2014-2015 Emerald City FC Tryouts

Boys U11-U15 and Girls U11-U18

Dates, Times and Locations Posted

Coaching Assignments Announced

Follow the links below for 2014-2015 Tryout Schedules and Registration

Coaching Assignments  2014-2015 Tryout Schedule Register for Tryouts Age Group Chart

Please visit our club website at www.emeraldcityfc.org

Class of 2014 Announcements - updated

Congratulations to the following Class of 2014 Emerald City FC players,

Sam Atkins	SAAS	Emory University
Gabriel Barrett-Jackson	Garfield High School	Occidental College (soccer and track)
Ibra Drame*	Nathan Hale High School	Seattle University (soccer)
Max Leach	Nathan Hale High School	University of California, Berkeley (track)
Hunter Hanay	Bishop Blanchet High School	University of Washington
Blaine Thompson	University Prep	Whitman College (soccer)

* Ibra Drame played for M'95 Green and at U15 was picked for the Crossfire Academy program

Click here  for the ECFC Alumni page

ECFC Club Calendar from April 2014 to October 2014

For Emerald City FC Tryouts, Summer Camps, Clinics etc
please visit our new website at www.emeraldcityfc.org where club calender information is on the right of the homepage.

You can go directly to the club calender by clicking here

Emerald City FC Awards Night, Sunday April 27th

Former ECFC Player De'Andre Yedlin to Appear at ECFC Awards Night!

Emerald City FC is very pleased to welcome former Emerald City player and current Seattle Sounder, De'Andre Yedlin, to the ECFC Awards Night. During the awards ceremony ECFC  will be honoring DeAndre with a career achievement award.

PLEASE MAKE TIME TO ATTEND THIS VERY IMPORTANT CLUB EVENT! 

This is the one time of the year when all teams within the Club join together to celebrate Emerald City and we could not ask for a better way to celebrate our 35th Emerald Year than to have DeAndre celebrate with us.

Shoreline Conference Center
18560 1st Ave NE ® Shoreline, 
WA 98155 
www.shorelinecenter.com

•     4:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. Potluck Dinner in Courtyard – each family brings enough to feed 4-6 people. The Club will provide pizza and drinks.
•     6:00 p.m. – 7:40 p.m. Awards Ceremony in Auditorium, including: Pivotal Player Awards, Silver Boot Award, Golden Boot Award, and more!

Mark your calendars and join us in recognizing the work and the contributions of our players, volunteers and coaches.  It takes every player on a team roster contributing what they can for the team to be successful. Similarly, it takes the contributions of every member of our club for us to be growing and having the success that we have had in the past year.

Come show your club pride and support. We hope to see everyone there!

Click here for 2013 ECFC Awards Night

Youth Soccer Insider: DeAndre Yedlin: From ballboy to star (When They Were Children)

DeAndre at 10 years old

... “I was always on the sidelines of my uncle’s soccer games with Emerald City kicking the ball around and watching the games,” Yedlin says. “He was an older brother/father figure for me.”

His grandmother signed him up for a team as soon as he was old enough.

Dylan, says DeAndre, grew out of his soccer body and became a football star, a two-time All-American at Union College in Schenectady, N.Y. DeAndre played for Emerald City and Northwest Nationals before joining Crossfire’s Academy team. When its coach, Sean Henderson, brother of Sounders sporting director Chris Henderson, moved the team to the Sounders, Yedlin came along. ...

To read the complete Soccer America article click here

ECFC M98 Green wins the 2014 WA Cup!

Congratulations to ECFC M98 Green, coached by John Hamel, for winning the 2014 WA Cup (U15 Gold Division).

Semi final penalty shootout winning save by Ryan Farley.

"Both the semi-final and final were gutsy wins by the boys.
The semi-final was tied 0-0 with 12 minutes left, when Franklin Pierce Fury got a penalty kick off of an incidental hand ball on the outer edge of the box. They converted it, and with their backs against the wall, ECFC pushed players forward with a sense of urgency and tied the game with 5 minutes left. After missed chances by both teams in overtime, two injuries, and two players who cramped up, the boys went to penalty kicks and made 3 out of 5, with our goalie, Ryan, saving two.
In the final on Sunday, the boys gutted out a 0-0 tie in regulation against the dangerous attack of the Gunners. The boys went back and forth with Issaquah into overtime again, both teams missing opportunities. With solid defending and goalkeeping, the score remained 0-0 and went to penalties. Penalties went into the 6th round, where we, ECFC, made the 4th goal and Ryan made a nice save to win the game. All in all, very gutsy performances where the boys never gave up, dug down deep to win battles when they had to, and did what they needed to come away with the championship."  Coach John Hammels recap of the weekends games.


