This week Soccer Banter spoke with Neil Stafford, who is in his first year as Head Women’s Soccer Coach at Central Michigan University. CMU has won back-to-back MAC Championships the past two years and are currently 10-1-3 on the season. Previously Stafford spent eight years as the Head Women’s Coach at Assumption College and lead the team to the NCAA tournament in 2004 and 2005. Stafford is also a massive fan of Liverpool FC, so we picked his brain about the fate of his favorite team.
Soccer Banter: You're in your first year as Head Coach at CMU, and third overall on staff, but prior to that you were a New England guy. What attracted you to the CMU program and the midwest initially? How is life different for you there than in Massachusetts?
Neil Stafford: Well it was always about having a full-time coaching job and that was something that Assumption College never provided for me. I worked full-time for Seacoast United and then later at Newton North HS in a special education program and then would go to Assumption College to work with the team. Add club soccer to those jobs and I was literally running myself into the ground both mentally and physically. Honestly, I hadn’t heard much of Central Michigan University but knew through talking to others that they were a decent side. I wasn’t really bothered where it was, I was up for something new and needed a new challenge and a better quality of life.
It’s nice to have just one job now. I remember getting a coffee at Starbucks (no Dunkin Donuts here) and going in on one of my first mornings and just being so happy and grateful that I was now a full-time college coach. It’s a college town, and everything revolves around the school. The people love the University and the athletic programs which have been very successful. Since I have been here, CMU has won over 5 or 6 conference championships with various sports and football has been to 5 bowl games in the past 7 years, ranking in the top 25 in 2009. I like the mid-west way of life, but I do miss the east coast and all that has to offer, especially Boston & RI.
SB: CMU has been on a great run since you first were hired as an assistant in 2009, including back-to-back MAC Championships and this season are 10-1-3 and 4-0-2. What are the reasons behind the overall success of the program?
NS: The players are the reason that the program has flourished and really taken off. The previous coach Tom Anagnost did a very good job of recruiting quality people / players and then had a good blueprint in mind. I thought Tom & I (and all the other asst coaches) we were able to communicate that blueprint well to the players and had a great balance to the way we ran the program. But ultimately it always comes down to the players and their ability to execute on the field.
Soccer Banter: You're in your first year as Head Coach at CMU, and third overall on staff, but prior to that you were a New England guy. What attracted you to the CMU program and the midwest initially? How is life different for you there than in Massachusetts?
Neil Stafford: Well it was always about having a full-time coaching job and that was something that Assumption College never provided for me. I worked full-time for Seacoast United and then later at Newton North HS in a special education program and then would go to Assumption College to work with the team. Add club soccer to those jobs and I was literally running myself into the ground both mentally and physically. Honestly, I hadn’t heard much of Central Michigan University but knew through talking to others that they were a decent side. I wasn’t really bothered where it was, I was up for something new and needed a new challenge and a better quality of life.
It’s nice to have just one job now. I remember getting a coffee at Starbucks (no Dunkin Donuts here) and going in on one of my first mornings and just being so happy and grateful that I was now a full-time college coach. It’s a college town, and everything revolves around the school. The people love the University and the athletic programs which have been very successful. Since I have been here, CMU has won over 5 or 6 conference championships with various sports and football has been to 5 bowl games in the past 7 years, ranking in the top 25 in 2009. I like the mid-west way of life, but I do miss the east coast and all that has to offer, especially Boston & RI.
SB: CMU has been on a great run since you first were hired as an assistant in 2009, including back-to-back MAC Championships and this season are 10-1-3 and 4-0-2. What are the reasons behind the overall success of the program?
NS: The players are the reason that the program has flourished and really taken off. The previous coach Tom Anagnost did a very good job of recruiting quality people / players and then had a good blueprint in mind. I thought Tom & I (and all the other asst coaches) we were able to communicate that blueprint well to the players and had a great balance to the way we ran the program. But ultimately it always comes down to the players and their ability to execute on the field.
SB: More specifically this season, what has been the strengths of the team and what are the goals this year?
