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Youth soccer league kicks off tournament opener

By Brian Gomez

While most of the attention in the sports world likely will be focused on the first full weekend of the Major League Baseball season, a local youth soccer organization is going to host its biggest tournament of the year.

Arizona Diamondbacks Luis Gonzalez, Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling won’t be present, but some of the state’s future stars will sprawl out across the East Valley for the Snickers National Cup.

Ten teams will represent the Arizona Futbol Club during the annual state tournament, which begins Saturday morning at three locations in the greater Phoenix area.

The 86-boys (U-16) and 87-girls (U-15) have been tabbed as two of the favorites to win the double-elimination tournament. The 90-girls (U-12), a team coached by Kirk Nelson, enter as an underdog with a challenging first game Saturday (8 p.m.) at the Rose Mofford Sports Complex.

“I would hate to see them lose their first game, but they’ve got more rounds,” assistant coach Jeremy Douwstra said.

“They’ve grown so much. They’ve seen how they’ve improved and are peaking at the right time.”

AZFC, which was co-founded by major league soccer star Greg Vanney, has produced some of the state’s top talent since its inception in 1997, while taking on a club atmosphere similar to that in Europe.

The 14-team league focuses more on the development of players at a young age, putting less emphasis on winning.

“We want players to develop in a small, controlled environment before they start stepping up and the focus is on winning,” AZFC President Joe Butler said.

“We want to keep the kids focused on learning the game. That’s the only way we’re going to develop them for the future.”

AZFC contains both developmental (ages 4-10) and competitive (10-19) leagues to suit players in all age groups.

The group prides itself on providing the best possible instruction, with four nationally licensed coaches. Some of those come from local schools, including Phoenix Xavier, Gilbert Highland, Mesa Dobson, Desert Vista and Mountain Pointe high schools,  and from Phoenix and Scottsdale Community colleges.

AZFC coaches attend seminars during summers to brush up on their soccer skills. They also receive help from some of the nation’s best collegiate coaches, like George Kuntz (UC Irvine), Paul Krumpe (Loyola Marymount), Brian Thompkins (Yale), Dan Kuntz (Cal Lutheran) and Bobby Clarke (Stanford).

Several players who have participated in the AZFC have not only had successful high school careers, but have also gone on to compete at the next level.

Former Corona del Sol standout Nick Tiggs was a member of the league, and now plays at the College of Notre Dame. Corona senior Nichole Tiggs, who also spent time in the AZFC, recently committed to Indiana State.

Some players who excel in the AZFC qualify for the Olympic Development Program, which accepts only the cream of the crop. Those who make the cut travel to the Region IV camp for a chance at landing a spot on the national team. Few players from Arizona advance, however, since California has a much larger talent pool.

Summer camp

AZFC will host a summer skills program June 4-6 at 6 p.m. daily at Goodwin Park (McClintock and Warner roads) in South Tempe. The camp will focus on developing skills, including shooting on goal, dribbling, passing and other fundamentals. It is for open for anyone ages 5-16.

Looking ahead

AZFC’s upcoming season will start at about the same time school commences in August. The season is slated to run until December, when a winter camp will be held. The spring 2003 season is going to get underway during the first week in February and will end in late March.

Registration

To join the league, register online at www.azfc.org. Or call (480) 705-0084 for more information.

Reach the reporter at brian.gomez@wranglernews.com.

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