Well the weekend results suqued for the Seals but the derby was a good fixture to end the season on in terms of interest value and a chance for fans of both clubs to mingle at the BBQ and enjoy... well, just being. Seriously we'd all like to win the championship but just the fact that the metro Bay Area boasted two PDL teams that gave the players and the fans something to leave their FSC and Gol-TV couches for, is an achievement in itself. I, for one, have met a lot of new acquaintances and indeed friends through my being a volunteer last season with the Frogs, and through being a fan of the Seals since their return (only saw one game in the previous incarnation). Luckily with the Victory still to play a batch of home USL-1 games the partying will continue and veggie burgers and barbecued chicken will continue to cook on the open grills as London Prides are consumed Thanks especially to the volunteers and players of both clubs--it's easy to forget that they are often putting in long hours with little reward other than they keep their clubs going, the camerarderie, and their love of the beautiful game. Thank you San Francisco Seals for another memorable season! -------------------------------------------------------------------------- To be is to BAUSL
WTF??? While some of us actually work to make sure Seals gameday is successful, others, well, you get the picture (literally) Nah, Roma's the man. The King of the throne ...
Thank you to all who made the Seals 2007 season a success. Players, coaches, management, volunteers, and most importantly, FANS. Its only been a couple of days, yet some of us have started working and planning for the 2008 season. We will work hard to bring you San Francisco soccer next year. Look forward to seeing everyone ...
Damn looking too serious in this one--got the game face on and ready to play keeper... OK another take...
Well, that's about all he does. Besides getting to the games later than anyone !!! It's his Portuguese blood ...
Benfequista and I are heading to Fresno this afternoon to watch the PDL palyoffs. First game is at 4:30pm. BYU Cougars vs San Fernando Valley Quakes Fresno Fuego vs Tacoma Tide It will be cool to watch PDL games where there could be a draw of a few thousand fans which Fresno has been able to attract. Plus we get to meet fellow Bigsoccer PDL fans SheffWedFan of the San Fernando Valley Quakes and Mauser of Fresno Fuego. If anyone is interested, let me kow by 1:00pm. I will be driving ...
Jay, RIP. Our thoughts our with his family and friends ... A Tragedy Befalls the Seals Community Today we have received word that Jay Singh, a 20 year old soccer player, who played for the Seals U20 team has passed away. A news story is located at the bottom of this note. For the Seals soccer community, Jay's death is a tragedy of proportions we could never anticipate or imagine. Jay was in the prime of his life and the prime of his growing soccer career. Jay loved the game of soccer and played it well. He was a gifted midfielder who was calm and skilled. His game was all about passing and he loved to move the ball. He was part of a very successful U20 team that took second place in the Northern California division of the USL's U20 league, the most prestigious and highest level program for Under 20 players in the United States. Jay was an integral part of that team and played an important role in its success. He had many other successes in his career. Some are mentioned in the attached story. As a person Jay was loved by his team-mates. He always had a smile for them and he was always ready to play. He had a generous heart, a great sense of humor and a magnetic charisma. We will miss him dearly. If you wish to reach out to the surviving family members with your sympathy and condolences, you can contact them at: 2480 Catalpa Way, San Bruno, Ca 94066. To remember Jay, please send comments and stories to sfseals@gmail.com. We will publish them in a tribute to Jay on the Seals website. Viewing There is a viewing this evening at Skylawn San Bruno Funeral Home (see map below) from 4:30 to 7:00 PM. Funeral His funeral will be held tomorrow at 11 AM at Skylawn San Bruno Funeral Home, 200 San Bruno Ave, San Bruno California (See Map Below) As we contemplate our loss, let's not forget those closest to him and who loved him most. Our hearts go out to his grieving family. They have lost a beloved son. Tom Simpson Head Coach, Jay's Team
For those that do not know, the San Francsico Seals have a "sister" team called the San Francisco Glens that participate in the San Francisco Soccer Football League http://www.sfsfl.com The Glens will be playing undefeated El Farolito in the championship game this Sunday at Boxer Stadium for the CPSA champinship at 2:00pm. Here is the write up of the semifinal win over Santa Clara Sporting: The San Francisco Glens, sibling to the San Francisco Seals, knocked off Santa Clara Sporting at Boxer Stadium on Sunday, November 4th, in CPSA competition. The game played out according to script. Santa Clara only needed a tie to go through to the final because they finished the regular season one position higher in the standings. Not surprisingly they played conservatively and kept shape. The Glens played the role of the aggressor and got a number of opportunities to score but failed to cash in. Frustration mounted but it finally came to an end at the 40th minute in the first half. The Glens picked up a direct kick from the right side about 10 yards outside the box. Matt Languis stepped up and hit a slicing ball into the right upper corner. It was the winning goal and up to this point, the most important goal of our season. The second half was about Sporting's effort to get the one goal they needed to tie the game and go forward to the final. However, they weren't effective. Their effort was strong and persistent and they certainly had talented players on the field, but the Glens effort outmatched them. In particular, the defensive work of Rich Halvorsen, Eduar Mafla and Rawley Masaniai stood out, as did the solid goalkeeping of Dan Benton. However, it was a full team effort and the quality defense was complimented with a number of counter-attack opportunities. The Glens didn't convert, but they made a strong statement that an over aggressive commitment to score on the part of Sporting could cost them dearly. The game ended in regulation time with a 1 nil shutout.
