Going into this season, the North Arlington Boys soccer team wasn’t expecting much. After losing their starting sweeper, left back, right back and goalie, things weren’t looking up for the 2013 season. That has all changed now. Needing people to step up defensively was their main goal and this has definitely happened. In goal, junior Joe Cappelutti has come in to replace the spot left by Kevin Goffredo. As a first-year goalie, Joe has showed some real promise. Senior captain PJ Sirotiak will be leading the team out of the back. Moving from stopper to sweeper, he has shown much improvement from last year and can really show the underclassmen a few things about how to play aggressively. Senior Ryan McKenna is also stepping into a pivotal role at stopper, filling the gap left by PJ. Even though it is his first year playing varsity soccer, he has the stature and athletic ability to fit nicely into the team’s starting eleven.
At right back, sophomore Moises Polanco has the skill and know-how to play against the best teams from around this area. At left back, junior Conrad Malinowski is showing that he really wants his spot on varsity and he’ll play anywhere to do it. Malinowski moved from center defensive mid to left back this season, which shows his versatility. The outside midfielders for this season are juniors Jose Ruiz and Juxhin Bajaj. These two players can really be dangerous for defenses this season because of their speed and crossing-ability. At center-mid, senior Derek Perez and junior Vinny Ribeiro have a lot of responsibility. Both having not played center-mid last season, they have a lot on their plate. They will both be controlling the pace of the game and, most likely, the outcomes as well. Senior captain Danny Cordeiro will be playing a little different this season. Leaving center-mid and moving up to center-forward, he will be even more goal hungry than he was last season, finishing with 16 goals and 11 assists.
This move to center-forward was evident in the Vikings season opening win against Hasbrouck Heights, 4-2. With 2 goals and 2 assists, you can’t really ask for much more from the captain. The striker position will be filled by junior Cesar Marques, who re-joined the team this season after moving to a new school last season. He will definitely make a difference up front and score a lot of goals. With 4 seniors, 6 juniors, and 1 sophomore, the Vikings are going to have one of their best seasons this year. Coach Jessie Dembowski stated, “We are making the county tournament and going to the State Sectional final this year.” With confidence like that, anything is achievable for the NAHS Boys Varsity soccer team this year.