In a new TV documentary, a Latino soccer team triumphs over adversity in a changing Chatham County

*Apropos of the World Cup and soccer in America and all that, here’s a cool story from a small town in North Carolina, population – roughly – 9000. An improbable high school soccer team, made up of an unlikely group of Latino teammates, won the state high school soccer championship. This is the stuff they make movies out of, and they did. VL

By David Fellerath, Indy Week

rural high school. A sports team composed of underdogs from society’s margins. A selfless, motivational coach. A state championship won by defeating schools with more money and resources. It sounds like the stuff inspirational sports entertainment is made of—and now, for Los Jets, it is.

This is the story of Siler City’s Jordan-Matthews High School soccer team, Los Jets. For more than a decade, they’ve been guided by Paul Cuadros, who serves as coach, bus driver, fundraiser, guidance counselor and father figure to the teen boys who have worn the team’s blue uniforms. The majority of the players are Latino, born into families drawn to Chatham County’s promise of work in chicken slaughterhouses and on construction sites.

Last fall, a Los Angeles-based television production crew chronicled the 2013 Los Jets season, delving into the lives of several players in addition to capturing the sights and sounds of robust tackles and breakaway goals.

Click HERE to read the full story.

[Photo by Patrick Davison/courtesy of Nuvotv]

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