Looks like Josh Hansen (ex California Victory) has been playing for the Glens and will suit up for the champinship game agaisnt El Farolito this upcoming Sunday afternoon against El Farolito at Boxer Stadium at 2:00pm. Here is the press release where you will see quite a few Seals player participating. Looks like Carlos Diaz might even play after getting injured in a Seals game early in the PDL season ... The San Francisco Glens - El Farolito Farolito Championship Match Sunday 2PM at Boxer Stadium This Sunday, November 11, the San Francisco Glens will play in the CPSA Championship Final at Boxer Stadium at 2PM. The game will be broadcasted on Radio 1010 in Spanish (sorry, English-only speakers!). The opponent is El Farolito. The Glens and El Farolito have a rivalry that goes back many years. It began in 1991 when SFUSC, the Glens precursor youth team, played El Farolito in the Men's State Cup Final. That year SFUSC was comprised of U19 players. The year before, in 1990, the team won the U19 CYSA State Cup as U18s. They went on to the Western Regional Championship where they lost 2-1 to North Hungtington Beach (Zak Ibsen, Jorge Salcedo) who won the National Championship. The boys wanted to return to the State Cup in 1991 but there was an administrative obstacle: the CYSA. Back then, CYSA Administrators had a strangle hold on youth soccer, and they decided to break up the SFUSC team because it had become too strong. As a result, the SFUSC youth team entered mens soccer where the qualified for the Men's State Cup Championship and faced El Farolito in Final. SFUSC lost that match to El Farolito 1 nil on a PK awarded by Brian Hall who judged that SFUSC goal keeper, Chris Carniato, handed the ball outside the 18 when he fisted it to clear. They not only got the pk goal but SFUSC went to 10 players because Hall ejected the goalkeeper. Thus began a long rivalry that has spanned 16 years. The two teams have faced each other many times since then and the record is fairly balanced. This year El Farolito has the edge but it's somewhat cosmetic. Earlier in the year the Glens were re-scheduled to play a rainout against El Farolito on the same day that a Seals match was alread scheduled. For those of you who aren't familiar with the Glens, you should know that many of the Glens players also play for the Seals in a different leauge called the PDL and in May the two leagues conflict timewise. The Glens requested to move the date but El Farolito refused the request, which was their right. They were granted an automatic victory and three points. Two years ago the Glens faced El Farolito in the CPSA final at St. Marys College. That year the Glens finished in first place and were awarded CPSA regular season championship honors. However when the Glens got to the final, they experienced 3 unfortunate events: John Colan, the top goal scorer in the league that year, pulled a lower calf muscle a week earlier. John Cowmey the starting midfielder for the Glens pulled a hamstring midway in the first half. Finally, a broken love affair the night before put another striker, who will remain unnamed, into a state of disorientation and ineffectiveness. Yes, the team had plenty of excuses, and in a final such excuses sound like sour grapes. Still the Glens, sour grapes an all, battled El Farolito strongly though they lost the match 2-1. Last year, 2006, El Farolito and the Glens played in post-season competition again, this time in the semi-finals of the CPSA Championship series. The Glens had a full squad and easily handed El Farolito an unquestionable defeat of 3-1. Ah, the sweetness of revenge!! This year's match should be very interesting. El Farolito is undefeated in 20 league games. The Glens finished 3rd in the league and had to knock off second place Santa Clara Sporting last week, 1-0, to get into the final. The Glens go into the match with confidence and a solid roster. El Farolito goes into the match equally confident with an undefeated season to qualify them for the rights to play in the final. One thing behind the rivalry of this match that is not often discussed or recognized is the role of money in the game. The Glens is a fully and truly an amateur side. Even though many of the players have played or do play professionally, no Glens player receives a dime for playing. They all play for the old fashioned love-of-the-sport (okay there may be a monetary motive because by playing for the Glens a player may be better prepared to make money elsewhere or perhaps get a scholarship to go to college). Regardless or in spite of some tangential monetary value for playing, there is no financial incentive for any player to be on the field this Sunday. In a world that is driven by greed and acquisition this is refreshing to know. El Farolito, however, is not a true amateur team. Many, if not all, of their players will receive cash stipends for playing on Sunday, just as they have for every game they played this season. There's nothing illegal about it. However, the difference between the two "cultures" is part of the rivalry and interest in the game. Every player and every coach in the league is aware of this issue. This is the battle of the "play for pay" verus the "play for the love of the game" cultures. Of course, it's never as simple as that and we recognize that a player has every right to seek compensation if he's deserving of it. Some players need the cash. Last year, Marcos DaSilva played midfield for the Glens for nothing. He worked hard in his off time to make ends meet by delivering pizza. Yes, of course he's Brazilian!! This year Marcos is the starting striker for El Farolito, enticed there by the cash he receives for playing in the game. This happens all the time. John Colan tells me that the manager of El Farolito asks him "every time" he sees him to come to El Farolito to make money. Indeed, Colan could make a few hundred dollars each game. Sometimes he does this when he plays in San Jose for Swami's Hondurans and we lose Colan for that match. Still, Colan, who is far from rich and struggles to make ends meet gives up the opportunity to make money when he plays for the Glens. That's special. The Glens is a hands-to-mouth operation. There