MK Dons Girls Centre of Excellence squads were given the opportunity to take part in some tactical game analysis at stadiummk on Monday.
The U11- U17 squads were all in attendance to watch England Ladies take on Russia in the 2013 UEFA European Championships Group C clash.
MK Dons First Team Manager Karl Robinson kindly gave the squads the chance to use the First Team Lecture Theatre to work in for the evening which was a fantastic opportunity for these young female footballers to watch their footballing heroes on the big screen.
Instead of their usual Monday evening training, the girls were all invited to take part in the analysis session with the rest of their team and their coaches. On arrival the players made their way to the Lecture
Theatre to have a discussion with their coaches about the upcoming game.
The coaches set their age groups challenges whilst watching the game, ranging from watching specific player movement, analysing transitional play, seeing how the teams would play out from the back and which tactics the teams were putting into practice. With pens and paper in hands, the girls worked in small groups within their age groups to take as much information from the game as possible.
With the game ending England 1 Russia 1, after a 93rd minute equaliser from England’s Toni Duggan, the girls made their way pitchside to talk about what they had seen with their team-mates and coaches.
The players produced some impressive feedback including diagrams on how the England and Russian teams had organised for set-plays, how the teams reacted after conceding a goal and how tactical decisions such as substitutions affected the rest of the match.
After the post-match analysis, the girls gathered for photos inside stadiummk and did some further work with their coaches and team-mates in the magnificent surroundings of the stadium. Some of the players had the chance to catch minutes from the other Group C game between France and Spain, to compare the style of the teams and the players.
It was a great evening for all involved and helped to highlight to these young players the importance of watching live football. Speaking after the event COE manager Charlene Ward said: “This was a great event for the girls and allowed them to watch an England senior set up, that they are all aiming to be a part of in the future and hopefully improve elements of their technical know-how.
"Our Technical Director, Paul is constantly encouraging the girls to watch more football and a tournament as big as this in the Women’s Calendar gives them the perfect opportunity, and in such amazing surroundings.
“Thanks again to Karl Robinson and all of the staff at MK Dons FC, who helped make this possible for MK Dons FC Girls Centre of Excellence players and staff.”
