Jermaine Jones has been one of the major reasons for the Colorado Rapids’ revival this year, with the veteran US international helping the club to their surprising first-place position in the points per game standings after joining the team from the New England Revolution shortly before the season opener.
The MLS All-Star has been excellent in his eight appearances, but he’s perhaps made his biggest impact in the locker room. He’s missed 12 of Colorado’s 20 matches due to suspension and injury, but he’s been an ever-present in the Rapids locker room. He trained with the team through his six-game suspension to start the year, helping to set a new tone for a club that finished dead last in the Western Conference in 2015.
Simply being around his new teammates was important for the 34-year-old Jones, who recognized that he could help the Rapids mentally reboot – even if he couldn’t play in matches.
“From day one, from when I was six games suspended, still I said to [Rapids head coach Pablo Mastroeni] if I signed a contract, I will be not six weeks in LA to chill and then come over when the six games are finished,” he said in an interview with MLSsoccer.com in San Jose ahead of Thursday’s All-Star Game (7:30 pm ET; ESPN and UniMas in the US, TSN and RDS in Canada). “I said I want to be there with the team from day one and have the same success we had in New England. It’s hard work to get that trust and the belief in that group.
“They go week for week out there and face everybody who they have to face with all respect, but go out and say you come here, we come to you guys, we want to take your points. And that was a process that we started to build.”
Jones spoke at length about how he’s tried to build that culture, talking about his attempts to lead Colorado’s young roster – many of whom were a part of the rough 2015 season – by example.
“What I try to do is always show the guys in examples what I do,” he said. “That’s what [US national team coach] Jurgen Klinsmann said always, it’s not always Jermaine Jones what you get to see Saturday after Saturday, but I’m a guy, I go in training sessions and play the same I do in the weekends. What you see on Saturdays I try to do during the whole week.
“I hate to lose,” he continued. “People, especially on my team, they go ‘Oh wait, he’s 34, he’s not here to chill, he’s here to show people they’re wrong.’ And then it’s easy for me to push them in a way. When they make mistakes I can go against them but they know it’s not like I want to try to show them I’m the bigger guy. No, I try to help you so that we all get on the same page and get that win.”
The new attitude has paid off the Rapids, who are currently on a club record 15-game unbeaten streak and lead MLS with a 1.90 points per game average. They’ve gotten key contributions from young players like Axel Sjoberg, Marlon Hairston and Dillon Serna (who suffered a season-ending ACL tear on June 29), something that Jones is taking particular pride in.
Jones is hoping to see the field a bit more in the second half of the season, starting with Saturday’s marquee encounter at Eastern Conference leaders New York City FC (3 pm ET; MLS LIVE). Jones and the Rapids should continue to get a boost from new goalkeeper Tim Howard, though the German-American knows Colorado still have plenty of work to do to ensure their 2016 season isn’t just a first-half surprise, but a year-long success.
“Now we’ve got Tim Howard, another good support, but it’s still half the season [left],” he said. “We know that but I think the whole team is starting to believe that there’s something possible and I think that’s a good thing.”
