Seven, not eleven: 7v7 soccer league helps fill the summer gap

Nine boys and nine girls teams, including squads from Seabreeze, Flagler Palm Coast, Matanzas and FBCA, are participating in the league, which is fast, competitive and fun.

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Chris Simsek, Seabreeze High School’s new boys soccer coach, was among the coaches who sang the praises of the high school 7v7 summer soccer league at Indian Trails Sports Complex in Palm Coast.

The weekly league opened on Friday, June 8, with four girls games and four boys games.

“As you can tell, I’m not from here,” said Simsek who grew up in England. “And it always makes me smile how the soccer season just comes to an end, and then that's it, for like six months. So, this kind of stuff is massively beneficial for these boys.”

Simsek and assistants Dylan Reed and Brandt Herron coached the “Breeze Boys” to a 4-3 win over the “Haki Oscuro FC,” Matanzas High team. Although Simsek had just recently been hired to take over the Sandcrabs, he’s familiar with most of the players, having coached them in the Ormond Beach Soccer Club.

“We came on board as management, literally about 10 days ago, so we haven't practiced, we haven't met the team, so it's just an opportunity to get to see the boys, and let them play,” he said.

The league will continue through July 31 with games on Friday nights. Nine boys and nine girls teams are participating representing Seabreeze, Flagler Palm Coast, Matanzas, First Baptist Christian Academy, Menendez, St. Joseph Academy and Palatka.

Each of the teams have their own name. Many have their own T-shirts for the league emblazoned with their team names.


We’ve been doing this league for a handful of years,. We use this to have fun and get lots of touches on Friday nights.
— PETE HALD, FPC girls soccer coach

“We’ve been doing this league for a handful of years,” FPC girls soccer coach Pete Hald said. “We use this to have fun and get lots of touches on Friday nights.”

The FPC girls have two teams — The Flagler Troublemakers with mostly varsity players and the Flagler Knuckleheads which includes a handful of a strong incoming freshman class, Hald said. The two FPC girls teams each have 14 players, enough for two seven-person squads to rotate in and out of the game if needed.

The girls teams are divided into varsity and JV divisions, but the boys have one division with the teams mixed or separated anyway they want, said FPC boys soccer coach Ramtin Amiri, who has run the league since it started nine years ago.

The Troublemakers defeated the Seabreeze Big Pinchers, 5-2.

“Flagler is solid always, so I'm not displeased with how we played,” said Christine Goebel, who has been the Sandcrabs’ assistant girls coach. She is coaching the teams this summer with Seabreeze not yet naming a new head girls coach to replace Eli Freidus.

“This league keeps them in shape,” Goebel said. “It's fun, it's competitive, and I'm glad we have a JV team and a varsity team.”

Seabreeze’s girls JV team, the Crimson Claws, defeated FPC’s second team, 5-3.

Seabreeze’s boys program has just one team in the league. The Breeze Boys led the Matanzas squad 3-0 before Matanzas tied it up by halftime. Breeze scored the lone goal of the second half.


It always makes me smile how the soccer season just comes to an end, and then that's it, for like six months. So, this kind of stuff is massively beneficial for these boys.
— CHRIS SIMSEK, New Seabreeze boys soccer coach

The Matanzas boys graduated 19 varsity players this year, so both of their summer league teams are young.

“We've included some (incoming) freshmen into this group,” Matanzas boys coach Beto Aguilar said of the Haki Oscuro team. “I think that can bring a little bit of breath of fresh air for the upcoming season. I told the boys, we're going to have mistakes, but we can build from it. When you have new players coming in, there's going to be gaps, but I think overall there's good potential for us, there's a good future.”

The FPC boys won both of their games. Palms FC 2 defeated Matanzas Armada 3-0 and Palms FC 1 beat Pedro (Menendez) Soccer 5-3.

In the other boys game, the Palatka Panthers edged the FBCA Crusaders 2-1. In the other girls games, the Bounty Hunters of Matanzas defeated the FBCA Crusaders 3-0, and the Lightning Bolts of St. Joseph defeated the Matanzas Bounty Hunters 2.0 team, 5-2.

“Ramtin does a great job with this league,” Simsek said. “It’s always good when the players get on the grass.”

 

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