Dale Schilly

Dale Schilly was relieved of his duties this morning. Our coach. We should all have mixed emotions. Whilst I myself recognize the necessity of this move, even called for it more and more vociferously in the past weeks. This morning leaves me in a sense of melancholy.

I know Dale, as many of us do. He is a good man. A gentleman who carried himself with dignity that represented the club and everyone associated with it. Most of all he was a man who wanted this team to succeed more than anyone.

Remember that. That is his legacy.

I’ve been lucky enough to have been able to talk to other coaches around the league and they all know of Dale, his presence, his knowledge. They saw it as a coup to beat his teams. Steve Trittschuh and Bill Becher couldn’t eulogize him enough.

Today no doubt Dale is hurting, I hope he takes some time for himself  and his family. The stress of the last few months must have been oppressive and I for one am gutted it ended this way. Even Saturday, 3 goals down to Sacramento there were a large portion of supporters who still defended Dale. That is a measure of his stature, that not only do we want to win. We wanted to win with Dale.

I implore you, when you next see Dale Schilly, shake his hand. Reminisce with him about the good times. There were many good times. I will never forget his beaming smile after we beat Tulsa on the road last season, when he had validation he built a team that could win and compete in this league.

Whilst the second season has gone sour, Treat the man with the class and respect that he gave to us. There will be another coach someday who comes in and has success at Saint Louis FC and it will all be built on the foundations of Mr. Dale Schilly.