Athletes Through the Ages at Hudson Sports Complex
Toddlers to seniors play soccer at Hudson Sports Complex
Soccer enthusiasm appears in six-month-old babies and continues through the decades, among those sixty and beyond, say the staff at Hudson Sports Complex (HSC). On a recent February evening, outdoor playing fields on the 36-acre property were foggy and empty, but several indoor fields were busy with children.
Chris Kukelko, Hudson Sports Complex operations manager, showed off the facilities, a location where his father had worked for 25 years as corrections officer when the buildings housed the Mid-Orange Correctional Facility.
“I brought him lunch,” said Kukelko. “Now he’s retired and works for a race car auto parts store.” And these days multi-color lights near the HSC entrance advertise Okkulo, a light system to improve sports performance.
The Town of Warwick bought the property from New York State and sold it, parcel by parcel for commercial uses. Hudson Sports Complex became one of those seven years ago, when Christian Fuchs, a former professional soccer player, and his wife Raluca, a finance expert, bought the property, one of four they developed in the U.S. and Europe, to provide training and playing venues for soccer and also lacrosse, field hockey, baseball, football and other sports.
Watching her two sons, nine and eight, from a balcony over the field was Ana Cisnero. She described how soccer had influenced her own life. She had begun playing soccer in elementary school and gone to City College of New York on a soccer scholarship. Now she teaches art to children and holds “sip and paint” events for adults in Florida, New York.
Another mother, who declined to be named, also watched her seven-year-old son from a balcony.
“My husband played soccer all his life,” she said. “My son Wictor joined Hudson Sports Comples in April. He’s seven and a half. He’ll go to Barcelona for a competition at the end of March and play with children a year older.”
The family had moved to the Warwick area from Queens, where, she said, her 17-year-old daughter’s friends all had “branded clothes” and never talked on their phones without makeup. “My daughter doesn’t have a phone or wear makeup. Here, kids are nice.”
Elsewhere, in the “dome,” a football session was in progress.
“People drive a long way for coaching on kicking,” Kukelko said.
However, soccer predominates at HSC. Although the long term consequences for the brain from football head injuries have made news lately, “Parents don’t talk about it much with 12 and 13-year-olds,” said Marc Barahona, coach for soccer goalies and the Fox Soccer Academy. “At the professional level there are more injuries, but head injuries are much less common in soccer than football. Coaches here have to identify head injuries and dismiss the player if they happen. We test for concussion, let parents know and advise a doctor’s checkup. I haven’t seen head injuries much in soccer here. I saw a girl get hit in the face with the ball. She didn’t play the rest of the game. Better safe than sorry.”
Nurturer of soccer newbies at HSC is Aiden Kirby, who helped set up HSC seven years ago and returned from England five months ago.
“I came to bring European influence,” he said. “European leagues are bigger, with more money invested, more qualified coaches, more advanced. Kids start earlier, kicking the ball in the garden and continuing to develop.”
Kirby began playing soccer at an academy at the age of six and headed for a professional soccer career, studying sports science and coaching in college. He began playing for pay at 18.
To HSC he brought the “Mommy and Me” soccer program that introduces six-month-old babies to soccer preliminaries as they play with toys and inflatables, he said. At ages five to eight, children join the “Future Foxes” program.
“We start with young kids and get them all the way through,” said co-owner Raluca Fuchs, noting that “fuchs” is German for fox, hence the Fox Soccer Academy at HSC.
For older players, 18 and up, HSC offers less structured “open play” events on Wednesdays from 9 to 11 p.m. and on some weekends. About 20 to 30 players “cycle in and out, said HSC staff member Heather Sattler.
“Someone new to the area—he’s 32—called today, looking for something to do. He doesn’t know anyone. It’s my third call like that—a single person wanting to be active, wanting to know what we have,” said Sattler. “I’ve just been here a month.”
The Fuchs aim to do “something new” every year, said Raluca.
“Last year we put lights on outdoor fields. A few months ago, we added a volleyball court. Two years ago we put a grass soccer field in back,” she said. “We want to build a stadium and introduce more sports.”
Now the Fuchs are planning to renovate dormitories on the property for soccer camps, as they see soccer’s popularity increasing.
“Younger kids are gravitating toward soccer. The World Cup is popular. Soccer is popular everywhere else. Why not here?” said Fuchs.
Renovating another building on the property for a hotel is also a plan.
“We have the building and need someone to come and make it a nice hotel, three stars or more, with a restaurant,” she said. The building, 40,000 square feet, has 90 rooms. “It’s structurally sound but needs major renovations. We need someone to invest and remodel.”
Explaining her partnership with her husband Christian Fuchs, recently retired from professional soccer, she said, “My husband dreams. He’s the visionary. I make it happen.”
Community focused news can only succeed with community support. Please consider the various subscription levels.