DFSC 2000 Elite Boys Red Team

Who should they Fear at the Fear Farm?

2010-10-23T14:51:00.000-07:00

Jacob in the middle...

Christian determined to score!

Almost wish this game could have been played on Halloween Weekend...because the boys were in beautiful form this morning and to be feared by the Gilbert Arsenal Select!! Under the skillful coaching of Coach Rick, Christian scored a hat-trick of goals from in the first half and then shared the spotlight in the second half with Jacob scoring twice, Knox once and even Trevor Stephens booting one in with a minute to go in the game. The boys played beautifully as a team with a number of assists by Nick, Jacob, Ryder and just about everyone had a foot on the ball at one point with a purpose. That last goal put us at a final score of 7 - 1 against Gilbert Arsenal '00 Select. It was the Desert Elite '00 Boys who should be feared...

Knox ready to strike...

On a side note, Coach Thomas was successful with his '98 boys in the City of Las Vegas Mayor's Cup International Youth Soccer Tournament. They played at 9:20am against the Athletico FC (Nevada team) and won 4 - 3. They will be playing a team from Canada this afternoon....good luck to them and a big "GO ELITE"!!

Fear in the goalie's eyes...priceless!

At the end of the day, Elite is currently in 2nd place in Division II. Cisco also won their game today against Gilbert Arsenal Classic with a score of 7 - 2. The Classic team is the one we will be facing next Saturday. Classic still has a shot at 2nd place, but it really is Elite's to loose....as long as we win next week we will secure 2nd for Season I.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend, my windows are open, the spaghetti pot is full and the laundry is done. Life is good!

An Elite Semi-Final Game

2010-09-05T15:49:00.000-07:00

Ryder's goal

After an afternoon and evening off yesterday, our 2000 boys were ready to take on the 2001 Elite Red team in their AZ Inaugural Cup semi-final game for the U11 boys division this morning.

Knox on his own

The field was damp and the refs were sparse as they took the field at 8am. It was an interesting game as an observer, because though I honestly believe and have said many times that the ’01 team is a good one, I also believe that they are good "for that age group". I say that out of respect. I know that their record will hold true to the fact that they are good & have performed well in the past. But, now being in our third year of having the direction of Coach Thomas, our 2000 boys have really improved and grown in their abilities.

Jacob "Stretch" Leonard

Happy Bench!

It was great to see such an improvement from one year to another. Our boys were spread out and looked in control. They were communicating (most of the time) with each other & ran play after play. They had also gotten over the urge to slide into plays and inevitably fall on their bums in order to try to gain control of the ball. Either way, we may not have the best team in the tournament and there is always room for improvement, but it was good to sit back and enjoy the game….final score was 6 – 0, Jacob scored 3, Ryder 1, Ritchie 1, and Nick scored the last goal as a header straight to the net. Final game tonight against Gilbert Arsenal at 6pm.

The Yin & the Yang...

2010-09-04T12:17:00.000-07:00

It is just about noon on Saturday, September 04, 2010, and so far it has been quite an exciting tournament at Reach 11. Our first tournament of the year is the AZ Inaugural Cup on Labor Day Weekend.

Our 2000 Elite Red boys played brilliantly last night against the North Scottsdale U11 White team. They took a bit to warm up for the evening game, but Michael B., after being subbed in off the bench, scored the first goal of the season in the 13th minute off of a defender. The NS White team almost tied it up in the 16th minute when Trevor S. stepped out of the goal for a potential save. The ball went to the left instead & Nick was able to be at the right place at the right time for a big defensive save. Trevor C. was the next to score and the 1st half ended with Elite up 2 – 0.

Chandler & Trevor S. working it...

The 2nd half started…without a goalie for NS White…so after a restart the half began. With some brilliant foot work by the NS White #23, they were able to score in the 30th minute of the game. However, our Elite boys weren’t done yet & after two goals by Jacob, Chandler whacked one from about 40 yards out to seal the deal. Final score 5 – 1.

Knox at the ball

That was the good news. For this morning’s game however, there was a different story. The boys played a very good Gilbert Arsenal Premier team that is ranked in Division I of State this year (we are in Division II). Our boys really held their own though & struck first in the 12th minute of the game with Ryder scoring the first goal off of a free kick by Knox. For the rest of the 1st half, Gilbert really pressed on and played aggressively. After numerous off-sides & missed attempts, they were able to come back & end the half, Gilbert up 2 – 1.

Great save by Trevor S.

The 2nd half was about 75% Gilbert. Elite showed a lot of heart, and there were a number of players on our team that really put out total effort, but this Gilbert team just played a better half. Trevor S. in goal really did a great job & had quite a few saves, but we broke down, especially in the final 5 minutes of the game when 3 of the next 4 goal by Gilbert were scored & they took the game 5 – 1.

Nick on the chase!

What this means is that we will end up in 2nd place in Division A, & Elite will play at 8am tomorrow morning on field 5A against whichever team places 1st in Division B. When :-) they win that game, their next game will be the finals at 6pm on the same field. I’ll see everyone tomorrow morning!! Rest up & be proud of these boys!

Ryder...so close!

Preparations for our 1st Tournament

2010-08-13T12:55:00.003-07:00

Team:

With the tournament coming up on Labor Day Weekend, Coach has arranged to have 6 team practices after the School of Excellence in order to prepare for it.

From August 23rd – September 2nd

Monday: 5:15 – 6:30
Tuesday: 5:15 – 6:15
Thursday: 5:15 – 6:30

All of these practices will be at the Scottsdale Sports Complex (Cap Basin), field #7 (please see link to field map below).

http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/Assets/Public+Website/parks/Scottsdale+Sports+Complex+Park+Map.pdf

From the 101, take the Hayden Rd exit going South just over 1 mile to Princess Drive & turn left (East). Park in the first lot on your left. It will be warm, and there is not a lot of shade so be prepared.

This is NOT the season practice schedule or location. Once we have that information I will pass it on to you.

August Update....

2010-08-04T09:00:00.008-07:00

Ah...I knew this day would come when I would need to begin posting again on the blog! Happy Day! Soccer season is just around the corner and the craziness is about to begin.

We have eleven confirmed players on the team & they are as follows:

#1 Trevor Lane Stephens
#2 Ryder Johnson
#3 Jacob Leonard
#4 Nathan Black
#4 Chandler Bloom
#7 Nick Blascoe
#8 Michael Marchica
#10 Knox Riddle
#11 Ritchie Chacon
#12 Trevor Colvin
#14 Michael Barnett

A big congratulations goes out to these boy! We believe that Pedro Prieto will be on the team, but he has been out of state with his family and as of right now I do not have his paperwork to register him. I will be working on that & hopefully can add him as confirmed soon.

Next on the list will be the DFSC School of Excellence. This will be on Tuesday & Thursday evenings, from 6:00 - 7:15 at Desert Willow Park. There are only 4 nights beginning next week for that. The registration is on-line at the club website (see links on the Right). Please make sure that you are registered for that & will be attending all 4 nights. I will be handing out the tickets for the DFSC Pancake Breakfast on the first night to everyone. It is very important that tickets are sold as soon as possible! I will be collecting $$ for tickets sold during the School of Excellence.

In the next few weeks I will be notified as to when & where the practices will be. As soon as I know I will make sure I pass on that information to everyone else.

That's it for now!

2009 2010 Soccer Season

2010-04-30T12:43:00.001-07:00

Click here to view this photo book larger

Spring & Summer Dates

2010-04-22T10:27:00.011-07:00

Everyone please make sure you check the DFAC website (see "Useful Links" on the right of Blog) for information on the upcoming Advanced Skills Clinics and tryout schedules. I have added all the dates to the calendar below to help you (and me!) out.

Also don't forget the "Fun Practice" before the tryouts & Skill Clinics with Coach Thomas this upcoming Monday evening, 5 - 6:30pm at Desert Broom. Please bring $10/player per Coach. Per his e-mail..."I (Coach Thomas) plans on having one 90 min practice a week during May & June. This is a way of getting all the players together in a team training environment so I (he) can pick the team by the end of June for the 2010/11 season. Players trying out fo the team will be required to attend either May or June's clinics and will be required to attend at least two tryouts. Team practices in May & June are TBA and will not conflict with clinic nights."

Lastly, the photobooks are in. Please e-mail to let me know how to get yours to you if you ordered one....cost is $55 each & I will need payment upon delivery. Thanx everyone!

Great Job Boys!