NS: Our defense has always been a massive strength of the program. We have only allowed one goal to date in conference play thus far and since I’ve been here we’ve had roughly 38 shut-outs total. I would like to think our offensive punch is growing (slowly but surely), we’ve been creating a lot more than we ever have before, but still need to execute better in front of goal We are very tough on the road and even better at home with a 31 game unbeaten streak. Our goal(s) for the season is to improve on what we’ve done in the past (which in some cases is very difficult) win games and ultimately get back to the NCAA’s. It gets harder as the target on our backs gets bigger but we have to use the confidence that past success has given us.
SB: Six times, the NSCAA has honored CMU with having the highest GPA in Women's Soccer. Does CMU only recruit 4.0 students with great SAT scores or what contributes to such a successful team in the classroom and on the field?
NS: It’s actually Men’s & Women’s soccer and I think it’s in all 3 divisions??? We are really proud of our 3.7 team GPA & it’s crazy to think the players have done this for 6 years in a row. We are bringing in phenomenal students who do have very high GPA’s but it’s more to do with how self driven most of these student / athletes are. We bring in students that are highly ranked in their respective graduating classes and that mixed in with students with lesser GPA’s (although still good) but again are self driven tends to mix well. We also have excellent resources at CMU with the “Dick Enberg Academic Center” (which is specifically for student-athletes) and the great people working to support the students. It’s a lot to do with the environment that CMU & the soccer program has created and lastly the student athlete taking advantage of it.
SB: Looking ahead to this weekend's games, what are your thoughts on Western Michigan and Northern Illinois?
NS: We beat WMU in the conference final last year so they will be looking to get one back on us. It’s a big game each year Central vs. Western, but hopefully we can maintain our form and discipline to get all 3 pts. NIU will be tough as it’s a very difficult place to go and play on the turf. They haven’t been at their best this season but you can’t ever underestimate anyone in the conference or they will bite you.
NS: Our defense has always been a massive strength of the program. We have only allowed one goal to date in conference play thus far and since I’ve been here we’ve had roughly 38 shut-outs total. I would like to think our offensive punch is growing (slowly but surely), we’ve been creating a lot more than we ever have before, but still need to execute better in front of goal We are very tough on the road and even better at home with a 31 game unbeaten streak. Our goal(s) for the season is to improve on what we’ve done in the past (which in some cases is very difficult) win games and ultimately get back to the NCAA’s. It gets harder as the target on our backs gets bigger but we have to use the confidence that past success has given us.
SB: Six times, the NSCAA has honored CMU with having the highest GPA in Women's Soccer. Does CMU only recruit 4.0 students with great SAT scores or what contributes to such a successful team in the classroom and on the field?
NS: It’s actually Men’s & Women’s soccer and I think it’s in all 3 divisions??? We are really proud of our 3.7 team GPA & it’s crazy to think the players have done this for 6 years in a row. We are bringing in phenomenal students who do have very high GPA’s but it’s more to do with how self driven most of these student / athletes are. We bring in students that are highly ranked in their respective graduating classes and that mixed in with students with lesser GPA’s (although still good) but again are self driven tends to mix well. We also have excellent resources at CMU with the “Dick Enberg Academic Center” (which is specifically for student-athletes) and the great people working to support the students. It’s a lot to do with the environment that CMU & the soccer program has created and lastly the student athlete taking advantage of it.
SB: Looking ahead to this weekend's games, what are your thoughts on Western Michigan and Northern Illinois?
NS: We beat WMU in the conference final last year so they will be looking to get one back on us. It’s a big game each year Central vs. Western, but hopefully we can maintain our form and discipline to get all 3 pts. NIU will be tough as it’s a very difficult place to go and play on the turf. They haven’t been at their best this season but you can’t ever underestimate anyone in the conference or they will bite you.
SB: Another big game this weekend, which is occurring a few miles away...Liverpool vs Manchester United. As a MASSIVE fan of the Anfield club, what are your thoughts on this match?
NS: 6-0 to Liverpool with Suarez and Gerrard getting a hat-trick each. :) No, it’s always a close one when those two meet, but Liverpool has been fantastic in the last 3 years at home to United. Liverpool seem to be healthy although it’s always tough coming off of an international break I think if we start out really well we could have a great performance. If Liverpool can tighten up in the back I think we could win 2 or 3 – 1 at Anfield this Saturday with Adam, Gerrard (PK) and Suarez getting the goals. Carragher to score for United :)
SB: What are your thoughts on the new signings for Liverpool and will this current group be able to get Liverpool into the top 4?
