We might as well make it a themed Monday. Today’s theme is brothers-in-law. Earlier today, I posted the comments of Adam Moffat’s wife’s brother, Steven Lenhart. And now it is Moffat’s turn. Moffat retired from professional soccer at the end of the 2018 Sacramento Republic season. With the benefit of Pacific Time, I was able to get him on the phone late Wednesday night to discuss the Crew being saved. Unfortunately, some of the conversation was lost due to cell phone garbling and the fact the Adam is from Scotland and therefore barely speaks English. Those two things combined to make some of our chat incomprehensible. Nonetheless, here are some of the extant and decipherable comments.

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On the Crew being officially saved:

I thought it was terrible.

Just kidding. It was great to see that, for it to actually be done after all the rumors. I think a lot of interest has been generated that is really going to help the team in the future. I am delighted. I am delighted that as a former player, when I come back to Columbus someday, I know that the team is going to be around.

I think it’s great for the future. People getting behind the team and it brings people together. The change of ownership will give a fresh start.

On Dr. Pete joining the Haslam family as part of the ownership group:

That’s a remarkable story. I’ve seen him too much. I’ve seen every team doctor too much throughout my career. He’s a great guy. He always brought his family around. You can tell he’s ingrained in the community. I’m glad it’s him. He knows the passion of the fans, he’s been through ups and downs, knows what’s worked and what hasn’t. I think it’s great that it’s staying in the family, if you will.

On Duncan Oughton’s right knee joining the ownership group by virtue of being a significant source of Dr. Pete’s wealth:

Percentage-wise, it’s probably like 10%. I can’t wait to see Duncan now that there is going to be a shrine of his knee-replacement when people walk into the new stadium with a sign saying, “Stadium built by this knee.”

On the success of the fan-led #SaveTheCrew movement:

Pretty much against all odds. I know how much work a lot of people put into it and how much passion they showed, but I wasn’t that confident. I’m pretty sure most people thought they were going to be gone. That passion, as a player, you love seeing that. There was no giving up. Even when I was out there at the start of the year,* I was thinking there’s no way this is going to happen. Obviously for those of us who won a championship in 2008, it was hard to think that ten years later they were done. But the commitment of the fans, and the amount of energy that people poured into it, it’s a huge turnaround. That’s how you support a team. For the fans to pull this off, it was phenomenal.

[* NOTE: Although Moffat could not be at the 2008 reunion at the film premiere of one of the iterations of Sean Kelly’s ongoing #SaveTheCrew documentary due to a Sacramento preseason game in Cincinnati, he asked his coach, former Crew midfielder Simon Elliott, if he could rent a car and make a side trip up to Columbus after their game as long as he was back in time for the team flight the next day. When I saw Adam later that night, he told me that when he asked Simon for permission to drive up to Columbus, Simon simply told him, “Go save the Crew.”]

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