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