Looking Back at The Drafts...With Colorado Rapids Assistant Coach Murphy...

This weekend the Rapids posted a write up of the off-season by assistant coach John Murphy. I'd like to highlight his comments on the draft. Specifically the following:

I feel that people still tend to look at the MLS Draft as they do in football and other sports, but that is a misconception. The player pool is not deep enough to dictate that type of philosophy. They see that we have drafted players who play in a certain position and feel that we are stockpiling defenders or midfielders and that is not the case: we are stockpiling good players. Individuals who are functional, can play more than one position, and are comfortable on the ball. To keep a depth chart of strikers, midfielders and defenders is a good organizational practice, but the philosophy of choosing the best player available is often the rule of thumb.

When you look at the players taken by the Rapids you can really see Murphy and Co. practicing what they preach. While Ciaran O'Brien is listed as a midfielder, I believe the Rapids selected him 5th overall because he was the best player available, in the coach's minds, at that time. He has played centrally through his career but in MLS it will be up to him to excel at whatever position the coaches want to see him play. For the Rapids a huge hole has existed on the left side of midfield. If O'Brien can challenge the new left sided players and Colin Clark, the youngster will have a better chance of staying in MLS.

The same can be said for the rest of the Rapids' picks in the SuperDraft and Supplemental Draft.

I particularly like this quote from Coach Murphy:

The internet is certainly the place for the press and fans to discuss the college player pool. I think it is great that we are starting to develop a “buzz” about certain players as the draft approaches, but even our harshest critics would be shocked if we allowed that to dictate our decision making on draft day. Bottom line is, there are many reasons why certain players are picked, and some of them the general public cannot be privy to.

I hear ya Murphy. I actually had a similar conversation with the coach the day before the draft and I'm sure my text message to him moments before the draft, requesting he select Patrick Nyarko if available, was in the back of his mind when he wrote the above. He's right too. While my colleagues and I no doubt watch way more college soccer then the average fan, we are arm chair coaches. People like me think our experience in Football Manager 2008 makes us uniquely qualified to select players for a team. Thanks for the wakeup call, Murph.

I really look forward to seeing how the young guys come along for the Rapids this season. Every season I love the build up to the draft...I love watching and commenting on the draft but I really love following the youngsters come into the league and try to make their way. Not all of the players drafted will make the opening day team. In fact, only a fraction will, but we're rooting for you guys. Work hard and impress us. Be the next Colin Clark, Danny Wasson and Bouna Condoul. The sky is the limit, especially in a league like MLS where rosters are only so deep and players need to cover for their injured teammates.

Players reported for duty here in Colorado this weekend. I can't wait for opening day!