2010-03-08T06:12:00.018-07:00

Well, I will be the first to admit, I was worried! When I saw that not only would the boys be playing on what looked like a HUGE field, but they would be playing against a Blackhawks team that had five "loaner" players (some of which looked old enough to drive)...I just wasn't sure what to expect. Then, our own loaner, Jeffery Medica, from the '01 Elite team had a brilliant run straight down the field, barrelling past quite a few Blackhawks, which allowed Jacob to score for our goal number one! This mind you was in the 24th minute...after that it just got crazy! Michael B. scored in the first half; Jacob scored again in the second half; Knox had a great left footed goal, and Chandler got in the action again and scored twice (yes...twice!) in the last 6 minutes of play. This left the final score, Elite won 6 - 0.

Chandler's goal #2

The boys were playing with confidence & like a team. But more importantly, it looked like they were having fun out there! I asked Ryder later that day what he thought of the game, and he said that it was an "easy team to beat" and that he liked playing on the bigger field because it gave them more options....

Either way, first place in their division is confirmed! Great job boys!

I have the link for the San Tan Ostrich Tournament on the right...crazy schedule...will have more on that later this week.

Windy Game vs. the Blue Thunder

2010-02-28T09:41:00.023-07:00

Yesterday afternoon's game against the Blue Thunder played out just about the way we thought...ugly. But a win is a win. The game started with Micah in goal; Nick, Chandler, and Knox in defense; Marchica and Ryder as mids; forwards were Jacob and Trevor. Captain's Ryder and Knox lost the coin toss but that trend didn't continue.... Kick off was at 3:36pm on a partly sunny, but windy day.

Right off the bat you could tell that the Blue Thunder were not as well trained as our team. They didn't pass with any purpose and their ball skills were lacking...unfortunately without a lot of minutes under their belt over the last couple of weeks, our boys began to mirror that as well. However, in the 3rd minute of play Jacob fought for the ball, lost it on the way to the goal and with the help of Knox & a header assist by Ryder, Jacob scored our first goal. The next five minutes of play were mostly under our control and included two corners attempted by Ryder & Nick, both of which were blocked by Blue. However in the 11th minute, Barnett, fresh in off the bench, scored our second goal.

There was a great rally at the end of the first half with Marchica, Nick & Jacob working together to get down to the goal, but their attempt was blocked & the half ended with Elite up 2 - 0.

The second half had Nick in goal. It was a slow start for both teams with not a lot of real action for the first nine minutes. Coach's frustration over what appeared to be the result of a lack of practice time was apparent as well as justified. There was no shape and no communication on the field. At one point Coach pointed out that this was the "ugliest game ever" and that the boys were playing more a game of "hot potato" instead of soccer. However, there were some great moments. Such as about half way through, when Nick made a brilliant diving save and just reflected the ball out of his goal and left it whizzing past on the left. Or towards the end of the half when Ryder made a big cross to Marchica and Marchica booted it in for our third and last goal of the game.

Either way, Elite won 3 - 0. The last few games they played at the Desert Classic tournament were beautiful, so after having little practice time, the lack of team coordination was apparent. It might have been "the good..the bad..and the ugly" yesterday, but it was a win.

So, the points gained from that win elevated Elite to 2nd in Division III, just two points behind CCV Red, who has played all 6 of their games. We are the only team that hasn't lost ONE game! We just need to play the Blackhawk's B2 team, win that game to end up with a point total of 14. The only other team that could tie us in points would be Gilbert Arsenal Select by winning both of their last two games...and even then, since they have lost a game I believe we would end up with the top slot. NICE!

Here is my first reminder about the upcoming yard sale. Please take a moment now & respond back to me by e-mail if you will be available to volunteer & if you have "stuff" to donate to the cause. So far, I have only received two responses back by e-mail...one of which will unfortunately not be able to make it that weekend...so please let me know soon! Thank you!!

Desert Classic FINAL game vs Tigres 01 White

2010-02-08T07:54:00.007-07:00

A big congratulations goes out to our '00 boys for their win (in dramatic fashion) yesterday afternoon! After being tied up at the end of regulation, they kept their cool and won in penalty kicks. Way to go boys!

Here is Ryder reaching for the ball...

M Marchica taking on #22

A well deserved pat on the back for Micah

Desert Classic Game Three vs Ahwatukee White

2010-02-06T21:24:00.011-07:00

For what ended up being a blow out game (6 - 0 final score), there were a lot of fun and exciting moments. For example, in the 18th minute of the game, when Ryder booted the ball as a corner kick and almost made the perfect shot to the goal. Also there was the time when Knox literally took the ball straight in for our first goal. Or in the second half with the whole team took complete control of the game for those first 10 minutes and the ball barely made it to our side of the field. Last was when Coach Thomas told Chandler to be a forward in the last three minutes of the game, and after three shots on frame he made it in for our 6th and final goal of the night! Wow, what a game!

After the game a number of us decided to try to get some pizza...and after discovering that the pizza place (Humble Pie) was packed, we headed over to CityNorth for Saito's Japanese Steakhouse for some sushi and teppanyaki table dinner. It was a lot of fun for all and I would recommend it for anyone.

We'll see everyone tomorrow at 12:00 over at field 9B for our final game. It will be an exciting one for sure. I am hoping to be able to check out the game at 9am tomorrow with the Tigres playing the Gilbert Arsenal Classic team, whoever wins that game will be who we play. If I do get a chance I will let everyone what happens!

Desert Classic Game Two vs Flagstaff SC United

2010-02-06T15:02:00.008-07:00

This game was kinda a no brainer going in...as long as the boys played well we should win. Within the first 12 minutes we were already up 4 - 0! They didn't play as well as they did last night, but they played well enough. Final score was 6 - 1.

Great job to the whole team! Since I wasn't able to take pictures last night, here are a few from today's game:

What a great kick by Knox!

Chandler with those fast legs of his.

Trevor in the middle of it...

Nick on his move towards the goal...

I think the goalie looked nervous when Jacob got the ball!

A well deserved congrats to Nick!

Ryder doing "his thing"!

Desert Classic Game One vs SC Del Sol

2010-02-05T19:39:00.008-07:00

What a great game that was! I had a feeling our boys would play great, but they really seemed to step it up this game. Needless to say, they have had practice every night this week in order to catch up missed practices due to the fields being rained out, and you can really tell the difference. This game was the first of three scheduled games in the 2010 Desert Classic against SC Del Sol '00 Boys "Blundell" team at Reach 11. Starting line up was Micah in goal, defense: Nick, Chandler & Trevor, mids: Ryder & Knox, forwards: M Barnett & Jacob. Captains were Ryder & Knox, who also received the honor of being able to wear the "captain armbands" for the first time! After the boys were warmed up, Coach Thomas settled them down and reminded them that they need to listen and pay attention to what he tells them as well as to focus on each other. Game time was 6:00pm, but there was a 10 minute delay while the officials had to have the goals secured and ancored to the field. Actual start time was around 6:10.

The first half was amazing, probably one of the best first halves they had played this year. It started off with a wake up call from one of the Del Sol players taking the ball nearly straight to the goal, however by the 5th minute the boys started to find their groove. Nick & Jacob had some impressive give & go passing down the field and were keeping it wide on the right. We just kept penetrating on their side and in the 9th minute M Barnett took it down the middle, passed it to Jacob and scored!

Coach reminded them that the field was making the ball wet & would have them wipe the ball on their jerseys before they threw the ball in. The field itself was in great condition, as they always seem to be at Reach 11. Knox was next, and made the prettiest left-footed boot towards the goal, but the Del Sol goalie was there to grab it. In the 10th minute you could really see the confidence of the team when Nick did a "bootie" block/pass with his backside...it was actually a great block and got the ball going the direction we wanted. The Del Sol boys were playing just as well and kept Micah busy and awake in goal. The teams were pretty evenly matched and in the 20th minute on an assist by M Marchica, Knox had an easy in for a goal number two.

The last three minutes of the half were all ours. Ryder did his job in mid by continually kicking the ball to the Del Sol side. This happened about three times in a row, back and forth, until he was able to get it to Nick (who was having a fantastic game)...Nick passed to Jacob and in it went. Less than a minute later, the frustration of the Del Sol goalie became apparent when he came out of his goal for a save, missed way on the right side, which left his goal wide open for Jacob to easily get the hat trick with our goal number four, his third of the night.

Second half was a different game. We left our offense on the field in the first half and played a more defensive game in the second 25 minutes. Micah came out and stretched his legs and Knox put on the goalie gloves. In the 28th minute, due to a free kick by Del Sol the ball just seemed to shadow under the top bar of the goal and Del Sol finally was on the board. They played a tougher more physical game and gave our defense a run for their money. The statistic sheet tells the story. In the first half we had 11 shots on goal, in the second half we had 3. In the first half we scored...nothing in the second. Either way, Elite played a great game and won with a final score of 4 - 1.

