Fall is months away, but the beautiful game is already busy being played on the field of Park Center’s Pride Stadium amid a rainy night June 15. The Minnesota TwinStars are in action, hosting the Sioux Falls Thunder in a high-energy soccer game. The hosts will eventually win 3-1.
The TwinStars are a high-level amateur soccer club that plays in the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL), a high level amateur to semi-pro soccer league that features top college and post-college age players. The TwinStars took a confident 2-0 lead by halftime, including by Hopkins-alum Rolando Barclay. The TwinStars scored a third goal early in the second half with a strike from David Diawara to complete an inspired run of crisp passes in the attacking third. The hosts had defending to do too, conceding one late goal as they held on to a 3-1 win over Sioux Falls. The TwinStars are now 4-0-2 this season.
Leo Conneh, who played for Champlin Park before departing for the Minnesota United Academy and plays with the TwinStars, spoke to the familial bond that brings the TwinStars together.
“Playing for the TwinStars means a whole lot to me,” Conneh said. “I think one of the main reasons is the group of guys I get to play with. I consider them family and really enjoy my time on and off the field with the guys.”
Conneh now plays NCAA DI soccer at Liberty University.
Founded in 1997 as St. Paul TwinStars by members of the Hmong community, the club has transformed into a multi-ethnic staple of the Minnesotan lower division soccer scene. The team regularly plays host to high level college players and competes with the best in Minnesota for a spot in the regional and national playoffs the NPSL hosts.
The club was highly successful at the end of the 2000s, winning two conference titles and finishing runner-ups in the national championship game in 2008. Through those years, the club has long had deep roots in the Brooklyn Park-area, rostering players like Park Center-alum and former-professional soccer player Ansu Toure.
Those roots in Brooklyn Park are on full display this season as the team moves its home stadium to Park Center after playing in Minnetonka for several seasons. The team’s current roster also includes a list of area-based talent including Sidike Jabateh (Park Center), Conneh (Champlin Park), Jacob Thao (Champlin Park) James Brent (Osseo), and Beckett Carlson (Maple Grove).
Conneh noted that another attractive aspect of the team in recent years has been the intention to play good soccer and develop talent.
“Our coaches are focused on player development and playing attractive football and it can be seen in our game. That helps me really enjoy being apart of the squad.”
The Minnesota TwinStars stayed in the Twin Cities metro for their next two games, traveling to play Joy Athletic in St. Louis Park June 18, before hosting the Dakota Fusion at Park Center June 22.
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