Under the guidance of first-year director John Maessner, D.C. United's Youth Academy has undertaken some exciting things this year. With youth already competing in United Soccer League's Super Y-League and summer academy camps, the Youth Academy has even bigger things coming up in the near future.
The week leading up to the 2007 Sierra Mist MLS All-Star game, United's youth will compete in the MLS Youth Cup at the U-17 level. Additionally, the Youth Acadmehy will also participate in the newly-formed U.S. Soccer Development Academy in the fall.
Last week, two members of D.C. United's U-16 team got a taste of some of the exciting changes happening in the Youth Academy when they got a unique opportunity to train with the likes of Ben Olsen, Bobby Boswell, Troy Perkins and the rest of the club's first team. D.C. United U-16 teammates Shane Cooke and Bill Hamid joined the full squad for three days of training to help them get a feel for what playing with the first team might be like - an opportunity Maessner believes is priceless for his young players.
"We're just trying to find these opportunities to give young players in our youth system a chance to integrate with the first team," Maessner said. "We want them to learn what it takes to be a professional, and just get those experiences. We're going to be bringing young kids to play with the first team all the time."
Cooke and Hamid are the first players of the summer to get a chance to train with the first team, both hand picked by Maessner.
"I wanted to start with Shane and Bill," he said. "They have been doing well for us and I wanted to give them that experience as soon as possible."
During tryouts for the United youth teams, all players were informed of the possibility of playing with the first team - based on hard work, diligence and good performance. Both Cooke and Hamid fulfilled these responsibilities and got the call-up last week. Tuesday was the first day the players were able to train with the first team, and both cherished the experience.
"It was a great experience, but there were a lot of nerves, especially on the first day," Cooke said. "You're just not used to it and you've never played with that kind of level of talent, so it was kind of a shock at first."
Cooke, a 16-year-old midfielder, joined the full squad in a light warm-up and a keep-away drill before playing small-sided games to goals.
Because he is a goalkeeper, Hamid had a little bit of a different itinerary. He participated in a core strengthening session and footwork drills before taking some shots and joining the rest of the team for small-sided games. Both players found the high level of intensity, combined with the heat, a difficult obstacle to overcome.
"They were good," Hamid said of United's first team players. "Touch was precise and shots were on point; you didn't see many shots that were wide. Everything was on target."
Cooke agreed: "Training was intense, to say the least."
"It's a tough situation to jump in like that," Maessner said. "They did well for their first day, but it's hard to get used to the pace and the intensity. We hope that they just keep progressing."
D.C. United's youth teams have long been recognized as one of the strongest youth programs in the country, offering top-notch instruction and an environment that is hard to duplicate anywhere else.
"They put us in a professional environment," said Hamid. "When you're in a professional environment you are going to want to be a professional. They treat us like we're one of them, and hopefully we will be if we keep doing what they say."
After playing with the first team, Cooke has strong aspirations to play with United's full squad, and he understands that the youth teams give him a chance to do so.
"You are actually playing for a professional program," he said, "There has never been a system in place quite like that. College was really the only route to the MLS, but now there are all these doors opening, and it's definitely really exciting."
Over the course of the summer, Maessner plans to bring in additional players from the youth team, giving as many players as possible the opportunity that Cooke and Hamid experienced this week.
"For the kids, there is nothing like it - for a 16-year-old kid to get a chance to play with the first team."
