Courtesy Photo | Indiana Army National Guard Capt. Timothy J. Halls poses for a photograph in his All...... read more read more
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INDIANAPOLIS - An Indiana National Guard soldier who has been playing soccer his whole life reached the zenith of his playing career when he, as an All Army team member, won gold in a military tournament.
"Really, I was honored to be a part of the team, said Capt. Timothy J. Halls, who played striker and midfielder for the team. ”It was a great win for the Army, and I hope to be in a place next year where I can come back to defend the gold."
If he's selected in 2011 and Army wins gold again, that will be three years in a row. The Army team also earned silver in 2008.
The Armed Forces Soccer Championship consisted of Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine teams. The weeklong, round-robin tournament pitted the services against one another so they could be seeded for the finals.
"It is pretty intense with games every day," said Halls in an interview conducted via e-mail. "Actually, our week started out a little rough. Day one we beat the Navy. Day two we lost to the Marines, and day three we lost to the Air Force. All were close games."
With two losses the Army team had an uphill battle to fight.
"We were seeded fourth, and had to play the Air Force again that Saturday morning," said Halls, 28, of Chesterton, Ind. "We beat them Saturday and then had to play Navy on Sunday for the gold."
The final game was a low-scoring affair.
"It was a battle the entire time; the finals were decided by an overtime and then went to a shoot-out," said Halls.
Navy scored first in overtime, the Army matched that, and then Army took the shoot-out for the win.
"It's cool the Army was able to bring home the gold - and the second year in a row," said 1st Lt. Daniel Newell, a defender for the Army team.
Newell, Scottsdale, Ariz., is an active-duty soldier and a platoon leader with Company A, 508th Special Troops Battalion, 4th Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C.
Newell praised his fellow teammate.
"T.J. is a great guy," said Newell. "Both of us being officers was our primary connection." He said the two of them became friends because the team was composed primarily of enlisted soldiers.
Though the team was made of soldiers of different ranks, it didn't hinder the teammates from bonding as a single unit.
"There were definitely cliques, but considering it was privates to captains from all backgrounds, it really was not bad at all," said Halls.
Halls has worked at National Guard Bureau for two years, and he credited his supervisors for the opportunity to play.
"I just happened to be at a place in my career and with bosses that supported this chance I was given," he said. Halls works in the domestic operations at NGB, and his last unit he served with in Indiana was Company B, 1st Battalion, 151st Infantry Regiment, 76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team based in Martinsville, Ind.
Halls has played soccer since he was a child. He played in youth recreation leagues, on his high school team, and on intramural teams at Indiana University. Newell also had a wealth of soccer experience. He's played since he was four, and was the captain of his team at the U.S. Military Academy. Both players said they enjoyed representing the Army.
"It was a great experience. It was rewarding while being in the Army, and it's an honor to represent the unit," said Newell, who added that the Army's uniforms were also outfitted with soldiers' unit patch..
Now that this tournament is finished, the military will select all stars from the different branches to represent the U.S. military in an international competition in South America, and if the U.S qualifies there the team could play in the World Games the following year.
Although Halls didn't make the U.S. military all star team, he hopes others become interested in military sports.
"I hope that more soldiers and families take an interest or get a chance to look into All Army Sports; there are many out there," said Halls.
| Date Taken: | 12.08.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 12.08.2010 15:37 |
| Story ID: | 61576 |
| Location: | INDIANAPOLIS, US |
| Web Views: | 103 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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