Peter Lowry: New role? No worries.

Photos by Douglas Gardner

When the Portland Timbers acquired Jack Jewsbury from Sporting Kansas City two weeks before the end of training camp, Peter Lowry’s role in the Timbers midfield changed.

Through the first several weeks of camp Lowry had been in an attacking midfield role. Now, coach John Spencer was shifting him to a holding role to make room for the striking ability of Jewsbury.

Lowry said he was neither surprised, nor discouraged, by the move.

“He’s so knowledgeable about what he does and the work he does and how he plays, you know, you want to be a player that makes others around you better and I think that’s Jack, so he makes it easy for me,” Lowry said. “It’s really been, for me, a lot easier than I expected and I enjoy playing with him. I know he’s going to go out there and work hard and be a solid guy and we can count on him. That says a lot.”

Of course Lowry is used to this sort of midfield shuffle, having seen the Chicago Fire bring in attacking mids such as Freddie Ljungberg last season and Cuauhtemoc Blanco before that.

“It was basically, ‘if you want to play you will learn how to be a defensive mid,’ so that’s a part of my game that I’ve been working on,” Lowry said of Chicago’s acquisitions during his tenure. “It’s something that the last few years I’ve actually been groomed for. To find a way on the field you had to be a little more defensive. I’m happy that I’m on the field helping this team. That’s where I want to be. I don’t care where it is.”

Spencer said that while he prefers Jewsbury’s powerful strike in the attacking mid role, he expects Lowry’s creative distribution will aid the attack.

“Even when Jack is going forward we want Peter to be able to join the attack and not have Peter sitting there as a defensive midfield player,” Spencer said.  “He does use the ball extremely well at times and he’s a guy who values possession. He’s a good soccer player.”

Lowry seems a lock to start in a holding midfield role Saturday in the team’s opener and moving forward into the season, but as rumors swirl and Timbers owner Merritt Paulson confirms on local radio his intent to bring a big-name designated player to the Timbers midfield by mid-April, Lowry’s spot in the Timbers starting midfield could be in jeopardy.

The on-the-pitch fire that his teammates and coaches praise flashes in his eyes for just a moment at the mention of where that potential big signing might affect his role, then his California-cool, laid-back nature kicks back in and he fields the query like a professional.

“It’s part of sports. Certainly it wouldn’t be the first time it’s happened to me. I’m just going to try to be as good of a pro as I can and hopefully that’s good enough and I find a spot on the field,” he said. “Obviously I want to play and help the team win but it’s their decision it’s their money and there’s nothing I can really do about it.”

If you talk to Peter Lowry’s coaches and teammates about his personality you’ll hear an unmistakable theme: He’s a nice guy. He’s funny and laid-back. He’d do anything for a friend.

Jewsbury, in Timbers training camp all of the aforementioned two weeks, already gives Lowry rave reviews. “He’s a really nice guy to everyone off the field,” he said. “He just gets along well with everyone.”

Timbers Coach John Spencer poured forth praise for Lowry’s character, even commending Lowry’s upbringing.

“You can tell he’s been brought up very well,” he said. “His parents should be very proud of him because he’s just a nice individual.”

Sounds like a great guy to sit down with for a pint, right? Problem is, the Timbers aren’t looking for a friendly person in the defensive midfield role. They’re looking for a down and dirty defensive mid to prowl about, win balls and create headaches for the opposition. Someone nasty.

Fortunately for Lowry and the Timbers, in the same breath his easy-going nature is praised his on-field persona is described as the polar opposite: tenacious, unwavering, a bit of a pest. Listed 5’11″ and 165 lbs., Lowry will never be an enforcer but he’ll be counted on to stand his ground and play with abandon, traits Spencer sees among Lowry’s strengths.

“He just competes. When you put him on the field if someone kicks him you see he doesn’t back down,” Spencer said. “He doesn’t go around kicking the crap out of guys but if someone kicks him he stands up for himself and he’ll come back at you and that’s always helpful.”

Jewsbury, veteran of eight MLS seasons, said that this separation of his private and professional personas will serve Lowry well in his career.

“I think there comes a point when you cross the lines and you enter into the field that you kind of have to have that bite to you and a little bit of fight and he definitely has that,” Jewsbury said. “I think the guys, especially younger guys in the league who stick around, are the guys that don’t necessarily carry over their personalities on to the field, because we all know that MLS games aren’t necessarily going to be the prettiest possession games in the world and sometimes you have to get out there and battle. He’s definitely got that in his game.”

That competitive fire was stoked early in Lowry, the middle child of three in what he called an “athletic family,” in Northern California.

“In the summer I would wake up and go to swim team and want to be the best, then tennis in the afternoon and want to be the best, then soccer in the evening and want to be the best. That’s just how I grew up. I was always just playing sports and competing,” he said. “Certainly it takes a different form in college and in the pros because it’s now your job. You’re here to win. You step on the field, you’re there to win.”

His approach to being a professional athlete is simple. “Off the field I try to have fun. You’ve gotta enjoy life and be laid back. Then when it’s on the field you come to work. It’s time to clock in and try to get better, make the group better, make yourself better,” he said.

Lowry was drafted by the Chicago Fire out of Santa Clara and spent the first three years of his career there. For the development of his approach to the game at the professional level, Lowry credits the examples of legendary Fire defensive midfielder Chris Armas and forward Brian McBride, among other Fire veterans.

“Those guys were all awesome guys off the field: great personalities, loved to have fun and joke around,” he said. “But then when it was time to work they certainly put it in and made me better. They were guys that would push me and had expectations and were great role models so I’ve tried to learn from them. When it comes to on the field it’s time to work.”

And while his teammates enjoy his presence on the pitch and his company off it, as an opponent Lowry is exactly the kind of fiery player opponents and their fans love to hate.

Timbers central defenseman Eric Brunner and Lowry are close. The two met and roomed together at the MLS combine upon turning pro and have stayed in contact over the last three years while Brunner played in Columbus and Lowry in Chicago.

Brunner recalled Lowry’s exploits for the Fire against the Crew with partly feigned chagrin; Lowry with a mischievous smirk.

“He always scored against us. When he was with Chicago he always scored against us in Columbus,” Brunner said. “Then he would text me and talk about it.”

Lowry is a self-proclaimed free-spirit and one of the many jokers and colorful characters on this season’s squad. He seemed to take great comedic satisfaction from his feats against Brunner’s former club.

“Oh, I was a pain for Eric, for sure,” he said. “I’ve always tried to cause Eric problems and Jack as well, because they’re good players who played on good teams, and I always played quite well against Columbus.”

Jewsbury, then with Kansas City, had respect for the young midfielder.

“He’s definitely a guy that I’ve watched over the last couple years,” Jewsbury said. “He’s a hard working kid, he’s good on the ball and I think that’s all you can ask for in a guy in the middle of the field.”