From humble beginnings the U17 side turned out to produce some quality football. Although at times the commitment of the boys was questionable, for those that chose to apply themselves, they saw some major improvements.
As a lot of the players had never really played together before, it took a few games for them to understand each other and what their strengths and weaknesses were. After a few hefty losses, the boys rose to the occasion in round 8 and registered their first win. Although the first half of the season was a tough one for the boys, Kyle and I saw great improvements from week to week from most of the players.
The second half of the season proved to be much better than the first. The boys were competitive in every game and finished with 4 wins for the year. The morale amongst the group remained high throughout the year which was important and that is mostly due to our leaders, Josh Pavlou, Mat Care and Christian Henry.
I hope that all the players continue to play again next year, It is extremely important for the senior club to filter the junior players through and keep them involved in the club, if we wish to push forward. Hopefully I can run out amongst some of the boys I have coached in the not too distant future.
Id like to thank Steve OReilly for a tremendous job as team manager. No task was too big for Steve and he made my job a much easier one. I would also like to thank Tony Gale, Adrian McCarthy and Phil Seymour for their efforts as boundary and goal umpires, and to the parents that turned up every week and provided support to the players.
Congratulations to the trophy winners and to all the players for their contribution this year. I hope to see you in the green and gold again next year.
Tom Curry
U17 COACH
