A heavy afternoon rain did not stop the Atlanta Silverbacks organization from presenting the 2013 Spring Season Championship trophy (a plate similar to the one given to the winner of the Bundesliga season or Ladies winner of the Champions at Wimbledon) to an assemblage of media this afternoon at Silverbacks Park. The gleaming silver plate was hoisted around the tent by a number of players and coaches while television cameras and cell phone cameras alike flashed, capturing the moment for all posterity. The city of Atlanta was home to a professional sports champion again.
Head coach Brian Haynes and his family were on hand for the ceremony, having played professional soccer in this city Haynes knows of Atlanta’s championship struggles, but feels like this is only the start of a new era.
“It’s [winning] a contagious thing, said Haynes, if we take it for granted we can go backwards. The coaches and players here will not allow that to happen”.
Defender Martyn Lancaster has spent the last 15 years of his life playing professional soccer abroad and in the states. A native of Wigan, England, this is his first championship celebration as a pro.
“It feels great, fantastic, this is the first time I have ever won anything,” he continued. “We did it for ourselves but also for the fans, we have a great fanbase here, five to six thousands fans a game. They have been our 12th man so to speak.”
With the spring season ending in victory and plenty of pats on the back to come, a team can get complacent during the month long break (The Silverbacks have only a friendly scheduled for the 27th against a visiting side from Guatemala, Club Xelaju). When approached with questions regarding the approaching hiatus players and coaches alike were fully aware of what can happen.
Lancaster: “We want to win the full season [Spring and Fall]. We are going to concentrate on the fall season and come into it in great form.”
Midfielder/Forward Borfor Carr: “We are going to come out and try to win it again. That’s our mentality, if possible to play just like we did during the first half of the season.”
Horace James: “We have to come into the season prepared. Winning spring is not just it, it’s just the beginning.”
By the end of the ceremony with the sun having come out from behind the now long forgotten rain clouds the media, friends, family and fans moved out from under the tent to take pictures of the players with the trophy. The season returns on August 3 at Minnesota, the site of their championship glory on the last game of the previous season. The home opener is a week later against Carolina. By the looks of things the players. coaches and staff like the feeling of being the city’s reigning champions, maybe this winning thing is clear to everyone involved.
“Our [coaches] job is to get these guys ready to win, we have to do the same thing all over again,” said Haynes. Spoken like someone not done with this feeling.
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