The Sparks getting last minute instructions. Usually this time of year the fields at St. Paul's are somewhat deserted, with only the most dedicated of team's holding soccer practices under the tough heat conditions of the summer. But this year, several GC Centennials teams got together and decided to host a series of friendly matches in a few age groups as a pilot program. The goal of the two day event was two-fold - prove to the club that Garden City could host an event at St. Paul's and more importantly, get our travel teams and their players ready for their upcoming seasons (both travel and high school). From the initial feedback from home and opposing coaches, parents and players the event hit both targets. Hopefully this is the start of an annual preseason tune-up for our teams.

With the event planned for this past weekend, the only blemish was unforeseeable and uncontrollable - the weather! The tremendous storms that rolled through town on Friday night and early Saturday morning forced the event to be cancelled for Saturday. But the majority of teams agreed to come back on Sunday with revised schedules. With a strong assist from Paul LeSeur in securing referees, ensuring the fields were setup and contacting the coaches, the Sunday matches were played under fairly dry conditions. The Centennial teams that took to the field were the U-14 Sparks, U-16 Daredevils and the U-17 Fireballs. And they were matched up against teams from across the island including Plainedge, HBC, Smithtown and Oceanside. Congratulations to the coaches and players for putting on quite a show of talent during the course of the day with some very entertaining matches. And good luck to all with your upcoming seasons.

'Coach' Richie keeps the girls refreshed.

Fireballs on the attack. Sparks defend against a corner kick. The play develops under the watchful eye of the GC sideline