 Minute91 hosted a Live Chat with Columbus Crew Defender Danny O'Rourke on Wednesday, November 5th, at 5:30PM EST where fans interviewed the former Hermann trophy winner as his team heads into a win-or-go-home second leg in this year's MLS playoffs vs. Kansas City.
Live Chat with Crew Defender Danny O'Rourke (11/05/2008)
minute91: Welcome, everyone, to minute91’s Live Chat with Danny O’Rourke. Danny will be with us shortly and is eager to answer your questions.
minute91: Quick admin item: if you have a question for Danny, simply enter your name, write the question, and click send. It will be placed in the queue and published to the chat in the order it was received. We will try to get to all of your questions, but if we are unable, an email address will be provided at the end of the chat where you can send your unanswered questions and they will be forwarded to Danny. And please…keep it clean!
minute91: Also, stick around until the end of the Chat to find out how you can win Danny’s jersey.
[Danny O’Rourke]
Hey guys thanks for having me
minute91: Hi Danny, thank you for joining us today. I know you’ve got a lot to discuss with a huge match approaching against Kansas City, whom you’ll face this Saturday in your hometown of Columbus. I know there are many fans with questions, so without delay, let’s get started…
[Question From eric s.]
How does your mentality change in this game compared to the last game?
[Danny O’Rourke]
to be quite honest with you, my mentality is the same each time I step on the field. however, being the playoffs, there is no room for error so we have to be completely focused for Saturday’s game.
[Question From m.t.]
how important was it to come out of KC with a tie?
[Danny O’Rourke]
to be able to come back to our home field with a tie gives us extreme confidence b/c we've been successful here all year. the ability for steve to come into the game with limited time and score a quality goal for us was incredible.
[Question From Myles Washburn]
How do you think you have adjusted to playing a new position this season?
[Danny O’Rourke]
it’s been and still is a learning curve for me. i had the tendency to want to win every ball so i've had to learn a different mindset. however, playing with such talented defenders as chad, frankie, gino and others has allowed me to help the team to the playoffs.
[Question From JPT]
what are the keys to shutting down the KC offense?
[Danny O’Rourke]
well they have a mixture of talented attackers and hard workers so it keeps us on our toes. lopez is a world class player and the addition of guys like thompson and gomez along with solid midfield play of arnaud and jewsbury, it’s a tough task. but we just have to stay in a good shape and play like we have been all year.
[Question From Jason from Miami]
Danny, how do you compare playing for a team from Columbus, your hometown, to playing for teams from other cities like NY Red Bulls?
[Danny O’Rourke]
good question. well i grew up a crew fan so being able to represent my hometown and wear the jersey that so many quality players have worn before is an honor. playing in NY and san jose were two great experiences and i was fortunate enough to learn a ton from those two places, but nothing beats playing in front of your friends and family and the great fans of columbus.
[Question From Rawson, IU mgr]
Hey, first off the corn rows back in 2003 were baller, second, you think IU is makin' the college cup this year?
[Danny O’Rourke]
haha...yeah i miss the cornrows but they were pretty uncomfortable. IU has had a roller coaster of a year, but you can never count the hoosiers out of the college cup.
[Question From Pilar]
Which stadium in the league do you like playing in the most?
[Danny O’Rourke]
wow. besides the obvious being crew stadium, i would have to say toyota park in chicago. but i'm looking forward to playing in salt lakes new stadium.
[Question From J. Kim]
what type of player would help bolster your squad for next season? Any names thrown around that we can expect in a Crew jersey?
[Danny O’Rourke]
well having the year that we've had this year and the overall depth of our team, i don't know what type of player we would need. i'll leave those types of decisions up to the sigi and the front office.
[Question From bloomington soccer]
how does playing for Yeagley compare to playing for Sigi?
[Danny O’Rourke]
well it’s difficult to compare two coaches from two totally different environments. coach yeagley was not only a coach but a father figure and someone I keep in touch with regularly. but with sigi being a professional coach, it’s totally different. it’s a job. they both are extremely intelligent about the game of soccer and both have helped me out in getting better each day.
[Question From Marci from Ohio]
Do you have any pets?
[Danny O’Rourke]
well I have a childhood dog named buddy that lives at my folk’s house. its perfect b/c I can see him whenever I like. but no pets for me yet.
[Question From Kevin (Columbus, OH)]
Playing for NY, you were close friends with Jeff Parke and Jon Conway. Have you had a chance to talk to them since their suspension?
[Danny O’Rourke]
yeah it’s very unfortunate what happened to those two. being able to know those two for years, they are great guys who would never do anything intentionally. I've sorta let it die down but this offseason I will definitely get in touch with them and wish them the best.
[Question From Max]
Kyle Beckerman answered questions a couple weeks ago. As you know, he went Project-40 instead of going to college. You and Kyle are almost the same age, but he is an MLS veteran, do you think players who chose college over P-40 feel obligated to play in the league until they are older since their “career” was delayed due to college? Do you wish you had gone P-40?
[Danny O’Rourke]
k lot of stuff to answer here. seeing how kyle went project 40 and now is definitely a solid player in the league and someone I respect, I feel his decision was probably the best for him. as for me, I don't regret staying in college and winning championships with my IU teammates. it’s definitely a win/win because I feel both roads allow a player to develop skills to be successful at the next level.
[Question From Ann]
What’s your favorite bar in Columbus? Where does the team go after big wins?
[Danny O’Rourke]
i'm more of a restaurant guy. i enjoy places like Martinis and Brown Bag.
minute91: These will be the last two questions. For those of you whose questions weren’t answered, write info@minute91.com with your question and we’ll forward it along to Danny.
[Question From Buffalo]
From a tactical perspective in a match, how do you approach defending players that are known to have exceptional speed. This is something that is always interesting at the amateur level and I'm curious what approach you have as a pro. obviously the overall defensive philosophy of your formation comes into play, as well as which defensive position we are talking about. However, I am curious what style you most often use with the Crew when you both when the offensive player's back is to you and also when he is running at you with the ball at his feet. I'm talking about situations where you know the other player is faster than you are and how you approach that in a match situation.
[Danny O’Rourke]
well i never go against anyone where i worry about their speed. but there definitely are different approaches to marking someone with their back to you vs. running at you. with their back to you, you can win your duel by just making the player play a pass he doesn't want to make (i.e. backwards). if he is running at you, then good 1 vs. 1 defending is necessary which is not diving in, delaying them until you can get support from teammates, or winning the ball if you are sure you can win the ball.
minute91: ...last question.
[Question From leo]
Would you ever consider playing overseas? if so, where and why? if not, why not?
[Danny O’Rourke]
good question. yes i do consider playing overseas but a lot of factors come into play. i try to better myself every day so that if an opportunity arises and is the right fit for me, i would consider it.
minute91: From the minute91 community, I want to thank you, Danny, and wish you the best of luck against Kansas City this Saturday.
minute91: As mentioned, Danny will be giving away his jersey to the minute91 member who correctly predicts the score and scorers in Saturday’s match vs. Kansas City. Visit the following link for full details and to cast your predictions: Click here.
[Danny O’Rourke]
thanks guys
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