New Season, New Coach, New Hopes

Simply put, last season was a disaster. The soccer team won a meager one game, and gave up forty-nine more goals than they scored. While no one was expecting a Manchester United-like season, no one was expecting a one and fifteen season tantamount to the Miami Dolphins either. The soccer Macs win-loss record was only the beginning of its problems; they had trouble getting players to show up to games, and often looked disorganized and confused while on the pitch. The disappointing season concluded with the coach, Loni Mori, stepping down. And while the team's issues last season are not attributable to Coach Mori, his departure resulted in the hiring of Tony Elmore, the soccer team's savior.

A coach the quality of Tony Elmore should not be at Yeshiva University; heck, he should not be coaching at the division three level at all. Division one universities are missing out. Fortunately for us, exigent circumstances intervened and Coach Elmore landed at Yeshiva University. For most coaches, working in the Skyline Conference is a perfect fit--most games are played on Saturday, which is their day off from their full time jobs. But for Coach Elmore and the Yeshiva Macs, Saturdays are off limits. When Elmore, a photographer who often has events to film on Saturdays, learned of Yeshiva's scheduling requirements, he immediately applied for the coaching position. As 2005 Skyline Conference Coach of the Year, and mastermind of Mount Saint Vincent's women's soccer revival, Elmore was summarily hired as the coach of the men's soccer team, effective immediately. And just like that, a match made in soccer heaven was consummated.

Sophomore Achiya Yaffe (Jerusalem, Israel) has noticed the difference already. "Coach Elmore has added a new level of organization and discipline to the team," stated Yaffe. "I believe that coach has us ready, physically and mentally, for the season ahead." While the First Annual Fall Sports Training Camp has something to do with that feeling, Elmore's practices and coaching style are the main factor behind the optimism surrounding the team.

Coach Elmore has been playing soccer since his childhood in London. As the game has changed, and trainer's understanding of optimum training has evolved, so too has Elmore's coaching tactics. Recognizing the shift in soccer from a physical game to a finesse sport, Elmore has adjusted and now coaches a finesse and combination game which consists of lots of short passing. This South American style of play requires a great deal of running, so players on the team need to be in optimal cardiovascular condition. Coach Elmore ensures that by beginning practice with "soccer-obics," his own self styled and created system which requires players to maintain a constant state of motion while dribbling the ball, each player will be fit for competitive games.

While no games have been played yet--the first game is against York College on Thursday--the confidence of the team is palpable. The coach expects to go five hundred; the players expect to compete in every game; and the fans expect a significant turnaround from last season. In the meantime, Coach Elmore only guarantees one thing: "we will compete in every game and we'll never get blown out." While this statement is not exactly something "Broadway" Joe Namath would have said, it's definitely not something that could be said about last years team. And so, the soccer team's savior has spoken.