NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Nashville SC is led by the men on the field, but the success is because of the women off the field. With its female support staff, the club is breaking barriers in Major League Soccer.
Sydney Gray is always on her feet so the players of Nashville SC can stay on theirs.
“Supporting an athlete mentally, physically, emotionally — all of those pieces go into what an athletic trainer does,” Gray said.
Gray is one of three female head athletic trainers in the MLS. That goal was always part of the game plan.
“I also played soccer my whole life, tore my ACL, went through a bunch of rehab,” Gray said. “We didn’t even have an athletic trainer on staff that was there. They only covered football games, and that’s kind of when the dream started.”
Bre Cecil is also a former player with a similar dream. For her, fuel is fitness.
“Knowing what it feels like after a game day for recovery [and] what they need before,” Cecil said.
Cecil is the club’s performance dietitian. There’s always an appetite for victory.
“One thing we’ve incorporated this year is mixing in the vegetables, which sounds like something you would do for maybe a kid,” Cecil said. “That way, when we provide them lunch, it’s like, ‘This is what you’re getting,’ instead of, ‘This is an option, this is an option.'”
A winning team is not built overnight. Trust is the main ingredient to ensure everyone is on the same team.
“We’re very lucky to have both of them,” defender Dan Lovitz said. “It’s great to see them every day and to know that they’re here for us and to help us reach our maximum potential.”
The job of a trainer is to be where you’re needed.
“There are 700 things Bre and I do behind the scenes that no one will ever know about,” Gray said. “If the player is now able to perform because of one of those things we did, that feels rewarding.”
For Gray and Cecil, it’s important to be where no one expects you to go.
“I do want girls to know that they can get into any male-dominated sport, whether it’s the NFL, MLS, all of those things, to not be afraid,” Cecil said.
