the Miami airport before a flight back to Denver he would tell you how dysfunctional the club is. Trust me. My personal hope was that with Clavijo's departure that kind of meddling and dysfunction in the front office would be done with. The assistant coaches would be the domain of the head coach...as it should be. But is it?
This situation will be a good measuring stick for that issue. Should Guppy be appointed assistant coach in January with Gary Smith at the helm then it seems all is in order, Smith got the job and brought in an assistant. The Rhinos just leaked the info too soon. However, should Smith be gone after MLS Cup and there is another head man, and Guppy still gets the job, then one has to ask who is calling the shots and why? Why can't the Rapids function as a proper sporting organization?
Will the Rapids be able to win so long as these kinds of issues persist? Sometimes I doubt it.
Posted by mark at November 5, 2008 03:49 PM