Generals Set Sights on Tourney Despite Rebuilding Year

Just two years removed from a state championship finals appearance, the Hamilton-Wenham boys soccer team enters the 2010 season in what can be considered a bridge year. The team is fielding just four returning starters from a year ago.

While the substantial roster turnover presents hurdles for a team chasing a return to the big game, rebuilding is something head coach Matt Gauron is accustomed to.

After taking the Cape Ann League title in 2007 and reaching the state finals in 2008, Gauron’s squad lost the majority of its veterans and had many holes to fill for 2009. Faced with long odds to reach the postseason tournament, the Generals were victorious in the season-ending match against Ipswich to lock up a playoff birth.

After another depleting offseason, Hamilton-Wenham fields a 2010 squad with just four starters returning from a season ago. That group, comprised of Matt Herrick, Tad Decatur, Sam Martinez and goal keeper Luke Besse, will have to lead by example on and off the field if the Generals are to contend in the Cape Ann League, Gauron said.

“We’ve got a team of young, excited guys with the right attitude, but at this point we’ve got a lot positions to fill,” said Gauron. “I’ve been happy with [the preseason] so far, but we have to raise our level at every position.”

Although the young Generals team will be at a disadvantage in the size and speed categories in the Cape Ann League, senior stopper Matt Herrick believes they can mask these weaknesses with aggression, skill and an intelligent approach to each scenario.

Undeterred by governing rules barring coaches from assembling team workouts out of season, many of the Hamilton-Wenham players organized camps with outside organizations throughout the summer, and the work has paid off.

“We got together with the New England Aztecs, which was an overnight camp,” said Herrick. “We spent almost all of our time together during that camp, which I think helped develop out chemistry as a team.

“We also worked with Ryan DeJoy, who basically ran us into the ground but refined our fundamentals and whipped us in to shape,” he said. “We’ve got a strong team.”

In the preseason scrimmage schedule thus far, the team has defeated Haverhill (Div. 1) and Melrose (Div. 2), and played to a draw with Stoneham (Div. 2).

“We have looked good overall, but it’s the preseason and we can’t get too focused on any success we’ve had so far,” cautioned Gauron. “Our weaknesses have been exposed through the scrimmages, and now we need to work harder to fix those mistakes.”

Although it is still hard to determine who will break out once the team begins to gel, Martinez, Herrick, Decatur and junior midfielder Max Montanari are poised to play major roles in 2010.

“Montanari has matured so much as a player and a person since we last played,” said Herrick. “He’s definitely a player to watch.”

You won't hear guarantees of a state finals appearance by anyone on the Generals roster, but expectations of a playoff appearance seem within reach.

"I don't know how realistic it would be to say we're a contender for states at this point, but we can work hard enough to make the postseason," said Gauron.

"In 2008, what we lacked in skill we made up for in chemistry and it worked out," said Herrick. "This year, I think we have a more skilled team than '08, we just need to play up to our potential."

The Generals begin their quest for a league title Monday, Sept. 13 against North Reading at 5 p.m.