The Niles West boys varsity soccer had an unsuccessful turnout against their rival school, Niles North, on Thursday, Sep. 21. After battling through a tough game, the final score was 4-1 for the Vikings.
Throughout the game, Niles North had possession of the ball the majority of the time. This required the Wolves to constantly be on defense, which is very difficult and overwhelming for the goalie. Goalie and senior Preston Pieczka admits it was not the team’s best game.
“We had a bad game against North [and] it felt like we were all over the place. It didn’t show the level that we were truly at the few games before. Our team needed to be aware [and] relaxing on plays that ended in opportunities for North. After the first half, we realized that we needed to change our play style. While we didn’t hold the ball much, we changed formation to be able to make better plays when we did get the ball. In the end, North was the better team and kept the ball more,” Pieczka said.
Before the game started, the players were already nervous and overthinking what was to come. Starting center back, senior Adnan Ibrisevic thinks the lost was partly due to nerves, and what the pressure that comes with a rivalry game.
“I feel like we were just nervous going into that game because it was a rivalry game and they were on a hot streak. At that point, we were also on a two-game winning streak, but we weren’t prepared. After that game I feel like now we’re clicking in and actually working hard during practice compared to before. After the halftime talk with our captains, we went out there [during the second half], played with our hearts, and changed our formation,” Ibrisevic said.
After changing up their plays and formation in the second half, the team managed to pull themselves together and score one goal. If the Wolves played the way they did in the first half, they could’ve used their opportunities to make a good outcome of it.
The guys have been preparing for this rival game ever since the season started, as they have been for all their other games. Captain and senior Elhan Martinovic reveals his thoughts of what he could’ve done better to motivate his team and how it felt to lose a rivalry game.
“As a captain, I should’ve pushed the team more and encouraged them to play better. We prepared by watching film and studying each player. We tried to play to our strengths and their weaknesses, but unfortunately, we kind of drifted from the game plan. However, I don’t think we played bad during the game. The scoreline shows one thing, but we didn’t play that bad. Our mistakes just came from them being better than us in the midfield and wanting it more. After the game, I was upset when I saw them lift the trophy. We are now working hard in practice and pushing ourselves to be better,” Martinovic said.
The trophy is awarded every year to the winner of the West vs North rivalry game. The annual showdown this year didn’t go as planned for the Wolves, but this setback is just the beginning and many games will come up for the team to work hard and push through this hardship. Good luck on the rest of the season and remember that a loss is not a failure, but a chance to grow and improve.
