It has been a whirlwind 24 hours for Dom Dwyer. In that span of time, he agreed to a deal with Orlando City, hopped on a plane to MCO, greeted fans at the airport, and gave his first press conference with the team. But in that rush, he also found time to choose his jersey number.
Dwyer had a pretty simple reason for choosing No. 18.
“Cause 14 wasn’t available,” he said with a laugh.
Dwyer has worn 14 for both club and country during his time with Sporting Kansas City. When he was with the Lions in the USL days, he wore No. 9. But No. 9 is reserved for Cyle Larin, and No. 14 is taken by Giles Barnes. Dwyer had to take it in a new direction.
“I had a little selection yesterday,” Dwyer said in his press conference on Wednesday morning. “There were a few choices, but I decided 18 was a good number. Molino beat my record in that jersey, but I figured maybe I could get it back.”
Kevin Molino, who was traded to Minnesota United in the offseason, holds the club’s goal-scoring record with 41 goals. Dwyer is hoping that adopting his former teammate’s number could help him find success.
“I want to improve the group,” Dwyer said. “I hope I bring a lot to the team to improve it. The team has put a lot of faith in me, and their hard work I will repay.”
For more on Dwyer’s goals during his time at Orlando City, click here.
