There is still talent outside the USSF Development Academy structure.

This was tangibly evident last week at the Dallas Cup, as Maryland’s Olney Boys and Girls Club Rangers won the U16 age bracket in commanding fashion.

It was a dominating week for Rangers, as they won all six of their games, scoring 23 goals and conceding five during that stretch. With clubs from all over the world represented, in the age group, it was an impressive accomplishment for the club.

“Everything just kind of clicked,” head coach Matt Pilkington told TopDrawerSoccer.com. “Everybody stayed healthy which was very important. We had 16 players, which wasn’t the biggest roster there, all very high level players and the squad was very healthy but we also had lots of flexibility. Players could play in different positions.”

Jorge Quintanilla

While the Rangers didn’t go up against directly against the other U.S.-based Academy sides in the age group – clubs like Lonestar SC, Dallas Texans, Houston Dynamo and Solar Chelsea were among the DA clubs which sent younger pre-Academy teams – it was an impressive performance nonetheless, as OBGC became the first Maryland club to win at the prestigious competition.

After running the table in group play, Rangers won a close 4-2 quarterfinal against California-based Milan FC, advancing to the final with a 1-0 defeat of FC Phoenix Academy, where they vanquished FC Golden State 3-1.

“I think it was deserved,” Pilkington said. “We had four very close, very tough games and were able to use our experience and the team played very well in pressure situations, they really performed. It was a great experience for them overall.”

Experience is something this group has in spades, and success is commonplace for this club. Last December, the same core group won at the U16 Disney Soccer Showcase down in Orlando, Florida.

This past week, players like Jorge Quintanilla, who pulled the strings in the midfield, and Sean Cowdrey and Jeremy Ebobisse led the way to another triumph.

But one player the Rangers did not have is youth phenomenon Gedion Zelalem. The central midfielder was in London training with Arsenal (yes, that Arsenal) during the tournament, a testament to how well his team performed in Dallas.

“Even without one of our strongest players we still managed to win Dallas Cup, which goes to show the guys are at a very good level,” Pilkington said said. “I think some of them could reach Gedion’s level as well, some of the other players could go abroad to European clubs in the next year or so.”

Perhaps the only thing Pilkington wished went different for his group was the chance to play against an overseas club to see how they would adapt and respond to an unfamiliar opponent.

“It’s exciting to play different teams,” he said. “If we had got to play some really top European teams it might have been a different case but all the teams we played were U.S.-based and we’d beaten teams they had beaten, so we were confident we could beat anybody.”

But overall, the entire tournament in Dallas was extremely positive for him and his players.

“The experience as a whole was one of the best experiences you can have in a country for a youth tournament,” Pilkington said. “With the international flavor, lots of different teams there and great competition, you have teams from all over the world competing, Super Group teams such as Everton, Man United, Coritiba, PSG, all there to showcase their talent for the younger guys to watch and hopefully they can learn something and emulate those players at a later date.”

OBGC Rangers Dallas Cup Roster:

Karl Brown, Brendan Burke, Sean Cowdrey, Jeremy Ebobisse, Tanner Gardner, Chase Gasper, Miguel Hernandez, Nick Jackson, Jony Karahbetyan, Ismall Lapp-Kamara, Brauilo Linares, Carter Manley, Marcos Moradel, Jorge Quintanilla, Jake Rozhansky, Sam Schmidt, Bruno Scodari

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