The following journal entries are those from members of the 2009 Ambassadors in Sport Spain Tour.
(Please take note, that the following entries have been done in a manner that attempts to give an outline of each tour days events. However, due to the fact that the entries were done by tour members, there may be select portions that have been written in a joking fashion, and therefore sections portions may pertain to jokes surrounding various tour experiences that took place.)
Friday (FEB 20TH)
I have two words for you Marcus Speller! After arriving from different countries at different times. One man united us with the game of look alikes. It was at this point, two minutes into the tour that I knew it was going to be a success. It was great to put faces to all the emails and phone calls I had been making in the weeks leading up to the tour. I knew from these conversations that the guys had little going for them in terms of personality and sense of humour, we can only hope that their football ability makes up for this. All joking aside God is good and we praise and give him thanks that he selected this team and we were about to undertake an amazing adventure.
Saturday (FEB 21ST)
Today most people got up at 8.30 for breakfast. After that Graham got us together and told us we were in Spain on a football tour. Everyone was like ‘what? Who are you? We thought we were coming here to sell Hummel tracksuits and start a fish business. Then Glenn came into the room and squared up to Graham. Things got ugly. Just kidding…The match kicked off at 1 o clock Spanish time. (That’s Midday to those of you still in Inglaterra). The grass wasn’t green, as they say on the other side. In fact it was very dirty, almost like dirt, as David Pleat might say. AIS had something of a celebrity line-up, due to a late influx of funding from Roman Abramovic. But pundits were questioning Abramovic’s purchases: John Travolta, Tom Cruise, Lincoln from Prison Break and band members from east 17 and snow patrol to name but a few. Had he invested in quality or just bought big names?
Things started smoother than a wet fishes back, AIS taking the lead within the first 5minutes. But as they say in Spain, ‘it’s not over until the fat lady sings’. And when the Latin American Allstars equalised, players were starting to ask where the fat lady was. Local villagers said she had gone away for the day to a regional Karaoke competition. By the time she came back we had lost 4-1. Then Duber reminded us why were here, and told everyone about Jesus before explaining that we had the newest Hummel tracksuits at a very reasonable price. The Latin Americans left on fire – the midday sun had set those shell suits alight in a flash.
We also soaked up the atmosphere at the new international stadium of futsal the crowd were singing all night long and soon we were dancing on the ceiling as AIS overran their opposition. Then Pablo saw red, not a lady in red. But a card.
After that the day finished by watching some la liga in a Bar/restuarant. Oh and Matt Hama ate some garlic.
Sunday (FEB 22ND)
9am rise for most today but the gaffer chose not to lower himself to eating with his players. Leading by example, Marcus Stiller rose half an hour later and stumbled down for a late breakfast on his tod. The usual please ladies… and look lively.
We split into 3 groups to head to different churches. One group heard a man preach, as Duber battled against all the odds to deliver a translation to eager English ears. Elsewhere, Paul fell in love with some Spanish gal and the lads were humoured before being treated to a fine sermon. The 3rd group arrived 45mins late, interrupting the service.
We ate lunch with the home church- traditional Paella going down well.
Senegal provided the opposition for the afternoon’s match. The game started late due to the African time keeping and ended in 5-5 draw. Both teams had been determined to prove they had the skills to pay the bills but reality saw an error strewn match. Highlights included some inspirational words from the sideline and a Graham Dancy supersave with his stomach. Stiller was not lost for words as he wandered in the vicinity of his technical area directing abuse at any player who would listen.
The evening’s team challenge was set by Graham. The aim was to name the ingredients in a Danish pastry. The team naming the fewest correct ingredients would wash up. Glenn thought herbs would go well in a Danish, and his team ended up in the kitchen for the 2nd night in a row thanks to him speaking before thinking.
Jags was then introduced and welcomed to the Tour. And that was the end of the second day.
