Roman busman’s holiday
Niagara teen taking advantage of showcasing soccer skills at tournament in Italy
Marco Primerano will miss at least a week of class early next month, but that doesn’t mean the Grade 11 student at A.N. Myer Secondary School in Niagara Falls will be putting his education entirely on hold.
He expects to learn a lot about the game he loves, as well as more about himself, in Rome, Italy, putting his soccer IQ to the test on the pitch against some of the best 16- and 17-year-old players in the world.
The fleet-footed striker is among the 18 players who were selected to represent Canada at the Lazio Soccer Cup. Teams are guaranteed four games at a showcase that will attract the top scouts and top recruiters in the game, and Primerano intends to make the most of the opportunity to shine in the
‘‘ “I don’t know, it’s just been a passion since I was young,” he said. “I love the game, and I love everything about it.”
MARCO PRIMERANO, A.N. Myer Marauders striker
spotlight.
The 16-year-old, who will be accompanied by his father on the trip to Italy, is excited about showcasing his soccer skills abroad.
“I hope for some good experiences there, good competition and, overall, just having a better bond with my team,” he said.
Primerano also is looking forward to playing on a professional pitch for the first time ever.
“Being on the same pitch as them will be amazing, just an overall great experience,” said the fan of AC Milan, a team in Serie A, Italy’s premier soccer league.
Top attraction on their sightseeing list is the Colosseum.
He expects Canada will need to adjust its game plan once it sizes up the competition at the tournament.
“We’re probably going to defend more and press on counter-attacks compared to Italy and teams from Spain that are probably going to possess the ball more,” he said.
Upwards of 100 hand-picked prospects attended evaluation camps in Vaughan that was held to pick the final roster that would be representing Canada in Rome.
Primerano recalled the evaluation as pressure-packed.
“I knew I had to perform and do my best,” he said. “It was very nerve-wracking at first, but once I settled in I was able to excel and be the best that I could be.”
Generating offence is what he enjoys most about playing soccer, a game that first interested him when he was three years old.
“Just having that feeling of scoring a goal,” said Primerano, who admits he doesn’t feel sorry for goalkeepers.
“No, ever, I’m ruthless in front of the net,” he added with a chuckle.
He could do without defeats in championship games.
“It’s hard going through that as a team, regrouping and just collecting ourselves after a tough loss.”
Strikers are the marquee players in soccer, equivalent to homerun hitters in baseball, quarterbacks in football and high-end goal scorers in hockey.
Primerano doesn’t feel extra pressure as one of the go-to guys on offence. As is the case in all team sports, success in soccer is dependent on individuals coming together to achieve a common goal.
“Yeah, it’s a team game, but obviously everyone has their own roles and everyone has their own things that they have to do to perform,” he said.
“If everyone performs individually, we come as a team and, in the end, get the result.”
The son of Mark and Maricela
Primerano in Niagara Falls isn’t worried about falling behind missing so many days of school.
“I just have to front-load my work and work hard now before I leave,” said Primerano, who is averaging 86 per cent in his third year at the Niagara Falls high school.
He Played hockey between the ages of 11 and 15, but never took to Canada’s national winter game.
He focused instead on the national games of the ancestral homes of his father’s side, Italy,
and mother’s side, Mexico.
He can’t explain the grip a soccer ball has on him.
“I don’t know, it’s just been a passion since I was young,” he said.
“I love the game, and I love everything about it.
“My dad was very interested in soccer when he was young, so he put me through the same kind of program.
“And it was easy for me to pick up and excel.”
Right now, soccer is almost every day for Primerano.
He plays on at the club level Tuesdays, Thursdays and sometimes Friday with a regional all-star team. On the team going to Italy he plays Saturday and Sunday as well, and then there’s his games with the Myer Marauders at the high school level.
“Right now, it’s a little bit overwhelming, but I like it,” he answered with a chuckle when asked whether that’s too much soccer.
When he was younger, Primerano would spend a month and a half in Mexico training and playing soccer.
“He got that Mexican experience training with a lot of good people from four years up,” Mark Primerano said.
He said his son deserves an opportunity to showcase his skills at the prestigious international tournament.
“It’s a great opportunity for him, it’s good exposure. He’s sacrificed a lot for soccer over the years, going to bed early, getting up early.
“There are so many things you have to do to prepare for soccer that a lot of kids don’t realize, but he did it.”
The prospect of playing against, and alongside, older players doesn’t faze the younger Primerano.
“It never bothered me, I was always OK with it,” he said. “There’s obviously some contact, but it’s mostly skill and awareness and soccer IQ.”
Myer senior boys soccer head coach Steve Apostolos has coached Primerano since the player moved up to the varsity team as a ninth-grader.
“He’s always played up,” said Apostolos, who lists “excellent soccer IQ,” change-of-pace on the ball and deceptive moves as the strengths that set the speedy striker apart on the pitch.
“It makes it difficult for him to be defended,” the coach said. “With his explosive speed, it gives him a lot of scoring opportunities.”