U18s
The early game for the RSL-AZ Academy entourage was the finale of the Group Stage in the 2011 Dallas Cup Gordon Jago Super Group, saw RSL-AZ take on fellow MLS Academy member, Vancouver Whitecaps. Vancouver’s Academy teams will b e joining the US Soccer Development Academy system this fall, and this was the first matchup between the two teams. Unlike the previous games in the group stage, there were many long-sleeved shirts on the players… with air temps hovering around 60 degrees and no sunshine to warm things up.

In the 20th minute, Ricardo Velasco slotted home from 8 yards after a series of shots were blocked by various Vancouver defenders, giving RSL-AZ a 1-0 lead. Until that point, there had been few opportunities created by either team and teams had been defending tightly. After the goal, things began to open up, and the pace of the RSL-AZ exploiting the lumbering Vancouver denfenders. In the 30th minute, Mikey Orrellana was sprung on a 40 yard 1v1 with the Whitecaps GK, only to be denied by an excellent save from the Vancouver keeper. Five minutes later, Orrellana was set free again alone against the keeper, this time beating the net-minder only to see his shot smash against the far post and bounce clear. At the other end of the field Lalo Fernandez made one excellent save to help guide RSL-AZ to a 1-0 halftime lead.

The second half was similar to the first part of the first half, with neither team creating any real chances of note. Around the 60 minute mark, Mikey Orrellana was brought down in the box after some quick combination play by RSL-AZ and Ricardo Velasco converted the spot-kick for his second goal of the night. Play got a little chippy through the rest of the second half, with several yellow cards being handed out to both sides, but the result stood at 2-0 for RSL-AZ at the final whistle.

With the result, RSL-AZ finishes ahead of Vancouver in the Group C table at the Super Group. Corinthians and Tigres close out the group with their match at Pizza Hut Park tonight. In the unlikely event that Tigres beats Corinthians by 7 or more goals, RSL-AZ would finish ahead of Corinthians as well.

U16s
The RSL-AZ U16s faced Cedarbridge Academy of Bermuda in the final match of Group F in the Under-16 Division. Cedarbridge came into the game with some tough results behind them, a 7-1 and 5-2 pair of losses to Solar SC Red and FC Correcaminos in their prior group games.

RSL-AZ opened the game with the lion’s share of possession and eventually broke through midway through the first half when Danny Gavin nodded home a corner kick uncontested. While RSL-AZ spent much of the remainder of the half pressuring Cedarbridge, the score line stood at 1-0 at the break.

In the second half, RSL-AZ was rewarded for their dominance of the match with a 50th minute goal bu midfielder Josh Goss. Goss’s first shot was blocked by a defender, but he neatly finished his second attempt into the far side-netting.

The possession dominance continued and Ben Spencer was rewarded for some creative play in the box with his first goal of the tournament to make the game 3-0 for RSL-AZ.

With the 3-0 win, RSL-AZ tops the group and looks forward to a Quarterfinal matchup with PTSC Timber Wolves of Winnipeg, Canada. That match will take place on Pizza Hut Park Field #14 at 1:30pm CT on Friday, April 22 and the winner will advance to Saturday’s semifinal.

The entire squad is looking forward to tonight’s CONCACAF Champions League Final on FSC. Come on claret-and-cobalt!

Nico Muniz and Phanuel Kavita…two stalwarts for the RSL-AZ U18 Academy team played today in a 2-0 win over the Colorado Rapids in an MLS Reserve League match in Utah.

Phanuel Kavita started and played the full 90 minutes to help preserve the shutout.

Nico Muniz came on in the 69′minute for Paulo Jr. to help close out the win.

Congrats to both of the boys and RSL for a dominant performance…

Paired with top academies from all over the world, RSL-AZ’s U-18 team and coach Mike Munoz are out to prove doubters wrong with a strong showing in the Super Group

Real Salt Lake’s residential academy based in Casa Grande, Ariz., more aptly named RSL-AZ, has already shown well in its first year in the Development Academy. The U-18 team is in fourth place in the very competitive SoCal Division and in the top 15 nationally in terms of points per game. Although, the early season success in U.S. Soccer’s preeminent national development league is nice, RSL-AZ has a bigger target on its mind in the near future – a semifinal berth in the Super Group at Dallas Cup.

Dallas Cup is widely regarded as the best youth tournament in North America as many of the world’s top players [Raul, Wayne Rooney, Robinho, etc.] have played in the tournament at one time or another. This year will mark 32nd installment of the historic competition, which takes place April 17-24 at Pizza Hut Park and Richland College.

