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SACVOCAPRIL 30, 2016 | 7:30PM | BONNEY FIELD

PRESENTED BY

PAG E

18PAG E

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29USL: GROWING THE GAME

ACADEMY TRYOUTS

BEAUTIFUL GAME: HILLSBOROUGH

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JULY

AWAY MATCH

HOME MATCH

HOME MATCH LIVE BROACAST ON CW31

AWAY MATCH

HOME MATCH

HOME MATCH LIVE BROACAST ON CW31

U.S. OPEN CUP

Subject to change. Check local listings. All times PST.Check SacRepublicFC.com for U.S. Open Cup dates and changes.

2016 REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE

2016 Season Presented by

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# NAME POS HT WT AGE HOMETOWN

1 Dominik Jakubek G 6-1 195 36 Lodi, California

2 Derek Foran D 6-1 165 26 Dublin, Ireland

3 Mike da Fonte D 6-0 170 24 Ossining, New York

4 Alfonso Motagalvan D 5-10 170 28 Gilroy, California

5 Danny Barrera M 5-7 150 26 Thousand Oaks, California

6 Agustin Cazarez D 5-7 145 26 Reseda, California

7 Joaquin Rivas F 5-11 172 23 Las Vegas, Nevada

8 Chris Christian D 6-1 180 26 West Orange, New Jersey

9 Harry Williams F 6-0 160 20 Cheltenham, England

10 Thomas Stewart F 5-11 179 29 Portadown, Northern Ireland

11 Max Alvarez M 5-10 160 24 Napa, California

12 Evan Newton G 6-2 190 27 Virginia Beach, Virginia

13 Adam Jahn F 6-3 185 25 Davis, California

14 Cameron Iwasa F 5-10 180 22 Sacramento, California

15 Carlos Rodriguez D 6-3 168 19 Torreón, Coahuila, Mexico

16 Matt LaGrassa M 6-0 170 23 Elk Grove, California

17 Octavio Guzman M 5-10 175 25 Bay Point, California

19 Mackenzie Pridham F 6-0 180 25 Saratoga, California

20 James Kiffe D 5-11 180 26 Santa Barbara, California

21 Tommy Thompson M 5-7 145 20 Granite Bay, California

22 Chase Minter M 5-9 150 23 Heath, Texas

23 Emrah Klimenta D 6-1 180 24 Rozaje, Montenegro

24 JJ Koval M 6-1 183 23 Westlake Village, California

26 Mark Sherrod F 6-3 185 25 Knoxville, Tennessee

SACRAMENTO REPUBLIC FC ORANGE COUNTY BLUES

# NAME POS HT WT AGE HOMETOWN

1 Josh Cohen GK 6-1 175 23 Sunnyvale, CA

2 Jack McCracken D 6-1 180 23 Manhattan Beach, CA

4 Grady Howe M 5-10 175 22 Newport Beach, CA

5 Nikola Ilich M 5-7 145 24 Vista, CA

6 Maurice Pluntke D 6-0 165 22 Monchengladbach, Germany

7 Christopher Santana M 6-0 175 23 Bishop, CA

8 Christian Silva M 5-11 170 26 Tampa Bay, FL

9 Trevin Caesar F 5-6 159 26 Lambeau, Trinidad and Tobago

10 Pavle Popara M 5-10 160 28 Kragujevac, Serbia

11 Tyler Feeley F 6-2 180 19 Glendale, AZ

12 Andrae Campbell D 5-6 145 27 Portmore, Jamaica

14 Akwafei Ajeakwa F 5-7 140 23 Gardena, CA

15 Ryan Felix D 6-3 190 22 Corona, CA

16 Mats Bjurman M 5-11 155 22 Irvine, CA

17 Verneri Valimaa M 5-7 145 23 Helsinki, Finland

18 Dusan Stevanovic M 5-7 140 24 Belgrade, Serbia

19 Ivan Mirković M 5-7 150 29 Belgrade, Serbia

20 Oriol Cortes M 6-0 170 26 Barcelona, Spain

21 Didier Crettenand M 5-11 165 30 Martigny, Switzerland

22 Gevorg Karapetyan M 5-7 155 25 Erewan, Armenia

23 Brenton Griffiths D 6-3 188 25 Spanish Towne, Jamaica

24 Joe Baccielo F 6-1 180 24 Stratford, Connecticut

25 Steven Purdy Ramos D 6-4 190 31 Bakersfield, CA

33 Brandon Miller GK 6-0 175 26 Charlotte, NC

37 Roy Meeus D 5-10 170 26 Lommel, Belgium

FC

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INQUIRING MINDS: Q&A WITH SRFC PLAYERS

MATT LAGRASSA

1. What’s the most exciting thing about playing for your hometown team?The most exciting thing is that my friends and family get to come out. You become a part of a soccer community when you grow up playing soccer so I know so many people here—coaches, friends, family, people that played with my brother and their families. Seeing all those people coming to watch us play is awesome

2. Favorite place to hang in Sacramento when you’re not training?I really like Temple Coffee. And just midtown, there’s a lot of good food, coffee and places to hang out.

