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(2/1//2001) Gold Wins Sun Bowl "Group of Death" - Ends Season Ranked #10 In South
Gold had an outstanding performance in the 2000 Sun Bowl in Tampa, winning the "group of death" that included #16 Bethesda, #22 Vardar, St. Giles (S.C. state shamp), and Bear Creek (Texas state runner-up).

Based on its strong season and tournament performance, Gold ended the year ranked #10 in the South by both Ace and National

(11/26/2000) Blue Takes Nike Championship
Blue notched its third tournament championship of the season, winning its bracket in the 2000 Nike Tournament. Blue split its two-game divisional play with a sloppy 5-0 win over Stone Mountain Storm Black and a 1-0 loss to Southwest Cobb YSA Chiefs. Blue racked up a solid 2-0 win in the semi-finals against Clemson Storm White, to set up a rematch with SWCYSA and a chance to avenge the earlier loss.

Just two minutes into the finals, Rob Dellenback put Blue ahead when he took a centering pass from Nate Milton and drilled a shot into the left corner of the goal. The game was tight and very physical until the big turning point 25 minutes later. The Chiefs attacked on a quick counter... when keeper Ryan Basler came out to challenge, the Chiefs' striker chipped it over Basler's head for what appeared to be the leveler... but Chris Roane streaked in front of the Blue goal and poked the ball away before crashing into the near post. Amazingly, Roane was able to walk off the field on his own power, but his spectacular save inspired Blue. Just two minutes later, Chris Deved fired a hot shot that was deflected, but Andy Kite kept the ball alive for Joseph Henry, who struck for Blue's second goal. Blue took complete control in the second half and picked up three more goals from Joseph Henry, Ryan Basler, and Nate Milton.

Blue ended their fall campaign with an outstanding record of 20-3-5, with three tournament championships (Atlanta Cup, Chevrolet Cup, and Nike/Stone Mountain Invitational) and the regular season championship for its Premier division. Blue will advance to Classic play for the fall of 2001.

(11/08/2000) Blue Wins Inaugural Chevrolet Cup
Blue added another tournament championship to its honors, winning the first Chevrolet Cup, sponsored by GYSA. Blue roared through group play, outscoring its opponents in three games by a combined score of 11-1.

The finals pitted Blue against its main division rival - the Henry County Thunder. Henry Co. struck first in the 22nd minute. But Blue came right back with two highlight-reel scores... first at 27, the closely-marked Joseph Henry turned suddenly on his defender and from a near-impossible angle left of the goal, he threaded an 18-yd shot just inside the upper corner of the far post... then at 37, Andrew Shell launched a 40-yd cross from the right midfield and curled it toward the far post, where Rob Dellenback dashed into the box, took the cross on the fly and drilled in a jaw-dropping side volley for the go-ahead 2nd goal. At the 62nd minute, Henry Co. leveled the score at 2, where things stayed for the rest of regulation. In the 7th minute of OT, Nathanial Latoni struck a beautiful, high-arching corner kick and Chris Draper outjumped everyone to nail a spectacular header for the winning 3rd goal. Keeper Chris DeVed preserved Blue's 3-2 win with the save-of-the-year... a perfectly-timed high leap and great one-hand stretch to tip away a rocket shot from the Thunder that was aimed just under the crossbar. For final tournament results and standings, follow the link to the Chevrolet Cup website.

(11/08/2000) Gold Sparkles To Close Out Season In Week 9
Gold finished with a flourish in week 9, polishing off two good wins to nail down second place in its division. On Saturday against GSA, Patrick Ahern started the scoring at 25, muscling past 2 defenders and flicking the ball over the keeper. Then just one minute later, Patrick Ahern fed Matt Housley who blasted a low, far-post missle for a 2-0 halftime lead. At 42, off a Gold corner, Josh Grabel on the far post headed the ball back to the center, where Steven Henderson headed in Gold's 3rd goal. Gold dominated play, but GSA tacked on two meaningless goals late for the 3-2 final.

Sunday's opponent, MNYSA, had led the division for much of the season, and it looked like Gold might be in for a long afternoon when MNYSA took the lead in the 5th minute. But Gold quickly took control with a nifty sequence in the 10th minute, starting with a Winston Garth steal inside the midfield stripe, followed by a one-touch Patrick Ahern pass to Peter Bemisderfer in the box, who slotted an assist for Matt Housley, who ripped a shot inside the far post to knot the score at 1. Four minutes later, Gold took the lead when Matt Housley drilled a PK after being taken down in the box. Gold finished off the first half scoring at 25, when keeper Charles Edwards' long goal kick found Matt Housley behind the GSA defense, and Matt racked up the hat trick for a 3-1 lead. Gold poured it on in the second half, starting with a Patrick Ahern goal, followed with two by Peter Bemisderfer, for a final 6-1 thrashing of MNYSA.

