PEABODY — As the Peabody boys soccer team prepares for a new season, there are a few unanswered questions that Tanners’ coach Stan McKeen is looking to answer, starting with how to cope with the loss of 11 seniors – seven of whom were starters from the 2023 season.
The good news is that 68 hopefuls showed up on the first day of practice Monday, so McKeen may have plenty of players who might show promise. The large turnout also ensures there are more than enough players to, once again, field three full teams, especially considering five goalies are trying out.
“That’s the most kids we’ve had in many years,” McKeen said. “I think you’d have to go back five years before COVID to see that many kids come out. We’ll be able to field a JV-B team this year, which will be mostly freshmen and sophomores, so being able to have that third team will help greatly for future years.”
This year’s team returns only four full-time starters in Dylan Flanagan, Owen Brennan, Derek Collins, and Kacper Kowalczyk, who will serve as captains.
Flanagan has been the Tanners’ starter between the pipes for the last one-and-a-half seasons.
“Dylan played outstanding in goal for us last year,” McKeen said. “He’s a smart player who knows the game and is a good communicator. He’s quiet sometimes, but overall, he does a great job back there.”
Brennan returns as a striker.
“I’m hoping to get more scoring out of him this year,” McKeen said. “He’s very fast and has very good skills and is also a smart player.”
Collins is back for his third season as a defenseman.
“He’s also very smart and highly-skilled and I like the fact that he is a natural lefty,” McKeen said. “He knows what to do with the ball and is also very physical, which you need back there.”
Third-year varsity veteran Kowalczyk will anchor the midfield, but may also see minutes at striker.
“Another one with good skills, a good head, and is physical,” McKeen said. “All four captains have been around for a long time, so they are experienced and seasoned, which is half the battle.”
McKeen said the Tanners don’t have many returning players who saw varsity minutes last year. While it’s still too early to judge the new talent, defenseman Fabio Goulart and midfielder Luke Murray are in the mix for more minutes this year.
“Both Fabio and Luke played significant minutes for us last year,” McKeen said. “Fabio is skilled, smart, and very physical, and Luke played a lot for us. Luke can shoot but is more of a distributor. He likes to pass the ball as opposed to shooting it. They’re probably, right now, the two I see as having the experience compared to many of the kids who came up from the JV or just didn’t see much time – if at all – on varsity.
As far as the league goes, McKeen said 2023 NEC champion Beverly may be the team to beat. The Tanners finished second in the league last year.
“Beverly is always tough, as is Danvers. Gloucester will be tough as well,” McKeen said. “Masco is always good and I believe Marblehead might also be good, but you just don’t really know who is coming back.”
The No. 32 Tanners (8-4-5) were eliminated by No. 33 Durfee, 1-0, in the preliminary round of last season’s MIAA Division 1 state tournament. In an effort to improve their ranking in 2024, the Tanners have about as tough a non-conference schedule as it gets with games against Xaverian, North Andover, Newton North, Billerica, and Haverhill.
“Beverly and Peabody are the only Division 1 teams in the league, so it’s very important that we schedule as many non-league games as possible against Division 1 teams to maximize our power ranking,” McKeen said. “The way the rankings work, we have to play Division 1 teams or we lose ground because the NEC has so many teams in lower divisions than Peabody.”
Peabody opens the season Wednesday, Sept. 4 against Danvers at home (4 p.m.).
