Nike 'The Chance' dinner with McCarthy

The last leg of the journey for 46 football hopefuls selected from a series of regional trials commenced with an opening dinner of Nike’s ‘The Chance’ 2012 football trial final at The Venue in Melrose Arch last night.  The young amateur footballers will be competing for one of only three final spots available in The Chance, in what is expected to be an intense trial hosted in Soweto July 5th to 8th.

Professional footballer and head scout for ‘The Chance 2012’ Benni McCarthy, who was the guest speaker at the function said the boys had a once in a lifetime opportunity and they should grab it with both hands. “These youngsters have a chance to make something meaningful with their life. The fact that they have made it this far means they have what it takes to make it far in this game,” said McCarthy.

“We all come from different backgrounds, some are more challenging than others, but we have a common interest, and that is to be great footballers. Talent alone won’t guarantee success and they needed to work hard, have a spirit of learning and remain grounded.”

The 46 young footballers, between the ages of 16 and 21 years, were selected from over 5,500 hopefuls who turned up across a series of regional trials hosted in June, and will compete for one-in-three spots available for South Africa, in the global event to be held in Barcelona, Spain in August.

The four-day programme will see the players put through their paces as the head coaches Shaun Bartlett, Craig Rosslee, Tebogo Moloi and Arthur Zwane search for the best players who demonstrate they have what it takes to play football at the highest level.

Days one to three will be hosted at the world-class Nike Football Training Centre.Soweto in Johannesburg, and will be dedicated to the measurements of technical and tactical ability including footwork, speed, agility and endurance, during the drills tests and small sided games.  Nike athletes from professional local clubs will be making appearances to encourage the players and provide feedback to the coaches based on their observations of play.

A short list of players will be selected for the final day, July 8th, to play a decisive match at the renowned Soccer City Complex, under the watchful eyes of head scouts: legendary coach Johan Neeskens and Benni McCarthy. Hosting the final match in such a professional setting, which is mainly reserved for football’s elite, will enable the core team of scouts and coaches to ultimately determine which top three players will deservedly receive their ticket to Barcelona.

In August, the three South African finalists will travel to Barcelona, to make up the ‘The Chance’s’ top 100 players scouted from 55 countries, who will trial at FC Barcelona’s famed youth academy, where the ultimate opportunity awaits them – to earn a place in the elite 16-man squad to train with the best professional teams and play against the most prestigious youth academies.