Photo credit: U.S. Soccer
Grant Robinson Video Interview
FAIRFAX, Va. – Last week, Grant Robinson found himself just outside of San Diego and a stone's throw from the Pacific Ocean.
But the George Mason freshman wasn't at the beach for fall break. No, this served as more of a business trip.
Robinson, a center midfielder for the Patriots, was one of 24 players to make the U.S. Under-19 Men's National Team's roster for domestic training camp Oct. 3-10 in Chula Vista, Calif. This was the second call-up for Robinson, who also played for the U.S. U-19 Men's National Team in the Copa de Atlantico Tournament in Canary Islands, Spain in February.
At the training camp, Robinson was just one of three collegiate players on the roster, joining UCLA's Kevin Silva and Providence College's Danny Griffin. The team included 14 professional players, 10 currently on MLS rosters.
"Great experience really to get the exposure and be with a bunch of players who are on their way to pro or in college already," Robinson said. "It is just an awesome feeling to represent your country like that. I think my fitness got better, quicker on the ball and understanding that is the level to be at. That is the highest level and that is where I want to be. Keep my mindset right."
Robinson and the U-19 team spent a week at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista.
The team wrapped up camp on Sunday by playing an intrasquad match. But on Friday, they played two matches against Club Tijuana Xolos of Liga MX, which is the top level of the Mexican football league system.
"It was a great experience," said Robinson, who has played in 10 games and made six starts for the Patriots this season. "They were a good team. They moved the ball well. It was an intense, competitive game. I really enjoyed it."
In order to attend the camp, Robinson had to miss a week of classes and George Mason's game last Saturday against Saint Joseph's. Robinson said both his professors and the George Mason soccer coaching staff were supportive and understanding of the opportunity and worked with him to make necessary accommodations to make up on lost class time.
To Mason head coach Greg Andrulis, this chance for Robinson to grow as a soccer player and as a person was a no-brainer even if it meant missing a game.
"Whether they're going to miss a game to attend the national team or they are doing something out in the community or something extra academically, there is a whole world out there," Andrulis said. "Every time he takes one of these trips he is going to better because of it. It will benefit us in the long run. It benefits him in the long run. He grows as a player. He grows as a person. We're not just a soccer program that is 24 hours a day just focused. We want them to grow. His growth right now is coming with these trips. I mean, who gets to go to the Canary Islands? But being with world-class players he can learn from them. He can learn how they behave. It is a great experience for him."
This latest call-up will hopefully lead to more chances for Robinson, who would like to make the U-20 team next year for the U-20 World Cup. But landing on the U-19 Men's National Team was the latest sign of progression for the native of Columbia, Md.
He has played for the DC United U18 USSF Academy. Prior to that, he played for the Baltimore Celtic Soccer Club, helping the team to back-to-back USYSA national championships. He has also trained with the DC United MLS First Team. A highly touted product out of Loyola Blakefield prep school in Towson, Md., Robinson was a member of the 2016 Boys IMG Academy 150 Player Pool and the 2016 College Soccer News Top 160 selection.
At the end of January, he received his first call-up to U.S. Under-19 Men's National Team. He joined the U.S. in Canary Islands, Spain and played in three matches against France, Spain and Canary Islands.
Though his goal and dream was to always to make Team USA, he admits he was stunned when he was chosen to the team.
"It is surreal really," Robinson said. "When I got the email, I didn't know what to think. I didn't really act too excited. I was really blessed and pumped up for that. It is a crazy feeling when you first get that call. You feel like you've accomplished what you've been setting out to do. But then that is where it really starts. That's where it started for me."
Andrulis, who helps U.S. Soccer as a soccer academy scout, is no stranger to the coaching staff of the U-19 Men's National Team. He coached U-19 head coach Brad Friedel and assistant coach Mike Lapper during his time as goalkeepers coach and later head coach of the Columbus Crew.
His connection to Friedel, a former U.S. Men's National Team goalkeeper, stretches back even further. Andrulis first met Friedel when he tried to recruit him to Clemson. Though Friedel ended up at UCLA, Andrulis later served as his goalkeepers coach for the Columbus Crew in the MLS. Friedel played professionally for 20 years and also appeared in three World Cups and in the 1992 Olympics.
"It is an incredible opportunity for a player to go be coached by a guy who has done what Brad has done," Andrulis said. "He has played in World Cups. He has played in the Olympics, played all over the world for some of the best teams. That experience is invaluable. You have to be a good player to be included in any national team pool and Grant is a very good player. He is one of those guys that the nuances of his game are special. He has great feet. He is a very tough competitor. (Friedel and Lapper) are very happy with the direction he's moving and the improvements they've asked him to work on, the things he has done. He is doing the right things. He is on a path. When you're in that pool you should be very grateful because it is very difficult to get in there."
