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Ranked #3 Girls Soccer Club by Soccer America - PDA Print E-mail
on 25 Jan 2007

 

The objective of the PDA Soccer Club is to provide a year-round soccer training program that will develop players to their greatest potential, focusing on top-quality instruction and exposure to the highest levels of competition. The club will form a boys team and a girls team in each of the age groups including  Under-11 through Under-19. These teams will compete in premier leagues throughout the northeast and mid-Atlantic states, and will participate in highly competitive tournaments nationwide. It is our goal to offer these players optimal opportunities to gain the recognition that will enable them to achieve continued success as athletes on the country's top collegiate teams, United States national teams, and/or professional soccer teams.

In September of 1998 the Players Development Academy was born as a non-profit, tax-exempt 501(c)3 organization through a collaboration between Tom Anderson (President) and Sam Nellins (Director of Operations).  A long-term lease on ten acres of land was secured from The Pillar of Fire in Zarephath, New Jersey, laying the groundwork for the area's first "soccer only" training facility. Plans commenced for two of the initial PDA programs; the PDA Urban Academy and the PDA Soccer Club.

The PDA Urban Academy

    The Urban Academy was created in the spring of 1999 through a partnership with Mike Blackwell, the Recreation Director of the City of New Brunswick. This program offers children in nearby urban communities the opportunity to learn and develop soccer skills, and to compete in organized soccer leagues, with all fees underwritten by the PDA. Youth players from the Soccer in the Streets and Ace Program in New Brunswick were selected to participate on the first two teams of U11 boys and U11 girls. Since 1999, the PDA Urban Academy has added six more teams, for a total of 124 children, now competing on eight teams in the Mid-New Jersey Youth Soccer League (2 U9, 2 U10, 2 U11, 2 U14).

For more information on the New Brunswick Recreation Department see http://www.nbrec.com

PDA Soccer Club

    The PDA Soccer Club is a year-round professional soccer training program designed to develop players to their greatest potential, focusing on top-quality instruction and exposure to the highest levels of competition.  

    The PDA Soccer Club was formed in September of 1998 with the introduction of the PDA Counties United team (U18 women). By the summer of 1999, four premier teams for high school age groups were added: PDA Platini and PDA Vialli (U15 boys), PDA Splash (U16 girls), and PDA Dalglish (U16 boys). A summer program for two PDA women's teams, Splash U19 and Splash U20, was also established. 

    After a very successful first year, the PDA Soccer Club expanded in the summer of 2000, adding eight new teams for boys and girls.  The Soccer Club had grown to15 teams, with age groups ranging from U11 to U23. By the end of the 2000/2001 season, the Players Development Academy was a nationally recognized soccer club, with 5 state championship teams, 4 regional champions, and a national champion. 

    During the summer of 2001 the PDA Soccer Club added five new teams, bringing the total to 19 teams, with a boys and a girls team in every age group from U11 through U18, and two women's teams in age groups U20 and U23. These teams play in premier leagues throughout the middle Atlantic and northeastern states, and participate in highly competitive tournaments nationwide. Annual tryouts are held in May and June.

    The Club continued to expand its program in 2002, with the addition of a boys and a girls team in the U10 age group. The U10 teams focus on skills and development, building a foundation for competitive play in the older age groups. The PDA Soccer Club now includes 22 teams.

   The PDA Soccer Club's commitment to training and competition has enabled many of its players to achieve continued success as student athletes in some of the country's top collegiate soccer programs. (Please see PDA College Players - Men and Women)

   The PDA offers a scholarship fund to players in need of financial aid for participation on the Soccer Club teams. This fund has been generously donated by individuals and corporations. For more information, please email:

Our mission is:   

  • To provide a unique opportunity for youth from underprivileged urban areas in New Jersey to participate in the Urban Academy soccer program; to encourage good sportsmanship; to encourage teamwork; and to learn the necessary skills to play competitive youth soccer throughout the United States.
  • To provide exceptional youth soccer players with a challenging program that will offer opportunities to compete in national and international competitions, with a goal that these players will gain exposure to enhance their opportunities to further their development as student athletes at the college level.
  • To put a year-round "soccer-only" training facility in place with top quality playing surfaces, lighted fields, and an all-weather field turf -- an environment through which players in the academy can reach their full playing potential.

The PDA will achieve its mission through its two programs:

Urban Academy.

   With the establishment of the "Urban Academy" we have opened our doors to the surrounding urban areas (starting with New Brunswick) to enable children within these communities to enjoy the benefits the PDA has to offer. We will begin training players from 9 to 14 years of age, underwriting all associated fees, with the immediate objective of making a difference in these children's lives, and ultimately providing them the opportunity to train and compete at a higher level with the PDA Soccer Club teams.

The Urban Academy will:

  • Encourage the development of soccer to underprivileged youth.
  • Provide an opportunity for youth to participate in organized soccer leagues and competitions (U9 through U14).
  • Instruct, train, and educate players using the best coaches from the area.
  • Encourage graduates of the Urban Academy to continue competitive play with the PDA Soccer Club teams.

PDA Soccer Club.

   The objective of the PDA Soccer Club is to provide a year-round soccer training program that will develop players to their greatest potential, focusing on top-quality instruction and exposure to the highest levels of competition. The club will form a boys team and a girls team in each of the age groups including  Under-11 through Under-19. These teams will compete in premier leagues throughout the northeast and mid-Atlantic states, and will participate in highly competitive tournaments nationwide. It is our goal to offer these players optimal opportunities to gain the recognition that will enable them to achieve continued success as athletes on the country's top collegiate teams, United States national teams, and/or professional soccer teams.

The PDA Soccer Club will:

  • Compete at the highest level, both nationally and internationally.
  • Provide a platform to give players the highest quality of training and competition.
  • Encourage players to participate on state, regional, and national teams.
 

 
    The PDA offers a scholarship fund to players in need of financial aid for participation on the Soccer Club teams. This fund has been generously donated by individuals and businesses. 

Conclusion

   With the facilities, professional coaching, competition, financial backing through scholarship funds, integration of all socio-economic levels, and the desire to succeed, the PDA hopes to develop an environment in which the soccer stars of the future will be nurtured and developed. 

 PDA Website

 
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