Weston Invitational Tournament

The year started out with great momentum, as the team was entered in the Weston Invitational Tournament in our hometown of Weston, Florida. Honoring many of our older players we decided to field a team comprised of ex-players who wanted one last chance at a tournament event with a core FUTSOC USA ENIGMA group of players. Eight players were enlisted and the event proved to be quite successful, as the team made it to the finals, losing only to a determined and very fortunate Wellington team, by the score of 2 -1. After winning group play in a 9-0 margin of scores, including three shutouts, we were poised to win the event, but had seven balls hit the post or cross bar, and numerous excellent saves by the opposing keeper. Over all, the result was fine and the event served as a solid tune-up (intended purpose) for the upcoming Copa Coca Cola regional tournament in Miami, Florida.

2005 Cope Coca Cola – National Cup / Southeast Regional

This event proved to be the single greatest challenge and certainly the most coveted prize which we in Florida were seeking to attain. A record field of well over 60 teams and a playoff system which required seven wins in a two day format, would prove to be a Herculean task, for which no one team was prepared to understand the strain, the exhaustion and the overwhelming odds...and even luck, required to climb to the top and secure one of ten (10) nationally distributed regional championships, for an all expense paid trip to the 2005 Coca Cola National Championship tournament in Los Angeles, California, at the Home Depot Center.

Concurrent with regional global qualifiers the world over, where over 150,000 participants were registered to play in countries, such as: Brasil, Mexico, Spain, Argentina, Turkey, England, France, Germany, Uruguay, Paraguay, El Salvador, Honduras, Ecuador, Colombia, the Orient, and even the Middle East, the U.S. version of the Coca Cola Cup was going to be determined from among over 650 teams nationwide (Regionals were held in Chicago, San Diego, Los Angeles, Denver, New York, Miami, Dallas, Houston, Portland, and Boston) in the U-15 age bracket.

First round play had us play three matches, which we won by the scores of 7-0, 5-2, and 3-0 (goals by Daniel Lovera (6), Garrett Ewald (3), Juan Hernandez (3) and Sebastian Vallejo (2), Francisco Tamayo (1), against teams from North Miami Beach, Miami, and Kendall. Advancing on top of the standings in our group play, we next met Margate Elite in a game dominated from beginning to end by our aggressive, well balanced squad. We were led in that game on the strength of two goals from Juan Zuluaga and one from Daniel Lovera. This victory sent us forward on to quarterfinal match against the highly regarded state (4th ranked) and national renowned squad of Team Boca Gunners. In a game played much like a chess match, each team probed each other until the opening score came in a sloppy sanded goal area, which caused our keeper to trip to the the ground, allowing the first goal, for their 1-0 lead, Immediately thereafter, we responded with a tying goal of our own on the strength of a key shot on a rebound by Garrett Ewald. We had answered the call, our defense was extraordinary, and both teams had battled like titans for the remainder of the match, sending us to the dreaded penalty kicks. However, after three rounds, FUTSOC USA ENIGMA had connected on all there of our shots, with Team Boca having all three stopped by our extraordinary keeper Sean Duble…The final result was a penalty kick over time victory of (1-1) 3-0, and the 2005 Copa Coca Cola Southeast Regional Championship, with all rights to represent the region at the nationals in Los Angeles next month along with the other nine regional champions.

2005 Cope Coca Cola – National Championships

The team has been flown out and installed at the Radisson Hotel in Los Angeles, California, along with the other nine regional champions, in order to dispute the coveted 2005 Copa Coca Cola National Championship. Day 1 has the team settling in and visiting the site of the proposed event – the newly completed Home Depot Center in Los Angeles. The complex is simply spectacular, with more than a dozen fields that look like carpets and are of huge length and width, something which unquestionably will benefit our team.

Day 2 the team departs to the field where it is to meet the champion team of the New York Regional. FUTSOC USA ENIGMA takes a quick 1-0 lead on very crafty one touch ball movement and great technical abilities in the finish…a resulting goal by striker Daniel Lovera. The opponent takes an errant pass on a counter attack, which leads to a tie game. Minutes later, we receive the ball at midfield and a quick pass from Pablo Punyed to Gonazlo De Mujica establishes a 2-1 lead, one that we would not relinquish the rest of the match on our way to a convincing 6-1 victory. Other goals scored were made by Garret Ewald, Daniel Lovera, Pablo Punyed, and Lucas Di Croce. Game 2 was played against the CHicago regional Champion, who we tied 2-2 in a match which showed the tiredness of both teams after such a long flight the night before and the morning match. The result was fair and we were able to rest some of our front line players, and give opportunity to a few exceptional development players we brought along. The third game we played against the Washington area champions, who we dominated thoroughly by a score of 4-2. In this match we were able to play a wide spread match, playing on one of the larger fields, and we had excellent play from the defense and strong control by the midfield, which dictated play throughout, and set up two excellent goals to Daniel Lovera and Garret Ewald and two goals from Gonzalo De Mujica and Pablo Punyed. Throughout the first round matches, the goal keeper play from Sean Duble is impeccable, and the defense is sound along all lanes, and thwarts off potentially strong scoring opportunities from the various opponents. We were thrilled to learn that we had won the group and that we had qualified for the semi-finals later in the afternoon.

The next morning, we meet the tournament favorites, the nationally top ranked Celtic Harps team from Los Angeles. This is a team that is averaging six goals a game effortlessly, and has been able to easily contain its opponents from Dallas, Denver, and Houston. The powerful team has multiple region I and state ODP players, as well as national team players on its roster. It is a challenge unlike any other in our short history, but we are prepared for the exceptional challenge and hopeful of a strong, organized match, where the opponent will have to beat us to obtain the favorable result…it hopefully will not happen on any forced or unforced errors on our part! The game is challenged fiercely by us, and then moved to the next day, in recognition of time limits imposed by FIFA for youth play. All players are exhausted by this time, and the resulting break, allows us the chance t recover and set to play at 8:00am the next morning.

