FRISCO, Texas – When reigning MLS MVP David Ferreira went down with an injury in the 52nd minute of FC Dallas’ road game at the Vancouver Whitecaps, it became just another obstacle in a string of adverse circumstances head coach Schellas Hyndman has faced in his nearly three-year tenure with the club.
“We’ve had a lot of practice over the last few years dealing with different types of adversity from game to game, whether it be cards, injuries, call-ups, players playing different positions, things like that,” says assistant coach John Ellinger, who has known Hyndman through various coaching circles for nearly 20 years. “He [Hyndman] puts a lot of time into preparing to deal with those situations.”
In this latest adverse circumstance – the absence of star Ferreira – FC Dallas has responded by going unbeaten in their last five games, an impressive 4-0-1 that includes a win over the league-leading LA Galaxy. For Hyndman, who has shuffled and re-shuffled the lineup without his No. 10 available, the results stem just as much from mental preparation as tactical.
“He really pushes us when it comes to games to concentrate on the task at hand and what we’re trying to achieve,” says FC Dallas defender Ugo Ihemelu. “I think that shows with our character. You have to be mentally tough to really get some of those results we’ve had.”
Preparation makes perfect
For Hyndman, who says he’s dedicated the better part of the past 15 years to studying the mental side of training his athletes, motivation and preparation go hand in hand.
“One of the things I think I do very well is prepare my team to go out to the field,” says Hyndman. “That means being completely organized, being very detailed, laying out what our opposition is going to do and reminding the team that we’ve spent all week preparing for it.
“But those last few words I give to them to get them to get out on the field and not be afraid or intimidated – at home or away – those are to mentally prepare them for adversity, to make them mentally tough for what could go on that we’re not prepared for.”
Hyndman calls the occurrence of unforeseen events in a match a ‘thunderbolt.’ He cites FCD’s game at Columbus – only the third of the 2011 campaign – as an example. In that match, defender Jackson Goncalves received two yellow cards within a minute midway through the first half.
“I didn’t even have time to get someone warmed up after he got the first yellow, before he got a second one,” Hyndman laments. Dallas was forced to play a man down for the next 57 minutes, resulting in a 2-0 road loss to their Pioneer Cup rival.
WATCH: FC Dallas at Columbus match highlights
Those so-called thunderbolts, however, are the exception rather than the rule. Hyndman says the majority of the decisions made by the technical staff in-game are carefully scripted – part of the extreme attention to detail the martial arts master is known for.
“Nothing I do out there is impulsive. It may look impulsive, but it’s not,” says Hyndman. “All of our decisions may not be the right ones, but I can promise you they’re well-thought out.”
In fact, Hyndman’s preparation starts long before the team ever takes the field on game day – it starts the moment they report for preseason training. Along with such intense preparation comes a level of expectation – impatience even – from the gaffer.
“[He] is always setting the stage, always pushing them [the players] to do everything right. For him it’s a constant thing,” says Ellinger. “And with that come an expectation of following instructions from start to finish.
“If he tells you he wants you to be a two-way player, it’s not just for that moment. He wants it done in training, he wants it done in games, he wants it to become part of your permanent style.”
Second-year midfielder Eric Alexander came face to face with Hyndman’s expectations during his rookie season. The third round 2010 SuperDraft pick struggled early in his first season as a professional, but declined a potential loan to the then-Austin Aztex. Instead, the 23-year-old focused on following Hyndman’s instruction – on and off the field.
“He [Hyndman] gave me the opportunity to do the right things on and off the field to prepare myself for games, because it was a totally different environment than what I was used to playing in,” says Alexander. “For a while I wasn’t playing well, and he pulled me aside and gave me some things to work on.
“When the opportunity came along for me to start in a couple of games, I felt very prepared for that moment.”
WATCH: Eric Alexander scores against NY Red Bulls
Alexander ended up playing an integral role in the team’s 19-game unbeaten streak, starting in 12 games in place of the injured Dax McCarty. In January he received his first call-up to the U.S. Men’s National Team, where he came on in the 83rd minute in their friendly with Chile to earn his first cap.
“He [Hyndman] wants to put us in situations in training that are tougher than in the games, so when we get to the games they seem almost a little easier,” says Alexander. “He’s an extremely demanding coach, but it’s all for the team’s best interest.”
