Globe South Sports

Hanover plays without

club soccer worries

By Justin A. Rice Globe Correspondent / October 8, 2009

Their focus is simple: Go out and play.

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Their foes feature lineups chock-full of year-round players, but the majority of the players on the Hanover High boys’ soccer team choose to participate in other sports in the offseason.

When the Indians knocked off perennial power Pembroke 2-1 last week, exacting a bit of revenge for a 1-0 loss in last year’s Division 3 South semifinals, they did so playing their game, and not worrying about the individuals suiting up on the other side.

“I don’t really know who the best players are - that doesn’t really matter to me,’’ said senior cocaptain Jon Spitz, who also plays basketball and baseball at Hanover. “I just go out there and play.’’

Only two players on the Indians (goalkeeper James Oliver and freshman Dylan Griffin) participate in the subculture that is club soccer.

That approach has proven to work well for Hanover (6-0-1) and coach Jim Sylvia, who also guides two other varsity sports at the high school, boys’ hockey and girls’ tennis.

In addition to its win over Pembroke, Hanover has also defeated a pair of tough foes in Middleborough and North Quincy.

Sylvia said two of his former players, Matt Shea and Ryan Shea, currently playing at Boston University, were steeped in club soccer culture and always debriefed their teammates before games.

“They knew different kids on different teams and they used to say who was the best,’’ the 27-year coach said. “That means nothing to me. [We] go out there head-to-head and if they are a better soccer team than we are they will win the game. I don’t care at all if a player plays on four different teams.

“I don’t really care if they are club soccer players. That doesn’t faze me. We’re out there working as a team. It’s not the end-all, save-all to play on a club soccer team. It’s like junior hockey now; some teams have junior hockey players. You still gotta go out and play the game. We’re gonna play our game and use our strengths.’’

The approach has not only maintained fearlessness among Sylvia’s teams, but playing other sports often means they are more athletic and versatile than their opponents.

“It is difficult because [other teams with club players] play a different game than us,’’ said cocaptain Andrew Bishop, who also plays basketball and lacrosse. “We don’t necessarily have the best soccer skills, but we’re a fast team and we know our roles on the field.’’

They also have the element of surprise. “They don’t know us,’’ Bishop added. “They think we’re not going to be as good this year.’’

Even after winning a share of the last four Patriot League titles as the Fisher Division champ, Hanover players don’t think they receive the respect they deserve from Keenan Division clubs (Scituate, Whitman-Hanson, Silver Lake, Hingham, North Quincy, and Duxbury).

“They definitely know we’re probably the best on the other side of the league but they definitely probably overlook us,’’ said Spitz. Last fall, though, Hanover beat Duxbury and tied Whitman-Hanson.

“They think the other side of the league doesn’t really matter; all the best teams are on the Keenan side.’’

This past week, however, the Indians knew they couldn’t rely on past success as they entered a gantlet of games: Scituate (Monday), Duxbury (yesterday), and Hingham (tomorrow).

Regardless of the results, the goal is to keep improving. “The main thing is to be better tomorrow than we are today,’’ Sylvia said. “If we can keep climbing the ladder, we’ll get better and better because of our league schedule and we’ll be ready come tournament time.’’

The Indians, with just 11 total goals entering the week, need to improve their work around the net. Griffin (four goals) and sophomore Derek Healy (three) led the way, while Spitz had five points with a goal and four assists. Colin Shea has two goals and two assists.

“We haven’t won any games convincingly,’’ Sylvia said.

Luckily, their senior keeper, Oliver, only allowed two goals through the first seven games.

In the win over Pembroke, Hanover rallied from a 1-0 deficit, with Griffin scoring the equalizer off a corner kick by freshman Chris Toohey. Spitz lofted the game-winner from about 45 yards out after fielding a free kick from senior Paul Murray taken at midfield.

“The past couple years, they’ve kicked us out of the tournament,’’ Bishop said of Pembroke. “A big win like that gives us hope for the future. When we get to the tournament we know what to expect.’’

© Copyright 2009 Globe Newspaper Company.