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EAGLE PASS, Texas - A trio of the Rio Grande Valley’s top players, two of which formerly played in the STXPSA Elite U-20 League, traveled to Eagle Pass over the weekend and helped the USL Premier Development League Laredo Heat defeat the Nuevo Laredo Bravos 1-0 and win a four-team tournament.
Defender Reynol Fuentes, midfielder/forward Damián “Niño” López and goalkeeper Juan Gamboa practiced most of last week with the Heat and composed part of this weekend’s starting lineup for Laredo, which has won the PDL Mid-South Division title the past two years in a row.
The former RGV Bravos FC standouts were sponsored by BCP Sports Group and the South Texas Premier Soccer Association (STXPSA), and funneled to the Laredo organization by local Heat scout Miguel Puente.
"It’s great to give these players a chance to play at a higher level with a quality organization like Laredo, and it’s a great opportunity for the players,” said Puente. “The Heat’s head coach Israel Collazo really likes them. He already knew about two of the players when they played with the Bravos in 2009 and Gamboa with UTB.”
In the first-round match, Laredo defeated Eagle Pass 1-0 on Saturday, but lost striker Félix García after he accumulated a pair of yellow cards.
In the other opening-round game, Nuevo Laredo pummeled Ciudad Acuña 18-0. The Bravos play in the Mexican Second Division’s Liga de Nuevos Talentos (New Talent).
Despite the loss of its top scorer, the Heat still managed to edge its border rival Nuevo Laredo in the championship match on a 57th minute goal by Begines on Sunday.
"The Eagle Pass Tournament was beneficial to us because we had the opportunity to see players in game situations that we are looking to add to our club this season," said Heat General Manager J.J. Vela. "The players from the Rio Grande Valley that came up to Laredo and Eagle Pass were a great help to the outcome of both matches. Since we were aware of what they were capable of from a playing capacity, they fit right in with several of the other new players trying out, as well as with the veteran players on the pitch."
The trio of former Bravos FC players may be joined by another small contingent of Valley players, sponsored by the STXPSA and BCP Sports Group, over the next few weeks in the hopes of securing a spot on the Heat’s 26-man roster for the 2011 PDL season.
"It’s a shame that the Valley doesn’t have a model organization like the Laredo Heat," said Puente. "But the Heat knows about the talent of our Valley players, and we are here to help facilitate an opportunity for them. They just have to be willing to work hard, and these guys did. They represented the Valley well."