Monday (FEB 23RD)
We had football training on top of a mountain. What could be better. Watched Glenn make a fool of himself on the pitch and had devos. We then drove back into the city. Participated in a incredibly challenging, yet well thought out photo scavenger hunt! We then came back to the house to get ready for coaching on the dirt pitch, and then we went to the 3G pitch to play against local 11 a-side team. The pitch was insanely awesome, and we won 7 – 3. Neal scored a woeful goal which was meant to be a pass, then celebrated on his own. We then went to the golden arches to eat what seemed a feast. We then came home and looked at some comedic photography before calling it a night. Apparently someone does not like to smile on any photos, can you guess who ???
Tuesday (FEB 24TH)
The AIS gang awoke with glee as another day began. Over breakfast Phil, an employee of AIS, produced 4 plastic cups usually for drinking out of. However this was not the case as today the lads were off to prison and 4 lucky team members were required to produce a urine sample upon arrival at the prison.
The AIS team set off at 9am and soon found themselves in the belly of Granada’s prison. At this point the 4 urine samplers provided urine for their cups, but soon after were informed by Phil that it was indeed all a big joke. Tee hee
Once the security checks were complete the team emerged onto the theatre of gravel. The lads were up against a team consisting of drug offenders. Suggestions of a urine sample from the opposition were brushed off when it was pointed out that they would hardly be using performance enhancers.
Under the Spanish sun and against a mullet XI the boys started brightly and went a few goals up in the first half; however the men with the tattoos didn’t lose heart and came roaring back in the second half. Suddenly the tables were turned and the AIS team fell behind and ended up on the wrong side of a 6-5 final score. Possibly the highlight of the game was when the most handsome member of the team, Marcus Speller, nutmegged the biggest, hardest and best player in the whole prison, a feat which may never happen again to “Pedro the Punisher.”
After the match, Duber shared his testimony with both teams and the AIS team handed out New Testament Bibles to the inmates.
The AIS gentlemen left the prison in shame and were told never to return unless they committed a crime in the local area. Just kidding…
Lunch time came around and the AIS chaps were off to Granada University to take advantage of their generous café menu. For lunch there was a 2 course meal for 4 Euros. It was a lovely little deal.
The AIS fellows returned to the safe house all in time for a devotional time headed up by a local missionary. The message was all about embracing God’s calling, continuing the reading from 2 Kings Chapter 9.
The evening’s activities included a training session with the Granada AIS Futsal team.
Dan “The Cat” Cook reinvented himself as a goalkeeping extraordinaire and one could’ve been forgiven for thinking it was easier trying to suck a golf ball out of a hose pipe than putting the ball past him.
The AIS faithful watched Barcelona come from behind to secure a 1-1 draw in Lyon and returned safely home to the Spanish house after yet another fun filled day. Manolo, the keeper of the house and owner let us in to continue our moronic singing.
Tired heads hit pillows and dreams filled sleepy minds, but when all was said and done one thing summed up the day –
If you’re having goalkeeping problems I feel bad for you son, I got 99 midfielders but Dan Cook ain’t one. Hit me.
Wednesday (FEB 25TH)
After a narrow defeat in the 11 aside game yesterday it was back to Granada prison for a futsal masterclass. The match started slowly for Ambassadors who looked disjointed as they constantly had to rotate players. The introduction of Jonny “ bambi on ice” Tyrell providing classic comedy as the inmates best player rainbowed him. Despite the rainbow David Nicholson has since confirmed that there definitely was no pot of gold at the end as he was last seen running out of the prison in search of his fortune. 4-1 down to the inmates the atmosphere in the prison was boisterous from the mainly Moroccan contingent. A crowd of 100 were silenced as Aaron Sharkey produced yet another left foot finish to bring A.I.S back into the game. This was quickly followed by another Aaron Sharkey thunderbolt with his left foot. The inmates keeper had a face like a dropped pie as he saw their lead reduced to one. The A.I.S bench pumped up by Aarons goals then started a chorus. The final score finished 4-3 to the inmates Aaron Sharkey later that day complained of a sore back as did the other two Northern Irish guys as they were literally carrying A.I.S through the tour with their fluent blend of stylish football despite their usual diet of Potatoes not being catered for on tour. After the game Marcus was able to share a very relevant and challenging word with the players. We then handed over Spanish new testaments and exchanged farewells. For many of the guys their first experience of prison ministry was a success and any negative preconceived ideas were put to rest as they saw in the prison a group of normal guys who at one point had made a mistake in their lives. It is our prayer that through weekly visits from the A.I.S Spain staff that they question their past actions and put their hope in Christ.
