Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96

Welcome to the Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 blog site

2009-08-31T22:54:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

Welcome to the new Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 blogsite. We will be updating this website weekly with results and latest happenings in the C M-F Barça world.

Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 are a U14 Select "A" boys soccer team from Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada. The team is one of the best teams in the Pacific Northwest.

Check back for updates.

Cheers!

Mr. Jones

Art of the Ball Control

2009-08-31T14:49:00.001-07:00

Just like Mr. Jones... I wish!

Top 10 Goals of the Euro 2008

2009-08-25T00:59:00.001-07:00

Remember these ones?

Enjoy

50 Greatest Goals UEFA Champions League ITV UCL

2009-08-25T00:52:00.001-07:00

Have fun!

The BBC's Top Ten Euro Championship Goals

2009-08-25T00:42:00.001-07:00

Enjoy

New Barça Boy Vieira Finds Success in Brazil

2009-08-17T16:39:00.000-07:00

Every year, Brazilian soccer giant Sao Paulo FC* organizes a tournament during which its 34 official soccer schools compete for the title of Brazil’s best.

Having trained with them for the last 4 summers, Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça's Hugo Vieira was invited to compete for Brazilia’s U13 team and, once his commitments with CMF’s Super-Y team were done, he traveled to Brazil and joined the squad for the week-long tournament.

Hugo's team did quite well, finishing first in their group and advancing all the way to the semi-finals, where they fell on the penalty shootout (Hugo took the last PK, down 1 goal, and scored for the tie but a teammate subsequently missed in the sudden death).

All in all, it was a great experience for the boys (as Hugo’s younger brother, Felipe, also played, on the U11 team) and it once more showed that our players can compete with the best.

* Sao Paulo FC is one of the biggest and arguably the most successful team in Brazil, holding the most national league and international titles of any Brazilian club. They are the current Serie A holders, having won the past three-in-a-row and six overall (both are records). Internationally they are sixth overall with the most international titles won by a club, tied with Juventus and Liverpool at 11.

Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça player helps Tulis win second Dana Cup title

2009-08-14T18:23:00.000-07:00

Coquitlam NOW Published: Friday, August 14, 2009

Port Moody's Kyle Jones played a big role in the under-13 boys' Roman Tulis European Soccer School of Excellence' second-ever Dana Cup championship last month in Denmark.

The Coquitlam Metro-Ford minor soccer product served as an assistant captain, as the squad blanked Germany's Bremerhaven 1-0 in the final.

In the semifinal, the Burnaby-based squad defeated F.f.I of Denmark 2-1. Earlier, they had topped their pool with shutout victories over clubs from Norway and Finland in the 350-team, 30 nations tournament.

"It's easy to win a game every weekend, but when you play a game in the morning and then play and win a semifinal later, it's difficult," coach Roman Tulis Jr. said. "You can't have the best game of the tournament in every game, but we were lucky enough, we still outplayed he opposition."

Later in their trip, they competed at the 60-nation Gothia Cup and put in a solid charge. They were eliminated 2-0 by the largest youth club in Europe -- IF Brommapojkarna -- in the round of 16.

The 12-year-old Jones netted the game-winning goal in the previous game against Morocco in the round of 32.

It was the second time that a Jones boy has won the Dana Cup -- Kyle's older brother Adam was part of the Tulis team that won the Denmark tourney two years ago.

Canada West loses but CMF Barça's Polisi off to Brazil!

2009-06-28T18:47:00.000-07:00

An east coast/west coast soccer feud ended with eastern Canada prevailing on the field of battle.

The Canada East team took the 2-1 victory from the western squad on a penalty kicks during the national finals on the MBO Field in Toronto.

The 12 winning players, plus two West players, will now represent Canada in an international soccer tournament being held Oct. 9-11 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Canada West took an early lead when Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça's Marcello Polisi scored from the penalty spot.

Canada East scored late and the game had to be settled on PK's.

The Danone Nations Cup 2009 features athletes aged 11-12 from 40 countries competing for soccer supremacy.

A new tradition has been adopted this year to promote sportsmanship and camaraderie. Two players from the Canada West team who are the recipients of the most valuable player and the best sportsmanship awards will be joining the newly formed Canadian team.

Polisi was picked as MVP for Canada West and is now off to Brazil in October.

Polisi and David Norman Jr., Coquitlam Metro-Ford products, were two of 12 representative from the West.

Well done, Marcello!

Busy Off-Season for Barça Players

2009-05-06T23:26:00.000-07:00

After a successful season playing against older select players one would think that the Barça players would want a long rest. Not likely!

While one player will be taking his winning spirit to another off season sport (Paul Serres - baseball) another will continue with his important rehab of his knee (Anthony McKave) and another will take a much needed rest (Matteo Gallaccio) most of the Barça players want to continue that winning feeling by tackling opportunities that range from European ambitions to regional dominance with the possibility of conquering the continent.

Kyle Jones, Marcello Polisi and new comer Ross Merton are heading out of the country to test themselves against international opposition. Jones will travel with his Roman Tulis European Soccer School team and play in two of the biggest youth tournament in the world in Denmark (Dana Cup) and Sweden (Gothia World Youth Cup) while Polisi and Merton will be traveling with their Vancouver Whitecaps team to San Diego and test themselves against some of the best youth teams in the US. Polisi will also travel to Toronto with his Canada West Danone Team to play the East representatives to see who will represent Canada at the Danone World Cup in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

First year Barça players, Alex Skrzeta, Hugo Vieira, and Luke Griffin, will join Giordano Baldonero, James Lynn, Anthony Martin, Michael Mobilio, Jones, Rashaun Rivers, and captain Trevor Hallam as they will represent the Coquitlam Metro-Ford Soccer Club as the club embarks on their first year in the USL Super Y-League. Having talented players with winning experiences should be huge assets to the Y-League team.

CMFSC plays in the Pacific Northwest division against other Y-League teams from the Lower Mainland, BC Interior and Vancouver Island. The Y-League is an American league where league champions play in the USL Super Y-League North American Championship in Florida in November.

The Barça winning spirit and experience will come in handy in all their endeavors.

Best of luck. Do your best!

Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 2009/10 Squad Announced

2009-05-06T23:14:00.000-07:00

The 2009-2010 version of the Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 squad has been announced for the upcoming season with four addition to the already outstanding squad.

With close to 85 players trying out from around the Tri-city area as well as cities further away, the Barça coaching staff and CMF staff coaches decided to make a few changes to the standout squad that won the U14 BCYSSL Select Cup and finished a very respectful 4th in the U14 Select 'B' division as an under aged team.

The Barça '96 team will play in the U14 BCYSSL Select 'A' division and will be supported by the Coquitlam Metro-Ford Roma '96 team in the U14 BCYSSL 'B' division who will be called up from time to time incase of injuries or sicknesses.

The squad is as follows:

1. Alex Skrzeta (goalkeeper)

3. Anthony McKave (defender)

4. Matteo Gallaccio (defender)

5. Giordano Baldonero (midfielder) - assistant captain

6. Hugo Vieira (midfield)

7. James Lynn (defender)

8. Marcello Polisi (midfielder)

9. Anthony Martin (defender)

10. Michael Mobilio (forward)

11. Kyle Jones (midfielder) - assistant captain

12. Paul Serres (defender)

13. Rashaun Rivers (forward)

16. Trevor Hallam (midfielder) - captain

17. Luke Griffin (forward)

18. Ross Merton (midfielder)

Barça's Polisi Selected to Can West Danone Team

2009-05-05T23:04:00.000-07:00

Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça player Marcello Polisi and Coquitlam Metro-Ford Euro player David Norman Jr. have been selected to this years' Canada West Danone Team for boys born in the 1997 birth year.

The boys will play a one game final before a Toronto FC game in July versus the Canadian East squad to see who will move on and represent Canada at the Danone Nations Cup in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Polisi had an outstanding season this year for Barça and will also represent the Vancouver Whitecaps U12 team in Europe once again this summer. Norman Jr., son of David Norman of the Canadian National team and the NASL Vancouver Whitecaps fame, was called up twice to play with the CMF Barça team against players 3 years older than himself.

Danone or Dannon is a French food-products company based in Paris specializing in yogurt products. It claims world leadership in fresh dairy products, marketed under the corporate name, and also in bottled water (Evian and Aqua). Danone also puts on a mini World Cup for U12's with teams coming from all around the world.

Good luck boys!

Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC Goes 3 for 3!

2009-04-28T23:05:00.001-07:00

It has been a terrific year for the Coquitlam Metro-Ford Soccer Club! Not only was CMF the most successful club during the regular season, it capped off that success going 3 for 3 last weekend in cup matches involving Coquitlam Metro-Ford boys teams held at the Coquitlam Town Centre complex.

Out of the 6 finals taking place, Coquitlam Metro-Ford won 3 of them. CMF had a chance to make it 5 out of the 6 when 2 of their teams, the U18 CMF Dynamo and the U16 CMF Ajax, lost heartbreaking results in their semifinal tilts the weekend before. Special mention should also go out to the U13 underaged Euro team that lost a few weeks earlier to the team that won the U13 championship.

