SYRACUSE, N.Y. - Tommy Tanner's soccer career took its latest twist on Aug. 18 when the Syracuse Football Club named him the new General Manager of the A-League's Salty Dogs.
"Today is a great day for me," Tanner said. "I look at this as a terrific honor."
Tanner hopes to duplicate his successes with the indoor Cleveland Crunch (three MISL championships) and the Rochester Raging Rhinos (3 A-League titles and a U.S. Open Cup championship). He called these two clubs two of the country's best and believes he can attract the top-caliber players needed to bring a championship to the Salt City.
"I want to make this the best place in America to come and play soccer," Tanner said at a press conference at P&C Stadium announcing his new role. "With a little more help next year, this team is well on its way to becoming a champion."
In making the announcement, head coach Laurie Calloway reiterated the club's commitment to adding a local flavor to its operations on and off the field. The coach said that Tanner, whom he called "Mr. Soccer in Syracuse," will remain on the active playing roster. His role, however, will evolve from player/coach into a greater focus on team operations and player personnel.
Calloway insisted that he was happy with the performance of the team and the organization as a whole during its first season of operations, as well as with the fan support given the team.
"It's a tremendous platform on which we now have to build. We think that this is a natural step that will enable us to build a better team with somebody who has a great image in the community and who brings a face to the Salty Dogs in the name of Tommy Tanner."
Calloway added that he, Tanner, and club president Tim Kuhl plan to sit down during the off-season and define specific roles. Calloway is expected to continue his coaching role, while Tanner will likely assume more of the deal-making duties as well as interfacing with local youth soccer organizations.
Tanner is already off to a good start - Coach Calloway credited him with luring defender Rene Rivas a former Rochester teammate, to Syracuse. Rivas anchored the Salty Dogs defense after team captain Bennito Kemble went down with an injury and has proven an invaluable threat on corners and free kicks.
"Tommy's shown an aptitude for the contract side of the business and seemed to enjoy the immigration side of it," Calloway said, noting that the team didn't always have a complete handle on such issues during its inaugural campaign. "Any good professional club needs a director of player personnel … This is a step in the direction of making things run a little smoother."
With but three games remaining on their schedule, the Salty Dogs have played through an expansion season marked with both positives and frustrations. After roaring out of the gate to an early 5-2 record, the Dogs stumbled thereafter hobbled by numerous injuries, inconsistent play and a few plain old bad bounces. For example, an own goal in overtime against a strong Charleston club back in early June cost Syracuse three points and typifies the type of "bad luck" (or whatever you want to call it) the team experienced during its inaugural campaign.
Looking forward, Tanner is highly optimistic.
"There are 17,000 kids who play soccer in Syracuse," he said. "I don't think having 10,000 at every game is that big of a stretch. They do it in Rochester, they do it all over the world. Part of my job is to make sure that the fans that came out this year are still coming out and we that add more."
"There's a very intelligent soccer community here in Syracuse," Tanner concluded. "Everyone whom I've talked to has been very impressed with what we've done on the field. I know we can do a lot better."
