MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- The Iwakuni Soccer Club had their sights set on stopping Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni Men's Soccer Team star center forward Terrence Smith in a cultural soccer match recently at Penny Lake Field.
So much so that they seemed to forget about Emmanuel Lewis, the team's so called "other forward," in a 2-1 defeat at the hands of the Station in a game used as a tune up for the Okinawa Regional Soccer Championships Sept. 29-Oct. 6.
"We are a team in the truest sense of the word," said Ota Odibo, Station sweeper and defensive stalwart. "'Smitty' (Smith) is a dangerous player, but we've got other threats as well. Lewis proved that today."
Indeed, with the game 10 minutes old and dark clouds looming over head, Lewis provided some early thunder of his own with a nifty move past three Japanese defenders enroot to the games first goal and a 1-0 Station lead.
"They were so keyed on Terrence that I don't think anybody was expecting me to `juke'em' like that," said Lewis. "I think they were just waiting for me to try to pass to `Smitty' and let him do his thing. I got skills too though."
Indeed, Lewis proved that in the waning seconds of the first half, when he pulled a similar maneuver on two Japanese defenders before streaking in for his second goal mere seconds before halftime.
"After his second goal I think we new he was for real," said Brazilian Claodeo Soosa, Iwakuni Soccer Club left forward. "We really buckled down on our overall defense in the second half."
So much so in fact, that the Station would never score again.
"Luckily they only scored one goal off us in the second half," said Pinkston Omeally, Station midfielder, describing Iwakuni Soccer Club left forward Masanari Miyabe's goal five minutes into the second half. "I was nervous there for a while, but we still came out with the win."
But there was more than just winning at stake in this game.
"We're going to the Okinawa Regional Soccer Championships soon," said Odin Pineda, Station head coach. "This is the biggest and most important soccer tournament in the Pacific Theater, but unfortunately I can't take everybody due to funding. This game was kind of like a final tryout. I've got to make some hard decisions after this game."
When asked if Lewis had solidified a spot on the squad after his performance, Ota could only smile, and in a winking, rhetorical way, replied, "What do you think?"