Tweet
West notes: Cunningham's own lofty standards
Despite the goals, Dallas striker believes he has plenty to prove
By Jeff Carlisle / MLSnet.com Staff
"He's really hard on himself," said Dallas coach Schellas Hyndman of Jeff Cunningham (L) (Getty)
Supposedly, one of the prerequisites for being a successful striker is to have what is called, "a short memory." Every forward misses chances, or so the thinking goes, and the successful ones are those who forget about blown opportunities and move on to the next chance as quickly as possible.
But anyone who watched last Thursday's tilt between FC Dallas and the Houston Dynamo could see that selective amnesia isn't in the skill set of FCD forward Jeff Cunningham. The former U.S. international squandered a glorious chance inside of 20 seconds, dragging a clear shot wide. He then hit a tame penalty in the 13th minute that was easily saved by Dynamo 'keeper Pat Onstad.
The look on his face indicated that Cunningham wouldn't be forgetting about his failure to convert soon, especially since it had been just two games since he had another spot kick saved in a 4-2 loss to Real Salt Lake. But Cunningham made amends seven minutes later, hitting a 22-yard rocket past Onstad that saw him explode with emotion afterward. It proved to be the only goal in a Dallas victory that kept the team's faint playoff hopes alive.
"I was very devastated after I missed the two chances earlier on," said Cunningham in a telephone interview. "My reaction after the game-winner spoke for itself. I was very happy to not fold and be able to deliver."
His penalty struggles notwithstanding, Cunningham is on a considerable roll. He's now tallied six times in his last three games -- giving him nine on the season -- even as Kenny Cooper left the club to join up with German side 1860 Munich.
Yet even though Cunningham now has 113 regular season goals in his MLS career, good enough for third on the all-time list, he still finds himself with something to prove.
"I'm playing for my career to be honest," said Cunningham. "I feel like a lot of people have given up on me or doubted me. I'm just hungry. I feel like I have some more left in me and I'm just trying to prove that."
The Jamaica native has his reasons for feeling a bit insecure. After spending the first seven years of his MLS career in Columbus, Cunningham was traded four seasons in a row, finally landing in Dallas a year ago. In the process, he was cast as a moody and selfish player, with some justification Cunningham admitted. But even while such emotions have lessened, the reputation is one he still finds hard to shake.
"When you get moved and you get the pink slip and you feel like you've given a lot to the club, sometimes you feel like the respect and the effort wasn't given back," said Cunningham. "There's some hard feelings, and it's difficult to swallow at times.
"Sometimes I reacted, and said some stuff, and burned some bridges. But you learn how to deal with those situations and be professional about it and move on. You realize that you develop a reputation that follows you to your next job before you even walk through the door, so it makes the transition even harder."
Dallas head coach Schellas Hyndman knew all about Cunningham's reputation when he acquired him a year ago from Toronto in exchange for a third round draft pick in the 2009 SuperDraft. Part of the reason he pulled the trigger was purely out of the need to get another forward, but Hyndman also has a slightly different take on Cunningham's emotional makeup.
"I think people misread Jeff sometimes, because he's such an emotional player," said Hyndman. "He demands so much of himself. After we lost to Real Salt Lake, we had a team meeting, and Jeff apologized [for missing the penalty]. He said he let everyone down, so he's really hard on himself."
It now looks like, at least for the moment, Cunningham is setting down some roots. For the first time since 2004, he looks set to spend over a full season with the same club, even as he admitted he had been "voted off penalty kicks."
"For a striker, you want stability, you want to be part of a club that you know wants you to be there," said Cunningham. "That helps your confidence a lot."
Despite the goals, Dallas striker believes he has plenty to prove
By Jeff Carlisle / MLSnet.com Staff
"He's really hard on himself," said Dallas coach Schellas Hyndman of Jeff Cunningham (L) (Getty) Supposedly, one of the prerequisites for being a successful striker is to have what is called, "a short memory." Every forward misses chances, or so the thinking goes, and the successful ones are those who forget about blown opportunities and move on to the next chance as quickly as possible.
But anyone who watched last Thursday's tilt between FC Dallas and the Houston Dynamo could see that selective amnesia isn't in the skill set of FCD forward Jeff Cunningham. The former U.S. international squandered a glorious chance inside of 20 seconds, dragging a clear shot wide. He then hit a tame penalty in the 13th minute that was easily saved by Dynamo 'keeper Pat Onstad.
The look on his face indicated that Cunningham wouldn't be forgetting about his failure to convert soon, especially since it had been just two games since he had another spot kick saved in a 4-2 loss to Real Salt Lake. But Cunningham made amends seven minutes later, hitting a 22-yard rocket past Onstad that saw him explode with emotion afterward. It proved to be the only goal in a Dallas victory that kept the team's faint playoff hopes alive.
"I was very devastated after I missed the two chances earlier on," said Cunningham in a telephone interview. "My reaction after the game-winner spoke for itself. I was very happy to not fold and be able to deliver."
His penalty struggles notwithstanding, Cunningham is on a considerable roll. He's now tallied six times in his last three games -- giving him nine on the season -- even as Kenny Cooper left the club to join up with German side 1860 Munich.
Yet even though Cunningham now has 113 regular season goals in his MLS career, good enough for third on the all-time list, he still finds himself with something to prove.
"I'm playing for my career to be honest," said Cunningham. "I feel like a lot of people have given up on me or doubted me. I'm just hungry. I feel like I have some more left in me and I'm just trying to prove that."
The Jamaica native has his reasons for feeling a bit insecure. After spending the first seven years of his MLS career in Columbus, Cunningham was traded four seasons in a row, finally landing in Dallas a year ago. In the process, he was cast as a moody and selfish player, with some justification Cunningham admitted. But even while such emotions have lessened, the reputation is one he still finds hard to shake.
"When you get moved and you get the pink slip and you feel like you've given a lot to the club, sometimes you feel like the respect and the effort wasn't given back," said Cunningham. "There's some hard feelings, and it's difficult to swallow at times.
"Sometimes I reacted, and said some stuff, and burned some bridges. But you learn how to deal with those situations and be professional about it and move on. You realize that you develop a reputation that follows you to your next job before you even walk through the door, so it makes the transition even harder."
Dallas head coach Schellas Hyndman knew all about Cunningham's reputation when he acquired him a year ago from Toronto in exchange for a third round draft pick in the 2009 SuperDraft. Part of the reason he pulled the trigger was purely out of the need to get another forward, but Hyndman also has a slightly different take on Cunningham's emotional makeup.
"I think people misread Jeff sometimes, because he's such an emotional player," said Hyndman. "He demands so much of himself. After we lost to Real Salt Lake, we had a team meeting, and Jeff apologized [for missing the penalty]. He said he let everyone down, so he's really hard on himself."
It now looks like, at least for the moment, Cunningham is setting down some roots. For the first time since 2004, he looks set to spend over a full season with the same club, even as he admitted he had been "voted off penalty kicks."
"For a striker, you want stability, you want to be part of a club that you know wants you to be there," said Cunningham. "That helps your confidence a lot."