The Gordon Jago Super Group, named after the long-time executive director of the tournament, is the most competitive bracket at the event. With storied European academies like Arsenal FC and FC Barcelona sending their top youth teams this year, the competition will be as fierce as ever. However, the big name opposition is not dampening RSL-AZ’s hopes of putting on a good performance.

“It would be fantastic to make a statement all over the world,” RSL-AZ U-18 head coach and Academy Director Mike Munoz told Goal.com last Saturday about his club’s goal for the tourney. The coach was aware some had already written his team off, but he was confident his side could emerge from a very tough group to make the semifinal round.

RSL-AZ’s competition at Dallas Cup is not going to be easy as the club was paired with two previous Super Group winners, SC Corinthians [Brazil] and Tigres [Mexico], and fellow MLS residential academy, Vancouver Whitecaps, in group play. The winner of each group advances to the semifinals.

The U-18 team enters the tourney on a low-note as the squad suffered its worst defeat of the season in its final Development Academy tune-up game last weekend against Southern California based Arsenal FC.

“I think we are going to need to work on our defensive shape,” Munoz said about his plans for preparing for the tournament after the game. “It is very important that we stay organized.”

“When we are playing against good teams like Tigres, we cannot get spread out,” he said. “And we cannot go chasing all over the field.” Munoz knows the opposition will be challenging, but he is confident in the capabilities of his team.

“Normally, this team is very good in possession,” the coach said about his U-18 side. “Today just was not our day.” Part of the reason RSL-AZ struggled so mightily in its final game before Dallas Cup was a crowded schedule. A handful of players had traveled to Utah on Tuesday for a MLS reserve game just to bus out to California a few days later for a weekend youth academy game.

RSL has another reserve game scheduled a few days before first kick at Dallas Cup, but the youth team had not yet been informed whom the full team was pulling up.

Munoz called it team management to make sure he does not overwork the players. One player who was especially hit hard by the travel and weather was Nico Muniz who sat out most of last Saturday afternoon as he was battling an illness. The Georgetown-bound midfielder was sorely missed, as RSL-AZ never gained control of the ball against Arsenal.

“I am glad we have two weeks to prepare,” the playmaker told Goal.com after the loss. The 18-year-old also emphasized that it will be on the team to bounce back after the defeat.

Despite the loss in their final warm-up game, both player and coach were enthusiastic about the opportunity of participating in Dallas Cup.

“It is a fantastic opportunity for the players,” Munoz said. “Just to play in Super Group, not many teams get that chance.” The coach also mentioned his team was honored to be the only American side from outside Texas to be accepted into the top bracket.

There is an extra bonus for RSL-AZ, as they open up play inside Pizza Hut Park Stadium on Sunday at 1:30 PM (CT) against Tigres before fellow MLS academy FC Dallas takes on Spanish giant, FC Barcelona.

Barcelona and Tigres are just two of the youth academies at the event that have been around for decades and established a repertoire as a perennial powerhouse, which is one of the reasons Munoz believed people were over-looking his U-18 team.

Despite Munoz’s confidence, the cards are stacked up against RSL-AZ U-18 accomplishing the goal of winning their group and advancing from pool play. American teams have not faired well in recent years, as the Dallas Texans [in 2006] is the only domestic team to progress to the semifinal round in the last five years. That Texans team also earned the distinction as the only American team ever to win Super Group in the twenty-year history of the elite invitation-only bracket.

RSL-AZ’s academy is also bringing the U-16 team to compete in its respective age bracket. The younger side is grouped with Cedarbridge Academy (Bermuda), FC Correcaminos (Brazil), and Solar SC Red (Texas).

Both teams begin play on Sunday, April 17. For more information about Dallas Cup or to purchase tickets, visit www.DallasCup.com.

J.R. Eskilson is the Youth Soccer Editor at Goal.com. You can follow him on Twitter @NCAAsoccer.

TRYOUT For Real Salt Lake-Arizona

Academy program and direct pipeline for MLS’s Real Salt Lake
• The only US Soccer Development Academy Program in the Southwest
• The only residential academy in the US affiliated with an MLS team
  
• 11 Seniors Earned Scholarships To Top NCAA Division One Schools for 2011 season
  
• Second Place in 2010 MLS SUM Cup
Invited to compete in the prestigious Super Group at the 2011 Dallas Cup

Email to register or call 877-909-9777 for more information.

