Andrew Fasano
Staff Writer
The Sand and Surf boys under 18 youth club soccer team is heading on a 12-day trip to Ireland where they will play four games against local clubs in the cities in the countryside and Belfast. According to coach Carl Dickson, he wants to let the team have one last memory with each other before US youth soccer’s new age group rule is in act.
The first two days after a 13 hour flight to Ireland have carved out for relaxation and touring of the local towns and plazas near the hotel in Belfast where the team will be staying.
“Unfortunately, travelling that far is never fun,” junior forward Koa Work said. “But being able to tour the city with my teammates and resting up for our matches will all be part of this once in a lifetime experience.”
The team will depart nonstop to Dublin, Ireland on August 8th and and return home on the 19th. They will play against youth academy teams in the local cities that they will visit as they tour different parts of the country.
“I have been looking forward to this trip for many months,” Work said. “It’s so amazing for us to be able to travel overseas to see and play against some of the best soccer Ireland has to offer.”
The team play a game almost every other day. On the game days, the team will have breakfast with the team, train with their Sand and Surf coaching staff and with a coach of an English Premier League team, Swansea City FC, have lunch, then play a match in the afternoon.
“I can’t wait to be able to train with some of these academy teams in Ireland,” sophomore forward Cooper Arak said. “Being able to train with the best is something that I have never really been able to do, and doing it with some of my friends makes it all the better.”
On the team’s third day in Ireland, they will visit Newry, Ireland to play and train with the local youth team, Newry City FC. On the fifth day, they will pack, then play the local team in Kurgan, Ireland, from there visit a famous cathedral city.
“I feel very privileged that we can travel to faraway countries to see their cultures and customs and also to see how they play the game in comparison to us,” Parsa said.
For the team’s final two scrimmages on their sixth and eighth day, they will travel to Belfast and Warrenpoint to compete against two very competitive local teams, Portadown FC and Warrenpoint Town. In between the games, the team will travel to different parts of the country to see historic sights such as museums or art exhibits.
“Having the opportunity to travel to Europe for the first time and to play soccer on a team with friends I have known my entire life both on and off the field will be a once in a lifetime experience,” sophomore Trever Vanthof said. “Traveling to a country known for producing some of the greatest footballers of the game, playing on fields against aspiring young footballers, meeting new people, and learning about their country will be something incredible.”
One new rule that US, soccer has implemented starting next year is that players are only to play on the same team as those in their same birth year. This means that many players will switch teams. Coach Carl Dickson has been with the team since age 11 and wants to give the kids an unforgettable experience as a way to say goodbye to some of the players.
“This will be our last year together before all the players go off and start their next journey in life,” Dickson said. “I wanted to give them an experience that they will remember and there is nothing better than playing a sport you love, in a different country and in a different environment. We are going there to play and be competitive but I am also opening the players up to different cultures and hopefully they can build bonds through that.”
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