United's Burch Is Making the Transition

Former Terrapin Adjusts as He Moves From Offense to Defense

Marc Burch left the Washington area 16 months ago as a potent attacking player who had propelled Maryland to its first NCAA championship in 37 years with the only goal in the national title game.

He returned this spring in a barely noticed trade from Columbus to D.C. United, his third club in one-plus seasons of an uncertain MLS career. If he is to remain here, he will have to learn to prevent goals rather than score them.

Burch's transition from offense to defense has gone smoother than his conversion from the pinnacle of college soccer to MLS. Since his recovery from a foot injury last month, though, he has worked his way into United's plans and provided depth to a thinning backline.

"He's got a soccer brain," said Coach Tom Soehn, who included Burch on his game-day roster last weekend and is likely to do so again tonight when United hosts the reigning champion Houston Dynamo. "He h as learned our system quickly and if he continues to do well, we are going to have to consider giving him some time."

That time might come soon. With John Wilson sidelined with a foot injury and Devon McTavish recovering from a hip ailment, Burch is probably Soehn's top defensive option on the bench.

Since being acquired three days before the season opener, he has continued to familiarize himself with a new position after playing forward or midfield almost exclusively since high school.

"In this system, you get forward, you get crosses in, you still get chances to get shots off, and with my size, I feel like it is a good position for me," said Burch, who is 6 feet 2, 190 pounds. "Learning how to defend with someone behind you is a lot easier than learning how to defend without anyone behind you, but I'm comfortable with it."

Burch's positional change began last year with the Crew, which moved him from the left side of midfield to left back. United officials, who had missed an opportunity to draft him in January 2006 when Los Angeles claimed him in the second round, noticed Burch again this preseason in Florida and were intrigued by his new role.

"The college and pro levels are very different, and some guys you might find as forwards in college are defenders in the pros because that is what the game dictates," Soehn said.

Burch, 23, has also made an impression on his new teammates.

"He's a beast," defender Bobby Boswell said. "Ben Olsen and I were talking about how a guy like that is the future of soccer. He's a big, strong kid, he can get up and down the field and probably has the hardest shot on the team. He brings a dynamic to the team because a lot of guys can't hit that ball like he can."

On Wednesday, during an intrasquad scrimmage, "he was pinging balls 60 yards cross-field on a dime. You don't see that a whole lot," Boswell added.

Burch hopes Washington will be his final stop on a nomadic path. He grew up in Cincinnati, played three years at Evansville (where he was a teammate of United goalkeeper Troy Perkins) and then transferred to Maryland, where he scored four goals in 2005, including a 25-yard free kick against New Mexico in the NCAA title game in Cary, N.C.

Burch was drafted by Los Angeles and made three appearances last year, but "they didn't think I had a future there," he said, so he was traded in the middle of last season to the Crew for a second-round supplemental pick. He seemed to have found a home in Ohio, starting five games, but this preseason, as the club was reworking its roster, he was told he would have to accept a smaller contract.

Besides less money, he also saw diminishing long-term prospects and asked to be traded.

United acquired him for a third-round supplemental pick, and although he is earning the same here as he would have in Columbus ($12,900), "I wanted to find a place where I could make a contribution and learn and grow," he said.

Burch's college coach, Sasho Cirovski, believes a change of scenery will do him well.

"He just needed stability in his environment," he said, "and a club that showed some patience."

United Notes: Team captain Jaime Moreno, D.C.'s leading scorer with three goals, is playing for Bolivia today in a friendly against Ireland in Foxborough, Mass. . . . Houston has scored in just two of seven games, and three of its four goals came in one match. . . . Rookie forward Guy-Roland Kpene's contract has been upgraded from developmental to senior roster. He has made three appearances and is likely to start tonight.