The day started with the underaged Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 beating Surrey Guildford United 1-0 in the BCYSSL Cup final. Barça passed on the U13 age division to play in the tougher U14 Select 'B' division against tougher and older opposition in preparation for their U14 National year next season. Congratulations, Barça!

Following Barça's winning trend was the U14 Coquitlam Metro-Ford Sparta '95's who knocked off North Shore Selects 2-0 to become Coastal Cup Champions. Sparta now has to patiently wait to find out if they are going to be challenged by the Interior champion. If so, Sparta will play a one game playoff to see who is the Provincial Champion as well as who will represent BC at the U14 Nationals in Nova Scotia. Best of luck, Sparta! Sparta now declared Provincial Champions!!

Not to be outdone, the Coquitlam Metro-Ford Juventus '93 decided to keep the fan's on the edge of their seats giving up the go-ahead goal with 6 minutes left in the game before snatching 2 of their own with seconds left in the game to win 2-1 against Richmond Madrid Selects. Like Sparta, Juventus will wait to find out if they will be challenged by the Interior champions. Once that is decided, the provincial champion will head to Winnipeg, Manitoba to compete in the U16 National Championship. Good Luck, Juventus! Juventus now declared Provincial Champions!

Other results:

U18 Coastal Cup

Vancouver Selects 2-1 North Delta (CMF Dynamo '92 lost to ND 2-1 in semi's)

U16 BCYSSL Cup

Abbotsford Mariners 2-1 Surrey/Guildford United (CMF Ajax '94 lost on PK's to Abbotsford in semi's)

U13 Coastal Cup

Whalley PSV 2-1 Cliff Avenue (CMF Euro '97 lost to PSV in round of 16)

The Champions and their hardware!!!!!!!!

http://www.cmfsc.ca/pictures/acknowledgementpics/U14Barca.jpg

U16 Coquitlam Metro-Ford Juventus '93

U14 Coquitlam Metro-Ford Sparta '95

U14 Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96

It was also quite the family affair:

Scotty and Trevor Hallam (Juventus and Barça respectfully)
Roberto and Anthony McKave (Juventus and Barça)
Adam and Kyle Jones (Juventus and Barça)
Brando and Cristiano Ciccone (Juventus and Sparta)
Matthew and Lucas Krivak (Sparta and Sparta)
Luigi and Marcello Polisi (Sparta and Barça)

Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 win the U14 BCYSSL Cup!

2009-04-27T10:47:00.000-07:00

CHAMPIONE, CHAMPIONE, OLE, OLE, OLE!!! - April 25, 2009

Coquitlam - The Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 team are the inaugural U14 BCYSSL Cup Champions for 2008/09 season after a 1-0 win over Surrey/Guildford United last Saturday at Coquitlam Town Centre. The game pitted the two hottest teams down the stretch of the league season against each other with most of the Surrey Guildford team made up of boys born in 1996. The game was an exciting affair with tactical changes throughout by both teams who gave up very few goals throughout the cup run leading up to the finals.

Quarterfinals:

Barça trek to the finals started back on April 4th with a game vs. Surrey Selects. In previous matches the scorelines were more like hockey scores with Barça coming out ahead 4-3 and 5-3 respectfully. This time, Barça shored up their defensive woes but kept the offense and bested Surrey Selects 4-0.

Barça open the scoring when captain Trevor Hallam snuck forward from his right back position and met a cross from the left wing that flew across the front of the box and slammed it into the net. It soon became one way traffic as soon afterwards a terrific freekick from Marcello Polisi from 40 yards out from goal was met by the head of Rashaun Rivers at full flight that glanced off his head and over the charging Surrey goalie giving Barça a 2-0 lead heading into the half.

The second half saw more pressure from the Surrey Select team as they went forward looking for a goal to get them back in the game. Goalkeeper Jake Sundar and his defense of Anthony Martin, James Lynn, Matteo Gallaccio, and Paul Serres were having none of that!!! Jake made two outstanding saves and distributed the ball cleverly all game while the defense stood their ground clearing all danger that fell into the box.

With a heavy battle happening in the middle of the park, midfield Kyle Jones, Giordano Baldonero, Hallam and Polisi were winning all the 50/50's and finding holes between the Surrey defense sending Barça 's offense of Rivers, Michael Mobilio, Ryan Mobilio and Krsto Lulic into dangerous situations behind Surrey's defense. Two of those ball led to goals for Rivers to score his second (virtually killing off any hope of a comeback by Surrey) and M Mobilio who ran onto a terrific chipped ball by Jones over the Surrey defense that Mobilio professionally volleyed over the charging goalie. 4-buzz! Game set and match and on to the semi's.

Semi finals:

Barça next opponents were Langley United '96 who knocked off Abbotsford Mariners 4-2 after being down 2-0 at one point in the match. Langley had played Barça tough in the two previous meetings with Barça tying and winning the two encounters. The win being very, very close and the winner coming late in the game. This time the game wasn't close as Barça won 3-0, a score that really flattered the Langley team.

The game winner came 48 seconds into the match when Rivers ran onto a forward ball that a Langley defender miss played at centre and Rivers collected and neatly finished in the corner. Soon afterwards, Baldonero, M Mobilio and Polisi missed easier chances that kept Langley breathing. In fact Langley's best chance came late in the first half with virtually their first venture into the Barça 1/3 when a Langley midfielder let go from outside the 18 yard box that rang off the post and across the front of the goal. The half ended 1-0.

The second half saw the Langley goalie make at least 3 outstanding saves to keep them in the game. Barça continued to grind away and found the go ahead when Jones found fellow midfielder Baldonero with a cross field threw pass that Giordy pushed by the defenders and rifled into the top corner giving the Langley goalie no chance.

More heroics from the Langley goalie on Rivers and R Mobilio followed until a neat interchange and over lap between Rivers and M Mobilio sent Michael through who neatly finished again giving the goalkeeper no chance. Jake Sundar was called upon to make a few saves before it was over but nothing that he couldn't handle. 3-0 final!

Special mention should be made to Anthony Martin and Paul Serres for their outstanding defending in the game. Now it was off to the finals!

Finals:

Surrey/Guildford United got to the finals by beating league champions Coqutilam Metro-Ford Bayern 2-1 and North Shore Selects 1-0 in the semis. Matches between Barça and United during the season were split with a 2-1 win apiece.

The U13 Coastal Cup between Whalley PSV and Cliff Avenue (PSV won 2-1) may have been played on the Percy Perry Stadium on the field next to Town Centre West but many believe that the battle for the best team in the province was being held on the West field.

Both teams came out tentative in the first half as the midfield battled for supremacy preventing any real creativity to transpire. Barça defense, led by Anthony Martin were excellent once again as he, and the rest of the crew, allowed keeper Sundar to have a very easy time of it.

On the other end, Surrey/Guildford played a dangerous offside trap that caught the Barça forwards at least 20 times or so offside. Eventually that lead to their downfall. The United goalie was called upon to make a great save on Rivers (2) and force M Mobilio to strike his drive wide that could have settled the score and the game.

At half time, the Barça coaching staff adjusted a few bodies and tactics and refocused a frustrated Barça team that was becoming impatient.

The second half saw pretty much the same as the United goalie continued to make great saves and Barça forwards running offside. The high offsides eventually cost the United team the chance to push the game to overtime as with 10 minutes left in the game Rashaun Rivers broke through thanks to an excellent through ball from Trevor Hallam and he neatly slotted home the winner.

Defenders Martin, James Lynn, Paul Serres and especially Matteo Gallaccio shut down the United threat and Barça was able kill off the game from there on.

The final whistle was blown and the Barça boys celebrated a huge win and now can be called the BCYSSL Select League Champions!!!! Even injured defender Anthony McKave joined in the celebrations!

Barça's BCYSSL Select Cup Results:

Quarterfinals:

Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça 4-0 Surrey Selects

Semi Finals:

Langley United 0-3 Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça

Finals:

Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça 1-0 Surrey/Guildford United

Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 players are: top row: Mr. Jones (head coach), Marcello Polisi, Paul Serres, Krsto, Matteo Gallaccio, Anthony McKave (injured), James Lynn, Anthony Martin, Rashaun Rivers
bottom row: Jake Sundar, Trevor Hallam, Kyle Jones, Michael Mobilio, Ryan Mobilio, Giordano Baldonero

missing: Mr. Baldonero (assistant coach)

Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC Player-of-the-Week

2009-03-16T17:01:00.000-07:00

COQUITLAM METRO-FORD SC PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
GIORDANO BALDONERO – COQUITLAM METRO-FORD BARÇA

In the Under 14 Select Division, the underage Barça defeated Surrey/Guildford United by a narrow 2-1 margin, mostly due to Giordano Baldonero's brilliant overall performance.

In the first half, Baldonero played on the backline - an unusual position for him. Despite his defensive inexperience, Giordano played extremely well and helped enormously in keeping Surrey/Guildford off the scoresheet.

In the second half, Baldonero was moved to his familiar midfield position and turned the game around with his vision, skill, ball distribution, and high work rate.

To cap off a brilliant performance, Baldonero scored the team's opening goal on a fine individual effort.

For his outstanding performance, GIORDANO BALDONERO has been chosen as Coquitlam Metro-Ford Player-of-the-Week.

