Photo credit: Brian Cormack for Cormack Photos
If you haven’t heard already there’s some heartbreaking news out of Dallas this morning: FC Dallas announcer & former player Bobby Rhine passed away yesterday after suffering a heart attack. He was 35 years-old.
My introduction to MLS was a Dallas Burn – Tampa Bay Mutiny match at the Cotton Bowl during my college years in 1998. Having found the pull of live soccer irresistible, the next year I managed to make it to roughly half-a-dozen games in what was Bobby’s rookie season. He, along with teammates like Chad Deering and Ariel Graziani, were the hook that got me into MLS and for that I’m grateful.
I’m also grateful that a few years later I was lucky enough to become friends with Bobby, who was hands-down one of the nicest guys I have ever met. People always say that but in this case it’s the gospel truth. Find me someone with something bad to say about Bobby Rhine and you’ve found the impossible.
The last time I saw Bobby was in July when he and a few other FC Dallas staffers were in NYC for the All Star Game. We went for burgers at a diner downtown with Justin McCord, Steve Jolley & Ives Galarcep and ended up watching the Juventus-Club America game from rain-soaked CitiField on the TV’s. In a week of fancy parties and VIP events this was an unfussy, good time…kind of like Bobby, really.
May God bless you and yours Bobby Rhine. Here’s to you.
No comments:
Post a Comment