Thursday, April 30, 2009

Utah Camps Will Be Here Soon

We are excited about our upcoming camp season. This will be our 8th summer of offering top-notch soccer camps and clinics for young female players of all ages and experience. We have some half-day camps as well as residential models.



Registration will continue for our Utah Women's Soccer Academy at www.utahwsa.com. For more information, please call 801-330-7272 or email info@utahwsa.com.






All camps are staffed and taught by University of Utah soccer coaches along with current and former Utah players, and other local coaches and players. Camps are designed for players of all levels.








Week 1 - June 8-12 - Day Camp 1 (ages 6-13) from 4 PM - 7 PM










Week 2 - June 15- 17 - Advanced Academy 1 (ages 10-13)- Commuter or Residential option...for field players and goal keepers. From 8:30 am to about 9 PM

Week 3 - June 24-June 27 - High School Girls Team Camp - High school teams participate in a competitive camp with emphasis on playing matches.

Week 4 June 29-July 1 - Advanced Academy 2 (ages 14-18) - Commuter or Residential...for field players and goal keepers - From 8:30 am to about 9 PM

Week 5 - July 8-11 - High School Boys Team Camp - High school teams participate in a competitive camp with emphasis on playing matches.

Week 6 - July 13-17 - Day Camp (ages 6-13) from 9 AM- 12 PM

















Monday, April 27, 2009

Mathis Goal Highlights Great Weekend

Well, there was a lot of great sports stuff going on in Salt Lake City last weekend. On Saturday alone, we had a triathlon on campus...the Ute baseball team taking on #1 ranked UC Irvine...the Jazz-Lakers playoff game going on down town at the Energy Solutions Arena...the NFL draft going on with two Ute players, Paul Kruger and Sean Smith drafted on the first day...and the Real Salt Lake vs. New England Revolution match down at Rio Tinto Stadium... what a great day for a fan...

But the highlight of the day might have been this sweet strike by RSL midfielder, Clint Mathis.


Watch it here....a direct volley from a corner kick...incredible!

Friday, April 24, 2009

Another New Ute: Allie Coming from Montana to Salt Lake!



Allie Wisner (#10 in red) has joined the Ute Soccer team for the coming year! Allie is currently a senior at Bozeman High School in Montana. She plays for the Bozeman Blitzz. Allie is a midfielder/forward. We saw her play as a guest for the Boca Soccer Club from California and were impressed with the skill, her drive and competitive spirit.

We are excited to welcome Allie to Utah soccer. And we'll have more information soon...

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Alums and Families Support Utes in Oregon

The Utes love it when we have supporters, especially when they are old friend and family members of the players. And we had some great support. Starting it all is the Dalley family...Erin Dalley is a sophomore forward. Erin is from Viewmont High School and Centerville, Utah. However she spent much of her childhood in Vancouver, Washington...just over the border from Portland. The youngest (of many) children, Erin has older siblings that have stayed in the northwest....and they came out in full force to cheer on the Utes last weekend. Erin's folks, Bob and Sharon, were there also. We loved the red shirts and posters. Erin had to miss the trip last fall to Oregon and Oregon State due to a knee injury that kept her out all season. So it was great to have her out on the field this spring. She rewarded the fans with a two-goal outburst on Sunday against Seattle U.

We also had the Isleib family out to support the Utes. Parent Bob and Kim as well as brother Dave and sister Justin came out to watch Kelly with the national team as well as play with us on Sunday.

And we had two of our esteemed alums there as well. Maren Harper, was captain of the 2002 team that was the first to make the NCAA playoffs. She is now coaching with FC Portland. Maren came out to the games in between coaching assignments. Also, Bobbie (Benegas) Hackenbruck came out on Saturday with her new son, Boden. Bobbie was captain of the 2003 Mountain West Conference champions. She lives in Bend, Oregon with former Ute football great, Tommy Hackenbruck. Rumor has it that they may be moving back to Salt Lake soon.

Great to see everyone!

Monday, April 20, 2009

Spring Season Finishes in Oregon

Great weather, good competition, watching soccer and Ronaldo....

We finished our spring season this past weekend in Oregon with two games at the NIKE campus in Beaverton. We played on the Ronaldo fields there (remember him?).

We fell to the University of Oregon, 1-0, on Saturday. And we defeated Seattle University, 2-1, on Sunday. In between games, we watched the U.S. under 23 national team defeated the University of Portland. All in all, a great way to end a very productive spring season.

