Orange County SC (OCSC) are sending two academy squads made up of some of the most talented young players in OC—U-17 Boys and U-17 Girls—to compete at the 2021 USL Academy Cup that will take place from May 28-31 at the Hillsborough County Tournament Sportsplex in Tampa, Fla. There will be 30+ clubs across two age divisions participating in the first national tournament put on featuring the professional clubs in United Soccer League (USL) after holding two regional events prior to the pandemic.
“This is another milestone in the ongoing growth of our club and we are proud to send an OCSC U17 boys and girls team to the Academy Cup,” President of Soccer Operations Oliver Wyss said. “For the last few years we have successfully developed the top boys players through our one of a kind pathway but we also want to make sure we are providing the same opportunities for the very talented girls players in Orange County.”
This will be OCSC’s second appearance at a USL Academy Cup event and the first where the club will also be represented by a team in the girls division. Both teams' rosters were built by identifying the top talent across the club’s Youth Soccer Network through camps and clinics.
Orange County SC (OCSC) are sending two academy squads made up of some of the most talented young players in OC—U-17 Boys and U-17 Girls—to compete at the 2021 USL Academy Cup that will take place from May 28-31 at the Hillsborough County Tournament Sportsplex in Tampa, Fla. There will be 30+ clubs across two age divisions participating in the first national tournament put on featuring the professional clubs in United Soccer League (USL) after holding two regional events prior to the pandemic.
“This is another milestone in the ongoing growth of our club and we are proud to send an OCSC U17 boys and girls team to the Academy Cup,” President of Soccer Operations Oliver Wyss said. “For the last few years we have successfully developed the top boys players through our one of a kind pathway but we also want to make sure we are providing the same opportunities for the very talented girls players in Orange County.”
This will be OCSC’s second appearance at a USL Academy Cup event and the first where the club will also be represented by a team in the girls division. Both teams’ rosters were built by identifying the top talent across the club’s Youth Soccer Network through camps and clinics.
The Youth Soccer Network is a collection of local youth soccer organizations and academies affiliated with OCSC, the creation of which represents the first step in OCSC’s Pathway to Pro model aimed at identifying and training the most talented young players in OC for a career in professional soccer. The affiliations are non-exclusive, meaning that players are able to train with both the Academy team and their original club team, similar to the “club and country model”.
The U-17 Girls Academy team, coached by Platini Soaf, is similar to the first Boys Academy team, which was constructed as an all-star team consisting of the top players from the OC youth clubs. Current OCSC senior team midfielder Francis Jacobs, who made his professional USL Championship debut in 2020, featured for the OCSC Academy team at the 2019 USL Academy Cup Western Conference Regional Event in San Antonio, TX.
U-17 Boys Head Coach Shawn Beyer selected his team’s roster from an extremely large pool of talent in OC and Southern California due in large part because of the team’s participation in the USL Academy League that will follow the Academy Cup later this summer. For more information on OCSC’s USL Academy team, please visit https://www.orangecountysoccer.com/academy.
The Academy League provides high-level pre-professional games that aid in the development of youth players interested in a career in professional soccer. It offers a chance for more players from OCSC’s youth network partners to play against other USL Academy teams and to be visible to the senior team and professional scouts.
The Youth Soccer Network is a collection of local youth soccer organizations and academies affiliated with OCSC, the creation of which represents the first step in OCSC’s Pathway to Pro model aimed at identifying and training the most talented young players in OC for a career in professional soccer. The affiliations are non-exclusive, meaning that players are able to train with both the Academy team and their original club team, similar to the “club and country model”.
The U-17 Girls Academy team, coached by Platini Soaf, is similar to the first Boys Academy team, which was constructed as an all-star team consisting of the top players from the OC youth clubs. Current OCSC senior team midfielder Francis Jacobs, who made his professional USL Championship debut in 2020, featured for the OCSC Academy team at the 2019 USL Academy Cup Western Conference Regional Event in San Antonio, TX.
U-17 Boys Head Coach Shawn Beyer selected his team’s roster from an extremely large pool of talent in OC and Southern California due in large part because of the team’s participation in the USL Academy League that will follow the Academy Cup later this summer. For more information on OCSC’s USL Academy team, please visit https://www.orangecountysoccer.com/academy.
The Academy League provides high-level pre-professional games that aid in the development of youth players interested in a career in professional soccer. It offers a chance for more players from OCSC’s youth network partners to play against other USL Academy teams and to be visible to the senior team and professional scouts.
“The goal of this experience is to give a kid that professional environment and a pathway to being a professional,” U-17 Boys head coach Beyer said. “You see Francis Jacobs and the trajectory he has been on… it started with the local clubs, then progressed to the academy team, and now he is on the OCSC first team. We want to give the kids that opportunity to always be developing, playing at a high level and building from that. OCSC is determined to make their Academy one of the best, if not the best in the country and it would be unbelievable to see many more of these kids [like Aaron Cervantes did in 2020] move through the pathway and then get signed to teams in Europe, like Rangers F.C. to play in front of 50,000 [fans] every weekend.”
