Thank You, Dominic

Maccabi Tel Aviv's U16s beat Maccabi Haifa Nahalal 2-5. The U17s finished in a draw

After the Under-19s kicked off the 2014/15 Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Division season last weekend, they were joined this week by the Under-17s and Under-16s. Mid-week the Under-16s closed matchweek 1 of the nationwide U16 League South with their first victory of the season against FC Matnas Gan Yavne . Yesterday (Saturday), in matchweek 2, head coach Shlomi Mitelka's lads made it two on the trot with a2-5 away win against Maccabi Haifa Nahalal. Yarin Sharavi, Neil Goldberg (U19 defender Sean's younger brother) and Guy Dahan all scored before the interval, Eden Kratzev and Ofek Balas added in the second half.

The Under-17s, Maccabi Tel Aviv "Oded", opened their 2014/15 season at home against Maccabi Petach Tikva. Head coach Eliezer Ben Aharon's charges were unsuccessful in breaking through the hosts' defences and finished matchweek 1 of the national U17 Premier League in a goalless draw. In matchweek 2 next week, "Oded" will make the short trip to municipal neighbours Bnei Yehuda in search of their first victory of the new season.

With the exception of the Under-10s, who begin playing on November 22^nd, all the rest of the Maccabi Youth Division teams will kick off their seasons in October, with the Under-15s scheduled for October 11^th and the rest on October 25^th.

Maccabi Tel Aviv's U16s beat Maccabi Haifa Nahalal 2-5. The U17s finished ...

Six Maccabi Under-17 stars were capped for the national side for the prestigious "Four Nations" tournament in Germany

Only days after six Maccabi U19 players featured in the national side that reached the finals of the prestigious international Chela tournament in Serbia, the same number of U17s capped for their country ended a similar tournament in Germany. Bar Galili, Roy Ronen, Eylon Almog, Tomer Altman, Shay Golan and goalkeeper Haviv Ohayon were all called up for Israel's Under-17s for the prestigious "Four Nations" tournament in Germany, in the run-up to the qualifying rounds of the Under-17 European championships.

Israel began the tournament with a goalless draw against their Under-17 counterparts from Italy. Roy Ronen, Tomer Altman, Shay Golan and goalkeeper Haviv Ohayon were all included in the first eleven, Eylon Almog came in off the bench. In their second match Israel lost by a single goal to Holland with all six of Maccabi's Under-17s in on the action and only one, Eylon Almog, as a substitute. The final encounter of the tournament was with eventual winners Germany, and the result was 4-0 in the hosts' favour. Bar Galili, Roy Ronen, Tomer Altman and Shay Golan were all in head coach Alon Hazan's starting eleven, with Eylon Almog once again coming in off the bench.

In approximately one month's time, Israel's national Under-17s will begin their qualifying matches for the European championships, joined in their group by their compatriots from Croatia, Hungary and Kazakhstan.

Six Maccabi Under-17 stars were capped for the national side for the ...

MTA's U-17s are Preparing for the new season at a training camp in germany

Maccabi Tel Aviv's Under-17s are currently training in the town of Hennef, Germany, preparing for the new season. Last season, Maccabi Tel Aviv "Oded" won an impressive league and Cup double, winning the championship twelve points ahead of their closest rivals and claiming the coveted State Cup with a 4-0 victory over Hapoel Petach Tikva. This season the contours of the Under-17 squad consist of last year's Under-15s, who also won last year's league championship and were only denied their own league and Cup double by time added on in the U15 State Cup finals.

In the games played in the training camp thus far, Maccabi Tel Aviv's U-17s have already overcome the B side of Bundesliga stalwarts Borussia Mönchengladbach. Their most impressive victory was achieved yesterday, against the Under-17s of another Bundesliga side, Bayer Leverkusen. Two players who stood out in last year's Under-15 team, defender Guy Aviv and midfielder Matan Hozez, provided the goals (Aviv a brace) and helped their team score a 3-2 victory.  Under the watchful eyes of head coach Ziv Arie and his assistant Eran Golan, "Oded" will play another match at training camp before returning to Israel at the end of the week. The nationwide U-17 League South will get underway on September 1st, with Maccabi Tel Aviv playing a difficult away game against Hapoel Be'er Sheva.

MTA's U-17s are Preparing for the new season at a training camp ...