(11/08/2000) Blue Wins... Gold Ties... In Week 8
On Sunday, Blue scored a crucial 5-1 win over the Snellville Stokers. Clifton Rhoad started the scoring with the first of his two scores on the day. Chapman Walsh, Owen Carson, and Rob Dellenback also added goals, as Blue dominated the Stokers throughout. Blue's win over Snellville, along with Roswell Santos' 2-2 tie of Henry County, gave Blue sole possession of first place in the division. Henry County has protested their tie, based on a clerical error on the Santos' game card (jersey number of a Santos' player was different from the number written on the official game card)... the decision of the State's Discipline & Protest committee has not been announced.

Also on Sunday, an injury-depleted Gold team fought the Forsythe Rowdies to a 1-1 tie. Playing with no subs in the second half, Gold took the lead at 77 on a PK by Peter Bemisderfer. But the Rowdies sneaked in the leveler in the final seconds of stoppage time.

(10/23/2000) Clean Sweep For Blue... In Week 7
Blue won back-to-back games in Week 7 to stay in a tie for first place in the division. On Saturday morning, Blue squared off against Roswell Santos and came away 4 -1 winners, with Santos’ only goal coming on a PK. Against Santos, Joseph Henry had his seventh 2-goal game. On Sunday afternoon, Blue faced the Sidekicks from Athens, who struck first and claimed a one-goal lead at halftime. But just seven minutes into the second half, Joseph Henry took a free-kick from 25 yards out and blasted his 20th goal of the season. Blue and Athens swapped goals in the next three minutes to keep the score level. Then Chapman Walsh and Sean Richardson scored at the 32nd and 34th minute, for a 4-2 final score and Blue’s second win of the weekend

(10/20/2000) Gold Wins... Blue Ties... In Week 6
Gold faced a back-to-back weekend in Week 6 with a banged-up roster, but the walking wounded came through with two big wins. In maybe the roughest game of the season, the Saturday opponent - AFC - drew first blood with a goal in the 4th minute, but Scott Preble struck back for Gold at 10 to level the game, then Patrick Ahern broke through in the 2nd minute of stoppage time for Gold's winning goal. Gold's Sunday opponent was RYSA, and although it took a while to get untracked, Gold unleashed an avalanche of goals beginning at 25 with the first of Scott Preble's two. Peter Bemisderfer and Alex Grigalunas also racked up deuces, and Matt Housley notched a goal for a 7-1 romp. Former Blue keeper, Ryan Basler, stepped in for the injured Charlie Edwards and protected Gold's goal well.

Late on Sunday afternoon, Blue traveled to Henry County in a showdown of the division leaders. Blue moved the ball well in the first half and took the lead on Chapman Walsh's goal at 23. But Blue was unable to cash in on many other opportunities they created in the first half. Henry County came out strong in the second half and leveled the game at 48 off a corner kick. The hard-fought game ended tied at 1.

(10/9/2000) Blue Hangs Tough In Hendersonville
Blue held its own in the Hendersonville Classic's "group of death." In its first game, Blue faced the 2000 Tennessee state champs from Tennessee FC in Franklin, and fought them to a scoreless tie. The second game against the scrappy Oakridge Fusion began easily enough with a Blue goal in the first minute... but Oakridge came back and twice took second-half leads. Blue leveled the game for good in the 70th minute for a 3 - 3 tie. The final goal was drilled by Joseph Henry off the rebound from a bicycle-kick by Clifton Rhoad, who also had a goal and another assist. In its third game, Blue faced the 2000 Tennessee runners-up, Hendersonville Fever, on the Fever's home field. Blue fell 2 - 1 in a bruising battle with the powerful Fever, who later gained a measure of revenge for their loss in the state finals to Franklin, defeating them 1 - 0 in the Hendersonville tournament finals.

(10/9/2000) Good Results for Fury Teams in Week 4
The weekend began with Gold's convincing 3 - 0 win against United Quest White on Saturday, followed later in the day by Blue's 4 - 3 come-from-behind win against Arsenal in Augusta. On Sunday, Blue got a bit of a breather with a 5 - 2 romp against South Dekalb Cosmos. Blue's striker, Joseph Henry, logged back-to-back 2-goal games. Gold had dominated their Sunday opponent - Brookwood - in previous meetings, but the Stokers played an inspired game and Gold had to settle for a 1 - 1 tie.

(9/25/2000) Strong Showing by Fury Gold and Blue in Greenville
Fury Gold reached its 3rd consecutive tournament final, losing a hard fought 3-2 game to tournament hosts and champions, St. Giles United. Fury Blue ended its divisional play tied with eventual tournament champs, Clemson Storm Orange, and missed going to the finals by just 1 goal under the "total-goals-scored" tie-breaker rules. Both Gold and Blue were undefeated in divisional play, with identical 2-0-1 records.

