Eliseo "Papo" Santos has coached at almost every level.
He's seen children grow up to play at local high schools. He's seen those kids move on to college, some to a four-year university, others to community colleges.
Santos has also seen some of his pupils fight to try to make it on a professional soccer team. And he continues to do what he can to help local players. He is doing just that with his latest project.
Santos is the head coach of the San Diego Boca FC of the National Premier Soccer League that was founded last season. He sees plenty of players trying to make it in the business. He has some of those on his team. But for now he is focusing on giving his players the best chance to get experience and stand out. And one way to do that is to build a winning team.
Santos is trying to do just that with Boca FC. His team has started the season 2-1 and is slated to host Santa Ana Winds FC on Saturday at Balboa Stadium in what is being called the "So Cal Freeway Series."
Boca FC is coming off its first loss of the season, a 2-1 outing to crosstown rivals, the San Diego Flash (1-1), after allowing a late goal in a match-up last week. The loss proved to be costly as Boca FC (six points) fell to second place behind the first place San Diego Flash (nine points). Santa Ana Winds suffered a tight loss against Hollywood and are coming off a win over FC Hasental.
Santos is hoping to bounce back and get his players on a winning track this weekend. SanDiegoRed.com caught up with Santos for an interview in which he talks about the challenges of coaching a new team in an amateur soccer arena he is very familiar with.
SDR: What has been the biggest difference trying to put this year's team together compared to last year's?
Santos: "It was a struggle. I struggled to keep the same chemistry that we had during our first year but it is hard to do when you lose some key players. We lost midfielders Dan Antoniuk, who left to play in the
NASL (North American Soccer League) with FC Edmonton, and Abraham Gomez to the PDL (Premier Developmental League) in the USL (United Soccer Leagues) with the Thunder Bay."
SDR: How can the players on your team now help try to keep momentum despite last week's loss?
Santos: "They have to make sure they play at a consistent level. They have the talent to do so."
SDR: Speaking of talent, how would you assess the players in this league based on what you've seen on the field?
Santos: "The league is growing and more talented players are coming in as more expansion teams are coming into the league. There's a lot of good futbol being played. It's just a matter of time before you start to see this league grow even more because of the talented players that it has."
SDR: You've coached at different levels, including the A-League with the San Diego Flash. How different is the Flash now compared to back in the late 1990s and early 2000s?
Santos: "The club seems to have kept its values and continues to appeal to the same people and players it did before. They are mostly followed by the Anglo community, even when I was there. I'd say it's about 80-percent. We (Boca FC) have more support from the Hispanic community, about 90-percent. They are two different styles of futbol but they are both very good."
SDR: How does having two NPSL teams from San Diego affect your club?
Santos: "It makes things more interesting. People who know about soccer understand that having two teams within the same radius only makes things better for our soccer community. It means more players get a chance. More followers will go to games. Anything that spreads soccer to our communities is a good thing."
ivan.orozco@sandiegored.com
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Game Box:
What: San Diego Boca FC vs. Santa Ana Winds FC
Where: Balboa Stadium
When: Saturday, April 23, 7 p.m.
Info: sdboca.com
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