With the newly anointed captain of the Montreal Impact slowly coming back to full health, Patrice Bernier came to Orlando to officially begin his tenure with the armband.
His first observations from training on Saturday: Everyone seemed just a little bit more energized.
“This is a sport that is meant to be played outdoors, so being in a climate back home that prevents that is tough,” said the Brossard native. “Being under the sun, in the fresh air, just gives that little extra boost to go out there and play the game you are passionate about.”
The weather has played a large part in adding motivation to a group of players that had trained for three weeks indoors at the Marie-Victorin Sports Complex, but Bernier thinks that playing on grass will be even more important moving forward.
“About 90% of the season is played on grass. It’s what you’re used to. It’s softer and offers more support on the joints and the body in general. The turf is more demanding on your back, knees and adductors. It’s good to get onto a natural playing surface.”
Preparing on grass this preseason will be even more important than last year, which kicked off in Seattle and Portland on synthetic surfaces, as the team will head to Dallas and Houston to start the 2014 campaign.
