THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, May 20, 1995 TAG: 9505200498
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JULIE GOODRICH, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 108 lines
Darren Eales had just been through a draining practice with the Hampton Roads Mariners when several young soccer players started arriving at the Virginia Wesleyan fields for the Mariners' clinic.
No one would have blamed Eales if he had been a little less than enthusiastic about playing teacher that day. It was hot, it was late and his energy was sapped.
But instead of half-heartedly going through the motions, Eales saw an opportunity. He gave away his English heritage by asking the kids their names, flashed a million-watt smile, and promptly had a group of kids swarming around him, like planets orbiting the sun.
It was not the first time that Eales has been the center of attention, and it won't be the last.
``I can relate to how they feel,'' Eales said later. ``When I was a youngster, Cambridge United (a second-division pro team) came to my school for a clinic, and the fact that one of them knew my name at the end was unbelievable. He was my favorite player for the next three years.''
If American kids are anything like their British counterparts, the 22-year-old Eales has to be one of the most popular professional soccer players in South Hampton Roads.
``He has all the qualities that should represent the Mariners,'' Hampton Roads coach Sonny Travis said. ``He's a good guy, a good student, and he's very likable.''
He's also a heck of a soccer player. After a slow start this season due to a sprained ankle, Eales ranks second in the United Systems of Independent Soccer Leagues in goals (nine) and points (20) while leading the Mariners to a 6-0 record and a tie for first place in the Atlantic Division. He has dominated the last three games, scoring eight goals - including consecutive hat tricks against Nashville and Lexington over the weekend - and two assists. Eales was named USISL offensive player of the week for his efforts.
``The hat trick against Nashville was just a couple of penalty kicks and a garbage goal, but that kind of started everything,'' Eales said. ``It seems like lately everything I've touched went in.''
The scoring explosion, which he hopes will continue tonight when the Mariners host Charleston at 7:30 at the CEL Field in Virginia Beach, is due in part to the fact that Eales' ankle has finally healed. Now, he says, he feels ``confident enough to take the ball and try to beat some players.''
Even when he wasn't 100 percent, Eales was contributing. He scored the only goal in the Mariners' season-opening win over Delaware and assisted on the insurance goal in a 2-0 win over defending USISL champion Greensboro.
``What makes Darren special is he creates so many things. He brings other players into the attack,'' Travis said.
Eales got his first taste of success at 14, when he signed with Cambridge United's youth team. It would be only two years before he was eligible to move up to the parent club and fulfill the dream of being a professional in the only sport that really matters in England.
He chose not to go.
Soccer is as intrinsic to growing up in England as baseball is to growing up in America. But Eales lived in the shadow of one of the most prestigious academic institutions in the world - Cambridge University - and his first priority was getting a good education.
A scout from West Virginia University happened to be at one of Eales' games and convinced him to come to the States and play.
``He told me it was one of the best academic schools in America, so I decided to try it for a year,'' Eales said.
One year was all he lasted. While he didn't mind the atmosphere - ``It was a big party school, so I had fun in that respect,'' he said - academically the school was a disappointment.
Although his first intention was to transfer to Yale, Eales eventually settled on Brown University because of the reputation of then-coach Trevor Adair. Eales excelled both athletically and academically, earning Ivy League Player of the Year, soccer and academic All-American honors, and nomination for the Walter Byers Scholarship as the top student-athlete in the country.
Eales graduated with a 4.0 in economics and after the USISL season will attend the University of North Carolina, with an eye on earning a master's degree in journalism.
According to Travis, Eales' smarts translate well to the playing field, where the 5-8 forward is a quick learner. Intellectually, there's probably only one thing that Eales has failed to master.
Car locks.
A few weeks ago, Eales and his roommate - Mariners goalie Garth Lagerwey, a Duke grad - were sent to put some equipment into the back of Travis' van.
``They couldn't open the door, and they ended up breaking the key off in the lock,'' Travis said. ``So much for the intelligence part.''
Although he's still occasionally homesick for England, Eales would like to stay in the United States. The educational and athletic opportunities are one reason, but Eales also finds the American lifestyle more to his liking.
``If you're willing to work and put the effort in, you can succeed here, and you don't have to apologize,'' he said. ``In England if you're successful you kind of feel like you have to hide it, because people think you just got lucky. In America, people appreciate success. They don't try to knock you down.''
After graduating in December, Eales was recruited heavily by Greensboro, which returned most of last year's championship team. Reluctant to go to a team where he might get little playing time, Eales chose to come to Hampton Roads, and Travis signed him sight unseen.
``He took a gamble coming here, but I think it's paid off,'' Travis said. ``That says something about him - he was willing to come here and take a chance to make a difference on this team, and he has.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color staff photo by Christopher Reddick
Darren Eales, left, runs a drill with 11-year-old Bristol Rollins at
a clinic of the Hampton Roads Mariners (6-0 USISL), who'll play
Charleston (5-1) tonight in Virginia Beach.
by CNB