OCTOBER 2012 Message from the Technical Director Inside this issue: Message from the 1 Thank you! 1 Storm U12 Girls Gladiators U13 Boys Schools Out Soccer Camp MLU Facebook 3 Flash U14 Girls Fury & Revolution Warriors U11 Boys Blast U16 Girls Raptors U9 Girls MLU TOPS Soccer Spotlight Concession stand 8 2 2 3 4 4 5 5 6 7 Dear MLU Members, The last few months have seen some MLU teams enjoy great success whether in a tournament, state cup or just regular league play. I think its great to know that our coaches and trainers are doing a fantastic job with the development of all our players. Quality soccer training exists in your town so there is no reason to take your child to a PDA, Matchfit Academy, FC Delco or another town in our area or even outside our area. We are producing skillful players and nurturing the talented ones and are now competing with all of the so called elite clubs. The training culture is moving slowly in the right direction and will only get better as time goes on. Talking of training the club organized a coaches clinic Oct 19 with a theme of crossing & finishing, this was well received by the small amount of coaches that turned up the club would like to encourage all coaches and trainers to attend such clinics as a way of helping you out. Good luck in your upcoming games and thank you for your continued support of MLU! See you on the pitch very soon! Wayne Grocott MLU Technical Director Thanks a lot! Thanks goes out to Peter Hecht and MAGNA legal services who made a donation to the MLU sharks U12 boys at a cost of the MLU Columbus Day Tournament.
The MLU Storm (U12 Girls) recently completed a very successful holiday weekend by being crowned the champs of the Explorer B bracket of the MLU Columbus Day Tournament. Displaying a timely offense and a solid defense the Storm fashioned a record of 1-0-2 by defeating the Lumberton Firecrackers 2-1 and then drawing with Highland (1-1) and Haddon Heights (1-1). Playing against teams that were all ranked above them in the SJGSL the girls displayed a great amount of resolve and determination which has been on display this entire fall season. In league play the Storm is currently sitting atop the standings in the Eastern conference with a record of 6-0 and an impressive goal differential of 17-3. Congratulations Storm, keep up the good work! MLU Gladiators U13 Boys - Season so far, Won the Round of 16 National Championship Series State Cup game vs. Den of Lions (Newark, NJ), 3-1 Won the Mount Laurel Columbus Day Tournament, winning all 3 games - combined score of 13 goals for and 2 against. Loss in Penalty Kicks 4-3 vs. PDA Rooney (Ranked #1 in NJ, #4 in US Region I, Region I Champions, #7 in US) in National Championship Series State Cup. The Gladiators have also been invited to participate in MAPS CUP Invitational Tournament for the top level MAPS and EDP teams. This is a Premier Elite tournament that is ranked the #1 tournament in Region I and the #2 Ranked Boys tournament in the country.
SCHOOLS OUT! MLU SOCCER CAMP Teachers will be away at an NJEA teacher s conference on Thursday, November 8th and Friday, November 9th, 2012. We will hold a two day mini camp for boys and girls, 7 to 14 years of age. All area youth are welcome. Emphasis is placed upon individual skill development, core techniques and small sided games. A player s relationship with the ball is the foundation for creating a skillful player. The MLU two day Camp focuses on the introduction and mastery of skill. This is achieved through maximum ball contacts, expert coaching and skill tests. Through our camp structure, an environment is created that keeps players invested in their own development, long after the camp concludes. Each day will focus on many different topics from passing, control, shooting, defending, turning and dribbling. The camp will run from 9am to 12 noon each day. The registration fee is $30 per day and is due the morning of camp. The camp will be held outdoors in Mt. Laurel at Memorial Turf fields on Mt Laurel Road. The camp will be run by Wayne Grocott and will also consist of our regular professional training staff. If the weather or field conditions are poor the camp may be cancelled. All players must be registered on line at the link below, by Friday, November 2, so that we can schedule properly. Please contact admin@mlusoccer.org to register your interest The MLU FACEBOOK website would like you to send in soccer pictures, stories, game results, tournament scores and any other information about your team that you would like to share please send to Melissa Richards at outreach@mlusoccer.org WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!!
The MLU Flash U14 Girls quarter final state cup game last weekend against PDA ended in dramatic style winning on PK's. This is the photo of the girls coming together after the keeper made the save on their 5th shooter to win the game 4-3 and send the Flash into the Semi-Finals of the State Cup again. This is a great Photo!!! The Keeper, who is the tallest on the team, is being tackled by the players so you can hardly see her. Here is an update on the U-14 Flash since last August Record is 45-6-6 with 37 shutouts! 1. 4 undefeated seasons in a row 1. MAPS South Division Champs Fall 2012 2. JAGS Premier Division Champs Spring 2012 3. JAGS Olympic Division Champs Fall 2011 4. SJGSL Olympic Division Champs Spring 2011 5. Champion in the U-15 bracket at the Turf Cup on Columbus Day Weekend and went 4-0-0 MLU Teams Spotlight The MLU Fury U11 Girls won the Atlantic United Shore Cup on August 25th 2012. The team scored 14 goals and conceded 1 in winning the tournament. The MLU Revolution U12 Boys won the MLU Columbus Day Tournament Oct 6th 2012. The boys won two games and tied 1 crowning them champions for the first time. Currently the Revolution are sitting top of their division winning all six games thus far, keep up the good work.
