Irle a pearl for Naperville Central
By Matt Le Cren
Emma Irle has always been able to run like the wind.
But the Naperville Central junior didn’t realize just how unusual that is until she got to high school.
“Since I was little my parents were like, ‘Oh, wow, you’re really fast,’” Irle said. “I didn’t really notice it until I became a freshman, and I realized that was not what everyone else was used to.
“(Naperville Central coach Ed) Watson was like, ‘Wow, you’re really fast.’ I guess so.”
Irle said her parents are athletic.
“So, it’s mostly from my genes,” Irle said. “I was just naturally gifted with that. I’ve never had to work on being fast.”
How fast is Irle? Watson has seen speed like that only one other time.
“Emma has unbelievable speed,” Watson said. “I’ve coached 28 years at the varsity level, and I think there’s only one girl that’s in the same class in terms of pure speed and that’s Lisa McCammack.”
McCammack, a 1997 graduate, is one of the best players in Naperville Central history. She played on two state runnerup teams and ranks first in program history for career assists (62), tied for first in points (168) and second in goals (53).
Irle, a third-year starter, will never match those numbers but only because she plays defense. She has been an outside back for most of her career, though Watson has used her in multiple positions.
“We’ve had girls that have been fast but her speed is in a special class, and she has the ability to run with the ball at speed,” Watson said. “It’s one thing to say take all the balls out of the way and just run.
“You’re going to get kids who are good track athletes. But she is able to pass the ball and run past people.”
That’s why Watson started experimenting with Irle almost immediately.
“During her freshman year we were so weak up-top, we eventually put her up top and said, ‘We’ve got to have you just go run and get the ball,’” Watson said. “Teams that we were playing at that time knew that we were very one-dimensional and knew that we were not playing a very pretty game of soccer.
“So, when it came to the state tournament we said, ‘Hey, we’ve got to put ourselves in a position where we can be effective.’ It was a lot of dumping and chasing, and she was able to collect balls and put pressure on defenses.”
When Irle first joined the Redhawks, it was she who was feeling the pressure. The only freshman on the 2018 varsity stood out in a sea of veteran players and did not expect to be playing at that level.
“I was really surprised because nobody really thought that any freshmen were going to make it our freshman year,” Irle said. “The last day of tryouts (Watson) pulled me aside and said, ‘Emma, I was wondering whether you would like to play with us at the varsity level, practice starts tomorrow.’
“I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, that would be such an honor, thank you.’
“Being the new freshman definitely put a lot of pressure on me, because I remember walking into my first practice, and they were all staring at me. I felt so awkward and quiet.
“All eyes were on me, but it was totally cool. I felt so special.”
Irle has been a special player for the Redhawks. She is the team’s most versatile player, able to lock down opposing forwards on the outside while also triggering the offense with quick counterattacks.
“She’s a back by trade,” Watson noted. “Last year we had her in the back and then we moved her up to the midfield to utilize her speed.
“We were looking forward to this year, having her in the back again. I was anticipating that she was going to trigger a lot of our attacking opportunities for us.
“There’s very few teams that have the ability to deal with an outside back that’s attacking with that type of speed. How do you rotate out and protect yourself against that?”
Indeed, a defender making an overlap run up the wing is one of the most exciting sights in soccer and also one of the riskiest for the defender who is making it. What happens if the back gets stuck up the field when the attack is repulsed?
That’s not a worry when Irle is involved.
“Because of that speed, she has the ability to get forward and eventually get back, not give up the counterattacks that happen when backs get caught up the field,” Watson said. “She can recover quickly as well.”
But speed and dribbling ability aren’t Irle’s only assets.
“I think I communicate really well,” Irle said. “When I go through any of my film, you turn on the volume and you can hear me screaming at everyone.
“I’m talking and telling people to open up, turn around, or look at that part of the field, try to switch it. My communication on the field probably makes everyone know where they should be, who’s open, and helps people be in the right spots.”
So where is the right spot for Irle to be? Well, there really is no wrong spot. She can be effective and dangerous anywhere on the field.
“Not only does she have unbelievable speed, but her swinging of the leg is dominant,” Watson said. “As a freshman, she scored multiple dead-ball goals.
“She had a great goal against Naperville North her freshman year at North on a dead ball from about 35 yards. There’s no way a goalkeeper could possibly think that from the distance that she was striking it from that she would be able to put it past her.”
Even when Irle doesn’t put a ball on frame, she can create havoc.
“Last year, she was involved in the restart that got us the goal against Neuqua last year in the regional final (a 1-0 Naperville Central win),” Watson said. “She started the play. There was sort of a melee afterward, and Liz Barker ended up getting the ball off a flick, and Caroline Reedy finished. That all started with Emma.”
Where will it end? Nobody knows, though big things were expected from Irle this season before it was canceled by the coronavirus pandemic.
“I think that being on the varsity level from my freshman year definitely has put me in a good spot with knowing everyone and being close with the coaches,” Irle said. “I think (Watson) was expecting me to play anywhere we needed because we added a lot of good players all over the field this year.
“We were expecting to have a really good offense, so wherever he needed me to be, I would have played.”
Watson said Irle has the physical tools to be a Division I player. That would be a great accomplishment for the youngest of five siblings.
Irle’s three older brothers all played soccer growing up, as did her older sister Julia, who played for the Redhawks and now is a senior on the club team at Illinois.
“It’s definitely given me some high expectations, and I feel a lot of pressure to be as good as my siblings,” Irle said. “It definitely makes me want to work hard and show that I’m just like everybody else.”
