Preseason presents challenges.

During the offseason, Charlotte Independence players train individually or in groups, but nothing compares to preseason preparation.

“Week one is always hectic,” defender Bilal Duckett said. “You’re trying to figure people out. You’re trying to remember who you are as a player, and you’re trying to get fit again.”

Said coach Mike Jeffries: “I actually thought the level of the guys was quite good coming in. It was probably sharper than I expected in terms of the soccer part, which was nice. The guys who are under contract game in at a better place than expected. The guys who we brought in to look at kept up with possession.”

Charlotte has 14 players returning from last season’s roster, and has announced one signing since the start of preseason – Wingate midfielder Callum Ross, who part of the Bulldogs’ 2016 Division II national championship side.

“This first week of preseason is always a bit tough, because your mind is always going to be two-three steps ahead of your body,” Duckett said. “We’ve got six weeks of preseason, so that’s not an issue at all, but it gets frustrating a little bit. You have to knock a little bit of the rust off. You gotta figure out a whole new set of faces. We are bringing back a fair amount of people from last year, but these small sided games, about half of these faces right now are new. Everybody is trying to figure each other out. The guys who are experienced in Charlotte, who are coming back, are trying to instill in guys that same kind of mentality and identity that we developed at the end of the season last year that kind of helped push us along.”

Said defender Austin Yearwood: “It’s great to see all the guys. It’s been a while. Some of us stayed in town and trained together, but [we’re] shaking some rust off. The competitiveness is always there, which is a good thing, because that’s what we pride ourselves on. As the week progresses, we’ll get set in our shape and get our touches right so we can fly through the rest of the preseason.”

The Independence have several local players on trial: former Charlotte 49ers defender Luke Waechter, former Pfeiffer striker Nathan Regis, a two-time Division II Player of the Year and former Wake Forest midfielder Jared Odenbeck. Charlotte’s first opportunity to test this season’s squad takes place tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. at Charleston Southern against the MLS Columbus Crew.

“I think we’ll be in good shape come our first game,” defender Henry Kalungi said. “It’s a great opportunity for us to see where the team stands. All the guys know what we are building toward.”

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