It’s no secret that Dallas Trinity FC brought together their playing and coaching staff under a bit of a time crunch but, all things considered, that effort has been a big success with an undefeated record. Unfortunately, one of the byproducts of that tight launch time frame was Head Coach Pauline MacDonald being held up getting into the country and getting to work.
But all that is in the past, as MacDonald arrived last week and took over running the team in the lead-up to the 4th game of the season tomorrow.
Coach says the training focus this week since her arrival has been on having fun. “We came off the back of a very, very good one. And I think it’s really important that you celebrate that success,” said Coach MacDonald.
“For me, I had met a lot of the players via Zoom, but it’s not the same as that in-person thing. So putting on a session that’s fun, and allowing them to express themselves, and me to show them the vulnerable side of my personality as well, I think, was a good thing.”
With the weekend off, Coach says the players were also put through some physical work to build for the season. “We also kind of set up a lot of performance testing last week to try to push the players on. To find out where we are at this moment in time from a physical perspective. So they worked incredibly hard last week. We weren’t trying to break them. We were just trying to take that next step.”
Thankfully, MacDonald says the work ahead won’t be complicated by a radical change in method or tactics as she and GM Chris Petrucelli – who ran the team in MacDonald’s absence – are on the same page.
“I think that we both come from a very similar kind of mindset in terms of the way that we want to play,” MacDonald avowed. “We want to bring the best of the American game, the physicality, the speed, the power, but we want to kind of mold that with a more European style in terms of trying to play through the lines. So I don’t think it’ll be too dissimilar [to the first three games], what you see.”
It was also a blessing, Coach Mac says, to see the offense break out in the last game with a six-goal performance. “It was a high-scoring game last week, and that makes me really happy because we’ve been working towards that.”
That doesn’t mean MacDonald doesn’t see room for improvement, particularly in an area she has a lot of expertise.
“I played as an outside back or a defensive midfielder, so I want to take a lot of pride in the way that we defend. I think that the goals that we’ve conceded so far, we’ve just been maybe a little bit lost. [We] lost a little bit of focus and concentration in our defensive transition.”
Up next tomorrow for Dallas Trinity is a road game at fellow undefeated side Brooklyn FC (1-0-1). Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 pm CT from Rocco B. Commisso Soccer Stadium in New York, New York. You can find the broadcast on Peacock & USL on YouTube.
Coach MacDonald sees a bright future ahead for the women’s game and seemingly relishes this chance. “One of the biggest attractions for me coming here was the way that the girls and women’s game is supported. There’s a real motivation. There’s a drive to try and push the game further.”
“Obviously, the USL is a part of that,” Coach MacDonald continued. “You have so many talented players across the country, but only really the NWSL teams as outlets for those players to go and fulfill their journey. So for me having a part in this is really, really exciting.
