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| Steve Goldberg | Charlotte Post |
| Greenville Triumph's Jamie Smith advances the ball in a 1-0 loss to Charlotte Independence on April 12 at American Legion Memorial Stadium. Smith is the son of Charlotte FC coach Dean Smith. |
Most of the time, Dean Smith can be found in front of the Charlotte FC bench as head coach, intently watching soccer.
Less often, but perhaps much more important in the grand scheme of things, you catch him in the stands a little further back, just watching, without making any decisions or directly influencing the match. can do. Smith is also a soccer dad and is committed to supporting his son on the pitch and attending games as often as possible.
Smith's son Jamie started on defense in the Greenville Triumph's game against Charlotte Independence on Friday at American Legion Memorial Stadium. Last week, the senior Smith drove four hours from Charlotte to Knoxville for Triumph's U.S. Open Cup game against One Knoxville SC and returned in time for training the next morning. It will be a much easier drive from his home in south Charlotte to Memorial Stadium.
The Jacks (2 wins, 1 loss, 0 losses) withstood the tenacious attack of Triumph (3 wins, 1 loss, 1 draw), who lead the USL One League, and suffered their first loss in five games. The visiting Triumphs controlled possession (64%) and outscored Charlotte 22-8 (6-4 shots on target), but Juan Obregon's diving header in the 51st minute gave the Jacks a 1-0 lead. The results were broadly divided.
The young Smith played well, hitting four shots from his right-back position.
Dean Smith said his son Jamie's rise to the college game, first at Limestone College in Gaffney, S.C., and then at North Carolina State University, drew him to Carolina, where many Asheville natives He candidly said that he covered more ground than he did. , to Myrtle Beach, where Jamie played one summer, where the family purchased a vacation home.
That's probably not the biggest reason, but the existing personal investment and reputation of the Carolinas makes the Charlotte FC job attractive for him, who still has plenty of potential to thrive on the touchline in the Premier League. You could argue that it was helpful.
Triumph head coach Rick Wright said, “The great thing is I think Dean is more of a father to his son than a coach trying to coach him.” “I think they have a great relationship. I think Dean is Jamie's biggest fan, and I'm no stranger to that.”
Asked if Jamie showed any traits of a coach's son, Wright said: You can tell he's been in the game for a long time. He has also been blessed with great players. He brings a lot to the club. He certainly brings a lot to the dressing room. ”
remained in due west
Like Jamie, Wright, who was born in Bermuda, first came to the United States to play college soccer at South Carolina. However, the situation is different. Jamie was looking forward to an adventure in America, but Wright was less enthusiastic.
In 1976, Wright's father took him to Erskine College in Due West, South Carolina. They had a very strong football program there. He had been in contact with coaches who were looking forward to adding a player with Rick's skills.
The problem was that Rick, who was already playing in Bermuda's first division, had no interest in the college game. But his father suggested he at least try it out over the weekend, and he took a business trip to Atlanta. Or so he said. His father returned to Bermuda, and Rick remained at Erskine, where he became a two-time All-American and a second-round draft pick in the NASL.
Wright, who had been an assistant coach to John Harkes since Triumph's first season, was given the head coaching position when Harkes resigned after last season.
Both Independence and Triumph will play in the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup next Tuesday. The Jacks will host Rhode Island in Charlotte, while Greenville will face Louisville City FC.
Rematch with Toronto
Smith will be back in coaching mode Saturday night when the Crowns take on Toronto in the first rematch of the year at Bank of America Stadium.
On March 9th, Charlotte did whatever it took to bring home at least one souvenir from her trip to Toronto.
Junior Urso, Kerwin Vargas, Enzo Coppetti twice, and Jere Uronen on a free kick all gave Charlotte legitimate chances to take the lead, but mistakes and big saves kept them from scoring. Like last week's game in New England, it was a story of missed opportunities.
Toronto had several chances, but the most threatening one was a low, powerful shot from Federico Bernardeschi that was saved by Cristian Carina. But as the match progressed, a draw felt like the most likely outcome. That's what Lorenzo Insigne did against a much more dominant New England team earlier in the season, until he scored a spectacular goal out of nothing.
He won the ball near midfield on the left side, ran down the left side and cut right across the top of the penalty area, just about 25 yards out, half a step ahead of Scott Arfield, who played in Game 8. A few minutes ago. The diminutive but deadly Italian seized the moment and delivered a fast-rising curveball that would be the envy of even baseball's greatest pitchers.
Instead of a win or a tie, it was Charlotte's first loss of the season. There was a similar feeling after the loss to New England and the last tie. Although he didn't earn any cost points in the Eastern Conference standings, the season is long and there are signs of hope for Smith.
“I've always said it before, if you're creating chances, this is not a bad place to be,” he said. “But we need to start converting and the players know that. But if we keep creating (chances), there will always be chances.”
And Charlotte are creating chances, especially in front of goal with strikers Enzo Coppetti and Patrick Agyemang creating chances with the ball at their feet. Also Kerwin Vargas. Agyeman is a particularly dangerous player, but he has only scored one goal. Coppetti hasn't hit the net yet. The same goes for Vargas. It remains to be seen whether that is a prevailing trend or just a harsh spigot waiting to be opened.
Toronto will be a new test. Insigne's absence with a hamstring injury will give Crown one less problem to solve. Even so, if they can prevent Toronto from scoring, they can secure points, but they won't be able to win three games unless they score at least one point.
