Academy update - U-16

U-16 Recap:
D.C. United’s U-16 academy squad was in action this weekend against the McLean academy at Long Bridge Park in Arlington, Virginia. The game saw that U-16’s go down early by a score of 1-0 after conceding a goal on a counter-attack.

The squad went into half down 1-0 and came out ready to go after half time and showed great resilience to get a goal back quickly when Julian Cummings (Fredericksburg, Va.) finished a cross from Gerson Umana (Lorton, Va.). The Black-and-Red continued the pressure and was able to get the game-winner after Steven Gandy (Gainesville, Va.) made a great solo effort down the right side of the field and into the six-yard box.

“Overall, we were happy that the players showed some character and willingness to come from behind,” said Tom Torres, head coach of D.C. United’s U-16 Academy team. “It gave us an idea about the type of mentality we are working with. Unfortunately, when we didn't finish some early chances, our attack got a little impatient and credit to McLean for staying organized and not conceding. The second half showed us that there is much to work on with the entire group in terms of prioritizing possession at key moments of the match. The group did not appreciate having the ball as much as we like them to. We are looking forward to training this week to address some of these issues to prepare for this weekend versus the Kickers.”

Both academy teams will be in action again this weekend when they host local rivals, the Richmond Kickers out of Richmond, Virginia.