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Aspiring Statesman Quick on his Feet
Oct. 27, 2005
By PETE IORIZZO, Albany Times Union Staff writer LOUDONVILLE -- Patrick Henry glances at a statistics sheet and shakes his head. "These aren't right," he says. "I started every game but one the last two years. This says that one season I started 14 of 18 or something like that." Whoever compiled the stats might be wise to leave Henry's assertion unchallenged. Two things about Henry: He knows his soccer. He rarely loses an argument. That bodes well for both the Siena men's soccer team and Henry's future. After the junior goalkeeper completes his eligibility next season, he plans to pursue law school and, eventually, run for office. He figures playing goalkeeper is almost like being an elected official for the Saints. "I like the role the goalkeeper has to take, which is a role of leadership," Henry says. "The buck stops with you. Soccer, maybe more than any other sport, is a team game. But I like having people depend on me. They look to me for the big save. It's on me a lot of the time." Most of the time, Henry delivers. This season he has kept the 3-10-1 Saints in games with a 1.78 goals-against average and .709 save percentage. Siena is fifth in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference in goals allowed (25) and GAA (1.75). As a tri-captain, along with seniors T.J. Helly and Alejandro Vazquez, Henry embraced a leadership role. Siena coach Charlie Curto says he frequently seeks the advice of Henry and his captains. Before the season, Curto asked his captains which formation the Saints should employ: a four-defender, four-midfielder, three-forward set or a 3-5-2 alignment. The captains, including Henry, pushed for a 3-5-2. Curto decided to use it for at least part of every game. "Pat has all the qualities of a great leader," Curto says. "He's a great player, a great motivator, and he inspires people. "I trust his judgment. We have a great give-and-take relationship." Henry has experience in being persuasive. Last semester, he studied abroad in Scotland and served as an intern for Christine Grahame, the Shadow Minister for Social Justice in the Scottish Parliament. Henry's duties included daily research on a variety of social issues, the chief concern of the Scottish National Party. At the end of his internship, Henry prepared a 70-page report on child poverty in Scotland. He says the Scottish National Party plans to use his research in Parliamentary debates and in forming its platform before the next election. "That's real-life experience for me," Henry says. Henry culled some real-life experience even before traveling to Scotland. He became interested in politics watching his father, a Democrat, twice run for town council in their predominantly Republican hometown of LaGrangeville. Henry remembers watching Election Night coverage with his father during both of Bill Clinton's victories. Henry's father, Patrick, and grandfather, Joseph, also brought politics to the dinner table. "That must be how he developed, listening to us," Henry's father says. "We'd pick a topic and go at it. He loved it. It sometimes got to the screaming stage." His son says: "I know in social scenes, you're not supposed to talk about politics. But around my house, it was always very interesting." As a teenager, Henry served as student body vice president at Arlington High School, where he says he pushed the student council to offer more volunteer opportunities for students. Because of a program Henry organized, students visited a hospital and recorded books on tape for children. If elected to office someday, Henry says he would make social issues a priority. For now, though, he focuses his attention on a job he need not campaign for -- Siena's starting goalkeeper. "There's a lot of glory that comes with being a goalkeeper, but you also have to bear the brunt of it when things go wrong," Henry says. "I like having people look to me as a leader."
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