It was with a mixture of relief, excitement and trepidation on Tuesday April 6, 2004 that a group of 26, comprising eighteen youths and eight adults departed from the car park at Kilbogget destined for the airport and then on to Lloret de Mar on Spain’s Costa Brava. The purpose of the trip was primarily to play in the Copa Costa Brava and secondly to relax and enjoy ourselves.
On arrival at our hotel, the exotic sounding Hotel Acapulco, and on sorting out the sharing arrangements, we acquainted ourselves with the Hotel’s cuisine with accompanying wine for the adults (€4 per bottle). It was after dinner that the boys and girls began the process of buying the hotel’s pool table.
We had two days in Lloret to acclimatise ourselves to the weather and pace of life in this bustling holiday resort with many of the party learning what was to become a vitalskill, bargaining with the local shopkeepers for really essential items such as watches (€6), sunglasses (€6), footballs, football shirts and other tee shirts, hats, etc. etc.
The business part of the trip began on Good Friday. We gathered in the hotel lobby and waited for the bus to take us to the pitches in another town, a short distance away. There, our first match was against a Spanish team ‘OAR Vic’ and as we were playing in an age group a year above our own, we gave a very creditable performance but lost the match 2-1.
The following day we had two matches against Italian opposition ‘FC Rocca 2003’ and ‘US Nenbrese’. In the first match the team got off to a bad start and were quickly 3-0 down. However, we got into our stride for the second half, being unlucky to concede a fourth goal. The second match began with Cabinteely playing very well but eventually conceding a goal. After half time it was obvious that the holiday atmosphere and late nights eventually caught up with us and the extra age and physique of the Italians began to tell and we started to leak goals, finally losing 6-0. This scoreline certainly flattered the Italians.
On Easter Sunday we played our final match against another Italian team called ‘Pol. Gennaro Ruotolo - Santa Mario a Vico’. The teams were very evenly matched and at half time nothing separated them. With both teams pressing, Cabinteely eventually conceded a late goal to give the match to the Italians. However, with the tournament over, we could now relax and enjoy the rest of the stay in Lloret. The swimming pool now beckoned in earnest. Shock and horror - it wasn’t heated!
Easter Monday and we all got up early to catch a bus to Barcelona at 8.00am. No breakfast but living on the expectation of seeing the Nou Camp Stadium, home of FC Barcelona. Bus, metro and a longer than expected walk got us there. We were immediately rewarded on seeing the official team bus. The stadium was certainly impressive and the tour lived up to our expectations. The Barcelona team were training close by and many of our players looked on. Players such as Saviola and Ronaldinho were entering and leaving. This was a great bonus for the guys and was a highlight of the visit. Finally it was time for the return bus to Lloret and everybody was happy to be sitting and relaxing while heading back to the hotel and a well deserved rest.
Next day and departure home beckoned. Later in the day, the tournament organisers dropped by our hotel and presented us with the tournament ‘Fair Play’ Trophy’. This was completely unexpected and certainly lifted our spirits for the trip home.
The trip was a tremendous success and was enjoyed by all who came along. None of this would have been possible without a lot of hard work and organisation from the parents and players. Thanks to everyone who helped by donating money or prizes for our table quiz. We would particularly like to thank our sponsors who gave so generously. To everyone who helped make our trip a successful event, thank you from Cabinteely U-13s. John Mulligan and Michael Bird.