With an American father and Peruvian mother, Danny Griffin had plenty of exposure to different sports at a young age. However, at 3 years old, Griffin picked up a soccer ball for the first time with some family members and the rest was history.
Playing for Oakwood Soccer Club in Connecticut, Griffin said his father was and still is the biggest mentor in his life.
While his family would take him to all of his games and practices, his father taught him the lessons that he is carrying into his rookie season with the Riverhounds.
“My father taught me that if I wanted to be serious about this game,” Griffin said, “that I would treat every day and every aspect of my life as a true professional.”
For Griffin, this meant doing the work on and off the field, including his schoolwork and training.
Griffin said his father also taught him about showing up early to things, encouraging him to attend practices and games a half hour to hour early.
He would arrive an hour early for a match at 8 p.m. and play the 7 o’clock game when they needed more players.
Griffin said sometimes he would stay after his games as well, looking for more training opportunities and through it all, his father would be there.
“He would be at Oakwood for four or five hours at a time,” Griffin said. “He didn’t really miss a college game and I’m sure he won’t miss many professional ones.”
Griffin’s father also gave him his competitive nature, telling his son there was always an opportunity to be better than he was before.
Through his father’s life lessons, Griffin had the ability to do the things that make him proud, such as getting called into U-19 men’s national camps, training with the New England Revolution’s first team in the summertime and having a preseason with Columbus Crew SC.
“I think for me it’s an honor for any kid to represent their country,” Griffin said. “That experience of being in that environment and with the top players in the country was definitely a very magical moment for me.”
Throughout all of his experiences, the rookie contract with the Riverhounds gave Griffin a lot of excitement and he has been using the quarantine as a preseason of sorts for himself at home in Connecticut.
Griffin said on a typical day he trains across the street from his home at his old high school doing cardio and fitness exercises and technical skills with the ball. After the morning session, he goes to Oakwood to train at the park.
Other than three weekly morning training sessions with the Hounds, Griffin said it is different trying to form and maintain teammate bonds during quarantine. Griffin said he uses social media to keep tabs on the guys and reaches out over text and after their training sessions on Zoom.
“I’m looking forward to the beautiful atmosphere the Steel Army and all the fans give to us,” Griffin said. “And having them in Highmark Stadium as soon as possible.”
