When you sit down with Abdul Kooistra, the first thing you notice is his hair. It’s glorious and full, it rings his head like crown with a chin strap. It fits his look, like he was born with it. He’s quick to smile and laugh, regardless of the focus of the question. He interviews like a pro, because he is one. His playing career has taken him to Africa and South America and the miles and experiences have shaped him into a calm, seasoned professional athlete.

A defender for NISA’s Maryland Bobcats, Kooistra is part of a team beloved by casual fans of the league. Sure, people make jokes about the league, but almost everyone talks about their love of the club from Maryland. People respect the team, even if they don’t respect the league. Abdul is part of a back line roster built for success in this year’s version of the league.

Coming Back from Injury

Kooistra spent the offseason recovering from his injuries that happened during last year’s NISA season. After a 4 matches with Maryland, “I had an unfortunate step in training. I took a step, it was wrong, and I broke my foot.” He says it matter of fact, as if it wasn’t a devastating blow for a 26 year-old athlete in the prime of his playing career. He’d had a foot injury before and, as Abdul puts it, he “already had hardware in there.” So rather than surgery, he was encouraged to try and rehab it and see how it went. Three months into rehab, just before his planned returned to play, “I was tracking a ball and it happened again. I knew I needed surgery. It was a little bit heartbreaking, because I had worked so hard to get back to where I needed to be and sometimes it just doesn’t go as planned.”

It might be easy to let an injury derail your perspective and allow negativity to fill you, but Abdul’s learned lessons from his previous injuries. “Fortunately and unfortunately, I’ve been through some injuries in my career. I’m familiar with how to deal with it. It’s probably one of the most difficult things, because you want to be out there playing and competing, its what you love to do. But you have to see that light at the end of the tunnel. That how I deal with it. Small wins every day in rehab. Those small steps are big steps to get back to playing.”

Of course, sometimes injuries leave scars in your psyche that the surgeon’s knife can’t repair, but you’d be hard pressed to find them in Abdul’s perspective on his game. He trusts his body, even if its failed him in the past. “The best way I deal with it, I just trick my mind into not thinking about it. The first time I’m using my foot, I smash a ball so I know every time I smash a ball I’m fine. I try to think about it less. The first 50/50 I go full on and from now on, I’m good knowing I can go full on. I meet it head first, instead of delaying it.” As the words leave his mouth, he can tell it might sound a little crazy and he laughs. But the smile on his face comes after the surgery, after the hard work in rehab, and after the long offseason. It’s the smile of a man back on his feet and ready for a new year in division three soccer.

Changes

The team he’s returning to is different from last season. After a disappointing 5th place finish to the club’s regular season, where it again just missed out on a home playoff match, the club went on the road to face Albion San Diego. After going down to 10-men in the 83rd minute, the club would battle to penalties and lose 8-7. It was the second consecutive playoff run for the Bobcats that ended in the first round (both at the hands of now in-hiatus Albion San Diego). So in the offseason, the club made some key changes to the roster, adding depth on the backline, but also holding onto some important players. Abdul can see the difference. “I feel like this year we have a more balanced and more competitive roster in general. In every position, there’s more competition and I like competition. I’m the kind of person who likes competition, I play better. Everyone’s fighting for spots.”

A key need that had to be addressed was adding talent in the attack to take some pressure off Darwin Espinal. Espinal’s talent brought hyper focus from opposing defenses last season and the club had to find more attacking threats to shield their star. Two important signings were Kelvin Mwape, the talented forward from Chattanooga FC, and the return of Elijah Amo from South Georgia Tormenta. The addition of Amo on the opposite of the field, should allow Espinal a bit more room to work, forcing the defense to play more balanced. Abdul highlighted the balancing effect of two talented players up front. “It’s important to have to dynamic wingers. We have both sides who are big threats. It’s going to take both of those players to the next level.” Regardless of the roster shakeup, the style of play will be roughly the same. “We’ll probably play a similar brand of soccer to last year, but that style of play fits me. I think I still fit in pretty well.”

High Expectations for 2024

Playing in NISA, given the fluctuations of the club roster and the struggles of certain teams, can have be a little stigmatizing. “I think first and foremost, the league has a little bit of a bad reputation. I don’t think it really warrants that reputation.” Kooistra is quick to point out that every league has growing pains, including those that are now fan favorites. “People are overcritical on the league, but it’s a competitive league. I sometimes think when you’re watching it from the outside, you don’t realize how much quality is on the field. People think it’s an easier league to play in, until they get in it. I was a little like that, before I played in NISA.”

Of course, this season will be dramatically different, with the exit of Chattanooga FC, Albion San Diego, and Flower City Union. Where does that leave Maryland? “The expectation for us is to be one of the best teams, if not the best. That’s our goal. We’re not looking down on anyone, but we want to be THAT team. Last year we were a very talented team, but we weren’t consistent. This year we want to take the next step.” That next step will require Kooistra to have confidence in his feet and the new roster Maryland Bobcats are bringing to this season.

After winning its first round matchup against West Chester United in the US Open Cup, Maryland’s next USOC match will be against USL League One veterans, Richmond Kickers, on April 2.

- Dan Vaughn