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USL Louisville City FC

'Biomechanics' Behind Hubbard's Push for No. 1 Goalkeeper Job

February 9, 2021 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Louisville City FC News Release


Louisville City FC goalkeeper Chris Hubbard
Louisville City FC goalkeeper Chris Hubbard
(Louisville City FC, Credit: Connor Cunningham)

Months after Chris Hubbard underwent surgery to repair a cartilage defect in his right leg, acute pain returned last spring.

In hindsight, the Louisville City FC goalkeeper figures stretching loosened up some scar tissue while USL Championship play paused due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was during that time Hubbard also noticed how much muscle in his right quad had atrophied, creating imbalance for a player whose role demands lower body stability.

By the time LouCity resumed its season in July, "I was very wary about doing any extra cardio or lifting because I was so worried I'd irritate my cartilage," Hubbard said. "At the same I was concerned about getting hurt, it wound up that me not doing anything was making the problem worse."

Ben Lundt won out a battle between the posts so close that coach John Hackworth says he could have flipped a coin to determine the starter. Hubbard, called on for one appearance, continued to train through discomfort.

Major League Soccer's FC Cincinnati recalled the loanee Lundt once his USL Goalkeeper of the Year campaign ended. Since then, the Louisville native Hubbard has spent extended time with the club's head athletic trainer, Baptist Health's Stuart Wright, to better position himself for a run at the starting job.

"He and Stu have worked really hard this offseason on some little details that will help him with injury prevention in terms of biomechanics that we feel will allow Chris to take another step in his development," Hackworth said.

Among other small movements, Wright noticed a hitch needed fixing in Hubbard's run. The pair also worked three to four days a week on evening up Hubbard's quad muscles.

"Everything wasn't operating at maximum efficiency like it should have been," said Hubbard, who starred for Trinity High School and signed with LouCity following his college career at Notre Dame. "I give all the praise in the world to Stu because now I feel incredible. It's the best I've felt in a really long time."

"Once I really started getting back in, strengthening up my legs and balancing myself out, all the pain, discomfort and hesitation I was feeling post-surgery started going away."

While shoring up his body, Hubbard's also fine tuning his mind, studying for a Corporate Finance Institute certificate in financial modeling and analytics. Since graduating with an accounting degree from Notre Dame, Hubbard has honed his career hopes on assisting a startup out to curb climate change.

"I'm not a physicist or a chemist or an engineer, but I can find a way to help on the business side," he said. "In the meantime, I'm bulking up my resume as much as possible so that when I do hang up the boots, I can make a smooth transition.

"The more and more research I've done around our changing climate, I think the urgency's there. We need as many people as we can in those fields trying to help. That's really where I think I can do some good, and it's the way of the future."

The 26-year-old Hubbard has totaled 25 USL Championship appearances in purple, namely helping with the club's push to the 2019 league final. He could more than double that number should he win the starting job over 22-year-old Frenchman Simon Lefebvre, one of LouCity's four newcomers this season.

Hubbard's time with the club dates back to his college days, when during summers home from Notre Dame he often trained with the boys in purple.

"In my own experience, longevity in this career and specifically being at one club for a long amount of time is a true measure of how good a professional athlete is doing," Hackworth said. "When I first got here, Chris was clearly the No. 3 goalkeeper. He took his chances well, climbed up the depth chart, became the starter and battled with Ben - had a great battle in training.

"But something Chris has struggled with since I got here in 2018 is being injury-free. I think we're in a good place to see him have a fit season and be 100% healthy for the first time in years."

"This is one of the first preseasons where I've come in and felt in such good form and great shape," Hubbard added. "I have very high hopes this year. If I do what I'm supposed to do, I can be a regular person on the field."

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Louisville City FC goalkeeper Chris Hubbard
Louisville City FC goalkeeper Chris Hubbard
(Connor Cunningham)		   



United Soccer League Championship Stories from February 9, 2021


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