As the U18s returned from their pre-season camp in Hertfordshire, Lead Coach Jason Pearce reflected on how the new squad is doing.
“We’ve got a brand-new group and we’re trying to teach them all new things, so that’s always going to be a bit of a challenge, but great learning for the players.
“There’s been a bit of a difference this year. Normally when you work with a group all season last year - in terms of the first-years, now second-years - they know a lot of the information that we want to tell them. So they would normally help the new first years coming in. But we haven’t had that this year because all of the second-years have gone with the U21s to Jamaica.
“We’ve worked them hard. It’s always a little bit of a shock to the system for the players when they go from schoolboy football to full-time, but it’s been good.”
Pearce explained the benefits of getting the whole U18s squad together for their week away.
“The main thing for us was that we were there 24/7 together, so it was about getting to know each other,” he said. “But it was also about having the opportunity to work them really hard. My mindset when we’re away has always been to put them through a difficult period where I’m challenging them mentally as well as physically. I want to see who are the ones who can handle it.
“If they go into a first-team environment, if they give up and don’t want to work hard when the going gets tough, then they’re not going to make it. So that mental side is really important as well.
“They worked really hard and I saw a really nice side to them. Their mentality is really good, I was impressed with a lot of them. They just need a bit more work tactically and technically.”
The players were also able to take inspiration from a rising young star in the Spain set-up. “A big insight for the players has been seeing Lamine Yamal playing in the Euros at 16, the same age as these boys. While we were away, they were watching someone their age playing in the Euros! So it gave them some good inspiration.”
Next up for the team is a trip to Brighton & Hove Albion U18s on Friday, before they take on two men’s sides in Sevenoaks Town and Broadbridge Heath in the coming weeks. Pearce stressed that results in these games are not the primary focus.
“We might struggle at points during this pre-season, but I do think you’ve got to look at the bigger picture with this group of players,” he said.
“They’re such a young group - we’ve got a lot of U16s which we wouldn’t normally have, and they’re all first-years - so they might lose out a little bit in terms of results because they’re not physically able to stay up with some of these other teams.
“But they're not giving up, and they’re working as hard as they can. As a coach that’s all you can ask.
“It’s going to help them in the long run,” he continued. “Last year the U16s group did really well and won a lot of games, but they probably weren’t stretched as much as we’re able to stretch them now. This year is going to be a real stretch for them, so mentally it’s going to be really interesting how they deal with that.
“For us as coaches we just have to support them through that.”
See the full gallery of photos from the pre-season camp below.
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