Coach for the Houston team? Has there been any news in the Houston press about whether or not Dominic Kinnear has officially accepted the coaching job for next year? I heard from someone who knows a couple of the players, and they said that about a week ago Dom told them that he had not yet decided if he was going or not. He said he was definitely leaning toward going, and that he wanted to make his decision fairly quickly, but that it was not a done deal yet. I haven't seen anything in the local San Jose press on this, was wondering what the word is in Houston? I'd guess that it would be official one way or another in the next week or two, maybe they gave him until January to decide.
Re: Coach for the Houston team? Interesting thought on Dominic Kinnear not coming with the team, that would be a very bad way to start for Houston. Craig Waibel was quoted as saying something like: "as long as Dominic is sailing this ship we are going to be good". Even if Kinnear came with the team, my guess on compensation for assistant coaches would make it a near-impossibility for them to move their families. The Draft is coming up and training camp starts in a month - time is short.
Re: Coach for the Houston team? If they owned their homes in the Bay Area they will have no problem selling them, nor would they have a problem finding comparable (if not considerably nicer) housing in Houston in a very short period of time. Even if they didn't, they could easily rent for a time while they were looking. This is not unlike any other corporate relocation......it happens all the time and even the lower paid employees figure it out.
Re: Coach for the Houston team? Agreed that it is not unlike a corporate relocation. However the assistant coach of an MLS team is more likely to get the majority of their income from endeavors outside of MLS (i.e. coaching, teaching, etc). Sure they can "buy more" house in Houston and sure they can eventually get comparable supplementary jobs ... but if you have a family and income set in the Bay Area and your choice is to move to Houston with/without family and initially (at least) without the income, the Houston alternative does not look so attractive. I think you would find that in most corporate relocations - most employees opt out of the move. The more important question however continues to center on Dominic Kinnear and if he will come with the team.
Re: Coach for the Houston team? I haven't yet seen any official type of announcement in the local media.
Re: Coach for the Houston team? Dom is Coach of the Year, largely the architect of the hugely successful (until playoffs) 2005 Quakes, and highly respected by his players. I don't know his contract status but I wonder if by dragging his feet he can negotiate a better contract. On the one hand, he's nearly a California Bay Area native with kids in school, etc. But on the other hand if he doesn't take the job, he's unemployed and right now there aren't a lot of job openings in the Bay Area for professional soccer coach. Plus he's got a chance to build on what he did last year and possibly get his name into consideration for national team coaching duties, etc. Plus I'm sure he really likes coaching this group of players he's put together. I'd be fairly surprised if he doesn't take the job.
Re: Coach for the Houston team? Kinnear may be thinking of sitting out a year and then coaching the Montreal team when it launches.
Re: Coach for the Houston team? There was a short story in the Chron yesterday about Dom looking at houses in Bellaire, Sugar Land, and West U. He was (not surprisingly) thrilled about the low housing costs here compared to the Bay Area. Here's the link: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/other/3553396.html This seems to suggest that he's going to live and coach here.
Re: Coach for the Houston team? I hope so. If we get the Earthquakes and we dont get Dominic Kinnear and Danny Califf - we will be battling Salt Lake City and Colorado for a playoff spot.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/other/3553396.html Kinnear goes house hunting Away from the pitch, Dominic Kinnear, the head coach of Houston's new pro soccer team, is already impressed with benefits that come with the move from California's Bay Area. "Especially with the houses' prices," Kinnear said. Kinnear was in Houston on Wednesday with wife, Colleen, shopping for a house and meeting with Oliver Luck, who will become the MLS team's president on Sunday. "We've had a good day. We've seen some places, and so far we've enjoyed our stay," Kinnear said. Among the areas the couple checked out were Sugar Land, West University and Bellaire.
Re: Coach for the Houston team? Califf is long one. He's probably in the air right now flying over Texas to his new home in Denmark. He's going to play for Aalborg BK next year. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=353261&root=mls&cc=5901
Re: Kinnear goes house hunting (Surprised with house prices)--Houston Chronicle Dec. Threads merged. See the link above.
This from the San Jose Mercury News today: "....Kinnear has not yet re-signed with MLS but said the deal is “pretty much done.” He was in Houston over the weekend house-shopping… " It is good that he deal is "pretty much done" rather than "not close to done" - but I'd love to see an official announcement and find out who the assistant coaches will be. (this quote was lifted from a string on the Earthquakes Board)
Re: Kinnear goes house hunting (Surprised with house prices)--Houston Chronicle Dec. IIRC, Glenn mentioned in passing on his radio show this week that Kinnear may have already put a bid in on a house and that Pat Onstad, Wade Barrett, and Dwayne DeRosario have all been looking around neighborhoods. I was glad to hear that DeRosario was looking for housing in Houston instead of Spain (although I suppose he could still leave).
I really hope the new MLS fans of Houston welcome Dominic and his lovely little family. Not only are you getting the brightest young coach on the American scene (and my bet for the US job at some point), but one of the most genuine, nicest, sharpest, and funniest guys you will ever come across. As a 10 year San Jose Clash/Quake fan, Coach K is the personality that I will miss the most. Hannah