Veteran Emerson High School soccer coach Angelo Avella has had to endure his fair share of trials and tribulations during his 30-plus years with the Bulldog program, but nothing like he’s had to handle as the 2005 season kicks off.
For one, the Bulldogs, the two-time defending HCIAA Coviello Division champions, don’t have a place to play this year, with the demolition of Roosevelt Stadium ongoing. So Avella has to take his team to Laurel Hill Park in Secaucus on a daily basis.
“We meet at the school, get on the bus, and get to Secaucus where we can practice for an hour or so,” Avella said. “At least, we get to use the entire field. We don’t have to share. We get a couple hours here and there. Sure, it’s difficult, but we have to learn to adjust. Whenever we were in the stadium, we could get there early, perhaps work with the goalies in a small part of the stadium. Now, we all have to go together. It’s hard because I can’t spend the time I used to with the individual groups.”
Avella is certain that he will be able to use Laurel Hill Park as his home site for some HCIAA Coviello contests, but the majority of the season will be played on the road.
There’s another big difference that Avella and his team have to handle this year – playing and practicing solely on natural grass. When the Bulldogs played at Roosevelt Stadium, it was on artificial turf and the Bulldogs were able to play at a faster tempo because of it.
“To some extent, having the turf was faster and we would be able to use that to our advantage,” Avella said.
“With grass, sometimes it’s high, sometimes it’s mowed. There are other times that it has rained and slows things down. You never know what you’re getting, so again, you have to adjust. But we have no other choice. You can’t fool around with the ball too much on grass. You have to make better decisions with the ball, better passes.”
The only obstacle so far about traveling to Secaucus on a daily basis has been players missing the bus when it departs at 5 p.m.
“Some of the kids work until 4:30 and they rush up there to catch the bus at 5, but we’re gone and they miss the bus,” Avella said. “Some of the lucky ones have parents who can then drive them out to Secaucus, but there aren’t that many. So it’s been tough on the kids getting there on time. We don’t have a lot of time to waste. It’s hard getting everyone together.”
Emerson will play most of its games on the road, including independent games against Union, Elizabeth and Garfield. The season begins with the North Hudson Soccer Coaches Association tournament in North Bergen. There’s still another obstacle that the Bulldogs had to face as the preseason workouts began in earnest last week. Avella was looking at a depleted roster.
Not only did the Bulldogs lose seven seniors and five starters to graduation, including 2004 Hudson Reporter Player of the Year Daniel Mezzina, but Avella found that he lost some players unexpectedly.
“On the first day of practice, I found out that some of my better returning players moved away,” Avella said. Among those was standout defender Cesar Toro, who moved with his family to Florida. Rafael Espinosa, who was expected to pick up some of the scoring slack made by the loss of Mezzina, also moved. Some others decided not to come out for soccer this year, taking jobs instead.
“It’s always something,” Avella said. “What can you do?”
Avella will count on talented midfielder Francisco Carrada and goalkeeper Esvaldo Herrera to lead the way this season.
“We have some decent players who will come up from the junior varsity,” Avella said. “We should be all right. We’re going to work at it. This is going to be a tough year. If we can just qualify for the [county and state] playoffs, we will be fine. I have to hope we get better as the year goes on. That’s our goal. If we can get into the tournament, it will be a good year. We have to really keep trying. We’re going to keep serving milk until the cream rises to the surface. I haven’t seen any cream yet.”…
Two national high school sports magazines have listed running back Kee-Ayre Griffin of St. Peter’s Prep and receiver Duval Kamara of Hoboken among the top 25 college football prospects in New Jersey, with Griffin earning national honorable mention All-America honors. They are definitely two players to watch this season…
Two local grid programs have been severely hurt by departures due to transfer. Marist lost standout running back Shariff Harris to St. Peter’s Prep, while Memorial lost fleet-footed tailback Alfredo Cadiz to Queen of Peace in North Arlington…
The two local grid products continue to survive NFL training camps. Jersey City native Brandon McGowan, from Lincoln High School and the University of Maine, is still fighting for a roster spot with the Chicago Bears and Carlos Perez, out of Hoboken and the University of Florida, is still among the receivers battling for a spot with the Philadelphia Eagles. The final cuts take place next week, so both players are probably sitting on pins and needles, waiting to see if they made the Opening Day rosters Sept. 11…
— Jim Hague