Tiffany Weimer Making it Big

Connecticut Native a Regular Contributor for WPS's FC Gold Pride

By Mark Goodman

June 17, 2009

From an early age, Tiffany Weimer seemed destined for success on the soccer field.

Growing up in North Haven, Conn., Weimer had youth coaches saying she was going to get a scholarship to play in college.

Those coaches were saying that when she was 8 years old.

Tiffany Weimer

Tiffany Weimer has one goal and three assists so far this year for FC Gold Pride. (FC Gold Pride/ISI Photos)

Sure enough, Weimer got that offer from Penn State, and she went on to set the Big Ten career record with 91 goals.

And now – after stops in Washington, D.C., back home in Connecticut, Finland and Brazil – the 25-year old striker is making a name for herself in Women’s Professional Soccer. As a regular starter with FC Gold Pride, Weimer is back in New England to prepare for tonight’s match against the Boston Breakers (7 p.m. at Harvard Stadium).

“Everyday I wake up, I get to get up and play soccer, and that’s my job,” Weimer said Monday. “It’s a dream come true.”

Weimer will have plenty of support in the stands from family members who are planning to make the trip to Boston for the match - family that she says helped her get to where she is today.

“My mom and all of my family have been so supportive of me,” Weimer said. “They’ve given me so much, my mom especially, I feel like I’m giving back to them whenever I play.”

Weimer’s mother, Michele Gates, was a regular at her daughter’s games growing up, and attended as many matches at Penn State as her schedule allowed. After spending a season with the Washington Freedom, Weimer played with SoccerPlus CT Reds of the WPSL the last two years, allowing her mother to continue to watch her games.

So when Gold Pride - who play its home games in Santa Clara, Calif. - selected Weimer in the third round (17th overall) of the WPS Draft in January, it caused some mixed emotions.

“I was just so excited to be drafted. I wasn’t too concerned with where I was going,” Weimer said. “But then I saw the look on my mom’s face…It was definitely tough to leave my family. I had just been out of the country.

“But then I saw the other players that were going there and I heard good things about the coaching staff, so I was excited for a new adventure.”

Gates admits she was hoping to see her daughter drafted by Boston or New Jersey-based Sky Blue FC.

“I was a little disappointed at first, but I always felt that, with her, everything happens for a reason,” Gates said. “I wasn’t going to be able to go to as many games as I had hoped…but we were just happy that she was drafted.”

Gates has already trekked to road games at Sky Blue and Washington, and has watched Gold Pride games whenever they’re on television. And, of course, she will be in attendance at Harvard tonight.

Learning to be a pro
When the two sides meet tonight, it will be a rematch of the April 5 season opener for both teams. Weimer made a noteworthy debut in that nationally televised game, assisting on the opening goal in a 2-1 Gold Pride win.

Watching from the visitors’ sidelines was Breakers head coach Tony DiCicco, who coached Weimer with the Reds.

Weimer came to the team with an obvious attacking flair, but DiCicco said she needed to become a more well-rounded player. The coach said last week the two “had some issues” early on as he was trying to get Weimer to play harder and pay more attention to her defending, but she eventually bought into that lesson.

“We wish we could’ve drafted her, because I think she could be helping us right now,” DiCicco said. “When I first got her, she was a wonderful creative player that wasn’t fit enough and didn’t understand her role as a defensive player…Now she’s become a pretty conscientious defender.”

“That’s one of my biggest weaknesses, so it took a while. Tony showed me a whole different side of my game,” Weimer said. “My work rate is getting better. I realize that if I don’t work, I’m not going to play.”

That was just part of a transformation in mentality that Weimer says took place with the Reds, where she played with current Gold Pride teammate Kristen Graczyk and Boston Breakers midfielder Maggie Tomecka.

“Those last two years, I learned about being more professional. I think a jump from college right into this league would’ve been more difficult,” Weimer said. “It was great having those two years with Tony; he knows what it takes to be a professional.”

After the last WPSL season ended, Weimer wanted to stay match-fit, so she headed overseas to Finland to play for Aland United FC. After two months in Scandinavia, it was off to Brazil to play for Santos for the remainder of their season.

“The main reason I went [abroad] was to play games,” Weimer said. “I could’ve trained on my own here, but I wanted to play real games. It’s the best way to improve your game.”

A season of ups and downs
After the win against Boston over two months ago, Gold Pride took just one point from its next three matches - a 1-1 draw against Sky Blue April 11. After that stretch, Gold Pride won two of its next three games, including a big 1-0 road win in Chicago May 16.

The team has struggled since then, however, losing to league-leading Los Angeles at home and Washington on the road. In their last game June 7, Gold Pride drew at home against the Red Stars, 1-1.

Gold Pride and Boston both enter tonight’s match with 11 points, part of a three-way tie with Chicago for fourth place in the seven-team league. Only Sky Blue, with nine points, are below those teams.

Weimer - who has one goal and three assists in 10 games (eight starts) this season - says she and her teammates are on the verge of making a run up the standings.

“We’re just so close to clicking fully as a team and, once we do, the floodgates are going to open,” Weimer said. “One day we’re going to score a bunch of goals, and the rest will follow.”

If that happens, and if Weimer is a big part of it, that will suit her former coach just fine - as long as it doesn’t happen tonight.

“I hope Tiff the best – except for when she plays against us,” said a smiling DiCicco.