Posted by

Harjeet Johal ,

May 22, 2014 Twitter

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VANCOUVER, B.C. - Martin Rennie led the Vancouver Whitecaps for a pair of MLS campaigns. The Scottish born coach compiled a 24-19-25 record, and was the first manager to lead a Canadian MLS franchise to the playoffs in 2012. When he took over after the 2011 season, Martin Rennie revamped a last place Whitecaps and turned the side into a playoff team. Unfortunately for Rennie, the Vancouver Whitecaps did not make the playoffs last season, and as a result Martin Rennie was not brought back to coach the team for 2014. Rennie has kept a low presence since his tenure with the Whitecaps ended, but recently he has been making the media rounds and talking about his ideas on how to grow the development of soccer in Canada at the grass-roots level. Rennie has created his own website in which shares his philosophy on how to improve soccer in Canada for the next generation. The avid Manchester United supporter who celebrates turning 39 today, holds no ill will towards the Vancouver Whitecaps organization, and he reflects on his time with the Whitecaps in a fond fashion. "You would always like it to be better, but overall I think it was a good season. It showed progression, and now hopefully the team is in a good position to keep progressing." The Thurso, Scotland native, has decided to take time off from football and he currently is exploring his options from the sidelines. Rennie has been enjoying been able to spend more time with his family, and his dog Pippa. The rigorous demands of being an MLS coach don't allow for much personal time away from the pitch. Rennie is looking forward to summertime in Vancouver as he weighs, and ponders his next coaching venture. "I've chosen to take a little break. My family are settled here and maybe once the summertime comes around and they're done with school then maybe I'll look to do something then, but so far it's been nice to have a little break." Could Martin Rennie be back coaching as soon as next fall? "Like I say, around the summertime I'll be looking to see what's out there. It's the case of finding something that you feel you can really make a success of and that you can make the necessary adjustments to the organization and to the team. If you feel like you can do all those things then I'll be ready to go." When a coach is not retained by his previous club, you often wonder what they might do different if they should step back into the coaching realm. Rennie was tight-lipped about what changes he would make, but he is confident he has the right tools to continue to grow, and become a top football manager. "I think when the end of the season comes, you always evaluate that. I wrote out a list of things I've learned and there were a lot of things that I've learned. There's always things you would do better, but those are probably for me to keep to myself because I need to use them when I coach again." Despite not making the playoffs last season Rennie doesn't see last season as a step backwards or a disappointment for the Whitecaps. The Caps were tied for the fourth highest MLS goals (53) total, and also featured the MLS golden boot winner, Camilo Sanvezzo. Vancouver finished a mere three-points behind rival side, Seattle Sounders. In his two seasons with the Whitecaps, young players like Russell Teibert, Kekuta Manneh, Carlyle Mitchell, and Gershon Koffie all continued to grow and develop under his managerial guise. Rennie had never previously coached in Major League Soccer, and he was quickly able to turn the Whitecaps around. He is grateful for all the experiences, and knowledge he gained while managing the Whitecaps as he looks back on nothing but an extremely positive chapter of his life. "Coming into the MLS I had never coached in the league before, and I needed to learn a lot about it. As a young coach you're always developing and learning, so those experiences will help me a lot as I go forward." When Martin Rennie does return to coaching, he is going to have to up his game. You can take as many little steps, and make a million advancements with your club, but failure to guide your team to a playoff position, promotion, or cup victories is what the bottom line comes down to. Franchise organizations, supporters, and pundits expect a team to grow, and expect results on the pitch to indicate that growth. Time will certainly tell if Martin Rennie can lead his next team to the promise land. Martin Rennie can still be found through his website renniecoaching.com or on twitter @RennieCoaching



Notes: Martin Rennie is a huge fan of Scottish DJ Calvin Harris.