Looking back at a busy holiday period at the Foundation

The two-week Easter break saw a multitude of trips, fixtures and tours, as our programmes travelled the length and breadth of the UK – and beyond.

Here’s our in-brief round-up of a busy period for the Foundation:

EPDC & ADP on tour!

Suitcases were packed, busses filled and goodbyes waved as 193 boys and girls from our EPDC and ADP programmes went on tour.

First off, our elder age groups made the 300-mile trip to Arnhem in Holland. There, they took on local fourth-tier sides VV DOVO and DVS ’33 Ermelo, and also had time to check out Ajax and Vitesse Arnhem’s stadiums as part of a memorable five-day tour.

The second week saw the turn of the younger age-groups. They headed north for a four-day stay in Newcastle. The highlights were a two-day tournament (facing the likes of Newcastle United, Middlesbrough and Doncaster Rovers), watching an U23 game at St James’ Park and a ground tour of Sunderland’s Stadium of Light.

Boys’ football

Back home, there were other opportunities for our participants. The U7-U12s took on Kent’s Pro Soccer Academy in fixtures at Open Academy, enjoyed development days and the EPDC U13-16 travelled to Walsall FC for a round-robin tournament, with Cardiff City FC and the hosts.

Girls’ football

Aside from the tours, our girls had a series of internal fixtures and fixtures against grassroots sides and had the pleasure of taking to the brand new 3G pitch at Beccles Town Football Club for a fixture against Suffolk FA.

Kicks

A Kicks team travelled to the University of Warwick to represent Norwich City FC at the annual Premier League Kicks Cup. No silverware, but the boys’ team won the Fair Play Award, which they received from former England and Arsenal Ladies star Alex Scott.

Meanwhile, an U15 Kicks team enjoyed an action packed three-day tour of the North-West, where they took on equivalent sides from Liverpool, Bolton Wanderers and Preston North End. They also managed to squeeze in a ground tour of Old Trafford, and met former City goalkeeper Remi Matthews for a Q&A session.

Disability

Our Disability FA Talent team made the trip to Hertfordshire for a Watford FC hosted tournament. A round-robin of games saw the Canaries emerge victorious.

Meanwhile, holiday participants met at Open Academy for a disability multi-sport camp.

Soccer Schools

There were a total of 20 Soccer Schools running over the Easter holidays across Norfolk, with a whopping 732 participants enjoying footballing fun.

The Nest

Sampling the facilities at our new community hub in Horsford were a 60-strong tour group from Thailand.

Our first international visitors at the site, they used it as their base for two weeks as they explored Norfolk, learnt English and, of course, experienced a ground tour of Carrow Road!