Magennis dons the Athens FC badge and the USL logo prior to a practice at Holland Park on Thursday, April 18. He will lead Athens FC onto the pitch for the first time on May 22 at 4:30 p.m. against Birmingham Legion FC at Athens Academy’s Slaughter Field. (Photo/Jack Little)
By Jack Little
Carmical Sports Media Institute
Stephen “Steo” Magennis will lead Athens’ new USL League Two side, Athens FC, in its first-ever season this summer as head coach. Hailing from Dublin, Ireland, Magennis brings over a decade of coaching experience at the college level and beyond. He is now faced with the challenge of building a pre-professional roster and fan base from scratch and will rely heavily on the Athens community to do so. Comments are trimmed for length and clarity.
Q: Coach, you were recently named Athens FC’s head coach in its first ever season. What does that mean to you?
A: Thank you Jack. It’s a super awesome time for myself and for the club. To be part of something from the grassroots is something very special. Special to not only myself but also the players that we’ve got involved. [The owners] had a chat with us a couple of weeks ago and told me about the project, and it just got me excited, got my juices flowing. I’ve been in what would be considered a kind of rebuild or start from scratch before with the Georgia Revolution, and we did a pretty decent job there. I’m looking to do the same and better with this. It’s exciting times for myself, for the players, for the staff and, to be honest, on a bigger part, the community. We want to connect with the community, get them out here, get them excited, get them on the edge of their seats and give them something they’re proud of to watch and call their own.
Q: As of right now, what point is the club at in terms of stages of development?
A: In terms of development, I wouldn’t necessarily say we’re developing. I’d like to call us the finished product. What I mean by that is, all we need is the white lines and to set out a field. I’ve got the players. There’s very, very strong talent here locally, from Athens and then also from my strong network that I’ve built over 20 years now at this point. Between the collaboration of the two, it allows us to bring in the very best homegrown talent, what [Athens United] has here locally, and then also from the surrounding areas, not only Atlanta and Georgia, but also stretching out to the West Coast and then guys internationally. They’re all excited about this project. So this is definitely not developmental nor do I consider grassroots. We’re ready to go. We’re ready to compete and we’re excited for the first season. Just know our intention is to come in and compete and win.
Q: You mentioned a few places that you are going to get players from, but obviously you have had your work cut out for you in creating a roster from scratch. Where all are these players coming from?
A: The very first and foremost guys, the heart and the soul of the team, are from Athens. That’s important to us. One, to show that the quality is already here. Two, to connect with the local fan base. And then yes, of course, I have that strong connection with [Georgia Gwinnett College]. The players that have played for me in the past and present are all excited about this project. In fact, we have some future Grizzlies coming in as well. I am so excited about those. But then once I sent the bat signal out to some of the ex-pros or guys that I’ve worked with in the past that I know can really perform at that level. They were all in on that unless they’d already signed elsewhere, of course. The guys that were still waiting were ready and wanting to compete and bring this franchise to the next level. They were just waiting on the call. So we’re excited. It’s exciting for the locals, but also for the folks from the surrounding areas. We’re all excited about it.
Q: Heading into the first season, what are the goals for the team?
A: It is very simple: win. I’m not going to start measuring with ‘you gotta win every single game with a clean sheet.’ The objective is to win. I’m going to give clear structure and tangible goals that, game by game, we can constantly turn up and try to achieve because the one thing for us is, yes, we want to win, but we also want to do it in an attractive manner. We’re not just going to sit back and defend and because we’re a first-year program. We are interested and we’re eager to push forward and compete in every single game. At the end of game one, boom it’s a brand new reset and you come out and get ready for game two. Every week is gonna have a brand new chapter. We will set up to impose our system, our style of play, our principles, etcetera as a group and, after that, let’s see where the chips fall. We’re excited about it.
Q: What kind of style of play to plan to bring to the team?
A: It’s all subjective. It’s relative because for me, it’s all about winning at the end of the day. That’s what the folks brought me in here to do. Three points on the board. That’s all that matters. And whether you want to be cutesy like Barcelona or whether you want to be direct like a UK level style, we’ll be able to mix it in both styles. The main thing is that our core tenet is always winning. That is the key thing I’m pushing for. That’s our core tenet. After that, whether we have 90% possession or whatever, it’s how we do it. We want to win, that is the main thing. That’s all that’s important to us.
Q: You mentioned the Athens community being important to you guys. How are you going to get them involved with this club?
A: Well, we’re out here tonight [at Holland Park] and there’s probably 300-400 people just playing and watching youth soccer. Obviously there will be some of their own homegrown guys that are literally out in the field for us. So, one is word of mouth, two is by us doing a good job [on the field], and three is by the incredible job that the guys have done with their social media, their platforms. I know we can fill crowds, but it will come week by week. It’s not going to be all day one with 5000 people out here. Now, we would love that and that’s the goal and our guys will be ready to play in front of that, but it’ll be week by week. We’ll push. We’re going to try to do as best we can to drum up excitement, both on and off the field. And then like I said, again, we’re gonna do our very best to be successful from game one.
Q: You said that the opportunity to coach this club ‘got your juices flowing.’ What got you excited about the opportunity to coach Athens FC?
A: Well, one because there isn’t a franchise nor a team near here in this proximity so it’s unique. Next, is being at the genesis of a new program. Being able to build something from the foundations all the way up. You know, it’s new, it’s vibrant, it’s fresh. People in the surrounding areas are going to be excited and wanting to hear and know about that project. Then you have the mix of the guys that are locals that are already incredible who needed a platform to play on and be excited for and the guys that I’m bringing in that we’re blending in. It’s going to be a beautiful mix of talent, technique, skill, speed, so I knew what I knew what I could bring. And then when I came for the tryouts and I saw a local talent here, I was like, ‘fantastic.’ So yeah, man, just overall excitement. I know that there’s so much potential here. The big thing is the potential.
Q: If you had to give a sales pitch to the community of Athens on why they should come out and support you guys, what would it be?
A: One, get behind your local folks. Soccer is getting bigger and bigger every year. We are your billboard. This is what we have to represent you right now. We are working hard to get the very best locals, and, trust me, we are uncovering every single stone to get the best players from Athens and put them on the field at the highest level that is not full professional. We will be playing against a lot of ex-pros or soon-to-be pros. So it will be exciting for the locals, and then with the blend of the guys from the West Coast, here, and internationals, we are going to have a really exciting team. We’re going to have an exciting team with exciting locals and exciting internationals and we expect to win.