Dickman on Future Champions trip

Head of coaching looks ahead to Africa visit.

Sunderland’s academy head of coaching, Elliott Dickman, says the club’s young players are relishing the chance to take part in the prestigious Future Champions tournament.

Dickman

The Black Cats’ U16 squad will fly out to Johannesburg on Sunday to take part in the competition, which kicks off on March 24.

Sunderland, who are enjoying an ever-growing profile on the continent as part of the SAFC in Africa initiative, are honoured to have been invited to take part in the tournament, which is in its sixth year.

hey have been drawn in Group D alongside South African side Mamelodi Sundowns, US outfit USYSA Select and Royal Wahingdoh of India.

A total of sixteen teams spanning the globe are taking part, and Dickman sees the diverse nature of the opposition as a big positive.

“We’re all looking forward to the trip,” he told safc.com ahead of the tournament, which is taking place at the Nike Football Training Centre in Pimville, Soweto.

“It’s a big part of the players’ development.

“We’re going with a quite a young squad and it’ll be a test for them against a good variety of teams.

“There’ll be different types of players, different styles of coaching and styles of play, so it’s going to be a good challenge.”

The young Black Cats kick off their challenge for silverware against Mamelodi Sundowns on Monday evening before taking on Royal Wahingdoh the next day, with the second game potentially televised in South Africa on SuperSport (to be confirmed).

Sunderland’s final group game – against USYA Select next Wednesday – is also set to be broadcast.

The play-off games and semi-finals will then take place on Friday 28thMarch, followed by the last round of play-off matches and the final itself the following day.

Several members of the travelling squad have already featured at U18 level this season, including the likes of Josh Robson, Dan Pybus, Andrew Nelson and Luke Molyneux.

Meanwhile, first-year scholar Ryan Ellison will also head to South Africa.

“We’ll go and give it our best shot,” Dickman added.

“We’ve done quite well in previous tournaments, but the main thing is to enjoy the experience of playing against different teams.

“If we’re lucky enough to win the trophy as well then that would be fantastic.

“We’ve got a good set of lads going out there who are very hard-working.

“We might have to adapt our style of play to the conditions slightly, but that’s something we’ll learn as coaches as well.”

GROUP D SCHEDULE

Monday 24thMarch (1930 local): Mamelodi Sundowns v Sunderland AFC

Tuesday 25thMarch (1500 local): Sunderland AFC v Royal Wahingdoh

Wednesday 26thMarch (1500 local): Sunderland AFC v USYSA Select

  • We had a wonderful football and cultural experience in Gauteng. The tournament and activities were very well organized and we found everyone involved extremely helpful and accommodating. We have all returned home with fantastic memories of our time in South Africa, both on and off the pitch, and have made many new friends as a result of the trip. I hope that we are invited to participate in future tournaments.

    Everton Academy Head Coach

  • The experience both on and off the field for our players during the Future Champions tournament in Gauteng was life-enriching for all those who participated. We were privileged enough to win this edition but what will be bringing us back in future is the cross-cultural education our players receive from spending time with athletes from all over the world. They are human beings before they are football players and enriching them with other cultures is as rewarding as the experience they receive on the field.

    Club Tijuana Director of Football

  • After twenty years of experiencing tournaments around the globe, Future Champions is hands down the best organized, well run International Tournament we have ever participated in. Bringing teams from dozens of different countries provided our boys exposure to cultural diversity they only read about in textbooks. It’s amazing how sport can be the cultural link that provides the opportunity to interact with each other and discover that our global community is a bit smaller than they realized. We had a football and cultural experience that will be cherished for the rest of our lives.

    Director of USYSA Select

  • For us to compete in Future Champions is much more than playing a series of matches. It is an opportunity to compete and contrast our level against the best teams from around the world and the possibility of living in another culture and environment for an unforgettable week, learning about the history of the fight for human rights.

    Director of Aspire Academy

  • The addition of a girls’ competition this year is a natural expansion for what has become a hugely popular event. Over and above the football, the players are also exposed to life-skills courses and HIV/AIDS awareness that could end up saving their lives in the future. We have had an amazing partnership with the Gauteng Province over the last decade and we thank each and every stakeholder for making the Future Champions Gauteng campaign such a huge success

    Tournament director