The Academy is designed to be integrated into the broader OCSC professional development system. The same style of play that OCSC’s technical director Frans Hoek—a former Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Manchester United and Dutch National Team coach—has brought to Orange County is now seen throughout the OCSC organization. Senior team head coach Braeden Cloutier is reinforcing much of what is being seen at the Academy and Youth Soccer Network team level. This allows for players to transition between the different levels while being familiar with the club’s culture and style of play.
By using the same system, it allows senior team coaches such as assistant coach Didier Crettenand and goalkeeper coach Victor Nogueira to be present at Academy training and develop the young talents into future professional players for first division pro clubs in North America, Europe or elsewhere.
“The goal of this experience is to give a kid that professional environment and a pathway to being a professional,” U-17 Boys head coach Beyer said. “You see Francis Jacobs and the trajectory he has been on… it started with the local clubs, then progressed to the academy team, and now he is on the OCSC first team. We want to give the kids that opportunity to always be developing, playing at a high level and building from that. OCSC is determined to make their Academy one of the best, if not the best in the country and it would be unbelievable to see many more of these kids [like Aaron Cervantes did in 2020] move through the pathway and then get signed to teams in Europe, like Rangers F.C. to play in front of 50,000 [fans] every weekend.”
The Academy is designed to be integrated into the broader OCSC professional development system. The same style of play that OCSC’s technical director Frans Hoek—a former Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Manchester United and Dutch National Team coach—has brought to Orange County is now seen throughout the OCSC organization. Senior team head coach Braeden Cloutier is reinforcing much of what is being seen at the Academy and Youth Soccer Network team level. This allows for players to transition between the different levels while being familiar with the club’s culture and style of play.
By using the same system, it allows senior team coaches such as assistant coach Didier Crettenand and goalkeeper coach Victor Nogueira to be present at Academy training and develop the young talents into future professional players for first division pro clubs in North America, Europe or elsewhere.
OCSC’s commitment to bridging the gap between local youth soccer, their academy and the senior team was further solidified two weeks before the USL Academy Cup. On May 14, the club announced that two Southern California products, Anthony Anderson and Hunter Hanes, were the first-ever players signed by OCSC to USL Pro Academy contracts. This sees them able to compete with the Academy Cup team in Florida and during USL Academy League play later this year, as well as being able to experience senior team soccer, all while maintaining college eligibility.
Despite OCSC not having a women’s senior team yet, OCSC plans to have a similar Pathway to Professional Soccer on the women’s side through its partnership with Rangers Women’s F.C., who compete in the Scottish Women’s Premier League.
It all starts with the local, grassroots youth soccer organizations that OCSC has partnered with to provide an enhanced soccer experience in the County. Those clubs and players are given special access to the OCSC Academy and OCSC camps and clinics, allowing them a real opportunity to achieve a dream of playing professional soccer.
The next step on OCSC’s journey to providing this pathway to professional soccer begins at the Academy Cup, where both teams are eager to compete at a high level.
“Development will never be compromised by winning,” U-17 Girls head coach Soaf said. “I know that this team wants to win and we will do just that in Florida.”
More information about the U-17 Boys team and schedule can be found here. More information on the U-17 Girls team schedule can be accessed here.
OCSC will be holding one-day camps and clinics at both the Recreational (ages 5-10) and Competitive (ages 11-16) levels throughout the summer, with a comprehensive five-day camp in partnership with OCSC partner club (and UEFA Champions League participant) Rangers FC of Scotland planned for late July. For more information, please visit https://www.orangecountysoccer.com/camps.
OCSC’s commitment to bridging the gap between local youth soccer, their academy and the senior team was further solidified two weeks before the USL Academy Cup. On May 14, the club announced that two Southern California products, Anthony Anderson and Hunter Hanes, were the first-ever players signed by OCSC to USL Pro Academy contracts. This sees them able to compete with the Academy Cup team in Florida and during USL Academy League play later this year, as well as being able to experience senior team soccer, all while maintaining college eligibility.
Despite OCSC not having a women’s senior team yet, OCSC plans to have a similar Pathway to Professional Soccer on the women’s side through its partnership with Rangers Women’s F.C., who compete in the Scottish Women’s Premier League.
It all starts with the local, grassroots youth soccer organizations that OCSC has partnered with to provide an enhanced soccer experience in the County. Those clubs and players are given special access to the OCSC Academy and OCSC camps and clinics, allowing them a real opportunity to achieve a dream of playing professional soccer.
The next step on OCSC’s journey to providing this pathway to professional soccer begins at the Academy Cup, where both teams are eager to compete at a high level.
“Development will never be compromised by winning,” U-17 Girls head coach Soaf said. “I know that this team wants to win and we will do just that in Florida.”
More information about the U-17 Boys team and schedule can be found here. More information on the U-17 Girls team schedule can be accessed here.
OCSC will be holding one-day camps and clinics at both the Recreational (ages 5-10) and Competitive (ages 11-16) levels throughout the summer, with a comprehensive five-day camp in partnership with OCSC partner club (and UEFA Champions League participant) Rangers FC of Scotland planned for late July. For more information, please visit https://www.orangecountysoccer.com/camps.