Tom Pell updates on the half term Tour to Belgium.
The Whitsun half term holiday brought lots of activities throughout the Youth Development programme to end the 2009/2010 season on a high.
On Friday 28 May a group of Development Centre players and parents took off for our Tour to Belgium for the bank holiday weekend.
An early start saw everyone jump on the bus (very nice one I must say with plenty of TVs and DVDs to keep everyone occupied) and head to Erpeheide Centerparcs in Belgium, via Calais. We managed to catch an early ferry at Dover meaning we arrived at Centerparcs an hour ahead of schedule and this gave everyone a great opportunity to explore what Centerparcs had to offer for the rest of the day.
The Saturday was day 1 of our tournament in Porte De Fagnes and everyone was buzzing to get started, in what can only be described as perfect weather.
We had entered 2 U8 teams and one U11 team.
Our first U8 side was under the tutelage of Nigel Ashman and was a young U8 side taking into consideration we had 2 players who were U7 playing in European U8 side which makes them older than in England due to age groups being banded from January - December. The boys started a little nervously and it took them a while to find their confidence but after the first game the boys really started to play some incisive attacking play and creating numerous opportunities in some really exciting games. There were lots of goals both for and against in a 5v5 format which created an environment perfect for what we were looking for within that age group, being that they will make mistakes and to be punished is a great way of them being able to learn. As well as that it gives the chance to express themselves and try things that they may not be able to do when the sides are slightly larger sided. From the information that Nigel passed onto the boys after the first game he was extremely happy with how the boys tried to play in the right manner and cannot be accused of the old stereotype that young English players aren't as good as the players on the continent technically.
The second U8 squad that took part were managed by myself. I was really pleased that when watching the other U8 squad and how nervously they started this team were able to overcome that in their first game on European soil and see that in actual fact they were capable of playing the way we know they can and from the information about the team shape and how to best utilise space they did so very effectively. The boys gained confidence from this and from then were superb from the first whistle to the last. What was really pleasing, was with all the games in quick succession and the heat that was thumping down they continued to move the ball well even when they started to tire with very little rest. Some of the goals that were scored were great to see an excellent blend of individual skill and good team play.
Development Centre manager James Cutting took the U11 squad and they didn't waste any time in stamping their authority on the tournament. James' lads were playing 8v8 and again gave them a good balance of realistic distances to cover and play to overcome as well as tight pitches where you have to play at a high tempo.
The lads showed some passing and movement on and off the ball that made all the locals who were watching the main pitch stand and take note. They were both clinical in both penalty areas and showed good maturity throughout the team in order to work the ball effectively to create numerous opportunities. There was good pace about the side both on and off the ball and the cheering English fans behind the goal I'm sure will back me up from all the good play they saw.
With our U8's fixtures taking place in the morning this gave them chance to get back to enjoy the swimming pool, crazy golf, tennis and the other facilities that the park had to offer.
Not only was it great to see our U12s play excellent football to finish the group top but because of the way the schedule panned out this meant that all teams games on the second day were in the afternoon, which meant that it was lie ins all round! Well done lads!
Day 3 bought our final day of tournament football and because of everyone's leisurely morning everyone was feeling relaxed and excited about the second day's play.
The weather today was a total contrast to the day before which is great for the boys to then learn different ways to overcome problems they might find during the games.
As the rain came out so did the passion and desire to do well from both U8 squads.
Having had that day of getting to know each other and concentrate on aspects of the game that myself and Nigel had spoken to the boys about the day before both teams were excellent again. The boys showed a great application and desire to get stuck in as well as try and play in the right way and but for a few mistakes here and there (which we want in that type of learning environment) the boys came out on top during most games and this was really pleasing to see that the teams had built on yesterday performances and learnt a lot in such a short space of time which is the whole reason we take them away and out of their comfort zones of regular surroundings.
Nigel's squad consisted of Dominic, Sebby, Conor, Jude, Makensie and Tom's squad was made up from Stanley, Josh, Charlie, Max and Adam.
The boys should be really pleased with how they performed and I think this was noticed by the travelling support that gave the boys a well deserved round of applause after their final games.
The U11 squad were getting ready for their semi final against a team who from the day before hadn't conceded a single goal and looked threatening in attack.
The semi finals were 30 minute straight through games as opposed to the 15 minute group games the day before. The lads didn't quite reach the level of play that they did the previous day and for errors were punished against a very good side. The team played some good football and created opportunities but lacked a little cutting edge and any mistakes in our own third were punished by our ruthless opponents.
Of course we wanted the lads to win the semi final and would be lying if we said we were happy to lose but it was again a great experience and learning curve for the boys to see how to be ruthless and consistent with their play otherwise in tournament football you get punished. I'm sure Fabio Capello will be telling his players similar over the next few weeks.
This meant that the lads were to play in the 3rd and 4th place play off of which they then seemed to find their rhythm again and carving out and taking many opportunities to give themselves a healthy lead. The lads seemed to run out of steam a little towards the end, which was slightly understandable considering the amount they had played in such a short space of time and didn't quite finish the game how they had started.
However the boys performed fantastically well over the two days and a group of players that came together and didn't really know one another seemed to let their football do the talking and gelled together well as a unit with some certain individuals excelling!
The U11 squad was Daniel W, Jamie H, Ayden J, Daniel W, Owen G, Daniel L, Elliot S, Oliver M, Crispin S, Daniel N, Daniel J & Matthew K.
I would like thank Sports Travel International for organising the tour as well as all the parents, players and family members for the way they conducted themselves on the tour and whilst representing Cambridge United Football Club. This made it a really enjoyable experience for all involved.
Tom Pell
Technical Development Manager
Cambridge United: YOUR CITY - YOUR CLUB
