by Matt Faria
How long have you played lacrosse? What is the most challenging level you’ve participated in?
I’ve been playing since third grade, so thirteen years now. I played four years of NCAA college lacrosse for the varsity team at Mount Ida College. It was very challenging playing against other collegiate level teams.
Do you have any experience with coaching a team or youth program before? If so, do you believe that this job will be any different?
Yes, I have coached indoor high school level lacrosse for a program called XCEL lacrosse that my college coach was involved in. I also have coached youth clinics for athletes developing ages 5-18. I think that this will be more of a challenge. The standard is definitely a bit higher considering it is an official high school team. The games and atmosphere will be different. It will be a fun year but also challenging.
What is the main reason you accepted the job to be varsity lacrosse coach at Hudson High?
I have heard that Hudson is a good school, and the lacrosse program here is fairly new, which interested me. I like the idea of being able to come in and develop myself as a coach rather than having to follow someone’s footsteps. I also saw this as a great opportunity being fresh out of college and still being able to stay with the sport I love.
What are your thoughts for the season? Do you anticipate the team will be successful?
I definitely have high hopes for the year; we have some very talented players. I hope that the team can see their potential, and when that first game comes they can see how far they have come since the start of the season. Some goals for this year would be to stay above 500 in our win/loss record and to make it into the MIAA tournament, so we can get some playoff games. I hope for the best, and we will take it game by game.
Do you hope to continue your career as a lacrosse coach in the future? What are your plans?
Yeah I could definitely see myself continuing being a coach. I love teaching the game, and I love lacrosse in general. I hope to stay at Hudson for a few years. I like the team, and I like the school. Great kids and great atmosphere. Coaching lacrosse is absolutely something I would like to keep doing in the future.
What is the player to coach transition like?
It is definitely different. The biggest thing I have noticed is when you’re a player and think that a coach is wrong about something, when you are in the coach’s shoes you realize that they were always right. It’s different seeing what a player has to go through compared to the coach’s perspective of the game. It’s nice to see the correlation between the two. It makes you realize how much work coaches put into running a team and helps you appreciate coaches you have had in the past. It’s tough transitioning from being a player because I wish I still could play the game, but this is the closest I can get, and I enjoy coaching. I hope to keep doing it in the future.