A Busy Saturday, Followed by Hurricane Henri

There are times when we need to lead the daily Blog post with the weather forecast, and we are indeed keepoing close eye on Hurrican Henri as it takes aim on New England. But we are happy to see it veering to the West, and are hoping for a minimal impact. More on that shortly, because we still expect an impact on the soccer program. First, we want to review the plans for the weekend ahead. On Saturday morning, we're sending two buslods of players down south for several scrimmages. The squad of JV1 candidates (not the final version) will head to Manchester West High School. (9 Notre Dame Avenue, Manchester, NH 03102) to play Trinity's Varsity at Noon, and West's Varsity at 1:50. Each game will be two 20-minute halves. Players are asked to be at HHS at 9:30, with white shorts and socks. We will provide white tops. Players must be masked at all times on the bus. They should bring water for the gane and afterwards, and snacks for between game nourishment and a post game snack before boarding the bus. We won't stop at MacDonalds in Warner on the way back. Fast food is against Hanover Boys Soccer policy. The Varsity will train on the Turf at ten (the blogger loves alliteration), and then meet to receive and activate their player tracking vests. You'll hear more about this exciting development soon. The team will depart at 2:30. (Masks, no eating, water for the game and after, ect.) The game is at 5:00 at Oyster River High School (55 Coe Drive, Durham, NH 03824). Hanover and Oyster River have a long, long history. Since the late 1960s they have been among the very top programs in the state. Hanover has won 19 state titles, most in the country. Oyster River is not far behind with 13, the most recent last fall's D2 title. They have played more than a dozen times in the NHIAA playoffs. My first year as Hanover's Assistant Coach, in 2003, Hanover lost to Oyster River in the Class I Finals in sudden death, in a replay following 100 minutes of scoreless soccer three days earlier. That's how they did it 20 years ago. Hanover and OR have had a few friendlies since we went to Division One a decade ago, but it's been a while. We have never seen their snazzy new turf field, so we're excited to renew the rivalry. On Sunday, the Varsity will leave HHS at 2:00 sharp to travel to the Windridge Tennis and Sports Camp in Roxbury, VT, a litle village between Randolph and Northfield. We have been going there during preseason for over a decade, and it's good to be back after a year off. We'll play a friendly on Sunday afternoon, and hope we can sneak it in before Henri's outer bands of rain soak us. Varsity players should prepare for wet wether, just in case. We'll send a packing list tomorrow. After the game, and hopefully a swim, we will have supper, meet as a team, and then toast a few marshmallows over the campfire. We'll be back by Noon Monday. We have an ambitious tryout and training schedule, and will be keeping an eye on the weather. If we need to cancel on Monday morning, we will work hard to have our afternoon sessions. We erred on the side of caution on Thursday, and it spared the fragile field at the Pasture. If necessary, we'll move everything to Tuesday. We have accomplished everything we need to do thus far, but are eager to welcome a number of new players. Stay tuned. Finally, an apology for posting with occasional typos or other mistakes. I'll try to do better proofreading. When the clock pushes toward Midnight after a long day (six hours at the Pasture today), it's tempting to dine and dash. Even more finally, a shoutout to the smazing coaching staff. One of the best things to happen to Hanover Boys Soccer in the last three years has been the addition of three talented coaches. Last year, JV2 Coach Ian Caldwell and Freshman Coach Jasomn Hirschhorn came aboard, and this year we have added for HHS star Ned Harris. You'll hear more about them in posts coming soon, but they have been invaluable. Veteran coaches Willie Johnson and Sam Farnham have been superstars during this first week. Your sons deserve this quality. They have been amazing as well. That's all for now. Enjoy your weekend. Keep an eye on the weather!