Gold's strong play was highlighted by offense - 5 different players combined for 14 goals, including a 6-0 romp in the divisional clincher against Northeast Carolina SA.

Blue relied on a stifling defense that gave up only 1 goal in three games. Among Blue's tournament highlights were Ryan Basler's two complete-game shutouts, and the return of Chris Draper from ACL surgery with a 2-goal performance against the Hungryneck Mutiny. Follow the link to the Fall for Greenville website to get the final scores for the U-16 Boys divisions.

(9/18/2000) Balanced Results For Fury In Week 2
The Fury teams combined in Week 2 for a 1-1-1 record. Fury Blue got the weekend underway with a solid 2-0 win over Gwinnett SA in Lilburn. Joseph Henry racked up a goal in both halves, with assists from Nathanial "X" Latoni. Blue was especially strong in the 2nd half, dominating possession and creating many goal-scoring chances.

Later on Saturday, Gold played its 2nd straight away game against a top opponent - the 2000 Open Cup champs, United Quest Red. These two evenly matched rivals played 80 minutes of exciting soccer that ended in a 0-0 tie. On Sunday, Gold finally returned home but against yet another top-ranked opponent - the U-15 IAYMCA Eagles. Down 1-0 to begin the 2nd half, Gold came out strong and grabbed the lead with early goals by Matt Housley and by Andrew Alexander. But the Eagles answered with two more goals for a 3-2 win.

(9/11/2000) Fury Teams Off To Exciting Start In Week 1
Fury Gold and Blue cranked up the regular season this past weekend with big wins in their opening games. On Saturday, Blue started with a solid 2-0 victory over WGSC Sting at Duluth, with Joseph Henry and Matt Culberson notching goals, and Ryan Basler and Chris DeVed combining for the shutout.

Then on Sunday afternoon, Gold opened with a huge win over its Classic 1 division rivals, Stone Mountain. As usual between these two teams, the game was a tight scoreless contest. But with less than two minutes to go in the game, Gold drew a direct kick from 20 yards, and the real excitement began... the free kick and a follow-up shot barely missed the mark, but as the ball caromed out of the box, Chris Weaver came roaring up to drill the game winner in the upper right corner of the net.

Blue was not to be as fortunate later on Sunday, falling to SMYSA Storm, 4-2. The Storm used its great speed to build a 3-goal lead, but Blue came charging back in the final 6 minutes to cut the deficit to one, with Joseph Henry scoring on a PK and again just four minutes later on an assist from Nate Milton. Blue came close to leveling the score in the game's final minute, but the Storm defense cleared a long ball as everyone in blue had pushed up, and a Storm striker ran free on a breakaway and scored just before the game ended.

(9/5/2000) Fury Blue Wins Atlanta Cup Championship
In its first tournament outing, Fury Blue swept to the U16C Championship of the 2000 Atlanta Cup, beating the Henry County Thunder 2-1. Co-MVP's were Matt Culberson, who led a stingy defense that allowed only one goal from the field for the entire tournament, and Joseph Henry, who scored 5 goals in regulation play - including both goals in the championship game. Both Matt and Joseph also scored on kicks from the mark when Blue's semifinal game against West Gwinnett was reduced to a shootout due to threatening weather. Follow the link to GYSA's website for the U16C Division final standings for the 2000 Atlanta Cup.

(9/5/2000) Fury Gold Reaches Second Consecutive Tournament Finals
Fury Gold followed up its oustanding play in the Lightning Classic by making it to the finals of the tough U16A Division of the Atlanta Cup, losing in a shootout to the Tampa Bay Kickers. Gold clinched the divisional round by crushing local rival Brookwood 5-0, followed by a tough semifinal win over the Largo Wolves. Follow the link to GYSA's website for the U16A Division final standings for the 2000 Atlanta Cup.

(8/28/2000) Fury Gold Streaks To Lightning Finals
Fury Gold made it to the finals of the Lightning Classic (August 18 and 19), losing in a shoot-out with Stone Mountain after the regulation and a double-overtime ended at 1-1. Gold earned their trip to the finals as bracket-champion, racking up twin 3-1 victories over the U15 IAYMCA Eagles and U16 Rockdale YSA team, followed by a 2-2 tie with the U16 Clinton Arsenal (MS).

Against the Eagles, Gold was led by 2 goals from forward Peter Bemisderfer and single tally from outside-mid Chris Jones. The Rockdale game also featured a 2 goal performance by forward Matt Housley, and 1 from outside-mid Ches Montgomery. Center-mid Patrick Ahern had 2 assists, one a perfect give and go with Matt Housley in the box to set up Gold's first goal. Against Arsenal, outside-mid Tyler Davis and Peter Bemisderfer scored for Gold. In the finals, Chris Jones ripped the equalizer to extend the game to overtime and a dramatic finish. -- (Special from reporter Bob Ahern)

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