Azzedine Layachi of Valley Stream Named Eastern New York’s TOPSoccer Coach of the Year
New York Youth Soccer News: Azzedine Layachi continues the tradition of great TOPSoccer volunteers from the Long Island Junior Soccer League.
The US Youth Soccer TOPSoccer is a community-based Outreach Program for Soccer for youth soccer players with disabilities. The goal of TOPSoccer is to welcome all disabilities youth players into the US Youth Soccer family and helps TOPSoccer athletes learn the value of being part of a team and the joys of soccer.
The Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) is very pleased to announce that Azzedine Layachi of the Valley Stream Soccer Club is being honored as our 2016 TOPSoccer Coach of the Year.
TOPSoccer is a soccer program for children with special needs. The roots of this wonderful program can be traced back to Eastern New York and its largest league, the Long Island Junior Soccer League (LIJSL), when the Huntington Boys Club and Massapequa Soccer Club separately started programs in 1978, an era when children with special needs playing sports is not as accepted as it is today.
Today, there are 26 LIJSL clubs with TOPSoccer Programs. Azzedine, who has a son with special needs, took him to a neighboring LIJSL club to play soccer. Acquiring knowledge how to run a program for these children, he helped start Valley Stream’s TOPSoccer Program in 2014.
Valley Stream Soccer Club President Tim Graham nominated Azzedine and wrote, “At the kick-off event, we had nearly 25 participants come down. Each child received a T-shirt and a soccer ball and the event was a huge success. The program meets every Saturday, even in the winter. Azzedine plans all the activities and continuously promotes the program by going to schools to distribute information.“
“Azzedine puts 110% in everything he does a a Board member and also by coaching multiple teams for the Valley Stream Soccer Club…Our TOPSoccer program has been a tremendous success with him in charge. We look forward to building the program and having more children succeed. With Azzedine helping to guide them, we know our children are in the best hands!“
He will be formally honored by Eastern New York at our Holiday Party on Sunday, December 4 at Marina del Rey in the Bronx. Congratulations to Azzedine Layachi, Eastern New York’s 2016 TOPSoccer Coach of the Year.
Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association: With over 100,000 youth soccer players–both boys and girls–and more than 25,000 volunteers, the non-profit Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association(ENYYSA) stretches from Montauk Point, Long Island to the Canadian border. Members are affiliated with 11 leagues throughout the association, which covers the entire state of New York east of Route 81. ENYYSA exists to promote and enhance the game of soccer for children and teenagers between the ages of 5 and 19 years old, and to encourage the healthy development of youth players, coaches, referees and administrators.
All levels of soccer are offered–from intramural, travel team and premier players as well as Children With Special Needs. No child who wants to play soccer is turned away. ENYYSA is a proud member of the United States Soccer Federation and United States Youth Soccer Association.
Top image courtesy of Eastern New York’s Facebook
