|
|
When Aron Winter was asked by the media to talk about the positives from Toronto FC’s ninth consecutive loss (a 2-0 result going DC United’s way), he simply said:
“Jeremy Hall.”
It was not the typical response Winter had been chugging along with throughout the 2012 season so far. The cliché-riddled automated answer full of “working hard”s and “done it well”s, was replaced, instead, by the name of a single player who made a substitute appearance for the first time in a Toronto FC shirt.
For Aron Winter, the bright spot on the day, was Jeremy Hall.
“I didn’t know he said that!” said Hall, when we told him about Aron Winter’s early praises. “Personally, it’s my fourth year in this league, when they traded for me, they told me they wanted me to come in and step up, with my experience, and just be a leader. We have a lot of older veterans and we have a lot of young guys, so I just wanted to come in and spark something and work hard.”
“It’s hard to take praise when you lose like that,” Hall continued. “It’s a team sport and we’re just trying to get out of this rough time.”
When Toronto FC picked up Hall from FC Dallas over the offseason, not much was known about the fullback, who has three MLS seasons to his name already. He came in, injured, and has been working steadily to regain fitness. He’s back, now, and working towards a regular spot.
“I’m just trying to find the pace of the game,” said Hall. “It’s my first game coming back from injury and I’m still not 100 per cent fit where I want to be, especially in the position that I play in, and the way I play, I like to get up and down the field, so I still have a ways to go, but definitely a progression.”
“Physically I feel great,” Hall continued. “Fitness-wise I still think I have a ways to go. I’ve been working hard with the trainers to get back my fitness, in the gym. It’s just game fitness; I need to gain some fitness. I think there’s a couple reserve games lined up so hopefully I get some minutes.”
Certainly, his first few minutes for Toronto FC, an appearance in the midfield, was unorthodox – supporters expected Hall to replace Eckersley, or Morgan. Instead, Hall came on for an injured Torsten Frings, slotted into the midfield, and performed well on his TFC debut.
“You know, I play a lot of positions since I’ve been in the league, and I think it’s helped me out with being so versatile,” said Hall. “I play in the back, or in the midfield, and, especially in that point of the game, you’re just trying to come in and buzz around, break up plays, connect passes and trying to get in the box, work up and down – I’ve played there a couple times in training but in the game, that was my first time.”
Hall may just be that breath of depth this team has been searching for. When asked what supporters can expect from him, Hall said,
“Just a hard worker, like I said, I’m going to work hard continue to get fit – I still think I have a ways to go in that department. Once I get up there, I’m a hard worker, playing both sides of the ball, getting stuck in and hopefully, on the attacking end, getting some goals and assists, and defending, hard-tackling and being a problem to some opposing attackers.”
As match-fitness and consistency form the focus of Hall’s work, there’s still time for play. The month of May gives footballers a healthy distraction in the form of the Champions League Final, when Chelsea FC takes on Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena. Asked to pick one, Hall answered immediately:
“Bayern! I think they look very strong, a lot of good, attacking weapons, and they’re playing at home, so I think they have a good advantage there.”
|