“Wasatch Flash LS (U8) had a great first-ever tournament in the La Roca Pioneer Cup. They were able to take home second place all while doing over 180 dribble moves (crossovers/stepovers, scissors, diegos) during the tournament. The girl’s commitment to deceptive dribbling and ball control was outstanding. They are well on their way to their goal of getting over 500 dribble moves over the course of their summer tournaments.”

At the Cache Valley tournament, The GU14 took the gold in the gold Division!! I'm So very proud of them Coach Janet Halley

Congratulations…

U16 girls take 2^nd in La Roca Cup Gold Division. The U16 girls finished off their summer season with another medal in the La Roca Pioneer Cup. They battled and won key games against teams from higher divisions in the state league. Now the girls will go off to their respective high schools for the fall. Good luck to them with their schools, just don’t hurt each other!!!

Wasatch SC Flash 97 has started their year off very well.

They were champions in the Wasatch Soccer Classic the end of May and followed that up with third place in the U16 division in the Utah Summer Games, playing up an older age bracket. The girls stuck to their possession style of play and responded well to many close and critical situations during the tournaments. In both tournaments, opposing coaches and referees have commented at the “beautiful style” in which the team plays. One coach actually referred to our team as the “fancy foot skill” team.

See more photos on the players page.

U16B Wasatch SC Fury MP team.

They recently played in the Utah Glory Tournament of Champions 2012 and took First Place in the High School Gold Division being the only U16 team in the bracket and going undefeated in the tournament.

U16B Wasatch SC Fury Mp team.

They recently played in the Wasatch Soccer Classic Tournament and played in the high school boys bracket, gold division and took 1st place. This banner was made in honor of their former Coach, Kirk Walker, who led the boys to a 1st place win last year in the Wasatch Soccer Classic and passed away one week later.

Spain continues to show the way (portions of)

By Graham Hunter| Special to ESPN.com

….It is absolutely remarkable that Spain was able to stick to a regular 12-player selection system at Euro 2012, play without its all-time leading scorer (David Villa) and form a new defensive partnership to compensate for the loss of Carles Puyol, but still outscore, outpass and outdefend everyone else. No goals conceded in 10 knockout matches since 2006 -- despite using three different central defensive partnerships (Carlos Marchena-Puyol, Gerard Pique-Puyol, Sergio Ramos-Pique) -- is significant. The system where Spain retains the ball better than other teams has become controversial, mostly because of self-indulgent, mono-browed, open-your-mouth-and-let-any-rubbish-spill-out critics, but it helps account for the fact that Spain concedes far fewer goals than other top teams.

Germany came into Euro 2012, quite fairly, with a reputation for fast, flowing, attractive football. But its cheerleaders sometimes failed to point out that Germany can be defensively naive and that it has one or two defensive players who are a little ponderous. Germany is a force, but it was pummeled by an Italy side which was then destroyed by Spain.

For those who wasted our time by trying to pretend that Spain was "boring" -- think again.

There is a trend where Spain's opposition throws a blanket defense against La Roja. This can lead to matches where Spain probes and turns and recycles the ball, then turns and probes some more, looking for gaps. That's intelligent. Besides, Spain is always, always looking forward to score. If Spain recycles the ball sideways or back, it's simply to begin the march forward again, immediately.

Just think what would have happened with a Spain side playing like this but with David Villa and/or Fernando Torres in top form? Goals would have flowed, Spain would have looked quite unstoppable, and you could imagine the tournament being awarded to La Roja somewhere around the quarterfinals on a footballing technical knockout just to put everyone else out of harm's way.

What troubles me is that a great deal of the "boring" nonsense comes from sectors in the U.K. where they lament the fact that their national teams either don't qualify for tournaments or show an inability to retain the ball and use it creatively once they get it.

Everyone can have a vision of football which differs from that of the Spain setup, but what needs to be understood is that La Roja's formula can be copied and applied whether in the U.S., the U.K. or Uruguay.

Spain didn't always play this brilliant, possession-based game. It used to be known as the side that arrived at tournaments with high hopes and a glass jaw. ….So there came a stage when the Spanish federation began opting for a possession-based style which would draw on the way in which La Liga's clubs were beginning to produce technically able, tactically astute kids of differing dimensions. ….

It has been a hugely successful policy. Year after year, Spain wins trophies or medals at all age groups, and the progression looks splendidly healthy. ….National teams tend not to be able to sustain successful four-year eras. Now Spain appears in position to build one that could last six, perhaps eight years.

While Spain is dominating like this, young players -- plus their coaches and parents -- can learn that this is the proper way to play football. Make the ball your friend, keep it, use it well, provide passing options for your teammates, show mental and physical bravery, press to win the ball back, develop technique, develop team spirit and put a prime weight on making the philosophy supreme over the circumstances you find yourself in.

It's a model which is applicable anywhere, not simply dependent on the emergence of a Xavi or Iniesta in your country.

As a footballing nation, Spain wholly believes in this philosophy, and that's why there is a plethora of players such as Mata and Martinez waiting in the wings. While they wait, they gain experience and win club trophies.

….They have worked for it, they deserve it and they deserve our appreciation. This is football as it should be played.

Graham Hunter is a Barcelona-based freelance writer for ESPN.com who specializes in La Liga and the Spanish national team.