LUCAS BEFI TAKES UP BLJEDI BARDIC’S MANTLE

Usually when a club’s star striker leaves, several issues arise: someone else needs to score the goals, the team needs to alter the way it plays, etc. Usually fans panic. However, for Clarkstown SC Eagles this was not the case, thanks to a certain South American player.

That player is Brazilian Lucas Befi, whose goals have allowed the Eagles to continue to soar, even after Bljedi Bardic’s departure to Puerto Rico FC. Although Befi had big shoes to fill, especially considering Bardic is Clarkstown SC’s all-time scorer with 84 goals in 64 games.

“Bljedi was a great striker. He was helping the team for the past three months and I got to play with him three games I think, and once he left there was a lot of responsibility on me,” said Befi.

But Befi dealt well with the responsibility, scoring seven goals during the regular season to lead the team in goals. The output is even more impressive considering this was his first season with the Eagles.

“This is the second time I play over the summer in the NPSL. My first experience was in Florida for Storm FC,” shared the forward. “I had a good time there and now I’m here in NY with Clarkstown.”

Clarkstown is certainly glad to have him, as Befi was instrumental in his team’s win over NJ Copa FC. The Brazilian assisted the first goal, which came early on in the match.

“We had an early goal which made things easier for us,” he recalls. It was good. We’re really happy that we won the championship of our region.”

But while Befi was a pivotal part in Clarkstown’s success, Befi’s success largely down to his teammates.

“The team has a lot of experienced player which makes things easier for me,” he stated. “The owner and coach have been giving me a lot of confidence to play, so it’s been a nice experience.”

With a national semifinal match on the horizon, Befi knows that there is a lot on the line, which means AFC Cleveland will not make things easy for the Eagles.

“I’m pretty sure that they’re not coming here to lose. They will try to make their game, we will try to make our game. It’s a semifinal,” stated Befi.

He did, however, highlight the importance of playing at home.

“We play at home too which makes things a little more natural for us.  Hopefully we can get the chance to play in the championship final.”