Waterford's midfielder expect to lead the way

That may be an oversimplification, but when it comes to the state-championship aspirations of Waterford's boys soccer team, it's pretty clear that Linsley will be the anchor.

The hugely talented central midfielder can do it all: He's a sleek passer of the ball. He sees the field extremely well. His finishing is suburb. And to top it off, he can track back and defend, too.

Throughout the 2007 season, expect Waterford to rely on Linsley to lead the way.

"It's pretty obvious that our engine is Spencer. We wanna go through him," said coach Bob Capener. "If you watch the U.S. play, if they go through (Landon) Donovan, they look great. If he's marked out of the game, they don't look so good.

"We're gonna have to find ways to keep him free."

Linsley logged key minutes during Waterford's run to the 3A title game two seasons ago, and he burst onto the prep soccer scene in 2006. With Waterford breaking in a host of new players, he led the Ravens to the quarterfinals of the 3A playoffs. From his central-midfield position, he scored 15 goals and helped set up a host of others.

Now he's back for his senior campaign.

Undoubtedly, Waterford will look to get the ball to his feet as often as possible. His passing can be sublime at times, and he almost always makes the right decision, whether it's stroking the ball to a teammate two yards away or switching the play with a cross-field pass of 60 yards.

Opposing coaches have obviously figured out that they better mark No. 2 tightly for 80 minutes or they'll be in big trouble, but Capener hopes the quality of Linsley's teammates will make it tough for opponents to focus solely on him.

"The thing that we have this year that will leave him a little more freedom is we have a lot of speed up front," said Capener. "That gives me some hope that people won't be able to just key on Spencer."

Linsley led by example a season ago, and Capener and Co. have pegged him to fill a much more overt leadership role in 2007. He was chosen as one of Waterford's three captains before the season began, and because of injuries, he was the lone captain on the field at times during the first month of play.

"I feel that on the pitch, not only with the way I play, but also with my attitude toward the game, I really need to be an example for the rest of my teammates," he said.

Some of that lead-by-example mentality bears itself out in his willingness to track back and defend.

"The thing that he does for me that I just love, the guy plays both ways on the field," said Capener. "I ask him to be an offensive-minded halfback, and he's comin' back and chasing guys down. And he can do it all game long."

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