With J Hutcherson -- Credit Brad Friedel for setting the Ripken mark in the English Premier League, along with the kind of quote that basically says all anybody ever needed to about an appearance record. "I have never appeared in a game hoping to attain an appearance record. I appear because I am under contract to play football and I love football."
Add to that the opportunity to play football, and credit Blackburn for letting Friedel establish himself. Yes, it's easier for goalkeepers than it has been for American field players in Europe for one simple reason. Keepers are not only allowed, but expected to make mistakes.
Everywhere else on the field, the roster push is much more pronounced. Not only are you as good as your last appearance, but there's the added incentive of multiple options backing you up. That's where too many Americans in Europe find themselves, with at best a half chance.
Yes, that can bolder on jingoism when pushed too far, but at the same time there are the examples. Established players dropping down the depth chart too easily. Management shifts putting club captains on the bench. A mediocre afternoon overshadowing the work put in to get to that point.
Sure, happens all the time regardless of nationality. Yet it seems to happen more often to American players. I'm not suggesting an over-arching reason, just simply putting it out there. An American keeper now holds the appearance record for the English Premier League while American field players continue to struggle to put together an extended career.
Moving on, we get people contacting us here at the Players Association asking about friends and relatives who have a story linking them to the US National Team or elsewhere. Most of the time, there's no proof that they played at full National Team level, but every now and then it's someone who did wear the shirt for his country.
My Mom ended up asking me about a member of her Sunday School class named John Brown. Mr. Brown was part of the Liberian National Team that played Ghana in a home and away series in 1964 now known as The Game of the Century. Though Liberia lost, the games were close. Liberia made the statement that they were an emerging force in African soccer. Liberian soccer as we know it dates from those games and those players.
It's a story that any American soccer fan would understand and appreciate. A group of players and fans creating a tradition.
Mr. Brown ended up living in Charlotte, North Carolina with his wife. He died on November 25th from complications due to heart disease. He is a hero to Liberia and a dear friend to those who knew him in Charlotte. I wish I had the chance to have met him.
Comments, questions, solutions to problems that have yet to present themselves. Please, tell me all about it.