On Saturday, we faced the Ducks from Oregon. The Utes were without Kelly Isleib (who was finishing her U.S. team camp), Katie Martinez (injured leg) and Nicole Cardon (shoulder). So some players were moved to different positions as Morgan Skeen played holding midfield and Mallory Mitamura and Christine Quinn filled in admirably at outside backs. We also were happy to have a guest appearance from senior Katy Reineke.

The Ducks were playing their first game of the spring and we fired up to get out and play. We played a lot of defense in the first half as we struggled to match the energy of our opponent. Oregon had a couple of good chances in the first 10 minutes, but were unable to finish. In the 20th minute, Lauren Porter hit a long ball to Erin Dalley, who got behind the defense but had her shot saved by the Ducks' goal keeper. That play seemed to settle us down and the game evened out after that.

Five minutes into the second half there was an exciting sequence. First, goal keeper Hannah Turpen kept the game scoreless with a terrific save on a 1 vs. 1 situation. The ball was cleared out and the Utes sent a threading pass to Lauren Hair who was off on her own breakaway. La hit the ball just inches wide of the far post.

Oregon scored the game's only goal in the 57th minute as a forward got loose just inside the box to the left of the Utah goal and hit a shot that caromed off the far post and into the net. We responded well. In the 63rd minute, Mallory Mitamura fed Erin Dalley with a nice pass and Erin's shot was saved. And in the 65th Dalley fed La who just missed. Overall, it was a fairly good performance which improved after the first 20 minutes.

On Saturday evening, the team packed up the vans and headed to the University of Portland to watch the Pilots take on the U.S. under 23 National Team. The game was enjoyable with a great environment and a good level of soccer. The U.S. defeated Portland, 3-2. We were rooting for our own Kelly Isleib, who was with the U.S. team. Kelly didn't see any action, but she looked good in her uniform. Kelly had played for the U.S. earlier in the week in wins again Oregon State and Washington.

On Sunday, we headed back to the NIKE campus for a match with Seattle University. Kelly rejoined us for the game. We started a bit slowly again. In the fourth minute, the Redhawks opened the scoring with a 25 yard blast. Facing an early deficit, we fought back and Lauren Hair drew a penalty kick in the 10th minute. La took the kick and placed it well into her right corner. However the Seattle goalie made a fantastic diving save to preserver the lead.

We had another close call in the 13th minute after Kelly Isleib took a short corner and drilled a cross to the far post, Lauren Dudley was there but couldn't quite get her volley on frame. Kelly fed La in the 35th minute over the top of the defense, but her shot was saved. Just before the halftime whistle, we tied it up as Chelsea Forbes hit a corner kick into the middle where Erin Dalley headed it home...1-1!

The Utes took the lead four minutes into the 2nd half as Chelsea Forbes hit a threaded ball between the Seattle center backs from midfield to a streaking Erin Dalley, who slipped it into the net...2-1!

In the 55th minute, Emalee Rogers kept the lead with a fantastic save on a 1 vs. 1 breakaway. In the 65th minute, Morgan Skeen saved a ball that was heading into the net after a near collision with goal keeper Shay Kennedy (who had replaced Emalee just prior to the play).

Just one minute later, after a great buildup, Kelly Isleib fed Christine Quinn who had raced forward from her right back spot. Chris fired a shot from just inside the box that clanged off the crossbar. Just two minutes from time, Shay saved a hard shot from 25 yards out and the victory was sealed.

Overall a good weekend of soccer!

Friday, April 17, 2009

Kerfuffle Concert Excites Utah Campus


The annual Kerfuffle concert rocked the U. campus Wednesday evening. The headliners were Lupe Fiasco and Girl Talk. Over 4,800 attended the show, which is put on by the ASUU for Utah students.

Several of our soccer players attended...and rumor has it that one of them may have suffered an unfortunate injury dancing in the rain!

Click here for more on Kerfuffle from the Daily Utah Chronicle!

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

What's next...a red card for B.O.?

We're not sure if this is real....but, if so, kind of funny...and BRAVO to the referee!

Courtesy of Soccer America, we hear that in non-league English soccer, a Chorlton Villa soccer player was shown a yellow card for "passing gas" as an International Manchester FC took a penalty kick, and missed. The penalty kick was re-taken and made. Two Villa players were then ejected for swearing while questioning the breaking-wind caution, but Villa managed a 6-4 victory. A third Villa player was ejected for a separate incident of cursing.