is no income to justify paying players. The team doesn't receive money for the tickets sold at the gate. The league takes that money. There is no deep pockets business or sponsor to support the Glens players. There is the shallow pockets support of Joe Dugan's Alliance Travel business, but his business can only afford to pay for team expenses. The reality is that the players carve time into their personal and professional lives to make room for the game they love. When the players line up on Sunday no one knows who is paid and who isn't. On the field no one cares. It will be a battle. However, off the field, when people talk about why young men dedicate time to a sport, the pride edge goes to the Glens. They can honestly say they play because they love to play and people will believe them. The Glens Roster for Sunday includes the following players: Goalkeepers: Dan Benton, a professional who plays with the Charlotte Eagles. Dan played his college soccer at San Jose State. John Hutchinson will backup Dan Benton on Sunday. "Hutch" has been the Glens regular keeper for most of the season until Dan returned from his pro duties back East. Also on the roster but injured is Harris Smiler, who was the starting keeper for the Seals U20 team during their fabulous 2007 season. Centerbacks: Eduar Mafla is a professional with a long career. He was born in Colombia and also played in Bolivia, Peru and China. Rich Halvorsen, captain, plays for the SF Seals, and played his college ball at San Jose State. Rich may not be available because of family commitments. Bryan Baird is a three time All American from UC Santa Cruz(interestingly as a striker). He may play in the middle if Rich is not available. Other backline players include: Aaron Girard, an experienced left back who played at Chico State. Luis Aguilar, a professonal from USL 1 League who played this year for the California Victory and the Montreal Impact. Luis played his college soccer at USF. Midfielders include: Rawley Masaniai who has been a Seals and Glens player for the last three years. Rawley spent a good portion of last year in Germany and his college years at San Jose State. Shani Simpson, also captain, is one of two Glens players who was on the 1991 team that played vs. El Farolito. Shani had a multi-year professional history with the Seals and was a starter on the Open Cup Semi finalist team who played vs. DC United. Shani also had brief MLS time with the Clash, the Chicago Fire and the LA Galaxy. Matt Languis is a mid-fielder who played his college soccer at USF, then joined the Frogs for the PDL season and afterwards joined the California Victory. He scored the winning goal vs. Santa Clara Sporting. Jaime Gomez is a veteran midfielder from the CPSA who learned the game in Colombia as a youth. Jeff Land is another veteran CPSA midfielder who played his college soccer at Hayward State. John Cowmey, an ex-professional from the Sounders and Seals, won't be available for the match because he's been placed on injured reserve. Nick Murphy is doubtful for the Glens midfield because of a recent hip-flexor injury. Nick at 18 is the youngest player on the Glens. He spent the last year learning the game in Osnabruck Germany under the watchful eye of our own Joe Enochs. Joe's career with the Glens club dates back to 1987 when he traveled with the SFUSC U15 team to the Gothia, Norway, Dana and Helsinki Cups. He played in the McGuire Cup (USYSA U19 National Champsionship final), later for the Seals, then went on to a lustrous pro career in Europe and has played for the US National team. Nick was on Osnabruck's U19 team. Osnabruck, for those of you who are interested, is doing fairly well this year in the Bundesliga 2. Last, but not the least of our midfielders, is Tony Alejandre. Tony and Shani played on the 1990 CYSA State Cup Championship team. Tony also played against El Farolito in the game that began the rivalry in 1991. Tony played for the Seals a number of years and played his college soccer at San Jose State. Strikers include: John Colan, a professional with a long career in Peru, who has been at the top of the scoring charts in the CPSA for the past 3 years. Keith Ratzburg, also a top scorer in the CPSA, played professionally for the Seals, was called up occasionally to the MLS by the Clash, and played his college soccer at USF. Josh Hansen plays professionally for the Vancouver Whitecaps in the USL1. In fact, Josh has been in Vancouver this week to play in the Whitecaps game vs. the LA Galaxy. The game drew 42,000 people thanks, of course, to David Beckham, who did play in the match. Josh has also played for the LA Galaxy of the MLS and was on their MLS Championship roster last year. Tuka Tisam will be on hand for the final game. Tuka plays for the Cooks Island National Team. Tuka scored the most dramatic goal of our season againt Tepatitlan in the last match of the regular season with an explosive header off a long cross from Matt Languis. Finally, Carlos Diaz will dress for this game. Carlos was an outstanding youth player from the Napa area who has had time in U20 National team games. Carlos was the scoring leader for the Seals in the 2006 season. He played his first two years of college soccer at St. Marys but dislocated his knee cap early in the Seals 2007 season. He had surgery 5 months ago and recently started training again with the Glens. He's not ready for 90 minutes, but his very dangerous left foot has looked sharper in training, so don't be surprised if you see him for a few minutes on Sunday. Players who have made recent contributions but are not currently available include: Adrian Melville, an ex-Princeton player, who has been sidelined by a hamstring. Johnny Gonzalez and Sam Krow-Lucal, both Seals players, who are not currently available. And finally, we can't forget Asahi Yamamoto, a Japanese player, who came from his home country just to play for the Glens in the second half of the season. He exploded onto the scene with a dramatic goal in his first game played at Kezar Stadium against Concordia in August. Konichiwa, Asahi-san, we hope to see you back soon! That rounds out the Glens roster for this Sunday's game. Boxer Stadium is located in Balboa park near the junction of Ocean and San Jose Avenues. Come out and support the Glens. They'll reward you. A copy of this News Release can be found at: www.soccer-training-info.com
