Soccer has returned to the international stage in grand style with Euro 2008, and the United States Men’s National Team took a good first step toward the 2010 World Cup with an 8-0 rout of Barbados Sunday.

Yet, while European teams are battling for supremacy across the pond and the Americans are eyeing a trip to South Africa in two years, 14 Upstate youngsters are gearing up for a working vacation in Hawaii.

The Anderson Kickers, an Under-19 club playing under the umbrella of the American Youth Soccer Association, are scheduled to compete in the National Games next month, one of just a handful of teams from across the nation to get an invitation to the Hawaiian event.

And while there is still some fundraising to be done — the team is holding car washes at the Anderson Firestone on Clemson Boulevard the next two Fridays to help fill their coffers — there’s no question this team has earned its way into the prestigious field.

“Our team is one of only 24 teams from around the entire nation that received an invitation to the Hawaii Games,” head coach Mike DePalma said. “We qualified last June as a result of an undefeated league season which garnered us a first place finish in the league, and we won the Region Championship which was the seal for the Hawaii invitation.”

The Kickers haven’t slowed down since.

This year the squad also went undefeated and claimed the league title, earning victories over teams from North Carolina, Tennessee and Alabama, as well as Upstate programs representing Woodruff, Greer and Spartanburg. In fact, the Kickers haven’t lost a game in more than a year, with their last setback coming on June 16, 2007.

“Our team is a diverse team from all over the county,” DePalma said. “We have players from Westside High School, Hanna High School, Belton-Honea Path High School, Pendleton High School, Clemson University, Tri-County Tech and home schoolers.”

Assistant coach Joseph Burriss says the recipe for the team’s success is an “all-for-one” approach.

“It may be cliche, but the strength of our team is the fact that they play as a team,” Burriss said. “We’re not composed of several individuals who are in this for personal gain. It is a tremendous help that everyone gets along together and meshes well, both on and off the field. That, combined with the fact that this core group has played together for several years now, makes for a great team flow.”

The team consists of 13 males and one female. All have contributed to the success of the Kickers.

“As for go-to players, the beauty of having such a unified team means that different players rise to the go-to slot from game to game,” Burriss said. “However, for some specifics, Bradley Price and Marshall Mahoney led the way for our offense in terms of goals and assists. Andrew Crawford is consistently our target on corner kicks because he is such a threat in the air. Our defense is anchored at the sweeper position by Josh Ziemnicki, who is always stout and very difficult to get by.

“Our surprise element is our lone female player, (Sarah Ziemnicki), who quickly shows underestimating opponents how formidable she really is.”

Anderson has three solid goalkeepers in Josh Whiffen, Charles Davis and Andrew Eaton.

“As I mentioned earlier though, any one of these players and some I didn’t mention can be our go-to player from game to game,” Burriss said.

The Kickers have no standard formation; they alter their style depending on the strengths and weaknesses of their opponents. And once the team arrives in Hawaii, they’ll see various styles — along with some of the best talent they’ve ever faced.

“In Hawaii likely opponents will be from California, Utah, Hawaii, Michigan, Florida, West Virginia, New York, and Illinois,” DePalma said. “The competition will be stiff at the National Games. The West Coast teams will have a prominent South American-style soccer approach, and we are likely to see English-style approaches, European-style approaches as well as USA-style approaches.”

In the meantime the club will continue practicing at the Anderson Sports and Entertainment Complex each Tuesday and Thursday, while also raising more money to help pay for an extremely long road trip.

“The team has been trying to raise money for the trip since last June,” DePalma said. “We have received some tremendous support from local businesses and corporations, as well as multiple individuals, but haven’t attained our fundraising goal yet.

“This is a very exciting time for our players, coaches, staff and parents. We’re very much looking forward to this grand opportunity with the full intention of taking complete advantage of the entire adventure.”

The car washes will take place from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 20 and June 27, and anyone interested in providing donations to the team can contact Burriss at (864) 642-5668 or jburriss18@hotmail.com.