Denis Hamlett

Personal information
Full name	Denis Hamlett
Date of birth	January 9, 1969 (1969-01-09) (age 40)
Place of birth	Puerto Limón, Costa Rica
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Playing position	Defender
Youth career
1987	Wilmington Seahawks
1989–1991	George Mason Patriots
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1992–1993	Fort Lauderdale Strikers	21	(0)
1992–1994	Harrisburg Heat (indoor)	72	(24)
1994–1995	Anaheim Splash (indoor)
1996	Colorado Rapids	31	(0)
Total		124	(24)
Teams managed
1998–2007	Chicago Fire (assistant)
2008–2009	Chicago Fire
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Denis Hamlett (born January 9, 1969 in Puerto Limón) is a Costa Rican former professional soccer player. He was the head coach of Chicago Fire in Major League Soccer from 2008 until 2009.

Hamlett spent his entire playing career in the United States, playing professionally with the Fort Lauderdale Strikers and the Colorado Rapids, as well as indoor soccer with the Harrisburg Heat and Anaheim Splash.

[edit] Playing career

[edit] College

After his parents separated Hamlett moved to live with his mother in New York, New York when he was ten years old. His family eventually settled in Maryland where he attended Albert Einstein High School.^[1] In 1987, Hamlett played college soccer for UNC Wilmington, before transferring to George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia after his freshman season. He earned All-Colonial Athletic Association and All-Region accolades during his three seasons of play at George Mason. He graduated in 1992 with a bachelors degree in business administration and was inducted into the school's Hall of Fame in 2006.^[2]

[edit] Professional

Hamlett began his professional career on June 10, 1992 when he signed with the Fort Lauderdale Strikers of American Professional Soccer League.^[3] He spent the 1992 and 1993 summers playing outdoor soccer with the Strikers.^[4][5] In the fall of 1992, he joined the Harrisburg Heat of the National Professional Soccer League. He spent two seasons with the Heat.^[6][7] Then from 1994-95, he played summer indoor soccer for the Anaheim Splash of the CISL.

In 1996, Hamlett was drafted by the Colorado Rapids in the second round, 12th overall in Major League Soccer's inaugural draft. His stellar play continued with Colorado, where he won the BIC Tough Defender of the Year award. His playing career ended in 1997 when he suffered a stroke caused by a blood protein deficiency.^[8]

[edit] Coaching career

Following his retirement from professional play in 1997, Hamlett attained his coaching license from U.S. Soccer. In 1998, Hamlett joined the coaching staff of the Chicago Fire.

He served as an assistant coach during the U.S. Project-40 squad's visit to Portugal, and continued his coaching duties with the Fire, becoming the senior assistant coach in 2001. Upon dismissal of former head coach Dave Sarachan, Hamlett received interim head coaching duties on June 20, 2007, but resumed assistant coaching duties following the arrival of Juan Carlos Osorio. When Osorio resigned take on the head coach job at the New York Red Bulls, Hamlett was hired as the head coach. Following Fire's failure to qualify for the 2009 MLS Cup, Hamlett was fired as head coach on 24 November, 2009.^[9]

[edit] Personal

Hamlett currently resides in Chicago with his wife Jackie. While playing for the Harrisburg Heat he received numerous death threats from Baltimore Blast (then known as the Baltimore Spirit) fans due to accidentally breaking the jaw of a Spirit player during a game.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• MLS Player Profile
• MLS Team News