New Zealand soccer kids have the chance to play on the hallowed turf of Old Trafford following today’s launch of the New Zealand Finals for the Manchester United Premier Cup – the largest and most prestigious football tournament in the world for kids under 15 years. New Zealand Soccer and NIKE announced details of the domestic and international qualifying tournaments that will be played in the coming months. The tournament provides a very real opportunity for U15 boys to fulfil dreams of playing in “The Theatre of Dreams”, the common name given to United’s home ground of Old Trafford. Each of the 7 Federations will send an U15 boys representative team to the Manchester United Cup NZ Finals at North Harbour Stadium on 17-18 April. Players must be registered on the NZS International Player Development Programme (IPDP) to be considered for selection. Players selected to represent New Zealand will be flown to Malaysia courtesy of Nike, to play in the South East Asia Regional Final from 24 – 30 May in Kuala Lumpur. If the team wins, they will join 19 teams from around the world to play for the World Championship Cup at Old Trafford – home of the Manchester United Football Club. More than 6,000 teams from 40 nations on five continents will be vying for the 2004 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). New Zealand Soccer CEO Bill MacGowan today marvelled at the opportunity. “When NZS and Nike announced our partnership in December last year, it was made clear that both parties shared a desire to invest in the grass roots of the game with a long-term view to success on the international stage. Today is confirmation of that shared vision with NIKE putting considerable resource and funding into what is already for them, a significant global property. The opportunity for our players is a perfect fit with our International Player Pathway. NZS has stated clearly a desire to provide international touring opportunities and experiences for players to develop them as players on and off the park. The qualifying tournament in Malaysia will meet all of those objectives well before we even consider a team qualifying for the World Finals at Old Trafford.” New Zealand Soccer Director of Football Paul Smalley says the Manchester United Premier Cup will dovetail perfectly with the NZS strategy to develop young talent. “The lack of international experience has been identified as a weakness in many of our players of all ages. Already in 2003 U15 boys and U16 girls toured overseas, along with opportunities for individuals such as Steven Old (Parma) to address this area. Travelling to a different country with it’s cultural, weather and football challenges will be a great experience for all concerned.” Adding to the Manchester United connection today was great news also for the thousands of Small Whites players around the country, boys and girls. New Zealand Soccer, in partnership with NIKE, House of Travel and Lufthansa will send 2 lucky Small Whites (plus one chaperone each) to Manchester United on the trip of a lifetime. The 2 prizes include airfares for 2, accommodation, and tickets to Old Trafford to see a Premiership match. Any child, boy or girl, aged 5 to 12 that registers to play soccer with an affiliated club or school in 2004 will qualify for the draw, subject to them winning a Small Whites Player of The Day award during the season. Crowdie
hey Crowdie, Why is it exclusive to NZ kids & teams ??? If NZ can have a team in the APL, surely AUS can send a few U15 teams over to win this ? Just kidding !!! Andy T.
New Zealand Soccer Director of Technical Development Ricki Herbert today named 18 players to represent New Zealand at the Southeast Asia Regional Finals in the Manchester United Premier Cup. The team will travel to Kuala Lumpur in late May to take on the best in the Southeast Asia region, with the winner progressing to the World Championship in Manchester in late 2004. Herbert says the players were selected after a detailed profiling process at the recent MUPC NZ Finals. “All players attending the recent NZ Finals at North Harbour Stadium were profiled by NZS Technical Staff and Federation Directors of Football. That information, combined with our existing database gathered at Regional National Academies and IPDP programmes is providing us as a national body with a thorough and detailed knowledge of our players.” The team is also notable for the inclusion of Rwanda born John Niyonsaba and South Korean born Jason Choi, something Herbert says reflects the global nature of the game. “Everyone knows football is the number one game in the world and New Zealand is increasingly a multi-cultural society. This is no doubt a contributing factor to our status as number one participation sport in New Zealand. John and Jason are just two of the many very good young players, boys and girls that are embracing the game on their arrival to New Zealand. Equally they are now proud to call themselves New Zealanders and to represent their new country in the sport they love.” Whilst guarded about the team’s prospects, Herbert is pleased with the quality of players named. “I believe we have a number of exciting players at this age group but most importantly I look forward to providing them with invaluable international experience so they can learn and develop as footballers and people. This experience will stand them in good stead as they progress towards FIFA age group tournaments and eventually All Whites selection in the years to come. Anyone at the NZ Finals at North Harbour couldn’t but be excited about the future of the game.” The Malaysian tournament is the next step along the way to a possible visit to Manchester United itself, venue for the World Finals later this year. Developed by Nike in 1993, the MUPC is regarded as the unofficial ‘world championship’ for U15 club sides with over 6,000 teams from 40 countries entering in 2004. The tournament is a global initiative from Nike, with the NZS apparel partner funding the NZ Finals tournament that saw all Federations play at North Harbour, and the trip to Malaysia. 13 of the players will benefit from travelling to Italy in early May to represent New Zealand at the Mario Vespignani International Football Tournament in Civitavecchia, Italy. Code: * Alex FENERIDIS United Soccer 1 Midfielder * Jack BEGUELY United Soccer 1 Defender * John NIYONSABA Soccer2 Striker * Nick ROBSON Soccer2 Defender * Ian HOGG Soccer2 Defender Jason CHOI United Soccer 1 Striker * Adam McGEORGE Force Three Midfielder Jason McKEOWN United Soccer 1 Striker Samuel CAMPBELL Soccer2 Midfielder * Thomas KELLY Capital Soccer Striker * Michael EAGAR Capital Soccer Midfielder * Nicholas TARRANT Capital Soccer Goalkeeper * Sam PETERS Capital Soccer Defender * Tim MATHER Capital Soccer Defender Richard ANDREWS Mainland Soccer Goalkeeper * Paris KERDEMELIDIS Mainland Soccer Defender Symon BEEDLES Mainland Soccer Defender * Patrick FLEMING Soccersouth Midfielder * Note: also selected to play in Italy in early May. Crowdie
I disagree. It is a Nike tournament so Australia will probably be competing in it next year. It gives the players a chance to play against international competition in a foreign country with a foreign culture. That has to be good experience for anybody who wants to become a professional footballer. Remember that Nike pays for all the kits, boots, etc and the travel expenses for the team - that can't be bad. Crowdie
Crowdie, I have some strong mixed emotions for Nike being involved (in any way) in Australian football ! I fear that what's good for Nike will become what's good for AUS, just like everywhere else Nike've become involved in, in the rest of the world.