 Another National tournament goal brought to you by Jacob Love! Jacob, who also plays club ball for Georgetown Rangers under coach Vryhoff, was part of the Unity Christian High School state championship team in 2009! Congratulations to Jacob on such a phenomenal year and for having a photo posted through the winter for the 2nd year in a row! ALLIANCE ACADEMY SUPER Y FACTS (updated) Team Training Camp June 21st-24th, 2010 (coming soon) Practice Schedule (coming soon) Teams and Coaches for 2010 u13 Boys- Coach Mark Christensen u14 Boys- Coach Zsolt Bertalan u15 Boys- Coach Abrahm Shearer u16 Boys East- Mark Christensen u16 Boys West- Abrahm Shearer u17 Boys- Abrahm Shearer u13 Girls- Gary Maccagnone u14 Girls- Jeff Hodgson u15 Girls- Henry Steinwasher u16 Girls- Coach Gene Harkins u17 Girls- Abrahm Shearer National Championship Updates Congratulations to the u14B, u15B, and u15G for their overall record of 6-3-3 and two semi-final berths. Follow this link for all the Results. SUPER Y NATIONAL REPORT National Tournament Results Reflect Club's Climb November 27th, 2009 TAMPA, Florida - Steady improvement is the best way to describe Alliance's Super Y experience in 2009. Our club sent three teams to compete in the National Tournament (Follow our Blog) , improved our overall national club ranking to seventeen (17), and saw two teams advance to the National Tournament Semi-Finals. For the second year in a row, the club's national tournament record was among the best in the Midwest. Only two clubs returned to the Midwest from Tampa with winning records. While Cleveland International led the way with an undefeated record, Alliance Academy team's were very competitive. A breakdown of clubs in the Midwest who participated in the National tournament are listed below with their records. Read more on the Super Y National Rankings Here. Cleveland Internationals 10-0-1 Alliance Academy 6-3-3 Chicago Fire (IL) 3-3-2 Indiana Invaders 1-1-2 Fort Wayne Fever 5-6-3 Kingdom Reserves 3-4-2 West Michigan Fire Juniors 3-5 Chicago Magic 2-6-3 Toronto Lynx 2-9-1 Mequon United (WI) 1-3 Kings Academy (OH) 1-2-1 The club plans to improve the quality of every age group for the 2010 Super Y campaign and have already begun taking important steps. With try-outs approaching, we plan to announce our coaching staff, team plans, and other information about the season in mid-December. If your son/daughter are interested in being a part of one of our highly competitive teams follow this link for more information and to register for try-outs! SUPER Y LEAGUE REPORT Alliance Academy Improves on National Ranking October 26th, 2009 GRAND RAPIDS, Michigan - The USL announced their end of the season Super Y League club rankings this week and Alliance landed at #18. The top twenty ranking is an improvement over their 2008 ranking of #19 and is an impressive achievement for the club's second year in the league. "Ultimately, we have two club goals as it relates to the Super Y League. First, we want to win a National Championship and second, we would like to be ranked in the top eleven (11) clubs in the country," said Alliance Academy director Abrahm Shearer. Clubs are ranked based on a competitive and administrative basis. Super Y League First and Second 11 Rankings. In November, three teams, the u14 Boys, u15 Boys, and u15 Girls will be traveling to Florida to compete for for a national title. Clubs can improve their final ranking with strong championship performances but, even if the club wins all three titles, a jump into the first eleven (11) would be mathematically impossible. For more information visit the United Soccer League's website by following this link. ODP REPORT Thirteen (13) Alliance Academy Players Invited to Super Y ODP National Camp November 4th, 2009 GRAND
RAPIDS, Michigan - The USL has extended invitations to 216 Boys and 216
Girls from across the country and a club record thirteen (13) players
have been included from the Alliance Academy. While thirteen (13)
players have also been invited from the Chicago Magic the club with the
next highest number of invites from a Midwest club is the Cleveland
Internationals with seven (7). The Tampa based camp will put athletes in the position to demonstrate their talents for National Staff coaches. 2009
National camp attendees Mike Leonne, Matt Rogers, Landon Collier, and
Dylan Fitzsimmons have been selected to return while the other nine (9)
players will be making their first trip to camp. The complete list of players attending the camp are here: Derek Granum, Esteban Russel, and Dylan Fitzsimmons 1993 Tariq Akeel, Jacob Love, and Matt Rogers 1994 Mike Leonne and Landon Collier 1993 Charlotte Socia, Didi Dedvukaj, and Sophia Rammal 1993 Sophie Maccagnonne and Jennifer Winkel 1994 Maddison Pollard and Donald Payne have been named alternates. For complete information on the Super Y League National ODP camp follow this link. Super Y National Tournament Updates SUPER Y FEE INFORMATION USL SUPER Y SCHEDULES u13B Schedule u14B Schedule u15B Schedule u16B Schedule u17B Schedule u13G Schedule u14G Schedule u15G Schedule u17G Schedule  November 28th, 2008