The MLU Warriors U11 Boys won the MLU Columbus Day Tournament Oct 6th 2012 only allowing one goal in three games. Currently the Warriors are in 2nd place in their division of the SJSL. The MLU Blast U16 Girls won the SAC United college showcase tournament recently in MD without losing a game and playing teams ranked # 8, 11, 29 & 35 they managed to score 14 goals and only concede 1 in 4 games. Great job ladies!
The U9 girls travel team, the Raptors, is a brand new team this year. As was mentioned in the previous MLU newsletter, they were beaten handily in their first ever travel team game by a much more experienced Winslow team, 5-1. Two weeks ago, they traveled all the way down to Upper Township. They started off well, controlling play and getting the first goal from Grace "Pele' Kueny, her first ever travel team goal (Go Pele!). However, Upper Township rebounded and completely dominated play, keeping the ball in the Raptors end of the field almost the entire game and taking a 2-1 advantage. But the Raptors are a team that never quits or lets up, and they pressed the action, with Sandy Thunder Grabowski netting a tying goal with only 20 seconds left! After four games where they could only manage two ties to go with two losses, it was time for the Raptors to face the experienced and undefeated Winslow team again, this time at home. They pressured Winslow early, and got a quick goal came when Sophia "Choochie" Bartasius found herself alone in front of the net and slammed the ball home for a 1-0 lead. Winslow came out better in the second half, getting a tying goal, and spending most of the half in the Raptors end. But the Raptors continued to play tough, and the aggressive tackling, unrelenting pressure and big feet of Shannon "Lefty" Murray, Sophia "Smiles" Schoenborn, Jianna "Jia" Lopez and Ally "Mad Cat" Hovdestad stifled the Winslow attack and kept them from adding anything else to the scoreboard. Finally, a sequence worthy of an older more experienced team. Shannon "Big D" DeFeo made a throw in to Grace "Pele" Kueny. While four Winslow players closed on her, she made a nice pass to Sandy "Thunder" Grabowski who quickly played a through ball into the middle to Sophia "Choochie" Bartasius, who beat the last defender and placed a nice low shot into the corner for a 2-1 lead. That lead came with only 2 minutes left (a recurring theme with the Raptors (who are relentless in their hustle) and held up, handing Winslow their first loss of the season. While the Raptors are constantly playing more experienced teams, they never play a team with more heart and they are never out hustled. What coach wouldn't love that? Wherever they played they were exhausted but they never stopped hustling, from Shannon "Lefty" Murray, Sophia "Smiles" Schoenborn, Jianna "Jia" Lopez and Ally "Mad Cat" Hovdestad to Shannon "Big D" DeFeo, Sandy "Thunder" Grabowski, Casey "Slugger" Cofksy, Grace "Pele" Kueny, Ella "Rocket" Hecht and Sophia "Choochie" Bartasius. And it was fantastic to have Kaitlyn "Killer" McDonald back. She saw her first action in about a month due to a fractured foot! Finally, and definitely not least, we must mention the fantastic goal tending of Gabi "Red" Larese. Whenever Winslow did manage to break through the Raptors defense, Gabi's aggressive play kept many a bouncing ball in front from ending up in the Raptors net. Thanks, Red! It may be a one game winning streak but it's a BIG one game winning streak! The coaches were really proud of their effort against Winslow and happy for them that they got the win. Their effort paid off and they were really excited after this one. It was a big boost to their confidence.
MLU TOPS Soccer Spotlight Mt. Laurel United is extremely proud to be New Jersey's 1st TOPSoccer program. US Youth Soccer TOPSoccer (The Outreach Program for Soccer) is a community-based training and team placement program for young athletes with disabilities. This program is organized by Paul & Martha Van Cleve and Mt. Laurel United Soccer Association volunteers. The picture above was taken Oct 27th 2012, which was the last day of the season were all players received trophy's. About the program: The program is designed to bring the opportunity of learning and playing soccer to any boy or girl, who has a mental or physical disability. Our goal is to enable young, area athletes with disabilities to become valued and successful members of the US YOUTH SOCCER family. Children with special needs, ages 5 to 13, from any area township, are invited to participate. Beginners welcome! The games are schedule for Saturdays and a schedule will be posted as the season nears. MLU staff trainers Andy Bairner & Patrick Green along with volunteer coaches Jack and Gregg run the TOPSoccer sessions and experienced soccer players help out as "buddies" for the disabled TOPSoccer participants, providing one - on - one support. Moorestown Friends School has graciously offered their facilities for this program. Moorestown Friends School is located on 110 East Main St., Moorestown, NJ. More details can be found on our website.
Th MLU Soccer Club Mount Laurel United Soccer Association 3111 Route 38, #11, Suite 134 Mount Laurel, NJ 08054 Phone: 856-778-9549 Email: admin@mlusoccer.org MLU endeavors to: Provide quality soccer instruction. Create a positive and nurturing environment. Give players of all levels the opportunity to play soccer. Reinforce non-soccer specific skills such as: communication, teamwork, time management, responsibility, discipline, and respect. Ensure all staff and volunteers work together, showing professionalism and enthusiasm. Provide staff with continuing professional development opportunities, to keep their soccer skills and knowledge current. THE MLU CONCESSION STAND IS NOW OPEN FOR BUSSINESS ON SATURDAY & SUNDAYS PLEASE STOP BY FOR YOUR COFFEE, HOTDOGS AND SNACKS WHILE WATCHING A GREAT GAME OF SOCCER.