In the spring of 1984, the Tampa Bay Rowdies crossed the Atlantic for a pair of exhibitions in England. One of those friendly matches saw them travel to Kingston upon Hull to take on Hull City. Watching from the stands that day was a then 14-year-old Stuart Dobson.
He didn’t know it at the time, but the visiting team taking the field at Hull City’s Boothferry Park would eventually become a defining part of his life.
Dobson still remembers attending the exhibition match with one of his friends. What stuck with him wasn’t necessarily the action on the field. It was the uniquely American spectacle surrounding it, with cheerleaders on the sidelines and Hull City owner Don Robinson riding around the pitch on horseback dressed as a cowboy before kickoff.
“It was definitely my first experience of American sports in person,” says Dobson. “At that age, the Rowdies were the first American soccer team I’d ever heard of. It’s kind of funny I ended up coming to work for them so many years later.”
A decade later, Dobson made his way to the U.S. to play college soccer as a goalkeeper for the University of Portland. Following a lengthy indoor soccer career – including a stretch with the Tampa Bay Terror at the former Bayfront Center next door to Al Lang Stadium – Dobson moved into coaching. First with the New Jersey Ironmen, where he coached former U.S. Men’s National Team Goalkeeper Tony Meola, before moving into the college ranks with UC Santa Barbara and the University of Akron.
His soccer journey finally came full circle in 2015 when he landed back in Tampa Bay as the Goalkeepers Coach for the Rowdies. 12 seasons later, Dobson is set to reach an extraordinary milestone this Saturday as he prepares to coach his 400th match for the Rowdies. The number is a benchmark no other Rowdies coach has come close to throughout the club’s history, a testament to the reputation and relationships Dobson has established over the years throughout a half dozen different head coaches and three different ownership groups.
For Dobson, though, the number itself is still difficult to comprehend.
“Anywhere in the world, for a player or a coach, that’s a lot for one club,” he says. “I never thought I’d be here 400 games. I’ve been so fortunate to work with so many fantastic goalkeepers and coaches in my time here. I immediately fell in love with the area when I arrived. Time flies when you’re enjoying what you do every day. We’ve had some good teams in my time. When Neill Collins took over, it really helped lift us to a level where this club should be. It really feels like we’re back to that this past year with Dom Casciato in charge.”
As the Rowdies Goalkeepers Coach, Dobson spends far more time with his goalkeepers than most assistants are able to spend with individual players. That intimate bond allows him to coach beyond the technical aspects of the position, building trust while helping his keepers navigate the mental demands that come with playing one of sport’s most unforgiving positions.
“It’s my job to kind of buffer them from the criticism,”he says. “Goalkeepers have to play with one percent confidence. As soon as you have a little bit of doubt, then you run into problems. Working so closely with the goalkeepers, I get to know them really well and what makes them tick. It’s so important to build a rapport with them. One of the things I think I’ve gotten good at over the years is finding the balance between building up their confidence and still being direct in communicating where they can improve. That balance is key.”
Dobson credits his amiable demeanor and attitude that he’s become known for to his mother, Alma.
“I look at my mom, who is a fitness instructor to this day, and she teaches 60, 70 people in her classes at once,” he says. “I grew up watching how personable she was with people all the time. People looked up to her, and I looked up to her. She could command a room very easily, with just an infectious personality. She would still demand a lot, but then made sure that everyone was rewarded with a friendly smile and cheerful attitude for putting the effort in. I definitely know I get a lot of that positivity from my mom.”
The encouraging environment Dobson has fostered throughout the seasons has helped his goalkeepers grow and reach new heights in their career. Goalkeepers like John McCarthy, Cody Mizell, Evan Louro, and Jordan Farr have moved on to opportunities in Major League Soccer after their time working with Dobson in Tampa Bay.
“People ask me all the time if I want to be a head coach, and people in the organization have asked me if I want to continue on when I’ve been interim head coach. My answer is no chance,” he says. “My passion is goalkeeping, because you can actually affect an individual. I just love seeing an individual grow weekly, monthly, yearly. That is my passion.”
Underlying Dobson’s positive outlook is a determination to continue finding ways to improve, both for the goalkeepers he guides and himself. It would be impossible for any coach at any level to last as long as he has without that approach.
On a recent episode of the Tampa Bay Rowdies Podcast, Dobson admitted he’s not content to rest on his reputation after 400 matches for the club.
“I’m not comfortable, because I still want to win, I still want to get more shutouts,” he says. “The ownership groups have been great, the fans have been great, the players have been great. I just want to keep taking the Rowdies to the next level… Who knows what happens, but I’d be good with another 12 seasons here.”
