English boys soccer ready for 2009 season

English High boys soccer coach Kerry King will have some serious offense to replace with the loss of Northeastern Conference All-Star sharpshooters Mubarak Nyang (20 goals) and Kevin Garduno (8 goals) to graduation, but he’s also looking at a nice influx of young players who he’s optimistic will contribute right off the bat.The Bulldogs went 10-7-2 last year. They qualified for the state tournament, where they went 1-1, defeating Andover in the first round and losing to East Boston in the second round.”We had a very good year,” King said.In addition to his two strikers, who were captains, King will need to replace captains Alex Alvarez (sweeper) and midfielder Eddie Roman.”We lost a lot of firepower from last year, but I think overall we’re a more balanced team,” King said. “We have a lot of skill this year, although we’re young and inexperienced in some spots.”King is counting on his three captains, midfielders Gabe Smith and Daniel Cordova and defender Eric Bransfield, to provide a strong nucleus. Joining them will be five players who either started or played significant minutes – midfielders George Herrera, Jefferson Fobella and Cam LaChance, and defenders A.J. Xhemajli and Mike DeJoy.King also has a couple of freshmen who he’s expecting big things from both now and down the line. Leo Awokang, who was at Pickering Middle School last year, is already considered one of the better players out there, King said.”Leo’s going to be a future superstar,” he said.Another ninth grader, Nick Medeiros, has looked very good in net, King said, adding that he also expects Alex Mulbah, a senior transfer from Minnesota, to help out the cause as well. Mulbah is from Liberia.King said his initial numbers are at about 27 players, but he expects closer to 40 once school begins and players finish up work commitments and return from vacations.”I think we’re going to be very competitive,” King said. “We have a couple of holes to fill, but we have a lot of potential offensively. We have young and inexperienced kids, but they have a lot of skill ? If we mature quickly, we can be a factor in the league.”English opens Sept. 8 against St. Mary’s in the Lynn City Tournament.