This is an interview with Joe Kiernan, a new player Leones who arrived in the capital a few months to study Italian: Joe is in Washington DC but the team plays in Colorado College (where he studied): the Tigers. In the suitcase he brought his long stick (a defender) and a few weeks training with the Leones, making his debut in the recent championship game played in Perugia.
- Luke: "Joe, what you'll be in Italy?"
- Joe: "I am in Rome in January and will stay until mid-May, although I'd like to stay longer.
- Luke: "Do you like Rome?"
- Joe: "Like, I really like, and I love the pizza and ice cream. Here I am spending good times and the Romans are all very nice. "
- Luke:" Tell us of lacrosse in the U.S., is a sport much later? "
- Joe:" I come from Washington and they are very popular, as in the rest the East Coast. In recent times there is developing even in big cities like Chicago and Denver. Television follows much the NCAA championship (the one between college ed), there is a major championship, the MLL, but not so developed and followed as the NCAA championship. Do not think that is a little known sport: here in the U.S. is the most watched soccer. "
- Luke:" How many times a week you train? "
- Joe:" My team trains five times a week and on weekends is playing. We do a lot of technique training session but also some tactics. At the end of training we always make a match. My team currently has forty players and the parties shall be summoned a score. "
- Luke:" How does the league? "
- Joe:" There is a regular season and the best teams of each division play the playoffs national. The Professional League is not followed, but it works similarly. My team is much improved this year and has made significant strides since joining the new coach, the goal is to reach the playoff season. "
- Luke:" You would never have expected to come to Italy and play lacrosse?
- Joe: "I took the cue to train and do some 'wall, I did not think there was a team in Rome and the opportunity to train with them is fantastic.
- Luke: "I'm already a bit 'of weeks you train with the Leones, which team do you think of the Capitoline?"
- Joe: "It' s experience very funny, I think Rome has still some progress particularly in terms of technique, the problem is that you can not improve without new challenges and games with stronger teams. I think the experience of the world and the ability to deal with stronger national will do very well to the players. "
- Luke:" And then you went into action in the championship match against Perugia, how was the game? "
- Joe: "It 's been a very physical game and the field was not great. I really enjoyed myself, even Perugia has a good team. In the first half of the match, the Roma did not play very well but then we recovered and we won. "
- Luke: "And you scored a goal, raccontacelo."
- Joe: "I think it was the assist to Fabio (Antonelli ed), I made a few steps toward the door to avoid a defender and pulled."
- Luke: "What do you like lacrosse?"
- Joe: "I started playing 12 years. I like the fact that sport is a very fast and physical contact. It 's wonderful when the opponent striker comes towards me and I have to fight it. "
Luca Marinucci
(special thanks to Nadia D'Ippolito for making this interview possible)