The referee said, "the player that made the noise was booked for ungentlemanly conduct- trying to put the other player off."

Now we've heard it all...

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

New Track at the U Will Bring Another Soccer Field

We made an exciting announcement last week about our new locker room facility, which will be ready for this fall season. And today we have more great news...The University will be building a new track and field facility this summer. And inside of the new oval will be a soccer field! The track is being built just north of Ute Field, where the old dorms were located. It is being designed as a "fat track" with wider turns...meaning we can fit a full-sized soccer field inside of it. The surface will be Field Turf.

Right now, we would envision using the soccer field for some training, conditioning as well as camps and clinics. It will be nice to have another place to do these things so we don't beat up Ute Field.

There is also the possibility of having another natural grass field to train on at times right next to the new track. We will keep you updated as things progress. There was a good piece in the Daily Utah Chronicle today about the new track facility...

Click here to read the article in the school paper!

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Relaxing at the Shallenbergers

We played two games at the BYU invitational down in Provo on Saturday. With the first game scheduled at 10 AM and the second at 6 PM, there was plenty of down time...so what to do on a wet day in between?

Never fear...the Shallenberger family was gracious to host the team at their house near the BYU campus for lunch and some relaxation. Ute freshman, Anne Shallenberger and her parents, Steve and Roxanne were great hosts. There was plenty to eat, movies, resting and even a birthday cake for "young" coach, Rich Manning, who was celebrating another birthday.

The Shallenbergers have some adventure in them and have set up some "fun" rides and exercises in their yard...a zip line, a swing and a human sling shot. And we were determined to try some of these out... check out the photos and videos!


Lauren Dudley rides the zip line!



Coach Manning celebrates his birthday with a wild swing ride!




Anne Shallenberger gets raised up before trying the big swing at her house!\








Hannah Turpen gets some advice and encouragement from Steve Shallenberger and Shay Kennedy.
















Coach Manning blows out the many candles on his birthday cake.

Utes Win Two at BYU Invitational


It was a cold and wet day in Utah on Saturday, but it was shining brightly for the Utes. We played in in BYU Invitational down in Provo and came away with a 2-1 victory over Utah Valley and a 1-0 win over Dixie State.

Chelsea Forbes (pictured at left) had two assists in the opening match and Lauren Hair continued her torrid scoring streak, notching the game-winner in each match.


The morning match was played outside in a drizzle as the Utes faced the Wolverines from Utah Valley. We got off to a strong start and created several chances in the first half of the game. Anne Shallenberger hit the post on the 10th minute. Goal keeper Hannah Turpen saved a one on one in the 23rd minute. And Erin Dalley headed a Chelsea Forbes free kick just wide in the 26th minute.

The Wolverines broke through in the 33rd after Hannah had trouble hanging on to a UVU free kick and the rebound was knocked home. The Utes responded well and were unfortunate not to equalize before halftime. Just four minutes after the goal, Chelsea hit a laser free kick just over the bar from 25 yards out. And just before the break, Morgan Skeen hit a shot that was saved and Anne followed with a dangerous cross.

Down 1-0 at the half, Utah came out firing. Emalee Rogers (pictured at left), continuing her comeback from a broken leg suffered over Christmas, replaced Hannah in goal. After knocking at the door a few times, the Utes were rewarded in the 50th minute. Chelsea Forbes delivered a cross on a free kick from the right side. The ball skidded across the Wolverine goal and Katie Martinez headed it home for the 1-1 tie.

More chances followed...Erin Dalley rose above the crowd on a corner kick but headed wide in the 55th minute. And Anne Shallenberger's shot was saved in the 63rd. With just 5 minutes left, Chelsea Forbes made a weaving run on the right side and sent in a cross to the middle. Lauren Hair turned with the ball and toe-poked it home past the on-rushing 'keeper...a fantastic goal! The Utes held on for a 2-1 win.

The second game against Dixie State was moved indoors as the steady rain during the day had made the field too wet. Freshman goal keeper Shay Kennedy played the first half, while Hannah Turpen replaced her in the second. Utah used a Lauren Hair penalty kick in the second period to clinch a 1-0 win.