Other notable results
ECFC M97 Green - Semi Finalists (U16 Gold Division)

ECFC M99 Green Pacific Coast Super Cup Finalists

Congratulations to ECFC M99 Green, coached by Bobby Howe, for reaching the finals of the 2014 Pacific Coast Super Cup.

2014/2015 Boys U16-U18 ECFC Tryouts, Tuesday February 25th and Wednesday February 26th

Please visit our club site for more information about upcoming 

Boys U11-U15 and Girls U11-U18 Tryouts

www.emeraldcityfc.org

ECFC ANNOUNCES A NEW PARTNERSHIP WITH UC SAMPDORIA OF ITALY’S SERIE A

Emerald City FC is pleased to announce a new partnership with UC Sampdoria from Italy’s top professional league, Serie A, starting with the 2014-15 season. 

Emerald City FC is joining a growing list of national premier youth soccer clubs as a UC Sampdoria North American International Academy partner club.  Emerald City, UC Sampdoria North American International Academy and Global Image Sports will co-sponsor a player identification camp this summer which will not only serve as a tremendous training opportunity for players of every age and gender, but selected players will be invited to attend UC Sampdoria North American International Academy’s residence camp.  Players who perform well at the national camp will then be invited to train with UC Sampdoria’s Academy players in Genoa, Italy.  Moreover, UC Sampdoria’s emblem will appear on Emerald City’s new uniforms for the 2014-15 season and ECFC teams which are able to make the trip to Genoa to visit UC Sampdoria during the Serie A season will be paired with an Italian team of like age for a match before UC Sampdoria takes the field for its match.   

A partnership between teams from Seattle and Genoa is a natural fit of two great port cities with a deep passion for soccer.  This partnership promises to a great opportunity for all Emerald City FC players to build new friendships and develop greater soccer skills in conjunction with a team from one of the world’s greatest soccer leagues.  Buongiorno e benvenuto, Sampdoria!



Emerald City FC coaches and staff on the National Stage

Emerald City FC senior staff participated in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) annual convention last week. A highlight of the conference was a tour of the Philadelphia Union training facilities, including a visit with former M95 Green player Peace Brandon who is now a part of the Union’s training program. "The Philadelphia Union's Player Development / Academy Program is hands down the best in Major League Soccer.  The opportunity to see their facilities, meet with their staff and see how they are approaching the development of young people in the Union Academy Program was fantastic.  It was also very reaffirming in that we are congruent at Emerald City FC with the philosophy and vision that was evident in the long-term approach to the development of the young people in the Union's system." said Director of Coaching Erik Oman. "I was excited to visit with Peace and hear about how well he was doing in the Union Academy.  He felt that his experience at Emerald City FC had prepared him well for the step that he has taken in his life to be a part of the Philadelphia Union Academy Program."

The convention offers a multitude of workshops and continuing education opportunities, including both  lecture and field sessions on topics as wide ranging as technical and tactical components of the game, physical training of soccer players, psychological components of the game, long term player development, grant writing, fund raising, National Team reports, and focus groups related to directors of coaching, club board members, administrators, referees and others.  

As members of the NSCAA Academy National Staff, Erik Oman and Matthew Olson not only attended many sessions, they served as speakers and workshop moderators, each introducing several of the sessions during the week.  Erik focused much of his time on sessions related to club development, the NSCAA Club Standards Project and best practices research, long term player development programs, training the psychological components of the game and field sessions related to training the playmaker, developing vision and field awareness, and a demonstration by the Philadelphia Union Academy staff on the latest research in proper physical preparation and training of youth athletes.  In addition, both Erik and Matthew were invited to participate in the NSCAA Leadership and Diversity training event that preceded the start of the Convention on Tuesday.  

Ruth Nicholson, Emerald City Operations Manager, earned an NSCAA Club Development Diploma at the convention which included workshops on best practices in player development, models of club management, best practices and key roles in club operations, and risk management. She has also been invited to work with the Club Standards Project Coordinator in an upcoming advanced club assessment, as well as designing sessions for future on-line webinars.

Former Emerald City FC player, Aaron Kovar, chosen as Sounders FC next homegrown player

Emerald City FC would like to congratulate Aaron Kovar on being the second former ECFC player and Sounders Academy homegrown player to be signed by the Sounders FC. No other MLS club has signed three homegrown player contracts besides Sounders FC, were 2 of the players spent their formative development years playing for Emerald City FC.

Aaron Kovar, left mid for Stanford

For more on Aaron Kovar, his signing with the Sounders and life in Seattle, please click here

Sounders FC sign Aaron Kovar and Sean Okoli click here for the complete article.