The game is nothing short of advertised, and the match plays out very strategically and cautiously, as both teams test the opposing defenses. The opening score comes from Celtic Harps, who opens the score on a long field pass on our left flank, with a cross to a fast moving player who meticulously taps it in for the 1-0 lead. The team is concerned, but confident in slowing the tempo and attempting to control the midfield. However, a pass through wedged between our center midfielder and the front stopper results in a 2-0 lead, which holds through until halftime. Modifications and adjustments to our offensive transition and our tactical formation, move us into a more aggressive mode of attack, resulting in striker Garrett Ewald bringing us to within one goal, with a fast run down the center and an impressive finish low to the corner. The score is 2-1 with 15 minutes remaining, as we begin to penetrate more openly down all lanes, and reaching dangerously close to tying the match on three distinct occasions, only to be thwarted by extraordinary goalkeeping. With about five minutes remaining we obtain or last chance on a steal at midfield and a pass through to our attacking midfielder, who was called offside in a the single most debated call of the tournament. In the end, the result was 2-1 in favor of this great team - Celtic Harps, but we walked off the field in the midst of great disappointment, with a sense that we had accomplished something very special…especially for a team, as young as we were. We placed third (3rd) of over 650 teams, which contended for this great cup challenge! We had now grown up, and were very confident and able to play at the very highest levels of the youth game in America!

Upon completion of the finals, which were held at the Home Depot Stadium field, Celtic Harps defeated the San Diego contingent – FC Bayern, in overtime and penalty kicks (2-2) 4-3, in a classic match witnessed by thousands of spectators. Celtic Harps was the National Champion, and thus earned the right to dispute the World Cup Championships in Lisboa, Portugal, during the Euro Cup Semis and finals. They represented the U.S. like the great champions they are, losing in the final, to the team from Turkey 0-0 (3-2) after seven rounds of penalty kicks. In short, we had lost to the No. 2 team in the world for Coca Cola Championships!! This was a great memory, a fantastic trip, and a great opportunity to meet new friends, and to learn of the superb level of soccer evident all over the U.S. At the awards ceremony held at ESPN, accolades abounded for our team from the victors and other competitor squads, something that made us especially proud, honored and most humbled!

Disney Cup International Youth Soccer Tournament

This event brought us back once more to the site of our excellent challenge the prior year. This time we were coming in as one of the favorites. The stage was set, and even though our team was very tired from such a busy previous few months at the high level tournaments, and we were fielding a team of only 11 players, due to suspensions and other commitments, we were quite successful, making the finals after disposing of Canadian Champions Royal de Beauport 4-0, Wappinger Chiefs 9-0, TST of Denmark 9-1, and once again Royal de Beauport 5-0 in a semi-final match. The final was set for a match between RSL Players Club and FUTSOC USA at stadium field No.1.

The next morning one additional player was able to join us, making our total of 12 players for the final match. This was most fortunate as the weather continued to scorch at nearly 100 degrees F, and we had made no substitutions until this day of they final. The match was fierce and highly technical in nature, as both teams possessed ample skills, speed and tactical awareness to create problems for each other throughout the match. The score started 1-0 in our favor on a spectacular shot by Gonzalo De Mujica, which was followed up minutes later by a scramble in front of the net, and a rebound / ricochet goal which favorably (and most unfortunately) entered our goal. Numerous post shots and crossbar near goals allowed the game to stay close, and even though we had jumped ahead with a second half goal, they tied it up and forced an overtime scenario, which ended equally tied, so that we conclude with the much dreaded PK’s. Our boys were cramped up, and severely dehydrated, from virtually no rest (nor substitutions) during five games in four days in hostile weather. However, no excuses, simply explanations, the match was decided in favor of our excellent opponent, as they converted on 4 shots, to our 3, for a final score of (2-2) 4-3.

Score At The Shore Showcase

The last event of the season for this exciting year 2005, took us to Orlando, Florida, at the site of the Score at the Shore Showcase. This is the 5th ranked tournament in the nation, and the field was clear indication of this lofty respect and ranking level. Along the path to progressing to the second round, we were able to easily handle a young, talented, but inexperienced Georgia Alpharetta team, who we defeated 6-0. Next up was a match with a very strong AU Capitals 90 team from Texas, who fought hard the entire match only to succumb to us by the minimum score of 1-0. The next game, matched us with a highly underrated, but very talented Plant City Lancers team, which gave us more of a game than we expected…we were possibly too complacent, but in all fairness, they earned the win fairly despite many errant shots, posts and crossbar misses. Awaiting news to learn of our fate in moving on to the next round, we were to meet state champions and perennial power Tampa Bay Kickers. We were once again up to the task, in limiting them to three shots on goal the entire match, and forcing them to back peddle all game long…the final score ended 1-0, as we moved on to the semi-finals against the Connecticut stat champion Beachside. The game was not as complicated as our earlier match against Tampa bay, and we proceeded to control the entire match and win comfortably by a score of 2-0.

Due to incessant rains and thunderstorms during the tournament, many matches were postponed or cancelled, and in the end, opting for a co-championship or an outright single champion, we agreed to a shortened match (20 minute halves) for the latter option, as referees had to depart the complex. We dominated the entire match from beginning to end, however, were not able to finish in such a short time, and were forced to PK’s, where regrettably, we fell short (0-0) 5-4 to Auburndale Supersonics. This concluded our tournament activities for the year, a year which gave us great hope for 2006!