Barça End League Season with Big Win

2009-03-07T23:18:00.000-08:00

It was billed as the unofficial match up that would prove who was the best team of boys born in 1996 in the province (although teams like Richmond Caledonia, Point Grey and Cliff Avenue would argue that point) as both teams, along with Abbotsford Mariners and Surrey Selects, passed on a chance to play in the Provincial Cup at the U13 age group. All four clubs felt that playing up in the U14 Select 'B' division would be the best step forward developmental wise going into the more important U14 season next year (national year). The teams will not participate in the U14 "A' Provincials and will have to settle for the Select Cup that kicks off in late March.

Bravado and boastfulness threats of who was going to win by both players of the teams were posted on Facebook.

Would Surrey/Guildford United's pressure game stifle Barça's passing game? Would Barça's skill and possession be enough to get them by Surrey/Guildford's aggressive tackling and speed?

Ultimately, it came down to who wanted it most!

Before the game Barça had to deal with a few setbacks:

The Barça coaching staff was told that second year member Anthony McKave had torn his ACL during training in January and would be out for the season. McKave was having a breakout season and the loss of Anthony's size and calm approach to the game has been a bit of a setback.
Rock solid James Lynn was still suffering from the flu and wasn't 100% for the game. Lynn would troop on and play the second half. James has also had a tremendous season and has proved to be one of the best stoppers in the league.
Last weeks player-of-the-week Kyle Jones was also suffering from a fever but played under the weather.

Barça would have to adjust and would turn to one of their assistant captains for help. Giordano Baldonero stepped up and played at the back with Anthony Martin and did phenomenally well. With Matteo Gallaccio and the outstanding Paul Serres, they weren't left wanting in a tackle!

Surrey/Guildford United came out fast and scored first only to have the referee call it back for offside (well played by the Barça defense). This woke Barça up and soon the game turned in Barça's favour as their possession in midfield increased thanks to hard work from Trevor Hallam and Marcello Polisi. Soon chances started to come and forward Ryan Mobilio, having his best game of the year, came close.

In the second half, Barça adjusted again and the under weathered Jones was subbed out and replaced in midfield by Baldonero. Soon chances started to fall more and more to the Barça forwards as the United goalie had to be on his game to keep them in the game. Endless running and pressuring by Krsto Lulic, and Michael Mobilio stretched the United defense opening up holes for Rashaun Rivers who ran at the defense all day.

A neatly threaded ball by Rivers found R Mobilio streaking in behind the United defense forcing the United keeper to come out and challenge him. The ball popped out and Baldonero didn't need an invitation to slot home the opening goal. 1-0 to the good guys!

With the pressure all on the Surrey Guildford end of the park, Barça let up and a mix up at the back led to a half chance that the United forward put away. 1-1!

Barça adjusted again and started to apply more pressure and were soon rewarded when Rivers slotted home the winner with 15 minutes to go. 2-1 for the good guys!

Barça was playing some nice stuff while Surrey/Guildford turned up the physicality. With little protection from the referee Barça had to battle it out - and battle they did! Tackles started flying and composure in possession saw off the game as Barça won comfortably.

Barça finished the regular season with 9 wins, 6 ties and 5 losses - tied for 4th in the league!

Barça now move on to the Select Cup where they will face Surrey Selects at home later in the month. The last two times these teams faced each other the scores were 4-3 and 5-3 for Barça!

Coquitlam Metro-Ford Player-of-the-Week

2009-03-04T22:27:00.000-08:00

COQUITLAM METRO-FORD SC PLAYER OF THE WEEK:

KYLE JONES – COQUITLAM METRO-FORD BARÇA

In the Under 14 Select Division, the underage Barça held the very strong Chilliwack Impact to a 1-1 tie, mostly due to Kyle Jones' brilliant overall performance.

Jones played extremely well in his midfield position, repeatedly winning the ball with crushing tackles and then distributing it with impeccable passes.

Kyle capped off an amazing individual performance by scoring the tying goal late in the game on a long-range free kick rocket to the top corner of the net. For his outstanding performance KYLE JONES has been chosen as Coquitlam Metro-Ford Male Player-of-the-Week.

Jones' Rocket Earns Tie

2009-03-01T21:40:00.000-08:00

"Kyle! Just chip it over the wall" bellows the coaching staff as Kyle Jones lines up a free kick from 30 yards out entering the dieing minutes of the match down 1-0.

"Okay, coach."

BOOM!

Top corner!

"Or... exactly like that, Kyle!"

1-1! A much deserved tie as Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 battled with the much bigger and aggressive Chilliwack Impact team that was sitting 2nd in the league.

Although the Barça boys out-matched their eastern opponents on skill throughout the first half, they found themselves shy in the physicality department and a goal down at halftime. A breakdown at the back allowed the Chilliwack forward in to slot home from close range. Up until that point the Barça defense of Paul Serres, James Lynn, Anthony Martin, and Matteo Gallaccio was comfortable and limiting the Chilliwack attack to little or no chances.

After an animated talk by the coaching staff on how to step up the physical play Barça came out with more steam but come into trouble when Jake Sundar had to make a reactionary save off a deflected cross that struck the outstretched leg of Martin.

Soon things changed as the midfield of Marcello Polisi, Trevor Hallam and Kyle Jones started dictating the play and throwing themselves into every tackle. Barça's chances improved and were unlucky not to be awarded a penalty shot when Rashaun Rivers was taken down hard from behind by the Impact keeper.

More fouls followed but Barça found the Chilliwack defense very tough to breakdown.

Now late in the game and with the men's teams that were next to play watching and warming up behind the Chilliwack goal, Jones was facing a task of a freekick from 30 yards out. With the Chilliwack wall set up and the Barça front line of Rivers, Baldonero and the never give up attitude of Michael Mobilio poised on the edge of the 18 yard box ready to pounce, Jones wound up and let fly with the hammer-job that found the top left hand corner of the net that left the goalie with no chance. Game on!

Barça nearly won it when Jones switched the play and found an unmarked Ryan Mobilio sneaking in behind the defense only to find his shot neatly saved by the capable Impact goalie.

Barça was now the more aggressive team as one of the Chilliwack players had to be removed from the game due to a hard tackle from Paul Serres who was excellent in the second half.

Time ran out as Barça had all the momentum and applying all the pressure.

Barça move to a record of 8 wins 6 ties and 5 losses for 5th in the league.

Barça Battle Back for Tie

2009-02-22T11:25:00.000-08:00

The Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 team battled back to tie the Alouette Ultra 3-3 at the Pitt Meadow Athletic Park on Saturday afternoon.

The game was very wide open, poorly defended by both teams and if not for some poor finishing the score could have ended up 10-9 for either team.

Barça came out complacent and found themselves 2-0 down after 15 minutes. Krsto Lulic scored on a breakaway for Barça but Alouette salvaged one more to head into the half up 3-1 after some more poor defending.

After a stern lecture at half time and a refocusing of the team goals for the second half, Barça set out to "win the second half" and salvage some form of pride after being out worked and out played for 25 of the 35 minute first half by a weaker team in the league.

Thanks to a slightly higher work rate and gritty play, Barça battled back and tied the score thanks to goals from Giordano Baldonero and Michael Mobilio.

Many chances went a begging for both teams and a tie was probably a fair result considering the play throughout the game.

Thanks to a 1-1 tie between Surrey Guildford and Chilliwack Impact, the worst Barça can finish is 5th in the league. Barça still have an outside chance to finish 4th but must get some very favorable results in their make up games against both Surrey Guildford and Chilliwack and hope that Richmond drop points in their last make up game versus North Shore Selects.

Barça are currently in 5th place with a 8-5-5 record on the season for 29 points.

Barça Succeed Despite Defensive Woes

2009-02-14T19:18:00.000-08:00

The Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 boys won their 8th game of the season versus Surrey Selects thanks in part to a 3 goal performance by Rashaun Rivers and singles from a Marcello Polisi free kick and a Ryan Mobilio tap in, thanks to a great individual run from Giordano Baldonero.

Although the win elevates Barça nearer to the top of the league, the defensive woes has the Barça coaching staff shaking their heads. Barça have only let in 17 goals (1.00 GAA) in 17 games but 6 of those goals came at the hands of the Surrey Select team that is closer to the bottom than the top.

Barça have 3 games left and continue their quest to finish in the top 4 when they face a tough Alouette Ultra team next weekend in Maple Ridge. Barça is now 8-4-5 on the season for 28 points and 5th in the league.

Barça settle for tie vs. Richmond

2009-02-05T22:37:00.000-08:00

The Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 underaged U14 Select B team missed out on going into 4th in the league as a result of a 0-0 tie with Richmond United.

The game was a listless game that really didn't pick up until late in the second half when Rashaun Rivers and Kyle Jones squandered chances to put Barça into the lead and snatch the 3 points.

Richmond also came close with a free kick that whistled by the post of Jake Sundar's goal. Sundar recorded his 7th shutout of the season as Barça move to 7-4-5 for 25 points and holding on to 5th in the very competitive league.

For the second game in a row Barça dressed 2 players 2 years younger and one player 3 years younger than the competition.

