Font ResizeBRATTLEBORO -- Coach Paul Sather kept a steady eye on the Colonels boys varsity soccer team Tuesday afternoon at Dummerston Field as they put in one of their last practices before their regular season, which begins today.
"It’s eight weeks of development, and I still ask for more out of them," said Sather, with a proud grin.
Midway through practice the Brattleboro coach pitted his starting offense against the defensive squad. On one drive, the attackers set up a 3-5-2, a somewhat unconventional field position. This means placing three players in the backfield, which can make for some risky play.
"But it makes better soccer players," said Sather, "and making great soccer players is what I’m here to do."
The Colonels have endured a grueling recent practice agenda with nine meet-ups in ten days. But that’s nothing compared to their regular season schedule, where they will play five contests in nine days.
"We’ve got a big stretch coming up," said Sather, after coordinating the team through another play. "A third of our season happens in the next two weeks."
Sather said team conditioning will be vital this year, and plenty more of it will be needed to remain competitive. So it should help that the team has 11 returning players, most of them seniors.
"If we want to give some of the northern teams a challenge we’ll have to work at it," he said. "We want to peek with our conditioning
The Colonels travel to Manchester to face Burr and Burton today at 7 p.m.
Brattleboro roster: Coach -- Paul Sather. Seniors -- Galen Finnerty, Michael Cioffi, Isaiah Ungerleider, Jackson Batchelder, Benson May, Jono Schiff, Jordan Renouf, Lane Drummy, Sam Kochinskas, Jesse Brown, Paxton Reed, Ethan Manning, Yuri Harris, Rowan Payne-Meyer. Juniors -- Bryce Fletcher, James Ferris, Conner Elliot-Knaggs, Tony Acevedo, Miles Goldenbird.
David Aquino can be reached at daquino@reformer.com, or by calling 802-254-2311, ext. 164.
