McCarthy jumps in to coach boys’ soccer

Recently, the boys’ varsity soccer team underwent a massive change for the 2025-2026 season, when ARHS P.E. teacher Jordan McCarthy stepped in to fill the shoes of prior head coach, Mathew Travis. The team has a record of 3-6.

McCarthy has been emphasizing ball possession, coordination, and teamwork in the way he coaches. “A lot of possession work, emphasize communication in practice, reading other players around you,” said McCarthy.

Players described McCarthy’s coaching style as chill yet effective. “His coaching style is really relaxed and lets us show all our talent without really putting on the pressure or yelling at us, but he knows when to draw the line and have a serious talk with us,” said captain Fernando Aguila.

In addition, McCarthy has been improving the physicality of his players. Practices have been divided between time on the field and strength and conditioning. “We go to the weight room with trainer Cedric [Gonnet],” said Aguila. 

Changing coaches is always a challenge; however, captain Daniel Nunez-Saravia, a senior, has played for the varsity team since his freshman year, under both Travis and McCarthy. “I feel like having a new coach is always difficult,” he said. “Coach to player, you always want a good bond, and it’s hard to [build] that in one year.”

But McCarthy’s methods have proven effective. The team started their season winning two games in a row, something which hasn’t been done since 2017. ”This has been a great success,” said Aguila.

The team’s first game against South Hadley, McCarthy’s debut game, was the “most important game so far in the season,” said Nunez-Saravia. “It set the tempo for the rest of the season and gave us a drive.”

However, McCarthy is more focused on the development of his players rather than wins and losses. “[We try to] just get one percent better every day throughout the season,” he said.