Tryout Dates for 2011-2012 Academic Year

Tryouts are open to 1993-1997 Birth Years ONLY

Tryout Camps

April 8-10
April 29-May 1
May 13-15

Tryout camps give a fantastic introduction to the Grande Sports World and the daily life of a residential athletes in the Grande Sports Academy. During each tryout camp, GSW provides meals and accommodations in our courtyard rooms as outlined for each program below. Prices are per person based on double occupancy.

April 8 -10 | $219

*Two nights accommodations
*Dinner on April 8. Breakfast, lunch, dinner on April 9. Breakfast April 10.
*Four on-field training/tryout sessions, 1 performance training session

April 29-May 1 | $219

*Two nights accommodations
*Dinner on April 29. Breakfast, lunch, dinner on April 30. Breakfast May 1.
*Watch current RSL-AZ play Cosmos Academy West on May 1.
*Pre-game match preparation session with RSL-AZ head coaches
*Three training/tryout sessions, 1 performance training session

May 13-15 | $219

*Two nights accommodations
*Dinner on May 13. Breakfast, lunch, dinner on May 14. Breakfast May 15.
*Watch current RSL-AZ play Cal Odyssey on May 15.
*Four training/tryout sessions, 1 performance training session

One-Day Tryouts

Another option is the one-day tryout, which does not include the academy experience of having meals and accommodations on site, but you’ll still get to show your stuff for the RSL-AZ Academy coaching staff in a training session. For the One-Day Tryout fee of $100, you can attend one or both of the tryout dates for your age group.

1993 & 1994 Birth Years
Tuesday, March 22 &
Tuesday, April 26
7-9pm

1995, 1996 & 1997 Birth Years
Friday, March 25 &
Tuesday, May 3
7-9pm

The RSL-AZ Academy had split results again as they returned from their matches against Arsenal FC in California this weekend. U18s fell to an uncharacteristic 4-1 loss in a tough match… and the U16s won with a rock-solid performance and a 2-0 scoreline, let by two goals by Dylan Kelley…

Now it’s two weeks of preparation for both teams for the Dallas Cup!

RSL-AZ and Grande Sports World would like to welcome the Vancouver Whitecaps to the US Soccer Development Academy in 2011-2012 season. The Vancouver Whitecaps professional team has spent the last two preseasons at Grande Sports World and looks forward to hosting their youth academy programs here in the future.

The RSL-AZ and Whitecaps programs are the only two MLS Clubs to have a full time residential program established.

The Vancouver Whitecaps are the only club to be admitted into the Development Academy for next season.

VANCOUVER WHITECAPS FC TO JOIN
U.S. SOCCER DEVELOPMENT ACADEMY FOR 2011-12 SEASON
· Whitecaps FC Increases Number of MLS Academy Clubs to 15
· First Academy Club from Canada Brings Strong Development History

CHICAGO (April 1, 2011) – After an extensive review process, Vancouver Whitecaps FC have been selected to join the U.S. Soccer Development Academy. The club will join the Academy and begin competing on the field during the 2011-12 season.

Vancouver Whitecaps FC joined Major League Soccer beginning in the 2011 season, after playing in numerous first- and second-division leagues since 1974. Whitecaps FC established a full-time, fully funded residency program in 2007 and are in the midst of expanding it to include 80 elite athletes beginning at the Under-14 age group and ranging through the U-17/18 age group.

· Development Academy Overview
· Frequently Asked Questions

“Vancouver Whitecaps FC have demonstrated they are heavily invested in player development and have a well-established residency program,” said U.S. Soccer Development Academy Director of Scouting Tony Lepore. “Whitecaps FC meets the strong technical standards and expectations required and will elevate the level of competition for Academy players. We look forward to integrating another well-qualified, MLS Academy club into the youth player development environment.”

U.S. Soccer received a competitive pool of applicants, all of which were evaluated to determine which clubs would best improve the quality of play in the Academy. The evaluation was based on a number of categories, including geographic location, history of player development, coaching staff and administrative capabilities.

Whitecaps FC will play in the Western Conference, joining Cal Odyssey, California Development Academy, Crossfire Premier, De Anza Force, San Jose Earthquakes, Santa Cruz Breakers Academy and Seattle Sounders in the Northwest Division.

The Academy program was created in 2007 to enhance the player development environment for elite youth players in the United States, with specific focus on increasing the number of training sessions, decreasing the total number of games while increasing the number of quality games and maintaining the highest level of coaching, refereeing and competition available in an everyday environment.

