Season Preview: Croton-Harmon Boys Soccer

Damion Brown is in his first year of coaching Croton-Harmon but already feels comfortable in coaching his players.

He said a big reason for that is the leadership of senior co-captains, center-midfielder Paul Addeo, goalie Robert Simmons, forward Ben Laub and center-back Jacob Shapiro.

“They make my job much easier,” Brown said. “Going in as a new coach, they took it upon themselves to keep the team in check. They made sure that everything was taken care of. They do their job without me telling them what to do.”

According to Brown, leadership comes natural to them.

“That is what I like about my captains,” Brown. “They aren’t captains because they want it to be something on their resume, it’s just natural for them. They will be leaders at the next level and at whatever they decide to do for the rest of their lives.”

Before they decide what they want to do for the rest of their lives, the Tigers will look to have success this year on the pitch. One reason why is because of the maturity and dedication of players like Addeo.

Addeo has great touch and knows the game pretty well. He’s going to give the Tigers an advantage in the middle of the field according to Brown.

“He knows how to analyze the game and is able to help his teammates handle different situations that might occur during the game,” Brown said. “He is perfect for us, he is very soccer savvy.”

Providing a big boost in goal for the Tigers is Simmons.

“He’s a very good goalie,” Brown said. “He’s very vocal and that is huge when you are a goalie. We have a goalie that commands the box. He doesn’t stand for any lapses, he makes sure that his teammates in front of him are kept on their toes.”

Keeping the opposition on its toes is Laub, who has a deadly left foot, Brown said.

“He is one of the best lefties I have ever seen,” Brown said. “He can get that shot off anywhere from 30 yards out. With him, it is always a quality shot. He doesn’t play a complicated game. He plays a simple yet very effective game. He keeps the team level headed at the top. We are relying on him for a lot of our offensive output this year.”  

Shapiro gives the Tigers a much needed skill player on the defensive side of the field, which should help the Tigers get out of sticky situations.

“We have great defenders, they are all pretty much athletes that can recover well, but Jacob is that polished player in the back that can get us out of trouble when need be,” Brown said. “He is very vocal in the back and he always tries to lead by example. He’s one of my tallest defenders so I am going to rely a lot on him this year to get the ball out of the back and get it out to the forwards.”

Croton-Harmon is scheduled to open up at home against Rye Neck at 4:30 p.m. Sept. 13.