The game last week between the SF Glens/Seals was rescheduled for today (Sunday) at 2:00pm at Boxer Stadium. Here is the latest Seals news ... Event Name Next Up! SF Glens vs El Farolito 2:00pm Boxer Statium Newsletter 2007: San Francisco Seals Soccer Seals Post Season News November 16, 2007 Greetings! The Seals off-season has been an active one! This newsletter covers some of the activities around the Seals, their players, and the Bay Area in general. Enjoy the reading! Seals Players with the Glens Play for CPSA Championship This Sunday, November 18, the San Francisco Glens will play in the CPSA Championship Final at Boxer Stadium at 2PM. The opponent is El Farolito. Earlier in the year the Glens were re-scheduled to play a rainout against El Farolito on the same day that a Seals match was alread scheduled. For those of you who aren't familiar with the Glens, you should know that many of the Glens players also play for the Seals in a different leauge called the PDL and in May the two leagues conflict timewise. The Glens requested to move the date but El Farolito refused the request, which was their right. They were granted an automatic victory and three points. Last year, 2006, El Farolito and the Glens played in the semi-finals of the CPSA Championship series. The Glens had a full squad and easily handed El Farolito an unquestionable defeat of 3-1. This year's match should be very interesting. El Farolito is undefeated in 20 league games. The Glens finished 3rd in the league and had to knock off second place Santa Clara Sporting last week, 1-0, to get into the final. The Glens go into the match with confidence and a solid roster. El Farolito goes into the match equally confident with an undefeated season to qualify them for the rights to play in the final. Read the Full Story . . . . Seals Off-season News Seals Tryouts in Nigeria Saturday November 17th, there will be a game staged at the National Stadium in Lagos, Nigeria to look at players for the Seals and the Seals U20 team. This game was organized by a local Nigerian agent working with Ken Boardman of San Francisco. Ken, as some of you may remember, is a Nigerian player who had a distinguished career here in the United States at USF and professionally. Ken is now an international businessman who travels frequently to Nigeria. He will be at the tryout on Saturday and will evaluate the players as candidates for the Seals teams. Many of these Nigerian players have been writing us for years to see if there's some way to get to the United States to play for the Seals. This is their chance. We're very grateful to Ken for having organized the tryout. Ken tells me that there is a lot of interest by Nigerians in playing in the United States. In order to build a relationship between the two soccer communities, ours and the Nigerian community, Ken is looking into the possibiity of a Seals tour of Nigeria before the World Cup in 2010 in South Africa. Seals Camp in Manchester, UK The interest in registrations for this camp continue to grow on the part of players and coaches. We are getting inquiries from all over the UK and France. Also, John Brooks, head cooach of Dominican College will attend the camp and live with the players in the bunkhouse. The interest by UK players is growing because the interest by UK players in the United States is growing. Paul Sapsford of Holy Names University turned his program around overnight by his recruiting strategies that includes the hosting of tryouts in the United States for UK players. He has large groups of 15-18 players coming in periodically to play games and get viewed by American coaches. Ours is a reverse opportunity where the American coach can see UK players on their home turf. It's a lot cheaper for the UK players than flying to the United States, so it seems to be attractive. Interested players and coaches can send their emails Seals in Brazil The Seals are currently in discusssion with a group of Brazilian football people who are interested in bringing US Players to Brazil for a variety of reasons ranging from training opportunities to signing contracts with major clubs. This is a primarily a teaser statement at this point, but there is already minor movement. We're talking to them now about sending young players down to train in the 2008 season. The major members of the group are attorneys who played for the Seals in the past. Ricardo Zambo and Eduardo Alburquerque played for the Seals during our 15-3 division finalists 1993 season. Eduardo had just finished his career with Palmeiras and was on his way to completing his education as an attorney. Ricardo and Edu have partnered up with well known and well positioned Brazilian footbal people. We'll withold some details for now but it promises to be a great opportunity for American players. College Round-up Including some DII and Community College News The biggest news for the moment is that Marcus Ziemer's Seawolves from Sonoma State are in the final eight. The last time they got this far was in 2002. To qualify Sonoma tied Cal State Dominquez Hills at the Cal State home field in Southern California then beat them in pks. Sonoma dominated the honors categories with 5 players on the All Regional Playoffs team. Brook Johnson and Ross Middlemiss, both Sonoma State playes, were named as the outstanding defensive and offensive players of the tournament, respectively. Sonoma State plays against Midwestern State in Wichita Falls in the NCAA Quarterfinals this weekend in Texax. Our congratulations to Sonoma State and Marcus Ziemer for his consistent productivity and outstanding contribution to the game over the years. In other local college news, San Francisco City College has quietly gone undefeated for the year. That's an amazing feat given that SFCC has been the perennial bottom of the pack team in their community college division. We think some Seals players had something to do with that. Stephen Cordova, Shea Whelan and Allen LaSpina played for SFCC and also for Seals U20s, a very successful team in