SECAUCUS, N.J. - The MetroStars announced today the addition of an Under-14 team to their MetroStars Player Development Program (MPDP) for the 2005-206 season. This new team joins the existing Under-14 team (which will move to Under-15 next season) and the Under-16 team (which will become an Under-17 team).
"The addition of the Under-14's to the MPDP allows us to identify players at a key age of their development process," said MetroStars Director of Youth Soccer & Player Development Giovanni Savarese. "The MetroStars Under-14 team is another key step in the organization's goal to have a complete vertically integrated player development program. We hope that this team will open the door for some of the most talented players in the tri-state area to compete at the highest level."
In 2003, the MetroStars introduced an Under-17 team, which advanced to the Super Y League National Finals where they finished second. Last year the team graduated to the U-19 level, and they did so in impressive fashion, as they advanced to the final of the prestigious Dallas Cup Final (U-19 division) and won the Metro Division of the Super Y League. This season the Under 19 recently won the New Jersey Under 19 State Cup, and advanced to the Region I Championships which will be held June 30th-July 5th in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
The Under-16 team, which played it's inaugural season in 2004 finished in 2nd place in the Metro Division and advanced to the Super Y League National Finals. The highlight of 2004 for the U-16's came when the team hosted the Honduran U-17 National Team. The young MetroStars defeated the Honduran team 4-0 in that meeting. Currently the Under-16's are in first place in the Metro Division of the Super Y League. Lastly, the current Under-14 team sits atop the Metro Division with an 8-1 record and will travel to Venezuela from July 29th - August 8th to participate in the 2005 Mundialito where they will play against the youth teams of: Alianza Lima (Peru), Deportivo Cali (Colombia), Tenerife (Spain) and Deportivo Saprissa (Costa Rica).
"We are looking for young players that have something special and want to take their game to the next level," said MetroStars Manager of Academy Teams Paul O'Donnell. "This is a highly disciplined and focused developmental program which hopefully will be the catalyst for producing the next Eddie Gaven, Mike Magee or Michael Bradley."
Tryouts for the Academy teams will be held at the bubble at Giants Stadium on the following dates:
All players who are interested in trying out must forward a player resume to podonnell@metrostars.comor call (201) 583-7025. All resumes must be received by Wednesday June 22nd.
