Last weekend, the Houston Dynamo held the second annual Dynamo Juniors Cup at the Houston Amateur Sports Park. The weekend featured a tournament-style format for boys and girls U-9 through U-14 from the Dynamo Juniors programs. Each team played at least three competitive games at HASP, the official training facility of the Houston Dynamo and Houston Dynamo Academy, presented by Statoil. The weekend also included the opportunity to attend Friday night's match between the Houston Dynamo and New York Red Bulls at BBVA Compass Stadium.
"It was a phenomenal weekend," said James Clarkson, Dynamo Director of Youth Development. "Dynamo Juniors is a great way for the Dynamo to grow its brand and seek top youth talent outside of Houston. It was great to see all of the programs come to Houston for a weekend, play in Dynamo colors and see a match in the new stadium. It validates what we are doing as we continue to grow this program in the future."
Dynamo Juniors offers soccer players outside of the Houston region the chance to be part of the Houston Dynamo organization. There are currently programs in El Paso, Texas; McAllen, Texas; Austin, Texas; Lafayette, Louisiana; Gulf Breeze, Florida; Santa Rosa Beach, Florida; and Tampa, Florida. The goal of Dynamo Juniors is to help grow soccer in those regions and give more players the opportunity to achieve their dream of playing professional soccer. Select players will be asked to join the Dynamo Academy full time.
Here is a list of finalists from last weekend's tournament:
Boys:
U-9 Bracket: Dynamo of Lafayette U-9 Orange v Dynamo Juniors Central Texas 04 Boys North/South, did not play final, rained out.
U-10 Bracket: Houston Dynamo South Texas Boys U-10 v Dynamo Juniors Central Texas 03 Boys U-10, did not play final, rained out.
U-11 Bracket: Dynamo Juniors Central Texas 02 Boys U-11 beat Houston Dynamo South Texas Boys U-11 in the final 1-0
U-12 Bracket: Dynamo Juniors 00/01 Orange of Lafayette LA v Dynamo Juniors Central Texas 01 Boys U-12, did not play final, rained out.
U-14 Bracket: Houston Dynamo South Texas Boys U-14 v Dynamo Juniors Central Texas 99 Boys U-14, did not play final, rained out.
Girls:
U-10 Bracket: Dynamo South Texas U-10 Girls v Dynamo Juniors Central Texas 03 Girls North, did not play final, rained out.
U-11 Bracket winner: Dynamo Juniors Central Texas 02 Girls beat 01/02 Dynamo Juniors of Lafayette LA 8-1 in the final
U-12 Bracket winner: Dynamo Juniors 00/01 Orange of Lafayette LA won on points accumulation with 10 points.
U-13 Bracket winner: Houston Dynamo South Texas Girls U-13 won on points accumulation with 9 points
U-14 Bracket winner: Dynamo Juniors Central Texas 99 Girls beat Bayside Dynamo FC U-15 Girls Orange 1-0
Click here for more information about the Dynamo Juniors programs.
