MISL Feature
Monday, October 29, 2012
Marcio Leite still remembers the way he felt as Joe Hammes’ shot flew into the back of the Baltimore Blast’s net, giving the Milwaukee Wave their second consecutive MISL Championship last March.
“That was an amazing feeling,” he said by phone recently.
For Leite, the game and the championship was the culmination of a long road back. From surgeries and rehabs, through doubt and fear, to a return to form that saw him named the MISL Championship Series MVP, the 28-year-old Brazilian had reached the point he had always hoped to be.
“To just be able to work hard, play almost every game and be back doing what I love was tremendous,” he said.
Leite had first signed with the Wave in 2006, and immediately made an impact on the side. His unselfish play saw him named to the MISL All-Rookie Team, and he followed it up with an 80-point season and All-League Second Team honors. Fitting well into the Wave’s veteran lineup, he became a key cog in the club’s attack as Milwaukee pursued the league championship, and an integral member of the locker room, his enthusiasm becoming infectious.
“Marcio comes from a country that is so emotional about the game of football that he just exudes it all the time,” Wave coach Keith Tozer said. “I think the happiest I ever see Marcio is not only when he is on the field, but when the ball is at his feet. He loves having the ball, he’s an extremely creative person, and that’s when he’s most happy.”
Then injury struck. Leite suffered a torn ACL on the opening day of training camp for the 2008-09 season. After undergoing a full rehab, and trying to regain his fitness, Leite took another blow to the knee while playing at another local club the following September.
“It was actually really weird,” Leite said. “It didn’t feel as bad as the first one, and honestly got back into the game, and I was playing and kept playing, and the next day it had swelled up a little bit, but I was playing and feeling OK.”
An MRI gave the bad news; Leite had torn the same ACL, and it would cost him another season with the Wave.
“My heart was broken,” he said. “I had to leave the United States and go back home, and without the support of my family and friends, I don’t think I would be back here playing again. I don’t think I would have had the strength to get over it. I’m in the United States because I’m a player, because I love this game and because I want to be successful at it, and having two ACLs, two major surgeries like that, that people don’t even come back from, it was really scary.”
Leite returned to the Wave in 2010 a different player. While his enthusiasm for the game remained, he remained nervous about his injuries and what could happen over the course of a game. While he tried to play his normal game, finishing the regular season with 31 points in 15 contests, there remained nervousness that the same injury could sideline him again.
“After the second ACL, it took me a long time to realize that I was back, that I could show myself,” Leite said. “I think the first season, I was still struggling with doubt in my head, every game, every practice, whether it was going to happen again, so it was really hard.”
As time went on, though, Leite’s confidence began to return. He began to trust his body again, and was able to become the dynamic player the Wave’s fans had seen in his first two seasons with the club. Finishing second on the team with 55 points a season ago, while recording 20 assists, the Brazilian was now certain he had returned to his best.
“It’s got to the point where I don’t think about it anymore, so I am being natural,” Leite said. “I don’t think about my knee anymore, I just go out there and I play and I do whatever comes into my head. If I have to turn, if I have to cut, if I have to shoot, if I have to dribble, if I have to go hard into a 50-50 ball, I don’t even think about it anymore, and that’s a great feeling because now I’m able to go out there and not think about injuries, just go and play my game.”
That he was back to his best was confirmed in the playoffs. Recording 10 points in the championship series, Leite led the Wave to the title with a standout performance.
“He’s not a man of individual awards,” Tozer said. “I think for him to be able to play in the final, where he wasn’t able to play in a final prior because of his injuries, was really big for him, and for him to be such an important factor in winning the championship, I think was definitely the icing on the cake for him.”
Leite is now focused on the future, and being part of a third consecutive championship team. The path he has travelled in the past four years, however, will remain with him for a long time to come.
“I thank God every day for giving me this opportunity to be back, to be back playing at the highest level and getting my dream of winning championships,” he said. “I mean, it cannot be better than that. I had two seasons where I couldn’t play, where I had to watch soccer and do physical therapy for two years, and now to be back on the field playing, and to win championships - two wins in a row, you can’t describe that.”