Friday, April 10, 2009

Under Armour, Sponsor of Ute Soccer, and Its Fast Rise


As many of you know, the Utes started a 5-year contract with Under Armour this fall. Under Armour is our exclusive provider of equipment and uniforms. They have been a wonderful partner so far with great looking gear and fantastic service. You can see the home whites here as worn by freshman defender, Lauren Porter.

If you don't know the story behind Under Armour and its incredibly fast rise in the sports market place, we found a great article at SI.com that talks about the company and Kevin Plank, the founder. Kevin was a walk-on at the University of Maryland football team. He started out with an idea that athletes needed a better product than just the old cotton t-shirt to wear under their uniforms. At 23 years of age, he took all of his money and started working out of his parents' house...And he has turned that into a world-wide success...what a great and inspiring story...

Check out the article by clicking here!

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Utes Score 3-1 Victory over Utah State Aggies


Soccer returned to the Utah campus for the first time since late October as the Utes earned a hard-fought 3-1 win over the Utah State Aggies. The attacking trio of Kelly Isleib, Lauren Hair and Erin Dalley combined to create all three goals as the Utes held off the 2008 WAC champions.

Utah started strong and held an advantage in possession throughout the early stages of the match. In the fifth minute, Isleib threaded a pass from midfield that split the defense and put La La in on the Aggie goal. La hit a hard, low shot that caromed off the near post. A Utah State defender tried to clear the ball off the line and it ricocheted off another Aggie and into the net. The own goal gave the Utes a 1-0 lead.

In the 29th minute, Kelly, La and Dalley had a thrilling combination of passes that put Dalley on the ball inside the box, but her shot was saved be Molli Merrill, the Aggie goal keeper.


The Aggies had a series of corner kicks late in the half, but were unable to capitalize.



Early in the 2nd half, the Utes put some pressure on the Aggie goal. Chelea Forbes hit a fantastic shot from 22 yards that Merrill acrobatically tipped over the bar. In the 65th minutes, Erin Dalley made an explosive, weaving run with the ball from just inside the mid-line to the top of the 18-yard box. Her initial shot was blocked but came right back to her and she cooly pushed it into the net for a 2-0 lead. Erin missed all of last season with an ACL injury and is starting to find her form.









Utah State rallied later in the half. Lauren Hansen got into the Ute penalty box in the 75th minute and cut a defender before pushing her shot wide. In the 79th minute, the Aggies scored an apparent goal but it was taken back as Utah was called for a foul as the shot was being taken.
On the ensuing free kick from the top of the 18, Lindsey Smart powered into the corner of the net to cut the lead to 2-1.

Just one minute later, the Utes responded. Kelly Isleib took a ball from the left side and hit a laser-like cross to the far post where Lauren Hair lunged to half volley it home from 8 yards out....a fantastic goal and a 3-1 lead. La La has continued her scoring spree that had her score all 5 of her goals last fall in the last 8 games. She has scored 2 in just 3 spring games and also created the own goal last night. La is becoming a very dangerous player each time she steps on the field, whether she is scoring, creating for others or drawing fouls.






The defense looked good for most of the match. Sophomore Nicole Cardon had a very strong showing, especially in the second half as she shut down the right side of the Aggie attack and got forward a few times as well. Fellow sophomore Morgan Skeen also created havoc on the other side in the second half, getting forward a few times and just missing on a shot late in the game.















All three returning goal keepers saw action. Hannah Turpen played the first 45 minutes. Emalee Rogers and Shay Kennedy both played in the second half. Emalee has fought hard to come back from a broken leg suffered over the Christmas break. It was great to see her back out on the field.






The Utes will return to action this Saturday at the BYU invitational. They will face Utah Valley at 10:00 AM and then play Dixie State at 6:00 PM. Ute midfielder Kelly Isleib will leave Saturday to go to camp with the U.S. under 23 national team in Portland, Oregon.




Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Even the Pros...


This week marks the opening leg of the European Champions League Quarterfinals and we were able to catch most of the Man. U vs. Porto match on ESPN. The match ended in a 2-2 draw which Porto in a VERY good position coming home for the return leg next week. Porto scored the equalizer with just 2 minutes left (photo left from ESPN.com)

All 4 goals were ones in which the defending team made some fundamental errors....including a poor clearance, not stepping up to the shooter in the penalty box, a horrible, no-look back pass to the keeper that was intercepted, poor marking on a throw in, and some bad organization and position...

In a strange way it was almost comforting to see the pros struggle with some of the things we teach and work on regularly with our team. It is good to know that those basic errors get punished at that level as well.

