Players make it to provincial teams

Labrador West minor soccer players proved they've got the right stuff.

Four young hopefuls made it on to Newfoundland and Labrador Soccer Association (NLSA) teams including Robyn Edwards, Sean Henderson, Braeden Sheppard, and Devon Ryan.

Edwards was chosen for the U14 Female team last September, her second time on a provincial team, and she informed that after successfully healing from a leg injury she's been training with her team at camps held every month in Mount Pearl.

She's been learning to position herself better and find open space, she expressed, as well as how to play together as a team.

Last year her team came in third place at the Atlantic competition, but she said this year they'll focus on taking gold.

"We have a stronger team than we did last year," stated Edwards. "We have more control of the ball and we know more about soccer than we did last year. We're a pretty good team."

Sean Henderson found out on May 4 that he made it on to the U12 provincial team after attending tryouts in St. John's this April.

He went to the tryouts with a friend who didn't make it to the team and informed that competition was tough with about 15 players chosen from 30 that tried out.

"It didn't matter that you weren't just as good, it's just that they didn't have enough players on the team, so they didn't get to pick him," said Henderson.

Labrador West minor soccer star goalie Braedan Sheppard also recently found out that he made it to the U13 provincial team along with his friend Devon Ryan.

"Tryouts were extremely hard with a lot of good players," said Sheppard. "All we had to do was stand out and do the best we could do. I just gave it my all."

He explained that it's a huge honour to make it on to the team because players get to represent their province and if he does great this year, he hopes to be chosen for the team again next year.

Ryan expressed that he has a lot to live up to considering that his sister Taylor Ryan has played soccer on the provincial team and made it on to the Canada Games U18 team.

He said that when he heard he made it on to the provincial team he was very excited and jumping up and down with his friend Sheppard.

Ryan promised that he would work hard to get his fitness level up and that his aspirations are to eventually make it on to the Canada Games team and go to the FIFA World Cup.

The three boys started their journey last summer when they were identified at a camp by Dragan Markovic, NLSA technical director, as players with the potential to make it on to the provincial teams.

They were chosen to participate in the Labrador West Minor Soccer Association Technical Program started up for the first time last year and lead by Tony Reccord, LWMSA president who took on the new position as Technical Director of Player and Coaching Development.

Reccord informed that 12 players were chosen from the identification camp by Markovic and another 9 players were recommended by LWMSA coaching staff.

"These are the elite kids or identified as having potential to make the provincial team, so they love soccer," he stated. "You're coaching kids who are hungry. They want to be there. They want to learn. They want to get better at soccer. It was a privilege to coach them. I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was a very positive coaching experience."

The technical program, he explained, ran over 40 sessions from August to May which included a lot of skill development and scrimmaging with older players.

He believes that players with a high skill level who are able to apply it to game situations had a really good chance of making it on to the provincial team.

"A couple of the kids that made the teams and some of the ones that didn't got more skill than I have right now and I've been playing soccer for 35 years," said Reccord.

"Even the players who didn't make it, they stood in there very well, they looked very good on the field," he added. "I'm surprised at the couple of the non-selections. Those kids should keep their heads very high and should be proud of themselves."

For its first year, he believes that the program was a great success and said the LWMSA plans on running it again in the future.