Podcast: Bayside FC’s Kevin Bacher on club’s MLS NEXT expansion

Bayside FC's U-16 MLS NEXT team. (Courtesy photo)

The latest guest on New England Soccer Journal’s “The Goal” podcast is Bayside FC Boys Director of Coaching Kevin Bacher.

The 2022-23 season is an exciting one for Rhode Island-based Bayside FC, which expanded its MLS NEXT presence and is now competing in the elite league at the U-13, U-14, U-16 and U-19 levels.

Bacher, a former goalkeeper at Syracuse, joined the club in 2021 to assume his role. Previously, he worked at Oakwood Soccer Club for several years, where he coached the U-17 and U-19 MLS NEXT groups. He also worked on the coaching staff at UConn for many years. 

Bacher joined host Matt Langone to discuss Bayside’s MLS NEXT expansion and the club’s outlook for the remainder of this season.

The full podcast can be accessed below and is available on all major platforms. If you enjoy it, please leave a rating and a review.

Here are some highlights from our discussion with Bacher:

On the reasoning behind the club’s MLS NEXT expansion:

Bacher: “Before I got here, Bayside was in the DA (U.S. Soccer Developmental Academy), which was at U-12 only. Essentially what happened was, the DA dissolved with U.S. soccer and then with that you had MLS coming in and stepping up. Before I got here, they had U-13 and U-14 (MLS NEXT) and we felt that we have a player pool and certainly a coaching staff that’s capable of really pushing to the next step. So, we had some conversations with MLS at the main office and with some of the men and women there, and felt the timing was right for us to try to push on and get U-16 and U-19.”

On the experience of competing at MLS NEXT Fest in Indio, Calif., last month:

Bacher: “It was unbelievable. A lot of our kids are from the inner city, Providence area, so they don’t really see palm trees and mountains too often. And we play here in the northeast, 90% of our — probably even more like 95% of our games — are on turf for our boys. It was an opportunity to get on beautiful grass fields. It was actually held at a polo ground, so the fields were unbelievable. There was probably 250 to 300 college coaches.”

On how Bayside tries to appeal to players:

Bacher: “For us, our main thing is we want the kids to be good people, and then we want to make sure that we develop them as as much as we can and give them the best opportunity for them to kind of get to their goals and their dreams, and whatever next level that may be. It might be playing with the Revs.”

On Bayside’s relationship with the New England Revolution:

Bacher: “That relationship is there and it’s getting better and stronger. We both have goals to win championships and trophies. But for us, our big thing is can we send our best players to the Revs? That’s a trophy for us. That’s the way we look at it.”

On how being a former goalkeeper shapes him as a coach:

Bacher: “You get to see the whole field from the back of the team, so you could get to see the things develop, in terms of building out of the back and the way the ball was moved. It shaped my philosophy of how I see the game — possession-oriented. And then, obviously, you’re kind of the last line of defense, so you want to be really, really organized and have a good structure. I think that kind of led to the person I am today, as a coach and as well as a director in guiding young coaches where we want to see the game develop moving forward.”

The Goal” podcast is brought to you by the New England Revolution and Soccerheads New England.

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