Surf SC Girls 2006 Win Cal South National Cup
Hard work, great training, and dedication paid off for a great team of talented young players who just won National Cup.
The Cal South National Cup is for top youth soccer teams to compete for a State Championship — and, the ability to advance to compete in the US Youth Soccer Far West Regional and US Youth Soccer National Championship Tournament. Held at SilverLakes, Tournament has hundreds of teams competing for the title of champion.
As the state champions, San Diego Surf Soccer Club Girls Academy Select 2006 team coached by Craig Barclay will be representing Cal South at the 2018 US Youth Soccer Far West Regionals in Utah.
Rob Beccera, the Senior Director of Girls at Surf SC said, “It is exciting and gratifying to see the process of development, teamwork and collective creativity get rewarded.”
SD Surf Academy Girls Select 2006 defeated So Cal Blues – 2006 Rennie team 1-0 to lift the coveted trophy. Surf SC had defeated Legends FC G06 Pre-Academy 1-0 in the semifinals and Anaheim Surf – G2006 Whitfield by 5-1 in the quarterfinals.
In the round of 16, this Surf SC team beat Slammers FC G06 AW 3-0 and emerged from the group bracket stage with 6 points, only allowing 1 goal to be scored against them.
This team’s journey to the winner’s circle started months ago. The talented team has exceeded expectations — putting in the effort and hard work necessary to claim the title of champions.
“Winning National Cup puts the icing on such a fantastic year for the girls! They set the National Cup Championship as their goal and have worked extremely hard to make it a reality. I could not be happier that they were able to feel the physical rewards of a year’s hard work!” said Craig Barclay, San Diego Surf Girls Assistant Director of Coaching.
SoccerToday’s editor Diane Scavuzzo interviewed their head coach, Craig Barclay, to discover more on this winning team’s approach to success.
Diane Scavuzzo: What does becoming Cal South National Cup Champions mean to you and your team?
Craig Barclay: Becoming National Cup Champions shows how talented this group of players are.
During the tournament, you come up against some of the best teams in Southern California and being able to adjust and figure out the different challenges each team presents shows just how clever this young team is.
Diane Scavuzzo: How will you prepare them for the next challenge?
Craig Barclay: For now, we will take a little time off before we hit the ground running again this spring and build upon the momentum created during National Cup.
Far West Regionals is always an exciting challenge — getting to play against new teams from the 14 western states.
We will be sticking to our Surf style of play and understanding how to execute our beliefs against any opposition.
We still have a long way to go technically and tactically I can’t wait to see where the journey will take this team.
Diane Scavuzzo: What makes this team so special?
Craig Barclay: They’re a wonderful group of players who want to push and challenge themselves to improve at every practice.
Each player is an individual who brings something different to the group and always puts the team’s needs in front of their own.
The players are all very humble and great friends on and off the field. They have fun and laugh together, but also know when it’s time to get serious and work hard.
I also want to speak highly of the parents. They allow their players to fail, deal with their own adversity and help create a positive learning environment. Without the support of our soccer parents, and their continued trust in the process, this team culture wouldn’t be possible.
Diane Scavuzzo: How long has the core of the team been together? What is the chemistry of the team like?
Craig Barclay: The team consists of 11 players, 6 who have been at Surf SC for 4 plus years.
Diane Scavuzzo: How does the team handle challenges on the field?
Craig Barclay: I am a big believer in allowing the players to experience and deal with their own challenges and adversity. Often, I feel coaches, and even parents, are too quick to protect players from adversity or solve the problem for them.
At Surf SC, we are lucky enough to have Dan Abrahams Psychological Academy which helps the players learn the importance of psychology — and how to prepare and deal with things like challenge and adversity on and off the field.
You only have to watch and listen to the girls communicate on the field to see that they all help each other in moments of adversity, and push each other to improve from the experiences.
Diane Scavuzzo: How did you prepare the team to win this championship?
Craig Barclay: I think, as with any success, you’ve got to look at the long-term development of the players.
For me, this championship started with the technical lessons we teach at our Jr Academy program and the youth soccer coaches who introduced the game principles to them at 7v7.
Over the past two years, we have worked very hard to create a ‘Surf’ style of play that demands creative thinking technical players and prepares the team for the move into 11v11 this coming year.
Everything is a process and at Surf SC, we’re very fortunate to have a fantastic staff from the Jr Academy all the way through into the DA and ECNL.
