Maccabi SA Futsal Convenor, Ronen Cohen:\u00a0<\/strong>\u201cI am very excited for EMG as it will be the first time that we are sending teams in all the age categories to any Games. All our boys have put in a lot of effort into training, and I could not be prouder of them and the amount of commitment & dedication they have shown. At EMG 2015, our Open & Masters teams won bronze and now we are hoping that we can make the final in both those categories and take the gold. I’m also really excited for our u18 Futsal team who won bronze at the 2017 Maccabiah as u16\u2019s, and can now also push on and take the gold. Lastly, our newest team, our u16s are looking really good, they have come such a long way from not knowing what futsal is to where they are now. They are an exciting team and I have high hopes for them to come home with a medal”.<\/em><\/p>\n U16 (and SA u20) Coach Byron Cottle: <\/strong>“I’m really looking forward to these Games, each day I wake up I count down the days. It all started in March 2018 with a group of boys who were very raw and new to the game of futsal. We have trained extremely hard and very smart as well. We are ready to compete and bring home gold from Budapest. As a coach I am excited to take on this new experience. It will be my first time at the Games and I’m ready for anything that comes our way. We will make SA proud and show the other nations that futsal is on the rise in our country”.<\/em><\/p>\n U16 Co-Captain Jake Greenberg:<\/strong> “To represent Maccabi SA is a huge privilege for a number of reasons. For me being at a non-Jewish school, it is an honour to represent the Jewish community. I will also be representing my family, and thus will try my best to win. Together with my teammates we will be representing Maccabi SA, where we will uphold their reputation to the best of our abilities, especially as the u18\u2019s famously finished 3rd in Israel. The team and I are hoping to achieve gold and will do our very best to accomplish this. <\/em>I\u2019m also so excited to be experiencing this opportunity with my teammates and also to visit a new country and culture, which we will embrace to highlight the importance of multi culturalism”.<\/em><\/p>\n U16 Co-Captain Benji Sulcas:<\/strong> ”<\/em>It has been an incredible journey starting in 2018. It is an absolute honor to represent my country at a sports competition which is so connected to my Judaism. Our team has grown from friends to family and we know that we have one another\u2019s backs. We are excited to tackle all the challenges at EMG. We have prepared extremely hard and I feel our hard work will pay off, but now it\u2019s all about how much we want it and how much we fight for it\u2019\u2019.<\/em><\/p>\n U18 (and SA national) Coach Reon Siyaya: <\/strong>”I am very honored, excited and humbled before our trip to Budapest. This has been a great journey seeing the boys become men as I have been working with them since 2015, not only growing on the court as players but seeing them mature into fine young men that respect their talent, the game and the coaching staff. I believe that we can do very well at this tournament, as we came third in Israel. As a unit we are confident in our ability and we thrive on this brotherhood as our strength. We promise to make SA proud and to create memories that last a lifetime. I’m truly blessed to lead this group\u2019\u2019.<\/em><\/p>\n U18 Captain Jordan Arelisky: <\/strong>“Representing my country for the second time in a Maccabi Games is something that\u2019s very special to me. We\u2019ve been working hard for months and we will perform to the best of our ability at EMG. We are extremely excited to get there and begin playing in order to achieve the gold medal”.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0U18 player Zach Brivik: <\/strong>”Representing SA at EMG is firstly a chance to show everyone that we are better than third place. We have been working hard with excellent coaching and an unbreakable team bond. Secondly, it is an amazing opportunity to play the sport we love overseas, against other Jewish teams, and hopefully we will get to know and become friends with other players who share this passion”.<\/em><\/p>\n Open player Daniel Snoyman: <\/strong>”It\u2019s an honour and privilege to be representing Maccabi SA for the 4th time and what will be my first time at EMG. The boys and I have put in an immense amount of hard work to ensure we reach our goals and make our families and Maccabi SA proud\u2019\u2019.<\/em><\/p>\n Open player Brandon Shneier: <\/strong>”During World War 2, hundreds of thousands of Hungarian Jews were deported. That is why I am excited for these Games. In 2019, thousands of Jews will come back and compete in this spectacular event\u2019\u2019.<\/em><\/p>\n Masters captain, coach and player, Ronen Cohen:<\/strong> ”It will be our second time competing at the EMG, and we are looking to going one step further and advancing from our group to make the final and hopefully bringing home gold. With half of the team having competed in Berlin in 2015, we have added a few new faces whom together we hope will do the job for us in Budapest”.<\/em><\/p>\n Masters player Ryan Smith: <\/strong>”I am very proud to be representing SA. This will be my second EMG and I will also be managing the u16\u2019s, which I\u2019m very excited about. I think both teams have a great chance to win medals, hopefully gold”.<\/em><\/p>\n Masters player Marc Blumberg:<\/strong> ”I<\/em>‘m honored to be representing my country for the first time at EMG. It will be extra special as I’ll be competing alongside my brother, Grant. I hope to make my family, team and country proud, and bring home gold.\u2019\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n EMG 2019, we are ready! #TeamMaccabiSA #YallaMaccSA<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Maccabi SA Futsal Convenor, Ronen Cohen:\u00a0\u201cI am very excited for EMG as it will be the first time that we are sending teams in all the age categories to any Games. All our boys have put in a lot of effort into training, and I could not be prouder of them and the amount of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3336","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-macabbi-sa-news","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n