Tomorrow we play two games, one at 11:50am and the second game at 5:30. The first game is against Flagstaff United, whom we played at the tournament in Flagstaff and won 4 - 0. Flagstaff has had a great season so far, but are in the 6th division... Our 5:30 game is against the Ahwatukee '00 boys White team. They are currently in 4th place in division 4, behind the SC Del Sol team that our boys just won against. As long as Elite plays like the played tonight, we should be in the final at 1:05pm on Superbowl Sunday & going home with first prize long before the "American" football game begins. On a side note, Coach Enda (from last year) says "hello" and was excited by the great job you all did in the first half (he saw my post on FaceBook).

Sleep well and remember "A champion is someone who does not settle for that day's practice, that day's competition, that day's performance. They are always striving to be better. They don't live in the past." (Briana Scurry). So, it doesn't matter how many points were scored tonight, or lost tonight, tomorrow is a new game. Always play your best, strive to be better, and above all, enjoy yourselves!

Jacob's Revenge....January 30th, 2010

2010-01-31T06:39:00.047-07:00

This was an early game...OK...9:30am isn't that early...on a pretty clear & crisp Saturday morning, the last one of January 2010. When I started to do the research on the North Scottsdale White team it was pointed out that this was the team that beat us last year 1 - 0, when their coach was Coach Dan (now a DFSC coach). I know that many of the parents, as well as the players & coaches (for DFSC) felt like that was a game we should have won...but life isn't about "should haves" it's about new opportunities & now we had one. Also, to add another interesting twist, this was the team that our forward, Jacob Leonard played on last year, he is even in our yearbook (in the "other" uniform)! So, this put us in a "must win" situation! Captains for the game were Nick & Ryder. Starting goalie: Micah. Defense: Nick, Chandler & Nathan. Mids: Knox & Ryder. Forwards: Jacob & Trevor. 30 minute halves...

After not practicing consistently over the last couple of weeks, the game started out as expected, with little emotion. No real leader emerged, so in the 7th minute, the White team scored. Within 2 minutes later, Elite found themselves down 2 - 0...with Micah on the ground! One of the members of the White team tripped over Micah & accidentally stepped on his arm. This brought Micah out of the game for the rest of the half in order to give him time to evaluate & catch his breathe again. He did eventually come back, but in the mean time, Nick stepped up & took his place in goal.

This must have woken up the rest of the team, because soon after, on an assist by Barnett, Jacob scored...then less than 2 minutes later, Barnett scores himself, off of an assist by Ryder. Not to be outdone, in the final minute of the half, Marchica scores, leaving the Elite now up, 3 - 2.

Jacob, during the break...planning his attack.

The second half started where the first half ended...with Elite scoring! Ryder took the ball down the field, set it up, booted it to the lower right corner of the goal, as he put it "the goalie had no chance!" Then Ryder set up an assist, the ball bounced of the "behind" of the White goalie & Jacob took it in. As if on a mission at this point Jacob continued to try to get past the goalie & got his hat-trick in the 55th minute scoring again & leaving the final score at Elite up 6 - 2.

Not a score this time...but a great attempt!

This game had some great moments & I hope they take this to their tournament next weekend! We have a week full of practices (see calendar below), but the rewards are great.

On a side note, it sounds like the Riddle's have the next Poker Night & are planning on February 20th. These nights are really a lot of fun, whether you play poker or not. Just nice to get away & enjoy the company of friends...plus make a few bucks if you "play your cards right!". Hope we see some new faces this time around...as well as the normal crowd.

Soccer Calendar

2010-01-27T14:38:00.002-07:00

Everyone - please see the calendar at the bottom of the BLOG for all updated events, games, tournaments & practices. That seems to change quite a bit with the "rain", however, I have been doing my best to keep it up to date.

Below is the schedule for the Desert Classic tournament:

2/5/2010

6:00 PM
DFSC 00 DESERT ELITE RED (AZ) vs SC DEL SOL 00 BOYS BLUNDELL (AZ)
Reach 11 8B

2/6/2010

11:50 AM
DFSC 00 DESERT ELITE RED (AZ) vs FLAGSTAFF SC UNITED 00 (AZ)
Reach 11 9A

5:30 PM
DFSC 00 DESERT ELITE RED (AZ) vs AHWATUKEE 00 BOYS WHITE (AZ)
Reach 11 9A

Finally...1st Game of 2010

2010-01-09T18:55:00.028-07:00

Doesn't it seem like forever since we were all at a soccer game? The holidays were fun, but I really missed the excitement of Saturdays at the game field, so when I arrived at CSHS with Ryder this morning I was ready for a great game! Poor Nathan was fighting a bad cold, but other than that, the team was looking good. It was a beautiful sunny day in Arizona & according to the '01 parents that were there to watch that team compete right before us, there was a bobcat sighting on the other side of the fence next to the field....nice...

Here is Micah with a great save!

Captains for the game were Ryder & Knox. Starting in goal was Micah, defense was Nick, Chandler & Nate, mids were Ryder & Knox, forwards were Trevor & Jacob. The first half seemed evenly matched against the CCV Cachorros. CCV had about three corners, but we were able to block each attempt. Each team pressed the ball down the field, but CCV was able to get 7 shots on frame, while we were only able to get 3 shots on frame, all credited to Knox. As the half was winding down, CCV got control in front of our goal & with a crazy bounce was able to score with 40 seconds left in the half. First half ends with Elite down 1 - 0.

Coach talked to the boys & let them know that even though they had a lot of possession time they just weren't able to make it happen. He urged them to look for combinations in the box & emphasized that CCV only scored because of the bounce. Micah was eager to get out on the field, so Thomas made a risky call & decided to put our very experienced goalie as mid with Ryder & put Knox in goal. With confirmation from Nathan that his cold wasn't keeping him down, back on the field they went.

In the 26th minute, Knox had already proved that he was more than capable of handling the goalie position with an aggressive save in front of the goal. Elite began to have some corner kicks during this half and between Ryder & Nick we came really close to scoring a number of times. At one point CCV got ahold of the ball & took it towards the goal. Knox stood ready & CCV put the ball in the air. There were a few players right there & rather than get mixed up with the extra bodies Knox kept his cool & punched the ball away from the commotion & saved the goal.

Knox proving his ability in goal...

Both teams seemed to step it up towards the end of the game & in the 48th minute Marchica was pushed...Ryder took the free kick. There seemed to be some craziness going on at the goal after Ryder's kick, all I know for sure is that Nick was able to connect & in it went! Tied game with about a minute to go...no score from that point on. At this point in Season II Elite is in the lead in Division III by only one point. CCV Red is close behind, the Gilbert Arsenal is in 3rd. There are three more games to go, so keep up the good work boys!

On a side note, next week there is no soccer game for the boys, but there is a poker game the the parents! Please make sure you respond to the e-mail invitation that the Black's sent out to everyone on the team. Even if you just want to hang out with the adults & watch Coach get his $$ taken...or sit at the table & take some yourself...come join the fun.

Party Time!

2009-12-31T08:51:00.002-07:00

Don't forget...Saturday, January 2, 2010.

This will be our Potluck Picnic at

Desert Willow Park

2 - 5pm

It will be lots of fun & lots of food for all!

E-mails will be going out Thursday

morning with more details &

with information on

what everyone will be bringing.

Thank you to everyone for making it happen.

There should be about 75 people in all!!

Twas the Elite before Christmas

2009-12-20T15:02:00.000-07:00

As written by Rob Leonard...

Twas the week before Christmas & Elite was out on the pitch,
We all drove FOREVER, hoping for the Black's great sandwich.

Coach Thomas couldn't make it, he went south with his "other" team.
Coach Goge was AWESOME (not as good as the bald man, I mean).

The field conditions were bad, which would make it hard to kick,
But we had a game to play, so bring on captains Jacob, Knox & Nick.

Gilbert Arsenal was the opponent...last week's tourney winner of 1st prize,
But Coach Goge motivated the team by exclaiming "Let's go crush these guys!!"

Nick started as keeper, with Nate, Chandler & Micah in defense.
Knox filled in at mid, with Marchica, Barnett & Jacob on offense.

Arsenal began scoring, with a lucky corner kick goal that Nick just missed,
But later in the half Michael Barnett evened the score, with Marchica on the assist.

One to one tie at half, hey haven't we seen this before??
With the 2nd half still to come...is there a fantastic finish in store?

The 2nd half remained scoreless...each team battling to get a stop,
Until the final minute heroics would leave one team on top.

With mere seconds remaining...Jacob fought for the ball & passed it to Knox.

The time was close as Knox connected with the ball & off towards the goal as the keeper took a fall.

GOOOOAAAAALLLLLL!!!

