RECENT STORIES

'Haunt with No Name Yet' appears again ( Janet Baas )
CSUN music professor records original compositions ( Carmen Ramos Chandler )
CSUN Film Festival explores globalization ( Carmen Ramos Chandler )
Canoga Park Elks donate dictionaries ( Peter De Santis )
City recognizes County Supervisor Yaroslavsky ( Brian Haworth )

share a story | more postings »

YourHub.com \\ The Valley \\ Stories \\ Sports \\ Youth

L.A. Galaxy players visit AYSO Region 71 youth

e-mail to a friend | print this | link to this

NEXT › ‹ PREVIOUS

Contributed by: Pam Vetter on 9/9/2008

The dream of becoming a professional soccer player seemed within reach as five Los Angeles Galaxy soccer players taught a youth soccer clinic for AYSO Woodland Hills Region 71.

The clinic marked an incredible opportunity for the youth soccer players to mingle with professional L.A. Galaxy players.

Sean Franklin, L.A. Galaxy starting player No. 28, enjoys spending time in the community with the young players.

"It's nice to come out and get to train the kids, teach them some things and have them learn. We try to go into the community each month. The players take turns," Franklin explained. "I hope the kids take what we have to say and they apply it to their games or practices. Just knowing that these kids want to learn and how passionate they are for the game, I just like the soccer clinics."

For L.A. Galaxy player Troy Roberts, participating in the clinic reminds him of his own road to professional success.

"It's good to be out here with the kids. It's fun to teach them, just interact with them. We're professional players and you know, when I was a kid, I would love to get an opportunity to play with and practice with professional players. I played soccer growing up and I played AYSO for a little bit in Northern California. I played club soccer, high school, college and now for the Galaxy. I've played soccer since I could walk," Roberts said with a smile.

When it comes to this season on the professional field, Roberts added, "In the Galaxy, we focus on one game at a time. We're trying to get into playoffs and then we'll take it from there."

Goalie Mike Graczyk thought the entire experience with the kids of AYSO was awesome.

"It's great to see kids of this age," Graczyk said as he kicked the soccer ball with the kids. "I remember when I was young. It was tough to get kids to come out and play soccer. It's awesome to see the kids come out and get support, so it's great!"

L.A. Galaxy player Scott Bolkan really seemed to enjoy his time spent on the field with the kids.

"We're working on dribbling today. It's great to give back to these kids. Not too long ago, less than ten years ago, I was here," Bolkan noted. "Possibly I see some professional players here, they're pretty young, but you never know."

L.A. Galaxy player Ely Allen believes in the value of spending time in the community with the next generation of players.

"It's great to work with these kids and there's a lot of good talent out here. I hope some of the Galaxy players can inspire them to succeed a little further and make it in soccer if they're really into it," Allen said. "I'm from Seattle, Washington, so I played KYSA soccer growing up, which is similar to AYSO. I think this is great for everyone. It's a fun time; it's fun for everyone. I'm glad AYSO gets us together."

Los Angeles Galaxy Account Executive Gary Gomez, who accompanies the team to the clinic, started playing AYSO soccer at the age of seven. As an adult, he coached AYSO teams, created a solid relationship with the Los Angeles Galaxy team and earned a position with the team.

"Soccer is such a small sport compared to football or baseball and the bigger sports around. It's easy for our players to come out and interact with the kids. That's the way to build our fan base by connecting with these children," Gomez said. "The best thing for us to do is to bring them out to play a little bit with the kids, interact with the kids, and soccer grows in the U.S. Our goal is to build soccer as a sport in the United States and get a huge fan base throughout the U.S."

Regional Commissioner Monique Franklin says the L.A. Galaxy clinic exposes the kids to soccer outside of AYSO.

"We have a great relationship with the L.A. Galaxy. When we take our entire region to a Galaxy game, the kids and adults can't wait to go to another game," Monique said. "When a coach tells a player to do something, it's one thing. But, when a player sees a professional Galaxy player do the same thing at a clinic, in a game or on TV, all of a sudden it clicks. When they meet the professional players, they have a special connection and it means more to them when they go to the game or see those players. When do you ever get an opportunity in other sports to meet professional players such as basketball or baseball players? You don't. The one year we had Landon Donovan. That was unbelievable to have him come out here."

Of the five Los Angeles Galaxy players who participated in the clinic, Monique pointed out that the Galaxy's Sean Franklin grew up locally in the Valley.

"Sean played for the Northridge Quakes and another league that plays out of Granada Hills High School. He played for a local, semi-professional team and now, he's a starter for the L.A. Galaxy. He comes out to meet the kids and it lets them know that anything is possible. If you want it and you try hard enough, you can do it," Monique stressed. "The sport has continued to develop in this country. My parents are European and so I've always loved soccer. My husband, Greg, was introduced to soccer when our kids started playing. He loves it. Now, we have season tickets to the Galaxy. He bought a high-speed camera to take pictures at the Galaxy games. He's as excited as the kids are about the Galaxy clinics. I just think it's awesome that this sport is going in the right direction in this country. Soccer is a sport that all kids can play, boys and girls."

Charlie Bogusz, public relations coordinator for AYSO Region 71, has witnessed the growth of the L.A. Galaxy youth clinics in the community over the years.

"It gives the kids an idea what they can become if they really try hard. The kids love to work with the young coaches and see the skills and see players that they see on TV. It's great for the Galaxy because they get to interact with the kids and reconnect with where they've come from. It's great for both parties. It's a great way to promote soccer in the U.S. and build generations of soccer players. The participating kids receive two tickets to a Galaxy game in October and a free soccer ball," Bogusz said.

"My son wanted to come out but he had his own team practice. He's gone to these for five years and he always remembers the time he was taught shooting by L.A. Galaxy player Landon Donovan. How many times can you say that a professional player taught you? It's really an incredible opportunity," he added.

The L.A. Galaxy players who participated in the clinic signed autographs for the kids until the sun went down.

For more information about Los Angeles Galaxy Soccer games, visit http://web.mlsnet.com/t106.

For more information on AYSO Woodland Hills Region 71 soccer, visit www.region71.org.

[Report this as objectionable content.]

SUBMIT COMMENT

Rate the above story