Our Elite Sports Students continued their development both on and off the pitch recently as they travelled to the Netherlands on tour.
Students from Year 8, Year 9 and Year 10 all made the trip, where they gained the opportunity to play football matches against local opposition, received specialist coaching from staff at Dutch giants Feyenoord and visited the world-famous home of AFC Ajax — The Johan Cruyff Arena.
It was a five day visit which began with an early start on Monday morning where students and staff travelled via ferry, before travelling back to the UK on Friday.
Not only were the students able to test their football skills, but it was also an opportunity to spend time together away from the pitch as a team and immerse themselves within a different culture.
Speaking about the trip, Associate Assistant Principal, Attendance, Mr Windsor, said:
“The trip really tied in with the Elite Sport element, it was all relevant and aspirational for the students in the sense that they could submerge themselves within the highest standards and facilities in the game.
“The coaching experience at Feyenoord was sublime, the students were being tested as though they were one of their own players and everyone stepped up and rose to the challenge which was really pleasing to see.
“All of the students were superb, they will all come back better for the experience and now they can put some of those practises into place during their everyday life.”
Year 8 student Matei, along with his fellow Year 8 team-mates, put together a daily diary which can be viewed below.
Holland Trip Diary
by Matei & the Year 8 Team
Day 1 - Monday
We started our journey at 5:45 am. It was hard getting up at that time, but the excitement kept us awake and energetic.
At around 12am we arrived for the ferry. When we arrived at Calais, a long, 6-hour coach ride awaited us. On the coach, we had lots of fun and did some socialising and a few caught up on sleep.
Once we arrived at the hotel De Rijper Eilanden, we did not wait a second longer without food. The canteen had a self-served buffet with a variety of food such as pork, chicken and vegetables.
After we had eaten, we went upstairs eager to see our rooms. The rooms were great and quite big with several comfy beds. The hotel was full of fascinating models, pictures and antiques.
Day 2 – Tuesday
After a good night’s sleep, we had a long day ahead of us. We had a tour of the Johan Cruyff Arena (Ajax’s ground) and it was amazing. We got to walk out where the players do; we saw the real shirts of famous players who have played there; we saw their trophy room that was stacked with cups, plates and many other things.
Next, we went on a pancake cruise where we got delicious food, getting to put anything on the top. Along with that, we saw some amazing views and landmarks of Amsterdam.
In the evening, we all had a match (Y10, Y9 and Y8). The matches were incredible, and everyone had a good time playing against a foreign team. Their style of play was quite different. Sadly, the Y8s lost, however, the Y9s and Y10s won. We all played very well and enjoyed the experience. Soon after the matches, we ate with the other teams and talked with them.
Day 3 - Wednesday
We headed to Efteling theme park to enjoy a day of rides and fun. We then travelled to our last match of the holiday where the Y8s played Fortuna Wormeveer and the Y9s and Y10s played KFC. Where the Y8s were on the wrong end of a very entertaining 3-2, the Y9s and the Y10s won convincingly.
Day 4 - Thursday
We were all very excited to be training at a very famous club (Feyenoord) with their proper coaches. After being on the bus for an hour and half, we finally arrived and got changed. When we were ready, we headed onto the pitch and got started. It wasn't easy, they made us work very hard. Afterwards, we had lunch and got back to training again. Prior to this, we went to the Feyenoord club shop. We were all tired at the end but we were all looking forward to our reward of an Italian restaurant.
Day 5 - Friday
After a fantastic week of fun, we headed back to England at 9am. At around midday we stopped for a quick snack. We quickly got back to the bus so that we could get to the ferry in time. After a few hours of being on the ferry we headed home before being welcomed by our parents at school.