Chattanooga FC midfielder and newcomer Luke Husakiwsky reacted to his first professional debut goal and answered questions from media following the club’s victory over Huntsville City FC on Saturday night.
Husakiwsky was asked about scoring his first professional goal in his home debut, what the past few transitional weeks have been like and the club’s outlook as it pushes towards securing a playoff spot in the coming weeks:
on making his home debut and scoring his first professional goal:
“A great way to have a home debut. Yeah, it’s something that we’ve worked [on] in training and it’s a great threat we have. So, I was just in the place that was assigned to me and the ball came up [I] jumped and headed it and that was that, really.”
on what made him interested in Chattanooga:
"It’s been a great fit, they gave me an opportunity to come in on trial and I took advantage of that. They gave me an offer and since then, I mean, that was just a little under two weeks ago, so everything’s been moving quick, but I’m so happy to be here and playing out in front of that crowd was just amazing."
on the last few weeks and seeing his dream of becoming a pro being realized:
"It’s been a long process for me to sign my first pro contract. There's been a lot of ups and downs for sure, so finally having that opportunity is worth every low moment I’ve had, for sure. Especially to come out here and make my debut last week and then score my first goal tonight was just amazing. So everything’s been worth it."
on playing impactful matches in CFC’s playoff push:
“It’s what needs to be done. I’m being asked to do a job out there on the field so I’m just doing my best to do it. We’re looking forward to these next games. Obviously we have a two-week break now, but we’ll be well rested and ready to make this push going forward.”
on how the crowd compares to what he’s experienced before:
“It’s an amazing crowd. Unfortunately, I don’t know their names yet but I see a woman jumping up and down and leading things, and afterward, we’re doing the claps and all of that stuff. It’s electric. I can’t tell you how much that stuff helps on the field. It really gives us momentum. There’s a saying out there, it’s our 12th player on the field, and it’s really true.”
on what it means to have his family there:
“Again, it’s a dream come true. This process hasn’t been just mine, it’s been them along with me, obviously. My mom, dad, grandfather and girlfriend were out there tonight. Yeah, it was amazing and I’m just proud to be able to do right by them and have them support me."
on if it will be difficult for CFC to keep this momentum going after the short break:
"Honestly, I think it’s going to be a big positive. I have a different story, coming in so late, but I know it’s been a long season, so these two weeks we'll really work to sharpen the sword, so to speak, and rest our legs and then push for our next game and into playoffs."
on how the level compares to what he was expecting:
"The level’s high. Obviously, Huntsville’s a very good side. They have a lot of technical players with a lot of rotations, so tonight was all about having a voice collectively as a team and passing on runners and staying compact; you saw that for 90 minutes tonight. It was a great result and a great result against [Carolina] Core last weekend, so the level’s high but we’re ready for it."
Chattanooga FC media had a chance to speak with Husakiwsky’s family at half time.
“This is the most unbelievable experience,” said Husakiwsky’s mother, Aimee. “We’ve been waiting for this day since he was about eight-years-old, so to see him score was, I don't know, I’m getting tears even thinking about it. It was pretty amazing.
“We’re from Davidson, North Carolina, so we flew in, his grandfather flew in and we all have our jerseys with his name and number on the back,” Aimee continued. “It’s a dream come true, it really is.”
“To have him tell us that he was starting was incredible, but then to have a goal, it couldn’t be any better than that,” said George, Husakiwsky’s father.
“He’s just the best, and he deserves it,” said Husakiwsky’s girlfriend, Grace. “He’s been working for this for a long time.”
