By Christopher Tremblay

It was definitely not the year Coach Tom Healy and the Norwood boy’s soccer team was hoping to have, especially for the outgoing seniors. However, while the team as a whole was struggling on the field, senior goalie Chris Giovanni was doing all that he could to keep his team in games while searching for that elusive win.

After a season that included Covid last fall, the then junior was going into the season with some skepticism as he and his teammates didn’t know what they were up against. The season was not only abbreviated and had no tournament after the regular season, but as a goalie, Giovanni had restrictions put upon him that he was not used to. He was unable to punt or throw the ball past midfield, something that a goalie relies on to get the ball out of their end. However, once he got those restrictions under wraps, he was fine and felt that having to get rid of the ball in shorter distances helped his game. 

Giovanni had such a good season he was named to the Tri-Valley All Star team, something that was not on his radar.

“It was awesome, I really didn’t expect it at all,” the Norwood goalie said. “Although I was named to the team it was just not me. The team defense was a major contributor to my success and without them I don’t think that it would have been possible.”

While Giovanni discounts his play as the reason he was named to the TVL All Star team, his coach disagrees.

“Last year was a strange season with Covid, but Chris really shinned and was able to stay back in the box having four experienced defenders in front of him,” Healy said. “Playing only 10 games we didn’t get to play the younger kids all that much, but although there were a lot of seniors on the field, he played fantastic and was worthy of that All Conference nomination on the All-Star team.”

With the pandemic a major distraction to the high school season, Healy’s decision to play all his seniors in the minimal time frame had an effect on this year’s campaign. 

“Chris is a great leader and understands last year’s predicament with not being able to play the younger kids all that much and realizes that it trickled down to this year and what is happening on the field,” the Mustang Coach said. “His play from last year transferred to this year and he is playing at a high level. He has also worked well with the young defenders on the field and has told them when and if they need to make adjustments.”

According to Healy, Giovanni has taken some risks throughout the season because of the inexperience playing in front of him where some have gone his way and others not. 

“I can’t really fault him for wanting to win, but there have been times that he shouldn’t have taken the chance,” Healy said. “With that said, we have talked about it, and he understands my thinking and has come to the conclusion that chances don’t always work.”

Although his goals against average, which was under three last year, has risen this fall, Healy still believes that his goalie has been playing on an All-Star level and hopes that the voting Coaches realize that his average has gone up because of the inexperienced backfield that the Mustangs have trotted out onto the field this year.

Growing up, Giovanni’s parents had him trying all different sports, but according to the Norwood senior they all fizzled out. That is except soccer, a game that he not only enjoyed but felt he was good at. Having found something that he excelled at, Giovanni played town soccer, joined a winter league and a club team. Once he got to elementary school, he was introduced to the position of goalie, something with which he was not all that thrilled.

“Prior to elementary school I liked using my feet to do different skills, but being the biggest kid that put me in net. Originally, I didn’t like the position as I preferred running, but eventually I began to like the position,” Giovanni said. “In sixth grade, my winter soccer team went to the finals and after that season a friend of mine suggested that I try out for the club team as their goalie.”

Giovanni took his friend’s advice and found that club soccer helped him immensely to get ready for high school soccer as it was much more challenging and competitive than the soccer he was playing with his friends. As a freshman for Norwood High School, there were four goalies on the junior varsity team, Giovanni being the number one net minder. During his sophomore season, he won the starting varsity position and has improved each year since then. 

“As the starting varsity goalie, it was a big difference for a player my age and skill level going up against others that were two years older and a lot stronger,” he said. “It was a big jump at first and the play of the game was much more competitive and a challenge, but practice with my team gave me a lot of encouragement.”

Coming into his final year playing for Norwood, Giovanni was hoping for much more of a normal season compared to last year. He set three goals for himself prior to the season getting underway: to be a better player than last year, to be recruited to play collegiate soccer, and help the Mustangs make the playoffs. Although Norwood was unable to make the playoffs this year, Giovanni definitely took his game to the next level and should be looked upon as a collegiate soccer goalie. 

“I didn’t come into the season with a negative mindset, I was just excited to get back on the field and play soccer again,” the Norwood goalie said. “I knew that we had a lot of kids moving up and what they could do. There was definitely going to be a change in momentum in defense until they got used to the game, much like my first year.”

In regards to college, Giovanni has been talking to a few schools but has not made any decisions as of yet. He is hoping to find a school that offers him the option to play soccer as well as offering his major (mechanical engineering or computer science).

“I’m open to whatever school comes calling, but education comes first,” Giovanni said. “I would love to be part of the soccer program, but if I can’t play soccer collegiately, I can always play in some other capacity, like club or intramurals.”

As the season came to a close, Giovanni noted that earning another All-Star nod would be great, but it’s not necessarily something he needs to cement his legacy on the field.

“Being an All-Star is definitely on my radar and I would love to achieve it for a second year in a row, but it is not something that I’m shooting for,” he said. “I would have rather had the team improve so that when they return next season, they will be ready and competitive once again.”