“We are very excited to be part of the Development Academy and thank U.S. Soccer for the opportunity,” said Dan Lenarduzzi, Whitecaps FC director of soccer development. “We’ve had great success with the Residency program over the past several years and, with the expansion of our club system, the Academy will now provide the important competitive platform needed.”

Aside from providing clubs with a soccer-centric environment, the Academy program also provides a platform to systematically improve the player identification and development processes. More than half of the Academy matches are attended by a national team scout, resulting in a comprehensive system to evaluate player, coach and referee talent.

With the Spring season in full force, Academy clubs are competing for a place in the Academy Playoffs, which will take place June 24-28 at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas. Playoffs precede finals week, which takes place July 9-16 at a location to be announced in the coming weeks.

- ussoccer.com -

REAL SALT LAKE FALLS 0-2 TO FC DALLAS IN 2011 MLS RESERVE LEAGUE OPENER

Second Half Goals by Ruben Luna and Bryan Leyva Make the Difference for Visitors at XanGo Field

LEHI, Utah (Tuesday, March 29, 2011) – FC Dallas used second half goals from forward Ruben Luna and midfielder Bryan Leyva to record a 2-0 victory over Real Salt Lake in the 2011 MLS Reserve League opener for both sides at a chilly XanGo Field. The match marked the first contest in Central Division play for Major League Soccer’s revamped edition of the Reserve League after returning from a two-year hiatus.

A back-and-forth first 45 minutes saw both sides take the few opportunities provided to them well, with RSL goalkeeper Kyle Reynish and his former teammate, FC Dallas netminder Chris Seitz, both diving low to turn away dangerous opportunities within the opening half hour. Both backstops would also dart off their lines to stop breakaway opportunities later in the half, with Seitz thwarting Salt Lake forward Conor Chinn’s attempt in the 34^th minute, followed three minutes later by Reynish giving up his body to stop Dallas captain Bruno Guarda’s attempt at the top of his area.

Just minutes after Reynish opened up the second half by stopping Luna at the edge of the box, the Dallas striker would start the scoring in the 52^nd minute by converting a penalty kick he earned himself when RSL defender Rauwshan McKenzie tripped him upon entering the penalty area. Luna’s firm finish into the upper right corner was followed 11 minutes later by Leyva’s strike from distance, as the FCD midfielder punished a popped-up RSL clearance by smashing it on the full-volley from 25 yards out past a helpless Reynish.

RSL Reserve League Notes

• Real Salt Lake utilized its two new strikers, Conor Chinn and Donny Toia, as members of the starting XI in today’s contest. Toia went the full 90 minutes, beginning and ending the match up top while moonlighting at left back for a 25-minute spell in the second half, while Chinn logged 80 minutes on the day.
• Real Salt Lake called in four members of its RSL-Arizona Academy Under-18 Team – including a pair of Utah natives – for the match, with all four youngsters seeing action. Ricardo Velasco (Casa Grande, AZ) played 54 minutes after starting the match on the left side of RSL’s diamond midfield, while forward Mikey Orellana (Provo, UT), Nico Muniz (Albuquerque, NM), and Phaneul Kavita (Salt Lake City, UT) all entered the match off the bench.
• The call-ups were necessary for Real Salt Lake due to the continued absence of three players on duty with their respective national teams – Álvaro Saborío (Costa Rica), Will Johnson (Canada) and Arturo Alvarez (El Salvador).
• Real Salt Lake will renew MLS Reserve League action at home against the Colorado Rapids on Thursday, April 14, when the Rocky Mountain Cup rivals will do battle in Central Division play at XanGo Field (12:00 p.m. MT, closed to the public).

2011 MLS RESERVE DIVISION

REAL SALT LAKE 0 : 2 FC DALLAS

TUESDAY, MARCH 29, 2011

XANGO FIELD – LEHI, UTAH

Goals by Period 1 2 F

Real Salt Lake (0-1-0, 0 pts.) 0 0 0

FC Dallas (1-0-0, 3 pts.) 0 2 2

Scoring Summary:

FCD – Ruben Luna 1 (penalty kick) 52’

FCD – Bryan Leyva 1 (unassisted) 63’

Misconduct Summary:

FCD – Victor Ulloa (caution; Reckless Tackle) 36’

RSL — Jean Alexandre (caution; Reckless Tackle) 38’

RSL – Nelson Gonzalez (caution; Unsporting Behavior) 77’

