MONTREAL – The Montreal Impact U18 and U16 teams finished their inaugural campaign in the United States Soccer Development Academy (USSDA) this past weekend.
On Friday in Massachusetts, the U18 team played to a 1-1 tie with the New England Revolution youth side in the early game on a goal by Michael Bilak, while the U16 team came from behind to win 2-1 over the Revs, thanks to markers by Claudio Di Zazzo and Louis-Philippe Paquin.
“Our next step is to make the playoffs
in 2013-2014”
- Philippe Eullaffroy
Then on Sunday, BW Gottschee Academy came into town and stole two victories at the Saint-Jean Vianney Complex, in RDP, defeating the older Impact Academy side 2-1 in the early game, while shutting out the U16s in the second match 1-0. Jonathan Vallée scored the only goal on the day for the Impact.
With this past weekend’s results, neither group has qualified for the playoffs, with both sides finishing in 7th spot in the Eastern Conference (top five teams qualify), the U18s with an 8-9-8 record, while the Impact U16 finished the campaign with a 9-11-5 record – good for 32 points each.
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"Overall, this first year was very positive," said Impact Academy director Philippe Eullaffroy. "In terms of the development of players and competition level, many of our objectives were reached. The results on the field were average, but the progress in the development of the players from September to May was evident, so that was very positive. We are convinced that we now have the right tools in place in terms of competition and structure to continue that progress. Our next step is to make the playoffs in 2013-2014, not just for results, but also to continue that progression."
"In our first year in this league, we didn’t worry too much about results," said Impact U18 head coach Jason DiTullio. "Our goal was to progress and we saw a lot of improvement, both on an individual level and as a group. We had a lot of success in the second half of the season. It took us a good three months to get used to the challenges of the league, the travelling and style of play, but it also took some time for our players to learn our style and buy into what we were trying to do. There are certain players that are realizing what it takes to be a professional player, all the preparation on and off the field and that dedication helped improve their quality on the field. Next season, the surprise factor will be gone and we can concentrate on what we want to do."
U18 forward Charles Joly finished the season as his team’s leading scorer with 11 goals in 20 games played, while the U16s saw forward Di Zazzo top its group with 11 goals (25 GP) and midfielder David Choinière following closely with nine goals in 19 GP.
The U16s will take part in a tournament in Dallas from June 25 to 28 at FC Dallas Park as part of the USSDA playoff showcase.
Training continues until the beginning of July, with a number of players expected to take part in national team programs or work with the Impact U21 this summer before getting back onto the pitch as a group in August.