Barça goes 1 and 1 to start new year

2009-01-25T17:50:00.000-08:00

The Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 boys started the new year off going 1 and 1 to start the new year. The results saw the best of U14 soccer and the worst with Barça displaying grit and determination in the face of adversity and injury.

Due to the snow and cold weather, Barça struggled to get training times, let alone game times as the first game back from the Christmas Break, versus Chilliwack Impact, had to be postponed due to the 10 inches of snow that covered Charles Best, Barça's home field.

While other areas in the Lower Mainland weren't hit so severe, Coquitlam, 4 weeks later still has snow covering most of the playing fields including Charles Best.

Things were much different in Ladner, the venue for Barça's next game, where the home team had the luxury of having outdoor sessions and 1 exhibition and 1 league game under their belt going into the tilt with Barça.

The boys went out for soccer match but found themselves in the midst of a rugby match. With poor refereeing and despicable tactics, Ladner was given the freedom to knock down, kick, push and intimidate the younger Barça team who was the only team on the field that was trying to play the game the way it's suppose to be played. One of the Ladner club coaches came across shaking his head in disgust and virtually apologized for his club teams tactics - tactics that the Barça boys will have to get use to down the last stretch of the season.

Barça also struggled with injuries (Anthony McKave) and suspensions (Marcello Polisi) and needed to delve into the reserves and call up Jacob Powell and Ola Ajibike from the U13 CMF Euro '97.

With little outdoor training and no pre-exhibition games, Barça struggled to find their rhythm through all the hostilities and gave up a goal on a set piece where the backline was pushed into the net on the corner. The rugby match ended one try to nothing (1-0).

Barça's next opponent was the North Shore Selects and not interested in going 0 and 2, Barça came out swinging. Still relying on under-underaged call ups due to injury (Krsto Lulic now on the injury list) and family matters (Ajibike and David Norman - playing three years up!), Barça made their intentions felt early as pressure resulted in two very good chances when Rashaun Rivers missed on a breakaway and call-up Ajibike missed from point blank range.

Michael Mobilio and Paul Serres were menaces out on the field as their tireless running and scrapping for every ball allowed the other Barça forwards the time and space to get chances. In midfield Polisi, back from suspension, moved the ball extremely efficiently allowing the 3-man midfield of Polisi, Giordano Baldonero and Kyle Jones to boss the midfield. At the back, captain Trevor Hallam, James Lynn, Anthony Martin, Matteo Gallaccio and David Norman didn't allow a shot as keeper Jake Sundar recorded his 6th shutout of the season.

The second half finally saw Barça get the break though they deserved when Baldonero threaded a through ball to Rashaun Rivers who neatly slotted the ball on a semi breakaway. Barça then made it 2 when Jones full volleyed a flicked on header from Rivers into the top corner to make the game safe. Baldonero almost made it 3 but the North Shore goalie made a spectacular save to keep the game within reason.

Barça now stay in 5th spot and close in to within one point of Richmond Selects for 4th place in the league.

Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC Secure Y League Franchise

2009-01-05T21:28:00.000-08:00

The Coquitlam Metro-Ford Soccer Club is proud to announce that we have been successful in securing eight teams in the Super Y-League for the 2009 season.

The Super Y-League operates under the auspices of the United Soccer Leagues, better known as the USL. The Super Y-League is a Member of the United States Soccer Federation. Under a new partnership model between the BC Soccer Association and the Vancouver Whitecaps, the Northwest Division of the Super Y-League will be made up of BC based teams. A rebranding of the program includes five Whitecaps/BCSA “partner” organizations to be part of the Super Y-League in the spring and summer of 2009, along with Abbotsford and Victoria. The seven organizations are:

Coquitlam Metro-Ford Soccer Club
Surrey WFC
Coastal WFC
Mountain WFC
Abbotsford Soccer Association
Victoria Capitals
Okanagan WFC

Our club will independently operate and manage eight youth teams (U13-U16 boys and girls). The program is user funded and will include paid coaching positions. We will be advertising for head coaching positions within our club first and then externally, if required. Head coaches must meet BCSA’s coaching requirements.

This program will complement our newly acquired Tri-Cities Xtreme organization, that will compete in the Pacific Coast Soccer League, to provide competitive, development opportunities for our youth and adult teams in the off season.

We are currently working on our website to provide further information, statistics and schedules.

Please contact any of our club directors or staff for more information.

Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC Player of the Week

2008-12-12T17:43:00.000-08:00

COQUITLAM METRO-FORD SC PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
RASHAUN RIVERS – COQUITLAM METRO-FORD BARÇA

In the Under 14 Select Division, the underage Barça boys defeated Langley United by a narrow, but well earned, 2-1margin. RASHAUN RIVERS scored both Coquitlam Metro-Ford goals to lead his team to the very important victory.

Rivers, two time winner of the award, opened the scoring midway through the first half when he collected the ball in the opponents' half of the field and, after beating a couple of defenders, rifled a world-class shot into the top corner of the net from well outside the penalty area.

Late in the game, with the scored tied 1-1, Rivers once again rose to the occassion as he took advantage of a defensive blunder, picked up the loose ball, rounded the goalkeeper, and slotted the ball intothe empty net for the winning goal.

For his outstanding performance, RASHAUN RIVERS has been chosen as Coquitlam Metro-Ford Male Player-of-the-Week.

Keane: the Autobiography

2008-12-06T23:20:00.000-08:00

From time to time, as I do with youtube clips, I will post some literature from books to assist in your development off the field. Please read it. Reading is good for you and your soccer development!

Here is a couple of pages from Roy Keane autobiography, former captain of the treble winning Manchester United team of the 1990's and early 2000's.

In 1999, Keane's United won the Premiership league title, the FA Cup and the Champions League - all in the same year! Up until that time, it had never been done. Keane was instumental throughout that season and his leadership is legendary not only at United but throughout the soccer world.

In the book, he talks about accountability and the fact you just can't phone in results if you want to win games. Good, perceptive players (and coaches) can see probelms and complacency (relaxing in the 'comfort zone') coming from a mile away by the changes in attitudes and body language not only at games but before during and after training. You have to give the same effort versus the big teams as well as the little teams - even the 3 v 3 games in training!

He also talks about what it means to play for a big club to not only the players, but the supporters. Although we aren't Manchester United, we should approach each and every practice and game in this manner. From the club president all the way down to your parents driving you to each game/practice, others are sacrificing for your benefit. Don't take it for granted. You are lucky boys! You are all well taken care of!

Click the two photos below to read the two pages from the book.

Enjoy!

Classic Bayern/Barça

2008-12-06T20:33:00.000-08:00

Some people love pop, some love new wave, some love punk but when it comes to games played between Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 and club mates Bayern '95, nothing but a classic number will do!

Once again the Barça/Bayern game brought out the best in both teams as both went toe to toe in a grueling 'cup like' game that resulted in tonnes of action, many chances, some great saves, three yellow cards, two sending offs and an exciting 0-0 draw.

Heading into the big game CMF Bayern, currently in 1st place, riding high after hammering 3rd place Richmond United 6-0 last weekend and strengthened by a few 'A' players from CMF Sparta '95 team, have only dropped 2 points in the last 10 games recording 9 wins and one tie in that time period.

Barça has been on fire as well only dropping 3 points in the last 6 games winning 5 out of their last 6 collecting 15 out of a possible 18 points pushing them to the top half of the standings.

The early moments were close as Bayern had the lions share of possession as Barça struggled to adjust to their new 4-3-3 formation. Although the formation posed a challenging concept for the Barça midfield of Kyle Jones, Giordano Baldonero and Marcello Polisi, Barça were dangerous on the counter - so dangerous that the red hot Rashaun Rivers thought he had opened the scoring when he was played clean through on goal by a lovely pass from Jones only to have the goal called back for offside.

Bayern made some changes midway through the half and put even more pressure on the Barça defense, led by the three big men (and one little one) in Anthony Martin, Anthony McKave, James Lynn and captain Trevor Hallam. Bayern should have scored at least a goal as the chances they developed provided many cracks in the Barça defensive wall but with Jake Sundar's safe hands and stiff team defending, Barça held strong and got out of the half unscathed.

After a animated half time team talk Barça came out with vigor and took the game to Bayern creating quite a few scoring opportunities. Frustrations soon surfaced as a Bayern player was sent off after an altercation with Hallam as the Barça captain had to move into the midfield with Jones being withdrawn from the battle with a lower body injury.

The game quickly turned in Barça direction as the extra room provided many holes in the Bayern defense and Barça's chances doubled through their slick passing and movement. Rivers, Michael Mobilio, Polisi and Baldonero all came close while forward Paul Serres threw himself into every tackle and Krsto Lulic and Ryan Mobilio ran hard up and down the flanks.

Barça's defense were ruthless as Lynn, McKave and Matteo Galaccio won every lose ball, not giving the much bigger Bayern forwards a moment to breathe and using their balance and strength to win the 50/50 battles. Special mention should go out to Anthony Martin who anchored the back line outstandingly in the second half, stepping up his physical play and demonstrated why the Barça coaching staff think he can be one of the best defenders in the province.

