As youth football talent looks to improve, Nevada can be a future proving ground.
The American state has played hosts to teams from the Cayman Islands the last two years and as evidenced by the 2014 results, local boys can mirror their North American counterparts. Cayman’s Under-14 team, from the Cayman Islands Youth Football Program, competed in the 2014 Mayor’s Cup International Showcase in Las Vegas and recorded three wins and one loss, missing out on advancing to the quarterfinals in their age group by a single point.
Last month’s team consisted of 20 boys, five staff members, including coaches Ernie “Gillie” Seymour, Antwan Seymour and Ken Downey, team manager Norman Joseph and team doctor Verley Campbell, and a number of parents. Most of the squad, including Cody Ebanks, Jiffon Robinson and Ricardo Damaso, were part of the recent C3 Cayman International Youth Football Tournament at George Town’s T.E. McField Sports Center (popularly called the Annex).
The Under-14s from the Cayman Islands Youth Football Program (formerly known as the PFL Youth Football Program) have been together since March 2011, training once per week and playing in as many friendly games and competitions with local and foreign teams in preparation for tournaments such as the Mayor’s Cup.
It should be noted that the Mayor’s Cup is one of two annual football tournaments co-hosted by the Downtown Las Vegas Soccer Club and the city of Las Vegas, the other being an international tournament, which is played in October. Each year, the competition welcomes amateur and professional clubs from Canada, Russia, the United Kingdom, Germany, China, Poland, France, Australia, Dominican Republic, Denmark and Africa.
For 2014, the Caymanian youngsters defeated Cook Inlet Velocity from Alaska 3-1, the Colorado Rapids Burgundy from Colorado 2-0 and Tucson TSA 00 Red from Arizona 1-0 and lost to eventual group winners Michigan Jaguars Green from Michigan 0-1. In contrast, during the 2013 tournament, the team managed only one victory and three defeats.
The team’s exploits caught the attention of sports journalists from local Las Vegas newspapers who cover the tournament on an annual basis. One particular writer compiled an entertaining article about the squad and the Cayman Islands and included a photo of Kareem Foster celebrating a goal against the Alaskan side.
The trip to Las Vegas was financed through corporate sponsorship and fundraising efforts by the program’s players, parents and coaches. For youth program coordinator Neil Murray, it was a successful trip.
“The tournament was a great learning experience for our boys,” Murray said. “In comparison to 2013, the results this year spoke volumes about how far the program has come and how the players have improved in a relatively short space of time. Special thanks to the coaches who continue to work tirelessly in preparing this group of players for not only this tournament, but also for what’s ahead. Special thanks to all the parents and the many sponsors who made this trip a reality and to those who supported the program’s fundraising efforts. This group of youngsters is special and they will do great things in the future.”
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