3. What teams (in other sports) do you root for?I’m a huge Kings fan. I grew up a Dallas Cowboys fan for football, though I’m not as big into football anymore. Then Chelsea FC fan for Premier League.

4. Who’s your role model and why?I have a lot of role models, but a big one for me has always been my older brother. I started playing soccer because of him and I kind of always wanted to be like him growing up. He’s a good guy to look up to.

5. What’s your order at Chipotle?I get a burrito bowl, brown rice, black beans and depends on whatever looks the best. I always get the veggies, light sour cream and cheese and then a bunch of guacamole.

MAX ALVAREZ

1. What’s the most important piece of advice you would share with young fans that want to place soccer?Stay humble. Work hard, work on your weaknesses and never lose your passion for the game.

2. What type of music are you most likely to be listening to? Name your top three artists on your playlists.J. Balvin, Romeo Santos, Future and The Weekend. So a little bit of everything.

3. You’re stuck on a deserted island with one teammate. Which teammate do you pick and why?Probably JJ Koval because he’s the brains. He could get me out of a sticky situation and we’ll survive our way out.

4. Favorite thing to spend your free time doing?I like long walks on the beach, posted by the river and taking in some sun.

5. What’s your order at Chipotle?A burrito bowl with chicken, sour cream lots of guacamole, corn and hot salsa and with a side of tortillas. order of a quesarito with chicken!”

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Six years into its modern era, the United Soccer League continues to see explosive growth on and off the pitch as the league expands the beautiful game in the United

States and Canada.

During the team’s inaugural season in 2014, Sacramento Republic FC was one of just 14 clubs in the USL. One year later, the league expanded to 24 clubs, two conferences and opened the league to include Canada, in addition to the United States. The USL has doubled since Republic FC joined, fielding 29 clubs, with additional teams slated to join in 2017.

The USL’s rapid growth is part of an aggressive yet deliberate strategic growth plan with an emphasis on local ownership groups, soccer-specific stadiums and regional rivalries that is a testament to the success of the lead and the rapid growth of the sports in the United States and Canada.

The USL (and USL PRO) has been intertwined with the fabric of American soccer since it began operations in 1986. The modern era of the USL (and USL PRO) kicked off in 2010 with the inaugural season in 2011 featuring 12 teams split into two

divisions, the National and American divisions. Of those 12 teams, 11 were on the east coast.

Now in 2016, the league is at 29 clubs spread across 19 U.S. states and three Canadian provinces and split between Eastern and Western conferences. The growth of the league has transformed underserved sports and soccer

cities like Sacramento and Cincinnati into hotbeds for the world’s game. The league’s growth has paralleled a partnership with MLS and efforts to work towards Division 2 sanctioning within the U.S. Soccer pyramid.

The USL’s rapid growth is part of an aggressive, yet deliberate, strategic growth plan for the league. This growth plan puts an emphasis on local ownership groups, soccer-specific stadiums and regional rivalries to maintain the momentum of rapid growth of the sport in the United States and Canada.

“When we relaunched the league in 2010, we created a growth map and identified key elements needed in order get to where we are today,” said USL President Jake Edward. “We focused on expanding league markets that make strategic

sense. Markets that could and have developed regional rivalries while growing strategically with quality local ownership and raising the overall standards of the league.”

Aside from expanding their own reach, the USL has also played a major role in player development. In 2013, the USL formed a partnership with MLS to increase the growth of player development in the United States and Canada. Through the partnership, the MLS Reserves League was phased out, giving way to affiliate agreements between USL and MLS clubs that benefited both leagues.

“The USL has gained some quality clubs and some tremendous players coming from MLS,” said USL President Jake Edwards. “We’ve been out to pioneer this unique structure that has been attempted in other countries and has not managed to succeed but we’ve been able to make it a success on both ends.”

Republic FC has benefited first-hand from the USL and MLS partnership. Throughout the affiliate partnership between Republic FC and the San Jose Earthquakes over the past three years, multiple players such as Adam Jahn, Tommy Thompson and Mark Sherrod have successfully passed through

BY EIRA CASTILLO

“We want to help build the future of the game, the infrastructure of it and create the next wave of professionals.”

