Could this be the same team that we played today?Washington's Crossfire SYL U15 Boys squad earns international invitationSeattle club off to Hong Kong
Redmond, Washington’s Crossfire Premier Boys U15 Super Y-League team is headed to the NIKE Manchester United World Champions in Hong Kong. Under the leadership of Coach Bernie James the Crossfire Premier won the NIKE Manchester United US Championships over Memorial Day Weekend hosted at the NIKE complex in Portland, OR.
At the 2004 Super Y-League North American Finals, the team lost a close match to the Chicago Magic 3-2. The Crossfire Premier team was one of just 16 US teams invited to compete in the prestigious NIKE event.
To garner the invitation, they tied the Dallas Texans 0-0 and beat the Concord (GA) Fire 3-0, San Diego Surf (2-0) and Ohio Mutiny (2-0). In the finals they defeated the nationally recognized Irvine Strikers (2-1). Last year Crossfire was the first Washington club ever invited to the NIKE Manchester United Premier Cup in an international soccer tournament, started in 1993 as the NIKE Premier Cup, for U14/15 boys and U14 girl’s teams. This year they were the first Northwest club to win the competition which is traditionally dominated by teams from Southern California.
“This is a significant achievement for both our club and Washington state soccer,” said Crossfire Coaching Director and former US National team player, Bernie James. “Our club has been looking forward to this tournament all year. Only the best play here and to come home with first and third place finishes is an incredible result.”
The Crossfire boys will be headed for Hong Kong in mid July the culmination of this worldwide event where more than 6,000 teams from 40 nations on five continents have been vying for the 2005 Manchester United Premier Cup, and if history repeats itself, at least a few will be the soccer stars of the future.
Since its inception, the Manchester United Premier Cup has showcased a wealth of talented young players, many of whom have already graduated to the highest levels of the professional game, including Andy van der Meyde (Ajax), Xavi (Barcelona, Spanish National Team), Iker Casillas (Real Madrid, Spanish National Team), Ednilson (Benefica, U-21 Portuguese National Team), Mikael Forssell (Chelsea) and Juan Pablo Rodriguez (Club Atlas, Mexican National Team).
Scouting by participating clubs and professional scouts has also added to the excitement of the intense competition on the field. In the 1998 World Finals in Barcelona , Jun Tamano’s standout performance resulted in Athletico de Madrid immediately signing him to the youth team. Now based in Japan, he is playing for Tokyo Verdy 1969.
The NIKE ManU Cup was a crowning event in what has been a banner year for these Crossfire teams. The boys team started off by placing first in the Northwest Division of the Super Y-League before going on to make the semifinals at the North American Championships. In addition they won the top division in the Washington State League, the Washington State Cup and the Crossfire Premier Challenge.
Crossfire Premier Soccer Club, based in Redmond, WA, is the Advanced Development Program affiliated with the Lake Washington Youth Soccer Association (LWYSA). LWYSA offers an unrivaled program for boys and girls ages 10-18 to play competitive soccer through the Crossfire Premier Soccer Club. Nine Washington Crossfire squads compete in the Super Y-League.
Its mission is to promote the game of soccer by providing the highest possible level of technical and tactical training, skill development, competitive team play, and to provide highly skilled and capable players with an opportunity to further excel in the sport. It is Crossfire’s goal to become, and to be recognized, as a consistently successful Premier Soccer Club within Washington State, within our region and throughout the United States. Crossfire players, coaches, managers and member families will strive to be an asset to the sport of soccer and to the community in which they live.
Crossfire Premier 90 Lineup: Brooks Hopp, Daniel Wenzel, Brent Richards, Brandon Zimmerman, Anthony Arena, Aaron Becerril, Esteban Reyes, Ellis McLoughlin, Alexander Klein, Fernando Monge Jr., Tyler Klein, Kellan Brown, Jonathan Castro, Justin Minuk, Joshua Petosa, Davis Smith, Jordan Softli,.
Coach: Bernie James. Assistant: Greg Lambert
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