With four games in the books so far this season, FC Dallas has a 3-0-1 record and a Western Conference-leading 10 points. They have yet to field the same starting 11 in multiple games and in total have fielded 16 different players (17 including starting goalkeeper Dario Sala).
Head coach Colin Clarke has made a total of 12 substitutions so far this year. But the most impressive thing is that in two of their four games so far this season, someone off the bench has scored the game-winning goal.
Not only have Clarke's in-game personnel changes worked out to near perfection, they've also shown the depth in his squad and the competition among the entire group. Three players -- Kenny Cooper, Drew Moor and Mark Wilson -- started the year on the bench as substitutes but quickly claimed starting spots.
The first to do so was Cooper, the team's current leading scorer with three goals. The first-year forward made his MLS debut against Chicago in the 65th minute and just four minutes into his outing, he headed one into the back of the Fire's net for his first MLS tally. It proved to be the game-winner.
For his efforts, Cooper earned a spot in the starting 11 the following week and has remained there ever since.
Also against Chicago, Wilson entered the game in the 64th minute and performed solidly at midfield. His performance netted him a starting nod the next week against Real Salt Lake.
Wilson delivered in his first start of the year, delivering the game-winner after a flurry of activity in front of the RSL net. Like Cooper, he remains a fixture in the FCD starting lineup.
Being both a starter and substitute this season, Wilson says the mind-set is no different for either type of player.
"I think the approach is the same," he said. "I came into the locker room on that morning (against Real Salt Lake), not knowing whether I was starting or not.
"I've always approached it in the same way. You've always got to be ready to play. Thankfully for me, I got on when I did and we won the game. Things have moved forward from there. Everything has gone well ever since and I'm enjoying the game."
Moor also saw action against RSL, entering the game late as a sub in the 87th minute. The talented defender hadn't played again until last week against Kansas City, when he made his first start of 2006 and was solid in the back. His performance was so impressive that Clarke has already named him a starter for Saturday's game at D.C. United.
Other than former subs turned starters, the biggest story for the Hoops, at least last week against K.C., was the game-winner scored by another substitute, Aaron Pitchkolan.
Pitchkolan entered the game in the 75th minute in place of Cooper and got the game winner in during stoppage time to give the Hoops a 2-1 victory. It marked the fourth time this season that he had been a second-half sub for FCD.
Other players who have come off the bench this season cinclude midfielder Ramon Nunez, who started the season opener against Chicago and has since been a substitute, defender Alex Yi, who saw his first action of 2006 last week against K.C., and forward Abe Thompson, who last year led the Hoops' reserve team with five goals and saw time in the waning moments of the 2-2 tie at Colorado.
"I have to be ready at any given moment," Thompson said. "If someone goes down or how the game pans out, I need to be ready (to go in) at the drop of the hat for the most part.
Said Yi: "I think for myself as a defender, the job isn't to impress, it's just to go in and keep it solid back there. Any job that I have to do in particular, like who I mark on corner kicks, where I'm at in the wall, who I'm trying to cover for. For myself, it's all about trying to get the job done and that's it."
Whether it shows on the score sheet or in the favorable impression that these role players have made on the Hoops coaches and fans, every one of Clarke's substitutions this year have performed and performed well. So what's been the secret to Clarke's success with his rotation?
"It's luck," he said. "You make a lot of changes throughout the year. Sometimes they work and sometimes they don't. The changes we made Sunday (against K.C.) to hang on to the goal we had because we were a man down. We ended up getting a bonus with Aaron (Pitchkolan)'s goal."
The Hoops are blessed to have one of the deepest rosters in MLS. Such depth definitely figures into Clarke's personnel decisions.
"The good thing is that we have a very strong squad and we have players who want to be on the pitch," he said. "Any opportunity they have to play, they know that they have to make an impact. So far, they (our substitutes) have done a very good job doing that. It's up to them once they get minutes to prove they should be starting.
"Everybody in there knows this is a very competitive squad," he said. "We've got a group of players where we can nearly field two starting teams. Last week, I thought our training was superb with the competitiveness and the edge we had. That carried over into the game."
Clarke said he has more options within his squad than any he's ever coached.
"Yes, this is the deepest team I've ever had," he said. "It's taken just over two years to get to this point. We still feel that we can add and improve. We'll continue to look to do that."
His players have also noticed the team's depth and acknowledge that it is a big reason for their early-season success.
"We've got talent in every area of the field," Wilson said. "The first 11 and the next seven or eight guys who sit on the bench are all plenty good enough to come in and do the job every week as well. That ups the tempo in practice every day and that's why we're working so hard and playing so well."
"Our depth is unbelievable," added Yi. "From the back line all the way up to the top, you could say that we have guys on the bench who could easily be playing on a lot of MLS teams out there. For us, it (the depth) is a good thing. For the coaches, it is a bad thing. I'd rather have it this way than any other way."
As the old saying goes, the rich get richer. In the next few weeks, the Hoops' depth will get another boost as both goalkeeper Jeff Cassar and midfielder Richard Mulrooney are both expected to return after extended layoffs due to injury. Both figure to push for playing time at their respective spots almost immediately upon their return.
Steve Hunt is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
