Trussville United Soccer Club GANNON OSBORNE One of the leaders of the Trussville Fire 03 state champions is their goalkeeper, Gannon Osborne. Gannon, an eighth-grader at Duran Junior High in Pell City, was “crucial” to the team’s success in 2016, according to head coach Joel Wallace. The goalkeeper coach at UAB, Wallace says he thinks his team had the best goalkeeper and defensive core in the state and believes Gannon’s performance in the net was a key reason the team won the State Cup in Foley this past November. “He makes good decisions on when to play long or play short. He’s just a very smart player,” says Wallace. “With Gannon in goal and our four backs, it was very hard to break us down. When it came down to State Cup, it all came together with three shutouts in the end to win.” When Wallace took over the team in 2016, he had some challenges to deal with including getting this group of talented boys to work together as a team. He says Gannon stepped up into a leadership role and provided the maturity and competitiveness the group needed to succeed. “He leads by example,” Wallace says. “He is very competitive. He will run through a wall and put his body on the line to make a save and the guys see that. They want to work hard for him because they see he does not quit.”