Worcester Hydra Look to Finish Inaugural Year With Win

Saturday, July 14, 2012

Joe Parello, GoLocalWorcester Contributor

Worcester's Charles Rugg

The Worcester Hydra will play the final game of their inaugural season tomorrow, but coach Elvis Comrie says this is just the beginning for the new club.

"We have definitely laid a solid foundation this year," Comrie said. "We'll have some meetings after the final game regarding what we have to do, building the roster and making sure players are all available. We want to keep the nucleus of this team together. I haven't seen a team in our league with a better collection of talented players, it's just a matter of getting all of our players on the field."

Getting every key contributor on the field has been a challenge for Worcester (5-5-5) this year, and the results have shown it. The Hydra blasted the Boston Victory 6-0 at Foley Stadium last Saturday, but then had to face the Victory again Wednesday in Boston without leading scorer Alencar Junior and emerging forward Charles Rugg.

Worcester fell 1-0.

"We want to conclude an interesting season on a high note," Comrie said. "We've dealt with the challenges, and I'm very proud of the way our guys have fought this year."

Worcester's final game comes against the Seacoast Phantoms, and the Hydra can finish in the top half of the Northeast Division with a victory. Without Junior, the Worcester offense struggled to generate chances against Boston, and that was not the first game the talented forward has missed. Still, in only nine games of action, Junior ranks fourth in the PDL with 10 goals.

"It's tough when a talented player like Junior can't make it to so many games and practices," Comrie said. "He plays for the love of the game. He works 10-hour construction shifts, then drives 90 minutes to get here and play. I was telling him that I think he could have 50 goals this year, but he misses on so many sitters. I have never seen such a talented player miss those shots, but the poor guy is so tired, sometimes he can't get his leg around the ball."

Worcester lost its first meeting with Seacoast 1-0 in the franchise's first ever game. Comrie believes his team has come a long way this year, particularly from a chemistry standpoint, and thinks this is the perfect team to finish against.

"We lost to Seacoast the first time around, so we've got some paying back to do," Comrie said. "But what I'm most proud of is this year is I have seen a group of guys that didn't know each other come together and play for each other to lay a great foundation for this franchise. It's been amazing."