CALL OF DUTY
Three Lions told: Remember your Marine training
GARETH SOUTHGATE will send his World Cup troops into battle against Tunisia tomorrow with a simple message – trust your commando training.
Memories of two gruelling days spent at the mercy of Royal Marines commandos, in deepest Devon 12 months ago, will be replayed over and over.
That weekend of self-discovery and bonding for England’s stars will be referenced by Southgate when he prepares his men for a game that’s pivotal to their hopes of reaching the knockouts.
Those 48 hours that England spent on a no-holds-barred marines assault course forged the team spirit that is driving their tilt at World Cup glory in Russia.
When England’s players assembled in June 2017 for the build-up to a World Cup qualifier against Scotland and a friendly with France in Paris, they had no idea what awaited them.
As they gathered in the team room at St George’s Park, a member of the Royal Marines walked in with Southgate, and told the players that they were being ‘hijacked’ for the weekend and taken down to Lympstone in Devon.
Home for the weekend was to be the Royal Marines Commando Training Centre – on the agenda a series of challenges to take them far outside their comfort zones.
Major Scotty Mills was their inspirational guide and mentor as they embarked on night camping, a five-mile hike in army kit and an assault course which included the dreaded water tube – an underwater sheep dip that is not for the faint-hearted.
Demons
The England players threw themselves headlong into every challenge, sometimes conquering their own demons along the way.
A few days later England snatched a last-gasp draw in Glasgow thanks to Harry Kane and then lost 3-2 to France.
The wisdom of Southgate putting his stars through a tough commando experience was questioned. But the trip was not about short-term results.
The aim was to help forge an unshakeable team spirit and unity that will hopefully surface when the chips are down and the pressure of a World Cup really begins to bite.
That moment is now upon England – and the Three Lions boss is looking to draw on the life lessons learned that weekend as their campaign kicks off.
Southgate said: “For me, the greatest outcome was that we worked as one team – support staff and players.
“There was a real connection formed between everybody, and it was also a great life experience.
“We’re always thinking about football and the small world we’re in, but we had experiences there that will stay with us forever.
“We’ve seen the Royal Marines’ standards and the pride they have in their identity and the green beret, which is a powerful message for us to link with the Three Lions.
“We’ve got to be brave in terms of how we play and what we do. Royal Marines talk about a ‘dislocated expectation’, and that was part of the theme of the camp.
“How will we be adaptable in moments of difficulty for us as a team?
“We wanted to expose the guys to an elite environment with one of the elite forces in the world.
“We wanted them to see that there’s another world out there.
Conflict
“These guys represent Queen and country, and we do the same – but the consequences of failure for the Royal Marines are far higher.
“That gives us a good context and comparison.”
More recently, England players spent time with amputee soldiers who lost limbs in conflict, seeing how they had overcome adversity.
One had swum the English channel. All had inspirational tales to tell.
As the World Cup starts, Southgate will be calling on his own front-line warriors to put fear aside and follow that example.