Perspective

The Quakes came into Saturday’s home game against Columbus Crew with only one win (away from home in Dallas) and firmly entrenched at the bottom of the MLS Western Conference with only six points from eight games.  Even though we are all die hard fans, when it comes down to it, there’s no real lasting effect on our lives when the team loses.  Sure, we’re morose, grouchy and dismayed, but those feelings are transient, and the following Saturday we don our Quakes gear and carry on to the next game.

This week I learned about the lives of a couple of the rookie players on the team that made me think about the proper perspective that soccer should have in life – I may have even recalibrated my own perspective a little. 

An article by Elliott Almond in the San Jose Mercury News this week, told the story of Quakes forward Matt Luzunaris, 22, and his relationship with Austen Everett, former goalkeeper of the University of Miami women’s soccer team. Matt was only twelve years old when he lost his sixteen year old brother to cancer, and he contacted Everett on Facebook after reading about her inspiring return to collegiate soccer after a bout with non Hodgkin’s lymphoma.  Austen is currently recovering from a stem cell transplant with her family in Seattle after a reoccurrence of the disease.  Matt was signed by the Quakes after scoring two goals in the winter tryouts, and he is hoping that Austen will be well enough to move down to San Jose in July.  In the meantime, he is representing the Quakes in the community with a recent visit to the Stanford University children’s hospital.

Before the regular squad came out to warm up prior to the Crew game, Luzunaris (who is recovering from a hip injury) was getting in some work with Rafael Baca and defender Justin Morrow.  Baca also came to the Quakes after impressing in the winter tryouts.  In fact, he was invited to the combine by Quakes assistant coach Ian Russell when they met at the funeral of his college teammate at Loyola Marymount, David Kucera.  Baca told ESPN “I told [head coach Frank Yallop] thank you for the opportunity and that I was going to make the most out of it.” A slight player listed at 5’ 8”, he has been described as versatile, sharp and energetic; LMU's head soccer coach believes he “can be a fantastic wide midfielder at the next level.” Baca was not surprised that his status as a foreign player (he is not a U.S. citizen and does not possess a green card) makes it problematic for teams to sign him, and so, despite standout success at the college level, MLS teams stayed away from him in the draft. This week, Baca was wearing the #30 on his kit, but isn’t currently listed on the official Quakes roster – I do know that the roster still has more space, so I hope he gets his chance to play soon. 

Photo by Joe Nuxoll
CenterLineSoccer.com.

If we cast our minds back to the start of last season, one of the Quakes more recent trade acquisitions was coaching local under-fourteen soccer teams to supplement his income.  In 2010, he began to get regular starts, which brought increased consistency, and with the improved understanding for the game he gained from coaching, Chris Wondolowski finished the season with the Golden Boot. 

Wondo has just skippered the Quakes to a much needed 3-0 victory – in just one season his own perspective has changed for the better.  I hope that Matt Luzunaris and Rafael Baca are able to cash in their hard work, and can reevaluate their viewpoints at the end of this year with the same sense of victory.

For a detailed match report and more great photographs from Joe Nuxoll, please visit Center Line Soccer here.
This blog is also posted at the Eurosnob-free majorleaguesocceruk.com.


P.S. 05/17/2011 - Baca and Luzunaris hooked up for the first goal in a 3-0 win in the SJE reserve game on Tuesday.  As reported on Center Line Soccer: "The Earthquakes finally tallied on the afternoon after some aggressive play from Baca on the goalkeeper forced a turnover just inside the area. Spinning to find space, Baca sent the ball across the penalty spot for Luzunaris to neatly finish with an overhead volley into the exposed goal. The 51^st minute strike was finished with aplomb, but was all the product of the pressure Baca exerted in chasing down the ‘keeper."