O'Neil leads his troops by example

During his professional career in the United States and Scotland, Penn men's soccer coach George O'Neill left the playing field three times with a broken leg. Once the injury was so bad that doctors said he would never play again, but that did not stop the fiery Scot. Each time, as soon as the leg healed, O'Neill was back on the field. When things got tough, this man just got stronger. Things are tough for the men's soccer team of late, which has a 2 p.m. clash against city-rival Drexel (9-3-3) today at Rhodes Field. Penn's season has been a rough one so far. At the end of September, the Quakers (3-7-1) were flirting with .500, only to be shunned -- hard. Despite solid play, Penn has lost its last four games. The team's effort in a 2-0 loss to Brown Saturday is a quick study of Penn's fortunes this season. The Quakers held their own against the No. 5 team in the nation. Brown managed to score two goals, while three of Penn's shots were deflected across the goal mouth. "We just can't seem to get the ball in the net," O'Neill said. "Our last opponent, Brown, was ranked fifth in the country, and during that game, you really couldn't tell which team was No. 5 and which wasn't. Teams like Brown find a way to win every week. It all comes down to confidence. As long as we keep working hard, it'll come." O'Neill should know. A former member of the U.S. National Soccer Team and an All-Star in the North America Soccer League, he has seen his share of slumps. "This is competitive soccer, there's always going to be lows," he said. "There are varying factors and there's many ways to come back, relax, concentrate, take a extra day off. It's an individual thing." As a coach, he's developed several successful programs, such as the Philadelphia Fever of the Major Indoor Soccer League. This is only his third year coaching collegiate soccer, and he has great plans for the Penn program. He hopes to take a team to the NCAA Finals. "Princeton has gotten to the Final Four, Brown reached the final eight last season, so we know if we can compete in this conference we can compete nationally as well." His vast experience on both sides of the bench have made him the ideal players' coach. Still in great shape, he rarely misses an opportunity to warm up with the team, running alongside the team leaders during workouts. "I like doing that," O'Neill said. "When you're involved like that and you ask them to do something, it's hard for them to say no." "He knows the situations we're in," freshman forward Steve Cohen said. "He pays full attention to us and when something's wrong, he tells us straight out why it's wrong. He makes sure we know he's there to help." The same passion and desire that spurred O'Neill to continue competing professionally after three broken legs, that kept him in the the game after his career was over, is something the Quakers hope to emulate as they gear up for today's match. The season isn't over yet.