JEDDAH, 28 May 2007 — The American International School of Jeddah hosted the recent first annual Jeddah Jamboree Football Tournament for Girls.
“The six-a-side tournament was a rousing success in giving female athletes an opportunity for fun, fellowship and spirited soccer competition,” according to tournament director Brian Bohne. The five teams entered in the tournament played four 30-minute games against each of the other teams on half-sized soccer fields. These preliminary games determined which teams would advance to the championship match.
The three teams competing in the 15 and under category were the AISJ Lightning, British International School (Conti), coached by David Dunn, and Lil Jags, coached by Jamela Antone. The AISJ 007’s and AISJ Saudi Starz competed in the 16 and older championship.
The 16-plus championship game featured hotly contested, end-to-end action. Danna Zahran collected an errant pass and fired in a point blank shot to give the 007’s a 1-0 halftime lead. The Saudi Starz, who distinguished themselves with a 9 goals for, 2 against, undefeated preliminary round, battled back. Tara Assaad, who was selected as 16-plus tournament MVP, drilled in the equalizer midway through the second half. Tara tallied again in overtime, scoring a “golden goal” in the final moments of the exciting match. Goalkeepers Moothy Al-Nowaiser and Shahla Matar, along with defenders Nora Nezzamudin and Abby Gonzales earned “honorable mention” accolades.
The 15-and-under championship match, pitting Conti against AISJ Lightning, was equally entertaining. Conti striker Reema Al-Juffali thundered through the Lightning defense to give her team a 1-0 half-time lead. The Lightning, which led all teams with 13 preliminary round goals, applied relentless pressure to equalize. With time dwindling in the second half, a Lara Khoury laser tied the game. Previously injured Briza Bohne rallied to nail the game-winner and insurance goal as time expired, for the 3-1 victory. Lara Khoury and Briza Bohne, who scored 8 and 7 goals respectively and played valiantly all over the field, were selected as co-MVPs of the tournament. Earning 15 and under tournament “honorable mention” recognition were Reema Al-Juffali, Nazli Kangal and Saba Shariati.
The Jeddah Jamboree, which valued sponsorship help from Xerox Company, looks forward to an even bigger and better tournament next year. Both Bohne, who teaches and coaches at AISJ, and BIS (Conti) athletic director David Dunn, expressed a vision for the healthy development of girls’ soccer in the greater Jeddah community. Bohne noted that Jamela Antone and Lina Almaeena are already making great strides for girls’ basketball in Jeddah.
