Henry Melendez sat stoically in a locker room at The Home Depot Center. With 17 teammates occupying lockers around him, the teenage goalkeeper awaited orders from the coaches.
Chivas USA director of football Dennis te Kloese rattled off the starting lineup for the Final 18's one and only match, against Chivas USA's Under-16 squad. Te Kloese flipped a marker board and revealed the starting lineup and formation, and he began with Melendez.
"It was extraordinary," Melendez said. "I was like 'This is going to be a great experience to actually be a starter for the team and giving my all.'"
The final 18 trialists for Sueno MLS L.A. got a chance to live out a dream of playing at The Home Depot Center on Thursday. From a field of 2,000, the Final 18 have survived cuts and overcome odds to reach this stage, and on Thursday were rewarded. On the same field as four under-23 national squads played Olympic qualifying matches the night before, the Sueno MLS players experienced life as a professional soccer player for one evening.
Players reported to The Home Depot Center and were taken into a visiting team's locker room. In the cramped quarters, players sought out lockers and sat on chairs and listened to instructions from Chivas USA hierarchy.
"Instead of being nervous or thinking about what might happen if you don't do well, let's try and enjoy this experience over all and be proud of the fact that you got here and you can play here," te Kloese said. "You are here. You may as well enjoy it."
Te Kloese instructed players on the system in place for the game, which saw the team play a 3-4-3 formation. One after the other, te Kloese gave starters instructions on what he wanted them to do in terms of positioning, passing and defending.
"I thought 'Is this what they go through?' I've never felt anything like that before," John Lopez said.
After the pregame talk, the players were given tangible proof of their accomplishments. Each player received a dark blue Sueno MLS jersey. After they dressed in their uniforms, players went out to warm up and were greeted by cheers from the onlookers in the stadium.
Following the warmups, players went back into the locker room for further instruction and then took the field the same way Chivas USA does, walking down the tunnel, one player in front of the other as the crowd cheered.
Players said they were in awe of the moment.
"It's incredible," Melendez said. "This is my first time at the stadium and having the opportunity to play in it -- oh man, it's just a great feeling inside."
Nerves, though, also escorted the team out onto the field.
"Anxiety," Jaime Lara said when asked what he felt when he took the field. "You've just got to come out here and do your best. Nothing else to it, just being anxious."
Once on the field, each player's name was read off the crowd as cheers accompanied players' names.
For some, the moment was shared with many friends family. Melendez said he had between 10-15 friends and family members present. Luis Orozco of nearby Riverside drew loud cheers and applause when his name was read off. Others, though, had quite a bit less family to play before. Santiago Castano of Provo, Utah, had just father Juan Carlos to cheer him on.
"Great stadium, great field," Santiago said. "I'm happy for all these family members who came and support us."
Once the match started, however, the unfamiliarity the Final 18 had with one another showed.
"I knew three or four players' names and it was hard for me to talk to them and communicate," Castano said. "If you don't know their names it's kind of hard."
Chivas USA's under-16 side, though, had no such problems. Early on, Chivas USA showed the trialists their own worth as Carlo Chueco ripped a 25-yard bomb past Melendez into the back of the net.
"I gave it my all and yeah I gave up the goal but I just have to keep trying harder and that's all," Melendez said. "You've got to get used to (the unfamiliarity). I got used to my defense and started talking to them. I thought I knew them by the time the half was over."
All players saw at least 45 minutes of action, and in the second half goalkeeper Alonso Lara also yielded a goal. It was not until late in the match that the Sueno side began to show danger. Alexandre Urquilla ripped a shot off the post and Daniel Sanchez had a goal called back because of an offside call.
Finally, however, one of the Sueno players joined the ranks of Jonathan Bornstein, Maykel Galindo and Ante Razov as players who have scored a goal at The Home Depot Center.
Lopez took a feed from Sanchez and pushed a shot across the goal line as fellow dreamers cheered him on.
"It's pretty exciting. I wanted to really score and I had a couple of chances. They would give me the ball but it would bounce off somebody," said Lopez, a Mission Hills resident. "My heart started beating faster (when the ball went over the goal line). It was pretty exciting and something I'll never forget."
In the end, the match finished at 2-1 in favor of the young Rebano. But not even a loss could put a damper on the night.
"It's an extraordinary experience to be here and I'm very excited to (have) played in The Home Depot Center," Melendez said. "It's everyone's dream to actually play here. It's the best thing that's ever happened to me."
Luis Bueno is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