ECFC 18th Annual Holiday Indoor Jamboree - December 23rd

All U8-U18 ECFC players are invited to play in what has become a great holiday tradition for Emerald City, the Holiday Indoor Jamboree.

·  Monday, December 23rd at ARENA SPORTS – Magnuson

·  Co-ed teams formed in 2 age groups: U8-U13 & U14-U18

·  Players enter as individuals and will be placed on teams

·  Round robin format; teams playing as many games as possible

·  First games for younger group will start at 9:00 AM SHARP!

·  First games for older group start after 1:00pm.

· Jamboree is FREE for all ECFC players – Players are encouraged to bring a friend - also for free!

Entry deadline is Noon Friday, December 20th. 

Enter by sending an email to the link below. 

Include player’s name, gender and age group

 mark@emeraldcityfc.org

Please provide an email address and phone number that is monitored regularly.

Teams and schedules will be emailed to participants the day before the event.

You MUST print the Arena Sports release form and have your player bring it with them when they check in for their first game. NO FORM, NO PLAY.

http://www.arenasports.net/about-us/waiver-form

 

Questions: contact mark@emeraldcityfc.org

ECFC’s Bobby Howe and Matthew Olson invited to participate in this year’s NW Soccer Legends Night

Emerald City FC’s own Bobby Howe (ECFC Coaching Director Emeritus) and Matthew Olson (ECFC assistant DOC and Director of Goalkeeping) are honored to participate in this year’s NW Soccer Legends Night.
Says Matthew Olson, “I am excited to have been invited to take part.  I am looking forward to connecting with old friends and teammates.”
From the Sounders U23 Premier Development League official website,
“Tacoma, WA. – On Friday, October 25th, the Tacoma Soccer Center will host the 2nd Annual, “Northwest Soccer Legends Night,” for fans to retrigger fond memories of the top talent that graced the pitch in the Puget Sound. The night’s feature event will be an indoor match at 7:30pm, where two teams made up of past pros, will compete against each other. The two sides will be captained and coached by men who are both local and international legends; Alan Hinton and Jimmy Gabriel.
With 39 years of professional playing experience in Europe and the United States, and a combined total of 1,116 first team appearances, Jimmy Gabriel and Alan Hinton had plenty to pass on to their pupils when they became managers. Both men are also familiar with northwest soccer from their time as coaches for the Sounders and other Puget Sound teams.”
From the lineup:
Bobby Howe  (Pro Player 1966 – 1983, Coach 1977 – present) Bobby Howe played over 175 matches professionally in England with legendary West Ham United and Bournemouth. During his playing career, Howe lined up with England greats Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Jimmy Greaves. Bobby came to the USA in 1977 to play for and coach the NASL’s Seattle Sounders, and since the 1980s has been deeply involved in American youth soccer. He was U.S. U-17 national team assistant and then U-20 National Team Head Coach for four years. Howe also led the way for coaching education through the US Soccer Federation and served 12 years as Washington State Director of Coaching.
Matt Olson (Pro Player 1989 – 1997, Coach 1992 – Present) Matt Olsen is a goalkeeper from Renton, Washington. Olson played half of his college career at Indiana University where he won the 1988 NCAA National Title before transferring to Wake Forrest. Following school, he joined the pro ranks where he manned the goal for eight seasons. His career started with the Seattle Storm, and stints in MLS, Holland, Sweden, and the USL followed. Matt followed his playing days as a GK coach for various colleges and youth programs.
Read more, including the rest of the exciting lineup, here
Buy tickets at soundersU23.tix.com
Connect to the event on Facebook here

NSCAA and Emerald City FC helping to educate coaches in WA State

 

June 20th 2013 Read the full article by Soccer Boss  NSCAA educates young soccer coaches

ECFC M01 Green, Finalists at 2013 Starfire Spring Classic

 

ECFC M01 Green, coached by John Hamel, topped their group with 14 goals for, and 0 goals against.

Former ECFC player, George John opts to stay with FC Dallas

After days of speculation, former Emerald City FC player, George John, has opted to stay at FC Dallas and not move on to the English Premier League team, Blackburn Rovers. George, who also was an outstanding player for the University of Washington, has spent the last couple of weeks in talks with the EPL and his current team FC Dallas, in order to get the move approved before the EPL transfer window closed. Unfortunately the deal fell through and George returns to FC Dallas to finish out this years MLS season and his current contract. Reports indicate that Blackburn is still interested in George and are looking to resume talks next season. George John and FC Dallas will be playing against the Seattle Sounders FC today, Tuesday 8/30 in the US Open Cup.

Click here to read more about George John and our other ECFC notable alumnus.