FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – New England Revolution Academy players Daniel Jones and Justin Rennicks have been called in to the U.S. Under-18 National Team. Jones and Rennicks are two of 20 players that will compete in the Vaclav Jezek Tournament in the Czech Republic from Aug. 10-21. Both players were named to the squad by U.S. U-20 MNT Head Coach Omid Namazi.
“This is a very prestigious event for both Daniel and Justin to compete in,” Revolution Director of Youth Development, Bryan Scales said. “The opportunity to compete against some of Europe’s top youth national teams will be invaluable.”
USA will begin tournament play against Slovakia on Aug. 16, will then play Hungary on Aug. 17, and will conclude group play against Russia on Aug. 19.
Jones, who plays primarily as an attacking left back, is set to begin his fifth year with the Revolution Academy, having joined ahead of the 2012-13 season. A native of West Hartford, Conn., he has made 89 appearances with the Academy, and tallied 14 goals and nine assists in that time. Jones, 17, is making his third U.S. Under-18 National Team camp appearance this year. Earlier this year, the defender was called in to a 14-day foreign training camp in Guadalajara, Mexico in May and an 11-day foreign training camp in Buenos Aires, Argentina in March. He has previously been called in to three U.S. Under-16 camps and tournaments in the past year before advancing to the U.S. U-18s for the Open Nordic Cup in June 2015, followed by training camp in Carson, Calif. in October 2015.
Rennicks, a pacey forward, has made 95 appearances in his first four seasons with the Academy. The South Hamilton, Mass. native has scored 30 goals and added 22 assists since joining the Academy ahead of the 2012-13 season. The forward has now been called in to the Under-18 National Team four times in 2016. Earlier this year, the forward was also called in to a 14-day foreign training camp in Guadalajara, Mexico in May, an eight-day training camp in Chula Vista, Calif. in April, and an 11-day foreign training camp in Buenos Aires, Argentina in March. The 17-year-old has tallied either a goal or an assist in each National Team tournament he has taken part in, scoring for the U.S. U-16s at the 2015 Aegean Cup International Youth Tournament in January and recording an assist for the U-16s at the Netherlands International Tournament in March, before tallying another assist at the Open Nordic Cup with the U-18s in August. In February, Rennicks trained with the Revolution first team during preseason in Tucson, Ariz.
Roster by Position:
GOALKEEPERS (2): Cameron Douglas (Sacramento Republic; Granite Bay, Calif.), Brady Scott (De Anza Force; Petaluma, Calif.)
DEFENDERS (6): Kyle Gruno (Leicester City; Saddle River, N.J.), Daniel Jones (New England Revolution; West Hartford, Conn.), Jack Maher (St. Louis Scott Gallagher; Caseyville, Ill.), Matthew Real (Philadelphia Union; Drexel Hill, Pa.), Aedan Stanley (Saint Louis FC; Columbia, Ill.), Carson Vom Steeg (Real So Cal; Santa Barbara, Calif.)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Jose Carranza (DC United; Manassas, Va.), Jonathan Gonzalez (C.F. Monterrey; Santa Rosa, Calif.), Andrew Paoli (San Jose Earthquakes; San Jose, Calif.), Paxton Pomykal (FC Dallas; Highland Village, Texas), Brandon Servania (FC Dallas; Birmingham, Ala.), Nick Taitague (Unattached; Midlothian, Va.)
FORWARDS (6): Shaft Brewer (Sacramento Republic; Sacramento, Calif.), Griffin Dorsey (Colorado Rush; Evergreen, Colo.), Ernesto Espinoza (Club Tijuana; San Diego, Calif.), Nebiyou Perry (AIK Fotboll; New York, N.Y.), Justin Rennicks (New England Revolution; Hamilton, Mass.), Aristotle Zarris (Unattached; Sarasota, Fla.)