Later that day we went back and had our second coaching session with the Ogijares youth team coached by Phil and Matt. The guys seemed pleased to see us and instantly the banter began to flow. The session consisted on lots of small sided games with mixed teams from the tour and the youth team. For the guys I am sure it was a dream come true to be stepping on the field with players of the calibre of Danny Westwell, Elan McQuaid and Trent Senske. I’m sure the kids had been following their careers closely and it really was a huge day in their lives. Some of the kids however were stuck with players such as Neil Callister, Paul Seddon and James Jaggard after their initial disappointment of not being paired with more capable players they soon got into the spirit of the competition.
After training we headed into the changing room were Aaron Sharkey shared with the guys. This was a huge moment for the team as Matt and Phil hadn’t previously shared their faith with the guys. It was a great time as they listened and hopefully started to piece together why Phil and Matt were in Granada and why they wanted to sacrifice their time and money to invest in helping these guys know God. After a time of sharing it was off to the restaurant to watch the game. Liverpool ended up sneaking a 1-0 win over Real Madrid ( Paul and Neil the two Liverpool lads sang with joy the whole way home as their favourite team had won) The night for most of the guys was the most memorable on tour as during and after the match despite the language barrier we were able to spend time with a bunch of quality kids and have such a good laugh with them.
Thursday (FEB 26TH)
Today we got up and travelled a long three hours to Seville but sitting beside Aaron Sharkey made it feel more like ten. For our gourmet pre-game lunch we stopped at IKEA. I (Glenn) ordered half of a pig leg while the rest of the team has pasta. Elan, the human trash bin, ate 6 plates. Basically if your food was not nailed down to your plate or already in your stomach he ate it. After a short period of being lost in the IKEA maze we made it back to the parking lot and we across town to go shopping.
We went to the Seville FC stadium, Roman Sanchez Piz Juan, to take a brief tour. Before the tour however, we stopped in the gift shop and spend 2 hours hanging out with Arone Kone(one of the players) and asking for more discounts on top of the rebajas. Matt, Danny, and Glenn where nearly arrested by the fashion police after they were seen sporting 1970s Seville retro jerseys. The rumour was that they were the actual tops worn by the players…we have grass stains to prove it.
Following the visit to the stadium, we were able to take part in a friendly match against a Christian run semi-professional team in Sevilla. The team has been in contact with Ambassadors over the past few years, and it was once again a great opportunity for us to share with many of the players who are not yet Christians, as well as develop the relationship between AIS and the football club in Sevilla. Trent was able to share his testimony, which was very fitting as he hopes to begin training with the team following the tour. The evening was capped off with Spanish style bocadillos prior to making the 3 hour trek back to Granada where we spent the night in a hotel near the city.
Friday (FEB 27TH)
We awoke excited about the all you can eat continental breakfast that Matt Hama had been bragging about for days. To be honest it was the biggest let down since we heard that Glenn hadn’t recruited a goal keeper. After filling up on bread we headed out for the Moroccan baths. Jags and Trent headed off for a romantic walk and coffee together. As the rest of the group arrived we were warned to keep the noise down as it was a relaxing place. We headed in and just kicked back in the cold and hot pools, which was so good for letting our muscles rest. Older players on the tour (Phil Cabildo) needed this rest time more than others as he had been playing with a 50kg knee brace the whole tour. As we were called in groups of 3 for our massage some let fate decide whether they would get “the guy” others played it cool and tactically tried to avoid this horrible outcome.
For lunch some of us headed to burger king some to the kebab house. Free time was spent mulling around the shops or the Alhambra. Various players on tour were seen booking engagement meals at a restaurant overlooking the Alhambra.
