As the Chattanooga Football Club scrimmaged at Finley Stadium on Saturday afternoon, it did so knowing that a big test is fast approaching.
On May 29, CFC will play a friendly against the Under-23 squad from the professional team Fútbol Club Atlas, of Guadalajara, Mexico, in the second-year amateur soccer team’s home opener. It’s a game, now less than three weeks away, that definitely has the players’ attention, fullback Thomas Clark said.
“We are definitely excited to be bringing a great team to the city and raise the level of soccer in the city,” Clark said. “Hopefully we’ll put on a good show and come prepared.
“We’ve been trying to get prepped a month or two before we did last year, so it’s definitely going to be a lot more intense right at the beginning of the season.”
The CFC roster is comprised of current and former collegiate players, some of whom haven’t yet joined the club. That has made the past month of preparation a little challenging, coach Brian Crossman said.
“We’re still trying to get everybody in, so continuity is the biggest thing we’re trying to establish,” Crossman said.
While Major League Soccer teams sometimes play friendlies against clubs from other countries – Manchester United will play several games against MLS teams this summer – opportunities like this don’t come along too often for amateur squads like CFC.
“They’re swinging for the fences,” fullback Tim Sparks said of CFC’s management. “It’s nice to have that kind of organization from top to bottom. They’re doing it big, which makes it that much more exciting for the players and the fans.”
Chattanooga FC went 4-3-1 in its first season playing in the Southeast division of the National Premier Soccer League. As exciting as the Atlas game may be, it’s not CFC’s first order of business, Crossman said. More important, for now at least, is the season opener against Atlanta FC on May 22.
“I’m hoping that we don’t forget our first league game against Atlanta, that’s the most important game, in actuality,” Crossman said. “The other game’s fun and something to point to, and I know the guys are excited about it.”
Having a team like Atlas coming hasn’t changed the way Crossman is conducting the preseason practices, but he said it does provide the players with a little bit more motivation to work a little harder.
“It gives them that little bit more that might motivate you to do that extra sprint,” he said, “or to get some extra touches or do what you have to do to be more ready.”