Keenan Cartwrights trip to Italy proved to be valuable, and other young Sea to Sky soccer players will get a chance to follow in his footsteps with the return of the Genova International School of Soccer (GISS) soccer camps in June.
Cartwright, who has attended two of the camps in the past, said the experience in Italy has helped him mature as a player.
The last camp went really well, he said. It was almost a tryout because we were working with the [Vicenza Calcio] development head coach. We played against older and younger players and it was a really incredible experience.
Cartwright, along with fellow 麻豆社国产resident Connor Richards, were in Italy from April 17 to 28 and made quite an impression overseas.
European clubs know that young Canadian players have a good skill base and are usually more well-rounded athletes than their European counterparts, said Tim OBrien from GISS. They are looking to find young players to develop into professional soccer players.
Cartwright and Richards trained at the Vicenza Calcio training facility each day, playing several friendly games and training with players from New Zealand, Australia, Mexico and across Canada.
I think I learned a lot more than what I would have out here, Cartwright said, who added that he might return to Europe this summer to continue with Vicenza Calcio. Its almost a different game and you learn more about the mental, not just physical part of soccer. We learned more about passing and worked on a lot of advanced drills this time compared to the session in November.
The GISS will return to the Lower Mainland with three different sessions, depending on the location and age group. The AS Roma camps for boys and girls 14 and under will take place June 26 to 28 from 4 to 7 p.m. each day at Don Ross Secondary School (DRSS). All players taking part in the camp will receive AS Roma jerseys, shorts and socks.
There will also be a session in Whistler for the same age group on June 25 and 26 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. 麻豆社国产residents who sign up for the sessions at DRSS can attend the Whistler sessions at no extra cost.
For those 15 and over, GISS trials will take place June 29 to July 1 from 2 to 5 p.m. at the Burnaby West Sports Complex from June 29 to July 1. The top player as chosen by the coaches will win a free trip to Italy to play in the GISSs showcase tour.
We are looking for more players to bring to Italy and England from our camps this June, OBrien said. And we have a new guest coach John Curtis, who played for Manchester United, Portsmouth and Nottingham Forest, who will bring experience that is hard to find in Canada.
Connor and Keenan showed very well, and not only have good skills, they have a passion for soccer and real drive and determination, and that is a really big part of becoming a pro soccer player.
For more information on the camps, visit www.genovacanada.com.
