Many Chamblee students believe that our soccer program is one of our most successful sports programs. There are many people who contribute to supporting the soccer program here, and it has been very successful these past few years; the girls’ varsity team has won the last two state championships. With a new season having just begun, Chamblee’s soccer players are hoping to continue and further this success.
“Chamblee has a great soccer organization. We were back-to-back state champions,” said Sloane Drummond (‘26).
Many boys’ team players feel that the coaching has significantly improved for the boys’ JV team as it has gained two new coaches this season.
“I actually really like the JV coaches this year. I think they do a really good job, and they’re a lot better than last year. We didn’t really have any JV coaches last year, but this year we have two,” said Athen Blocker (‘26).
Although Chamblee’s soccer season has gotten off to a rocky start this year, the more important games have not begun yet, so there’s still time for the season to turn around.
“So far, we’ve lost all four of our first games, but the high school schedule is always strange. We won’t start playing our region games until next week. Those are the games that really count. Right now we are really in our testing phase,” said Daren Silberman, the girls’ varsity coach.
How well a team performs in a game is largely determined by how strong its opponents are.
“So far, our JV team is doing well this season, but varsity isn’t doing as well. I think it’s because varsity has had a really hard schedule so far, and JV has had a pretty easy schedule,” said Blocker.
A supportive, friendly community within a soccer team is vital to having a strong team.
“I think our team will do well this year because we have good chemistry between the guys along with good players and good coaching. I feel like the community at our school and on the team is pretty good because we understand that we need to be close in order to play well together, and we end up all being pretty good friends and being well-connected,” said Ben Amaya (‘25).
Playing soccer on the school team is a great opportunity for students to meet new people with similar interests to them.
“I chose to join the team to be able to keep playing soccer because my club is on an off-season. I also joined so that I could meet people outside of my friend group that I have something in common with,” said Eva Thatcher (‘27).
Many Chamblee soccer players have grown up with soccer being a big part of their lives.
“I do enjoy playing soccer because I’ve played it for so long that it’s been really integrated into my life and impacted the friends I make as well as some of my other interests. I really feel like I don’t only enjoy playing soccer but also everything soccer has to offer, like watching the pros and whatnot,” said Amaya.
Each practice is different for the team because there are always different goals that need to be accomplished based on the team’s schedule.
“It’s different every day because we practice a lot, but it depends how close we are to a game and what preparations we need to make for a game. Those are the two biggest components that go into deciding how we prepare. For example, yesterday, we were one day after a game but also one day before a game, so we had to do some sort of recovery session and also figure out a way to get some tactics in there as well,” said Silberman.
Many Chamblee players play soccer outside of school as well in order to improve their skills year-round.
“I play soccer for [Concorde Fire Soccer Club]. They are more organized and have better players coming in because it’s open to the public rather than just being open to one school. They also have more professional coaches,” said Thatcher.
These other soccer organizations have other unique aspects that differ them from school soccer.
“I also play soccer for [Rush Union Soccer Club]. It’s more structured in some ways. There are less practices, but Rush Union gets taken very seriously by some people. Personally, I like school soccer better,” said Blocker.
Many Chamblee soccer players have played soccer for their whole lives and have grown to love it for the exercise, experiences, and skills that the sport develops.
Drummond said,“I enjoy soccer a lot. It’s something that I’ve been doing for so long now that I can’t really imagine not doing it. It’s also a great way to get exercise. I decided to try out and play this year because I had a really good experience last year and wanted to play again.”
