Man City Cup draws weekend crowd

Man City Cup brings 500 teams to North County

By Laura Place

DEL MAR — Dedicated youth athletes playing for Surf Soccer Club teams in San Diego and across the country were joined by players from international “super group” teams over the Memorial Day weekend for the annual Nexen Manchester City Cup in Del Mar and Oceanside.

Along with the excitement of playing competitive teams and gaining exposure at a national tournament, athletes also had the chance to see the English Premier League trophy, won by tournament sponsor Manchester City F.C. on May 22.

Displayed on Saturday at SoCal Sports Complex in Oceanside and Surf Cup Sports Park in Del Mar on Sunday, the trophy had its own plane ticket for the journey from England and was accompanied by two security guards clad in white gloves — only winners of the tournament are permitted to actually touch the trophy.

Miles Gardner, director of Americas for Manchester City F.C., said bringing the trophy is just one way the club engages with the local community at the premier tournament, with a long line of youth and families waiting to get a closer look and a photo. The trophy was also at the 2019 tournament.

This tournament we’ve done for six years with Surf, so it’s a cool way for us to have an authentic engagement with folks,” Gardner said. “In the NFL Super Bowl, the team keeps the trophy … there’s a good little bit more allure around this.”

Over the course of the three-day tournament, the Oceanside and Del Mar fields saw approximately 7,500 youth players playing in multiple brackets by age group with around 15 kids per roster.

High school junior Daniela Aceves, a player for the NorCal Premier League in San Jose, said the tournament provides the chance to play other competitive teams and gain exposure.

“The fun part is coming out here, but the competitive part is playing other high-level teams and seeing college recruiters. It’s a cool opportunity,” Aceves said.

Aceves' freshman teammate Sasha Handyside also attended the tournament in 2019.

“It was really fun. The fields are always nice here,” Handyside said.

At Surf Cup Sports Park in Del Mar, Surf Soccer Club girls teams played alongside the younger boys teams. For the Surf Idaho team of boys ages 8 to 10, it was their first time playing at the tournament.

“It’s been amazing,” said coach Andy Barber. “We’re not only getting to see the larger Surf nation, but also seeing what soccer is supposed to be. We’re just very thankful and trying to represent Idaho well.”

The international “super group” teams playing in Oceanside included clubs from Liverpool, Costa Rica and Tijuana, according to Gardner.

SURF PLAYER Anna Moore gets her photo taken with the English Premier League trophy during the Nexen Manchester City Cup tournament at Surf Cup Sports Park on Sunday. Man City was the 2021-22 EPL champion. Photo by Laura Place THE ANNUAL Nexen Manchester City Cup tournament drew about 500 teams and 7,500 players to North County over

Memorial Day weekend. Photo courtesy Surf Cup Sports

SPORTS TALK

CONTINUED FROM 9 our first match this year we were looking back and this car is getting hit by the paint peeling off the van,” Broder said. “That’s probably the best way to describe its condition.”

At the wheel is coach Chris Drake. He points the battered vehicle in the right direction and ditto for the 29 Falcons players.

“Everything he does revolves around Torrey Pines High golf,” Broder said. “He has a lot of pride in that.”

Pride only goes so far, but when it’s combined with talent and dedication, watch out.

The Falcons are fresh off their seventh straight CIF Division I championship, finishing 20 shots ahead of Escondido’s Classical Academy. The event was dominated by local teams, as the Division II trophy went to La Costa Canyon, after it ended 11 strokes clear of Cathedral Catholic.

Drake gives thanks that he’s at Torrey Pines. Each year Torrey Pines is stocked with players who learned their game elsewhere, and that’s fine with Drake.

“Because the Torrey Pines program is so legendary, I’ve never really had to teach people how to play golf,” said Drake, who also teaches U.S. history on campus. “These guys already know how to play, and a lot of them even have swing coaches. They don’t need another voice in their head telling them how to swing. Ideally, I can support them in other ways.”

Drake, who’s in his 15th year with the girls golf team and his 13th with the boys, preaches teamwork. That’s a foreign concept to most, who usually only have themselves to thank, or fault, when out on the course.

“He always tells us that it’s bigger than just yourself,” Broder said. “That you are playing on a team and you need to lift each other up if someone is down.”

Drake’s task is he has to whittle his squad down to six scoring players for matches. When the competitors are as closely matched as the Falcons’ golfers, that’s a chore.

“They are all great golfers and we’re incredibly deep,” Drake said. “But they were focused on the team’s success and not the individual honors. That’s where their focus was.”

Drake, a latecomer to golf, zeroed in on coaching baseball, basketball and football when he started at Torrey Pines. Then John Olive, the boys basketball coach, asked Drake to take over his girls golf assignment. Then when Chris Chandler, a former NFL quarterback, exited from the boys team, Drake eventually added that, too.

Luckily, Drake didn’t have to break par to make the cut as a golf coach.

“I’m a recreational golfer and I do it for fun,” Drake, 49, said. “For as much time that I spend on golf courses, I should be much better. Every one of my players is better than I am. I provide them comic relief.”

It’s no joke that more than 30 players under Drake have advanced to play at Division I colleges. Sandy Choi, another player Drake once coached, was recently named the women’s assistant golf coach at San Diego State.’

That prompted Choi to call with a heartfelt message. “She thanked me for all I did for her in golf,” Drake said. “That’s what makes the coaching experience so special.”

Torrey Pines’ trusty van is unique, too. It serves a purpose without being showroom quality.

“When we ride in that beat-up old crusty van, it gives them an opportunity to bond as a team,” Drake said. “That helps us work together for a common goal.”

It’s one that often results in another championship.

Contact Jay Paris at jparis8@aol.com and follow him @jparis_sports

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