its own right. Stephen also played for the Seals PDL team against the Fijian National Team last year and got a number of starts in the PDL league. He scored a blistering goal against the Lancaster Rattlers that provided the winning margin for that game. Rudy Zeller at Contra Costa College had a truly remarkable season. It started off disastrously after 3 recruited players were lost to the squad for various reasons. Things got worse when some internal dissension seemed to threaten the integrity of the team. Rudy took some serious steps. He had to sack his only goalkeeper. It was a difficult decision, but Rudy made the decision based on his desire to have 11 guys on the field who were committed to the game. His action had the desired effect. The team went from losing every game they played to winnng the remaining games. They ended up with a 7 and 2 record in league and a second place finish. Rudy simply rotated field players in the goal to solve his goal keeper problem. Sometimes we miss how impactful a coach can be on this game because we so often focus on the end result. Sometimes we miss also that the essential element to this game is "the team." Good work Rudy!! NCAA Division I soccer: USF closes out their season this weekend. USF had a promising start this year but has fizzled disappointingly. They will end the season with a losing record. Other local teams haved faired much better. Cal will win the Pac 10 regardless of the outcome of the match against their rivals Stanford Saturday (11/17). They have only one loss this season. Both Cal and Santa Clara will advance to the NCAA playoffs. The Cinderella Cal Poly SLO team who had high hopes earlier this season has dropped to third place in their conference. However, another Northern California team, UC Davis, will finish in second place and has a very good record at 11-4-2. Will that be good enough for an NCAA berth? San Jose State has dropped 4 of their las 5 which has dropped them to the middle of their pack. St.Marys may finish just above USF in the WCC unless there is a surprise this weekend. Both St. Marys and USF play the same Southern California opponents: LMU and San Diego. Seals Academy and Burlingame Combine Programs The Seals have agreed with the Burlingame Soccer Club to merge our Seals Academy program with theirs. This will give us a bridge-to-bridge regional presence (we're referring to the San Mateo and Golden Gate / Bay Bridges) area. Burlingame is a rapidly growing program that has shown a lot of success recently in their younger teams. The merger of these two programs brings added depth and quality to our youth program and added resources for the management of the program. They will have full control over the activities of our academy youth teams with the exception of the Seals U20s, which is really an adult reserve side for the Seals. In addition we hope to expand into the recreational area by creating SF Seals teams in the San Francisco City area. These teams will run under the umbrella of our non-profit corporation the San Francisco United Soccer Club. SFUSC historically is one of the most important, influential and successful soccer club in San Francisco in the last 35 years having reached the highest competition in the land at state, regional and national levels.
Former Seal and USF Don Chris Rodd is headed to the Norwegian 2nd division: http://www.contracostatimes.com/highschools/ci_7639733?nclick_check=1
Victor Cortez, who played for the San Francisco Seals under 20 as well as the San Francisco Seals PDL team traveled with the United States U-20 National Team in its 3 game training camp in Argentina. Victor came in as a substitute against the River Plate youth squad and against the under 20 national team of Uruguay. Victor started and played the full game against the under-20 Argentina squad. Lets wish Victor luck in his quest to make the under-20 US national squad for the 2009 Under 20 World Cup. Participants: USA U20 MNT vs. Argentina Competition: Friendly Location: Buenos Aires, Argentina Date: November 28, 2007 Scoring Summary: 1 2 F USA 1 0 1 ARG 1 0 1 Lineups: USA: 1-Josh Lambo, 3-Chris Klute( 15-Kofi Sarkodie, 66), 5-Gale Agbossoumonde, 4-Kyle Davies, 17-Victor Cortez, 2-Anthony Wallace, 14-Amobi Okugo, 6-Andrew Giallombardo (9-Bryan Arguez, 46), 13-Jorge Flores (11-Charles Renken, 74), 7-Pablito Cruz (12-Ian Kalis, 46), 10-Abdusalam Ibrahim(8-Ben Speas, 65) Participants: USA U20 MNT vs. Uruguay Competition: Friendly Location: Buenos Aires, Argentina Date: December 1, 2007 Scoring Summary: 1 2 Final USA 0 0 0 URU 0 1 1 Lineups: USA: 18-Larry Jackson, 9-Bryan Arguez (11-Charles Renken, 82), 4-Kyle Davies, 13-Jorge Flores, 10-Abdusalam Ibrahim (6-Andrew Giallombardo, 53), 12-Ian Kalis (5-Gale Agbossoumonde, 46), 14-Amobi Okugo, 16-Aubrey Perry, 15-Kofi Sarkodie (17-Victor Cortez, 53), 8-Ben Speas (3-Chris Klute, 46; 7-Pablito Cruz, 82), 2-Anthony Wallace Participants: U.S. Under-20 Men's National Team vs. River Plate Competition: Friendly Location: Buenos Aires, Argentina Date: November 26, 2007 Scoring Summary: 1 2 F USA 0 1 1 River Plate 0 1 1 Lineups: USA: 1-Josh Lambo (18-Larry Jackson, 46), 15-Kofi Sarkodie (17-Victor Cortez, 46), 5-Gale Agbossoumonde, 4-Kyle Davies (16-Aubrey Perry, 46), 12-Ian Kalis (3-Chris Klute, 46), 13-Jorge Flores, 9-Bryan Arguez (11-Charles Renken, 46), 6-Andrew Giallombardo (14-Amobi Okugo, 46), 2-Anthony Wallace, 8-Ben Speas (7-Pablito Cruz, 46), 10-Abdusalam Ibrahim
Former Seal and star at USF made his debut against Kleep in Norway. Newspaper headlines read "American has good debut." This is very good for bay area soccer and the Seals. Also, Victor Cortez played well in Argentina and rumors have it he is trying to turn pro this year or next year
