19 Jun Another year another exciting tournament
EES Academy competed in the 2019 Mare Nostrum Cup in Barcelona. Currently, they have players from 10 different clubs around Leinster that participate in their academy.
EES Academy Director Colm Barron’s thoughts on last years’ tournament:
“Last year the players had a brilliant experience both on and off the pitch. At the younger ages especially, the level of quality in the tournament develops very quickly. Although there are recognizable academy names within the tournament such as Espanyol, the level of quality in the local Catalan clubs is extremely high. The youth system in Catalonia is such that the majority of the best players will play with their local teams, who’s first teams will play in division 2 of the Spanish league, club’s such as Nastic Tarragona, F.C. Reus. We had a strong squad in the u10s section last year, who got a bit of an eye opener in the quarter final’s last year. It’s important for the players in the Academy to experience playing against different cultures as much as possible.
For the players to come away as a group and play with players from different clubs is also very important for their learning. Last year, the EES teams played some excellent football and gelled very quickly. Our training methodology is developed to prepare players for real game situations, so for us, we don’t focus to much on team tactics. The players are put in situations that mirror the real game on a weekly basis in training, focusing on individual tactics ad decision making. As a result, we would hope that when they play together in a game situation, they can carry these individual tactics into the real game and develop an understanding very quickly.”
The group stayed in the outstanding facilities of 4 start accommodation at Cambrils park. The tournament will took place in Futbol Salou, who’s current facility is being upgraded from 8 full size floodlit immaculate pitches, to 11 pitches with a mini stadium.
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