WHAT'S IN THE CRYSTAL BALL?

THE FUTURE OF THE LLANTEROS CLUB
AP-August 22, 2009
Today we sit down to interview Llanteros manager Chuck Hanna and ask him about the recent championship victory and the future of the Llanteros.

Q-First, congratulations on your new championship. At the beginning of the season, did you expect to win it all?
A-I didn't think we'd win the whole thing the first season out. We had a very rough start with two losses in the beginning and things weren't looking good at all. The players really came together quickly though and began to work as a team. By mid-season I thought we'd be in the hunt at the end but I never expected to win the championship. I was fairly certain we'd make it into the playoffs but that was it.

Q-What would you say is most responsible for the successful season you've just completed?
A-The most important thing was the deep bench. We certainly have a few of superstars but we also have a very, very solid and deep bench. When we substitute players in and out it is very important to have comparable players coming in. The players we have are all very good and a lot of our victories came from just having a set of good fresh legs the other team couldn't keep up with.

Q-You mentioned superstars. Who are your superstars?
A-Each of our players has done an outstanding job but a few went above and beyond and delivered amazing results. Danny Garcia was an absolute killer in the forward position while Paul Martinez anchored the team in the middle. Of course our keeper Efrain Wong did an outstanding job and the clean sheets he put away are a testament to that. The two Hernandez brothers Carlos and Marco brought some youth and energy to the team that was noticeably missing when they weren't there. Larry Reyes, Jr did an exceptional job as a defender and we really hope he continues with us. His speed and aggression were critical this year. I could go on and on about a lot of these guys but I think you get the idea. Each player was a superstar when we needed them to be.

Q-NEYSO has floated the idea of running another season soon. Will you try and repeat?
A-Absolutely. We know that other teams are continuing to train and preparing for another season and I think NEYSO recognizes the success of the league and sees it as a positive thing. If NEYSO has another league, the Llanteros will be there.

Q-There were rumors the Llanteros were looking to move into a Sunday 11v11 league. Is that true?
A-We were considering it very seriously but I don't think we're ready to make that move. There are too many disadvantages to the 11v11 game compared to the 6v6 game. With age and conditioning being such a critical element to that game, I don't think we would be nearly as competitive. After talking to our current players I think the consensus is we should stay 6v6 for now.

Q-What changes do you anticipate making for the next season?
A-We are bringing in a few new players and losing some current players but the majority of our core players will be continuing with us next season. There may also be some other adjustments once NEYSO finalizes a schedule. Outside of a few random personnel changes, and we hope there are very, very few personnel changes, the team will look and perform much the same way it did last season. Until what we're doing isn't working I don't see why we would change it.

Q-If NEYSO decides not to run another league before the end of the year, what are the plans for the Llanteros?
A-Well, right now we are assuming there will be another NEYSO season but if that falls through we will probably look elsewhere for a small-team format. There are some indoor leagues we would look at and maybe re-examine the 11v11 leagues if we have to. We just want to be very careful in making sure any league we join fits us well. We don't want to jump into a league just to be playing somewhere. It needs to be the right league for us.