CONVERSATION WITH WELLS THOMPSON
Wells Thompson is probably one of the nicest guys you will ever meet. It kind of makes you wonder why he was one of the most hated players in the ACC.
I had the opportunity to catch Wells Thompson for a few minutes after training on Saturday and we talked a little bit about his Colorado experience so far.
The former Wake Forest standout and New England Revolution midfielder grew up playing ice hockey in North Carolina. It’s no surprise he plays with such tenacity.
“I spent most of my time in the penalty box, I have a little bit of the ice hockey mentality in my game.”
The coaches and staff like Wells’ aggressive play. But Wells admits he hasn’t always used it positively. He’s accumulated 18 yellow cards and one ejection in his three MLS seasons.
“I’ve been at fault for losing my head, and not being mature or controlled enough, that is one part of my game I’m working on.”
So far though, things have been looking up for Wells in the Mile High City. The move from New England is a welcome challenge for a player that is always looking for new opportunities.
At the end of 2009, Wells approached Coach Nicols about his desire to move away from New England. It’s not that he was unhappy, but he “doesn’t want to be one of those guys that is just happy to be in the league.” He wanted a new challenge and asked the coaching staff to consider his request.
A week before training camp Wells got the call about the trade to Colorado. He said “it was an answer to a prayer.”
Wells immediately felt welcomed in Denver and having Ex-Revs Pat Noonan and Jeff Larentowicz around made things easier.
“I can’t say anything but good things about the experience.”
He did admit though, that there are some differences between Smith’s training camp and Nicol’s.
“Preseasons are a lot, lot different. New England starts at a crawl. We start at a sprint here, we had the beep test on the second day.” Wells is enjoying it though, “I love it, I enjoy it . . . I’d rather do more than less.”
The Rapids are a couple weeks into camp and he says that he is finally getting the kinks out and getting back into shape. He is looking forward to the season and has already set some high goals.
“I want to contribute, play as much as I can . . . get the team to the playoffs. We have a great squad, there’s no reason we shouldn’t win the championship.” He added, “we are going to do big things this year, and I’m excited to put on a new Rapids jersey.”
Wells also expressed his thoughts on his former New England teammate, Jeff Larentowicz, who made his way to Colorado with Wells in the same trade.
“Jeff is tough, Jeff is really tough. That is what I like about him. He will leave it all on the field for you . . . I think he has a winning mentality and the effort he puts on the field, it’s hard not to commend that. He’s in the middle of the field and he’ll battle for you all day.”
Off the field, Wells is looking to get more involved and plugged into the community. He found other players on the Rapids that share his beliefs and started attending local services. Overall, he just feels blessed to be here.
His closing thoughts on Denver summed things up nicely, “I love it, I’ll take Colorado over Massachusetts any day.”