NS: You certainly have to admire the resources that John Henry and company have put into Liverpool over the past year and with a man manager like Kenny Dalglish it can only blossom. Henry has shown that this “Moneyball” approach with statistics laying the foundation for buying players could possibly work although baseball is quite different than soccer. I also love Steve Clarke who is someone who doesn’t get enough credit for the job he does.
I still think we need a top notch central defender, a defensive mid and another goal scorer. Carragher needs replacing sooner than later and Lucas although improved is no Mascherano. Sebastian Coates looks like he could be something for the future but I don’t know much of him other than he had a fantastic Copa America this past summer. But there have been older, good players that couldn’t adapt to the pace of the premier league.
I do think they have what it takes to get into the top 4 but with all the money being thrown around and the signings others are making it’s very difficult. I think Liverpool have the quality to finish in the top 3 this season with Manchester City & United.
SB: If everyone is fit, who is your starting 11 and formation for Liverpool? We haven’t seen much of Gerrard and Suarez together with Stevie being out with his groin, so it would be interesting to see if they combine they way Torres and Gerrard did when they were on form. I like Suarez with another player close to give him a little more freedom up top whether that comes from the mid-field or up top I don’t care. Henderson is young and will get better, Carroll looks like he could be a big strong presence, but lacks maturity and is a little too slow at times. Neither have shown enough consistency for me to be in my starting XI. I actually don’t think formations are as important as principals of play and looking below at my line up you could make an argument that it’s a 4 – 4 – 2 or a 4 – 3 – 3 depending on what Gerrard, Downing & Kuyt do.
Suarez
Gerrard
Downing Adam Kuyt
Lucas
Enrique Agger Skrtel or Carragher Johnson
Reina
NS: 6-0 to Liverpool with Suarez and Gerrard getting a hat-trick each. :) No, it’s always a close one when those two meet, but Liverpool has been fantastic in the last 3 years at home to United. Liverpool seem to be healthy although it’s always tough coming off of an international break I think if we start out really well we could have a great performance. If Liverpool can tighten up in the back I think we could win 2 or 3 – 1 at Anfield this Saturday with Adam, Gerrard (PK) and Suarez getting the goals. Carragher to score for United :)
SB: What are your thoughts on the new signings for Liverpool and will this current group be able to get Liverpool into the top 4?
NS: You certainly have to admire the resources that John Henry and company have put into Liverpool over the past year and with a man manager like Kenny Dalglish it can only blossom. Henry has shown that this “Moneyball” approach with statistics laying the foundation for buying players could possibly work although baseball is quite different than soccer. I also love Steve Clarke who is someone who doesn’t get enough credit for the job he does.
I still think we need a top notch central defender, a defensive mid and another goal scorer. Carragher needs replacing sooner than later and Lucas although improved is no Mascherano. Sebastian Coates looks like he could be something for the future but I don’t know much of him other than he had a fantastic Copa America this past summer. But there have been older, good players that couldn’t adapt to the pace of the premier league.
I do think they have what it takes to get into the top 4 but with all the money being thrown around and the signings others are making it’s very difficult. I think Liverpool have the quality to finish in the top 3 this season with Manchester City & United.
SB: If everyone is fit, who is your starting 11 and formation for Liverpool? We haven’t seen much of Gerrard and Suarez together with Stevie being out with his groin, so it would be interesting to see if they combine they way Torres and Gerrard did when they were on form. I like Suarez with another player close to give him a little more freedom up top whether that comes from the mid-field or up top I don’t care. Henderson is young and will get better, Carroll looks like he could be a big strong presence, but lacks maturity and is a little too slow at times. Neither have shown enough consistency for me to be in my starting XI. I actually don’t think formations are as important as principals of play and looking below at my line up you could make an argument that it’s a 4 – 4 – 2 or a 4 – 3 – 3 depending on what Gerrard, Downing & Kuyt do.
Suarez
Gerrard
Downing Adam Kuyt
Lucas
Enrique Agger Skrtel or Carragher Johnson
Reina
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