Youth Teams
The U18 team played its first game of the 2012-13 U.S. Soccer Development Academy Finals Week on Sunday, so much of the day was spent preparing.
After breakfast, the teams attended a welcome session. Lunch then followed, and the players then returned to their rooms to rest or received treatment from the trainer.
Ahead of the pregame meal, players and staff trickled down into a common area to play videogames and board games. A game of Jenga between coaches Bryan Scales and Karl Spratt became particularly compelling, drawing a crowd of Revolution and other teams’ players. Spratt came away as champion, but in good, competitive fun, Scales continues to question the legitimacy of his tactics.
The bus departed for the field around 7 p.m., but lightning in the area stopped played in the earlier games multiple times. Ultimately, the Revs kicked off an hour later than expected.
The Revs suffered a dramatic 3-2 loss in its opening game of Finals Week., giving up a pair of late goals to Shattucks-Saint Mary’s. A game recap is available on revolutionsoccer.net.
A quiet bus ride later, the team arrived at the dorms and had a postgame meal before returning to their rooms.
With a rest day tomorrow, the Under-18s will play their second game of Finals Week against De Anza Force (Calif.) on Tuesday, July 16, at 7 p.m. ET.
The Under-18 team traveled to Houston on Saturday for the Revolution’s first-ever U.S. Soccer Development Academy Finals Week.
With players and staff meeting at the airport at 3 a.m., it was an early start to the day. One direct flight and a bus ride later, the group arrived at the University of Houston, where the players are staying – along with the rest of the teams – during the tournament.
After lunch in the dining hall, everyone had a few hours to settle in and catch up on sleep.
The group met again for dinner, before leaving for Houston Amateur Sports Park, where the U18s had a light training session.
After returning the dorms, the players went their separate ways – some opting for a post-training snack in the dining hall and others hitting the ice baths.
Finals Week play begins tomorrow and the Revs are set to take on Shattuck-Saint Mary’s at 9:30 p.m. ET. Live in-game updates can be found on Twitter at @NERevolution.
Today marked an exciting and historic day for the Revs’ youth teams, the U18s claiming a spot in their first-ever U.S. Soccer Development Academy Finals Week.
The day began earlier than usual given the U18s’ 9 a.m. kickoff. After breakfast at the hotel, the team boarded the bus for 7:30 and made its way to the fields.
Going into the match, the Revs needed to win and the Earthquakes needed to beat the Dallas Texans for New England to advance. So while the U18 coaches did their part on the bench, the remainder of the staff kept tabs on the game a few fields over and exchanged updates. The Revs did their part, topping the LA Galaxy, 4-2, but were several minutes ahead of the other game. San Jose led, 2-1, and Dallas equalized late in the game, leaving the staff scrambling to figure out what that meant for their advancement scenarios. But San Jose came up big, scoring a go-ahead goal to ensure things panned out for the Revs.
Three staff members waited (for what seemed like forever) with U.S. Soccer officials to confirm, before crossing the field to share the good news with the team.
After the initial celebration, the group took an official photo and conducted interviews with U.S. Soccer, officially announcing New England as one of eight teams in the 80-team Development Academy to advance to Finals Week.
The U16s played their final game of the Showcase at 1 p.m., battling weary legs and 96-degree temperatures to come away with a 1-1 draw.
Full game recaps are available on revolutionsoccer.net.
After returning to the hotel, the teams made sandwiches before returning to their rooms for a few hours of down time.
Capping off the trip, dinner was held at a different restaurant. Afterwards, the players took the opportunity to thank the coaches for their hard work.
Tomorrow, the group heads back to Boston. While the U16s’ year has officially come to a close, the U18s now have two week to prepare for Finals Week in Houston.
NOTE: Nearly 50 new photos were added to Flickr gallery today, so don’t forget to check that out!
Similar to Tuesday, there was only one game on Wednesday, which meant the U18s’ and U16s’ schedules differed throughout the day.
Both teams had breakfast at the hotel before the U18s met for a bit of regen work. After lunch, they could then take the hotel shuttles over to the local mall like the U16s had the previous day.
The U16s headed to the field shortly after 3:30 p.m. and the bus turned right around to pick up the U18s, who returned the favor by supporting their teammates in their second game of the Development Academy Showcase.
The U16s then played Real Colorado’s U18 squad at 5 p.m. A full recap of the 4-0 loss is available on revolutionsoccer.net.
Everyone quickly showered after returning the hotel and departed for dinner 15 minutes later.
Back the hotel, the U16s met ahead of tomorrow’s game, and the entire group was instructed to get some rest for tomorrow’s earlier wake-up.
On Thursday, both the Under-18s and Under-16s will be in action. The U18s will take on the LA Galaxy (Calif.) in their final game of the Playoffs at 10 a.m. ET. The U16s will then play the Montreal Impact in their final game of the Showcase at 2 p.m. ET.
While the U18s had a game on Tuesday, the U16s were off, allowing for a bit of rest day fun.
Both teams had breakfast at the hotel before the U16s met for a bit of regen work. After lunch, the U16 team took hotel shuttles over to the local mall to do some relaxing and shopping.
The groups reunited later for a pregame meal and the U18s headed to the fields shortly after 8 p.m.
The bus turned right around to pick up the U16s, who once again came to support their teammates in their second game of the Development Academy Playoffs.
A full recap of the 1-1 draw is available on revolutionsocceer.net.
After a postgame meal back at the hotel, everyone went back to their rooms to get some rest for the second half of the week.