Difficult decisions
Hyndman’s decision-making process has never been more tested than in the absence of Ferreira who, up until his injury, had played every minute but one since joining FC Dallas in 2009. The team began by slotting Eric Avila into Ferreira’s customary spot, retaining the 4-1-4-1 shape the team has customarily played under Hyndman.
The first result was a rain-drenched win at home vs. the aforementioned Galaxy, during which the team faced a literal thunderbolt – an hour-long rain delay after lightning was spotted in the area. Hyndman says as he waited for the tied game to resume he told the team, “they [LA] don’t want to be here. They don’t want to play. But not only are we going to play, we’re going to win.”
The team returned to the field with 10 minutes to play and sealed victory in the 88th minute with a stunning Brek Shea goal.
WATCH: Brek Shea's game-winner vs. LA
It was all about having the proper motivation, Hyndman says.
“I continually told the players that we are not satisfied with one point. We want all three. And if you put everything you have into getting those three points, they’re going to suffer because I think they’re happy with a draw.”
But on the heels of the team’s win against the Galaxy came a lackluster 0-0 draw at DC United, sending Hyndman back to his decision-making drawing board.
“Decision-making is a long process for me. I’m not a very impulsive person,” says Hyndman. “I’ll always ask my assistant coaches because I really do believe that they have to be a big part of the decision-making.
“But they’ve also been around me long enough to know that three of them may go in one direction and I’ll go in a different direction, and it’ll be my decision. But it’s important for me to get all the information, to be as meticulous and thorough as possible.”
The internal debate resulted in a switch to a more traditional 4-4-2 – a system assistant coach John Ellinger says Hyndman is most comfortable in – and two home wins vs. Toronto FC and the Philadelphia Union, respectively.
WATCH: Highlights from FCD's 2-0 win over Philadelphia
Will the formation shift stick?
“When he makes a decision he’s pretty firm with it,” says team captain Daniel Hernandez, who has known Hyndman for more than 10 years after playing under him at Southern Methodist University. “He doesn’t make a decision without being 100 percent sure.”
Backs against the wall
Worth noting in Hyndman’s tenure as head coach at FC Dallas is an uptick in success just when things look bleak. In 2009 it was reeling off four wins in the team’s last five games to mount an out-of-nowhere assault on the playoffs (a loss at Seattle on the final day of the regular season ended their run).
Last season it was an MLS record 19-game unbeaten streak – despite a rash of injuries that held out key players like Ugo Ihemelu, George John, and 2010 cogs Heath Pearce and Dax McCarty.
For Ihemelu, also an SMU alum under Hyndman, last year’s success in the face of adversity came as no surprise.
“All of our success last year started way early. He was preparing us for that success with the guys he brought to the locker room and the team chemistry we had,” says Ihemelu.
“Then and now, we have guys on the bench that are just as prepared to step into that role as a starter. Schellas preaches that quite a bit – always be ready to step in there if something happens. Keep going with the team, don’t miss a step. We have the talent to do that.”
Early 2011 has been just as challenging, with players like John and Ihemelu returning from offseason surgery, not to mention injuries to Ferreira and veteran defender Jair Benitez.
Through it all, Hyndman has navigated his squad successfully through the often-choppy MLS waters.
“I find that I’m usually at my best when I’m the underdog and things aren’t going my way,” says Hyndman. “I usually find there’s another gear that I can’t stay in very long because it’s too demanding, but it helps me to be able to deal with adverse situations in the right way.”
With FC Dallas now in second in the Western Conference standings – despite starting the season with three losses in their first four games – and a playoff re-match looming against Real Salt Lake (who themselves have faced the loss of a key playmaker in Javier Morales), the toughest battles may be yet to come.
And with no timetable set for Ferreira’s return, Hyndman will continue to face tests of his team’s mental fortitude and focus. But there may be no better captain to steer the ship through turbulent times than the ‘Soccer Sensei,’ as he has been dubbed by fans.
“I think we all kind of have our comfort zone, whether you’re a coach or an athlete. And I think the thing that separates you from another coach or another athlete is your drive,” says Hyndman.
“I think I have tremendous, tremendous drive.”