Elite wins...Elite wins...oh what a finish!!!
As parents of soccer players, this is the best present for Christmas!!

For those of you not yet on vacation, we will see you all on Monday,
And if I miss you at all this next week I hope each of you enjoy your holiday!!

I hope you enjoyed my seasonal rhyme.
Rob

Tough Game vs. CCV Stars Red Team

2009-12-20T14:25:00.005-07:00

OK, this might be a week late...but before we do a post for yesterday's game, I wanted to make sure this was included as well.

This was a game on our home field on December 12, 2009. Captains for the game were Ryder, Jacob & Knox...and we started on the North side of the soccer field. Coach Thomas was in a great mood & told the boys before the start that he had a "premonition that they will win". He reminded them of their 3 - 3 tie against the same team during the Christmas Angels Tournament, and said that if they played "20% better they would win". In goal was Micah, defense started with Nick, Chandler & Knox. Ryder in mid, and Trevor, Jacob & Nate as forwards.

The first half of the game was pretty evenly matched. Both teams wanted this win badly and Coach had to remind our boys to remain calm & collected. One of the excited moments of the game was when Ryder was given a free kick in the 24th minute. He stood just South of the center line & called for his 10 yards...booted it & it smacked the top post and went back into the field. Soon after we had a corner kick that went straight to Nate, he kicked it right to the goal but the goalie got his palms on it and batted it back to the crowd. Half ended with no score for either team. Coach talked with the boys during the half and let them know that he was happy with how they were playing. This was an exciting game so far, and we knew the 2nd half would be even better.

CCV was aggressive from the blow of the whistle after the half. They had 3 shots on goal in the first 2 minutes! We struggled for control & were unable to take the ball to their side of the field until after the 40th minute, but had no shots on goal. An exciting moment happened a couple of minutes later when Micah had to come out of his goal to save a shot but it rebounded back to CCV & they tried again at what looked like an empty net. But there was Conor in defense & he was able to block the shot and save the goal. Soon after, Conor got called for an elbow penalty & CCV lined up for the kick. They tried to fake it, but our boys were expecting that and the CCV player just bumped it and the played did not work. Both teams played aggressively from that point on and both teams were making shots on goal to no avail. Then with 1 1/2 minutes left in the game we got called on a hand ball. CCV scored... But our boys were not willing to let them win and with just 5 seconds left in the game Trevor was able to tie up the score. We fought hard for the goal, Jacob had a great shot on goal that was block, but the goalie wasn't able to control the rebound and Trev was able to boot it in. Great job team for giving your best in those last moments & working together as a team.

Christmas Angels: Game 3

2009-12-06T21:19:00.003-07:00

This ended up being the fight for fifth place in the Christmas Angels tournament against the Cisco Inferno Black team that we had tied in the regular season. A frustrating game for all, with more questionable calls from the Refs that pretty much decided the game...with us ending on the short end of the stick, a loss of 7 - 5. The five goals were as follows:

1 & 2: Jacob

3: Michael B.

4 & 5: Ryder

It was a game to learn from, not forget.

Christmas Angels: Game 2

2009-12-06T09:29:00.002-07:00

Syndie,

Here is my take on today's game: Going into this game, we had to win to have any chance of advancing to the semi-finals. Another slow start and some defensive lapses led to an early two goal deficit. But Jacob received the ball in the box, made a great spin move, and fired the ball into the corner to get us on the board. Later, Jacob drove toward the goal and was tripped up before he could get the shot away. Penalty called!! Knox was given the opportunity to tie up the game via the penalty kick, and he delivered into the corner. 2-2 tie at halftime.

The second half went back and forth for a while with no scoring, until once again Jacob drove to the goal and got fouled hard in the box...another PK. Knox was given a chance again to give us the lead, but similar to Landon Donovan's PK in the MLS championship, the ball sailed just high over the goal. Later in the second half, the referee's did us no favors. Micah unbelievably was called twice for handling the ball outside of the box...two terrible calls. The first PK by CCV was missed, but the second went in for a 3-2 deficit. Jacob was taken down in the box for a third time soon after, and Ryder delivered on this PK, but we weren't able to get another one past the goalie, and had to settle for a hard fought tie and 3rd place in our bracket.

Thanks, Rob Leonard

Christmas Angels: Game 1

2009-12-04T20:48:00.005-07:00

Brr...on this chilly evening, the boys faced a good Chandler CSA '00 team in the first game of the Christmas Angels Tournament. With an unfortunate accident on the I-17 slowing most of the parents down on their way to the fields, all the boys were finally accounted for and were able warm up briefly before the kick off right at 6pm. CSA went into the game with confidence having won every game they have played in Division III so far this year. However, they were taken off guard in the first minute of the game with an easy goal by mid-fielder & team Captain, Ryder, assisted by Knox. Defenders at the start were team Captain Chandler & Nick. Forwards were Jacob, Trevor, Michael M. and Knox. Micah in goal.

CSA had something to say about that first minute, and came right back and tied up the game in quick manner. Five minutes later, they scored another unfortunate goal that just seemed to bounce off of Micah's fingertips, over his head, and into the net. Both teams seemed to be affected by the chilly weather, and weren't playing with a lot of emotion. Ryder had a couple of penalty kicks, but to no avail. By the 16th minute, Coach warmed up Conor, Nathan & Michael B. and sent them in with fresh legs. CSA had some impressive Lefties and scored again on a questionable "offsides" goal, and though it seemed rather obvious to everyone on this side of the line, the score stuck. Right at the end of the half Michael B. made a great aggressive play, but unfortunately took an injury that kept him on the bench for the rest of the game, and the half ended with Elite down 1 - 3.

After a half time talk with both Coach Thomas & team Captain Ryder, the team took the field looking more warmed up and ready to play. The intensity of the game seemed to be taken up a few notches and in the 35th minutes Trevor made a beautiful cross from the left of the goal to Jacob who was surrounded by CSA players. Jacob was able to keep the ball in play, get it to Knox & in it went...GOAL! Coach was constantly reminding the boys to get wide, and to switch the ball so that we had room to play, but the CSA team seemed to be playing with twice as many defenders than were really out there! A number of times our forwards would be surrounded by three or more of the CSA defenders. By the 46th minute CSA was able to break free and take the ball down the field, and with what seemed like a slow motion cross, it slipped by Micah and hit the back of the net. Now, we had about 10 minutes left and needed 2 goals to tie the game. Back and forth it went, with some great defensive plays by Chandler, Nick and Conor. Nate even looked like an Energizer Bunny at one point and was not about to let that ball anywhere near our goal. With 5 minutes to go in the game Michael M. scored off an assist by Knox. And though we showed a lot of heart towards the end, we never were able to tie up the score and CSA took the game with a final score of CSA 4 and Elite 3.

For Friday night, this was the only game in our bracket that was played. CSA will be in the lead with 9 tournament points, and we will have 3 tournament points. CSA will have to return tomorrow morning for a 9:15am game against the CCV Stars Red team, which is the same team we will be facing at 2:15pm.

I will not be at the game tomorrow so if everyone (seriously...everyone) can e-mail me your take on the game, score, Captains, starters, crazy plays, general feel, I will be happy to summarize and include that in the Blog tomorrow evening! Sleep well & keep warm.

00B Desert Elite Red Kick for the Cure Champs Two Years in a Row

2009-12-04T20:41:00.005-07:00

November 2009 - Wow, talk about “déjà vu”! The 00 Desert Elite Red boys went undefeated into the Final game just like they had last year, and what a game it was. Again, tied at the end of regulation…again, tied at the end of overtime. The decision was down to penalty kicks and the Elite boys prevailed. Coach Thomas was very proud of these young men and said "the boys had a great weekend. It's pleasing to see they are carrying out some of the things they are learning in training. They made hard work of the final but I had faith we would come through at the end. We obviously had an attacking mentality throughout the weekend with our shape and expansiveness but not sure if coach can handle conceding so many goals at the other end, my finger nails and voice are gone. We had some great goals and everybody looked like they might score. Let's kick on and finish the season strong.”

