The supreme talent coupled with on-field artistry sets senior midfielders Leo Coelho and Lucas Da Silva apart from their peers as they lead Milford’s dynamic attack.
But where the duo honed the skills necessary to develop into two of the premier players in the state made all the difference. Coelho and Da Silva each spent extended time cultivating their craft on the soccer fields of Brazil, where they discovered it was more of a lifestyle than a game.
Soccer is so firmly entrenched in the Brazilian culture that when Da Silva takes his annual journey to the country, it’s the only thing prying him away from visiting with family members as his focus naturally shifts to playing the game he was born to love.
“Just go there to learn the game more and play,” said Da Silva, who visits Brazil for a month at a time, but hasn’t been able to do so recently due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “You breathe it every day. It’s all everybody wants to do. There’s no video games. There’s nothing. It’s just soccer.”
Coelho had that first-hand experience, too, having moved to the soccer-crazed country in 2012 with his father when he was 10 years old. Coelho lived in Brazil for two years before moving back to the United States, but during that time, he quickly learned how soccer consumes daily life in Brazil.
“I was out every night just playing soccer,” Coelho said. “I would barely come home. Soccer every day, every night. It was awesome.”
Coelho and Da Silva’s connection goes beyond just having Brazilian blood. Their families hail from the same small town of Engenheiro Caldas in the state of Minas Gerais and their fathers grew up together. Coelho and Da Silva also formed an immediate bond, one that has only strengthened over time and aids in their joint conquests on the field.
“It just makes the game easier,” Da Silva said. “I know exactly what he wants to do, where he wants to go.”
Last season, Coelho and Da Silva were focal points in Milford’s run to its first state final appearance since 1998 and Coelho and Da Silva continued their stellar production this year as two of the top scorers in the Hockomock League.
Their dazzling play, featuring a combination of speed and skill, exhibits a Brazilian flair, especially by Coelho, who after earning Hockomock MVP honors a year ago reached a greater feat this season by being named the only United Soccer Coaches All-American in Eastern Massachusetts. Coelho’s electric with the ball at his feet as he can quickly survey his landscape before making a shifty cut and accelerating past multiple defenders.
“We’re just going to put the ball on the floor and we’re going to play the way we want to play,” Coelho said. “We’re going to take players on. We’re going to do a fancy skill move. We don’t care how big the situation is.”
The moment certainly wasn’t too big for the duo in Monday’s Hockomock League Cup Final against Oliver Ames. Coelho drilled a direct kick from 30 yards out top shelf to put Milford in front before Da Silva scored from a difficult angle to deliver the Cup title with a 2-1 victory.
“Everything is so fluid for them,” said Milford coach Antonio Pinto. “The ball is just glued to their foot. They put it wherever they want. It’s unbelievable to watch them play.”
It was fitting that both Coelho and Da Silva made a monumental impact in their final high school game together. They now have their sights set on playing professionally overseas or even in Brazil.
They don’t know what will come of their journey, but they agree it’s worth a shot, especially if it means staying by one another’s side.
“It’s a brotherhood more than a friendship,” Da Silva said.
“Me and him will never leave each other,” Coelho added.
Titanic propulsion
The sensational turnaround Pembroke has undergone in a short time isn’t lost on Pembroke coach Travis Dupuis, who took over at the helm in 2017. The Titans’ ascension culminated this year with Pembroke notching a double-digit win campaign for the first time since 2008.
“The girls that have been with me since my first year, they’ve been pivotal in what we have built,” said Dupuis, as the Titans went 6-9-3 in his first season. “We’ve established a culture of hard work, team-first mentality that’s based on earning playing time and earning that role and supporting one another.”
Patriot League Fisher MVP Jillian Hendriksen along with her sister, Jenna, were instrumental in catapulting the Titans into a league contender. Caroline McAuliffe, Carley Gough and goalie Hannah Gerlach also helped lead the way as Pembroke made a statement by reaching the Patriot League Cup final.
“It is a representation of all of our hard work and our growth as a program across these past four years,” Dupuis said.
