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Just For Kicks
MICHELLE Akers, the heart and soul of the 1999 U.S. Women's World Cup champions, is expected to be out of action for three months. Dislocated shoulder
KOs AkersAkers dislocated her right shoulder falling after a collision with a goalkeeper during a training match last Sunday.
An MRI indicted she suffered a "SLAP lesion" meaning the biceps anchor was pulled off the insertion point in her shoulder and the joint capsule of the shoulder was loose.
Akers, 34, was scheduled for arthroscopic surgery this week.
The normal rehabilitation period is three months, indicating a July return to full-time training and giving her 2 1/2 months of training and games to prepare for the 2000 Olympics.
"This is definitely a bummer," said Akers. "But I am confident that the recovery will go quickly. I am shooting to return as soon as possible and be fit and ready for the Olympics."
During her stellar career, Akers, a center midfielder, has scored 104 goals in 147 matches for the U.S. National Team.
Akers originally separated her right shoulder against Russia in Rochester, N.Y., on Sept. 18, 1998.
She reinjured the shoulder in a bizarre incident during the 1999 Women's World Cup in Foxboro, Mass. She was circling the field and high-fiving fans after the victory when a fan grabbed her hand, pulling her off her feet and popping her shoulder out of joint.
The injury last weekend was the first time she had dislocated the shoulder.
Briana Scurry, U.S. Women's National Team goalkeeper, could make history Saturday.
If she plays against Iceland at Charlotte, N.C., Scurry would be the first U.S. goalkeeper to reach the 100 cap plateau.
Scurry has 99 appearances since making her international debut March 16, 1994, in a 5-0 win over Portugal.
She is the team's all-time goalkeeper appearance leader and holds team records for victories (79) and shutouts (54).
She will be the 11th player in team history to reach 100 caps.
The Americans beat Iceland, 8-0, last night in a closed-door match at Davidson College.
TWO events held in conjunction with the Hawaii Olympic Development Program state trials last week were successful.
Hawaii is just the second state to hold a USSF/NSCAA Goalkeeper Coach Clinic, a new licensing program.
Thirty one coaches took advantage of the opportunity and were certified by Peter Mellor.
Mellor, the U.S. national teams goalkeeping coach and coordinator, is a former English Premier League 'keeper.
Approximately 250 parents and players attended the Hawaii Youth Soccer Association College Coach Symposium.
Nine college coaches from Hawaii and the mainland discussed a variety of subjects including NCAA rules, how to get recruited, scholarships for college athletes and Title IX-gender equity.
A total of 208 players were deemed to have displayed the talent necessary to receive an invitation to attend Region IV ODP camps on the mainland this summer
The boys' camps will be at Northwest Nazarene College in Nampa, Idaho. The girls' camps are held at the University of Wyoming in Laramie.
The next step for the invitees who decide to attend the camps is coming up with the $1,000 to $1,200 needed for expenses.
The boys invited include 10 Under-18, 20 U-17, 20 U-16, 35 U-15 and 22 U-14.
The girls had 18 U-17, 23 U-16, 22 U-15 and 38 U-14 invited.
Also, there were 34 boys and 20 girls selected from the Under-13 age group. They do not travel to the mainland, but become members of the Hawaii State Pool Team.
