USL PRO Feature
Thursday, August 29, 2013
As Orlando City’s players sat in the locker room before Saturday night’s quarterfinal in the USL PRO Playoffs, the pregame talk swung back a year, and the Lions’ opening game of the playoffs against the Wilmington Hammerheads.
Then, coming off a season in which the side had lost just once in the regular season, the Lions were stunned early, falling into a two-goal deficit in the opening 10 minutes on their way to a 4-3 loss.
“We talked about it before the game and said, ‘remember what happened a year ago,’” said Rob Valentino by phone this week. “Last year we said all the right things, but then we went out there and our actions spoke differently and we said we didn’t want to have that feeling of disappointment coming in here again, because it was the worst thing in the world.”
Against the Pittsburgh Riverhounds, the Lions’ focus was evident. A pair of goals in the opening five minutes, both from set pieces, set the stage for victory and a place in the semifinals Friday night against the Charleston Battery at the Florida Citrus Bowl (7:30 p.m. ET, USLNation.com).
“It was just a big boost,” Valentino said. “It was exactly what we needed. Chinny and Tan set the tone for the whole game, and they really set the tone for all of us to feed off, and it was a great performance from everybody, and we’re just looking to build off that again.”
Some would make the case that Valentino has been responsible for setting the tone much of the time since arriving in Orlando. Signed ahead of the start of the club’s first season in Florida, Valentino was named the 2011 Defender of the Year, and has two All-League First Team selections to his name, making him one of the more respected center backs in the league.
While appreciative of the accolades he has earned while with the Lions, Valentino passes the credit around.
“Personal things are great,” he said. “Anybody would be lying if they said those things aren’t fun to get, and people like that stuff, but for me, at the end of the day, those things wouldn’t be possible without the great players that I play with, and without the coaching staff.
“I think if I look at myself honestly, I’m not the most talented player, I work extremely hard and I pride myself on that, but having a coach like Adrian, and being able to learn from Adrian and Ian’s experience in the league, it’s molded me into a better player every single year.”
His words, however, belie Valentino’s play, which has often been crucial to his side’s success. A prime example came last Saturday, moments after the Lions had taken a 2-0 lead, as the Riverhounds pushed forward to try and respond quickly to their early deficit. After a move down the right was switched across the field, Valentino read the play and was on hand to make a sliding clearance inside the six-yard box on Rob Vincent’s shot from the left, keeping Pittsburgh off the board.
While Valentino is making things difficult for opponents on the field, however, off the field he is playing his part in keeping things fun within the Orlando locker room. Valentino believes keeping things fun in the locker room and on the practice field has been important to the club’s success on the field, and has enjoyed the team spirit within a locker room that has its fair share of engaging personalities.
“The guys that we have here making things fun when we come into practice and into games, we just have a lot of fun with each other,” Valentino said. You look at it, and when people enjoy being around each other like that, you’re going to be successful.”
That atmosphere, according to Valentino, has permeated the entire club, from the front office to even the upper management.
“You know people want to be happy where they’re working, and I think people in the front office have fun around each other,” he said. “You’ll go in there and there will be six of the young guys that work together, they’re all in the back laughing and telling jokes while they’re getting their work done, then you’ve got all the people at the top, Phil [Rawlins] and those guys just like being around each other, it’s just really fun to see that, and then you come into the locker room and all the guys feel welcome with each other.”
When it’s time to play, though, the focus remains strictly on the field. Should the Lions defeat the defending champion Battery on Friday night, there is the chance they would get one last crack this season at a Richmond Kickers side that defeated Orlando twice in the regular season. While it would be easy to look ahead, Valentino knows from last year’s experience that it would be a mistake to do so.
“We’ve just got to take it one game at a time,” Valentino said. “We’re focused on Charleston and nothing else right now, and after Friday hopefully we’ll be able to go on and focus on that next game, but until then, we’re just focused on Charleston.”