JDA U9s Take On Professional Academies at the Pro Cup
A First for JDA
Our U9s were given another brilliant opportunity in August as they travelled to Hertfordshire to compete in the Soccer Elite Tours Pro Cup.
It was the first tournament JDA had attended featuring a field of professional academy teams, giving our players the opportunity to test themselves in a completely different environment against some outstanding young players.
Testing Ourselves Against Academy Opposition
Throughout the tournament, JDA came up against professional clubs including Norwich City, Fulham, Portsmouth and Luton Town.
The boys embraced the challenge brilliantly and competed throughout the group stage, eventually finishing fourth in their group amongst a strong field of professional academy sides.
More importantly, the tournament gave our players the opportunity to experience the intensity, quality and different challenges that come with playing against academy opposition.
A Brilliant Knockout Game Against Luton
Our group-stage performance set up a knockout fixture against Luton Town.
JDA made an unbelievable start, racing into a 2–0 lead and putting themselves in a fantastic position against strong opposition.
Luton responded and eventually edged an excellent game 3–2, bringing our tournament to an end by the narrowest of margins.
Despite the result, the performance was another indication of the level our players are capable of competing at.
Another Valuable Experience
Opportunities like the Pro Cup are about much more than results.
For our players to compete in a tournament alongside professional academies, experience that environment and test themselves against some of the country's academy players is invaluable for their development.
It was a fantastic first Pro Cup experience for JDA – and another exciting step forward for this group.
