Day 4!!!

Wednesday August 19th

Scheduled free day! Most of us slept in and did our best to get on UK time. The captains organized a "fun run" around the town of Troon. We dropped the boys off at the first hole of Royal Troon Golf Club (yes, British Open Royal Troon) and they ran along the Scottish coastal town of Troon. After the coaches enjoyed a warm cup of coffee we hopped back on the bus and went to pick the boys up at the far end of the Troon sand dunes. We were told that it was a refreshing run with fantastic scenery. The rest of the day was spent relaxing and taking in the fine Scottish weather…(today was actually quite nice up until the coaches match…keep reading) Later that evening (in occasional down pours) the coaches were involved in a 7 a side match against a Scottish side comprised of ex-professional players and coaches. The game was described as "slow-motion soccer"…I can report that, though, the pace was not fast by Scottish Premier League (SPL) standards…it certainly should not have qualified as slow motion soccer. There is nothing quite like men, past their prime, competing as if they were competing in the world cup final…it proves, trans-continentally (This is a word right?), that we are all still youthful of mind. The whole team came out to support Mike, myself, Ivo (Trinity trainer), Charlie (Mike's son), Martin, Nate Maggiatto, and Andrew (a family friend of Martin's). I'm sure someone kept score…but after 90+ minutes of small sided soccer there were too many goals to count. Though I know I scored 3, Charlie claimed "at LEAST six", Mike and Martin had "MORE" then a few…I am positive they out scored us 3-1….so let's just call it USA 3, Scotland 1 (???). The important part was that friendship were started, memories created, and a good time was had by all. US/Scottish relations were strengthened this evening.