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

New Locker Room to be Ready For Fall Season

Although we have only a few weeks left in the spring semester, there are some important games yet to play starting with the Utah State game tomorrow night at 7 P.M. at Ute Field. It is also nice to daydream a bit about the fall season and a brand new team made up of a strong returning cast and some exciting new players.

Also fun to think about is a brand new locker room! The athletic department has been gracious enough to supply us with a room in the HPER East building (just east of Ute Field where the training room and our current locker room are located). We will have new carpet and ceiling and 26 wood lockers...wow! We also are going to add a lounge and video area as well as a space to honor our team's history.

We are super stoked about the project and will have a sparkling new room ready come August for our 2009 season! We will be raising money in order to supplement the room with some of these special features. We'll have more information and photos in the coming weeks.



Saturday, April 4, 2009

Good Morning Utes: Alumni Game Starts Early!


The fun started early this morning at the "Spence" Indoor Facility at the U. as the annual Utah Soccer Alumni Game kicked off at 8:30 AM. The game ended with a dramatic finish as the Alums equalized with just 2 minutes left to force a 1-1 tie. Twenty-two former players returned to put on the Utah jersey once again as family and friends poured into the "Spence" to see old friends. Here are some of the highlights of the 70-minute match...



7 minutes - Alum Hailey Marsh cracks a shot at Utah GK Shay Kennedy.
12 minutes - Utes take a 1-0 lead as Kelly Isleib dribbles through the Alum defense - Ole!
17 minutes - Kelly tunnels Alum Chelsea Card
21 minutes - Katy Reineke tunnels Kelly
24 minutes - Alum Alli Cerruti scores but is called offside
36 minutes - Kelly tunnels alum Danielle Sample on the 2nd half kickoff
40 minutes - Kim Lloyd Gunlock pulls a sombrero and just misses a volley
47 minutes - Anne Shallenberger scores but is called offisdes by Mr. Reineke and the Isleib family
55 minutes - Huge controversy as Alum Chelsea Card's shot is caught by Emalee Rogers right along the goal line
61 minutes - More controversy as Alum Katy Reineke's shot hits the crossbar and knocks the goal down...alums scream that the shot should count as two goals, but none is awarded.
64 minutes - Alums employ a 6-4-4 formation looking to tie the game...
68 minutes - Katy Reineke sneaks behind the Ute defense to score for a 1-1
70 minutes - Game over - lots of handshakes and hugs




Here former Ute great Staci (Burt) Delaney battles with Anne Shallenberger.









After the game, both teams were treated to a breakfast at the Huntsman Basketball Arena lounge. Athletic Directors Doug Knuth, Manny Hendrix and Zack Lassiter and Crimson Club Direcor Olivia Bramble hosted the event. Many stories, past and present were told.

Many props to the alums that participated:

Kari (Keddington) Koon, Staci (Burt) Delaney, Erin (Pruitt) Kay, Alli Cerruti, Hailey Marsh, Kiley Jones, Chelsea Card, McKenzie Joyner, Paola (Marsenaro) Sanchez, Amber (Brower) Mortenson, Tracey (Stratton) Garner, Kim (Lloyd) Gunlock, Melissa Crespo....goal keepers Courtney (Hills) McBeth, Ashley (Mason) Correa, Tawni (Martineau) Atherle as well as "new alums" Amy Edman, Amanda Sanchez, Katie Brower, Addie Hair, Danielle Sample and Katy Reineke.

Special honors to Tawni Atherle, the "most experienced" alum, who last played in the 1998 season. Tawni now lives in the Bay Area of California with her husband. She was accompanied by her father.

Also, the alums wanted to give a shout out to Bernie Martin, who just gave birth to her second child, Azzi, this week.


Great day for tue Utes...here is a small taste of the action




Team Banquet Kicks Off Big Weekend


The Utes kicked off a big "family" weekend with the annual team banquet held on Friday night at the Old Mill Golf Club in Salt Lake City. Coaches, team members and families gathered for some good food, team awards and a highlight video. The stars of the evening were the six graduating seniors who were honored for being such great servants to the program. Seen in the photo at left are: Katie Brower, Danielle Sample, Amy Edman, Katy Reineke, Amanda Sanchez and Addie Hair. Each was presented with a photo framed and signed by the team as well as a Utah Soccer scarf. Amanda came all the way from Alabama for the weekend. She graduated in December and has moved to the South with her fiance, Drew, who is stationed in the military there.