After a deserved day chilling out, we eagerly awaited our match against the Churianna men’s team. Again we faced a semi pro team on our favoured 3rd generation surface. The match started on fire for A.I.S as we dominated early on with Jonny Tyrell arriving on time for once, in the box and smashing the ball off the bar and in from 15yards. Glennaldo then saw a thunderbolt heading for the top corner tipped around the post by the Ogijares goalie, Glennaldo then squandered a second chance as he dragged just wide of the left post. There were some signs of frustration shown by the Spanish players on the pitch. Although frustrating it was good to see our guys remain calm and stay focused. It was like night and day looking at the two teams as A.I.S showed as far as possible a Christ like attitude in a tough situation. Jonny Tyrell added a second for “la Selection”. The final score finished 2-0 it could all have been different had the Churianna shooting been a bit better. Eland Mcquaid and Danny Westwell were beasts again at the back, just a pity Dannys freekicks weren’t as good as in practice. David Nicholson despite some interruptions provided a simple and extremely challenging word for the team. Again with short term ministry we can only have a limited impact in 10days but with Phil and Matt starting to train with the Churianna team we hope and pray that seeds planted on that night will be sown as they get to know the new coach and team-mates over the coming weeks and months.
Saturday (FEB 28TH)
Tournament day, the day started grey and wet which suited most of the British guys allow there were fears that the Spanish teams wouldn’t show. Despite the fears all the teams arrived and we were good to go. Before kick off James Jaggard shared his testimony. It was great to see all the teams gathered around and listening. The Ambassadors tour group were split in two. With those based in Spain making one team and the Renford rejects/world select Xl in the other. With legs heavy and minds weary star players such as David “Daniel” Nicholson sat out this was a blow as the fact that he’s Northern Irish meant he would be a loss to the squad. With Graham Dancy in goals for the Spanish team, the select Xl looked to by now tour legend Daniel “ I love pain” Cook to go in goals. However A.I.S lost their first game 4-0. With Napoleon Dynamite Cook in net standing behind the wall at a free kick instead of beside it, A.I.S decided attack was the best policy in the next game.
A 3-2 defeat saw James Jaggard miss a penalty and thus end any hopes A.I.S had of getting into the semis. The A.I.S Spain team were also put out as tiredness began to show. With one group game left we owed it to ourselves to go out and play the type of football that had left fans drooling throughout Andalucía. Despite an ill tempered match A.I.S won 4-2 playing some of their best football of the tour. With James “I miss my dog” Jaggard more than making up for his penalty miss with an exquisite individual goal. Glennda scored 2goals late on to round off a great win, with news coming in of a win for our Spanish amigos it was a great end to the tournament for us. We set back and watched the rest off the tournament and what was a great day. After tidying up and saying goodbye to many of our friends, we stood huddled in the centre circle as Graham Dancy shared of how in 1997 he had stood in the same spot and 12 years later he was called to the work in Spain. It was such a challenge to respond to the talks that Matt Hama did on “calling”. With the tour drawing to a close we have to ask ourselves, when we go home what will be different? What is God calling us to do? Will we respond to this call?
After showers lunch etc we headed of to what was a surprise treat and that was to watch the national futsal cup which was in Granada that week. It was a great way to finish the tour as we watched professionals play the game we had butchered on the tour. The highlight of the night wasn’t the futsal however it was a guest appearance by Sly Stallone as he entertained crowds with his Rocky impersonations and even had time to sign a few autographs and kiss a few babies.
We went back to base for a tour wrap up, this was probably the hardest part of the tour because we knew it was the end of an amazing experience. After saying goodbye to Dan Cook who had to go back to Poland or wherever he’s from we headed to bed. Some of us just spent the night in each others arms watching photos of arguably the best 10 days of our lives.
Sunday (MARCH 1ST)
Home day, an early start saw everyone say goodbye to each other. Some of us travelled in groups which made flying home a little easier but it wasn’t the same without the rest of the team around. After an amazing but tiring 10days most people just dreamed of their own beds and getting home for some home cooking. So we say goodbye to Warm weather, Beautiful Spanish sunsets, futsal, the beautiful mountains, tapas, Pablo, Caesar and the rest of the Spainish guys, Moroccan baths, etc etc why am I going home again???
Spain tour 2010 anyone??
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