The United Soccer League's Rank Alliance Academy a Top Club! The New Super Y Club Ranked 19th Nationally Alliance Academy Press Release - www.soccergrandrapids.com Friday, November 7, 2008 GRAND RAPIDS, MI- The Alliance Academy was named the country's 2nd best New Super Y Club along with receiving a top twenty overall ranking. This honor comes after two teams (u14G and u13B) qualified for the National Finals in Tampa, FL and a number of players were selected to attend the Super Y ODP National Camp. The USL's ranking system takes into account on field performace (winning percentage) along with the quality and success of the club's administration. "Being ranked 19th out of 100+ teams is a significant accomplishment," said Director Abrahm Shearer. "We were quite pleased with the quality of training that our coaches provided the kids and it showed on the field with a number of excellent results against some of the USL's top clubs!" Read the USL Article Here. Alliance Academy Attracts Regional Talent Michigan side fields first-year teams in seven USL divisions Alliance Academy Press Release - www.soccergrandrapids.com Thursday, June 12 GRAND RAPIDS, MI- The Alliance Academy prepares to kick-off it’s 2008 Super Y-League campaign with a roster of talented players coming from across the region. The Grand Rapids based club enters the league after receiving acceptance from the United Soccer Leagues in November of 2007. It wasn’t long before interest in the teams began to spread. "While our initial try-outs sought local talent, we soon found out that there was a much broader range of interest. We currently have players registered from Detroit, Lansing, Chicago, Kalamazoo, Indiana, and Northern Michigan," club administrator Tara Fitzsimmons verified on Monday. Read the entire article here. Alliance Academy Super Y Facts Tuesday 01-15-08 The Alliance FC has officially joined the Super Y League for play that begins in the summer of 2008! The Super Y League is North America’s largest and most progressive league. It offers a tiered system that includes professional and amateur players competing on a regional then national level. The Alliance FC is proud to be the only club in Grand Rapids to sponsor teams into this league. The Alliance FC has made tremendous steps forward in the past few years. We have improved our coaching staff and continue to offer the best training opportunities for our committed athletes. The results have been obvious to our parents, the opposition, and casual observers looking at league tables. By adding the Super Y League, we are committing ourselves to the highest levels of soccer. More importantly, we are providing our players with the opportunity to advance on a national stage either through the Super Y ODP or as a team at the Super Y National Tournament. Below you will find questions and answers with our Director of Coaches, Abrahm Shearer. If you are completely new to the league, we recommend that you go the www.uslsoccer.com for more information. What is the Super Y League ODP? The Super Y League ODP system was created to help identify players for National Team Play. The program was groundbreaking because the Y League was the first non-USYSA sanctioned program to gain Olympic Development Status. This means that their selections would be considered by members of the National team staff for inclusion within youth National Teams. How it relates to Alliance FC might best be answered through an outlook and philosophy borrowed from one of the top youth coaches in the country, John Hannan. John recently made the move from the Chicago Magic to Crossfire Premier in Washington. Both clubs are among the best in the United States both participate in the Super Y League. I have gotten to know John fairly well over the years and had the opportunity to work with him as a coach on the US Club Soccer ID2 staff. Currently he is the Super Y League ODP director and I had a number of conversations with him about the league and the ODP system. His philosophy has been to utilize every avenue possible to bring his players to the next level. If this was the Super Y ODP, his players participated. If this was the State ODP, his players participated. If this was the US Club ID2, his players took part. I agree 100% with this approach and intend to pursue every avenue for our players. The director of the Mequon Soccer Club (WI) wrote an article on ODP vs. Super Y ODP that you might also find interesting. http://www.mequonsoccerclub.com Every player participating on an Alliance FC Super Y League team will be considered for the Super Y League ODP and US Club Soccer ID2. Both ask for players to be evaluated and scouted within their playing environment. There are no try-outs for these teams. Super Y League Coaches recommend kids to the Super Y ODP program and regional scouts send evaluations to the US Club Soccer directors for consideration. As an ID2 regional scout, I have recommended players for participation from within Alliance and from other clubs. Over the past two years these players have had the honor of