Of Big Ben and Saint George
Second in a series of profiles of the first ever Red River, Green & Gold squad
Ben Eastwell and George Anthony grew up in cities 200 miles apart in England.
Eastwell comes from Norwich, an old historic market town with a castle in the center but with a thriving modern economy and soccer history of its own.
He decided to promote himself to college recruiters in the US with the aim of playing professional soccer and earning a degree, a combination far better established in America than England.
Having been swiftly recruited from the city by the University of Jamestown, he settled into life in Fargo – a city and a state that he says he “knew nothing about” before he moved to the area.
I asked him how he thought his time at Jamestown had helped his progress towards making a living as a player:
“Training five days a week at Jamestown and practising the simple foundations helped out a lot. Most importantly the talent that has been at Jamestown helped me a lot, along with the the diverse backgrounds and different styles of play from each player.”
George Anthony comes from the Roman spa city of Bath, “a beautiful city, very historic with Edwardian architecture which is a big tourist attraction.” In this soccer mad nation, he describes his home town as “more of a rugby town,” marked by the dominant presence of a top tier rugby union side founded as Bath Football Club in 1865.
Anthony found his way to the US in 2012, recruited by Genesee Community College of the NJCAA, in upstate New York and served as captain before transferring to the NAIA Jamestown Jimmies last year.
It was at Jamestown that Tommy Nienhaus, head coach of both the Jimmies and FC Fargo, attracted Anthony to the Green & Gold.
“I would like to play at the highest level I can and for as long as I can. Every player's dream is to get paid to play the sport they love, so if I can achieve that I would be very happy. Soccer is something I feel I will always be involved with.” , Anthony told me.
As Anthony served out a redshirt season, he shared a room with the senior Ben Eastwell.
Like Eastwell, he was attracted to Jamestown by “the project, playing style, and squad coach, as well as having a lot of other international players. My playing style varies. I like playing short quick passing soccer, but I also enjoy a long ball here and there. I guess I like to mix up my style.”
Their style differs, Eastwell admits “I'm not the most technical player so I rely on my speed and endurance to get up and down the wing to support the attack.”
In the games so far, Eastwell has accumulated an impressive number of assists but mostly earned the Captain's armband for the Mean Green through his marshalling of the defence.
The newly graduated Eastwell and the redshirt transfer Anthony played together on the Green side of the Green & Gold squad scrimmage which opened up the life of our club.
Reflecting on his newly appointed club captain, Anthony says of Eastwell, “it's good playing with another guy with a similar background and culture. I feel like it helps our understanding. He pushes really hard and demands a lot from his team members but this only improves us.”
Fact box:
Benjamin Eastwell #6 – West Ham United fan
“I mostly like to workout and go fishing in my time off.”
George Anthony #5 – Chelsea fan
“When I am not playing soccer I am sleeping, fishing, doing homework, working out, cooking, or with my girlfriend.”
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