Youth Soccer News: San Diego Surf Boys Dominate at Nott’s Forest Labor Day Cup

San Diego Surf BU8 White dominated action at the 2012 Nott’s Forest Labor Day Cup over the September 1-3 weekend. The boys, under the direction of coach Mario Mrakovic, went 4-0 with 31 goals scored in bracket play and only 3 allowed. The team now looks forward to an exciting 2012-2013 season.

Coach Mario Mrakovic's San Diego Surf BU8 White took the 2012 Nott's Forest Labor Day Cup Championship

The weekend started early for the U8 boys, and it was soon clear that it would be a long weekend for anyone facing Surf. Mrakovic’s boys opened play with a convincing 8-1 win over Rebels SC on Saturday morning. Next up, in the late afternoon, was an all-Surf match pitting the U8 team against Mrakovic’s Surf U7 White, who were playing up in the tournament. While the older boys easily handled their club mates 8-0, Mrakovic was very pleased with the younger boys’ efforts.

On Sunday Surf continued their drive to the cup with a 5-0 win over host Nott’s Forest FC BU8 Red, in what would be their closest match of the tournament. The Surf juggernaut completed bracket play early Sunday afternoon with a 10-2 win over RSF Attack B04 Green, to earn a rematch with Rebels for the championship.

In spite of their difficult opening loss to Surf, the Rebels showed a strong defense as they made their way through bracket play to the finals. Saturday afternoon saw them take a 2-0 win over Nott’s Forest Red, followed by wins over RSF Attack (2-1) and Surf BU7 White (2-0) on Sunday. The team went into the finals looking for a measure of revenge against the only team to have scored at will against them.

In Monday’s final Surf scored early and often, again showing Rebels their dangerous offense while keeping a commanding defense in place. In the end the Surf boys notched their third clean sheet of the tournament, taking the championship on an 8-0 score.

“The boys did very well during all three days of the tournament,” said Coach Mrakovic later. “I would like to congratulate them on their quality of play, attitude, effort and fair play. Congratulations also go to our team manager and all the parents that have shown me for two years an incredible support and appreciation. There were no letdowns, and the level of play was always consistent.”

“We have introduced a lot of new ideas in the game and the team had to positively answer to it,” Mrakovic explained. “A lot of players were asked to add new elements to their game, which took them out of their comfort zone. The theme was to slow down the play to improve the decision making and to allow for smarter thinking. The boys were asked to be more precise in their passes too.”

“This week we start adding new elements to our game that play to our strengths of the team,” he continued, “and I foresee this to add a whole new dimension. The team is progressing and making great strides in improving individually, collectively and as a whole.

While the Surf U7 White team ended the tournament with a 1-3 record, Mrakovic was also very pleased with their efforts, saying, “Our Surf U7 boys’ and U7 girls’ teams played great this weekend in the same tournament. They have not come out of the brackets, but I am beyond impressed how they performed against teams that were a year older than them. This generation of Surf boys’ and girls’ U7 is by far the most talented player pool that the club has ever had. The growth of our Surf Grassroots youth program has been immense, and I am more than proud to be a part of it.”

Congratulations to San Diego Surf Boys U8 White on their championship and to the Boys’ and Girls’ U7 teams that competed so well at the Nott’s Forest Labor Day Cup.

Related Articles: Surf on SoccerNation