Falcons’ Prey Is Iolani Raiders
By Jack Danilewicz
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Del.icio.usShould the Kalani boys soccer team take on the same personality as Iolani of the ILH, that will be just fine with Falcons coach Myles Arakawa.
“It’s no secret that we aspire to be like them,“Arakawa said of the Raiders. “Most of my assistants here are my former players from when I was there. The two things we wanted to bring over (from Iolani) were: No 1., that we be very disciplined, and No. 2, that we be physically fit. This is our first year here (at Kalani) that we’re close to doing that.”
Indeed, now in his third year, Arakawa’s unmistakable imprint can be found within the Kalani program. During his 17-year stint with Iolani (from 1985-2002), his teams won a pair of state championships (in 1997 and 2000) and were never absent from the conversation when the subject centered around the top programs on the Island.
With the transition that comes with any coaching change a long time gone now, enthusiasm has been at an all-time high at the Kahala school this pre-season, where the Falcons went 3-1-2, finishing with a 1-1 tie in a much-anticipated encounter with Iolani on Dec. 6.
Kalani took a 26-man roster into its regular-season opener at Kahuku over the weekend, with seven of those players having had two years of varsity soccer under their belts.
The post-season may be over a month away, but that doesn’t mean the Falcons aren’t in the playoff mode already, especially after making the Oahu Interscholastic Association playoffs last February.
“I think they’re pleasantly pleased to see where we’re at now in comparison to when we first arrived,” Arakawa said. “We had introduced a lot of new ideas. Before you can instill technique, you have to instill an attitude and a set of values. In our first two years, we took a more realistic approach (in terms of expectations) because there had been a dry spell here. This year, the kids can start thinking about it (the possibility of going to the state tournament). I think a lot of them are thinking that way now. We’re more collectively on the same page.”
For all their experience to fall back on, it is Kalani’s overall depth that could fuel a run to the post-season. Last season, the Falcons were worn down during the playoffs.
“That’s the hope,“said Arakawa, thinking of possible dividends late in the season. “We were limited last season in the (OIA) tournament by the availability of players who could execute what we wanted. A lot of them have made it a point this year to be more ready (conditioning-wise) and have mid-season type practices early on.
“We can do a lot more things to this point than we could last year.”
Kalani displayed its ability to finish on scoring plays this pre-season, tallying 15 goals through its first five games. But Arakawa sees his team settling into the opportunistic, ball-control style that was a trademark at Iolani.
“We want to possess the ball as much as possible,” said Arakawa. “We don’t want to haphazardly move the ball ahead. We need to be able to do something with it and control the tempo.”
Kalani’s only loss came to Kamehameha, while the Falcons defeated Radford, Konawaena and Moanalua in the pre-season, and tied Pac-Five and Iolani.
Following Wednesday’s game at Kaiser, the Falcons will welcome Kailua on Saturday for their first home game of the regular season. That contest is set to begin at 3:45.
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