One of the final pieces to the Seattle Sounders roster puzzle was put in place Monday when goalkeeper coach Tom Dutra confirmed that the backup goalkeeper job belonged to Terry Boss.
The Oregon native edged out former USL standout Chris Eylander in the race to serve as No. 2 behind team captain Kasey Keller.
Eylander, who missed large portions of 2009 with injuries, will continue training with the team until the collective bargaining agreement is resolved. General Manager Adrian Hanauer indicated Tuesday that the club would look to keep Eylander, who is under contract for the 2010 season, until team roster and salary guidelines are specified.
"It was up for grabs," Dutra told the Seattle Times Monday. "It was a position they both competed for, and we believed in Terry ... He was able to win that spot."
While each goalkeeper has his merits, Boss offers a more athletic, physical presence between the posts. Although Eylander is an excellent shot stopper and is very daring in net, the athleticism of the 6-foot-3 Boss gives him the advantage in some areas, like cutting out crosses.
Dutra has been working with Boss to refine the technical aspects of his game, including footwork and hand placement.
“He just needed more technique,” Dutra said in February. “Obviously he’s an unbelievable athlete and that’s gotten him to this point, but to get him to that next level where we can rely on him, he had to get the technique.”
Boss, whose younger brother Kevin plays tight end for the NFL’s New York Giants, is back in everyday training after returning from an extended ankle injury. He missed the team’s trip to Spain with the injury, but what most people don’t know is how it happened -- in a game of soccer tennis.
Every preseason, Sounders FC puts on a soccer tennis tournament to pass the time during the conditioning portion of training camp. Boss turned his ankle during a match on an off day. To make matters worse, his team lost the match.
“I think we were down a point,” Boss said, smiling. “Obviously it’s unfortunate to get hurt doing that, but it happens.”
Now that Boss has been named the starter, Eylander’s future is unclear. Last season, Seattle kept three active goalkeepers in camp for much of the season, with former Sounder Ben Dragavon a member of the league pool of reserve goalkeepers.
With the CBA still up in the air, it is not certain whether Eylander will fill a similar role or be cut from the roster.
Eylander led the Sounders to two consecutive semifinal appearances in the U.S. Open Cup when the club was a member of the USL. However, he was slow to recover from injuries to both knees that all but wiped out his 2009 season.
