The 2009 Prince William Soccer (PWSI) Icebreaker served as the second stop in TAFC96's preseason campaign. This time around we returned to our U12 age group and 8v8 format, playing Division 2, to continue preparing the boys for the upcoming Spring NCSL season.
The weather played a large role in the events of the weekend. It rained non-stop all Friday night and into the next morning, causing Saturday games to be delayed and shortened by 10 minutes.
We opened against the ASC Rockets, a well coached and competitive team. The rained soaked field and biting weather forced a conservative ball-control game with a great deal of back and forth for both teams. TAFC96 persevered, and the game ended in a 2-1 victory for TAFC96.
The second match against VYS Premier White started on-time, but the tournament continued to play shortened matches, a risky circumstance for a team like TAFC96 who is known for slow starts. VYS kept pressing up the middle, while our counter-attacks consistently pressed from the outside, missing a few solid inside our opponents penalty-box. The match finished victorious for TAFC96 with a score of 1-0.
Over Saturday night, PWSI called the tournament due to poor weather and deteriorating field conditions. With only half the matches played, TAFC96 lead the group with an undefeated record of 2-0 record, maximum points, and leading goal differential; as a result, TAFC96 was declared the U12 Boys Division Leader and awarded the championship medals.
Congratulation Team America 96!