Kick for the Cure: Semi - Final Game

2009-11-15T10:11:00.007-07:00

What an exciting game! Not only because of the final results, but this team has come alive during this tournament. I arrived about a minute before kickoff & barely had time to set up before the whistle blew, so all I saw was Co-Captains Ryder & Michael M. at center field with the refs and the captains for the Cisco Inferno White team. I don't have the starting line up, but I know that being Sunday, Trevor was with his family, and subs on the bench were Conor & Michael B. The game started off rather uneventful for the first 6 minutes or so. Then on our 2nd corner kick Knox passed to Ryder, overlapped & booted it towards the goal...off the top bar, so close! Two hand balls later...we still weren't able to get that ball in the net. The Cisco goalkeeper really did a great job, but needless to say we have a couple of secret (or not so secret) weapons on our team, Ryder & Jacob. In the 13th minute of play, Michael M. was taken down on the far side of the field, well into Cisco territory...Ryder took the penalty kick, stared down the ball, and without hesitation, kicked it into the right corner of the net...GOAL! Cisco immediately tried to strike back, but Micah was waiting for them and easily blocked their attempt. In the 21st minute, Ryder had a great pass to Knox, Knox booted it at the goal, but their keeper made a great save and smacked it out. A couple of minutes later, Jacob made one of the many runs at the goal, but was pushed down in the box, bummer! Then the last big play of the half, Nick was able to force a turnover by using his head and letting the ball roll out of bounds. We got the ball back & took it back to the Cisco goal, Michael B. made a great shot on goal but it rolled just outside the right corner.

During the half break the first thing that Coach told the boys was how is it that we controlled the ball 80% of the time, but only had 1 goal? We had 21 shots on goal...and only one stuck. Well, let me skip ahead a wee bit & say that during the 2nd half there were only 13 shots on goal...and this time 3 went in, nice improvement!

So, when the whistle blew for the 2nd half of the game, Jacob immediately took the ball down the field on his own & was determined to get a goal. Unfortunately the goalie thwarted his plans...but one minute later, Jacob was back & this time scored...GOAL! Cisco got lucky 10 minutes later and scored on a penalty kick. As you can see in the picture, the ball was placed beautifully, and Micah did an awesome job trying to block it. Out of at least 6 goals that he saved...I'd say he did a great job overall. But again, 1 minute later, on a throw-in by Nate, Jacob blasted one to the upper right corner of the goal, it just was deflected by the fingertips of the goalie, and in it went...GOAL! Last goal of the morning was by Ryder in the 47th minute bringing the total to the final score of 4 - 1. One more comment on the game is about Chandler, the kid really had a great game with some awesome headers & great saves, including a slider the last few minutes that looked like it was right in the box. Conor also showed his ability to defend towards the end and ended up in a tumble with the white jerseys...Coach told him to be aggressive out there & he did a good job. Knox also ended up with 6 shots on goal, Michael M., Michael B. & Nick with 4 shots on goal each.

That win put us in the finals for this afternoon...be watching...it should be a good game!

Kick for the Cure: Game 2

2009-11-14T13:11:00.009-07:00

For what seemed like a close game the first 19 minutes, Elite ended up schooling the Benfica '00 boys this morning in rare fashion. The game began with Caption Ryder as mid, Micah in goal, Nick & Chandler defending and Michael M., Jacob, Knox & Trevor as forwards. With 30 minutes halves the game progressed quickly. Here is the quick & dirty run down of the 10 goals scored:

#1: Ryder, left-footed, beautiful, up & over & in!

#2: Jacob, straight in, with Knox bringing it down the field in the right side.

#3: Ryder, Knox overlapped & passed to Ryder, he put it in the left corner on a cross.

#4: Ryder, free kick, up & over again...straight in the net.

#5: Jacob, beautiful & right in, the way it should be...

#6: Jacob, with a great cross assist by Michael M to the upper right corner of the net.

#7: Micah, his first goal of the year!

#8: Trevor, all the way down with some fancy footwork!

#9: Jacob, unassisted...

#10: Jacob, almost two hat-tricks in one game!

Amongst all of the above, Benfica scored twice leaving the final score 10 - 2. Both of the goals scored against us were due to mistakes & lapses of concentration. We had trouble keeping the ball down & at one point it seemed to bounce all over the place...which brought out "keep the ball down...God would have put the field in the trees" by Coach Thomas. Either way, that win was not surprising and put the boys in first place in Bracket A. A couple of notes about the game, with the score at half time being 6 - 2, Coach was able to switch up the players a bit & let Micah stretch his legs as a forward and put Knox in goal. They had some trouble settling into their new positions, but with time they obviously were able to figure it out. All of the boys appeared more vocal & I could hear them on the sideline during the game. When they have that confidence, they play well together, passing, communicating, and looking up to see whats going on around them. Keep up the good work everyone!

We know for sure we will be playing tomorrow morning, 8am on field 15A against the #2 team in Bracket B. That team won't be decided until their last game is played at 3:30 this afternoon. Get some rest everyone, it will be bright & early before you know it!

Kick for the Cure 2009: Game 1

2009-11-13T21:03:00.013-07:00

Quite the chilly evening out there tonight on this Friday the 13th, but for the first time this year the boys were able to compete under the lights on the beautifully groomed fields of Reach 11 Sports Complex. The boys knew going into this game that they were playing a tough '01 team. The Blackhawks '01 boys have made a name for themselves by placing first so far in the season in Division I, so they certainly weren't going to make this an easy win for Elite.

Starting positions, Micah in goal, Nick & Chandler in defense, Michael M., Ryder (captain) & Trevor as mids, and Jacob & Knox up front as forwards. The elongated first half was dominated by Elite. The boys had 18 shots on goal during the half & completed controlled the game for the first 11 minutes! Even Chandler had a brilliant shot on goal, but barely missed going in & soared over the top bar. Trevor scored our first goal in the 10th minute after both teams seemed to volley it back & forth in front of the Blackhawks goal. Blackhawks then finally got control of the ball & made their first shot on goal in the 12th minute, they ran straight down the field (offsides...) & booted one at our goal, but Micah was there to make one of his famous saves. Ryder took the free kick and sent it flying over both teams to the other side of the field (nice kick!) where Michael B met the ball & again it flew up & over the goal. Soon after the Blackhawks received a handball penalty & Ryder was set for a direct penalty kick...but low & behold our Captain sent it to the outside of the left bar...no score. In the 23rd minute the Blackhawks were finally able to capitalize on a bad defensive decision by our team and tie up the game 1 - 1. Thinking the first half was soon to end, our team rallied back, controlled the ball & took it to the goal, Jacob tapped it to Knox & he was there to tap it with his right foot & boot it in with a beautiful left-footed goal. Even Coach took notice & yelled "Knoxy, very good!". After some confusion on how long the actual half should be for the U10s...the ref finally called time at 28:24 minutes.

When the boys took the field for the second half, Nick told Ryder "this is your half, you're going to score in this half"...and sure enough 2 minutes later with an assist by Knox, Ryder scored! Our team was pumped & playing well together. Soon after Knox took the ball down the center of the field, waited until the perfect moment to pass the ball, then did a diagonal pass to Michael M. over on the right side of the field. Michael shot the ball towards the goal, but the Blackhawks goalie was able to block it. That's a great example of a good pass & good teamwork! Then in the 7th minute Knox got under the ball, up & over it went, straight into the goal! That even brought a smile to Coach's face! A rare but much appreciated sight during a game... Blackhawks scored again bringing the score within 2 points. For the rest of the game Coach started switching around players and loaded up the defense pulling Ryder to the back then switching with Knox, Chandler & Trevor with the advice to "not confront over the mid line"...defend boys defend! We slowed down the game, took control of the ball and the whistle blew, Elite wins 4 - 2!

So at the end of the games on Friday evening, for the tournament in Bracket A, Elite leads with 9 points, Blackhawks have 2 points, and the Benfica has no points with both of their games coming up on Saturday. In Bracket B, CCV Stars Red team leads with 9 points, Cisco Inferno White team has 1 point, and the AZ Blue Thunder has no points with both of their game today as well. For the record, Elite had 29 shots tonight with 16 on frame that could have made it if their goalie was...well...sleeping. Keep it up! Tomorrow is another day & another game.

11/07/2009 "Where is.....???"

2009-11-07T13:09:00.014-07:00

This morning starting off with a series of "where is..." questions. Where is a Starbucks? Where is the field? Where are the goals? Where is the other team? Where is Trevor's shoe? Where is Chandler? At least, as you can see from the picture on the left, the goals finally arrived, but apparently due to some mismatched pieces, they were rather difficult to assemble. So, have you heard the joke..."how many soccer dad's does it take to put up a goal?" But by 8:15am...Chandler was there, Trevor's shoe was on and the game was finally underway. Coach Thomas sent them onto the field with the advice to go from "nice little boys...to aggressive little animals" & didn't want to hear any excuses this time around. With Micah in goal, Nick & Chandler in defense, Michael M., Ryder & Nathan as mids, Jacob & Knox as forwards they began their quest to end this season on a high note.

