THE CANADIAN PRESS
VANCOUVER — Throughout his soccer career defender Jay DeMerit has proven a lot of people wrong.
The kid who left Wisconsin for England with a dream and $1,800 in his pocket has overcome obstacles and doubters to reach the highest level of professional soccer.
It’s that determination and character which convinced the Vancouver Whitecaps that DeMerit was the right person to sign as their first Major League Soccer player.
"He’s made it through several challenges and the one thing that has never held him back is his desire to be successful," Tom Soehn, Vancouver’s director of soccer operations, told a news conference Thursday.
In making the U.S. international their first MLS player, the Whitecaps have laid a cornerstone in building the team that will begin play in March.
DeMerit, who started all four games for the U.S. at this year’s World Cup, said the opportunity presented to him is the next logical step in his career.
"There is something really inspiring about trying to start something new, being part of an organization that has even bigger aspirations," said the 30-year-old centre back.
"Vancouver ticked pretty much every box that I could think of, as to what I wanted in a new move. It’s an aspiring club. It’s a challenge to be a leader on the field and off. It’s also about trying to be part of something new, something special."
The five-foot-11 DeMerit looked relaxed pulling on his new Whitecaps jersey. He talked easily and with passion about his role with the Whitecaps.
"It’s a big role," DeMerit said. "I’ve had my fair share of success in what I’ve done but I will always want more.
"And there is a lot more I can still learn in this game."
DeMerit played six seasons with English club Watford FC. He spent time as the team’s captain but his contract expired prior to the World Cup.
Whitecaps president Bob Lenarduzzi has interviewed thousands of players during his career. He’s heard players oversell their talents on the field and embellish their presence in the locker-room.
With DeMerit, he found someone honest in his abilities and comfortable with the job being asked of him.
"I’m impressed he knows what his strengths are and that’s what he’s going to bring to our club," said Lenarduzzi.
"It’s a real combination for us with the character he has, the leadership qualities he has, the way he approaches the game. All of those things make him the right character to be our first signing."
Former Canadian international defender Jim Brennan was the first player signed by Toronto FC when the team joined MLS. Some Toronto players are already looking forward to the rivalry with Vancouver.
"They’ll add some spice to the Canadian culture when it comes to soccer," midfielder Julian de Guzman said recently.
"Toronto is the best club in the country. We want to remain that as long as possible. It’s the perfect time to prove that next season."
DeMerit’s soccer career reads like a movie script. A former manager at Watford once call him the "Rocky Balboa of English football."
"It’s definitely the unbeaten path," the soft-spoken DeMerit said with a smile. "It was always about what I can achieve next, what person can I prove wrong now."
Born in Green Bay, and raised an NFL Packers fan, he played college soccer at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Undrafted out of university, DeMerit worked as a bouncer to raise money. In 2003 he travelled to Britain and played for Southall, a team in the ninth tier of English soccer.
In 2004, DeMerit joined Northwood, a seventh-tier side. When Northwood played Watford in an pre-season match, DeMerit was impressive enough to earn a two-week trial with Watford.
The Watford manager who decided to give DeMerit a chance was Ray Lewington. Lewington was a midfielder who played with Lenarduzzi on the Whitecaps team that won the 1979 NASL championship.
"Soccer is a very small world," said DeMerit.
DeMerit received a contract for the 2004-05 season. In May of 2006, he scored a storied header in a 3-0 win over Leeds United which gained Watford promotion to the Premier league.
Watford later was relegated from the Premier league back into the second tier Championship league.
DeMerit earned his first international cap in March 2007 when the U.S. played a friendly against Guatemala. He also was a member of the American team at the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
He’s played 23 games for the U.S. but never scored a goal.
The Whitecaps could have made a bigger splash by signing a high-scoring striker as their first player. Coach Teitur Thordarson said the team made a smarter move in gaining a rock-hard defender.
"Many coaches see it the same way I do," said Thordarson, who coached the Whitecaps to a United Soccer Leagues First Division title in 2008. "We like to build it from the back with solid defenders and leaders coming from the back."
DeMerit said championship teams are built with a strong backbone.
"If we can get a spine on the team that is very solid, I think we’ll have success and hit the ground running," he said. "As defenders, if you don’t allow the other team to score, they can’t win."
The Whitecaps have spent the last few years playing in a second tier North American soccer league. Only a few of the team’s players will be capable of making the move to MLS. Vancouver will have a chance to add more players when the MLS expansion draft is held Wednesday.
"We are looking for strikers," said Thordarson. "They are not easy to find."