Photo by: Tim Cowie - DavidsonPhotos.com
Men's Soccer Preseason Q&A
7/24/2014 11:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
The Davidson men's soccer team is less than three weeks away from the start of preseason and preparing for their first season as a member of the Atlantic 10 Conference. Below are the thoughts of the three captains and assistant coach Tony Falvino.
What is important to achieve in the remaining days of the summer?
Shane Macnamara, Junior Midfielder
"Most important is fitness and confidence. Getting to a good level of fitness takes a personal drive and desire to do so every day from now until preseason. Confidence comes from the inner belief that you put in the necessary work this summer and that it is going to pay off. If you've done the work, you should be confident in your ability."
Kristian Garciaméndez-Rowold, Senior Defender
"Holding each other accountable for coming into preseason in good fitness/strength and soccer shape is pivotal. We update each other on our fitness levels and about soccer playing in the summer plus what each individual is doing until preseason to fully prepare himself. Camaraderie amongst the team is important. The chatter with the team needs to be active and not just from the Captains."
Matt Pacifici, Junior Goalkeeper
"I think the biggest thing is fitness so that we don't have to work on that as much and risk injuries during preseason. It's obviously very important to get as many touches on the ball as possible, although it's certainly easier for some than others. Lastly, we've seen several knocks popping up so we all want to stress the importance of coming in entirely fresh and healthy."
Tony Falvino, Third-year Assistant Coach
"The guys need to make sure they are fine-tuning and reaching the optimum level of fitness. They should spend as much time on the ball playing and getting touches to start preseason at a high level."
What is important to achieve during preseason?
Garciamendez
"Having gelled as a unit will make preseason easier for the coaches. Also, we need to find a smart and fun way to include the freshmen into the team. This is the time for everyone to pass the fitness tests. Training-wise, we need to keep the training sessions professional and intense. It's also important that we stress recovery with foam rolling and ice baths. We will want to make adjustments as a team and put pieces together in this phase."
Pacifici
"I think the group this year is very impressionable, partly because there are so many freshmen. I think it is very important to be entirely inclusive and to do just about everything together. It's really important to start creating the proper mindset. We need to all be on the same page with the desire of winning the conference and having everyone buy into that. We should be excited about a fresh start. We will get more tactical nuances. I think this is where, with the coaches' experience, the team really should start to come together with our style of play and create our "brand"."
Macnamara
"Coming together as a team off the field and getting to know one another on a personal level is key. In addition, we need to develop an environment in which the freshmen feel comfortable so that they can contribute from day one. With a lot of new faces, freshmen have got to learn our system and how they can contribute. We as an entire team, need to learn the strength and weaknesses of our team as quickly as possible. We've got to own up to our weaknesses and work on them together throughout the season and we've got to take advantage of our strengths."
Falvino
"We will create a competitive and nurturing environment for all returning players and incoming players to build a strong bond and team spirit. A "blue collar" mentality built around toughness is important and powerful. The coaches will introduce defensive principles and characteristics we would like to apply during the season, leading into transitional play, and live match scenarios. We will implement formation and systems of play."
What is your leadership style and substance?
Pacifici
I'm definitely very vocal, but not the Ra-Ra type of motivational speaker. I've always been the type to be self-motivated and I expect that out of people. Everything I try to do is by example, not necessarily by being a cheerleader. I'm really interested/driven to see the development of the freshmen/younger players. I think my tactical awareness/soccer knowledge is one of the stronger parts of my game, so that's one thing I want to make sure to give off to the younger guys. I also want to inspire the guys to have the same level of passion for the game that all three Captains share."
Garciamendez
I believe that I lead by example. I think that I give it all at practice and put a lot of effort into my preparation for preseason. I need to be more vocal on the field regarding warm-up, preparation for practices and games, and being more critical of individuals. This will assist with Shane because I think that he does this the most.
Matt, similar to me I believe, hates to lose. And he does a great job getting on people if he thinks they are not working hard enough. He does whatever it takes to win."
Macnamara
"I demand the best of others on the field both in games and practice. I often provide feedback to others about how a play could have been executed better. Off the field, I am someone who is encouraging and will try and get each person to know their role and how they can contribute. Along with Matt and KG, I'll encourage others to join me before and after practice to work on certain parts of their game. And as I demand the best on the field, I expect the same off the field. I don't want players exhausted from schoolwork or other off-the-field activities. Coming to practices or games not ready won't fly with me."
Falvino
"The captains must work in unison with a collective voice; while leading by example with their play and attitude on and off the field. They should work to accentuate each other's strong leadership characteristics. The tighter the bind between the captains and the players, the stronger the team will be in dealing with adversity."
What is important to achieve in the remaining days of the summer?
Shane Macnamara, Junior Midfielder
"Most important is fitness and confidence. Getting to a good level of fitness takes a personal drive and desire to do so every day from now until preseason. Confidence comes from the inner belief that you put in the necessary work this summer and that it is going to pay off. If you've done the work, you should be confident in your ability."
Kristian Garciaméndez-Rowold, Senior Defender
"Holding each other accountable for coming into preseason in good fitness/strength and soccer shape is pivotal. We update each other on our fitness levels and about soccer playing in the summer plus what each individual is doing until preseason to fully prepare himself. Camaraderie amongst the team is important. The chatter with the team needs to be active and not just from the Captains."
Matt Pacifici, Junior Goalkeeper
"I think the biggest thing is fitness so that we don't have to work on that as much and risk injuries during preseason. It's obviously very important to get as many touches on the ball as possible, although it's certainly easier for some than others. Lastly, we've seen several knocks popping up so we all want to stress the importance of coming in entirely fresh and healthy."
Tony Falvino, Third-year Assistant Coach
"The guys need to make sure they are fine-tuning and reaching the optimum level of fitness. They should spend as much time on the ball playing and getting touches to start preseason at a high level."
What is important to achieve during preseason?
Garciamendez
"Having gelled as a unit will make preseason easier for the coaches. Also, we need to find a smart and fun way to include the freshmen into the team. This is the time for everyone to pass the fitness tests. Training-wise, we need to keep the training sessions professional and intense. It's also important that we stress recovery with foam rolling and ice baths. We will want to make adjustments as a team and put pieces together in this phase."
Pacifici
"I think the group this year is very impressionable, partly because there are so many freshmen. I think it is very important to be entirely inclusive and to do just about everything together. It's really important to start creating the proper mindset. We need to all be on the same page with the desire of winning the conference and having everyone buy into that. We should be excited about a fresh start. We will get more tactical nuances. I think this is where, with the coaches' experience, the team really should start to come together with our style of play and create our "brand"."
Macnamara
"Coming together as a team off the field and getting to know one another on a personal level is key. In addition, we need to develop an environment in which the freshmen feel comfortable so that they can contribute from day one. With a lot of new faces, freshmen have got to learn our system and how they can contribute. We as an entire team, need to learn the strength and weaknesses of our team as quickly as possible. We've got to own up to our weaknesses and work on them together throughout the season and we've got to take advantage of our strengths."
Falvino
"We will create a competitive and nurturing environment for all returning players and incoming players to build a strong bond and team spirit. A "blue collar" mentality built around toughness is important and powerful. The coaches will introduce defensive principles and characteristics we would like to apply during the season, leading into transitional play, and live match scenarios. We will implement formation and systems of play."
What is your leadership style and substance?
Pacifici
I'm definitely very vocal, but not the Ra-Ra type of motivational speaker. I've always been the type to be self-motivated and I expect that out of people. Everything I try to do is by example, not necessarily by being a cheerleader. I'm really interested/driven to see the development of the freshmen/younger players. I think my tactical awareness/soccer knowledge is one of the stronger parts of my game, so that's one thing I want to make sure to give off to the younger guys. I also want to inspire the guys to have the same level of passion for the game that all three Captains share."
Garciamendez
I believe that I lead by example. I think that I give it all at practice and put a lot of effort into my preparation for preseason. I need to be more vocal on the field regarding warm-up, preparation for practices and games, and being more critical of individuals. This will assist with Shane because I think that he does this the most.
Matt, similar to me I believe, hates to lose. And he does a great job getting on people if he thinks they are not working hard enough. He does whatever it takes to win."
Macnamara
"I demand the best of others on the field both in games and practice. I often provide feedback to others about how a play could have been executed better. Off the field, I am someone who is encouraging and will try and get each person to know their role and how they can contribute. Along with Matt and KG, I'll encourage others to join me before and after practice to work on certain parts of their game. And as I demand the best on the field, I expect the same off the field. I don't want players exhausted from schoolwork or other off-the-field activities. Coming to practices or games not ready won't fly with me."
Falvino
"The captains must work in unison with a collective voice; while leading by example with their play and attitude on and off the field. They should work to accentuate each other's strong leadership characteristics. The tighter the bind between the captains and the players, the stronger the team will be in dealing with adversity."
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