By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association
May 6, 2019-In the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) and the other state associations across the United States, the Olympic Development Program (ODP) is the highest level of competition. Eastern New York has a particularly strong ODP as our teams have won recent national championships plus two alumnae, Crystal Dunn and Allie Long, are on the US Women’s National Team and will be at the upcoming Women’s World Cup in France.
Because of the large geographic area that Eastern New York entails, ODP is divided into North and South teams. Over a decade ago, Eastern New York ODP South played friendly games against the Long Island Junior Soccer League (LIJSL) Select Program at the Peter Collins Soccer Park in Plainview.
The successor to the LIJSL Select Program is the LIJSL Player Development Program (PDP) and the friendly games were revived last spring under the sage leadership of ODP Chairperson Jim Volpe with ODP playing PDP at the Collins Soccer Park on Monday nights throughout the spring.
In photos above and below from April 28, ODP is in blue and yellow while PDP is in red and white
Last Monday night, April 28, ODP played up against PDP competition with both boys and girls.
“These friendlies give the players on both teams the opportunity to play a local game at a high level while also giving us a chance to look at all the players, including the PDP players who could progress to ODP,” Volpe stated. “We have also started a relationship with the New York Cosmos Development Academy.“
ODP will be playing friendlies against the Cosmos on Monday night, May 20 at Garden City Community Park. ODP, both North and South, want to take on more high-level teams in friendlies so if interested, please contact Volpe at the Eastern New York office, 516-766-0849.
With over 100,000 youth soccer players––both boys and girls––and more than 25,000 volunteers, the non-profit Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) stretches from Montauk Point, Long Island to the Canadian border. Members are affiliated with nine leagues throughout the association, which covers the entire state of New York east of Route 81. ENYYSA exists to promote and enhance the game of soccer for children and teenagers between the ages of 5 and 19 years old, and to encourage the healthy development of youth players, coaches, referees and administrators. All levels of soccer are offered––from intramural, travel team and premier players as well as Children With Special Needs. No child who wants to play soccer is turned away. ENYYSA is a proud member of the United States Soccer Federation and United States Youth Soccer Association. For more information, please log onto http://www.enysoccer.com/, which receives nearly 300,000 hits annually from the growing soccer community.