GARFIELD — The all-in conditioning mind-set will be a vital component for Garfield this season. Fresh off a breakout 19-4-1 soccer campaign in which they set a school record for wins, the Boilermakers are intent on making a run at their first sectional championship in four decades.
“We want to be the team that is clicking on all cylinders in the crucial last 10 to 20 minutes while maybe our opponents are winded and running out of gas,” said senior forward Dave Herrera. “When the score is tied or maybe it’s a one-goal game we want to be dominating with our speed and resiliency. It’s an 80-minute test of wills and we want to ace that exam every time.”
Under veteran coach Mark Pieklo, Garfield devoted the first part of its practice Tuesday to a timed one-mile run (John Gonzalez had the best clocking in 6:10) for all the players around the Arthur C. Argauer Memorial Field in back of the high school.
The Boilermakers’ workout also featured a regimen of calisthenics and drills that included a quick-paced race around cones set up on the grassy pitch adjacent to the main stadium.
Eight starters return from a team that earned its second NJIC Colonial crown in three years and advanced to the Bergen County tournament quarterfinals (falling to Don Bosco, 4-1).
