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Been A Special Ride For La Salle Men's Soccer's Father And Son

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The season is winding down for the La Salle University men's soccer team. The Explorers are 5-8-2 this season, but still very much in play for a spot in the Atlantic 10 Tournament.

Whenever this season comes to a close, it will also be the end of a very special time for head coach Pat Farrell, as his son, senior captain and forward Joe Farrell, plays his final game for the program.

Pat Farrell is in his 29th season as the head coach of the Explorers, and he says it was relatively early in his time on campus when Joe got his first taste of La Salle men's soccer.

"My wife Patty's a school teacher," Farrell tells KYW Newsradio. "So we had an opportunity that I had some flexibility in my job and I actually used to babysit him. So he's been associated with the La Salle program since he's been an infant. So on the days that I was watching him and we had training or we actually had a game, he would jump on the bus and he would to head to training with us. So in that regard, I always think that Joey always envisioned himself playing soccer at La Salle. He was recruited by some schools, but in the end he made his own decision, I wasn't going to push him one way or the other."

Listen to the interview with La Salle's Pat and Joe Farrell:

 

Joe agrees that the decision for him to play for his dad came together naturally.

"At the beginning of my junior year of high school (Wissahickon), I kind of sat down with my father," Joe Farrell tells KYW Newsradio. "And he told me, 'I'd love for you to come to La Salle and play for me, but go find what you want to do.' From there it was very non stressful, I was able to go search and really, not only discover other schools, but honestly, discover myself and see what I really wanted. And La Salle was what I really wanted and I decided to come here and it has been a great decision I do not regret at all."

Pat Farrell
Pat Farrell is in his 29th season as the head men's soccer coach at La Salle University. (photo credit: Sideline Photos, LLC)

Joe Farrell has enjoyed an outstanding career with the Explorers, scoring 15 goals and adding 16 assists so far during his four years. He was a second team, Atlantic-10 All-Conference selection as a junior.

Now it can be tricky being the son of the coach, as far as how other players perceive you, but Joe Farrell says the dynamic with his teammates took care of itself pretty quickly.

"Freshman year, I thought it was going to be more challenging than it actually was," Joe Farrell says. "They way that it happened is, I actually played in the first game we played (that season), it was at McCarthy Stadium at La Salle University, against a Philly school, Drexel. I was starting up top and it was a 1-1 game going through and it went into overtime. In the first overtime, I actually scored the game-winning goal and we beat Drexel 2-1. From that moment, everyone was kind of like, 'Okay, this kid can play and he deserves everything that he is getting, it's not coach related, it's not son related.' From that moment, I kind of earned the respect of my teammates and from there I kind of elevated the level and really took that to heart and really tried to put the best on the field and off the field."

Pat Farrell talks about spending four years coaching his son.

"There are challenges (laughs)," Pat Farrell says. "One of the things is, in all honesty, I think Joey made the challenges go away. He handled everything in a mature manner. He obviously has a multiple skill set as a player, but he also plays at a real high level. Joey's been our captain his junior and senior year. That's from his teammates, that's not from me or the coaching staff. What he's done, is he's really helped us with the challenges. Although I will say this, I do yell at him at practice, but I always say it's not yelling, it is constructive criticism from a distance (laughs)."

Just three games left in the regular season for the Explorers. As he reflects on his time playing for his dad, Joe Farrell says he really wouldn't change a thing.

"No I would not," Joe Farrell says. "The only thing that I could really say is that I've been hoping for an A-10 Championship and hopefully this year we make the playoffs, get there and win the thing."

La Salle will visit UMass Wednesday afternoon.

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