HOUSTON - The Brian Ching era in Houston has officially come to an end, with the Dynamo legend and Gonzaga University graduate officially announcing his retirment Tuesday, effective at the end of the 2013 season.
In February, Ching re-signed with the club as a player-coach, accepting that he would largely be used in a reserve role. But as the season wore on, his role on the field dwindled even further. He's played 232 minutes in total, but only 11 of those have come after the beginning of July, and he was left off the team sheet entirely in the Dynamo's most recent game, a 5-1 win over Chivas USA.
It was a decision that Ching understands. But it was his body and not his playing time that let him know that his time on the pitch has run its course.
"Mentally you're there … but physically your body won't let you do it," he said on Tuesday. "I think the realization hit me a couple of weeks ago. I was so frustrated at times I wasn't enjoying it. Now I'm getting back there."
Now the Dynamo will say goodbye to the man who has been the face of the franchise since it landed in Houston in 2006. Ching leaves as the team's runaway all-time goals leader with 69, and has claimed two MLS Cup titles with the Dynamo (2006, 2007) in addition to his one with the San Jose Earthquakes.
To honor him, the Dynamo will put on a testimonial match - the first for an MLS player to date - on Dec. 13. That game will feature some two dozen current and former Dynamo players as well as some of Ching's former teammates with the US national team.
It's a chance for the World Cup veteran to have one last go-around with his friends before hanging up his boots.
"What I'm happy about is getting a chance to play with my friends for a final game," Ching said. "That' what soccer's been about for me."
Before then, Ching has some business to tend to. Rejuvenated by making a decision that's weighed on his mind, the Dynamo forward is committed to showing the same type of leadership that he admitted left him earlier this season and turning that into one last MLS Cup win.
Once he calls time on his playing career for good, though, Ching will commit his future to the Dynamo. His specific role with the team is yet to be determined, but whatever it may be, the Hawaii native will be forever linked to the Dynamo.
"From a coaching point of view, he's meant more than people can imagine," Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear told MLSsoccer.com. "He's been great in the locker room, he's been great on the field and I know he's been great in the community.
"He's been a great teammate, a great player, a great captain and I've had a great [relationship] with him and I appreciate everything he's done for our team since we've stepped foot in Houston."
Ching was inducted into the third annual West Coast Conference Hall of Honor March 5, 2001.
Ching, a native of Haleiwa, Hawai'i, is one of the most decorated men's soccer players in Gonzaga University history, as well as the first successful player from Hawai'i in MLS and United States World Cup annals.
Ching came to the Bulldogs from Kamehameha High in Honolulu. His senior year he was the Interscholastic League of Honolulu MVP with 14 goals and 6 assists. His junior season he was a second team All-ILH selection.
Ching joined the Bulldogs for the 1996 season, and as a freshman played in 18 matches with five starts. He finished second on the team in scoring with 12 points on 3 goals and 6 assists. As a sophomore he appeared in 16 matches with 14 starts and was second on the team behind West Coast Conference Player of the Year and teammate Jeff McAllister with 10 goals and 23 points, ranking fifth in the WCC in both categories. The 10 goals were second on the all-time Gonzaga single-season list and his 23 points were third on the all-time GU list. He earned All-WCC second-team honors.
His junior season was cut short by a knee injury suffered in the season opener, then re-injured it in the next match, and received a medical redshirt year.
The injury bug continued to plague Ching in the summer of 1999 when he was kicked in the cheek and eye late in the summer while playing for the Spokane Shadow of the USL, the injury requiring surgery. But he was ready for the Bulldogs season opener and went on to start 17 of 18 matches. He scored 13 goals and had 8 assists for 34 points. The 13 goals were third on the all-time GU single-season list, the 34 points second. He scored his first goal of the season in a 2-2 tie against 11th-ranked University of Washington, got the insurance goal in a 3-1 victory over 7th-ranked Stanford University and had a pair of goals against 4th-ranked University of San Diego in 4-2 home victory. He earned All-WCC first-team honors.
His final season of 2000 Ching missed three matches with an injury but still scored 8 goals and recorded 22 points. He was named All-WCC first team and earned All-Far West Region first-team honors. Ching finished his Gonzaga career with 34 goals which still ties him third on the all-time GU list, and his 23 assists are a Gonzaga career record. Ching's 91 career points are still tied for second on the Gonzaga charts.
He is still ranked fourth (13) and seventh (10) on the single-season goals list; tied for fourth (7) and sixth (6 twice) in single-season assists, and is tied for second (33), is 8th (23) and ninth (22) on the single-season points list. His 71 shots are also a single-season record and his 168 career shots rank third.
Ching's professional career began when he was the fourth pick of the second round and the 16th pick overall by the Los Angeles Galaxy in the 2001 Major League Soccer Super Draft. He became the first Gonzaga player and the first player from his native Hawai'i selected in the MLS draft.
He played eight games for the Galaxy his rookie season, collecting one goal and one assist and made his first MLS Cup playoff appearance.
In 2002 he played for the Seattle Sounders of the USL First Division (formerly A-League) and was named to the 2002 A-League All-League Team while scoring 16 goals.
In 2003 he joined the San Jose Earthquakes and made his first Earthquakes start against Colorado, scoring his first goal in a San Jose uniform just 53 seconds into the match, but his season was cut short in August when he ruptured his right Achilles tendon and had season-ending surgery.
