by Malta’s U15 Girls National Team completed their commitments in the UEFA U15 Girls Development Tournament with three successive 1-0 victories against the Faroe Islands, Andorra and Luxembourg. Coach Kirsten Attard hailed the team’s determination to take the most out of the experience, while also discussing the importance of continuing to build them into future senior Malta national team players.
Objectives Reached
Malta’s U15 Girls National Team emerged from the UEFA U15 Girls Development Tournament with a recurring pattern of 1-0 wins in all three encounters against the Faroe Islands, Andorra and Luxembourg. Twenty players participated in the tournament for Malta’s contingent, rotated to the exigencies of the tournament, with the aim of giving early experience at international football.
Coach Kirsten Attard praised the group for reflecting the work done on the training pitch on the big stage, “The girls showed a lot of motivation during training as well as during the matches. They truly put training into practice to earn these results. We’ve trained throughout the year, but there are always tweaks as you get closer to the tournament. However, they were exceptional in taking all these details on board and showing it on the pitch. That is a very big positive.”
Falling under the jurisdiction of the MFA Women’s Football department, Attard was supported in steering the team toward these results by assistant coach Lynn Mifsud and goalkeeper’s coach Janice Xuereb. Ryan Micallef handled the fitness coaching duties, while Yolande Attard was the team’s physio. The coaching staff was completed by Karen Hanenghan as their match analyst, while Michelle Dimech and Jacqueline Ellul Soler acted as Team Manager and Kit Manager, respectively.
Developing High Quality Senior International Players
Although results are only one element, they do show momentum in the right direction and portray positives on the potential of the squad. Asked about the elements that can be improved for these players to continue growing into tomorrow’s senior Malta national team players, Kirsten Attard highlighted the need for a unified effort in pushing players to maintain the level across the board.
She said, “I think away from playing in our academy, we need to improve the domestic league in terms of intensity. This is important so that they are capable of playing at the required level throughout these matches. In our academy we organise matches even against boys, every other Saturday, so that these players are exposed to a level of intensity that matches what they face in international games.”
“So, I think we must work together so that they are playing at that level every week. This is important so that they can perform at that level consistently in international tournaments. Clubs release their players twice a week to train with our national team academy, so it’s important we keep working together in this regard,” she finished.
Importance Of Unified Support
The teams played two matches during the week, but the Maltese contingent were treated to a strong home crowd on Sunday to will them on in their final match. Although vocal throughout the match, the home crowd was especially in full voice as the final moments approached and extended injury time took its toll in the match. As the Maltese team faced increasing pressure for the last minutes, the home support pushed the team on to defend the lone goal, which ensured the perfect run in the tournament.
Questioned about the importance that support for these young players in such matches, but also in view of all of the efforts done throughout a season, Attard replied, “Having support is healthy for these girls and in the end they are the future of Malta’s national team. So, it is important that they feel that from now, so that we can keep pushing them further to maintain that passion for the sport.”
Players will return to their domestic matches, with the BNF U16 National Women’s League returning to action this Sunday 29th.
Lead Image: Elise Bajada
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