Report from Seals Manchester Camp After three days at the Seals Manchester Camp we already have some results to report, but first some background: The weather here has swamped grass fields all over the region. Everyone is seaching for all weather fields. We are competing with professional, semi-professional and local teams for available slots and the costs are quite high. It's been a difficult situation and we've had to scramble. There are currently 16 players in camp with more to come. It's been an interesting blend of US, English, French and others. The sessions have been very lively and the guys bonded quickly. Of course, their living situation in slighly remote bunkhouse at the Burrs Activity Centre (see www.Burrs.co.uk) has made living quite a challenge and accelerated the bonding process. The space is cramped, they cook their own meals and they have to coordinate travel to town. The only luxury is a pub, quaintly called the Brown Cow, located within a few yards of the bunkhouse. It's warm, friendly and features a large screen plamsa TV. The manager is a total football nut and all the games are shown. Jet lag is still an active factor as guys battle against the biological clocks to get sleep when their brain thinks it's daytime and oriented for field play when their brain is telling them to sleep. After locating an all weather pitch about 6 miles from here, we trained on Tuesday and Wednesday on 1/3 of the field. That's about all you'll find under the conditions. The sessions were lively and the players are very enthusiastic. On Thursday, we played Hopwood Hall College mens team, where Paul Aigbogun is head coach for the women's program. Paul has been a Seals coach for the past two seasons and has helped greatly to set up the camp. Also, Hopwood is the college from where three Seals U20 players hail and they were all ready for our match against them on Thursday. The match was somewhat influenced by the weather which was, as usual, wet, but also on this day, very windy. The Seals were the aggressor from the get-go but the lads from Hopwood held up well for the first half. It was heartening to see a newly formed group of players play show a strong attacking style with some nice passing sequences and some quality possession time. However, the Seals effort was influenced by the need to tryout players and substitutions for the first half were disruptive. After 45 minutes the Seals failed to come up with any goals in spite of the agression and the well structured Hopwood College team came up with a goal after a defensive breakdown. The second half started as the first half ended with the Seals looking a bit shakey after going down a goal. However, as the original side who started the match was restored on the field the game changed dramatically. Carl Lomax, a local player who would like to play for the Seals in 2008, opened up Seals scoring with a deft turn on the Hopwood defender and slotted the ball. He would do the same thing a few minutes later after a Hopwood equalizer. By the time the score was equalized the starting group was back on the field and the Seals upped the intensity to a new level. The attack broke down the locked in defense with goals coming from Araia Berhane, Jason Lindsey and Francisco Camacho. All the goals were from close range as the Hopwood defense was pushed into their own 18 for much of the time. Other News: Carlos Diaz, the 20 year old player from Napa, who has played for the Seals for the past two seasons has trained all week with the Blackpool first team (Blackpool plays in the Championship) and even played in a match against Bolton behind closed doors. Carlos came over a few days earlier to prepare for the tryout which was pre-arranged to the start of the camp. News will follow. Chris Harris, an East Bay player who played for the US National Team, will arrive on Saturday. Chris is still 17 years old. He attended Seals training sessions at USF in December and so impressed us that we spoke with local pro representatives. They are looking forward to seeing Chris who is still a candidate for professional academies. News will follow. Kevin Gravelot has been a surprise in a couple ways. Kevin is a french player who found us through the internet and requested a tryout. He's quickly picking up the language and can now say "wazzup" We're learning a few French words as well. He paid his way to England from Paris and has perfored very well in the first two camp sessions. He is suprisingly skilled, clever, quick and has very good open field speed. A pro representative was out to watch the Hopwood game just because of our comments on Kevin's first two sessions. However, Kevin didn't perform nearly as effectively on a full field. It was an interesting observation showing that what happens on small fields may not apply to the larger. He'll get another opportunity. Rawley Masaniai has been a standout in camp sesssions and the game. Rawley was probably the most influential player on the pitch against Hopwood because of his tremendous range and his improving ability to distribute the ball. Rawley has earned a tryout with a professional side and we will update later. Andy Taylor, a local player from Liverpool who grew up playing with Rooney of Man U, was a pleasant surpise on the large field. Andy wasn't nearly as impressive on the smaller training field but when game time came vs. Hopwood he was consistently strong as a central defender which isn't even his first position. His efforts have earned him an invitation to the Seals team this coming Spring. Carl Lomax, who hails from Bury, was another standout among the British lads (we're modifying our dictionary on a daily basis). Carl comes from quite the football family with two close relatives playing at the EPL and Championship level. His clean and simple play, his ability to hold the ball and turn on defenders, as well as his finishing have earned him an invitation to play with the Seals for 2008. He's a roofer in real life and we know there's plenty roofing to be done in San Francisco. More to follow on this story as we look to arrange for Carl's move to SF for the 2008 season. The Seals train today at 2:30 PM, tomorrow Saturday at 12:00 Noon, to be followed by a trip to Liverpool to watch Everton - Man City, on Sunday at 12:00 Noon to be followed by a trip to the Bolton - Blackburn game at the Reebok stadium, and Monday (time tba) which may be followed by a quick departure to London because we have obtained tickets to the Chelsea-Tottenham match, courtesy of Lorrie Fair (thank you Lorrie). Lorrie is Chelsea's representative to the United States program for developoment of their image and brand in our country.
