ZS: How would you describe the significance of that first win being a first year soccer program at Scotland Campus Sports? It's no secret, you guys are building the culture rather rapidly. Thus, to have that first win, in your first-ever performance together, it is pretty unique...
TN: Obviously it is great for the program. I would also describe it as slightly insignificant, mostly because we have long season ahead of us. One game won't determine the quality or the lack of quality in our team. You cannot invest too much into one win. The same way you can't invest too much or get too rattled after one loss.
I would say, however, the win really does wonders for the morale of the team. It allows us to have a decent stepping stone to move forward. Being at home, having that crowd behind us, that was important.
Very big shoutout to having Scotland Campus Basketball and Scotland baseball in attendance. We weren't expecting that kind of turnout. It really was indicative of the fact that there is a community behind this team and that we are not just a workaday, slapdash, first year program.
ZS: Which factors ultimately propelled the team to a victory?
TN: The creativity of Lucas Barros, who was able to play well defensively and link up play between the defense and the offense. That was a considerable factor. The defensive efforts by both of our center backs, Eduardo Santoni (Dominican Republic) and Louis Ayala (Panama), who scored a goal and was tremendous on both sides of the field, was significant. In the attack, Alejandro Roman (Madrid, Spain) was able to really pass long and short to create scoring opportunities for our wingers and our striker.
ZS: How have you guys been able to forge this group of young men into a team and how has the camaraderie been built?
TN: Luckily most of our players are Spanish speakers who have learned English pretty rapidly. So, the language barrier for half of our team is not an issue. Beyond this, the kids have a good and positive outlook on life. They are all here to get better. I really commend our Latino players for being able to build a relationship with the Korean players and young men from other cultures. There has literally been no barrier. They are all good friends off the field, which certainly translates to how they play on the field. This alone, has allowed us to gel rather quickly. There was no growing pains this summer--everyone bought in.
ZS: How do you prepare for St. James?
TN: The most important thing we could do as a team is look to improve on the good things we've done and improve on the aspects of our game that was subpar in the first game of the season. Our fullbacks can track back a bit more, they tend to get lost in no man's land.
Our wingers tend to close the space in the middle, as opposed to playing wide. We need to discover a true striker. If we can improve on the fullbacks, improve on the wingers, and find a primary striker, I believe we have a solid base to build upon the rest of the season.
ZS: What brand of soccer does coach (Scott) Cox and Coach Daniel (Cox) like to employ?
TN: Currently, our base formation is a 4-2-3-1. It seems like the easiest to use with a first year program and one that is still in the process of building chemistry. As far as the style of play, coach Cox likes to play possession with a quick build up in the attack. Luckily, we have fast players and creative outlets which allow for good ball movement and a solid defense and holding midfielder to keep our defensive shape and awareness intact.