EASTHAM — When the Wellfleet Breakers took the field against Cape Cod Soccer League newcomers Napoli Hyannis on June 22, the difference between the two teams was stark. Napoli’s blue-striped uniforms shone against their opponents’ black shirts, and its players skewed noticeably younger. Some of the Breakers, meanwhile, have been playing since their team’s founding in 2010.

But the Breakers demonstrated that this old dog still has some tricks up its sleeve, beating Napoli 1-0 in a tightly controlled game before a small but passionate crowd.

That single goal was the work of Aidan Salzano, who found the net with about 16 minutes left on a pass from teammate Anthony Lovati. Once that goal was secured, the Breakers methodically kept the ball away from their opponents.

Much of the game leading up to Salzano’s goal was played on Napoli’s side of the field, with the Breakers’ defense punting the ball back whenever it came near them. Usually it was the Breakers’ top scorer, Kevon Campbell, who took the ball after those kicks, moving fast enough to easily overtake Napoli’s defenders.

“We like to go over the top to Campbell or Lovati, because they’ve got wheels,” said Coach Tony Conte. “We like to build. If you can build from that back, that’s a good way to start a match, right? You want to take that little chance and put it over the top.”

Conte clearly wasn’t the only one at Sunday’s game who thought the Breakers’ offense “had wheels.” A very young fan in the stands could be heard yelling “bicycle!” whenever the Breakers were in a position to score. An adult fan yelled his own words of encouragement: “Control the game! You need this win!”

No one attempted a bicycle kick, but the Breakers seemed to take the other advice to heart. The team became more composed as the game neared its end, thanks especially to confident play by goalkeeper Flavio Augusto Salome de Franca. At one point, de Franca stepped out of the goal to dribble the ball a few feet before diving to grab it with his hands in a play for time against Napoli. His teammate Kenrick Clarke did much the same a few minutes later — albeit without the use of his hands.

Sunday’s game marked the second shutout in a row for de Franca and the Breakers. Their previous game — against Harwich-based Scorcha FC on June 18 — ended 2-0 in Wellfleet’s favor.

Despite recent successes, Conte said this season has been something of an uphill battle for the team. They lost six players to other teams after switching their home field to Nauset High School this year.

“During the construction, we were down in Brewster, so we picked up some nice players from Mashpee, Centerville, and Hyannis,” he said. “But then we moved back here after the construction, and they wanted to play closer to their home.”

Four of those players — Ramon Ramires, Gleison Mota Reis, Renato Filho, and former Louisville FC player Kenny Doublette — joined Barnstable-based AC-Independence this year. Two others, brothers Connor and Charlie Cushing, joined Nauset Storm, the former as assistant coach.

“There’s no hard feelings, for the record,” Conte said.

But tensions were high during the Breakers’ first game against Nauset on June 15. Some of the Breakers even earned themselves a red card during that match, Conte says — “but no excuses, right?”

Sunday’s match against Napoli, meanwhile, was largely good-natured, with players laughing and congratulating each other even as the game began to drag near the end. Almost all the trash talk came from the bleachers — one fan called for the referee to card a Napoli player, then quickly changed tack to congratulatory shouting after Salzano had scored: “Good stuff, Breakers! Good stuff, coach!”

The summer of 2025 marks Conte’s 15th season coaching the Breakers. He’s been with them since they were founded, and has donned shin guards and cleats to join the team on the field when it is down a player. That happened a few times last year, mostly on Wednesdays, he said. “Wednesday is a very difficult time,” said Conte. “People get injured. People have to be with their families.”

Conte himself used to play for the now-disbanded Chatham Fog in the late 1980s. He said he remembers there being a crowd of about 500 for each game — and crowds numbering in the thousands for the postseason Davis Cup playoffs. Now, the crowds are much smaller — but the sense of community is the same, both on and off the field.

The Davis Cup happens at the end of the regular season, once each of the league’s eight teams has had a chance to play each of the others twice. All eight teams automatically qualify. This year, the quarterfinals are scheduled for Sunday, Aug. 3. Barnstable-based Stable United is the defending champion, but the Breakers beat them 2-1 in their first match of the season.

Usually, Conte said, Nauset is the team to beat. This year, however, it’s AC-Independence that seems to be the strongest. They’re currently on top of the rankings, with a 4-1-0 record at press time. That loss was against Nauset Storm, in both teams’ first game of the season.

At press time, the Breakers ranked fourth of eight teams, with a season record of 3-2. Sunday’s game put Napoli in fifth place at 2-2-1.