Seals Manchester Camp Wrap-up 01/16/08 The San Francisco Seals Camp closed today with a convincing win over Rochdale United. Rochdale is a member of League 2, a fully professional division of the English Football Association. Rochdale fielded a team of primarily U19 players, some of whom play for Rochdale's first team. The Seals Camp opened on January 7th at Heywood Sports Ground, near Bury in the UK. Players attended daily training sessions coached by Seals coaches Tom Simpson, Paul Aigbogun and John Brooks (head coach at Dominican College). Twenty five players attended the camp. Most came from the UK. In addition there were 7 US players and 3 French players. The majority of players stayed at the Burrs Community Centre in Bury where they had bunk style beds, great hot showers, a full kitchen at their disposal and a laundry. The remarkable feature was the cost which averaged about £12.50 per day or about $24.00. In the UK, that is actually more than remarkable, it seems unreal. The average bed and breakfast in the Bury area is about £75.00 or almost $150.00 per night. The dollar just doesn't buy much here. We've already reported on the Seals first game vs. Hopwood College. It was a rather authoritative win. The Seals scored 5 goals in that game and gave up two. The Seals players had trained only two days prior to the game. And remember, if you forgot the point from the earlier email: there was only one rostered Seals player on the field: Rawley Masaniai. The other thing to point out is that we had to borrow a goalkeeper for that game and the Rochdale game. The win against Rochdale is a more remarkable achievement for the Seals team. The makeshift crew required an infusion of new talent to field a team. Andy Taylor who played centerback for the Seals in the first game has returned to Oklahoma where he goes to college. He was replaced by Kevin Mack a local UK centerback who wanted a tryout. In addition, two members of the camp, Dan Evans and Kevin Gravelot, had sustained injuries that prevented their participation in the final match. Fortunately, Ola Shenoo, a Nigerian player arrived from London a few days earlier and Chris Harris a 17 year old from the East Bay also arrived during the week. Both were added to the starting lineup lineup. Other positions: Adrian Melville started up top with Carl Lomax, the scoring star of the first game. Francisco Camacho of Contra Costa College started on the outside right. Rawley Masaniai took the defensive midfield positions. Henry Goh, a UK player who played for Holy Names this past season, was at the right back, Matt Cross from Boston University was the other centerback and Araia Berhane started at the left back. In goal was Grant Moore who played for the Hopwood College against us in our first game. The Rochdale side was strong, agressive and quite talented. They played with intensity and weren't at all put off by the fact that the Seals average age was probably closer to 20 -21 (i.e. roughly 2.5 years older). By far the Seals midfield control of the game was a dominant factor. In particular the play of Rawley Masaniai was every bit as fierce as our opponent's. He controlled everything that came at him through the middle. Ola Shenoo's work rate complemented him well and made it almost impossible for midfield penetration by our opponent. Rawley had trained more than he should have the day earlier because he attended a tryout with Droysdale on the previous night after attending the Seals regular session during the day. What Rawley didn't expect was that the training session was going to be a heavy conditioning session, which it was. As you can imagine, playing 90 minutes in an intense game the next day was going to be a challenge. However, Rawley stood up quite well for about 60 minutes or so. He tired in the second half and Rochdale was able to make some penetrating runs. Fortunately, they weren't able to cash in. Rawley got a "second wind" for the last 10 minutes, looked strong, and nearly came up with a header goal on a cross when he soared over the head of a defending Rochdale player. The come-from-behind scoring for the Seals was a sign that our boys were there to play the game. Rochdale scored first at about 12 minutes with a strangely hit shot from outside the 18 that seemed to almost wobble into the upper left corner of the goal. The Seals were unfazed. Adrian Melville came up with a picture perfect header off a Carl Lomax cross about five minutes later. Rochdale didn't slow down their game either. At about the 33 minute, Rochdale took advantage of a turnover in midfield. Their midfielder made a strong run to goal from the turnover point and slotted the ball by the Seals guest keeper. The first half ended 2-1 with Rochdale in the lead. The second half was characterized by a gradual takeover of the game by the Seals. The midfield play by Rawley, Ola, Francisco and Henry was key but the other key was the ability of Carl Lomax to hold the ball and spray the ball around to off-the-ball attacking players. In one sequence, Carl laid the ball off to Ola who sent the ball over the heads of the Rochdale defender to Henry Goh making a through