Theotine "Theo" Ulysse Dardar
June 23, 2009
Diana Benoit Toms
June 25, 2009
Thibodaux has never been a breeding ground for soccer supremacy, but the Thibodaux Soccer Association just finished one of the greatest seasons in its three years of existence thanks to the Thibodaux United Division I U12 girls’ soccer team.
The team placed fifth in the Louisiana All-State Sugar Bowl Regionals, which enabled them to advance to be among the Top Eight teams at the Louisiana All-State Sugar Bowl Finals in Shreveport.
There, they also finished fifth, making the Thibodaux squad the fifth-ranked team in the state in the Under 12 Division I level, losing on a penalty kick shootout after being tied through regulation and one overtime period.
“When you say fifth place, it might not sound exciting but it’s very exciting for us,” head coach and Thibodaux Soccer Association president Rick Rosado said. “One of the real exciting things was this was really a put-together team of 9-, 10- and 11-year-olds in an 11-year-old age bracket. We really did well and the kids had a great time.”
Considering the team was assembled a little over a year ago, their achievements take on a greater meaning – they had put Thibodaux soccer on a competitive stage it had not been on before.
The team was put together last April, according to Rosado. He was coaching a U10 team and he wanted to play in the Strawberry Cup in Hammond but didn’t have enough players to do it. So, he asked two of the other coaches if they had players that would be interested in doing it.
The coaches obliged and sent a few players to play with Rosado.
Being the team was a union of three soccer teams, the only fitting name for the team would be the Thibodaux United.
“We had a total of 14 girls, went to play in the Strawberry Cup and lost every game. We did horribly,” Rosado admitted. “But the girls are really committed, so we practiced through the summer and we had a guy Winston Lewis from Carrolton who held tryouts for us.”
At the tryouts, 19 girls showed up to compete for 14 spots. Even after the tryouts, the team was filled with 14 girls who were originally on the team from the beginning.
“The girls were focused all summer long and practiced in the fall,” he added. “They went to a Major League Soccer camp. They participated in the camp as a team. We played the season as a Division I team.”
Team members are Callie Authement, Eryn Brannagan, Brigitte’ Bourgeois, Hanna Brignac, Maggie Brignac, Caroline Cruse, Ashlynn Folse, Adrien Gautreaux, Skyler Guillot, Annie Knight, Mallory Marse, Milre Matherne, Julia Richard and Grace Rosado. Coaches Rosado, Dennis Guillot, Coby Brignac, Jason Folse and Jeff Matherne all took part in their first tournament together in Madeville for the Midnight Madness Tournament.
They brought home first place. The team followed that up with a third place finish in the Tabasco Cup and a fifth place finish in their second attempt at the Strawberry Cup, a far cry from last year’s last place finish.
“The girls tasted success and realized they had the opportunity to do well,” Rosado said. “We played in seven tournaments and in almost every tournament we didn’t come out less than fifth.”
Also during the season, the girls were able to be ball girls for several of the LSU Lady Tigers’ soccer games.
Rosado hopes to use the success of the United as a recruiting tool to garner more interest in the Thibodaux Soccer Association. One of the advantages is that there are only two soccer associations in the area – the Houma Soccer Association and Lafourche Soccer Association – besides the Thibodaux Association.
Since its inception three years ago, the Thibodaux Soccer Association has consistently grown in membership. In its inaugural year, 450 children were in the league. Today the number has jumped to 550.
In the aftermath of the success of the Thibodaux United, Rosado is hoping that number jumps even higher next year.
“The blessing is that there are three soccer associations in the area,” Rosado said. “And soccer is becoming more and more popular. It’s still not nearly as popular as the other sports but one of the things we do is not make the kids choose. We encourage them to play other sports as well.”
Now comes the tough task of figuring out the future of the team. With some of the girls moving up to U13, Rosado will know towards the end of the year where the team stands.
“The team got broken up,” he said. “We’re putting out a Division I tryout letter to all the kids. Based on those numbers we are going to either go up to U13 or make another team or stay back in U12 and see if we can play again in that level. It’s not as established in Thibodaux as much as we would like it to.”
“This was a true Cinderella story,” he added. “We kept telling the girls, ‘A dream is a goal with a deadline.’ Our deadline was the State Cup, to do well, and it really paid off. I know fifth is not first but for a first year running, fifth is a great spot to be in.”
The Thibodaux United Division I U12 soccer team recently finished fifth at the All State Sugar Bowl State Tournament in Shreveport. Team members are (bottom row from left to right): Brigitte’ Bourgeois, Caroline Cruse, Callie Arcement, Eryn Brannagan, Julia Richard, Maggie Brignac, Adrien Gautreaux. Middle Row: Hanna Brignac, Annie Knight, Milre Matherne, Grace Rosado, Mallory Marse, Ashlynn Folse, Skyler Guillot. Top Row: Asst. Coach Coby Brignac, Asst. Coach Jeff Matherne, Head Coach Rick Rosado, Asst. Coach Jason Folse and Asst. Coach Dennis Guillot. * Photo courtesy of THIBODAUX UNITED SOCCER
