COMMERCE CITY, Colo. (Friday, January 11, 2012) – Colorado Rapids Homegrown Player and Boulder native Shane O’Neill has been called up for the United States Under-20 National Team training camp from Jan. 14-22 in Puebla, Mexico. O’Neill was selected by head coach Tab Ramos, along with 19 others, to participate in a week of training and two closed-door friendlies against Panama on Jan. 19 and 21.
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The players and coaches will meet in Puebla, Mexico, the site of the 2013 CONCACAF U-20 Championship in which the United States will be competing from Feb. 18-March 3. The event serves as the qualifying tournament for the CONCACAF region and will determine the four regional berths to the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Turkey.
At the 2013 CONCACAF U-20 Championship, the U.S. will face Costa Rica and Haiti in Group A, while Canada, Nicaragua and Cuba make up Group B. Group C is comprised of Jamaica, Panama and Puerto Rico, while Mexico, El Salvador and Curaçao make up Group D.
O’Neill, a 19-year-old Homegrown Player with the Rapids, had recently participated in the December training camp in Sunrise, Fla., which culminated in a 4-0 victory over Venezuela on Dec. 21. The midfielder made his MLS debut in the 3-0 victory over Portland Timbers on September 5, and was a substitute for the Rapids against Swansea City FC of the English Premier League on July 24, 2012, a 2-1 victory.
U.S. U-20 MNT Roster By Position:
GOALKEEPERS (2): Jon Kempin (Sporting Kansas City; Overland Park, Kan.), Kendall McIntosh (Santa Clara; Santa Rosa, Calif.)
DEFENDERS (7): Mikey Ambrose (Maryland; Frisco, Texas), Eric Miller (Creighton; Woodbury, Minn.), Juan Pablo Ocegueda (Unattached; Riverside, Calif.), Boyd Okwuonu (North Carolina; Edmund, Okla.), Shane O’Neill (Colorado Rapids; Boulder, Colo.), Oscar Sorto (LA Galaxy; Los Angeles, Calif.), Javan Torre (UCLA; Santa Monica, Calif.)
MIDFIELDERS (5): Luis Gil (Real Salt Lake; Garden Grove, Calif.), Alejandro Guido (Club Tijuana; Chula Vista, Calif.), Mikey Lopez (North Carolina; Mission, Texas), Daniel Metzger (Maryland; Holmdel, N.J.), Wil Trapp (Columbus Crew; Gahanna, Ohio)
FORWARDS (6): Brandon Allen (Georgetown; Old Bridge, N.J.), Daniel Cuevas (Santos Laguna; Sacramento, Calif.), Daniel Garcia (North Carolina; Dallas, Texas), Darius Madison (Virginia; Philadelphia, Pa.), Jonathan Top (FC Dallas; Fort Worth, Texas) Jose Villarreal (LA Galaxy; Inglewood, Calif.)
The Rapids will start preseason on January 17, and are set to participate in the Desert Friendlies presented by Tucson FC and the Las Vegas ProSoccer Challenge against Chivas USA on February 15 as part of their preparations. To purchase season tickets for the Rapids’ 2013 campaign, visit www.ColoradoRapids.com or call 303-825-GOAL.
