MISL 2 Milwaukee Wave

Americans Have New Faces Set to Defend 2004 Gold Medal

May 29, 2008 - Major Indoor Soccer League 2 (MISL 2)
Milwaukee Wave News Release


GUATEMALA CITY, GUATEMALA (May 29, 2008) - Keith Tozer's U.S. national futsal team opened training in Guatemala City today as it prepares to defend its CONCACAF gold medal. The 12-man roster has just two holdovers from the side that won that tournament in Costa Rica in 2004 - Jamar Beasley and goalkeeper Nick Vorberg. That group went on to finish seventh at the FIFA Futsal World Cup in Chinese Taipei. Yet Head Coach Keith Tozer said while the roster has changed, the focus remains the same. "For us to be successful here, it's going to be very similar to teams prior," Tozer said. "We have to be successful with our defense." Though inexperienced, the squad is not without accomplished players. Denison Cabral just won the Most Valuable Player award in the Major Indoor Soccer League Championship Final, as he led the Baltimore Blast to the title. Beasley was the 2006-07 MVP of the MISL after leading the league in scoring. Pat Morris was a defender of the year in the MISL in 2004-05. They are among five players on this roster who led the U.S. to a 3-1-1 record at the Pan American Games last summer in Brazil. Others are futsal rookies, such as target player Mike Apple, defender Ptah Myers and Sandre Naumoski. They all participated in a training trip to Brazil in early May, but that's about the extent of their experience in the game. They will have the additional benefit of two exhibitions games, at noon local time on Friday and Saturday against teams to be determined. "A lot of these guys, they will get better in the games, because they haven't played much futsal," Tozer said. Cabral, who grew up playing the game from an early age in his native Brazil, said: "We have a great group of guys, everybody's excited. We did a great job down in Brazil and we're looking forward to this CONCACAF tournament." The U.S. opens play in Group B on Tuesday at noon local time (2 p.m. EST) against Haiti. Panama follows on June 4 and Costa Rica on June 5, also both at noon. The semifinals are June 7 with the finals on June 8. Three teams from the CONCACAF region will qualify for the 2008 World Cup in Brazil, Sept. 30-Oct. 19.

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