Along with Maccabi's U19s, the club's U17s and U16s also kicked off their 2012/13 season

Last season, Maccabi Tel Aviv's Under-17s dominated football in their age group with a highly impressive league and cup double, and their new season has already got off to an encouraging start. Head coach Ziv Arie's charges began their campaign away against one of last season's most persistent rivals, Hapoel Beer Sheva, but made light work of them in a 0-7 rout. Yonatan Cohen, who netted 39 last season for the U16s, opened his season 2012/13 account with a goal, while Guy Aviv, also one of last season's U16 stars, contributed a brace. Raz Itzhak provided a further effort but the rest was the result of a hat-trick by recent arrival from Nesher FC, Sohil Armeli. Next week the Under-17s will welcome their counterparts from Hapoel Rishon Lezion.

A second of MTA's Youth Division champions last season, the Under-16s, also kicked off their 2102/13 campaign today, but with a far less encouraging result. Playing away to Maccabi Petach Tikva, Maccabi Tel Aviv "Eli Fuchs" conceded goals on either side of the half without scoring themselves and finished at the losing end of a 2-0 scoreline. Next week the Under-16s will have the opportunity to get back on track as they take on municipal rivals Hapoel Tel Aviv for an early season derby.   

Along with Maccabi's U19s, the club's U17s and U16s also kicked off ...

Matchweek 2 for the U16s and U17s. A second victory for the latter and a close-run derby for the former

The 2012/13 season for Maccabi Tel Aviv's Under-17s could not have got off to a brighter start last week, with a convincing 7-0 win over Hapoel Beer Sheva. This week head coach Ziv Arie's charges welcomed Hapoel Rishon Lezion to the Kiryat Shalom training ground and with a 4-1 victory demonstrated that their matchweek 1 success was no coincidence, and that despite the visitors jumping to an early 0-1 lead. By half-time however Maccabi were already in command, having turned the match around to 2-1 courtesy of a brace by defensive midfielder Guy Aviv, his third and fourth goals in two U17 matches after having joined the squad this year from the Under-16s. Two other squad members who scored against Beer Sheva last week, midfielder Sohil Armeli and striker Yonatan Cohen, were also on the scoreboard this week against Rishon Lezion. For Armeli, who scored Maccabi's third today, it was also his fourth goal of the young season. Cohen sealed the victory seven minutes from time with his second in as many matches. Next week there will be no matches in the nationwide U17 Southern District League, with Maccabi Tel Aviv "Oded" returning to action in a fortnight with a visit to Ashdod FC.

Maccabi Tel Aviv "Eli Fuchs", the club's Under-16s, hosted municipal rivals Hapoel Tel Aviv in the nationwide U16 Central District League for an intriguing derby that ended in a 1-1 draw. Hadar Levi put Maccabi in the lead in the first half, but after the restart Hapoel found an equaliser that saw the two clubs share the points when the match drew to a close. Next week the Under-16s will be looking to register their first victory of the new season when they head out to play Hapoel Ramat Gan .    

Maccabi's U17s suffered their first defeat of the new season, losing 0-1 in a municipal derby to Hapoel Tel Aviv

After opening the league with three consecutive wins to take all nine available points, Maccabi Tel Aviv's Under-17s dropped their first points of the season after losing 0-1 in a municipal derby to Hapoel Tel Aviv. Derbies are always eagerly anticipated matches, whatever the season or age group, and the Under-17 Yellow-against-Red contests are no exception. This derby, played at Maccabi's home ground Kiryat Shalom, attracted a healthy number of spectators, among them members of the senior squad, the club's sports director Jordi Cruyff and first team head coach Oscar Garcia, all of whom came to have a look at Maccabi's next-gen players.

The match itself didn't quite live up to expectations but in typical derby fashion tensions ran high topped off with a dramatic finish. Visitors and municipal archrivals Hapoel Tel Aviv, who also came into the match with nine points from three outings, scored the match's only goal after 36 minutes courtesy of Yoel Abuhatzera, who was left facing an open goal. Maccabi Tel Aviv "Oded" went on the attack to find an equaliser before the break, with Guy Aviv and Matan Hozez breaking down the flanks to provide Yonatan Cohen's repeated attempts on goal, but to no avail. Maccabi kept up the pressure after the break but the visitors' defence held firm. Only in the match's final official minute were the home side provided with a golden opportunity to regain parity. A hand ball in the area by a Hapoel defender saw the ref point at the penalty spot but Yonatan Cohen failed to convert and injury time provided no further joy. Hapoel's single goal handed them all three points and "Oded" dropped their first points of the new season. They'll try to return to winning ways next week against their counterparts at Maccabi Haifa.     

Maccabi's U17s suffered their first defeat of the new season, losing 0-1 ...

