By Craig Juer -- Daily Staff Writer

WINCHESTER — Cosmo Balio moved Matt Brannon from the midfield to the back to anchor the Judges' defense. Nine goals later, Brannon was second in scoring for the Northwestern District champs, and almost single-handedly saved them from a humiliating defeat against their archrival, Sherando.

That's why Brannon, a senior, is The Northern Virginia Daily's 2008 Boys Soccer Player of the Year.

"He's one hell of a player," Balio said of Brannon, who will take his skills to Division III Thiel College in the fall. "They don't even know what they're getting."

Brannon's proudest moment of the season came on March 31 in Stephens City. With the Judges trailing 2-0 as the first half wound down, Brannon took a header from Elliott Butler in front of the goalmouth and headed it past Dustin Butcher to get the Judges back in the game.

"I love heading the ball," said Brannon, who finished with four goals on headers this season. "That's one of the best parts of my game."

The Judges dodged a few bullets in the second half, but still trailed 2-1 as stoppage time neared. But in roughly the 89th minute, Spencer Burkholder chased down his own deflected free kick and crossed it in to Brannon, who headed it in for his second goal.

"Spencer played a great ball and I was able to head it in again," Brannon said. "The referee blew the whistle as soon as that happened."

The goal salvaged a tie with the Warriors, and in the long run kept Handley from suffering a loss during the entire regular season. It was one example of the fantastic chemistry Brannon and Burkholder share on the pitch.

"People always talk about that unsaid language, and clicking on the field, and it's funny — they would find each other all the time," Balio said. "Spencer delivered some great balls on free kicks that just put Matt in position to finish."

Brannon became such a prolific finisher coming up out of the defense that teams began marking him vigilantly.

"Toward the middle of the season, everyone figured out that we were going to him, and then still he had the ability to shake a kid free," Balio said. "We just kind of laughed. 'He got free for another goal?'"

But Brannon was still a protector of his own goal, first and foremost.

"It was kind of weird not having him there [on runs]," goalie Kyle Pryde said of Brannon, who covered Brentsville star Chris Tait so well in the district championship game that Tait grew frustrated and shoved Brannon, earning a yellow card. "But if he went up to make a run on offense I always knew Matt would hustle back to approach his defensive responsibilities too."

Brannon, who said he was "more timid" as a junior, perhaps relished most his role not as a scorer or lock-down defender, but as one of the team's three captains (along with Burkholder and Pryde).

"All three of the captains were able to hold the team together, and we ended up having really good team chemistry at the end of the season," he said. "I think I was able to help out with that. Each game we just came together more and more as a team."

R Contact Craig Juer at cjuer@nvdaily.com

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