Hemming the Bayern team in their end resulted in a hand ball in the box and a penalty shot for Barça enabling them to win the game. Polisi bravely stepped up to put Barça in the lead but the Bayern goalie guessed right (literally) and made a smart save to preserve the scoreline. Frustration surfaced and some uncharacteristic verbal barb's were exchanged resulting with the referee handing out a yellow card to the Bayern goalie and a red card to Polisi. Up until that moment Polisi was having an outstanding game and will miss the next game due to suspension. As gutted as he was after the incident, Polisi maturely took responsibility for his action, apologized to his coach and team and promptly demonstrated his class apologized to both the Bayern coach and the referee for his action.

The game continued in the same manner as Barça continued with the pressure but to no avail. 0-0 was a much deserved scoreline as both teams played their guts out and added to the classic list of games between the two teams.

Barça move on to close out he 2008 part of the season next week with a game versus Surrey United/Guildford in Surrey before the Christmas Break. Barça will want revenge as they dropped a disappointing 2-1 decision back on September 27th losing a game they had no business losing. Barça now move to 6-3-4 for 21 pts and 5th place in the league.

Game Day Routine

2008-12-06T01:11:00.000-08:00

Here is game day routine that the boys should try and follow as most of our games this year are at 3:00pm. The routine is flexible so that the players can adjust them to fit with different game times.

This routine was designed by former soccer player, sports councillor and author of "the New Game Plan" Stephe Raghoobarsingh.

Stephe has now written two successful books and works with many amateur and professional athletes from a variety of sports helping these athletes 'get into the zone' and meet and exceed their potential.

Barça Leave it Late

2008-11-29T22:10:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the second addition of the Rashaun Rivers show!

The Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 boys team won their 4th game in a row and 5th in 6 games beating a very game Langley United team 2-1 on a cold and rainy night under the lights in Langley.

The rain couldn't cool the red hot Rashaun Rivers who scored 2 outstanding goals including a world class hammer job that Cristiano Ronaldo would have been proud of. Rivers opened the scoring half way through the first half after some heavy pressure from the Langley team who was winning all the 50/50 balls and most of the races to every lose balls up until that point. Rivers collected the ball midway in the Langley end, proceeded to beat a Langley defender and rifle a shot on a rope from around 25 yards out that kissed off the underside of the crossbar and post to settle in the absolute top corner of the net. Gasps of breath could be heard around McLeod Stadium as Rivers put Barça up 1-0. The score stayed 1-0 thanks to some timely movement in goal by Jake Sundar who was quick off his line to pick off any through balls that came dangerously close to the Barça goal.

The second half started brightly for the Barça boys and really should have added to their lead when Barça strung at least 10 passes together in the Langley zone that led to a strike from Giordano Baldonero from 25 yards out that just missed the top left hand corner of the net.

Barça played much better in the first part of the second half and were in control until a breakdown after a Barça corner was cleared and Langley countered and chipped Sundar to make the score 1-1. Things turned negative for Barça for a while with the fast turf, poor weather condition and poor movement off the ball. The flowing Barça passing game that was so prevalent last weekend in there win versus Abbotsford again deserted them and left Barça scrapping to get something from the game.

Langley came close again when Jake Sundar kept out a hard shot on his back when another Barça defender was second to a loose ball at the top of the box. This time, it was Barça turn to counter and Marchello Polisi saw is shot hit the crossbar and go over.

As the game entered the last 5 minutes and both teams seeming to be looking at a draw, Rivers hustled onto a through ball that was played too deep and pressured the defender who promptly tried to play it back to his goalie. Rivers caught up to the ball rounded the keeper and slotted the ball into the empty net to the delight of his teammates and relief of his coaches.

Barça sneaks out a win that last year would have resulted in a loss. Barça moves to 6-2-4 on the season for 20 points and cements their 5th place position drawing closer to the 3rd and 4th place teams.

Special thanks to Jacob Powell who was called up for the game from the CMF Euro '97 team. Jacob played very well in the victory and again illustrated the ability of the club to produce players that can raise their game to play at a higher level.

Barça moves on to play the 1st place Coquitlam Metro-Ford Bayern next week that should be a classic as is all Bayern/Barça matches are.

Can You Move it Like This?

2008-11-27T12:52:00.001-08:00

Can you shake it like that?

Barça Uses Math to Win 3rd In A Row

2008-11-22T20:33:00.000-08:00

Great Effort + Solid Team Work = Excellent Win!

The Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 team had one of their better games of the season beating a very good Abbotsford Mariners team 2-1 at Charles Best. The great effort combined with sold team-work resulted in their 3rd win in a row and their 5th on the season in the very tough U14 Select 'B' division.

Over the last two games, the Barça coaching staff has been disappointed with the effort of the Barça players and challenged them to get back to the two thing that makes them an outstanding under aged team - EFFORT and TEAM WORK. Today, they passed with flying colours!

To Abbotsford's credit, they are an outstanding under aged team that will be challenging Barça in the future. They have been having some of their promising '96s play up with their Select 'A' team but with the 'A' team having a bye this weekend, they brought them down along with one of their best '95 players for the tough match with Barça.

The first half was a battle of wills with both sets of midfielders fighting for territory and supremacy. With the constant pro-active movement of Barça's outside backs (Trevor Hallam, Anthony McKave and Matteo Gallacio), the Barça midfield of Paul Serres, Giordano Baldonero, Kyle Jones, Marchello Polisi and Ryan Mobilio was able to grasp the momentum and pin the Abby team in their end. The half ended 0-0 but the chances, time of possession and shots on goal were firmly in Barça's favour.

The second half started off much the same as Barça kept the Abby Mariners on their heels. After some good defensive work from James Lynn and Anthony Martin, Rashaun Rivers worked his way down the right side and powered his way into the penalty area and scored a deflected goal to put Barça up 1-0.

Spurred on by this much deserved lead Barça kept winning the 50/50 balls and with 15 minutes left in the game Baldonero found Rivers at the top of the box who slipped a nice ball into a onside Krsto Lulic who charged to the net only to be taken down by a Abby defender. After a 'rock, paper, scissor' contest, Polisi stepped up to put Barça ahead 2-0. Cudo's to Lulic for being a team player by stepping aside and letting Polisi to take the PK!

Barça had a few more chances to put the game out of reach with both the Mobilio boys (Ryan and Michael) finding room in the 18 yard box and coming close.

With 5 minutes left on the clock, Abby got one back when a breakdown in the Coquitlam Metro-Ford defense allowed Abby's most dangerous player in behind the defense and his centering cross came off a Barça defender past keeper Jake Sundar who, besides some foot clearances, had very little to do. One must say that the undisclosed Barça defender clinically slotted the ball into the corner of the net! ;)

It was all hands on deck for the final 5 minutes but Barça showed too much heart and character to let this slip away, pressing Abby in their own end and walked off demonstrating to all their fans that they are at least one of, if not, the best team in their age group.

Barça improve to 5-2-4 for 5th place in the U14 Select 'B' division and look forward to using this new found Math against Langley United next week in Langley.

Barça Win Again!

2008-11-16T11:29:00.000-08:00

It wasn't pretty but the Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça escaped another close encounter to hold on to a 1-0 win over Alouette Ultra to record their 4th win of the season and move into a tie for 5th in the very competitive U14 Select 'B' division.

Barça started off quickly and had four glorious chances to virtually kill off the game in the first 15 minutes with Krsto Lulic, Rashaun Rivers and Kyle Jones missing chances that on other days would have nestled in the back of the net. Rivers eventually opened the scoring on one of his many chances with a well struck shot into the corner of the net. This woke up the older Alouette team who were dangerous from all set plays.

Infact, Alouette could have - should have - drawn level with 5 minutes left in the half when a corner was poorly cleared by the Barça defense and the Alouette midfield saw his brilliant volley from 6 yards out miraculously pushed onto the bar by goalkeeper Jake Sundar and cleared by defender Matteo Gallaccio. Sundar recorded his 4th shutout of the year in the process.

After the half Barça again started off well but uncharacteristically ventured away from their fluid passing and possession game that sees off opponents. Barça was now losing all the 50-50 battles, were second to every ball in all areas of the field, and gave the ball away cheaply as Alouette piled on the pressure. Most of the chances came outside the penalty area and when a big save was called upon, Sundar and his Barça defense thwarted the effort. Alouette came close with a great long distant strike that hammered against the crossbar and out of the danger area. Barça had chances to kill off the game on the counter attack but finishing and sustained pressure were lacking.

Barça was able to hold on and collect the full points but efforts like this will not do in the future or dire consequences will be the outcome.

Barça have hit the halfway point in the league schedule and are 4-2-4 with 14 points and tied for 5th in the league standings. Barça now move on to play a much improved Abbotsford Mariners 'B' next week.

Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC Player of the Week

2008-11-13T22:14:00.000-08:00

COQUITLAM METRO-FORD SC PLAYER OF THE WEEK:

RASHAUN RIVERS – COQUITLAM METRO-FORD BARÇA

In the Under 14 Select Division, Barça edged the older, and stronger, Surrey United Selects by a 4-3 margin mostly due to the outstanding play of RASHAUN RIVERS.