The MTA Youth Division launch a new project unique of its kind in Israel

The Youth Division of Maccabi Tel Aviv continue in their efforts to develop in every possible way the talent of their young players. The most recent step in that direction is the opening of the Football Academy for Under-16s at Mikve Israel. For the 2014/15 season, the Division's Under-16 team will be composed of players from both of last year's Under-15 squads. They'll line up as regular competitors in the U16 Nationwide League South but their training regimes and the terms of their participation will be undergoing a radical change. These have been designed to resemble more closely those common to various clubs in Europe, as Football Academy Manager David Aharonov explains: "Our goal is to attune ourselves to the best youth divisions in Europe. We saw what those big clubs were doing, favouring the academy framework for the youth teams, and we've adapted that framework for here. In Europe those academies operate as boarding schools, where the players sleep and live on the premises throughout the week. Israel is a small country so there's no need to keep the youngsters away from their homes for extended periods of time".

The Under-16s will have an entirely different daily routine than the one they've grown accustomed to up until this season, a routine that will include a complete programme of school studies in addition to football training: "The youngsters may not be living here, but they will be here every day from morning until evening. They'll start the day with a school programme that provides them with all the required hours, including reinforcement. After their school hours they'll move on to the training ground at Kiryat Shalom for practice and in the evening they 'll return home by organised transportation".

According to Aharonov, the greatest need being met by the new academy structure is for increased attention to the advancement of the young players and the improvement of their abilities in every respect: "The biggest upgrade for the players themselves will be expressed in the increased number of training units they'll be receiving, nine instead of five, including not only regular and fitness training but also lectures on tactics which represent the theoretical units of training. Part of the benefit is also providing regular and proper meals, private tutors and the fact that the lads will be spending all day in a focused environment. We also discovered the need to see the kids eating properly every day, practising twice a day together and conducting their lives in a professional manner in general".

It's no coincidence that the Under-16s were chosen for this unique project: "In the younger teams there's still a very large turnover in players so a project like this is simply not suitable. The Under-16s are already going into Year 10 at secondary and the chances that they'll stay with the project are much greater. These are players poised to enter their professional phase, the senior team level, and this setup can be of enormous help to their development".

Aharonov stresses the point by explaining the importance of the project to the players themselves: "As our sports psychologist explained, the most important thing for the players is a change in their perceptions. They perceive themselves as professionals, they see how much the club are investing in them and their perceptions change in accordance. Every aspect of their training takes on a different meaning, more professional". At the Youth Division the project is being seen as a long-term affair, with new Under-16 squads entering the Academy each year: "This is the Division's flagship project and the club also understand its importance, witness the substantial funding the project has been given. We all believe strongly in the success of the Under-16 Academy project and we'll be assessing it over a long period of time".         

The MTA Youth Division launch a new project unique of its kind ...

Maccabi's U15s to U17s all played this weekend. The Under-17s won, the Under-16s once again finished in a draw

After last week's disappointing loss to municipal rivals Hapoel Tel Aviv, Maccabi's Under-17s returned this weekend to winning ways with a handsome 0-3 away win at Maccabi Haifa. After a goalless first half, Maccabi's Under-17 international Guy Aviv opened the scoring in the second half with his fifth goal of the season. The one-goal margin remain unchanged until the dying moments of the match but then Omer Priov and Effi Tal both scored their maiden goals of the season. The victory puts Maccabi Tel Aviv "Oded" in third place in the national Under-17 League South, three points shy of league leaders Hapoel Tel Aviv. The Under-17s will be on international break until the end of the month, when they will return to host Beitar Jerusalem.

Maccabi's Under-16s hosted a strong Hapoel Beer Sheva side and held them to a goalless draw. The match was a balanced affair, with both sides seeking the winning goal but failing in the effort. This is the fourth draw for head coach Eliezer Ben Aharon's team, who will be looking for a second season victory in two weeks' time at Section Nes Tziona.

Results among Maccabi's two Under-15 teams were mixed. Team 2 became the division's second team to be beaten in a municipal derby after losing 4-2 away to Hapoel Tel Aviv, bringing their league results from three matchweeks to one win, one loss and one draw. Next week they'll host Hapoel Rishon Lezion in the hope of adding another "tick" to the win column. Team 1, Maccabi Tel Aviv "Eldad", registered their first victory of the young season, and in impressive fashion, with a 5-0 victory over Bnei Eilat. Omer Lakou scored a brace, Ofri Mashta, Maor Bakar and Shay Golan added on.

Next weekend the U10s to U14s will join their older counterparts in league competition, with ten Maccabi youth teams joining the fray.  

