Submitted photos – The Eel River Rapids players celebrate their tournament championship at Elk Grove last month.
It’s been a good start to the 2024 tournament season for the Eel River Rapids U10 boys soccer team.
The club, which features young players from throughout the Eel River Valley, traveled to Medford to compete at the Rogue Valley Invitational over the weekend and took home the championship in their bracket.
But success is nothing new for these young players, who have now won four of the seven tournaments they have competed in over the past 12 months.
“It was really a phenomenal team effort,” head coach Sean Molyneaux said of the most recent tournament performance. “We had very good team defense and the kids passed the ball well to each other, and they’re learning to trust each other.”
The roster has grown from 10 players a year ago to 15 this year and is one of seven teams competing for the Eel River Rapids.
But the players’ growth over the past year doesn’t surprise the coach, who has been impressed with their collective approach to the game, despite their young age.
“I just love their commitment,” Molyneaux said. “We train three to five days a week and two of those days are optional, but these kids are always there. They want to be there and they work hard and have a really good attitude. They’re very coachable.”
The recent tournament championship is the Rapids’ second in two tourneys this year, having also won the Elk Grove Cup last month.
And they appear to be growing stronger as a team.
This group also has shown a lot of resilience and self belief, battling black from a one-goal deficit on the way to beating Rogue United 2-1 in the weekend championship game, one year after losing the final at the same tournament on their first-ever trip together.
Check out some of the Rapids highlights below …
“It was amazing,” the coach added. “There was a lot of heart from the kids. They played really hard.
“They kept battling and they never gave up. They really have come together as a team rather than a bunch of individuals.”
More importantly, the young Rapids players are learning how to play with the right attitude out on the field.
“They’re just a classy group of kids,” Molyneaux added. “I’m really proud of them.”
The Rapids roster includes Braylon Manjarrez, Maddux Molyneaux, Quinn Hoopes-Jones, Liam Gregg, Anthony Avila, Omar Cortes, Athan Solano, Jonny Edge, Camden Molyneaux, Eli Wood, Alessandro Magana-Reynoza, Carson Rogers, Caleb Diaz, Maverick Chamberlain and Julian Avila, as well as assistant coaches Jason Roy, Hec Wood and Kim Edge.
According to the coaches, “Maddux Molyneaux and Liam Gregg’s defensive pressure in the attacking third held teams in and allowed us to keep our shape,” while “midfielders Jonny Edge, Omar Cortes, Athan Solano and Anthony Avila completely controlled the field.”
They added “center backs Braylon Manjarrez and Quinn Hoopes-Jones, along with goalkeeper Camden Molyneaux anchored a stifling defensive effort, conceding only four goals in five games.”
The club also fields U9 and U12 boys teams, as well as U9, U10, U13 and U15 girls teams.
