June | 2011 | FirstPointUSA Blog

2011 Soccer Showcase

The Countdown has begun….

It was announced today that this years’ FirstpointUSA showcase game will be held from 14^th-16^th December at the Soccer dome in London.

This is a very exciting event for everyone connected with FirstpointUSA as this is the first time we will be inviting all our soccer clients from all over the world to play at one of the best indoor sporting arenas in Europe. This is a huge opportunity for all our talented players to showcase their talents in front of college coaches from schools all over the United States.

The whole FirstPoint USA team will be in attendance to meet and greet you, offer feedback, answer any questions you may have about the program or about going to university in the USA. Our media team will also be filming this event and streaming it to other coaches in the USA.

We have had a high volume of replies to our invites for this event, so please get yours back to us before October 31st for the chance to participate! To avoid disappointment, get these in early guys!

Hall of Fame Candidate: David McGuire

Another relevant candidate for the Firstpoint USA Hall of Fame is David McGuire.

David was playing playing NAIA soccer with Thomasville University in Georgia, before an injury blighted his first season. He moved to Manchester, Boston, Southern New Hampshire University where he enjoyed a very successful soccer career.

More details to follow on how you can vote for David to be inducted to the Hall of Fame!

NSCAA All-American – 2005 (First Team), 2006 (Second Team)
Daktronics All-American – 2006 (Second Team)
NSCAA All-Region – 2004, 2005, 2006 (First Team)

Daktronics All-Region – 2006 (First Team)
CoSIDA Academic All-District – 2005
Northeast-10 All-Conference – 2004, 2005, 2006 (First Team)
Two-time SNHU Male Athlete of the Year(2005, 2006)

Scholar Athlete of the Year 2005

GPA 3.76 Economics/finance Major International Business Minor.

season 2004 gp gs gls assists

David McGuire

17-17

.265

.441

3-0

2-2

season 2005

David McGuire

12-11

.263

.553

8-0

2-4

season 2006

10 David McGuire 15-13 3 8 14 35 .086 0 2-4

FPUSA Founder and Chief executive, Andrew Kean had this to say of David:

David McGuire is probably the most technically gifted football player that FirstPoint has ever worked with. His pace and creativity set him apart in the US college game and it was of no surprise to see him named as a consensus All-American during his time there. After playing as a youth with FC Barcelona, David was a real coup for FirstPoint and epitomised the quality of player that we are striving to work with. Although an excellent football talent, David was exceptional academically and graduated from university with close to a 4.0 GPA – which was a terrific achievement and testament to the hard work he put-in on, and off the park. A great lad, an outstanding student-athlete, and a great ambassador for FirstPoint, David is quite rightly a candidate for induction into the FirstPoint USA ‘Hall of Fame’.

We spoke to David about his accomplishments;

Please describe your athletic career since going to University

I spent a year in Georgia playing NAIA soccer with Thomasville University; injury really blighted my first season here. I then moved to SNHU up in Manchester NH as this was close to Boston where I had a few friends. I really enjoyed my time at both colleges but my time at SNHU thankfully was not blighted with injury . We made the NCAA tournament in my final season but were beaten by Franlklin Pierce who reached the final that year and went onto win the national championship the following year.

Please outline your highest accomplishments throughout your athletic career

My highest accomplishment was being named to the All American team in my junior and senior years. It was also nice to be voted the SNHU Athlete and Scholar athlete of the year during my junior year and the Athlete of the year in my senior year.

What are your future plans?

I am actually looking to head back to the US in the next year or two to gain a GA position to pursue my MBA and start a coaching a career. I have a alot of friends over in the US, so hopefully I can get something sorted.

What would you say are the benefits of having an American college experience?

There are so many benefits of having an American college experience, its actually difficult to put them all down on paper. For me, the main thing is you get to play football at a good level with excellent facilities while you earn your degree in the process. This is not something that everyone gets to achieve in their lifetime and its something that shouldn’t be taking for granted. The other main benefit is the people you get to meet. I met so many people from many different cultures and learned so much from them, it really helps you grow as person.

Would you recommend Firstpoint USA and the American scholarship route to others?

Without a shadow of a doubt! The chance of gaining a sports scholarship in America is a chance in a lifetime and First Point have the know how and contacts to make it happen for you. Its not just a matter of having a coach see you play, you need to have the required educational background to become eligible and First Point have extensive knowledge of all the requirements required of future student athletes. It really puts your mind at ease when you know there is someone behind you that knows exactly what they are doing.

What would your advice be to any young athletes considering an American scholarship?

My advice would be to go for it if its what you really want to do. Before heading to the states, you need to be willing to work hard on the field and in the classroom, its not just an athletic experience, its an educational one too. Also, you need to enjoy it, its the experience of a lifetime. The four years pass in the blink of an eye, anyone who has completed the four years will tell you that, so make the most of it and never take it for granted.

We would love to thank David for taking the time to reflect upon his career to date with us, and congratulate him on all his success. Best of luck for the future David!