MLS All Star call lifts Cummings

Dave Lindo, Gleaner Writer

Jamaica's ace forward, Omar Cummings, has received his first Major League Soccer (MLS) All Star team pick. Cummings will play in the MLS All Star game against English Premier League giants Manchester United on July 27 at the Red Bull Arena, Harrison, New Jersey.

The Colorado Rapids striker said: "I got the call today (Monday) that I made the team. It's a really good feeling. It's something that both the fans and I have been looking for."

The Reggae Boy is the only Jamaican playing in the MLS who got selected for the All Star team. He will have the opportunity of matching his skills with the likes of Wayne Rooney, Javier Hernandez, among other top Manchester United players.

The MLS All Star team is selected by voting by fans for the starting eleven. An additional eleven players were selected by MLS All Star coach Hans Backe (New York Red Bulls coach) and MLS commissioner Don Garber. Cummings was selected by Backe.

Now in his fifth season of the MLS, Cummings' crowning moment so far came last year when he played a major role in helping his team win their first MLS championship.

He led his team's scoring with 13 goals and seven assists. The very humble player was also voted the MVP for his club.

The 2011 campaign has so far been a tough one for Cummings. After starting with a bang, scoring two goals early in the season, he picked up an injury playing against Houston Dynamo, the team of fellow Reggae Boyz Lovell Palmer, Jermaine Taylor and Jevaughn Watson.

"I picked up the injury to my ankle 30 minutes in the first half. I had to come off immediately as it started swelling instantly. The bone got bruised, I had third-degree sprain and damaged ligament," he disclosed.

Big blow

The injury not only sidelined Cummings from his club team but caused him to miss the recent Gold Cup tournament.

"I always look forward to playing for my country, so missing the Gold Cup was a big blow for me," Cummings said.

With his team so far not finding the good form that they had last season, primarily due to injuries of key players, including his strike partner Conor Casey, Cummings has been pushed in the heat of things, although not fully recovered.

He said: "I have played three games so far after coming back from injury. I started in the last game where we lost 4-3 to Seattle Sounders. I am fighting fitness and sharpness in front of goal but I will get there eventually."