JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND, Texas –
Playing soccer most of his life in Juarez, Mexico, David Ramos had to adjust to playing on sludgy soil.
Sometimes a soccer ball wasn't available so Ramos and his friends had to play with whatever resources were at their disposal.
"In Mexico, we would play on the streets with plastic bottles," Ramos said. "If you love the game of soccer like we do, you played with whatever you had."
Ramos hopes his passion for fútbol earns him a spot on the Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland Warhawks team. He is one of many hopefuls participating in month-long soccer tryouts that began July 7 and will conclude three weeks before the Defender Cup.
Even though he has been stationed at JBSA-Lackland since September, he said he can provide leadership intangibles to a Warhawks team that placed third in the military's largest soccer tournament last year.
"I can provide speed, effort, and a variety of shooting skills," Ramos said. "I can be a motivation to my teammates."
Ramos, who's played competitive soccer on two other base varsity teams, said he would push teammates to muster the energy to play hard and not take plays off.
"I would tell my (teammates) there was only five minutes left (in the game) when there was actually more time," Ramos said. "I would push them to excel."
Dedication, effort, and importantly, conditioning, is what Warhawks player-coach Nana Saahene is looking for in soccer players trying to earn a Warhawks roster spot.
Saahene said the Warhawks didn't reach the finals of the Defender Cup, which was won by Patrick AFB, Fla., last year because injuries zapped the majority of the roster.
This year, he wants the Warhawks to be in prime condition to compete in the three-day military soccer tournament, which takes place every year on Labor Day weekend.
"When you're playing seven games in two or three days, it's very stressful," Saahene said. "We are hoping that if we get the same potential players like we had last year, we can do better."
One hopeful ready to contribute is Torres Walker. He said he brings a "tireless engine" that is ready to compete in his fourth Defender Cup tournament, which could be his last tournament for a while due to his wife expecting a newborn child.
"You have to be in as good of a shape as possible because it is a three day tournament," Walker said. "The first day has at least three games so you want to make sure you're doing good fitness wise to stay fresh."
The Warhawks currently compete in the San Antonio Soccer Association where they pit themselves against the city's best recreational competition to prepare for the Defender Cup.
Ramos hopes the team's hard work pays off at the Defender Cup.
"We want to make a statement to the other bases that we are No. 1, and I am pretty positive that this is our year," he said.
Warhawk soccer tryouts are Thursdays at 6 p.m. and Saturdays at 9:30 a.m. at the Defense Language Institute English Language Center soccer field.