The first half started out with Cisco in control. Micah was challenged a number of times, but was able to brilliantly block or dive on the ball. Elite had a couple of turnovers with missed throw-ins & struggled to gain the upper hand. Chandler was a monster in defense & with his quick legs was able to drill down on the Cisco offense. Then, Knox struck in the 8th minute on a beautiful cross that no one expected to go in. It took Cisco another 7 minutes to tie up the game, but off of a corner kick they took the ball in. Ryder had his chance in the 20th minute but rushed the ball & without taking a touch first, he sent it straight over, missing the goal. At that point Cisco kept control of the ball & ran it down the field straight at our goal & scored. First half ended, Elite down 1 - 2.

The 2nd half got really crazy. Right from the start, Cisco player #2 received a yellow card due to grabbing Nate's shirt & then shoving him during the play. Our team began to rally & kept control over the ball. The Cisco Coach noticed this as well & urged his team to "take a touch (on the ball) and make a decision". Elite continued to have shots on goal with Jacob on a mission to bring Elite up to a tie again. Unfortunately in the 35th minute, Cisco was able to capitalize off of a bad call by the refs & the score was 1 - 3. Now, Ryder, after being knocked to the ground a number of times so far in the game, ended up with a yellow card himself off a kick that landed on one of the Cisco players. Back and forth this went, until Jacob was able to get one in with no assist at the 42nd minute mark. This was not enough for Jacob though, & 2 1/5 minutes later, he scores again off a throw-in & ties the game with less than 5 minutes to go. Both teams were desperately trying to win but Elite had control & shot the ball time after time, but to no avail. Final score tied 3 - 3.

So, that is the end of season I. I am uncertain of what is going to happen in the next season, but all we can do is look towards the next game. Kick for the Cure is coming up fast & as of right now, we are scheduled at Reach II with a 7:15 Friday night game & a 9:00am Saturday morning game. Sunday games will be decided after the first two games are played. The link for the schedule & scores is included on the left here in the Blog. I will give some analysis later this week. But for today I wish you all an excellent weekend, keep healthy, happy, and most importantly, keep your humor.

Standings Update

2009-11-04T09:25:00.002-07:00

Here are the standings as of 11/04/2009 for Division II:

North Scottsdale Correcaminos 4 games played 12 points total
Sereno 01 Boys White 5 games played 9 points total
Alliance FC 5 games played 8 points total
Banat SC 6 games played 8 points total
Cisco Inferno 3 games played 4 points total
DFSC Elite 5 games played 4 points total
Scottsdale Falcons 4 games played 0 points total

As you can see, Elite only has one game left, against the team that we are "tied" with in points. After this game, Inferno will play the Correcaminos (which they will more than likely lose)then play the Falcons (which they will more than likely win). So, at the very least Elite will need to win against the Inferno to stay tied in points.

Don't forget, next weekend is the Kick for the Cure Tournament. As soon as we get a somewhat confirmed schedule we will release it. On a side note, this tournament donates all of the proceeds to the American Cancer Society to help in the fight against breast cancer & all monies donated stay in Arizona :-). The website still states that the tournament will be held at Reach 11 (yea!!).

After that we will get a break for a few weekends, then start up with season II in December. Picture day will be Saturday December 12th. A time has not been scheduled yet.

See everyone this Saturday! Go ELITE!!!

A haunted game vs. Alliance FC 2000

2009-10-31T12:45:00.007-07:00

An early game this was, on a Halloween Saturday morning. The team looked pumped while they were warming up on the North side of the field. However, earlier, the Alliance FC honestly looked more organized & ready to go. They were all at the field and warming up as we arrived at 8:15am...just a side note, so I digress...

Captains for the game were Ryder & Nick. The starting line-up was Micah in goal, defenders: Nick, Chandler & Knox, forwards: Michael M., Jacob & Trevor with Ryder in mid. Coach reminded them at the begin that they played great & aggressive against the '99 girls last Monday evening, so they should play the same way here on the field..."let's work hard" he said and "get it right this time!".

The game seemed to start off well. We were passing & seemed to be creating good opportunities. Micah had some great saves, but then the Alliance took the ball to the goal & kicked it...off the top bar (breathe...sigh of relief...) but they took the rebound & in it went. About this time we began to notice all of the missed (and not missed) calls on the Alliance...offsides galore, hand balls, bad throws, pushing...you name it. So much to our frustration & disappointment, after two consecutive offsides, the Alliance scored again. I even heard from the other side of the field "watch your offsides next time...", but the refs never took the point back & our boys seemed defeated. Towards the end of the first half, Ryder did a brilliant penalty kick, got under the ball & it flew over both teams & straight into the goal. half time score, down 1 - 2.

Coach Thomas tried to encourage them during the break by telling the to believe in themselves & keep working away at it. But the 2nd half seemed to bring more missed calls, more missed plays & more frustration. The Alliance scored again from a right cross & then cinched it with a penalty kick score. Final score 1 - 4.

So, let me digress again...there were 5 beautiful crosses that we made in front of the goal...but missed each time. The boys seem aware, the Coach is very much aware, and the parent can see it as well. Something has got to give for these kids, they are working so hard to seem to be producing so little right now. We have one more game in this regular season before our next tournament, the Kick for the Cure. Hopefully they can all figure it out...these boys have talent & heart. They just need to figure out how to leave it all on the field.

I'm early on this post, so once the websites get updated with all of the games today I'll be able to give a summary of where the teams are. Have a Happy Halloween everyone!

vs. Sereno '01 10/24/2009

2009-10-31T12:16:00.006-07:00

Just a quick "make-up" post for last week's game against the Sereno 2001 boys... Starting line-up, Knox in goal, Nick, Chandler & Michael M. in defense & Trevor, Jacob & Michael B. as forwards with Ryder in mid. Sereno challenged Knox in the first 2 minutes, but Knox was able to block at the start. However, through miscommunication & not playing our positions, Sereno scored 2 quick goals by the 3:15 mark. Coach yelled at them to "pass with a purpose" & to "encourage each other" and they began to find their groove. We struck next with a great goal by Jacob, assisted by Trevor...then low & behold, Michael B. scored his very first goal in the 25th minute to tie up the game. Great job! However, Sereno was able to pull ahead by half time, leaving us down one goal 2 - 3.

One of the bright points in the 2nd half was made by Knox. Never having played goalie for the whole game before I know we were all hoping that he would do well. He ended up with 9 saves in all. The best one came towards the middle of the 2nd half with Sereno quickly approaching him & our defense not able to get to the ball. They kicked from the left & he anticipated and dove up and out to the right...the ball just seemed to be deflected off of his fingertips out out on the other side of the goal post! What a play! OK...enough, lets get on with the next game...

A Hot Weather Win...we'll take it!

2009-10-17T16:13:00.025-07:00

After such a terrible loss last week, DFSC was hungry for a win. With a kick off time of 3pm & the temperatures in the 100s, Captains Ryder, Micah & Jacob were determined to lead their team to a victory against the Scottsdale Falcons. Coach Thomas told the boys at the start "you are only as good as your last game..." so an improvement in their communication & playing skills was a must.

Starting lineup was Micah in goal, Nick, Chandler & Knox in defense, Ryder in mid, & Michael M, Jacob & Trevor as forwards. In the first half both DFSC & the Falcons seemed sluggish. Ryder ended up with a couple of exciting penalty kicks, one of which was so close to being a goal but veered to the left and hit the outside of the net, bummer! The refs opted for a water break after 12 1/2 minutes, but kept the clock running. Trevor really seemed to be having trouble with the heat in the first half, but stayed out there & showed a lot of determination which really paid off in the second half. Nathan, Michael B & Conor were substituted in at the 19th minute & gave Nick, Michael M & Trevor a much needed break. Knox looks like he tried to do the old Jedi "mind trick" on the soccer ball in the picture on the left. Nate had two great shots on goal, one that sailed over the top & the other that hit just outside net on the left...unfortunately neither went in.

Second half our team finally started to get in their groove & rallied together to a 2 - 0 lead in the first 5 minutes. The first goal was a bit of a combination between an assist by Michael M & a final touch by Jacob, with the ball finally bouncing in off one of the Falcon players. The 2nd goal was a beautiful cross assist by Jacob followed by a perfect boot from Trevor (obviously feeling better!) nothing but net! At the 37 1/2 minute water break, Coach pulled Micah & put Knox in the goal with Micah now up front. By that time though our team had taken control over the game & Knox ended up with a rather boring position. Towards the end of the game, Jacob scored us goal number 3 after an assist by Michael B. Not sure what brilliant words Coach Thomas spoke during the half time break, but whatever he said worked wonders.

