While the Dynamo left Robertson Stadium on Thursday night frustrated after the disappointing 1-0 defeat in the SuperLiga semifinals, the silver lining was the return of Geoff Cameron. The midfielder played his first minutes since tearing his PCL on April 24 against the Chicago Fire.
“It felt pretty good,” said Cameron of his recovering knee after the game. “I ran hard during the minutes that I got, and I just tried to make the best of it and not think about my injury. Just trying to make sure I was doing all my footing properly and trying not to think about my injury, but it was in the back of my mind.”
While Cameron has pushed himself hard to return, he came out of Thursday night’s match with no swelling or discomfort from his injury.
“I have no complaints,” said the 25-year-old. “No problems whatsoever, which is great. I just have a sore body from running hard, so I am looking forward to this weekend.”
Unfortunately for Cameron, Houston’s next two MLS games are both on artificial turf. The Dynamo play at Seattle on Sunday and then in New England the following week. As a result, head coach Dominic Kinnear says he may take a more cautious approach on Cameron’s clean bill of health.
“He took baby steps, and he is trying to maybe do a little bit too much in too short a period of time,” Kinnear said. “But I think he wants to get his game back quick, and I thought he looked better and moved better than maybe we had hoped.”
Still, Cameron is hoping he can help the team off the bench. With Houston struggling to get into the playoff race, any contribution he can provide will be more than welcome – and more than anyone initially expected.
The standing ovation Cameron received upon his entry into Thursday’s game was not lost on him, nor was the tribute fans paid to him in Houston’s first game following his injury when they displayed cards with his number on them.
“It was amazing,” said Cameron of both tributes. “I can’t say enough good things about our fans and their support for me, and it helped me push to get back healthy.”
Dwain Capodice is a contributor to MLSsoccer.com. Questions or comments can be sent via email to dwaincapodice@gmail.com.
