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Black Watch's Ayah Having Impact

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By NICHOLAS J.E. MURRAY, The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 1, 2007

LAKE BUENA VISTA - Atsouth Ayah began playing soccer 10 years ago in his homeland of Ghana.

Last weekend, Ayah put on the captain's armband for the U.S. national team at Disney's Wide World of Sports.

Granted, the weekend's games were only exhibitions against U.S. Soccer regional teams, but they were an indicator of how far Ayah has come, both in location and ability. A member of the U.S. under-14 national team, he is now following in the footsteps of players like Blake Wagner, Jeremy Hall, Eddie Ababio, Anthony Wallace and Zac MacMath, local players who have all represented the U.S. at the under-17 and under-20 level. For the Black Watch player, and Van Buren middle school student, the weekend was a great experience.

"It is really great to be around great players," Ayah said. "To be the captain is really, really great. It's an honor to wear the captain's armband."

According to under-14 coach Louis Mateus, picking Ayah to be captain was a no-brainer, and watching him play, it's easy to see why. Playing in a defensive midfield role, the 5-foot-6 Ayah has a strong presence on the field, hard in the tackle, yet with excellent passing skills that made him central to the team's easy wins against the Region I and Region II teams.

"He's a big difference in the game," Mateus said. "He's comfortable with the ball, he's comfortable directing people, and I think he's great around the other players. He puts them in the places they need to be, so he feels very comfortable.

"I think part of that is because he's really sure of himself as a soccer player."

A sign of that sureness comes in the attacking third of the field. For a defensive midfielder, Ayah shows an eye for goal. He scored twice in a 4-1 win against Region I, and appearing unafraid to pull the trigger when within shooting range.

"My coach says you have to shoot to get a goal," Ayah said. "Even if things are not going well, you have to shoot the ball to go in the net. That's why I shoot as many times as possible."
Ayah came to Tampa two years ago from Ghana, and began playing for Black Watch soon after. Adapting to the more up-tempo American style of play coming from Africa, where the pace of the game can be more patient, was something he had to adapt to, but has done so quickly.

"There is always a change between how you play here and how you play in Africa," Ayah said. "I had to adapt, but it was really fun. I get to know more players and more people so it's a lot better in that aspect."
Ayah is one of two players from Florida in the 37-player pool called up to the training camp, the other being Gabriel Palermo of Jupiter. Ayah and Palermo came through the Olympic Development program together, and Palermo admires what his teammate brings to the game.

"It's a lot easier for me," Palermo said. "I stick around him and he pulls the ball away from someone and I just go and take it. He does what a defensive midfielder does; I do what an attacking midfielder does. He passes to me, I pass to him and that's why we're winning 5-0, 4-0."

While he shows great maturity on the field, his coaches stress that there are parts of Ayah's game that can be improved, and he intends to do so, most notably his first touch controlling the ball. But Mateus thinks the sky is the limit for a player with Ayah's potential.

"You look for players that have the technical ability," Mateus said, "who can pass the ball, that can play. He has all of those things. He has the physical maturity where he doesn't get pushed off the ball very easily. He's mature. And then you look for the leadership. He communicates well, he's very good with the other players. He demands the other players to do things, he directs players. At this stage it's very difficult to find players that have all those qualities, and he has the majority of those qualities, so it's a great benefit to us."

McConnell Takes 6th At Hunters Creek

Ian McConnell of Riverview finished with a 2-over total of 218 to finish tied for sixth at the Florida Junior Golf Tour's event at Hunters Creek in Orlando.

McConnell opened with a 1-under round of 71 to trail eventual winner Joseph Byun of Lake Mary by four shots, but a second round of 75 put him out of contention before a final round of 72.

Byun finished with a 13-under total of 203 for the three-round event, including a 7-under round of 65 in the final round. It was Byun's second FJT title in November.

Nick Buccina of Tarpon Springs finished tied for 10th with a 6-over total of 222, while Chris Biuso of Temple Terrace played himself out of contention with a second round of 81. Biuso finished 24th with a total of 228.

Biuso is second to Byun in the FJT rankings with 1800 points after four events. The boys under-18 division will resume on December 15-16 with an event at the MetroWest Golf Club in Orlando.

Taylor Hancock of Clearwater finished seventh in the boys under-15 division tournament at Disney's Palm and Magnolia courses, finishing with a total of 227.

Matthew Ceravolo of Palm Beach Gardens took the title with a 6-under total of 210, including a second round of 66. Hancock was in second place entering the second round after an opening round of 72, but fell back as the weekend went on.

Ryan Ashburn of Seminole finished second in the girls under-15 event, also held at Disney, with a total of 241. It was Ashburn's best finish in three FJT tournaments this season and puts her in fourth place in the season rankings, only 100 points behind Disney champion Simin Feng.

Keyword: Youth sports, for more news and notes. Nicholas J.E. Murray can be reached at (813) 259-8243 or nmurray@tamptrib.com.

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