Tuesday, February 2, 2010
It took AC St. Louis exactly one signing to establish its St. Louis coaching and player connection.
That connection is midfielder Steve Ralston, who was announced Monday as the first player signed by the new professional men’s soccer team. Ralston, a native of Oakville, also will serve as the team’s assistant coach.
Ralston has played 14 seasons in Major League Soccer, the last eight in Boston with the New England Revolution. He’s been part of the MLS since it began, was the league’s rookie of the year, and holds several MLS records.
“My contract was up in New England, and negotiations were going OK,” Ralston said. “When I heard about this team in St. Louis, I asked my agent a couple weeks ago to give them a call and see what was up with that. It all snowballed pretty quickly.”
Ralston said he could have played another year in the MLS, but saw AC St. Louis as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to help build a new team from the ground up in his hometown. “It was a chance to be part of something pretty special here,” he said.
Being 36 years old and coming back from a knee injury might make Ralston seem like a short-term solution on the playing field, but in the long term, Ralston offers the club someone with drawing power among St. Louis soccer fans and experience at the highest levels of U.S. Soccer. He has made 36 appearances for the U.S. National Team and is the MLS career leader in assists, minutes played and games played. It’s that experience that he can impart to younger players on the team.
For Ralston, his deal with AC St. Louis is a chance to get into coaching and learn about that end of the game while he is still playing. From a personal standpoint, he can re-establish roots in his hometown along with his wife Rachel, a Florida native, and their three children, all of whom are age 8 or younger.
When team owner Jeff Cooper told Coach Claude Anelka of the opportunity to sign Ralston, it was his experience that stood out to Anelka. “I said to Jeff that this would be a good addition to the squad to have an experienced player like Steve and it would be great to get him,” Anelka said.
“He’s still rehabbing and there’s a chance he might not be able to play in our first game,” Cooper said. “But he has a work ethic like no other, which is why he’s still playing at age 36 at a level that hasn’t changed in 10 or 12 years.”
Ralston, who had ACL surgery three months ago, has been cleared to begin running. “I’m not going to rush it just so I can play in the first game,” Ralston said. “We have a long season and I want to be sure that I’m ready.”
Preparations for the season are already under way. The team had open tryouts on Jan. 23-24 and invitational tryouts this past weekend. Additional player signings are expected within the next week. Formal training will begin March 1 for the opening of the season in April.
Whether or not he’s dressed to play in April’s season opener, the game will be a landmark for Ralston, who attended Oakville High School and played at Forest Park Community College before leaving home to play at Florida International University.
“I’ve been gone for a long time,” said Ralston, who went from college soccer to Tampa Bay in the MLS in 1996. “The opportunity to come back and play in my hometown wasn’t the only reason why I’m here, but it was a big factor.”
Comments
DsMt16 (anonymous) says...
great signing!! getting pretty pumped up now that we can put a face to the team. I'll be happy to tell the grandkids 40 years from now when ac stl has made the jump to the MLS and become a perennial powerhouse that I was at the very first game the franchise ever played back in 2010. thanks mr cooper for all your work.
February 2, 2010 at 11:17 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )