A little late, but what the hey; the tournaments haven't begun as of this writing. Did the season go by that quickly?
OK, here we are with a sampling of boys storylines for the upcoming Far East tournament championship week:
-- Most importantly, weather. Typhoon Halong delays play Monday, the first time a Far East tournament in any sport has been delayed by weather since the 1996 volleyball tournament, also on Okinawa. Dare I even suggest people will scan the sky and ask, "How long, Halong?"
-- Kubasaki may be a 4-10 team, and Kadena may be a pedestrian 10-7-1, but playing all those adult teams will really render those records misleading.
-- The Golden Boot award in the Class AA tournament goes to: Kadena's Stanley Schrock; Edgren's Brandon Massie; CAJ's Leo Kobayashi; other.
-- Speaking of Kobayashi, CAJ still has a strong team, but will send reminders of the 2006 team that didn't win the tournament, but showed the great potential to win it the following year. Kobayashi will exit a champion in 2009.
-- It's not smoke and mirrors. Yokota and Zama are for real.
-- If only Ivan Rivera were surrounded by such former Kinnick luminaries as George Murray, Ken Cardwell, Go Yamada, Manuel Cruz, etc.
-- By the time the Class A tournament's done, E.J. King will have doubled their entire goal total of last season.
Did I leave anything or anybody out? Best of luck to all. And remember, you've entered THE "No-Hate Zone." *smile*
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Yokota All the Way
Everyone talks about Yokota's offense with the goal-and-assist-happy sophomores and freshmen, but the untold story is the solid defense of the seniors and juniors. In particular in the 3-0 victory over CAJ, it was the defense that held tough following the first goal, and that provided the overall maturity and cool under pressure to set up the final two goals in the last 10 minutes when CAJ had to throw everybody and the kitchen sink forward to try to catch up. It's defense that wins championships, and Yokota has the total package to match up with any team down there. Due to the low scoring totals, in soccer more than any other sport it often comes down to lucky breaks in tight games, but I've seen and officiated a lot of Far East soccer over the years, and I like Yokota's chances as much as anyone's. This team believes in its coaches and believes in itself. Now we'll see if they can make believers out of everyone else.
Golden Boot to Leo Kobayashi of CAJ.
Golden Boot
I think Patrick Reynolds will win the Golden Boot for the Class AA tournament. He is a new player to Kadena HS, but is very talented. He has a lot of experience.... probably a lot more than most because he played for a British soccer team most of his life while living in England. Patrick is the best! Go on Kadena!