Rick Carvalho knew he couldn’t just tell his boys soccer team it could be good.
The first-year Nashua High School North coach had to let the players see it for themselves.
With only a week of practice under their belts, the Titans scrimmaged Hollis/Brookline on Monday, and after falling behind early, North rallied for a strong finish. It was then, Carvalho said, that his team began to understand what he was telling them.
“It’s tough to come into a place like that and say you guys can compete,” Carvalho said. “Sometimes they question whether it’s real. I think the first few days, they thought it was just going to be another year. You can already see (after the scrimmage), you could see them asking why not. The attitude right now is really good, and that’s the most exciting thing. It’s an exciting time in the program, and they recognize that.”
It’s an exciting time for Carvalho, too.
For the first time, Carvalho is the head coach of a varsity program. A 2005 graduate of Hollis/Brookline, he helped lead the Cavaliers to a Class I title as a senior, and he’s hoping to pass some of that experience on to his current group of players.
“If I can help some of these guys get better and help them grow, then that’s better for me (than playing),” Carvalho said. “When I was in high school, I was hoping for something bigger, like playing. realized, there’s only so much men’s league soccer you can play.”
This year, North had over 40 kids come out for the team. While Carvalho is encouraged by the interest in the sport, his focus now is to mold his players into a cohesive group.
During the first week of practice, the Titans had double sessions. In between practices, Carvalho tried to get players to hang out with teammates they might not normally hang out with.
“The biggest thing is not skills or that the numbers aren’t there, I think it’s more within the team, what’s going on,” he said. “This team was 5-2 last season and you think this team is a contender. I guess there were some clashes of egos and maybe leadership wasn’t there. It should be a good mix of guys getting in there and helping out.”
The Titans have 12 players returning this season, including senior captains Nathanael Pike and Chris Vincent. Also back are seniors Kevin McAleese, Jhonatta Ferreira, Simon Ciza, Chris Long, Josh DaCosta, and Arjun Khatiwada.
They’re joined by juniors Andres Bueno, Alejandro Alcerro, Alejandro Soto and Devin Motivala.
“We have some very good players,” Carvalho said. “(Pike and Vincent) are good guys, serious when the ball touches the field, but they know how to have fun, too. I’ll be interested to see which guys surprise me. Every player on this team is capable at any given moment of doing something that is going to make us that much better.”
North opens the season Friday at 7 p.m. against Londonderry at Stellos Stadium.