Introducing the Men's U23 Team
- Gareth Mullins
- 7 days ago
- 2 min read
Ever since they started their season on June 1st, the young talent on Edgewater Castle FC's Men's U23 Team continues to shine. Winning their first game and keeping others close, ECFC's Men's U23 players have given much for Rooks fans to look forward to in the future.
In their first match against Steel City Academy on the 1st, the Rooks shined in a 4-0 victory in their first Greater Chicago Soccer League (GCSL) game of the season. David Balase scored the first goal of the U23 season. Getting an assist within the box, Balase calmly shot the ball right past the keeper to make his mark on the game. Shortly afterwards, Andrew Hardin would curve the ball from outside of the box left, passing Steel City's goalkeeper's reach and sending it to the top left corner. Balase would follow up that impressive effort with a brace, beating the keeper in a one-on-one situation in the box, and Frank Antonio would grant the Rooks the 4-0 victory with a diagonal kick from the left that stretched across the entirety of Steel City's goal.
The Men's U23 Team would continue the strong start of their season in a close match against Wisloka while competing in the Illinois State Soccer Association's U23 State Cup. After defensively locking down Wisloka throughout the game to keep the match 0-0, the Rooks would ultimately be knocked out of the competition when losing in penalties. This losing steak would sadly continue into the weekend, with the Rooks losing last Sunday in the GCSL against Inter Athletic Club 3-1.
Despite the previous two results, Men's U23 head coach Al Stankovic is confident that his players will continue to develop throughout the season.
"[After] kicking off the season as Edgewater Castle FC's U23 coach, I'm excited to lead 14 returning players and new talent in our quest for the [GCSL] league title as we build on last year's success," Stankovic said. "The squad's experience and fresh energy are looking good in training and showed up well in the few games we've played this season [so far]. We are excited to represent Edgewater Castle FC this summer and [continue to] grow as a squad."
The Men's U23 Team are set to face their next opponents, Chicago Ghost's academy, on June 13th at 8:30 PM at Foster Turf Field.
