Two Crossfire U18 MNT players back from South America
(August 16, 2008) Crossfire U18 Academy players Kelyn Rowe and Anthony Arena recently traveled to South America with the United States Under-18 Men’s National Team to play in the U-20 International Tournament in Trinidad, Uruguay. The US played matches against U-20 national teams from Venezuela, Uruguay and Paraguay, and then traveled to Argentina to play an additional match in Buenos Aires against Argentinian club side Estudiantes de la Plata. Anthony is a defender and Kelyn plays forward for the MNT. Read Kelyn’s and Anthony’s accounts of this exciting experience. For more info on the MNT’s play in South America, check out these articles here, here and here.
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It has been about a week since I have been back from South America and the whole experience has just sunk in. I was able to play with the national team in Uruguay - how much better can that get? We played four games this trip and, same as Anthony, this was my first time making the traveling team, you can say I was a little nervous. The first three games were in a little town called Flores in Uruguay where we played against U20 national teams from Venezuela, Paraguay, and Uruguay. I got to play in every game whether it was ten minutes against Venezuela, 80 against Paraguay, or 45 against Uruguay. My favorite game was my start against Paraguay. The feeling of putting on the USA jersey and standing on the field hearing your national anthem was just incredible. After taking third in the tournament we took a ferry back over to Buenos Aires to play a local club team called Estudiantes de Plata. We lost this game 3-0, but our team was worn down and our fatigue got the best of us. This trip was like nothing I have experienced before: it really opened my eyes about the level of soccer I will have to play at to be able to participate and be successful at the highest level.
Thanks,
Kelyn Rowe
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So I just recently got back from South America on a trip with the U18 MNT. It was one of the most amazing trips of my life. While we were down there we played four games. Three of those were against U20 national teams from Venezuela, Paraguay, and Uruguay. It was a tournament in a small city called Flores, Uruguay. Being my first national team trip I didn’t know what to expect. I ended up starting and playing every minute of every game and even got my first international goal in our 1-0 win over Paraguay. We ended up taking third place with a 1-0 loss to Venezuela and a 3-1 loss to Uruguay in front of 1,500 people. After the tournament wrapped up, we took a ferry to Buenos Aires and stayed there for the remainder of the trip. On the second to last day we played Estudiantes de la Plata, but lost 3-0. They were a great team and it seemed like nobody had anything left in their tanks. Overall it was a great experience. I’m glad I got the opportunity. Now I am off to Sunrise, Florida for a U20 MNT camp where we will play Guatemala two times.
Thanks,
Anthony Arena |
