Manhattan SC Villa won the Boys U-17 boys EDP NPL playoff crown. (Photo courtesy of EDP NPL)
EAST BRUNSWICK, N.J. — By winning this past weekend’s EDP NPL Playoffs, 11 EDP teams have punched their tickets to compete at the US Club Soccer NPL Finals at Grand Park in Westfield, Ind. July 13-17.
On the girls side, FC Copa Academy, NJ Wildcats, SJEB, Alleycats and Cedar Stars-Monmouth took one playoff crown each, with the Under-19 Girls championship still up for grabs in a match between FC Copa and Alleycats to be played in the coming days.
“As an organization, FC Copa Academy’s players and teams were consistently challenged on a week to week basis by our EDP NPL league schedule,” FC Copa Academy executive director Roberto Aguas said. “We believe that part of our success as a club is directly proportional to the strength of the league we play in and this year proved this once again. This year we qualified 6 boys and girls teams to the EDP NPL championship weekend to qualify for the NPL Nationals in Indiana. The event was well run and we will continue to support the league as it affords us the opportunity to play top teams and clubs throughout the east coast on a week to week basis.”
On the boys side, Manhattan SC claimed three of the six EDP spots at the NPL Finals, while Ironbound took two spots and New York SC one.
“The competition at this weekend’s playoffs was just fantastic,” EDP CEO Alan Shilling said. “Congratulations to the winners; we are extremely proud of the teams that will represent EDP at the NPL Finals and are confident they will do so with the utmost professionalism and dignity.”
Last season, Shilling pointed out, five EDP teams reached the championship games at the NPL Finals, with three teams coming home with championship trophies.
The EDP NPL Playoffs, held at the Friendship Fields in Bordentown, N.J., began Saturday with the semifinal round and culminated with the finals on Sunday.
“A big congrats goes out to EDP for putting on a great event for the championship games,” Manhattan SC’s director of coaching Ray Selvadurai said. “It was great to have all of the finals at a centralized venue. Every championship match featured top-notch teams from outstanding clubs. The matches were intense and contested, which brought out the best play and atmosphere from everyone. Manhattan SC was proud to be involved in finals weekend. Our teams look forward to representing EDP at the NPL Finals this summer.”
The champions:
U-19 Girls: FC Copa Academy G98/99 Black vs. Alleycats 1998 G TBD
U-17 Girls: FC Copa Academy G00 Black 2, SJEB Rush Girls Academy 1
U-16 Girls: NJ Wildcats Fury-NPL 1, FC Copa Academy G01 Black 0
U-15 Girls: Alleycats 2002 NPL 3, FC Copa Academy G02 Black 1
U-14 Girls: Cedar Stars Academy-Monmouth 4, FC Copa Academy G03 Black 0
U-13 Girls: SJEB 2004 Villareal 2, Alleycats 04 NPL 1
U-19 Boys: New York SC B98 3, Manhattan SC Gunners 2
U-17 Boys: Manhattan SC Villa 2, SJEB 00 Rush Boys Academy 1
U-16 Boys: Manhattan SC Emelec 4, World Class FC 2001 NPL 1
U-15 Boys: Ironbound SC 02 Red Fever 2, FSA FC Boys Elite 02 1
U1-4 Boys: Ironbound SC 03 Red-Internationals 2, SJEB 2003 Dortmund 0
U-13 Boys: Manhattan SC Thunder 2, FSA FC Boys Elite 04 2
