Thirteen Kauai soccer players earned their teams a pair of gold medals and a pair of silver medals at the Dana Cup in Frederikshavn, Denmark. The 26th annual Dana Cup No. 1 is an international soccer youth tournament in Denmark,
Thirteen Kauai soccer players earned their teams a pair of gold medals and a pair of silver medals at the Dana Cup in Frederikshavn, Denmark.
The 26th annual Dana Cup No. 1 is an international soccer youth tournament in Denmark, said Kevin Devitt, Kauai Soccer Association president.
“Our selected athletes from Kauai combined with their Danish and Swedish teammates and participated with more than 300 other teams of boys and girls from 30 different countries to experience this great multicultural event,” Devitt said in a release.
Devitt, along with Brad Jordan and Wayne Smith, created a new organization, the Scandia United Soccer Academy, to provide a unique opportunity for skilled players to experience playing soccer in an international setting.
“Players are selected from the United States, Denmark and Sweden, combining on teams to participate in highly competitive tournaments in Europe,” Devitt said. “The American and Scandinavian teammates live, train, and play together during the nearly month-long EuroTour.”
Despite language barriers, the skill of the coaches and players, and the chemistry of the teams were evident at the tournament, July 7 through 12.
“The training is extremely grueling,” said Deshayne Iseri, a returning player from Kauai. “The coaches teach soccer skills to the USA and the Scandinavian players who understand very limited English all at the same time. The language barrier, however, is minimal compared to the cultural education and lifetime friendships they make which bring both the players and countries closer together.”
Iseri and Kehela Ventura played on the Girls 13 and Girls 14 teams, the G13 posting wins against Russia (2-0), Sk Vedavag Karmony, Norway (2-0), and San Francisco-USA (1-0). The G13 team dropped games against Hei IL, Norway (0-4), and Marin-USA (0-3) before tying Denmark (0-0) to earn a spot in the B Finals where they edged out Eiger, Norway, 1-0 for the gold medals.
Iseri and Ventura became part of the G14 team which finished undefeated to win the Gold cup and medals in the A Finals, beating out Marin No. 2-USA (6-0), Algard FK, Norway (5-0), Dale IL, Norway (6-0), Marin No. 1-USA (4-0), Trygg-Lade, Norway (9-0), and Eiger, Norway (4-0) before dominating Eiger, 8-0 for the championship.
Bailey Hanna, Lyndsie Kashima, Kalia Shimabukuro, Kiani Souza, Kawehi Taniguchi and Chase Tokita were the Kauai wahine in the G16 team who finished with silver medals following a 0-3 loss to Tvaake, Sweden in the title game of the Championship A Finals.
En route to the title match, the G16 team posted wins agains Freder No. 1, Denmark (3-0), Trygg/Lade, Norway (3-0), Feder No. 2, Denmark (2-0), Satra SK, Sweden (5-0), tying Tvaaker, Sweden, 0-0 to earn the points in the semi-A Finals. A 2-1 win over Freder No. 1, Denmark advanced the G16 to the title game.
Kieran Costa, Justin “Scrappy” Garma, Sam Johnson, Joshua Layaoen, and Clifton Oliver were the Kauai boys on the B14 team which eventually earned silver medals following a 0-3 hard-fought loss to Norway.
En route to the medal game, the B14 team posted wins against Trygg/Lade, Norway (3-0), Nr4 fra Pulje 3 (3-0), Bangsbo, Freja, Denmark (2-0) Dale IL, Norway (4-1) and losses against Sollentuna, Sweden (0-6), MSSF Knights, Malta (0-6) for the spot in the B Finals against Algard FK, Norway.
“I am extremely proud of our team, especially our home-grown Kauai players who kept getting better and better with each game,” Devitt said. “They are incredibly talented and showed that, with hard work, anything, and everything is possible.”
With the accomplishments of the Dana Cup in their pockets, the SUSA head to Gothenburg, Sweden where they will participate in the Gothia Cup which runs through July 18.
The Gothia Cup is the largest international soccer tournament which has more than 1,500 teams representing more than 70 countries from around the world.
Kauai fans interested in seeing the accomplishments of the teams can visit www.scandiaunitedsocceracademy.com, or Facebook page www.facebook.com/ScandiaUnited.
