Women’s Intermediate Soccer Fall 2014 Set to Kick Off

It may have been a long ten weeks for the teams, but the women of the Guam Football Association Intermediate 7-A-Side Recreational League will be back on the pitch in the league’s second edition beginning Sunday at the GFA National Training Center.

At the end of the league’s pilot season in June, the Queen Cobras’ Angel Dydasco said she was relieved for the break, but at the same time, looked forward to the next season, which is now in just a few days.

“I really enjoyed playing in the intermediate league,” Dydasco said in June. “I played with Pika Soccer Club about three years ago in the women’s competitive division, but had to stop because of a heel injury. When GFA started the Soccer Moms League, I decided to play again to get back into the sport and after, I decided to play in the intermediate league, too. It’s considered a recreational league, but we’re still playing against some younger and competitive players, so it’s a good workout.

“It was also great seeing more women come out to play. I was able to get my sister and daughter to play, too,” added the Agat resident.

The upcoming league will feature seven teams – Femme Fatale, Lady Bombers, Island Eye Specialists/Lasik Eye-Landers, Queen Cobras, Pika SC, Heat Wave, and Sonic Boom. Teams will play in a single round-robin format, with no league standings or statistics officially recorded. Each match will feature two 25-minute halves and played on smaller-sized pitches on United Airlines Field 2 and United Airlines Field 3. The Intermediate League is the third adult league added to GFA’s women’s program after the Soccer Moms League was created. Before the Intermediate and the Soccer Moms leagues, women only had the option to play for a limited number of teams in the Bud Light Women’s Soccer League, which features many current and former national team players.

“After playing soccer in both middle school and high school, I wanted to continue to play, but I didn’t know how to sign up with a team,” said Jules Delos Reyes of the Eye-Landers after the league’s pilot season. “I had gone through GFA at first but didn’t get a reply from any of the teams, so I figured their rosters were all full and stopped playing. When the intermediate league came up, some women with kids playing for the (ASC Trust) Islanders, the same club that my nephew plays for, were talking about putting a team together and they asked me if I wanted to play.

“It’s great to be back into the sport, I’m glad I got back in it. I’ve met a lot of new people through the league and it was fun. If there could be any improvement (from the pilot season), I am hoping that there will be official league standings and maybe even playoffs. A lot of teams in the league played aggressively and many matches seemed more competitive rather than just recreational,” Delos Reyes added.

Sunday’s intermediate league action begins at 4:15 p.m. with six teams playing in the first round. Femme Fatale will play the Lady Bombers and the Eye-Landers will face off against the Queen Cobras. The other match of the day will feature Pika SC against the Heat Wave. Sonic Boom receives a bye for the first round.

A full schedule is available online at www.guamfa.com/all-leagues-womens-7-a-side-results

For more information about the league or upcoming women’s soccer programs, contact GFA Women’s Administrator Grace Martinez at 637-4321 or send an E-mail to [email protected].