PBFC U16 Boys Rec. Place 2nd at the World Championships
Fourth Edition

January 27, 2008

As you may recall, the PBFC (soccer) - PAL Hammerheads appeared at the National Tournament in July 2007. At that tournament, the Under 16 (U16) Recreational boys finished with the title of National Champions.

Six months later they fell one win short of claiming a World Championship.

The Kick it 3v3 World Championships, were held during the weekend of January 19 through January 21, 2008, at the Walt Disney Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida. This Championship had teams that represented the entire United States, Canada and Latin American Countries.

The Hammerheads had three teams entered in the tournament. Entry in the tournament was by invitation only. All three Hammerhead teams qualified due to their outstanding play at the Challenge Sports 3v3 National Championships in July 2007.

The over 30 men and the U14 boys played hard and competed at levels they had never competed at before. The U14 boys ended the tournament ranking 15th.

The U16 boys were a different story. In group play, they competed against teams from Canada, Colorado, New Jersey, Georgia and Tennessee. Once again, the Hammerheads played the Gators from Georgia and suffered a hard defeat. At the completion of group play, the Hammerheads record was 2-3-0, but in a tournament that was highly competitive, the Hammerheads left group play ranked 3rd.

Tournament play would be even harder since the Hammerheads would face the Gators in the first round. As history repeats itself, the Hammerhead beat the Gator and advanced to the Championship game. The Championship game found the number 3 seed Hammerheads facing the number 4 seed team, 4 guyz and a chick, from Colorado. The team from Colorado had defeated the only undefeated team in the group in order to advance to the final. The final was set.

The team from Colorado scored first, but the Hammerheads answered immediately. Play went back and forth with the Hammerheads controlling most of the game. By halftime, the Hammerheads were down 3 to 1. The Hammerheads fought hard and controlled most of the game but got no breaks. When the final whistle blew the Hammerheads were down 5 to 3.

Captain Kevin Waiante, Andrew Green, Cody Horn, Ryan Hightower, Eddie Miles and Jon Stafford kept their heads high and proud. Placing second in World Championships is an accomplishment that no one had expected. The coaching staff is proud of the team for their professionalism and manner they conducted themselves especially at times of adversity.

One National Championship (2007) and Second in the World Championships (2008), not a bad start, for a team that has only been in existence for nine months.