Day three started with us all going down to the training pitch to prepare for our game against NEC Nijmegen. We went through our usual pre match preparations of team selection and tactics with coach Lee Elam before heading back to the hotel to have some food and to relax before the game in the evening.
The match didn’t go as planned, and in the 5th minute we conceded which set us back. We came back into the game and had a couple of half chances but conceded a penalty on the stroke of half time. We then had two more put past us in the second half and the game ended 4-0 to NEC.
The game was a big reality check for the lads but there were some positives that came out of particularly in terms of individual performances and the football we played in parts of the game. Post match it was back to the hotel for our evening meal and a candid assessment of the game.
Day four was a day for reflection on football as well as history as we travelled over to the Overloon War Museum. The day started at the hotel at 8:30 for breakfast and a little talk about the game the previous night.
After that we went down the lake at the beach for a cool down session with our coaches. All the lads really enjoyed the change in scenery and some took up the opportunity to swim across it. Once that was over it was time to turn our minds to the past and reflect on what had happened in Holland in the war. Travelling half an hour down the motorway we arrived at the Overloon Museum.
The first thing we did was sit down in a theatre and way some footage about the area and how one of the most influential battles happened right where we were all those years before. We then had a tour around the main museum which had all the armoury, vehicles, planes and war ships that were used in World War 1 and 2 as well as the Vietnam War.
From there it was on to the hologram room where people explained the situation they were in when the Germans owned the Ventra and Overloon area and the relief when the Allies won the battle and their freedom was restored.
For me the most significant thing was going to one of the cemeteries, it put into perspective all we learnt that day and what happened there in the war. Lest We Forget.
