From Little Acorns Grow Big Trees

With barely the slightest shake of a tree, fifty footballers made themselves available for selection last Saturday, causing me one of my biggest headaches to date. It was an incredible number when you consider FC Irlande were in action on the same day with at least seven names of possible/past players springing to mind. With those kinds of numbers available, there was no question about entering a third team. The strength of Benelux is well documented and considering our second team have to fight hard to thread water, it was always going to be a massive task to compete.

However, whilst I'd be the first to proclaim the need for achieving success, we also have a duty to give as many people the opportunity to play as possible. Last year we may have compromised our chances of winning by persisting with a second team but this year we reaped the rewards. Pearce and Jim are two examples of guys who have made the step up. Often fellas won't join a club because they don't think they will get a game and it was important we didn't fall into this trap.

On Saturday, our third team was far from a motley crew. Micky Keane kicked the winning score in our first final victory in Rennes eighteen months ago. Conor Aylward is a massive competitor and Alec Elliott a regular A player. Aside from reintroducing guys into the club, it also opened the door to new recruits like Lorcan O'Flaherty, Julian Hale, Liam Kelly and find of the day, keeper Brendan 'Bob' Lynch. Whilst the results were hard to stomach, mentor for the day Keith Stephens kept the spirits high and managed the expectations of the group well. As Ciaran Kelly alluded to in a mail this morning, our team, going under the name An Bhelig for the day, had probably slightly shorter odds than Honduras' 1000/1 to win the World Cup. The result that mattered wasn't on the scoreboard though; it will hopefully be the one that sees new players joining ranks in the coming weeks. Many have already put their name in the mix for selection on higher teams.

Our second team, playing under the name Brussels, went into the day with high expectations. It was the strongest team we had to date. However, two sucker punches early in the Amsterdam game seemed to take the wind from the sails. It was a frustrating day because physically they were equal to or superior to the opposition faced but getting the scores on the board was a problem. Considering the A team have had major struggles in this area in the past, it is a problem which will naturally filter down to other teams. Another contributing factor is the turnover of players which unsettles the team and it’s noticeable that the right mix has yet to be found. It's a lonely road being the only established second team in Europe as each opposing team you face will have at least a sprinkling of experienced players and in the 11-a-side game that can be huge.

We must make sure the spirit in the camp remains and that we keep driving on to improve our game and tailor our training to do just that. Being the first team in Europe to field three teams in Europe is great but it is more than a nice little publicity stunt. Our standards will raise if we don’t lose heart, it will be all about perseverance in the coming months. Relative to this time last year, the team is rude health ahead of the Shield rounds later in the summer.