run. Henry's chip-shot was off the mark but it was a sign of things to come. A few minutes later, Duane Saunders, a striker who plays at Birmingham University and took time away from his studying to participate in the trials, took a driven ball from Ola on the right flank and volleyed it into the net with unquestionable authority. That evened up the score. The winning goal game was Adrian Melville collected his second and winning goal of the game when he deftly directed the ball to the side of the foot of the oncoming keeper. The Seals Camp was described to the players who attended the Seals Manchester Camp as an "experiment." The idea was to expose the US players to the game in the UK. We also hoped that the UK scouts and coaches would like to look at our players and possibly consider them favorably. That happened. Carlos Diaz was picked up prior to the onset of the camp by Blackpool. In fact, as the Seals played Rochdale, Carlos played in a game v. Everton. This opportunity was beyond our expectations. Carlos never had a chance to represent the Seals during the whole camp. He is still with Blackpool until they make their final decision. Rawley got the most attention of the in-camp players. Rawley was offered a tryout with Droylsden, as previously mentioned and Rochdale looked closely at him today as a "tryout" for their organization. Chris Harris is the other player who drew a lot of attention. Chris, who has played for the Under 17 US National team, has caught the interest of the UK coaches because he's young and he has Jamaican parentage. The visa issue, which hasn't been discusssed, is a significant barrier for the average American player who can't get a work permit to play in the UK. However, European and other parentage (e.g. Jamaican) changes the rules of the "visa game." If Blackpool decides to keep Carlos, for example, he'll either have to draw upon his grandmother's Spanish citizenship to qualify for an EU passport or he'll have to go to the continent to play for a few years before he can play on a UK team. The other reason for holding the camp was to expose the UK and French players to the Seals program. This was also successful. As a result of their play on the field Andy Taylor, Carl Lomax, Duane Saunders, Henry Goh and Ola Seenoo were all offered spots on the Seals roster for the 2008 season. We hope to see them in San Francisco sometime between soon. The Seals organization was established to play in the PDL in 1992. Since our beginning the Seals have provided more players to the MLS, A-League, foreign pro leagues and the US National Teams than any other PDL team in existence. The Seals U20s play in the Super Y League U20 league. The purpose of the Seals program is to develop soccer players. We see our role as a community service to the youth of San Francisco and Bay Area, and to those youth from outside the area who would like to be part of a San Francisco experience. The Seals support themselves through ticket sales, sponsorships, merchandize, and camps. The UK Camp was funded, in part, by the Seals and in part by the players who covered their own travel accommodations, and miscellaneous expenses. We hope you enjoy hearing about the efforts of these young players who wish to make a place for themselves in the world of football and we hope you'll support our efforts to provide them opportunity by coming to Seals games, buying merchandise, attending our camps and sponsoring the Seals experience as a way to promote your own businesses.
Well on you guys to go over and represent well. Hear is to seeing you in the 2008 derbies between the frogs and the seals. I hope that you get the scheduling worked out so that it doesn't interfere with the Quakes home games or maybe a double header for the day.
2008 Season schedule: Sat: 04/26 San Francisco Seals @ Fresno Fuego -7:00pm * Sat: 05/03 San Francisco Seals @ San Jose Frogs -7:00pm * Fri: 05/09 San Francisco Seals @ Lancaster Rattlers -7:00pm Sat: 05/17 Orange County Blue Star @ San Francisco Seals -2:00pm * Sat: 05/24 Ventura County Fusion @ San Francisco Seals -2:00pm * Fri: 05/30 San Francisco Seals @ Orange County Clue Star -5:00pm Sun: 06/01 San Francisco Seals @ Ventura Fusion -5:00pm Sat: 06/14 San Fernando Valley Quakes @ San Francisco Seals -2:00pm Sun: 06/15 So Cal Seahorses @ San Francisco Seals -2:00pm Fri: 06/20: San Francisco Seals @ Los Angeles Legends-7:30pm Sat: 06/21 San Francisco Seals @ So Cal Seahorses -7:00pm Sat: 07/05 San Francisco Seals @ Bakersfield Brigade -7:30pm Sat: 07/12 Los Angeles Legends @ San Francisco Seals -4:00pm Sun: 07/13 Lancaster Rattlers @ San Francisco Seals -2:00pm Fri: 07/18 Bakersfield Brigade @ San Francisco Seals -5:00pm Sun: 07/20 San Jose Frogs @ San Francisco Seals -2:00pm Here is the San Francisco Seals 2008 schedule. The asterisks (*) denote a US Open Cup qualifier game.
SF SEALS NEEDS YOU San Francsico Seals, SF's only PDL team, is looking for new volunteers to help out club with everything from promotions to game day operations. All those interested, contact Mike Alonso via email. mike.alonso@oursfseals.com For more about the team, see our website: oursfseals.com