Hi Belgium,
After 2 years of coaching the U21, it is time to make an intermediate evaluation.
S46 - European championshipTalented squad, we could have finished 2nd (best circumstances) but we finished 4th (After
Israel, current world champion,
Hungary, quarter final consolation tournament and
Ukraine, semi final consolation).
After a 4-0 winning streak, the big teams were on the program. Our match against Ukraine was crucial.
Our GS was in general not bad up until game 4 against... UKRAINE!
We were never able to win that game. I was extremely disappointed.
Don't get me wrong, some of the players stayed in good shape. So as conclusion it wasn't all that bad. I just felt we could do better with higher GS.
S47 - Consolation tournamentLess talented squad, but still good.
I made 1 mistake: the game against New Zealand was at 8 o'clock in the morning and the automatic line-ups were validated. Enthousiasm was NORMAL instead of TIE. The next game was against Estonia where I would have validated a NORMAL one but in fact managed to offer the Estonian coach a TIE vs TIE. That is something that won't happen to me again. We could have finished with 0 losses and go 1 round further.
But okay, still a very positive campaign. The owners were very cooperative and coachable.
We managed to win 6 of our 7 games and went to round 2. La Suisse was no match for us and a game against (runner-up) France could put us back on the ground with both feet. And yes, we were no match and lost with 21 points.
S48 - S49The past 2 seasons taste like more. And by more I really mean more. I would like to manage our beloved U21 for at least 4 more seasons. I want to follow our biggest talents, propose a training program and get more out of our talents. There's a good cooperation with the other NT staff members and I think we all can raise our U21 level.
The past 2 seasons were new to me, now I'm up to a next step. In 4 or 6 seasons I want to take our youngsters to the European championship 2nd round, with 1 or more wins in that 2nd round. That sounds maybe crazy, but with the right program and follow-up this can work. Of course I need your help. This game isn't all about results, it's also about the fun. Training an U21 or NT prospect is quite fun, your team evolves with your trainees.
If you all have questions feel free to ask them in the debate thread
(301875.1) and if you want me to be at the wheel for the upcoming 2 seasons, vote for me.
Your current U21 Coach
Warriorground