Maccabi's U15s to U17s all played this weekend. The Under-17s won, the ...

MTA's U17s returned to league duties triumphantly. The U16s booked their second consecutive victory

After a three week international break Maccabi Tel Aviv's Under-17s returned to league commitments with an away tie against Beitar Jerusalem that was anticipated to be anything but easy. But "Oded" were up to the task and finished the match at the better end of a 0-2 scoreline. Yonatan Cohen scored his fifth goal of the season and captain Dan Glazer finished off the scoring late on with his second goal in six league matches. The win leaves Maccabi Tel Aviv "Oded" third in the nationwide Under-17 South table, one point behind municipal rivals Hapoel Tel Aviv and league leaders Hapoel Ra'anana.

Maccabi's Under-16s registered their second consecutive victory with a 4-3 win against Beitar Tel Aviv. "Eli Fuchs" already led 3-1 at half-time courtesy of a brace by Tomer Altman and an individual effort by Ezra Hanna. Just after the restart Maccabi's Raz Yitzhak made it 4-1 but Beitar then got back into the match by scoring two goals of their own, providing for a nail-biting finish.

This Saturday's results for Maccabi's two Under-15 teams were less encouraging. Team 1, Maccabi Tel Aviv "Eldad", headed off for a difficult away tie against nationwide Under-15 Central District League leaders Ashdod FC and returned empty handed after losing 1-0. Team 2 hosted second-placed Bnei Yehuda and walked away at the losing end of a 0-3 scoreline.

Unfortunately, "Eldad" were not the only Maccabi youth team to lose at the hands of FC Ashdod.  The Under-14 Team South were also defeated by their southern coastal hosts 2-1. Team North also headed south but they fared much better, registering a third win in their first three league matches with a 1-2 win against Hapoel Beer Sheva. The Under-13 Team North were also victorious against their Hapoel Beer Sheva rivals , beating them 4-2, while Team South's tie against Bnei Yehuda ended in a goalless draw, the only draw of the Youth Division's weekend fixtures. The Under-12 team North lost 4-2 to their municipal rivals Hapoel Tel Aviv in the first of two derbies played on Saturday, while Team South excelled in a 13-5 romp against Ironi Modi'in.

Maccabi's younger teams all won their encounters on Saturday. The Under-11 Team North also reached double figures in beating Hapoel Ramat Gan 11-5 while Team South triumphed by the more modest but still convincing margin of 5-1 in Saturday's second derby against Hapoel Tel Aviv. There were also goals galore in the Under-10 Team North's 8-3 rout of Hapoel Ramat Gan but Team South were the Youth Division's biggest winners of all, shooting 16 goals past Sektia Nes Tsiona while conceding just one goal at the other end.            

MTA's U17s returned to league duties triumphantly. The U16s booked their second ...

Another victory for MTA's U17s helped them to hold on to their position near the top of their table, while the U16s won in Jerusalem

Nearly all the teams in the Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Division registered wins a week before the youth leagues enter a break until the 1^st of December. The Under-17s maintained their perfect away record with a fifth consecutive win on the road, a convincing 0-5 victory at Hapoel Ramat Gan. Guy Aviv and Yonatan Cohen both scored their sixth goal of the season while Eliel Peretz and Matan Hozez both opened their seasonal scoring accounts with a goal apiece. Omer Priov added the team's fifth. The win means that there are no changes at the top of the nationwide Under-17 League South, with Maccabi Tel Aviv "Oded" still in third place a point behind second-placed Hapoel Tel Aviv and league leaders Hapoel Ra'anana.

Maccabi Tel Aviv's Under-16s continue to improve their form with a third consecutive victory, a 0-3 away win at Beitar Jerusalem. In doing so they passed their hosts in the nationwide Under-16 South table and now share the fifth spot with municipal rivals Hapoel Tel Aviv. After the break, Maccabi Tel Aviv "Eli Fuchs" will host Ironi Kiryat Gat.

The Under-15s, Maccabi Tel Aviv "Eldad", registered their third win in six league matches with an impressive 5-1 victory over Gadna Tel Aviv. Omer Lakou scored a brace while Ofri Mashta and Or Shimon contributed individual goals. Maccabi's fifth came through an own goal. "Eldad" will return from the break to a derby with municipal rivals Hapoel Tel Aviv. Maccabi's Under-15 Team 2 booked their second draw of the season, 3-3 against Ironi Bat Yam, with Gal Sandrovitch contributing a brace and Amit Cohen adding on.     

Another victory for MTA's U17s helped them to hold on to their ...