Central Florida United soccer team finds success in Europe

August 2, 2007

During their recent 2 week European tour, the Boys U17 Central Florida United Kraze soccer team coached by Bishop Moore HS's Mark Keymont won this year's Tivoli Cup International Soccer Tournament in Copenhagen, Denmark July 9-14. Playing up in the U18 age group, the team beat older teams from Norway, Poland, and Denmark en route to the Championship. Playing dominating defense in their 6 games, the team allowed only 2 goals and recorded 4 shutouts. The championship game was a heavyweight battle with a Danish all-star squad, which ended in both regulation and overtime periods tied 0-0. After falling behind in penalty kicks, Goalkeeper Jhojan Obando (Providence College commitment) made a critical save, and followed it up with a goal of his own to seal the championship.

The team then traveled to Gothenburg, Sweden to participate in the 33rd annual prestigious Gothia Cup tournament. Known as the World Youth Cup, the tournament included over 1600 teams from 70 Nations in participation. The Kraze dominated their 5-team group in pool play, outscoring their opponents from England, India, Sweden, and Estonia 23 to 3, before losing a heartbreaking 1-0 quarterfinal game against local professional club team BK Hacken.

In an Olympics type setting, the Gothia Cup Opening Ceremonies were held in BK Haken's Ullevi Stadium filled with 55,000 spectators and teams parading into the stadium from every country. Entertainment was provided by several international musical artists and hundreds of dancers, and was capped by a Disney-like pyrotechnics show. The streets of beautiful historic Gothenburg were lined with banners and filled with over 500,000 players, coaches, and fans in a friendly festive environment. The boys participated in the Club Gothia Disco, which was held in the city's basketball arena and attracted thousands of teenagers nightly. They sampled Danish and Swedish cuisine, visited historic castles, and learned of the Scandinavian culture. During their travels, friendships were formed with players from Norway, Iceland, Sweden, Canada, Uganda, Texas, and California. It was an experience that will last with them forever.

The Kraze lost only once in 11 games while in Europe, scoring 39 goals while allowing their opponents only 6.

Participating for the Kraze were:

Mark Keymont II Bishop Moore HS
Jeff Goldstein Olympia HS, UCF
Kevin Edman Bishop Moore HS
Devon Yelenosky Bishop Moore HS
Tyson Pryor Olympia HS
Trent Taylor Dr. Phillips HS
Pedro Afonso Cypress Creek HS
Brendan Smith Timber Creek HS
Christopher McKeever Lyman HS
Ross Gourlay Lake Mary HS
Scotty Funston Edgewater HS
Mauricio Claros Lake Howell HS
Eammon Murphy Winter Springs HS
Jonathan Sanna Winter Springs HS
TJ Corkery Winter Springs HS, Rollins College
Jhojan Obando Freedom HS, Providence College
Cordero Young Orlando Christian Academy, UCF