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About Street roots. (Portland, OR) 1998-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 13, 2013)
Street roots Sept. 13, 2013 PLAYER, from page 1 attributes to play football i f you so desire. What was it that p u t you on the soccer path instead o f the USAmerican football path? D.H.: I have older siblings, and my dad didn’t want any of us playing football at a young age. He didn’t think our bodies were ready for that kind of pounding, so we decided to play soccer and grew to love soccer. And, you know, my dad did not have a problem with it. He eventually stopped coaching football and started coaching soccer for me. J.B.: You mentioned the pounding that you take in football at a young age. B u t soccer’s a fu ll contact sport as well. No one knows this better than you. You’re coming off a broken leg. Aside from the obvious sort o f physical rehab regiment that you have to undergo to comeback from such an injury, what have you done psychologically to overcome this hurdle? D.H.: I have a good support system. My parents are constantly there. My older brother, older sister, my girlfriend, who’s from Oregon, they are constantly around me, supporting me, there to cheer me on. To have them there was a big boost. If I didn’t have them there, I don’t think I would have been as diligent in my rehab as I have been, and worked as hard as I have to get back. That’s really helped. And just to see the outpouring and support from the Timbers Army has beert fantastic. When it first happened and they had the banners in the crowd and everything. It really showed the love towards me and it shows that people appreciate the hard work I’m putting in on the field, that they appreciate what I do. J.B.: Indeed they do. Timbers General Manager Gavin Wilkinson once called you “a fa n favorite, ” and he was right. Aside from the support of Timbers Army and the fans in general, what else do you like about being in Portland? D.H.: This is my third year in Portland. Outside of soccer, I love the culture here. I actually live on the east side so I get to see so many different kinds of people. I go to a lot of different restaurants, a lot of different bars. To mingle and hear some of these people’s stories is pretty amazing. Some of these people have been all over the world and come back to Portland. Also, my girlfriend and I, every weekend we go on a different hike or to see the sights like Multnomah Falls or Eagle Creek. I’ve really enjoyed the different things that go on in Oregon. It’s just a great place to live and to spend my twenties. "In this day and age, In this My previous three years, before I came to country, people should be Portland, I spent in able to live however they Salt Lake [City], so want and be free and open this is quite an eye opening experience about it and not be • and I’ve loved every persecuted for their beliefs moment of it so far. or how they live their lives." J.B.: I wanted to ask you about the locker room life a little bit. .You’re from , Pennsylvania, but you have people from all around the world on the team. What kinds of things you do to get to know each other, to relate to each other, to get along? We know you have the common language o f soccer, but what else do you do? D.H.: The big thing - which I haven’t been able to be a part of this year - is road trips. You learn so much about your teammates on road trips, you know, sitting next to guys on the plane, rooming with guys, sitting down at dinner with guys, you learn so much about your teammates. If they have a family, what they’re home life is like, what growing up was like for them, other places they’ve played, people they’ve met. I haven’t been able to experience that this year, but in the previous two years I’ve gotten to know a lot of guys, guys from Columbia, guys from Scotland. I think that’s what’s so great about soccer — you get to meet people from all over the world. You play other sports? Football is not a very diverse sport. Baseball? You get a lot of Spanish-speaking players in baseball. Basketball? It’s getting more diverse, but not as much as soccer. That’s what’s so great about soccer. In the locker room every day I sit next to Darlington Nagbe on one side and Sal Zizzo on the other side. I know everything about their lives now because we sit there and we talk every morning. Things like that help you get to know your teammates. J.B.: Who among your teammates do you admire most? D.H.: Definitely, Jack Jewsbury. He’s been around for a long time, he does it the right way, he’s a great pro. I hope I’m still playing at his age and as well as he is also. I admire his persistence, the way he plays. You see Jack out in the community. You don’t ever see him getting thrown out of games or causing trouble off the field. I aspire to be that kind of pro. Another person that I really admire is Donovan Ricketts for the same reasons. Donovan’s got a few years under his belt, he’s played all over the world, and he has won championships. Hopefully someday I’ll have the decorated career that he’s had. For these guys to be able to play as long as they have and still play at such a level, hopefully, I can do that. J.B.: Shifting gears, what’s the best book you’ve read recently and what do you like about it? D.H.: I’m very much into sci-fi fantasy books and I got hooked on “The Game of Thrones” TV show, so I started to read all the books. The most recent book in the series was the fifth book, “A Dance With Dragons,” and it was an awesome book — I’m into the continuing storyline. I enjoy getting lost in those books and getting out of my everyday life. J.B.: In May 2013, Robbie Rogers o f the LA Galaxy became the first openly gay man to compete in a major professional sports league in North America. What’s your reaction to this? D.H.: I think it’s fantastic for Robbie. In this day and age, in this country, people should be able to live however they want and be free and open about it and not be persecuted for their beliefs or how they live their lives. I was a little indifferent to that lifestyle, and as matter of fact, I actually attended a same-sex marriage last night. It was the first one I’ve ever been to and it really opened my eyes. The two young ladies had their families and friends there at the wedding and there was so much love and everybody was so happy for them. It really opened my eyes. I think I respect that even more now than I did before. J.B.: One last thing: the 2013 pointln-time count o f homelessness in Portland and M ultnomah County found that nearly 3,000 people were homeless, either sleeping in an emergency shelter or completely unsheltered. That’s a lot o f people. Would you like to comment on what you think would be the best, most humane path forward on homelessness in Portland? D.H.: I just want people to keep an open mind about it. I see so many people who just ignore the people on the street. Be polite to them. They are still people. Timbers’ D avid Horst gets his hands dirty to help pla n t a com m unity garden a t H B Lee Middle School in August. PHOTO COURTESY THE PORTLAND TIMBERS