FCD – Jonathan Top (caution; Obstructing a Restart) 82’

RSL – Collen Warner (caution; Reckless Tackle) 85’

RSL – Rauwshan McKenzie (caution; Reckless Foul) 90+’

FCD – Bruno Guarda (caution; Reckless Foul) 90+’

Real Salt Lake Reserves — Kyle Reynish; Tony Beltran (captain), Chris Schuler, Rauwshan McKenzie, Nelson Gonzalez; Luis Gil, Jean Alexandre (Nico Muniz* 68’), Collen Warner, Ricardo Velasco* (Mikey Orellana* 54’); Conor Chinn (Phanuel Kavita* 80’), Donny Toia

Substitutes Not Used: Tim Melia (GK)

FC Dallas Reserves – Chris Seitz; Andrew Jacobson, Andrew Wiedeman, Michael Ambrose*, Jack Coleman*; Bruno Guarda (captain), Bobby Warshaw, Bryan Leyva (Daniel Garcia* 90+’), Victor Ulloa; Peri Marosevic (Jonathan Top 64’), Ruben Luna (Maykel Galindo 71’)

Substitutes Not Used: Josh Lambo (GK), Boyd Okwuono*

* = Denotes RSL-Arizona Academy or FC Dallas Academy players

Referee: Allen Chapman

Referee’s Assistants: Alex Krelo, Brad Jensen

Fourth Official: Hamed Sadeghi

Weather: Mostly sunny, 42 degrees

All Statistics contained in this boxscore are unofficial

Four U18 RSL-AZ Academy players were called up by Coach Jason Kreis and Reserve Team Head Coach Jeff Cassar to play against FC Dallas in RSL’s first reserve league game of the season.

Maikon Orellana, Phanuel Kavita, Nico Muniz and Ricardo Velasco will all participate in today’s reserve game which is scheduled to kick off at 12pm Mountain Time. All four players currently play for the RSL-AZ U18 Academy. Orellana, Kavita and Muniz all live at Grande Sports World in Casa Grande, Az where they are apart of the first MLS Residential program in the country. Orellana and Kavita are both from Utah and Muniz is from New Mexico. Velasco is an Arizona native who actually lives in Casa Grande as well where he lives with his parents.

Good luck to the boys!!

TheRSL-AZ Academy hosted Nomads Soccer Club this past weekend at Grande Sports World.

The U18 boys got the weekend started by thrashing the Nomads 4-0. Maikon Orellana led the way with a hat trick in the first half which was followed by an Ari Sanchez goal which saw the Nomads off before the halftime whistle. Eduardo “Lalo” Fernandez kept the clean sheet in the back as the U18’s continued their undefeated home streak which now extends to five out of five matches. They face Arsenal FC in Los Angeles next Friday at 10am at Mt. San Antonio College.

The U16’s started off poorly by giving up a soft goal early in the match. However their response was fantastic and began to dominate possession and create numerous chances. The game went into halftime 1-0 Nomads. In the second half it was more of the same as the RSL-AZ boys looked to find the equalizer. Finally the breakthrough came around the 50th minute mark of the match. Kainoa Bailey played in an pin point cross that eluded the Nomads defenders and dropped to Danny Gavin’s chest. Gavin brought the ball down magnificently and buried past the goalkeeper from about five yards out.

It was game on as both teams kept pushing forward looking for the winner. However it was not to be RSL-AZ’s day as in the final minutes of the match they allowed one of the Nomads strikers to notch home a header off of a corner kick and the match ended 2-1 Nomads in a heartbreaking defeat for the U16’s.

RSL-AZ U16’s take on Arsenal FC next weekend on Saturday at 12:30pm at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, Ca. This will be the final two matches before the two groups head to the prestigious Dallas Cup from April 17-24th.

The RSL-AZ Academy boys played four games this weekend against two norcal opponents.

On Saturday RSL-AZ welcomed the Santa Cruz Breakers to Grande Sports World.

The U18’s started the day off with a 4-0 win, followed by a 4-3 win for the U16’s.

On Sunday the only blemish of the weekend was a 2-2 tie for the U18s against the DeAnza Force.

The U16s kept the unbeaten streak going with a convincing 4-1 win.

RSL-AZ welcomes Nomads Soccer Club this Saturday at Grande Sports World. Kickoff times are 10am for the U18s and 12:30pm for the U16s.

A match recap of this past weekend will be posted shortly so keep checking in…

Congrats RSL-AZ Academy on a great weekend…keep up the great work boys!