Richard Mealey anchors Jaguar defense and excels on offense. (Photo by Bill Roa)

There was a distinctly U.K. flavor to the 2012 edition of the Georgia Perimeter College men’s soccer team. Students from Great Britain and Northern Ireland accounted for three of five Jaguars that made the All-Region 17 men’s soccer team and/or the conference all-tournament team. 

Freshman defender/midfielder Richard Mealey of London, England, made the all-region first team selected by the coaches of the Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association, also known as Region 17 of the NJCAA.

The 6-foot-5 Mealey, normally an offensive player, anchored the Jaguar defense and did double duty late in the season as a midfielder and forward. He posted four goals and three assists.

“Richard has excellent header skills,” said acting head coach Allan Davie. “He provides maturity for the team. He is very composed, with good ball control.”

Named to the all-region second team were sophomore midfielders Danny Seabrook (London) and Ross Nelson (Larne, Northern Ireland), along with freshman defender Johnny Resendiz of Atlanta.

Resendiz and sophomore midfielder Cesar Espinoza of Lilburn made the all-tournament team.

Led by the U.K. caucus, the team played with a solid European approach to the game. However, Georgia Perimeter, which won a national championship in 2005 and six straight appearances in the National Junior College Athletic Association tournament, ended the 2012 season with a 9-8 record.

“The majority [of the team] are freshmen and young, raw talent,” Davie said. “They will learn from this experience and come back stronger next year.” A Jaguar alumnus, Davie filled in for NJCAA Hall-of-Fame head coach Marc Zagara, who sat out the season on medical leave.