USL: GROWING T HE GAME

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the ranks of the USL side. The affiliate agreement has had a positive impact on and off the field for both clubs, creating a connection between fans and loan players with local ties, and also helping those players get crucial development minutes they otherwise would not have received in MLS.

The L.A. Galaxy was the first club to announce their own USL club with the creation of L.A. Galaxy II in 2014. The club reached the USL playoffs that year, sparking interest from other clubs. Today, there are 11 MLS-owned and operated clubs in the USL as well as nine affiliate relationships.

“For MLS teams it’s been a tremendous success,” said Edwards. “It affords them the opportunity to have some of their best players to play in the highest competition outside of their own league. They’re playing in front of great crowds, quality stadiums and competing for a championship.”

The USL not only works to build the American soccer pyramid through their own growth and partnership with MLS, but also has had a significant impact in the development of players from the amateur level through the Premier Development League (PDL). The league gives more than 2,000

elite amateur players across the country a chance to play at the highest level outside of the professional divisions.

This has become an important stepping-stone for young players looking to make the jump into the professional ranks of the sport with 70 percent of MLS draftees having played in the PDL. Currently there are more than 150 players in the MLS with PDL experience and nearly 300 in the USL. Former PDL players on Republic FC’s current roster include JJ Koval, Max Alvarez, Agustin Cazarez, Cameron Iwasa, James Kiffe, Alfonso Motagalvan, Joaquin Rivas, Chase Minter, Matt LaGrassa and loan player Adam Jahn.

“We’re also building academies and youth development programs,” said Edwards. “We want to help build the future of the game, the infrastructure of it and create the next wave of professionals.”

The USL’s commitment to both the PDL and their partnership to MLS are a testament to the league’s long-term growth strategies, both in terms of horizontal growth in expansion and vertical development growth.

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SACRAMENTO REPUBLIC FCACADEMY

TO HOST OPEN TRYOUTS IN MAYOn May 5, 6 and 9 Sacramento Republic FC’s U-14, U-16 and U-18 Academy teams will hold open

tryouts at Cosumnes River College for their 2016-17 U.S. Soccer Development Academy season.

Tryouts are open to boys born in the years 1998 to 2002, with a registration fee of $100. The U-14 tryout session will take place from 4-5:30 p.m. and the U-16 and U-18 tryouts will run from 6-7:30 p.m. on each day of tryouts. All participants are expected to attend all three sessions of the tryouts.

Launched last year, Sacramento Republic FC’s Academy has seen a standout inaugural season in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy, with all three current teams in a position to qualify for the postseason.

“Our Academy program will be part of a bigger implementation for our strategic player development system and commitment to grow the sport in the Sacramento region,” said Republic FC President Warren Smith on the program’s launch in February 2015.

With four or more training sessions per week, in addition to season matches and tournaments running from September to early July of each year, Sacramento Republic FC provides Academy players with an elite training environment. This elite training program is designed to develop youth players so they might advance to college and professional careers. The ultimate goal of the Academy is to develop players that will eventually play for Republic FC’s first team or represent the United States at a national level.

“We want to develop players for our first team, develop players for the national team and also develop players to be good college players so that these players will have a place to play somewhere,” explained Academy Director Rod Underwood.

To-date, five Republic FC Academy players have also received call ups to represent the United States on a youth national team. U-13/14s midfielder Roberto (Nicholas) Hategan, U-15/16s forward Shaft Brewer and U-17/18s defender Nabilai Kibunguchy all received national team call-ups this month. Additionally, U-15/16s goalkeeper Mason Finnell was called to U.S. U-15 Boys’ National Team Camp last November and U-17/18s defender David Burns earned a camp call-up in January.

A key feature of the Academy is that it’s a fully-funded development program for players, meaning there are no season costs for Republic FC Academy players. As a result, all coach and player fees, travel costs, food and other dues typically associated with elite levels of athletic competition are fully covered by Republic FC.

Those interested in participating in open tryouts for a Sacramento Republic FC Academy team must preregister on SacRepublicFC.com and are expected to attend all three days of the tryout. Registered participants should bring a signed waiver, water, a ball, cleats and sporting attire, including shin guards.

After open tryouts, select players will be invited back to additional tryouts in the following weeks. Players selected to join an Academy team will begin training in August and play against a variety of other U.S. Academy teams, including MLS Academy teams, beginning in September.

To learn more about Sacramento Republic FC’s Academy or to register for tryouts, please visit SacRepublicFC.com

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NONPROFITOF THE MATCH:

Sacramento Republic FC is proud to award the first-ever Glory Glory Sacramento Fund grant to the Sacramento Regional Conversation Corps (SRCC).

