Soccer
Favorite athlete: Jalen Hurts
Favorite team: Philadelphia Eagles
Favorite memory competing in sports: Making the playoffs during my junior year
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: Scoring an own goal this season
Music on playlist: Rap
Future plans: Go to college
Words to live by: “Don't worry about the past, live in the moment.”
One goal before turning 30: Become a doctor
One thing people don’t know about me: I have played piano for 13 years
By GORDON GLANTZ
Cheltenham boys’ soccer coach Bill Tonkin still has high hopes for the rest of the season, and with just cause.
A few narrow losses are all that separates the Panthers from a near-perfect mark so far.
“We are playing really well,” said Tonkin of the 6-4-1 start through 11 games, a mark that included three 1-0 losses. “There were a couple of unfortunate bounces in those 1-0 losses, but we have been playing really well. We could easily be 9-1-1.
However, the coach can’t help but look down the road.
At season’s end, three-year captain Xavier “Xavi” Chanoine will no longer be around.
“It’s going to be a huge loss,” said Tonkin. “I’m trying to find some people to fill his shoes, but I don’t know if there is one person who is going to be able to fill his shoes.”
In addition to his obvious skill level, it is Chanoine’s presence and leadership that will leave a void that may take more than one player to fill.
“He’s a really, really good leader,” said Tonkin. “He has been our captain since his sophomore year. He showed the ability, in his freshman year on the JV team, to just motivate his teammates. He can organize things and keep everybody together. He’s just a really positive person.”
During games, if an observer hears a voice on the field, rising above the din of all others, it is usually that of Chanoine.
He plays defensive center midfield, which naturally makes the connection between the offense and the defense.
“He is like that coach on the field,” added Tonkin. “Everyone looks to him for guidance and leadership. He really takes it personally, in terms of how much the other guys look up to him.
“He is the one talking in the huddle to all of them, saying stuff like, ‘Let’s calm down. We’re getting away from this, let’s do that.’ There are times, in the huddles, that myself and the assistants don’t even say anything.
“Like I said, he’s that coach on the field. He makes my job and my assistants’ jobs easier. We don’t have to yell out onto the field. He is already doing it for us.”
Chanoine, who has been proud of the way his team has shown resiliency in bouncing back from narrow defeats, admits that being that coach on the field comes naturally to him.
“I have been growing into the role,” he explained. “It’s my third year being a captain, so it’s like I practiced it. But, all of my life, I feel like I have sort of been in a leadership role on all of the teams that I played on.
“It does come naturally. It’s just part of who I am - to want to help others out and just being that leader on the field.”
Tonkin said he could envision sophomore Emile Chanoine, emerging from his older brother’s shadow and growing into the leadership void.
“Hopefully, he can step into that role,” said the coach. “He’s the same type of person. He’s starting to be a little more vocal.”
Added the older Chanoine: “He’s the main sophomore on varsity right now. He starts. He definitely is not as vocal, but I definitely do think his confidence is growing. With all the seniors leaving next year, I think he can take over.”
Chanoine also doesn’t want to put all the pressure on the shoulders of one underclassman, let alone his kid brother, but he sees part of his role as an outgoing captain as grooming the next set of leaders.
“There are definitely some kids who are younger and who are already big contributors on the field,” said Chanoine. “I definitely do think that I can play a role to help people to sort of take my spot, and being kind of a leader and that vocal person on the team.
“I have done it for three years, and no one else has really had that role of being that guy in the huddle of talking to the team and trying to get everyone on the same page and calm people down. I do think it is kind of my responsibility to prepare the young players to take over that spot.”
Perspective
Looking back on his sophomore year, when the Panthers only had two wins, Chanoine has enjoyed the progression of now being a key part of a squad that made the district playoffs for the first time in memory a year ago (before falling, 3-0, to Lower Merion in the first round) and has that same expectation this year.
“Historically, Cheltenham soccer is just not very good,” he explained. “Going back to my sophomore year, which was my first year as captain, we went 2-15. We returned a lot of players going into my junior year, and we ended up winning 10 games and making the playoffs. Even though we lost in the first round, it was a very big leap for our program.
“It changed our mindset. Instead of just showing up, we expect to win. In the past, we almost expected to lose. Last year, and this year, we show up against really good teams and we expect to beat them.”
This, along with knowing his competitive soccer career is ending after the season, has fueled his fire even more.
Academically, Chanoine currently sports an unweighted GPA just shy of 4.0. He is taking a course load that includes four AP classes.
He is also senior class president and a member of the National Honor Society.
In the winter, between sports seasons, he is part of a ski and snowboarding club.
“I’m very good with not procrastinating,” said Chanoine, who is also part of a club, Panther Partners, that works with special needs students. “That has helped me so much the last few years, between multiple sports and clubs and hanging out with friends.”
Although he considers soccer his No. 1 sport, having played it at an elite club level, Chanoine is also a four-year member of the varsity baseball team.
This all makes him a master juggler of time, which will serve him well at one of the schools he is considering.
Duke is the top choice, but he has a long list. Virginia, North Carolina, Michigan, UCLA, Yale, Penn State, Pitt and Miami are all within the wide geographic net he is casting.
Aside from all those schools having serious Division I sports, his focus will be on becoming a doctor, following in the footsteps of his father (Pierre Chanoine, a pediatrician, and his mother, Reem Tarazi, a neuropsychiatrist).
“I’m following in their footsteps,” he said. “For the last few years, I’m pretty much set on wanting to become a doctor.”
That means this season – his last hurrah – is magnified.
“It’s very important,” said Chanoine. “Most of us aren’t going to play in college, so every game feels like a final game.
“Whenever it’s all done – and, hopefully, it’s a while from now and we make it pretty far – it’s going to be hard. I’ve been playing soccer since I was 4. This is my last year doing it competitively, so every game seems like, you know, ‘We need to win this one.’
“It really has been a sort of emotional season. There is really a lot of passion on the team, both when we win and when we lose.”
Chanoine is hopeful the tightly-knit team can ride their passion a bit further.
“Our goal is to win a playoff game or two,” he said. “Last year, we qualified for the playoffs but we lost in the first round. This year, I’m hoping we can advance a couple of rounds in the playoffs.”
Feeling Gratitude
Chanoine’s mother also started him on piano in Kindergarten, and he still plays to this day.
“I’ve been playing for a while,” he said. “I’m not going to lie and say that it’s my favorite thing. My mom says it helps my brain, and that it’s good to play an instrument.
“It’s cool, though. If I’m with my friends and there is a piano, I can start playing and entertaining. I like being able to do that.”
Overall, Chanoine wanted to thank his parents.
“With soccer, they have taken me everywhere,” he said. “They have always been supportive of me.”
He also wanted to thank Tonkin for seeing his potential early on.
“I’ve been his player for four years and his captain for three years,” said Chanoine. “We have a really good relationship.
“It has been monumental in my growth as both a player and as a whole team.”
Last but not least are his fellow Panthers.
“We are a very, very close team,” said Chanoine. “I’m best friends with a lot of the guys on the team, and we all hang out off the field.
“All of my teammates have been great but, specifically, my brother. It’s been great to get to be able to play with him.
