ROVERS’ SPECIAL COACHES VISIT
Players from Milton Rovers Boys’ Club in Carluke were given a unique insight into the game recently when training was taken by coaches from European giants Benfica.
Rovers utilised their link with Coerver Coaching to bring coaches from the Portuguese club over to Lanarkshire.
The club’s Coerver co-ordinator Douglas Fleming says the kids made the most of the sessions, and some have already moved on to bigger things.
Douglas said: “It’s incredible to have Benfica coaches in Carluke and it was a fantastic experience for our players.
“Milton Rovers’ partnership with Coerver Coaching is ultimately to develop skilled, confident and creative local players by making football fun, while delivering serious values to practice and games.
“The club’s teams have become stronger as a result, many competing for cups and league titles on a regular basis.
“Success in the more technical game of Futsal has also been on the increase.
“The club has seen a massive rise in the number of players, both boys and girls, scouted into professional teams, with kids currently at Rangers, Celtic, Hamilton and Motherwell.
“Several have also gained international caps and attended full-time education at the SFA’S Elite Performance Academies.”
Coerver Coaching technical director and Scotland coach Joe Jones said: “We have been working with Milton Rovers for over four years now as a Coerver partner club.
“Throughout this time the club has shown a real desire to develop not only the club’s players but also their coaches.
“We were delighted to bring this exclusive opportunity to the club and their excellent facilities at Burn Road.”
Benfica coach Jose Bruno said: “We were really happy with how the players reacted during our sessions with them.
“They showed great intensity, focus, spirit and also a very good level of skill.
“We were also very impressed by their intelligence and decision-making during the work.
“We really enjoyed the excellent facilities and the welcome from the Scottish people.”
Benfica’s Academy has produced top players around the world, including Manchester City stars Bernardo Silva and Ederson, Atletico Madrid’s Joao Felix and Bayern Munich’s Renato Sanches.