Despite the fact that Barca struggled throughout most of the match, Rashaun managed to score 3 great goals to lead his team to an unexpected victory. Rivers, a first-year player with Barca, has had to adjust to a steep learning curve and has adjusted remarkably well to the higher expectations. With a great work ethic, positive attitude, and true athleticism, Rashaun has risen to the unenviable task of playing against older, bigger, select players and is continuously making positive contributions to his team’s endevours.

What made Rashaun’s performance even more impressive is the fact that Barca played one of its worst games of the season! For his outstanding performance, RASHAUN RIVERS has been chosen as Coquitlam Metro-Ford Male Player-of-the-Week.

Hungary for a Better Life

2008-11-13T20:41:00.000-08:00

On the most important day of his life, Shadrak Kwabena wakes up hungry. He is 9 years old, his pencil legs covered in knee-high, hand-me-down yellow socks. This is the moment his mother imagined when she took him to the coach three years ago with a request: Please give my son a future.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/eticket/story?page=ghanasoccer

Nike - Take It To The Next Level (Director's Cut)

2008-11-12T17:10:00.001-08:00

Neat commercial.

Enjoy

Mr. Jones

Play Well and Lose, Play Poorly and Win!

2008-11-09T17:01:00.000-08:00

Tale of two games!

Barça came away from the last two games against Richmond United and Surrey Selects showing the best of themselves (and losing a match they had no business losing) and the worst of themselves (and winning a match they had no business winning). Both games were against teams that have been doing quite well in the league and were always going to be tough but as many Premiership teams can attest, the game(s) don't always go the way they are suppose to go.

Against Richmond United, the Barça boys showed that they can be one of the best teams in the league with their fluent passing and stingy defense. While limiting Richmond to only a handful of chances (3 actually) Barça created at least SIX clear cut chances to sink a strong Richmond team that sat in 3rd spot in the league standings.

Richmond scored on two of their chances including an offside play where a Barça player was wrongly penalized for a high foot clearance in the box and Richmond were awarded an indirect free kick 10 feet out from goal!

The Barça boys only scored on one of their six glorious chances. As much as the referee made the wrong call on one of the Richmond goals, we didn't score on our chances and thus we must share the blame! The goal was scored by Giordano Baldenero from a terrific and delicate cross from Ryan Mobilio.

Ever the other way around, Barça finally was on the other end of a result that they probably don’t deserve against a very good Surrey Select team.

Thanks to 3 goals from Rashaun Rivers, Barca knocked off an older, bigger Surrey team that had brought down 4 players from their ’95 ‘A’ team for the match.

Kyle Jones scored the other goal from the penalty spot.

At one point Barça was winning 3-1 before letting Surrey back into the game. Barça had a chance to make it 4-2 when Giordano Baldenero scored on a second PK but the ref called it back for encroachment when one of our players was pushed into the area before the kick was made. The second shot was saved and brought a 'dead in the water' Surrey team to life! All hands on deck was the call of the moment and real heart was needed to get anything out of the game.

Barca did not play very well but thanks to Rivers last minute volley, Barça was able to steal the 3 points that in other games were stolen from them!

The Barça lads now move on to play Alouette Ultra next Saturday at home.

Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC Player of the Week

2008-11-09T16:44:00.000-08:00

COQUITLAM METRO-FORD SC PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
TREVOR HALLAM – COQUITLAM METRO-FORD BARÇA

Leadership is given to those that others follow. The best leaders lead whether asked or not! In the case Barça captain, the rest follow his true leadership.

The newly elected diminutive Barca captain is proving his true leadership by accepting responsibility on and off the field, battling back from injury with a giant of a game and filling in on the back line making crunching tackles at the back while making huge contributions going forward and turning defensive situations into offensive chances.

Against the older North Shore Select '95's, Trevor was at his best helping his team to a much deserved and needed 1-0 win by demonstrating all of these attributes from the start of the game to the finish.

Hallam is a naturally quiet boy who leads by example, sacrificing his body and using his skill and smarts to lead his team. Whatever is asked of Trevor, he follows through without questioning or batting an eye... and the rest follow.

Well done captain! For his outstanding performance, TREVOR HALLAM has been chosen as Coquitlam Metro-Ford Male Player-of-the-Week.

Barça Win With Tough Defense

2008-10-19T11:25:00.000-07:00

The Coqutilam Metro-Ford Barça '96 Select boys team won their second game this season through hard work, excellent ball movement and tough defense in their game versus North Shore Selects '95. The 1-0 scoreline didn't do justice to the Barça chances that were generated but when the game got close in the second half, it was tough defense that came through.

Led from the back by captain Trevor Hallam, the back line held strong and again gave up very little in the way of chances. Goalkeeper Jake Sundar, defenders James Lynn, Anthony Martin, Anthony McKave, Matteo Gallaccio, Paul Serres, and Hallam have been a impenetrable wall in recent games and has only allowed 5 goals against this season - best goals against in the league made up of teams a year older than our boys.

Barça owned the first half and had many good goal scoring chances as Krsto Lulic, Rashaun Rivers, Ryan Mobilio and Kyle Jones all came close to opening the scoring. If not for the North Shore goalie, the game could have been over in the first half.

The second half started off the same with Lulic coming close again but things turned as the Barça boys struggled to control their passing and North Shore poured the pressure on. North Shore came close a few times - hitting the crossbar, but the defense never cracked and Barça was soon rewarded for their weeks of hard work with a well taken goal.

After a short throw-in between Marcello Polisi and Lulic, Polisi struck a peach of a cross that found the head of Rivers who rose above a defender and the goalie to delicately direct the ball into the corner of the net.

Again through strangling defense, Barça went forward in search for more but found their chances just going wide.

Barça had to settle for a 1-0 victory and improve to 2-2-3 for the season, moving on to take on a tough Richmond Selects team next week.

Good Effort Through Two Games Only Nets Barça Single Point

2008-10-13T22:41:00.000-07:00

Two very gutsy performances against teams a year older provided proof that the Barça boys are up to the challenge. The downside - they only see a point for their effort.

Barça played the Chilliwack Impact two weeks ago, a team that finished in the top 3 in the U13 Gold A division last year, and came away with an undeserving 1-0 loss. Some would argue that Barça deserved at least a draw in the game and through their tough defending and incredible work ethic only really gave up the one chance.

The Impact came out blistering and scored a minute and a half into the game catching the Barça boys a little sleepy from the long drive out to Chilliwack. Rashaun Rivers came inches from tying the score soon after on a header but the Impact goalie was up to the challenge and parried the ball out for a corner. There wasn't too many chances after as Chilliwack owned the first half while Barça did more than hold their own in the second. Final result; Impact 1 Barça 0.

Barça went on to face another top, older team in the Ladner Celtics and again showed very well. In fact, Barça had the better scoring opportunities with Marcello Polisi missing from 6 yards out and Kyle Jones forcing the goalie to push the ball off the crossbar and over the net from a 25 yard bomb. Ladner came close with a free kick that keeper Jake Sundar was called upon to parry over the bar. Both teams battled in the midfield as Barça struggled with injuries to a few of it's players and the transfer of Anthony De Luca to the Kilarney Panthers of the 4 District U13 league. Final result; Celtics 0 Barça 0.

Both results were high on effort and will put the Barça boys in snarly moods come this weekend versus North Shore Selects.

Disappointing Effort Leads to Disappointing Result

2008-09-28T22:05:00.000-07:00

How can something that started off so good ended up so bad?

That's the question that the Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 team are asking after taking a well worked 1-0 lead in the first 5 minutes of the game and then watch the game turn on it's head with some defensive errors and sluggish play that resulted in a 2-1 loss to Surrey/Guildford United.

With only 2 over aged call ups, Surrey controlled most of the match and pressured the Barça boys into making some poor decisions followed by some poor passes. Usually the strength of the team, Barça's possession game was virtually non existent and the unforced give-aways were at an all time high frustrating the coaching staff to no end.

Paul Serres open the scoring for Barça after some excellent possession passing and Barça could have added to that lead but their shooting legs and passion to score let them down. Soon after, Surrey got a break and scored on an offside play that was missed by the referee. Poor tackling and a Barça defense that kept getting caught square all game lead to the second goal and Barça was in for a fight that they would end up losing. Being outworked is not typical for the Barça boys but today was a good example that the hardest working team usually wins the game. In this case it became the truth! Barça are now a win, a tie and 2 losses.

Barça move on to play a very tough, tough Chilliwack Impact team that is walking through the competition at the moment and if they don't come out fighting, will be on the end of a very lopsided scoreline!

Barça Play Well But Still Lose

2008-09-21T19:49:00.000-07:00

Anyway the game turned out this weekend, Coquitlam Metro-Ford Soccer Club was going to win!

The annual club grudge match took place this weekend with Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça taking on club mate Bayern in one of the most entertaining matches ever between these two teams. Both teams took the game seriously, both came to win, and both demonstated excellent control and passing. Unfortunately for the Barça boys, Bayern came out on top 2-0.

Bayern, with only 6 returning players from last season, are much improved side since last year and had 3 call up's from CMF Sparta in their line-up this weekend. Add the two other Sparta players from last year, Bayern are a new and improved team.

