On Saturday 30 March 2019, the fourth DreamTeam Soccer Tour to the USA departed from OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg on Ethiopian Airlines. For the very first time, along with the usual Boys team, we had a ladies team on board and it was with a very real sense of excitement that we headed for New York. Our first week was spent in the beautiful picturesque Town of Easton, Massachusetts, where we were housed in the homes of the fabulous Easton Soccer families.
We received training from the legendary USA Soccer Coach John Barata and his team of Legacy Soccer Coaches, visited Stonehill and Mansfield University and played three matches. We were able to train at the Indoor facilities of the Fieldhouse Arena as well as the Indoor and Outdoor Fore Kicks Complex, where both teams were able to hone their skills. We were also spoiled with a trip to both the Gillette Stadium and We got Soccer Store, with amazing discounts.
After an amazing trip into Boston on the final day with our Easton Families, we headed into our second week in South Kingstown, via a visit to South Kent (Boys) and Simsbury (Girls), where each team played a match, before heading into the homes of the amazing South Kingston Soccer families for the remainder of our trip. We were able to train at the Wide World of Indoor Soccer facility, where GPS Coach Jamie Greenwood took our teams through a number of coaching sessions, before both our teams were able to play our fifth and final matches of the tour. We visited the University of Rhode Island, Wesley’s Alma Mata as well as the University of Providence during our stay.
We ended our trip with a visit to New York, where with our regular Tour Guide Michael Gunn, we were able to visit the 911 Memorial, take a Boat ride on the Hudson and spend time shopping in Time Square and beyond. It was a tired, but happy group of South Africans who arrived back home after a hectic 18-day trip to the USA.