The Galaxy Youth Fantasy Camp completed Day Two on Tuesday with more development drills and professional exposure. After a day of training in the books, the camp participants built upon their foundation of fundamental skills in the midst of current and former Galaxy players.
Many of the campers understand that the development of important basic skills on the practice field will translate into increased performance during game time.
"With the goalkeeper coach, I learned how to dive," said Taylor Gray, an 11 year old from Huntington Beach. Gray's favorite soccer player is fellow Galaxy netminder, Kevin Hartman. Both goalkeepers share number 22 on the back of their jerseys as well.
Alex Kossoff, an 11 year old from Redondo Beach, and Emerald Livoti, an 11 year old from Upland both said turning with the ball while protecting it from an opposing player was an important skill they learned on Tuesday. Camp participants spend at least two hours in the morning fine tuning their techniques, then spend the afternoon hours implementing their newly sharpened skills while scrimmaging in teams.
More Galaxy players, past and present, worked today with the campers. Current Galaxy forward Joseph Ngwenya and former Galaxy player Danny Pena both took to the pitch to help instruct and give a demonstration of their skills.
The opportunity to meet and mingle with Ngwenya was memorable for many of the kids. Aubree West, a 12 year old from Hacienda Heights, will always remember when she met Ngwenya, her favorite player.
"He has so much motivation in his game. He never stops," West said. "I think it's a great experience [to meet him]. It's probably a once in a lifetime opportunity."
Mitch Wiseman, a 14 year old from Yucaipa, enjoyed a particularly special moment between he and Ngwenya. "I stopped a goal from him. It was really exciting," Wiseman said. "He's a pro and I'm not, so it was really cool."
Camp activities continue on Wednesday, when the campers will have the opportunity to eat lunch with current members of the Galaxy.
Following the end of the Fantasy Camp's second day, LAGalaxy.com caught up with a few campers to get their reactions:
Name: Aubree West
Age: 12
Hometown: Hacienda Heights
Moment of the Day: "Meeting my favorite player, Joseph Ngwenya."
Useful Skill Learned on Tuesday: Looking up while dribbling
Greatest Contribution to the Team: Setting up goals
Favorite Galaxy Player: Joseph Ngwenya; "He has so much motivation in his game, and he never stops."
Position: Center Midfield
Preferred Number: 17; "Ever since I've started club soccer I've had 17."
Meeting and Training With Galaxy Players: "I think it's a great experience. It's probably a once in a lifetime opportunity unless I ever go professional."
Name: Alex Kossoff
Age: 11
Hometown: Redondo Beach
Moment of the Day: Joseph Ngwenya
Useful Skill Learned on Tuesday: Protecting the ball from a player and turning
Greatest Contribution to the Team: Giving through balls
Favorite Galaxy Player: Landon Donovan; "Because he never stops. He's never out of energy and he keeps going and going."
Position: Center Midfield
Preferred Number: 2
Meeting and Training With Galaxy Players: "It's very cool because it's the only time you can meet them. Not a lot of people get to come here, so it's a really good experience."
Name: Emerald Livoti
Age: 11
Hometown: Upland
Moment of the Day: "At the end of the day when we got to scrimmage. It's fun to play against other people."
Useful Skill Learned on Tuesday: Turning with the inside or outside of your foot from another player.
Greatest Contribution to the Team: Dribbling
Favorite Galaxy Player: Landon Donovan; "I like his technique and I like how he plays."
Position: Left Forward
Preferred Number: 3
Meeting and Training With Galaxy Players: "They showed us all the moves and I know I can do better."
Name: Taylor Gray
Age: 11
Hometown: Huntington Beach
Moment of the Day: Meeting Joseph Ngwenya
Useful Skill Learned on Tuesday: "With the goalkeepers coach I learned how to dive."
Greatest Contribution to the Team: Cheering on others
Favorite Galaxy Player: Kevin Hartman
Position: Goalkeeper
Preferred Number: 22
Meeting and Training With Galaxy Players: "It's really special and I don't know if I'll be able to do it again."
Name: Sam Rudich
Age: 10
Hometown: Los Alamitos
Moment of the Day: Meeting Joseph Ngwenya "It's fun meeting other players and learning how they became a professional soccer player."
Useful Skill Learned on Tuesday: Receiving the ball and turning
Greatest Contribution to the Team: Cheering on teammates
Favorite Galaxy Player: Landon Donovan
Position: Left Midfield
Preferred Number: 9; "It's always been my number and it's lucky to me."
Meeting and Training With Galaxy Players: "It's a dream come true."
Name: Mark Arnold
Age: 12
Hometown: Riverside
Moment of the Day: Scrimmage
Useful Skill Learned on Tuesday: dribbling
Greatest Contribution to the Team: "I like to set people up."
Favorite Galaxy Player: Landon Donovan; "He's a forward and he also plays on the U.S. national team."
Position: Forward
Preferred Number: 10; "It's Landon's number and my dad used to wear 10 as well."
Meeting and Training With Galaxy Players: "It's really cool. I've always wanted to meet them in person."
Name: Seth Sweitzer
Age: 12
Hometown: Yucaipa
Moment of the Day: Meeting Joseph Ngwenya
Useful Skill Learned on Tuesday: Supporting from the sidelines because of injury
Favorite Galaxy Player: Cobi Jones and Landon Donovan
Position: Midfield
Preferred Number: 13
Meeting and Training With Galaxy Players: "It's awesome."
Name: Mitch Wiseman
Age: 14
Hometown: Yucaipa
Moment of the Day: Playing with Joseph Ngwenya; "I stopped a goal from him. It was really exciting. He's a pro and I'm not, so it was really cool."
Useful Skill Learned on Tuesday: How to jump better
Greatest Contribution to the Team: Intensity level on the field
Favorite Galaxy Player: Kevin Hartman; "He's so good at goalie. He never quits."
Position: Goalkeeper
Preferred Number: 5
Meeting and Training With Galaxy Players: "It's pretty cool that they're coming out just for us. It's always cool to meet professional players."
Name: Andrew Limon
Age: 13
Hometown: Banning
Moment of the Day: Seeing Joseph Ngwenya display his skills
Useful Skill Learned on Tuesday: Better ball control
Greatest Contribution to the Team: Passing
Favorite Galaxy Player: Chris Albright
Position: Center Midfield
Preferred Number: 16
Meeting and Training With Galaxy Players: "It's awesome. It's cool that they come out here and show us different stuff."