On Wednesday, the Under-16s will take on Real Colorado (Colo.) in their second game of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy Showcase. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET. With a rest day tomorrow, the Under-18s will play their third and final game of the Playoffs against the LA Galaxy (Calif.) on Thursday at 10 a.m. ET.
On Monday, the U18s and U16s spent the early part of their day getting ready for their first games.
After both teams had breakfast in the hotel, their days split off into separate schedules. The U16s headed to their pregame meal shortly after noon, while the U18s ate lunch back at the hotel. The U16s then left for the field before 4 p.m., and the U18s went out for their pregame meal later on.
The U16s kicked off at 5 p.m., earning a come-from-behind 2-1 victory against Internationals in their first game of the Showcase. After the game, they went back to the hotel and had a snack.
The bus turned right around to bring the U18s to the field for their game at 9:15 p.m. They battled local side the Dallas Texans to a 1-1 draw on Monday in their first game of the Development Academy Playoffs.
Full game recaps can be found on revolutionsoccer.net.
The U16s had joined their older counterparts at the field for support and everyone rode back to the hotel together for a postgame meal in the lobby.
On Tuesday, the Under-18s will take on the San Jose Earthquakes in their second game of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy Playoffs. Kickoff is scheduled for 10:30 p.m. ET. With a rest day tomorrow, the Under-16s will play their second game of the Showcase on Wednesday at 6 p.m. ET
The Under-18 and Under-16 teams departed for the Dallas area early this morning, meeting at Logan airport for 5 a.m. Several hours later, the group touched down in Texas and reunited with our repeat – by request – bus driver James, who drove the group to the hotel.
After lunch in the hotel lobby, the players and staff headed to their rooms to unpack and unwind.
Later, the trip really kicked off with dinner at one of the teams’ favorite restaurants. Upon return to the hotel, the U18s and U16s met separately to discuss plans for tomorrow.
Both teams are in action on Monday, when the U16s take on Internationals (Ohio) in their first Showcase game, before the U18s play their first playoff match against the Dallas Texans.
When the youth schedule was first released earlier this year, the young Revs had no idea that their trip to Brooklyn, N.Y., would be just weeks after a devastating storm. Hurricane Sandy wreaked havoc along the east coast at the end of October, with New York and New Jersey especially suffering significant damage.
In conjunction with the youth teams’ away games against BW Gottschee, parents of U14 player Raffi Barsamian, Nancy and Anthony, coordinated an emergency supply drop at a shelter in Gerritsen Beach.
Youth players and front office members combined to transport and donate three car loads of supplies on behalf of the Revolution, including flashlights, batteries, non-perishable food items and first aid kits.
“Without a lot of fanfare, we wanted to make sure we gathered as many supplies as we could to bring down to one of the areas most affected by Hurricane Sandy,” explained Director of Youth Development Bryan Scales.
“When we got the word out to our Academy families and the Revs front office staff, the response was overwhelming … Being positive role models and being active in the community is something that is very important in the development our young players. We just felt it was important to step up and help in any way that we could.”
Players and staff alike returned with stories of the devastation seen in Brooklyn. But it is efforts like these that continue to bring hope to those affected by the storm.
For more on how you can help support Red Cross relief efforts, visit MLS W.O.R.K.S. on MLSsoccer.com.
On Thursday, the Under-18 team played its third and final game of the Development Academy Playoffs. With kickoff scheduled for 12 p.m., the day began much earlier than those previous.
After breakfast, the teams boarded the bus and made the familiar trip to the fields.
A fun little tidbit that has gone unmentioned this week: the teams watch a pump-up video on the bus en route to each game. A compilation of action photos from the 2011-12 season, the video is set to The Who’s Eminence – a nice touch in an already professional atmosphere.
For more on the U18s’ game against Charlotte Soccer Academy – a 3-1 loss – check out the recap on revolutionsoccer.net
The group then ate lunch upon the return to the hotel and had the next few hours off. Many of the U16s took the opportunity to go to the mall, while others watched the Italy-Germany game in their rooms.
For dinner, the Revolution met up with new affiliate club Empire United.
Before calling it a night, the Revs group met back at the hotel. The players recognized a few key staff members with gifts, before the coaches announced the end-of-year award-winners.
Under-18s:
Player of the Year: Dominik Machado
Minuteman Award: Devin Devoy
Coaches’ Award: Jack Hilger
Under-16s:
Player of the Year: Gabe Gissie
Coaches’ Award: Matthew Cooper
Minuteman Award: Erik Martel
On Friday, the U16s are set to play their third and final game of the Development Academy Playoffs. Kickoff against the Dallas Texans is scheduled for 10 a.m. ET.
The Under-16s played their second game of the Development Academy Playoffs on Wednesday, while the Under-18s had the day off.
Per usual, the day began with breakfast in the hotel. And after the players returned to their rooms for a bit, the group met back up for a snack around noon and then lunch during halftime of the Spain-Portugal game.
Many of the U18s used their downtime throughout the day to walk to the mall nearby.
Everyone then boarded the bus at 5:20 p.m. to make the trip to FC Dallas Sports Park.
The Under-16s suffered a 3-0 loss to Pateadores. (Game recap available on revolutionsoccer.net.) Now 0-1-1 in the Playoffs, they remain mathematically eligible to clinch a spot in Finals Week.
After the game, the group quickly changed back at the hotel and left for dinner at a travel favorite – Buca di Beppo. The tables shared family-style salad, bread, chicken and pasta, and relaxed after a long day.
Everyone then met briefly in the hotel lobby before retiring to their rooms.
On Thursday, the U18s are set to play their third and final game of the Development Academy Playoffs. Kickoff against Charlotte Soccer Academy is scheduled for 12 p.m. ET.