One last time
Juarez earns All-Star MVP honors with Perez on sideline

Eric Perez made the difficult decision earlier this year to leave his job as head coach of the Green Forest soccer team for an assistant coaching position in Siloam Springs.

It’s a step up to a larger classification for Perez, a Green Forest native who was a player on the Tigers’ 2014 Class 4A state championship team and then coached his alma mater to a Class 3A state title in his first year as head coach in 2021. Still, leaving his hometown isn’t easy.

Eric Perez

“It was a tough decision,” Perez said. “It’s a good opportunity, but it was very tough.”

Perez and the Tigers followed up on their 2021 title by reaching the state tournament semifinals this spring — a pretty good two-year run of success on the field. But that won’t be Perez’s enduring memory from those two years.

“The kids,” he said. “I’ll always remember them. I told them all: ‘Don’t be scared to contact me for anything.’ I want to keep having a good relationship with them. The championship is nice, because they’ll always remember that.”

Perez got one last chance to coach a pair of Tigers in the Arkansas High School Coaches Association All-Star soccer game on June 24 in Conway. Perez was an assistant coach for the West All-Stars, whose roster included 2022 Green Forest graduates Fredy Juarez Jr. and Bryan Soto.

“I think everyone enjoyed it,” Perez said. “It was fun. We had both Fredy and Bryan represent Green Forest. I think they had a good time.”

To top it all off, Juarez was voted the game’s Most Valuable Player for his play in goal. Juarez made several clutch saves as the West won the game 2-1.

“It was a good game,” Perez said.

Also on the West roster was Freddy Roque of Berryville. Perez said he told Roque he looked good in red, Green Forest’s primary color.

“He just grinned and shook his head no,” Perez said.

Perez’s accomplishments will be remembered not only at Green Forest High School but throughout the local soccer community, said Rob Kerby, president of Green Forest’s thriving Town and Country Soccer Club.

“It’s been a rare privilege to watch Eric grow up on our fields,” Kerby said. “He was astonishingly talented as a grade schooler — the sort of second grader you stand back and allow to follow his instincts and be cleverly creative. He didn’t have the correct stance or form as a young player, but he consistently put the ball in the net. So, we didn’t get in his way. We hate to see him go, but it’s with incredible pride. He’s been a blessing to our program for almost two decades.”