‘Silver lining’ for Revs’ Turner
Goalie uses break from MLS action to rehab nagging injuries
Like athletes and sports leagues everywhere, the New England Revolution and Major League Soccer are doing what everyone else is doing at this moment: Sit tight.
On Thursday, MLS issued a release informing the public that it would extend postponement of its matches in accordance with the stipulations and guidelines of national health organizations.
“In accordance with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s guidance to postpone events involving more than 50 people over the next eight weeks, Major League Soccer (MLS) has extended the postponement of its matches during this time. MLS remains focused on playing the entire 2020 season and is evaluating all options, including pushing back the end of the season and playing MLS Cup in December, as the league did prior to the 2019 season. The league is identifying other available dates. Throughout this process, MLS will continue to prioritize the safety of our fans, players, employees, and partners, and to continue to coordinate with federal, and local health authorities as well as other sporting organizations.”
Revs goalkeeper Matt Turner agrees that all anyone can do is take it day by day.
“That’s pretty much all you can do, not just for athletes, but for everybody in the country, as well,” Turner said Friday. “Every day there’s new news, new restrictions. It’s all about keeping everyone up to date on the little details to keep us and all our families safe. We’ve had team chats. We speak English. We speak Spanish. We speak French. Whatever it is. A lot of credit goes to our front office here and our trainers. They’re just trying to get us to where we need to be. They also keep us informed to the little details to keep us and our families safe.”
Turner, who picked up a little “knock” to one of his knees in the most recent and last game played, a 1-1 tie with Chicago, has been allowed access to the training facility under current MLS mandates. Turner works with Evan Allen, the Revs Director of Sports Medicine/ Head Athletic Trainer, as well as Jarryd Philips, the team director of sports performance, who sets up the training curriculum for players to follow during the hiatus.
“This is all uncharted territory for everybody. We can only follow all the guidelines on what they will allow us to do, whether it’s for a one week period, or a two week period, or longer,” said Turner, who noted the time off could be a boon to several players who were nursing slight, nagging issues. “We were a little banged up for Chicago so if there’s a silver lining to all this, that’s it.”
Thursday, MLS announced it was extending the deadline on restricting training camp access to next Friday, except in those rare instances when players require additional rehab due to an injury, such as Turner. The most recent MLS statement read, “Major League Soccer has extended the team training moratorium through, and including, Friday, March 27. During this time, MLS players are expected to remain in each club’s respective market and have been advised to exercise safe social distancing measures. At this time, team training facilities may only be accessed for physical therapy purposes at the direction of club medical staff to ensure adherence to safety protocols.”
Turner said the players must make do with a difficult but understandable situation.
“I’ve always had to be creative with my training,” said Turner, who played college soccer at Fairfield University and then joined the USL’s Richmond Kickers before inking his initial MLS contract with the Revolution on March 3, 2016, after a successful preseason trial. “I’ve gotten creative with what I’ve been doing. I’ve been an athlete all my life. Right now, I’ve had to be creative with my runs and doing all the little things that make my body feel good and not doing the little things that don’t make my body feel good. This could be for an extended period of time, especially coming off an injury that I had.”
Turner said the Revs players are not in this alone.
“We really talked about this as a team, about how appreciative we are as players of our fans and their support. We want them to be in the best state of health, too. We’re not forgetting them. We hope that when all this is over that our relationship with them is even stronger,” Turner said.