The first half was quite even with much of the play in Barça's half of the field. Bayern open the scoring on a corner kick with a botched assignment somewhere in the 18 yard box. The header that resulted in the goal was nicely taken and had little chance for Jake Sundar in goal who played strongly throughout.

Bayern soon made it 2-0 with an unfortunate bounce off a Barça player that popped out to the top of the 18 where an unmarked Bayern midfielder lofted a ball into the top corner leaving Sundar with no chance. Barça's Rashaun Rivers had a bicycle kick stopped but the half ended 2-0.

Barça came out flying in the second half and really dominated missing chance after chance . Michael Mobilio missed a half breakaway, Giordano Baldonero shot wide from the middle of the 18 and Kyle Jones worked his way into the 18 only to see his blast expertly saved by the Bayern keeper. Time ran out and Bayern escaped the winners.

Barça move to 1-1-1 and look to play Surrey United/Guildford United next weekend at Charles Best.

Barça Come Out of Gate with a Win and Tie

2008-09-14T11:51:00.001-07:00

The Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 team have started out the 2008/09 season with a win and a tie versus Abbotsford Mariners and Langley United, respectfully, in the tough U14 Select 'B' division. Barça beat Abbotsford 4-0 followed up with a 1-1 tie with Langley this past weekend. Both games were completely dominated by Barça and the scorelines really don't reflect the flow of play during the games. In their defense, both Abbotsford and Langley are predominately made up of players the same age as the Barça boys where as the Barça boys have played almost their entire youth experience playing older players.

The Abbotsford game was completely one sided as Barça dominated from start to finish. As with the Langley game, Barça went close, hitting the post and/or crossbar on 4 separate occasions and the Abbotsford goalie made quite a few impressive saves to keep the scoreline to 4. Giordano Baldonero, Ryan Mobilio, Rashaun Rivers and Michael Mobilio scored for Barça while Jake Sundar recorded his first shutout of the year.

Langley provide a tougher opposition (with 4 older players on their roster) but the time spent in the Langley end of the field was more than enough to get the 3 points easily. Langley's goalie made at least 10 good saves and like it always happens when one team doesn't take their chances at the one end, the other team comes down the field and scored as Langley did with their first shot of the game from 25 yards out. After a half in which Barça played almost the entire half in the Langley 3rd, they came off the field at half time down 1-0.

To the boys credit, they turned up the heat and finally got the goal that they had been threatening all half when Baldonero scored his second in two games on a rebound after some nice passing midway through the second half. Langley was now wobbling but Barça's poor finishing and killer instinct continued to let them down as seconds before the final whistle, Rivers hit the post with a header that left the game 1-1 and the Barça boys feeling let down and disappointed.

No time to hang heads as Barça now turn their attention to the annual grudge match with fellow club mates CMF Bayern '95's. It should be a good one!

Barça End Pre-season on the Right Track

2008-09-03T12:31:00.000-07:00

With a busy off season for most of the boys after losing in the Coastal Cup to the eventual champions, the Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 team got back to work with a pair of pre-season tournaments in Washington State and Coquitlam. Both tournaments are seen as the two best tournaments in their respective state/province and two of the most competitive in the entire Pacific Northwest.

The Pacific Coast Challenge in Bellingham was to be a real huge test for the Barça boys as the teams from the states are usually a 1/2 year older (August '95 cutoff date) and with Barça '96 carrying 5 late born players who could play a year down (U12 division), the contests were always going to be tough. With the addition of new striker Rashaun Rivers to the team, Barça was missing Marchello Polis who was busy in Europe with his Vancouver Whitecaps Prospects team on tour. Barça called up Niko Sulentic from Burnaby to help out the boys in this tough task.

And tough it was as Barça '96, playing in their first competitive game since being knocked out of the U13 Coastal Cup in April, came up against the #2 team in Washington State in Eastside FC '95. although the scoreline completely flatters Eastside and does not do justice to the flow and play of the game, Barça played quite well and totally pushed Eastside to the end. Eastside scored late in the first half to go up 1-0 totally against the run of play. After a few squandered Barça chances Eastside made it 2-0 and forced a tired Barça team to go forward even more in the hunt for points and left Barça vulnerable at the back. More chances went a begging and Eastside score 3 more late in the game to make the scoreline 5-0. Barça went on to tie Washington Crossfire '95 1-1 and tie their last game 0-0 with WFC Rangers '95 to finish 3rd in the group and unable to advance to the semifinals.

Barça then hosted the Coquitlam Metro-Ford Annual Labour Day Tournament and invited the top teams from the lower mainland to participate. Barça were seeded in the toughest group with a tough Richmond Caledonia (3-0 win), Peace Arch United (2-0 win) and Point Grey United (2-0). Barça cruised through the group with 3 straight wins to advance to the semifinals while not allowing a goal the entire tournament in open play. Barça then moved on to play Whalley PSV in the semi's and lost their scoring boots. Without giving up a shot on goal, Barça had to head to the dreaded shootout and lost 4-3 in spot shots disappointingly settling for 3rd in the tournament. PSV went on to beat Lynn Valley in the finals to win the tournament.

All in all, it was a good way to head into the tough season ahead.

CMF Barça's Polisi Goes European

2008-08-28T14:15:00.000-07:00

Over the summer, Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça player Marcello Polisi was selected to travel with the Vancouver Whitecaps U12 Prospect team to Holland and came away from the trip with a worldly experience playing against some of the best young players in Holland and Germany.

Polisi and his Whitecap teammates played some exhibition games versus PSV Eindhoven U-12 (0-0) and FC Utrecht U-12 (3-3) in which Polisi score the 3rd and tieing goal. They then moved on to finished fourth at Yerseke Mosselen Tournament in Holland .

The Yerseke Mosselen Tournament gave Marcello the opportunity to play against teams like FC Den Bosch (1-0 win), Roda JC Kerkrade (0-0), and Zeeland U-13 provincial team (0-0) in their opening group games.

As a result, Polisi and his teammates took second place in their group and moved on to join Ajax U-12/U-13 B combination, and the U-13 sides of Fortuna Sittard, Zeeland province, UNION, and Sparta Rotterdam in the next stage.

The Whitecaps went on to beat UNION 1-0 and tied Fortuna Sittard 0-0 to finish second in the stage and moved on to the 3rd place game versus Zeeland province where they dropped a 2-0 decision to finish fourth.

Fortuna Sittard, meanwhile, took the title in a penalty shootout versus Ajax U-12/U-13 B combination.

It was a great experience for Marcello and something that he will call upon when he tackles the new and difficult Barça season ahead! Well done Chema!

Barça Moved up to Select 'B'

2008-07-30T19:06:00.000-07:00

After 3 months of research, conversation, discussion (heated at times), and lots of thought & reflection, Alfredo Valente (CMFSC head coach), Peter Price (CMFSC Director of select boys and President of Lower Mainland Select League), Ken Roughead (Westminster District 5 District representative), and the Barça coaching staff have decided to move our Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC Barca ‘96 team up into the U14 Select ‘B’ division that will participate in the second tier of U14 Select or "Metro" level. We firmly believe that this is the right level that will challenge our team to meet their potential now and in the future.

Barça was to stay in their own age group for the first time but with other '96 teams hoping to catch up with Barça developmental theology and taking advantage of pulling players up and down from the A and B divisions, it would be detrimental to play in the U13 Gold division with the strongest '96 teams playing up.

Barça will be one of three Coquitlam Metro-Ford teams representing the Westminster District in the U14 Select divisions. Coquitlam Metro-Ford Sparta '95 is the top team and play in the Select 'A' division while Barça '96 and Bayern '95 will both play in the Select 'B' division. Sparta '95 can pull players from both Bayern '95 and Barça to help fill their team roster throughout the season.

Barça will play in the U14 Select 'A' division next year as the representative from the Westminster District and compete for the chance to represent BC at the Canadian National.

CMF Barça's Jones Win's Gold, De Luca Wins Silver at BC Summer Games

2008-07-23T13:04:00.000-07:00

Three players from the Coquitlam Metro-Ford Soccer Club recently participated in the BC Summer Games, representing the Fraser Valley district and the Vancouver - Squamish district and came away with the gold and silver medals.

After an extensive tryout that looked at hundreds of top players from an area stretching from Port Moody to Hope, two and a half months of training and three days of competition in 30 degree heat in Kelowna, the Fraser Valley boys soccer team came out as Champions of the 2008 B.C. Summer Games. Going into the games, Fraser Valley were the reigning champions having won gold at the 2006 games in Kamloops. Having the unenviable position of being the 'team to beat', Fraser Valley had to keep grounded and focused while other squads were eyeing the big target on their backs. Nothing new for our Coquitlam Metro-Ford boys, Michael North (Sparta) and Kyle Jones (Barca), who deal with this burden week in/week out playing for such a prestigious club as CMFSC.

Anthony De Luca (Barca) was selected from a huge Vancouver- Squamish district and played extremely well earning the place as the starting striker for the district. Again, the experiences provided by the club allowed Anthony to overcome the obstacle to showcase his talent.

As both the Fraser Valley and Vancouver Squamish teams were the crème de la crème of the tournament when it came to talent, all three boys played outstanding soccer and proved without a shadow of a doubt that they are some of the best players in their age group in the province and ones to keep an eye on in the future.

