IN A SPORT such as football, where camaraderie is so important, every player likes to think of his team as a family.
If anyone can identify . . .
Say hello to Robert Kralle, a 6-2, 245-pound senior, inside linebacker and fullback for Edward Bok Tech, which on Saturday, at noon at the South Philly Super Site, will meet West Catholic for the Class AA City Title.
Frank "Roscoe" Natale is not only Kralle's coach. For a 2-month stint beginning late last February, he served as his emergency father.
Almost 2 months earlier, Kralle, a standout student, had been forced to leave Ss. Neumann-Goretti for financial reasons. Then living a few blocks away, he had often visited the Natales' home because of his friendship with their son, Blaise, a player at N-G.
So, when a family emergency left Kralle with no options, at least if he wanted to remain in Philly, he popped up on the Natales' doorstep, summoned all the necessary courage and asked whether Roscoe would be able to help him.
Indeed. In not-surprising, giant-sized fashion.
After all, as Kralle would later learn, Natale was the guy who, in 2006, had donated a kidney to a good buddy from his days at West Catholic, Rick Pergolini.
"One day at a football meeting, I mentioned to coach Natale that I had some worries about a family situation," Kralle said yesterday, standing outside the Wildcats' locker room, maybe a half-hour before the start of practice. "He said if I wound up needing his help, just come to him.
"When those worries came true, I went to his house and he welcomed me right in. I was pretty upset. He told me to get my rest, then we'd talk about everything. I explained the situation and he said, right away, 'Go grab your stuff. You're moving in.' He fed me. Took care of me. Just like I was his own son. It goes to show, there really are good-spirited people."
Kralle (kuh-rell-ee) has extended family members in Egg Harbor Township, N.J., so he could have moved there. But he loved Philly, and especially his new friends at Bok, so he was thrilled when Natale's kindness allowed him to stay.
Blessed with a strong upper body, Kralle has become a powerful, teeth-rattling hitter for a squad that last week used a late rally to best Imhotep Charter, 22-19, for the Public League AA crown.
Also, he has continued to be fascinated by all things Roscoe.