attending regional camp in Illinois, New Jersey, and Missouri and each has returned having a positive experience. We are excited that we will now be able to promote our players throught all three ODP identification systems; Super Y ODP, MSYSA ODP, and US Club Soccer ID2. I have been told that the competition level in the Super Y League is not very good. Is that true? I completely disagree. The competition will be more than enough to provide any team in Michigan an excellent competitive experience. To my knowledge no Michigan Club has won a Super Y League National Championship. From another perspective, I would argue that every league has it's share of mismatches. Take a look at the English Premier League and you will find 4-0, 5-0, and even 6-0 score lines this year. These are professionals teams and players in arguably the most competitive league in the world and, as some say, the wheels fall off the bus at times. The fact is that many of the top teams in the country compete in the Super Y League. The Chicago Magic, Cleveland Internationals, and the Ohio Elite have all won National Championships and represent some of the strongest players from large metropolitan areas. Having coached within the league, I can tell you that some teams are more prepared than others and in some games, as in any league including the EPL, the wheels of the proverbial bus do fall off. In the end, this is a tremendous opportunity for top athletes to train and compete at a high level during an otherwise down time. Isn't time off in the Summer important? Yes and No. A recovery period at some point in the year is important but, it certainly doesn't have to be in the summer. Most high school boys end their season in mid-October giving the players weeks before indoor leagues and training begins. On the girls side, the summer is a long stretch between late May (high school season ends) and mid-August club kick-off. The Super Y League can fill in the gaps by providing a perfect spring board for the following season be it club or high school. My advice is to take advantage of the ability to play outdoors and take the time off in the winter if necessary. Can any club enter the MRL? The MRL or Midwest Regional League is not exclusive to any particular club. While the Super Y League determines which clubs can enter, the MRL has agreements with State Associations, including Michigan, which agree to grant entrance into the league based upon performance in the state cup. Any team that finishes in the top four in Michigan has the options to play in the MRL starting at u14. I play for another club. Can I try-out? Yes! If I am a u11 or u12, can I participate? Yes, if you are good enough. With enough interest, we will create a u11 and or u12 Super Y League Prep team that will compete in US Club Soccer Nationals and at least 1 other event over the summer months. If you are a u11 and u12 and are interested in participating on a Super Y League team, register as a u13 player. If you are also interested in being considered for a Super Y League Prep team register within that age group. Register for both or either here. | Alliance Academy Announces u15 and u16 Girls Try-Outs Gene Harkins and Henry Steinwasher recently announced their try-outs for the 2010 Summer Super Y League Teams. These teams will be very competitive and will attract players from Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Novi, Livonia, Macomb County, and many other communities. March 14th 12:15pm-1:45pm for u13 Girls 1:45pm-3:15pm for u15 Girls 3:15-4:45pm for u16 Girls Total Soccer, Fraser Pay $12 Try-Out fee at the Door! No pre registration is necessary.  Our 2010 Teams will be stronger than ever because of our State-wide draw. We will have training for most age groups in Grand Rapids and Detroit and plan to draw talent from the strongest soccer communities. This wouldn't be possible without the cooperation from some of the state's strongest club's and coaches including Michigan Gators and Michigan Future Stars. 2010 Try-Outs Announced Join the region's top players as we begin our quest to bring a Super Y National Championship back to Michigan. Our commitment to excellent team training and player
development in 2009 paid off as the club was rated the 17th best club in the
nation (out of 130+). Thirteen (13) players were selected to the
Super Y National ODP camp and an additional two (2) were selected as
alternates. In addition, the u14 Boys, u15 Boys, and u15 Girls winning National
Championship record of 6-3-3 was the strongest showing of any Michigan Super Y club. We are looking for players from any club who are prepared to train and play at a very high level through the summer months. Players must be committed to their personal development and should have aspirations to play soccer in college as a minimal long-term goal. Players who make our teams will benefit from a consistent training program, excellent coaching, competitive league play, Super Y ODP evaluation and possible camp, and the Super Y National Championship for qualifying teams. |
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