On Wednesday morning at PNC Stadium, new Houston Dash head coach Sam Laity was unveiled to the media.
Flanked by general manager Alex Singer and club owner and chairman Ted Segal, the trio read statements and answered a few questions about this new era for Texas's sole NWSL team.
Segal spoke at length about how much Laity's previous work with big names in world soccer appealed to the club. After 10 years in Seattle (and Tacoma), Laity has helped sculpt the careers of Megan Rapinoe, Rose Lavelle, Alana Cook and Jess Fishlock in leading the team now known as OL Reign.
Singer highlighted "trust" as a key component of why Laity fit the Dash's remit. After two years of abuse scandals in the NWSL — and the league coming into disrepute over a rotten core of systemic issues — someone with league experience as well as a glowing reputation from players was essential. Laity was the man that fit the bill.
Laity becomes the fourth-ever head coach of the Dash, officially taking over from James Clarkson who led the team from December 2019 until April 2022. Clarkson was suspended before the start of the 2022 regular season; first Sarah Lowdon and then Juan Carlos Amoros served as interim head coaches during that year.
We caught up with Singer for a quick one-on-one at PNC Stadium after the conclusion of the press conference:
What can you tell us about the interview process, the diversity of the candidates and what stood out to you during Laity's interview?
We started with a large and diverse pool of candidates. As I said, we had I had a list of what we needed and started to attack that list based on initial conversations. What stood out for me with Sam [Laity] was the experience and the deep knowledge of the NWSL. I think it's really invaluable. And nobody else quite had that.
Is there anything else on that list that you could elaborate a little bit on? The requirements for the job? Some key points that you were looking at for candidates?
Well, it needed to be somebody who was player-focused. It was very important to focus on the individual player, because without that development, the team doesn't get better. And with Sam, I had so much validation from players and people around the league, coaches, about how he works with the players individually.
So that was number one. Number two, it was leading and managing not just a team, but a staff, the team behind the team, and that's so important. Without that in place, I don't think you can set yourself up for success and for the players to look up [to] leadership, and with that comes holding a high standard. The ability to manage the staff is very important, and having a very clear structure and plan and roles, to what everybody brings, is very important. As the General Manager, how the operation functions, [that] was really crucial for me.
Where does Sarah Lowdon fit into that?
I just would like to especially point out how important Sarah is to our club and to our organization. She took the reins, you know, when when the team needed her the most. And we are incredibly grateful to her, not only for that time but looking ahead to the future.
She has been a part of this process. She's been supportive and very, very helpful for me during this offseason without a head coach as well. And she has a very bright future ahead. We're committed to supporting her personal coaching development and really look forward to seeing that flourish with the club in the future.
Is there any one thing on the Christmas transfer list that's still out there for the Houston Dash?
So for me, the goal initially is to retain our core players, which we've done [with] some signings haven't been announced yet, but we've accomplished that goal.
There are pieces that we'd also look to add and I think if there was one thing on the list. I don't want to say the player's name even though I do ... but it's a 10, a number 10. I think there are a few things we need.
The Nichelle Prince injury is disappointing for us because she had such a great season last year. So I think, on the attacking side, it's figuring out who can fill her shoes. We struggled at times to put the ball in the back of the net.
So I would say somebody who has creativity to get in between lines and connect the midfield to the forward line. My wish list is probably a couple of different positions. But I think it's an attacking creative player, a goal scorer, and somebody to fill the holes we have. And, in addition, some depth on the defensive side. We really got through the season, especially at center back with the two players, and it's not sustainable. So we need to add depth there as well.