This hot afternoon also saw the Banat '00 boys beat out the Sereno '01 boys 4 - 3, and a 3 - 3 tie between the Cisco Inferno '00 boys and the Alliance '00 team. All of this combined with our win moved the boys up to now be in 5th place out of the 7 teams in our division. We are actually tied in points for 4th place, but Cisco had more "goals for" and earned that 4th place slot. With three more games to play, that's not a bad position to be in. The Correcaminos hold their 1st place spot with only three games played, all of which were wins. They will face off next week against the 2nd place Banat team, but that will be Banat's last game of the season. With other teams still playing, they are sure to drop down in the division. We are scheduled to play next week on our home field against the Sereno '01 boys at 3pm. The Sereno team might be a year younger, but they are used to playing up & have done quite well for themselves. Looking forward to a great game, another win & cooler weather.

DFSC vs. North Scottsdale Correcaminos

2009-10-10T18:46:00.004-07:00

Ouch. That was a tough game to watch, but probably not as tough as it was for the boys on the field to play. DFSC faced the Correcaminos looking tired in the first half. They started their game short Coach Thomas, but he arrive within 10 minutes of the kickoff. However, by the end of 25 minutes, we were down 4 - 0. There are a lot of excuses we could come up with...the referees were short one ref & they were missing calls left & right, we missed warm up & kick off with our coach, it was afternoon & the boys were tired...but all in all, the Correcaminos were a better team this time. Plus with an ending score of 8 - 1 its hard to make any excuse stick. Better to learn from it & move on to the next game. One startling statistic is that they had 24 shots on goal, 8 of which made it in. We only had 9 shots on goal, with only 1 goal making it in by Nick Blascoe, assisted by Michael Marchica.

Here is a great picture of just one of Micah Scott's many saves. During his time in the game, he had 12 great saves, the score could have been a lot more lopsided if it wasn't for his quick moves.

But it wasn't just Micah making the saves...Conor Ryan threw his body into making a save & deserved congratulations from his teammate when he was done. Great job! Towards the end of the game, after being down 0 - 5, Coach Thomas switched the goalies out. This gave Micah a chance to stretch his legs out on the field & Knox Riddle a chance at the goalie gloves. Without the experience that Micah has, Knox still gave us four great saves, not bad for a rookie!

At the end of the day, we dropped a spot in Division II, and are now placed 6 out of 7 teams. Please understand that the "top" three teams have already played three or four games & have the points to show for it. The "bottom" four teams, which includes us, have only played two games so far in the season. Next Saturday our game is against the Scottsdale Falcons who have also lost against Banat & the Correcaminos and are in 7th place. Kick off is at 2pm, a reminder will be sent out later this week.

Banat SC vs. DFSC

2009-10-03T20:55:00.011-07:00

What an exciting first game! On what seemed to be a very hot afternoon in Buckeye, our 2000 boys faced off against a very tough Banat team. This team placed 2nd last year in Division I, and we never had a chance to play against them last year because our boys were in Division II. When I mentioned this to Coach Thomas last week all he had to say is "bring it on!" Boy they did! By the end of the first half, we were down 2 - 0. But after a cool drink & an chat with coach the boys went back out there and fought back to tie it up with goals by both Michael Marchica & Jacob Leonard, great job guys! Enjoy a few of the pictures below...

By looking at the Flight Results Grid (under the 2009/2010 Season I Scores & Schedules link) the boys are competing in a seven team Division II. So far in the season, there have been three weekends available for games. There are six games total for the season. We were in Flagstaff for the first weekend, and had a weekend off after that, so this was the boys first game of six. Banat, on the other hand had already played two of their six games. For the season point total, a win gets three points, a tie gets one point and a loss gets zero points, pretty simple. So, even with just one game played, and that ending up in a tie, DFSC is in 5th place right now. Banat is in 1st place, but they have only won one game, and tied the other two. It will be easier to see once a few more games are played, but keeping the score even today will mean a lot for the points in the long run. Have a great weekend everyone, and we'll see you at practice on Monday.

Extra Pics from Flagstaff

2009-09-30T10:08:00.004-07:00

I wanted to share some other pictures that I received from Flagstaff taken by Cristina Ladas (Michael M.'s mom)...still gets my heart pumping to know how close they came! Glad we have a game coming up soon!

2009-09-20T19:18:00.021-07:00

Fresh home from the tournament in Flagstaff I'm sitting here not sure what to even write! My mind must be fried from such a great weekend full of fun, bonding for the boys & the parents & some great soccer! So, here is the run down...

Game 1: Elite 4, Flagstaff United 0
Game 2: Elite 4, Blackhawks B2 2
Game 3: CCV Stars Black 4, Elite 2

Game 3 was the Semi-Final game against a Division I team, it was a tough game...Elite played hard, but not hard enough. That game earned them 3rd place in the Boys U10 bracket. There were some brilliant moments in all of the games, as well as the festivities later on Saturday. Thank you everyone for making it a weekend to remember! All I can do now is let the pictures do the talking below...

Soccer Food for Thought

2009-09-16T12:06:00.004-07:00

I put this in an e-mail, but wanted to include the summary here of the statistics about our team.

Coach Thomas was reviewing the statistics & getting ready for our tournament this weekend. From talking with him, I could tell that he was proud to be a part of last season & is looking forward for the games to begin for this next season. There are so many great individuals, personalities, strengths, and weaknesses, but when you put them together this is what you get, a strong team of players that are playing & acting more & more like a team every game.

This is from the game history from Gotsoccer.com for this team from 10/04/08 to 03/15/09.

Games played: 26
Games won: 19
Draws: 4
Games lost: 3
Goals scored: 91

Not bad! With the team basically the same as we were last year & the great addition of Jacob up front, these boys have some serious potential. Please take a moment to share this with your sons as well. They have a lot to be proud of! Thanks Coach Thomas for reminding us!

So...how was Saturday?

2009-09-13T16:11:00.017-07:00

There were a lot of positive things about this last Saturday. First off, the scrimmage. As the parents were standing around on the side lines watching the boys warm up we gazed out upon the Blackhawks' team & we realized that these boys on the Blackhawks were pretty darn big for their "second team". Soon enough it was confirmed that even though we were invited to scrimmage with team number two...they sent out (for reasons unknown to us) their top team that will be competing this next season in Division I. Our boys will be competing in Division II, so unless we meet them again at a Tournament (say...Flagstaff?) we will not play them again in our regular season. Well, now we were nervous. With as much faith as we have in our sons, we don't want a slaughter at the beginning of the year to set any type of theme for the future. Ryder was chosen as team captain & proudly jogged over to the center line to face off with the Blackhawks' two team captains & the ref. From my point of view he looked like he was about at their shoulder level...a scene from David & Goliath passed before my eyes...

However, when the ball was kicked off the boys came alive! The Blackhawks struck first, but really had to fight for it. Our defense was strong & aggressive, & I could hear the boys communicating out on the field to each other. Soon after the Blackhawks scored, we started fighting back & with a great assist by Jacob, Knox scored & tied the game! Our boys continued to play hard & the next point was scored by Max (from the 2001 Elite team) now they were leading the game! Unfortunately within moments, the Blackhawks took the ball & seemed to lob one from half field to tie up the score again. By the end of the game, the Blackhawks came back to score two more goals & won 4 - 2.

Even though the boys lost the scrimmage, they played a great game! They held their own against a very talented & strong Blackhawks Division I team. As I was driving my son, Ryder, home after the game, I told him how proud I was of him. They never gave up, they communicated with each other, they listened to sideline advice from Coach Thomas & applied it, & all of this was done without our top goalie, Micah, Nick Blascoe & Michael Barnett, all of whom had prior family event they needed to attend. With the team all together at the upcoming tournament, who knows how far they could go!

A quick shout out for Ryder's birthday party as well. Thank you all that were able to join us to celebrate this occasion! The kids had a blast swimming, having noodle wars, playing badminton, & a crazy bean bag toss game as well. The adults relaxed & sat back in the shade of the patio with some great appetizers & drinks. Coach Thomas joined us, after driving back from a game in Tuscon, right about when the pizza arrived & was one of the last guests to leave after a pretty hilarious game of Apples to Apples, which if you have never played before it is a must buy for all families. The cake was great! Even though Ryder could not blow out candles (it was an ice cream cake!) he was able to avoid potential bad luck & made the first corner cut while making his all important wish...hopefully one that has to do with winning gold in Flagstaff! I, for one really enjoyed myself & am truly thankful for having some really great friends & great parents associated with the soccer team this year, that makes all the difference in the world! Thank you everyone for making Saturday a great day for Ryder, as well as for me.

A Note from Coach Rick

2009-09-10T14:01:00.001-07:00

Here is a note I just received from Coach Rick on his expectations for our team:

"I strongly believe our 00B team has the potential to grow into one of the flagships of our great club. The boys have consistently shown they have the potential and desire to become one of the best in AZ. I look forward to working with these fine young talents and can not wait to see to what level they will be taking their game this year" - Coach Rick

It is going to be an exciting year!

