The soccer

season began last weekend with jamborees around the state, testing team's

skills in games that would not count on their record. For some teams,

the season began on Tuesday, at least it was supposed to. McIntosh's boys

and girls were scheduled to meet North Clayton. The team never arrived

at McIntosh, so the two varsity squads compted against each other. The

Chiefs and Lady Chiefs are scheduled to meet Lovejoy at home tonight with

games beginning at 6 p.m.

Starr's Mill's

boys and girls will be playing in a tournament up at Brookwood High School,

facing some stiff competition. The boys will face South Gwinnett at 5:30

p.m. on Friday and will meet Brookwood at 8 p.m. on Saturday. The girls

will also have games on both days and will face Harrison High School at

home on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.

Sandy Creek

will get their season under way on Tuesday as they host Westlake. The

boys team has six seniors, four of which are starters. Daniel Denny and

Michael Sullivan are lettermen on defense while Dustin Ruth and Jacob

Thomason are lettermen on offense. Thomason is returning to the squad

after major knee surgery. Other key players are Rico Romero on defense

and David Agomfur on offense. The junior varsity boys team, under the

direction of first year coach Stephane Allagnon will play tonight at home

at 6:30 p.m.

This Friday

also marks the return of the Lady Cougar/Cougar Classic soccer tournaments

at Newnan High School. Both the boys and girls tournaments should be the

most competitive since the tournaments began in 1994. Once again both

sides will feature an Alabama - Georgia challenge with three teams from

each state competing.

The 7th Annual

Lady Cougar Classic will feature three state playoff teams from 2000.

Fayette County High School, Georgia state semifinalists from 4-AAAA, Oak

Mountain Alabama state finalists from 5-A, and Homewood, Alabama state

quarterfinalists from 6-A. Newnan and Griffin competed in their area playoffs

last year while Mountain Brook from Alabama just missed the 6A state playoffs

as two teams from their section placed in the semi-finals. Fayette County,

Griffin, and Newnan's histories are well documented but the Alabama teams

may be a mystery for some.

Mountain Brook

is a former three time state champion in the 6A classification in Alabama

and should be competing to the final game for a state birth this year.

Homewood qualified for their first state tournament last year and look

poised to do so once again despite a recent rash of injuries. Oak Mountain

is Alabama's newest power with a second place finish in the 5A state tournament

in their first year of varsity competition. They have already claimed

one tournament title this year by winning the Robert E. Lee Invitational

Tournament on Feb. 16 and 17. All three Alabama teams are ranked in the

state's top ten all-classification rankings in various polls. Alabama

will be well represented.

The Cougar

Classic tournament is the eighth held in Newnan since 1994 (the girl's

were rained out in 1996). This year's edition will also feature top talent

from both states. Newnan barely missed an area playoff birth last year

usurped Fayette County's perennial spot in the state playoffs with an

upset in the same area tournament semifinals.

Alabama will

present three teams who qualified for the 5A state tournament last year.

Wetumpka leads the class after finishing second by qualifying for the

state final with wins over the other two schools. Gadsden, a perennial

state power, was beaten by Wetumpka in the state semifinals in 2000. Oak

Mountain, in their first year of varsity soccer, fell in the quarterfinals

in the same tournament. This year's boys tournament will also feature

a return to the six team format after last years four team competition.

The public

is invited to come out and see some high quality boys and girls soccer

this weekend in Newnan. All Lady Cougar and Cougar matches will be held

at Drake Stadium with the remaining games featured at Whitlock Soccer

Park. The games get underway with 6:00 pm matches on Friday, Feb. 23 as

the Newnan girls will take on Oak Mountain at Drake Stadium, followed

Homewood (AL) in girls (field 6 at Whitlock) and Wetumpka (AL) in boys

action (field 8).

There will

be a girls and boys game at each time at Whitlock Soccer Park and a game

featuring the Cougars or Lady Cougars at Drake Stadium. Tournament kick

off times are as follows: Friday, Feb. 23 at 6 and 8 p.m.; Saturday, Feb.

24 10 a.m., and 12, 4, and 6 p.m.

Sister Edge

has been selected to represent Newnan High School, the Newnan community,

Georgia and the Southeast this summer in a national soccer tournament

in Hawaii. Edge follows Amanda Morton as a representative of the Southeast

from Newnan High School to participate in the TourneySport USA soccer

tournament. This is an invitation-only tournament with players nominated

represent the best high school junior soccer players in the United States.

Edge is a junior

for the Newnan Lady Cougars this year and will be a third year varsity

starter this spring. She is currently fourth all time in Newnan soccer

history in scoring after finishing second and third on the team in scoring

the last two years.

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