With North's speed, power and determination combined with Jones' tenacity, distribution and ferocity, there was little chance that the Fraser Valley team was going to come away from the tournament with nothing less than gold. Both boys had to adjust to the 8-aside game from the 11-aside they normally play, combined with the superb coaching they get on a regular basis from the club and academies they attend, they were able to take the challenge and use their experiences and skills to meet this outstanding goal.

Anthony De Luca proved to be invaluable for his Vancouver/Squamish team scoring some big goals down the stretch run to the finals while playing the entire tournament with a very sore ankle. Like a warrior, De Luca never asked to come off and toughed it out, even taking a penalty for his team in the shootout final.

Well done to Kyle Jones (Barca), Anthony De Luca (Barca), Michael North (Sparta) and coach Dan Jones (Barca) for doing us proud!

Results:

Group A:

Fraser Valley 4-0 Vancouver Island – Central Coast 'A'
Thompson Okanagan 0-7 Fraser Valley
Fraser Valley 7-0 North West

Group B:
Vancouver - Squamish 6-0 Vancouver Island - Central Coast 'B'
Fraser River Delta 0-1 Vancouver - Squamish
Vancouver - Squamish 5-0 Kootneys

Semi Finals
Fraser Valley 4-1 Fraser River Delta

Vancouver - Squamish 4-0 Thompson Okanagan

Finals

Vancouver Squamish 1-1 Fraser Valley (Fraser Valley wins 3-1 on PK’s).

2008/09 Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 Squad Announced

2008-05-14T18:39:00.000-07:00

The 2008-2009 version of the Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 squad has been announce for the upcoming season with only one addition to the squad.

With 70 players trying out from around the Tri-city area as well as cities further away, the coaching staff and CMF staff coaches decided to make only one addition to the standout under aged squad that made the semi-finals of the U13 Conference Cup and the semifinals of the U12 Coastal Cup a year previously.

The squad is as follows:

1. Jake Sundar (goalkeeper)

3. Anthony McKave (defender)

4. Matteo Gallaccio (defender)

5. Giordano Baldonero (midfielder) - assistant captain

7. James Lynn (defender)

8. Ryan Mobilio (midfielder)

9. Anthony Martin (defender)

10. Michael Mobilio (forward)

11. Kyle Jones (midfielder) - assistant captain

12. Paul Serres (defender)

13. Rashaun Rivers (forward)

14. Anthony De Luca (forward)

15. Marcello Polisi (midfielder)

16. Trevor Hallam (midfielder) - captain

17. Krsto Lulic (midfielder)

Best soccer goal ever (indoor)

2008-01-04T16:58:00.001-08:00

Falcao Futsal

2007-11-26T20:18:00.001-08:00

The best footballer you never heard of!

Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC Player of the Week

2007-10-22T21:31:00.000-07:00

COQUITLAM METRO-FORD SC PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
KYLE JONES – COQUITLAM METRO-FORD BARÇA

For the past 4 weeks, Kyle Jones has scored goals, set up goal scoring opportunities, and thrown himself into every imaginable tackle against older and much bigger opponents. Despite this, Kyle wins more of his share of the tackles and is an inspiration to his underaged teammates, week in week out.

This past weekend, despite losing to North Delta United, Kyle Jones was at his very best as he continually displayed a level of tenacity and passion that is seldom seen at this age level.

For his outstanding performance, Kyle Jones has been chosen Coquitlam Metro-Ford Male Player-of-the-Week.

The Best Street Soccer Freestyler

2007-06-14T11:19:00.001-07:00

I expect every player to be pulling off these tricks before the season starts! Get practicing! (Hee hee!)

Mr. Jones

Ginga - Robinho vs. Falcao

2007-06-08T16:19:00.001-07:00

Robinho from Real Madrid and Falcao, the best futsal player in the world.

Sit back, be inspired and enjoy!

Cheers

Mr. Jones

Coastal Cup Run in Pictures

2007-05-11T22:55:00.000-07:00

Photo's of Barca's Coastal Cup Run. Click fullscreen to see them all.

Enjoy!

Mr. Jones

Top 10 FC Barcelona Goals From 2006

2007-05-10T01:02:00.001-07:00

Enjoy!

Cheers

Mr. Jones

Top 10 Best Goals (Novembre 2006 )

2007-05-10T00:38:00.003-07:00

Pretty Cool!

Cheers

Mr. Jones

2006-2007 Season In Review

2007-05-05T22:02:00.000-07:00

The Coquitlam Metro-Ford Barça '96 team's season was a roller coaster to say the least. An adventure that had some real peaks and valleys but was also a season that demonstrated determination, perseverance, hard work and grit that ended with an unbelievable high!

If one was to look at the league season results of the 5 District U12 Gold 2 division (GP9 2W 2T 5L) one would see a team that was mediocre but when you consider that Barça was playing one year up - select and playing much better than their record would indicate, one would see a excellent and dangerous team that, with a bit of luck, would really do some damage. During the Coastal 'A' Cup, damage and shock was exactly right!

Through their style, work rate and playing ability, Barça was asked to join the elite side of U12 Gold 1 at the beginning of the season (before it was tiered - Barça played 3 teams that ended up in the Gold 1 side and sported a 1W 1T 2L record in 4GP) because of all the coaches on that side that the Barça boys impressed early on. This included a 1-0 loss to U12 Gold 1 Champions and Conference Cup Champions Chilliwack Attack '95 - one of the best '95 teams in the province. They would continue to impress as the season went on.

CMF Barça '96 finished the 2006/07 season as:

3rd Pitt Meadows Invitational Tournament

Sportstown Christmas Tournament Runners-Up

Semi Finalist in the Coastal 'A' Cup.

For a year younger team, not bad... not bad at all!

League Results:

Barça finished 8th in the league but played much better than their record would indicate. There were many games, especially against the best teams in the division, where the other coaches from the other teams would admit that their teams were played off the park and still can't figure out how they ended up winning in the end. It became a common theme for most of the season.

The end of the season turned around with a couple of great games and an important win to start the roll towards the important Coastal 'A' Cup. It's not how you start the race but how you finish!

Conference Cup:

Barça had a very poor Conference Cup run in which they went 3 and out (0-3). This was one of the valleys that took place during the season. Results were as follows: 1-2 vs Coquitlam Metro-Ford Bayern '95, 0-4 vs. Surrey Pegasus All stars '95, 0-3 vs. Surrey United Roma '95.

Coastal 'A' Cup:

Barça's first Coastal Cup experience was suppose to be a quick one as younger teams don't usually last more than the first game or so. Barça was drawn against Little Mountain Kennsington Vipers '95 from Vancouver in the first round. After watching the older, much vaunted, CMF Ajax '94 team lose their Coastal Cup match, the Barça boys were determined to not let it happen to them. From the start the boys played inspiring football and won the game 9-0!

Barça next game was against another Vancouver team in which they have never played in North Vancouver Lions Gate Burrards '95. Barça set the tone once again and ran out 4-1 winners and started making fans including club mates, other teams parents, referees and passersby's. The ball was rolling and Barca found themselves in the quarterfinals - the farthest any younger U12 team in Coastal Cup history.

After making club and cup history, it would be only natural that any younger team would relax and let the 'dream' go - but not this group! Barça found themselves again facing another tough and difficult North Shore team in Mount Seymour Royals '95 who were also on a roll knocking off some top teams along the way. In front of a packed stand at Charles Best turf and playing after CMF Sparta '95 incredible overtime win, Barça came out with the bit between their teeth and didn't give an inch as they gave as good as they got. Determination, desire to win and perseverance was on total display as Barça took the older, much bigger Royals team to overtime. As Barça took the field for the overtime, they were determined to end it quickly and they did just that by totally out playing the Royals team and won 2-0 to incredibly move on to the semifinals and one win away from going to the Provincial Cup.

In the semi's, Barça met the eventual Coastal 'A' Cup Champions in Surrey Youth FC Pegasus '95 who were second to only Chilliwack Attack '95 in 5 district league and Conference Cup play. Pegasus met Barça on a good day as Barça came out flat and tired in the second half giving up 3 second half goals. They played their guts out but size and strength finally won out ending Barça's roller coaster season.

There is no shame in losing to a team of Surrey's pedigree and Barca proved to everyone that this team is a team to reckon with in the near future. The bar is now raised much higher but with the kind of effort and work rate that was shown in training and games over the last 1/4 of the season, anything is possible for this team.

Pacific Coast Challenge International Tournament:

Barça went into the Pacific Coast Challenge International Tournament in Bellingham, Washington knowing that they were entering a tough Aug '94 age group with most of the players from the American teams being one and a half years older than our boys (in some cases, two years older!). The Barça boys played extremely well in a very tough group losing to tournament runner-ups Crossfire McCormack '94 2-1, 3-0 vs. Westsound FC '94, 1-0 vs. traditional powerhouse Washington Premier FC '94. Great results considering the age difference.

Sportstown Indoor Tournament:

Barça finished runners up at the indoor tournament over the Christmas break losing to the host academy team who collectively has a lower mainland all star team. This was the start of the awakening of the Barça run.