Reds get in win column
As the only 12B player on the Denis Morris Reds varsity boys soccer team, a lot is expected of Luca Marcone.
“He came back for another year of high school and he has been a real leader on the team. He has really stepped it up and he is getting guys to play hard and work hard,” Denis Morris head coach Conner Fusarelli said Thursday, after the Reds blanked the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 2-0 at the Brock University turf field. “He is the leader and the anchor of the backline. He is commanding back there and he is like having a coach back there. He is like our defensive coordinator.”
Circumstance made it an easy decision for the 19-year-old centre back to return for one more year of high school soccer.
“I didn’t get to play in Grade 9 and 10 because of COVID and then in Grade 11 I broke my collarbone,” he said. “After Grade 12, I wanted to come back and see if we can do well. We came up short last year and lost in the first round of the playoffs against St. Mike’s. I wanted to see if we could change that and win it all this year.”
He takes his role as a 12B player seriously.
“All the guys look up to me and I have to set an example out there. I have to go out, play hard and make sure they are doing their job. I know they did their job today because we played a great game,” he said. “We completely shut it down in the midfield which was their strong suit. Last time we played them, we got killed in the midfield and we stepped it up today.”
Marcone is comfortable being a leader.
“I love doing it and I love when all the young guys look up to me. It makes me want to play harder and go out there and do it for the badge.”
He played travel soccer for St. Catharines regional for three seasons and then went to Club Roma where he won an Ontario Cup title.
“I am used to being on the big stage and thinks like that so I am pretty comfortable. I am just trying to get the guys comfortable too.”
He no longer plays travel and high school soccer is his only pursuit.
“This is my only soccer and it is the last year that I’ve got so it is going to hit a little hard when it is over but I have to keep going right now.”
Coming into Thursday’s game, the Reds had a 0-3-1 record in Niagara Catholic Athletic Association play with losses to Holy Cross, Saint Francis and Saint Paul and a tie versus Blessed Trinity. They did win a few games at the Niagara Cup tournament.
“It was a character win. We are a pretty defensive team and it was nice to get a clean sheet. The boys worked really hard to earn that W,” Fusarelli said.
Filip Arnold and Anthony Giancola scored for the Reds in the victory.
“We have a pretty ambitious group of boys and not a lot of seniors. We have a wide mix of players and they are all looking to fight for spots and find their spot on the team,” he said. “They are learning the ropes of varsity soccer. They are motivated, they come to practice and they work hard. They encourage each other on and they just try to give it their all every day.”
Notre Dame came into Thursday’s game 1-1 in NCAA play following a 4-0 victory against Lakeshore Catholic and a 1-0 loss to Saint Paul.
“We have a senior leadership group here and they are learning how to play together. We have one student in Grade 9,” Notre Dame coach Dan Carter said. “Our midfield is very good and can make creative plays with the ball. Defensively we are a little bit lacking in the middle because we have had some injuries.”
Carter wasn’t unhappy with his team’s performance versus Denis Morris.
“Overall, we played well and I liked how we played formationally. We had two fantastic chances in the first half to score and tie the game. In the second half, both teams looked like they were tired because they are playing soccer beyond the school day,” he said. “You could tell that the pace was lower. We did have some good opportunities and didn’t take advantage but kudos to them, they took advantage of their opportunities.”
