ANB Academy Futbol triumphant at “Challenge Jean Pingeon”, hosted by Stade Malherbe Caen

May 20, 2011 (RELEASE) --

The ANB Academy performed extremely well in the prestigious 2011 edition of the “Challenge Jean Pingeon”, hosted by the professional Ligue 1 club, SM Caen. The ANB Academy U-13 team, consisting of 1998 & 1999 born boys, travelled to Caen, Normandy, in the north-west area of France, to spend one week at the formation centre and participate in the weekend tournament.

A total of 32 teams were represented in the U-13 division of the tournament, 17 of them being from French professional club youth academies. ANB Futbol Academy finished 3rd in their group with a record of 4 wins, 1 tie and 2 losses, scoring 10 goals and conceding only 2. In the playoff round, the team finished with 1 win and 2 ties securing 9th place overall in the tournament.

The team’s achievement was highly recognized and their style of play was praised by all who saw the games. The player’s technical ability showed that, through proper training, Canadian players can be on par with their French counterparts. Respect for the team was evidenced by many local press reports, both on television and in the newspapers. The group was congratulated for their efforts and their results, with several professional clubs supposedly interested in following the players’ development over the next few years.

“We knew we would do better than last year, since the players and their coaches had the experience learned from 2010. The team has been training 4 times per week over the last 5 months in preparation for the 9 vs. 9 tournament and our pre-tournament exhibition game in France showed we have come a long way, beating the local competition easily. We will continue our communication with the club (SM Caen) to establish a long-term relationship. Overall, we are very proud of the boys and their commitment to the Academy’s vision,” said Academy Director, Bassam Naim.

The tournament was won by SC Bastia, who beat SM Caen 1 in penalty shots. Plans are already taking place to have The ANB Academy attend the tournament again in 2012.

U-13 Pool A : Paris SG, SCO Angers, Toulouse FC, SM Caen 2, AS Pierrefitte, Bayeux FC, Côte-des-Iles, US Thaon

U-13 Pool B : AJ Auxerre, Stade Rennais, Sélection Guadeloupe, SC Bastia, USON Mondeville, ASPTT Caen, Caen OS, AF Vire

U-13 Pool C : FC Metz, AS Nancy, AS Bondy, Le Havre AC, CA Lisieux, Sélection Canada (ANB Futbol Academy), SC Hérouville, LC Bretteville-sur-Odon

U-13 Pool D : SM Caen 1, FC Lorient, ES Troyes, Vannes OC, US Alençon, AS Ifs, FC Saint-Lô, AST Deauville

ANB academy's vision is to become Canada’s leading soccer development organization. Its mission is to identify Canadian soccer talent, and to maximize the potential of players at any level, through professional coaching and training.

For more information on the programs offered by ANB academy, check out our website site at www.anbfutbol.com or by telephone at 905-313-8661 or via e-mail at info@anbfutbol.com