By Matt Le Cren
Emma Irle has always been able to run like the wind.
But the Naperville Central junior didn’t realize just how unusual that is until she got to high school.
“Since I was little my parents were like, ‘Oh, wow, you’re really fast,’” Irle said. “I didn’t really notice it until I became a freshman, and I realized that was not what everyone else was used to.
“(Naperville Central coach Ed) Watson was like, ‘Wow, you’re really fast.’ I guess so.”
Irle said her parents are athletic.
“So, it’s mostly from my genes,” Irle said. “I was just naturally gifted with that. I’ve never had to work on being fast.”
How fast is Irle? Watson has seen speed like that only one other time.
“Emma has unbelievable speed,” Watson said. “I’ve coached 28 years at the varsity level, and I think there’s only one girl that’s in the same class in terms of pure speed and that’s Lisa McCammack.”
McCammack, a 1997 graduate, is one of the best players in Naperville Central history. She played on two state runnerup teams and ranks first in program history for career assists (62), tied for first in points (168) and second in goals (53).
Irle, a third-year starter, will never match those numbers but only because she plays defense. She has been an outside back for most of her career, though Watson has used her in multiple positions.
“We’ve had girls that have been fast but her speed is in a special class, and she has the ability to run with the ball at speed,” Watson said. “It’s one thing to say take all the balls out of the way and just run.
“You’re going to get kids who are good track athletes. But she is able to pass the ball and run past people.”
That’s why Watson started experimenting with Irle almost immediately.
“During her freshman year we were so weak up-top, we eventually put her up top and said, ‘We’ve got to have you just go run and get the ball,’” Watson said. “Teams that we were playing at that time knew that we were very one-dimensional and knew that we were not playing a very pretty game of soccer.
“So, when it came to the state tournament we said, ‘Hey, we’ve got to put ourselves in a position where we can be effective.’ It was a lot of dumping and chasing, and she was able to collect balls and put pressure on defenses.”
When Irle first joined the Redhawks, it was she who was feeling the pressure. The only freshman on the 2018 varsity stood out in a sea of veteran players and did not expect to be playing at that level.
“I was really surprised because nobody really thought that any freshmen were going to make it our freshman year,” Irle said. “The last day of tryouts (Watson) pulled me aside and said, ‘Emma, I was wondering whether you would like to play with us at the varsity level, practice starts tomorrow.’
“I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, that would be such an honor, thank you.’
“Being the new freshman definitely put a lot of pressure on me, because I remember walking into my first practice, and they were all staring at me. I felt so awkward and quiet.
“All eyes were on me, but it was totally cool. I felt so special.”
Irle has been a special player for the Redhawks. She is the team’s most versatile player, able to lock down opposing forwards on the outside while also triggering the offense with quick counterattacks.
“She’s a back by trade,” Watson noted. “Last year we had her in the back and then we moved her up to the midfield to utilize her speed.
“We were looking forward to this year, having her in the back again. I was anticipating that she was going to trigger a lot of our attacking opportunities for us.
“There’s very few teams that have the ability to deal with an outside back that’s attacking with that type of speed. How do you rotate out and protect yourself against that?”
Indeed, a defender making an overlap run up the wing is one of the most exciting sights in soccer and also one of the riskiest for the defender who is making it. What happens if the back gets stuck up the field when the attack is repulsed?
That’s not a worry when Irle is involved.
“Because of that speed, she has the ability to get forward and eventually get back, not give up the counterattacks that happen when backs get caught up the field,” Watson said. “She can recover quickly as well.”
But speed and dribbling ability aren’t Irle’s only assets.
“I think I communicate really well,” Irle said. “When I go through any of my film, you turn on the volume and you can hear me screaming at everyone.
“I’m talking and telling people to open up, turn around, or look at that part of the field, try to switch it. My communication on the field probably makes everyone know where they should be, who’s open, and helps people be in the right spots.”
So where is the right spot for Irle to be? Well, there really is no wrong spot. She can be effective and dangerous anywhere on the field.
“Not only does she have unbelievable speed, but her swinging of the leg is dominant,” Watson said. “As a freshman, she scored multiple dead-ball goals.
“She had a great goal against Naperville North her freshman year at North on a dead ball from about 35 yards. There’s no way a goalkeeper could possibly think that from the distance that she was striking it from that she would be able to put it past her.”
Even when Irle doesn’t put a ball on frame, she can create havoc.
“Last year, she was involved in the restart that got us the goal against Neuqua last year in the regional final (a 1-0 Naperville Central win),” Watson said. “She started the play. There was sort of a melee afterward, and Liz Barker ended up getting the ball off a flick, and Caroline Reedy finished. That all started with Emma.”
Where will it end? Nobody knows, though big things were expected from Irle this season before it was canceled by the coronavirus pandemic.
“I think that being on the varsity level from my freshman year definitely has put me in a good spot with knowing everyone and being close with the coaches,” Irle said. “I think (Watson) was expecting me to play anywhere we needed because we added a lot of good players all over the field this year.
“We were expecting to have a really good offense, so wherever he needed me to be, I would have played.”
Watson said Irle has the physical tools to be a Division I player. That would be a great accomplishment for the youngest of five siblings.
Irle’s three older brothers all played soccer growing up, as did her older sister Julia, who played for the Redhawks and now is a senior on the club team at Illinois.
“It’s definitely given me some high expectations, and I feel a lot of pressure to be as good as my siblings,” Irle said. “It definitely makes me want to work hard and show that I’m just like everybody else.”