PDA, Red Bulls, Cosmos capture 2011-12 Northeast Pre-Academy League titles
PDA, New York Red Bulls, and the New York Cosmos earned 2011-12 Northeast Pre-Academy League championships Sunday at the league’s final four playoff event, which was held June 9-10 at PA Classics Park in Manheim, Pa., in conjunction with a Player Development Program (PDP).
U-13 Champion: PDA
U-14 Champion: New York Red Bulls
U-15 Champion: New York Cosmos
Quarterfinal winners in the U-13, U-14 and U-15 age groups participated in the final four event, with semifinals on Saturday ahead of Sunday’s championship and third-place contests.
PDA won the U-13 age group with a 7-1 victory over New York Cosmos Academy. The team was undefeated throughout the entire season, finishing with a record of 17-0-3.
New York Red Bulls defeated Baltimore Bays Chelsea 4-2 in the U-14 final. The victory avenged the Red Bulls’ only loss of the season, which had come April 29 with a 2-1 loss to Baltimore Bays Chelsea.
New York Cosmos Academy beat New York Red Bulls 3-1 to earn the U-15 championship. The win was a rematch of the 2011 U-14 finals, won by the Red Bulls.
“Our team advanced through the playoffs by defeating two very disciplined teams, including a rematch of last year’s U-14 final,” said Miguel Brunengo, Club Director of the New York Cosmos, about the U-15 squad. “This is very special to our club, especially since the majority of the team has been together since U-8. This was a great event and it meant a lot to our club to win our first championship in the Northeast Pre-Academy League.”
With their victories, the three teams advance to the inaugural National Premier Leagues Champions Cup, where NPL national championships will be awarded. That event will be held July 27-31 at Waukegan Sports Park in Waukegan, Ill.
“The team is very excited to advance to the NPL Champions Cup,” said Brunengo. “This is something that all teams strive for, so we will work very hard and try to represent our league with class.”
On Saturday, 48 of the top players born in 1999 from around the league gathered for training as the league hosted a PDP. The players participated in technical training and high-quality 8v8 games. The coaching staff for the PDP included Gerry McKeown (Director of the Boys id2 Program), Sammy Nellins (PDA), Wayne Galloway (NJSA 04), Brandon Quaranta (Baltimore Bays Chelsea), and Phil Herbert (goalkeeper coach, PDA).
US Club Soccer’s Player Development Programs are regionally-based identification and developmental programs conducted within the id2 Program umbrella and centered around the National Premier Leagues in specific geographic areas.