Here is Katie Brower being presented with her gifts...













Frehsman Anne Shallenberger enjoyed the dinner of pasta, chicken and veggies...with some great desserts like cheese cake, carrot cake and more!













Team members were honored for their 2nd place finish in the Mountain West Conference as well as being a finalist in the MWC Tournament. Coach Leslie Keener put together a highlight video.








Players voted on team awards as well. The following were the award winners:

Freshman of the Year - Lauren Porter
Most Improved - Mallory Mitamura
Most Inspirational - Danielle Sample
Offensive Player of the Year - Lauren Hair
Defensive Player of the Year - Amanda Sanchez
Most Valuable Player - Kelly Isleib

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Surprise Baby Shower for Laurel

Everybody was huddled into the video room at the Burbidge Academic Center yesterday afternoon. The gifts were stacked on a table and the food was out and ready. Assistant coach Laurel Roderick was heading over for what she thought was a video session for the team...but the surprise was on her when she arrived... it's a baby shower!

Laurel is 8 months pregnant with a baby boy, her second child. Her eldest, Rachel, is 2 years old and excited about having a younger brother...(then again 2 year olds are excited about anything).

Assistant coach Leslie Keener set up the event...and many of the players pitched in with some treats. We had cupcakes, brownies, punch and, of course, fruit (gotta have some healthy food). The team was split up into groups and had a little competition...cutting out baby body parts to put together the best looking baby...Some weird looking kids were "designed" for sure!









Here is one of the designer babies....good Lord!











The team was asked to bring a book as a gift...some classics were passed on to the little guy..."Green Eggs and Ham", "Are You My Mother" and more!

Kelly Isleib Is Called Into Camp for U.S.A. under-23 Team


Junior midfielder, Kelly Isleib has been called into camp to train and play with the U.S. under-23 national team this month. Kelly was called in by head coach, Bill Irwin, along with 23 other players from around the country. The team will be in Portland, Oregon from April 11-18. The camp will include games against Oregon State University, the University of Washington, and the University of Portland. The players at the camp will be trying to impress Coach Irwin so they can be included in the team's trip to Europe this summer.


This is Kelly's first taste of national team soccer in four years. As a high school senior in 2006, she was called into a training camp with the under 19 U.S. team. Shortly after that, she suffered a knee injury which slowed her international career. Kelly is fit right now and playing some of the best soccer of her career.

We wish her a successful camp. We are sure she will represent the University of Utah well.

For more information on the camp and u-23 team, here are a couple of links:

www.utahutes.com

www.ussoccer.com

As a side note, the Utes will be in Oregon that weekend to take on the University of Oregon on Saturday, April 18 and Seattle University on Sunday, April 19. The team will be watching the U.S. - Portland game on Saturday night and hope to catch Kelly in action. Provided she is not exhausted from the week of camp, Kelly will rejoin the team for the Seattle game on Sunday.

Way to go Kelly and best of luck.

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Coach Manning to Play for REAL Salt Lake


Well, to the players of the Utah women's soccer program, this is no surprise. But maybe to some others...

Real Salt Lake will announce today that they will sign Utah head coach, Rich Manning, to a 1 month contract to play for the MLS team. Real has been looking for some midfield help with some of their players having visa problems getting back into the U.S. Coach Manning will provide some much-needed creativity to the RSL attack.

How did this come about? With the volatile weather the past few weeks here in Utah, RSL has been training indoors at the Spence Eccles Fieldhouse at the U. Several times they have trained right after the Utah women's team...while waiting to start training, Real head coach, Jason Kreis, was shocked by the skills and quick feet displayed by Coach Manning at his Ute training. (You can see some of the moves here as Coach Manning executes a very complex country line dancing maneuver).

After inquiring some more, Jason learned about Coach Manning's legendary playing days at Santa Clara University...where he was called "The Maestro". Coach Kreis was elated to see that such a talented player was available right in his own backyard. And things progressed from there.

Coach Manning will become the oldest player in MLS at 44 years young. His new wife Sue is nervous but very proud! Coach Manning will continue to coach the Utes while under contract. Assistant Coach Laurel Roderick will take over when there are conflicts. Roderick is 8 months pregnant....however, the Utah training staff will have a table and equipment ready should they need to deliver the baby during practice. Stay tuned for more details as the situation unfolds.