He returned to action in 2004 and was named to the MLS Best XI and recognized as MLS Comeback Player of the Year after being named the Earthquakes scoring champion and MVP with a career-high 12 goals and 4 assists while starting 21 of 25 appearances. He scored seven goals in 15 matches for the Earthquakes in 2005, a hamstring injury forcing him to miss 15 matches. He finished the season scoring a goal or getting an assist in six straight matches.
The Earthquakes moved to Houston and became the Dynamo for the 2006 season, and Ching responded with one of his best all-around seasons. He scored a career-high four goals in the season opener against Colorado to become the seventh player in MLS history to score four goals in a single match. His goal three weeks later was the only goal in a 1-0 win at Colorado. He was named to the U.S. World Cup team May 5 - the first Hawaiian so honored -and celebrated with a game-deciding goal the next day against FC Dallas. His impressive bicycle kick on Sept. 30 against DC was voted Goal of the Year, and the resulting 1-0 win secured a playoff spot for the Dynamo.
Ching's outstanding 2006 campaign carried over into the playoffs as he scored the series-winning goal with a header in stoppage time of the 2-0 win against Chivas USA in the second leg of the Western Conference semifinals. He went on to earn MVP honors of the 2006 MLS Cup after scoring the tying goal in the 114th minute, less than one minute after New England had taken a 1-0 lead, and scoring the winning penalty kick in shootout as the Dynamo captured the title.
Injuries plagued Ching again following his 2006 MVP season, but he still managed to tie for the team lead with seven goals despite missing 10 games entirely due to injuries and national-team call-ups. He was named an MLS All-Star. He added two playoff and three international goals but sat out the MLS Cup final after straining his calf in the Western Conference final. He led Houston's comeback from a 2-0 aggregate deficit in the second leg of the Western Conference semifinal against FC Dallas, setting up Stuart Holden's goal in the 67th minute and then scoring himself on a through ball in the 72nd minute to tie the series. In extra time, Ching scored from close range in the 97th minute to give Houston the lead for good.
In 2008 he established team and personal records with 13 goals in the regular season and added five assists while appearing in 25 matches. He was named winner of the Dynamo's Golden Boot award and the team's MVP award. He ranked a career-high fifth in the league in goals. The 13 goals came in an 18-match stretch.
In 2009 he won the Dynamo's Budweiser Golden Boot award for the third straight year with eight goals while adding three assists. He was once again named a MLS All-Star. He was named to MLS All-Star Game but withdrew due to fatigue. He became the seventh Dynamo player to make 100th start for the club in all competitions and assisted on Cam Weaver's game-tying goal in the 80th minute of 2-1 loss at Columbus.
In the 2009 MLS playoffs he netted a spectacular game-winning goal in the 95th minute of a 1-0 overtime win against the Seattle Sounders, swiveling to volley a shot into the left side netting for his 50th Dynamo goal in all competitions.
The 2010 season saw him shrug off injuries and the disappointment of not being named to the U.S. World Cup team to score seven goals and record 3 assists while starting 16 of 20 matches. For the fourth straight year he won the Dynamo Budweiser Golden Boot. He was also named the Dynamo's Humanitarian of the Year winner and was a finalist for league-wide MLS WORKS Humanitarian of the Year. His Aug. 21 bicycle kick against Chicago was named ESPNSoccernet.com MLS Goal of the Year and Dynamo Goal of the Year. He also took over as team captain following the retirement of Wade Barrett. Ching was named as a Commissioner's Pick to the MLS All-Star team for the 2010 MLS All-Star Game in Houston, and entered the match in the second half and scored with a header to cut the deficit to 2-1 in the MLS All-Star Game vs. Manchester United match-up. He netted his second career hat trick in a 4-3 win against Chicago, including a spectacular bicycle kick to give Houston a 3-1 lead and a dramatic header in the 85th minute for the match-winning goal.
Ching also has a plethora of International experience. He has 45 caps and 10 goals for the United States in international competition. In 2009 he was a regular for the U.S. national team as it qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He was set to be named to the Confederations Cup roster but missed out due to a hamstring injury, but recovered to be named to the roster for the CONCACAF Gold Cup. He scored against Honduras to help the U.S. reach the Gold Cup final. In 2008 he started six matches and scored four goals and had an assist for the U.S. national team.
He was named to the U.S. roster for the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup. He scored goals against Trinidad and Tobago in the group stages of the Gold Cup, and started the Gold Cup championship match against Mexico at Soldier Field in Chicago. He drew a penalty kick that was converted by Landon Donovan for a match-tying goal and played all 90 minutes in the United States' 2-1 win.
He became the first Hawaiian to be named to the U.S. roster for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany but did not see any action, and in 2005 appeared in three final-round World Cup qualifiers, starting two.
Ching emerged on the national team scene in 2004 as an important forward, appearing in four matches, including three World Cup qualifiers, and scoring two goals. He made his first appearance in World Cup qualifying on Aug. 18 at Jamaica, scoring the dramatic game-tying goal in the 89th minute. He scored in the 5th minute two weeks later in his first World Cup Qualifier start Sept. 4 against El Salvador.
He made his international debut May 26, 2003, as a substitute in a friendly match against Wales at Spartan Stadium, becoming the first Hawaiian-born player to represent the United States.
Darrell Lovell covers the Houston Dynamo for MLSsoccer.com and contributed to this story.