Tuesday Night with Coach Rick

2009-09-09T09:21:00.014-07:00

For those of us that have worked with Coach Rick Tilmans in the past, we were pretty excited to hear that he would be the back up coach for our fearless leader, Coach Thomas, & would be working with the boys this next year. So, this first practice with him we knew would be tough, fun & a great team builder for the boys. One thing that I have personally enjoyed in regards to the Desert Elite club the past few years is working with the different professionals that they have offered. Whether it was the very nice & talented Coach Michelle, or the tough & fairness of Coach Thomas, all of them have brought different insight & perspective to this game that I have come to love. With Coach Rick, we get over 30 years of experience, including 8 years of professional experience. Not only has he coached for various valley wide soccer clubs for the last 10 + years, he has also been involved with the Arizona Olympic Development Program (ODP), various soccer camps/clinics in Colorado, New York, England, Holland & Canada, as well as served as head coach for the girls soccer team of Notre Dame Prep School.

As far as last night's practice is concerned it looked just about how I expected, tough but fun. The boys worked on a few toe tapping skills, then ran (literally) drills around a circle. Not only did Coach Rick have them sprinting forwards & backwards, but at one point had to do somersaults to get to their ball & try to kick off the ball on the center cone. This was a great support to the conditioning that they have been getting at the practices with Coach Thomas. After that, they did some 1 v 1 and 2 v 2 friendly mini scrimmages which really got them excited. Even Coach Rick was impressed & at one point yelled out "look at that skillage!" Click on the pictures to be able to see them in more detail. This team looks poised & ready for a game!

Update on our scrimmages. The first scrimmage will take place this Saturday, September 12th at 8am in the morning, see calendar below for the field & directions. Please plan on getting there at 7:30 to warm up. Each family is responsible for their own drinks & snacks. Then back home to rest in the afternoon & come join us at my home at 4pm for a birthday swimming & pizza celebration for Ryder, including a very chocolatey ice cream birthday cake that he picked out last night with a pretty wild skateboard scene, all are invited! Then, next Tuesday, September 15th, Coach Shaun & Coach Tim have graciously agreed to let their up & coming 2001 boys team scrimmage with our boys at the regular Desert Broom practice. Now this will not be an easy game, to say the very least! But bragging rights are at stake for the boys, parents & coaches alike so everyone come join us to cheer on the 2000 boys! Don't forget about the $5 5 - 6pm practice on Thursday with Coach Thomas, it would be great to get everyone there, plus I know that we will have a few extras boys coming as well to fill in some of the holes. Have a great week everyone!

The Season is Approaching

2009-09-03T20:13:00.012-07:00

What a great night for a practice! For a pretty hot (OK, it was damn hot) day, there was a nice breeze that kept everyone comfortable at Coyote Basin tonight. The whole team was there and they are showing some great improvement. Coach Thomas is really working on making sure they are fit, and he is starting most every practice with some good cardio. Tonight was two long laps around the park, then onto various drills. It's exciting to see them coming together as a team.

The scrimmage has been scheduled and is on the calendar below. Saturday, September 12th at 3pm at Mountain View Park in Scottsdale. We will be playing against the Blackhawks 2000 boys 2nd team. I looked up our games from last year, and we beat them 2 - 0 on January 10, 2009. That's no guarantee for this game, it's up to the boys to apply what Coach Thomas has been teaching them. Like they say in the professional world...it's only a "Pre-Season" game.

A few of the parents also began a conversation regarding the Flagstaff Tournament. We will be organizing a BBQ & flag-football game for Saturday evening at a local park. Everyone will need to pitch in about $10 per family which will be used to cover cost of food (hot dogs & chips, etc..) and drinks (water/Gatorade...and hmm...adult beverages?). This will be a great team building opportunity for the boys, as well as the parents, to just have some fun & relax for awhile. There is no schedule yet for the tournament, but most people are planning on arriving Friday evening at the hotel. According to the information on line, the hotel (Days Inn East) has an indoor pool/spa and many nearby restaurants. Please keep your eyes open for e-mail and posts to come on that.

Everyone think positive thoughts for all of our DFSC teams traveling to San Diego this weekend! A big good luck goes out to all of you! For the rest of us, stay cool & dry and enjoy the long Labor Day weekend.

Maricopa County Open League

2009-08-28T08:37:00.002-07:00

Just an update for everyone. Coach Thomas is working on putting together a scrimmage game soon with Coach Shaun's '01 Red Team. As soon as we get any confirmation, we will let everyone know. Next week's practices are on Tuesday at Reach 11, and Thursday at Coyote Basin (see calendar below).

The Open League is working hard on putting together the game schedules & hopes to have those released by September 12th. The current plan is that games begin on September 19th. We will be in Flagstaff that weekend, so our first League game will be on Saturday, September 26th. Once we have the game schedule I'll put together a snack/drink schedule as well. It will be similar to what we did last year, with one family in charge of drinks and another family in charge of snacks for 1/2 time & end of game. I will have more suggestions on drinks & snack in a later post.

The beginning of the season always seems slow, but before we know it the games will begin & time will be wizzing on by. Enjoy your weekends at home while you can!! But to be honest...I can't WAIT for the GAMES to begin!

Reach 11 practices have begun!

2009-08-19T09:39:00.007-07:00

At some point, I looked across the field and thought..."it has begun!". It was great seeing all eleven boys at Reach 11 last night. It is the start of a brand new season & I for one am excited about it. Before the practice Coach Thomas was able to share with the team parents his thoughts for the season as well as our practice schedule etc... He feels pretty strongly that this team has a lot of potential & will be pushing them in a more competitive bracket than they were in last year. Even if they lose a few games, they will only get better & better each time. Our schedule is posted below in the team calendar, please refer to it often.

I (Syndie) will be updated the changes noted on the contacts list & will bring a new copy for everyone next Tuesday evening. We will continue with the Reach 11 practices until September 1st. Then start our regular practices after Labor Day, on September 8th. If anyone needs help carpooling kids to practice or games, please speak up. This is a group of great parents & there is always someone willing to help out where they can.

Status Update

2009-08-05T13:13:00.002-07:00

Not much is going on right now. The School of Excellence will be for the next couple of weeks, then we'll continue through August with some regular team practices (see calendar below). Coach Thomas is still trying to negotiate our home field & practice field locations, as well as the days & times of our practices. As soon as we know, we'll pass that info on to you as well. There have been a few names being passed around for our 2nd coach, that should be decided in the next couple of weeks. For those that remember Coach Enda from last year, he just got married! A big congradulations goes out to him! We wish him & his wife much happiness now & in the future.

School is starting this week for the Cave Creek School District, so early bedtimes for all!

2009 School of Excellence

2009-07-27T12:08:00.000-07:00

This is just a reminder that the 2009 Desert Elite School of Excellence begins Monday, August 3rd. This is an intensive training program which runs for two (2) weeks and is designed to support the start of a new season for all players participating in the Desert Elite Program. This program essentially kicks off our training for the season with a common focus for all teams in the Desert Elite Program.

U7 – U10 teams: Tues & Thurs, 6p – 7:15p

Registration will be available on Tuesday of each week at the field. A copy of the Registration Form is attached for your convenience. Everyone is encouraged to fill it out ahead of time and bring it to the field to save time (please do not mail into the club).

All details of the sessions (times for each division, location, fees, etc) can be found on the Club website.

Elite Red Players 2009/2010 Roster

2009-07-10T09:45:00.005-07:00

Chandler B.

Connor R.

Jacob L.

Knox R.

Micah S.

Michael B.

Michael M.

Nathan B.

Nick B.

Ryder J.

Trevor C.

Congratulations to all of these hard working boys!! What an exciting year we have to look forward to.

2009-07-07T11:23:00.004-07:00

Here is the 2000 Elite Boy's team last year with Coach Thomas. What an exciting year that was. We are all looking forward to what this next season will hold for us...growth, experience, friendships, championships...

Mission Statement

2009-07-05T18:30:00.001-07:00

The mission of the DFAC ’00 Boys Desert Elite Red team is to foster a love of soccer and provide the best caliber training possible for your son all while providing opportunities for competitive play. We will be building on past successes while providing an atmosphere within the team that fosters player development and camaraderie on and off the field. This team is one that will continue to grow in its competitive level and, ultimately, provide our players with the opportunity to pursue their soccer goals at club, high school, Olympic Development Program (ODP, with which our head coach is involved) and on the collegiate level. During the course of the season, players and parents are expected to have a commitment to this team that is aligned with these competitive goals.