“The Corp provides not only critical educational resources, but also provides youth leadership training to one of the most underserved groups in our community,” said Republic FC Executive Vice President and Co-Founder Joe Wagoner. “With this grant, these young adults—many of which who would rarely have the opportunity receive a second chance elsewhere— will receive critical training, education and job skills.”

Founded in 1984, SRCC was created to provide at-risk young adults ages 18-25 with an opportunity to succeed beyond their circumstances. SRCC strives to enrich the lives of its Corpsmembers by providing a development program that integrates education, job skills training and work experience on conservation projects and service opportunities.

Corpsmembers are offered education, paid work experience, job placement and an overall support system to help them move forward, and start a new life. They also receive various work-training opportunities through contracts with local governments and private companies.

“Our goal is tear down the barriers that stand between our young men and women and their success,” said De Mers. “Our four biggest barriers are food, transportation, day care and housing. The grant will help us fund programs that will help with transportation and offset costs for food. We also hope that this will bring other partners to the table to work collectively with us and with the youth to further break down these barriers.”

Republic FC’s Glory Glory Sacramento Fund, in partnership with the Sacramento Region Community Foundation, was announced in April 2016. The Fund was created to celebrate local nonprofits who embody an indomitable spirit and help them continue their mission of creating a better place to live, work and play in the Sacramento region.

Applications for the Glory Glory Sacramento Fund are being accepted until Sunday, May 15, 2016. For more information or to submit an application, visit sacrepublicfc.com/community/glory-glory-sacramento.

Republic FC fans who would like to make a tax-deductible donation to the Sacramento Regional Conversation Corps may do so by visiting SacRepublicFC.com.

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THE BEAUTIFUL GAMEHILLSBOROUGH: 96 IS MORE THAN A NUMBER

A LOOK INTO THE HILLSBOROUGH DISASTER AND THE JOURNEY TO THE HISTORIC JURY VERDICT.

April is a month that will forever live on in Liverpool FC and football memory.

Twenty-seven years ago this month, 96 football fans were crushed and trampled to death, hundreds more injured and thousands traumatized at an FA Cup semifinal match between Liverpool FC and Nottingham Forest FC.

Hillsborough Stadium was no longer a place were fans came to enjoy football; it became the name of a tragedy too shocking and tragic to perhaps ever fully comprehend. The Hillsborough Disaster sent shockwaves through the United Kingdom and the world, fundamentally changing how fans watched the beautiful game.

However, the biggest impact the disaster had was undeniably on the victims’ families and survivors of the disaster. For more than a quarter century, a back-and-forth battle raged on towards establishing whether or not the tragedy was an accident or something more. For years, Liverpool FC supporters were portrayed as directly contributing to the events that resulted in the tragic loss of life.

The disaster extends far and beyond loss of life; there are dozens of survivors who suffered-life changing injuries, while post-traumatic stress syndrome and high suicide rates are an all too-common reality among those who survived.

For both survivors and families of the victims’, there will never be true closure. There is no going back for something as life changing as that fateful April day. However, a hope existed that the truth behind what occurred that fateful day would one day be recognized.

Finally, on a Tuesday in April, 27 long years later, a form of resolution for Liverpool FC fans, the club and victims, arrived. A jury in Sheffield, England finally delivered a long-awaited verdict: the fans who died in the tragedy were unlawfully killed.

The Hillsborough Disaster was not an accident, and even more importantly, Liverpool FC fans had not “caused or contributed to the dangerous situation.”

“It has been a painful journey for the families and survivors, who have endured and sacrificed so much for so long,” said Liverpool FC Chief Executive Officer Ian Ayre in a statement in response to the jury’s verdict. “The resilience and dignity they have shown throughout their tireless campaign has been humbling and inspirational. Their conduct and actions throughout their struggle has brought pride to the city of Liverpool and will serve as a lasting tribute to the victims.”

In the longest jury trial in British history, the jury found there was “gross negligence” by the police, including critical errors in planning and execution of the security plan for the match. Additionally, they found that there were flaws in the stadium design that contributed to the tragedy.

The journey to the jury’s determinations at the Hillsborough inquests has been long and slow for families of the victims and survivors. While the nightmares of the Hillsborough disaster will never go away, at last, this week’s verdict opens up a new path on this long journey towards transparency, change and healing.

While April will still be a month that haunts Liverpool FC, with this month’s verdict, it also becomes a paradox. There will always be unspeakable grief and pain, but with the recent verdict, April will also come to symbolize the courage, resilience and determination of all those affected by the Hillsborough tragedy.

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