Tranmere Rovers International Soccer Academy duo Dan O’Donnell and Matt Hunter recently represented the Football Club in Indonesia.
Dan and Matt spent the trip to the Far East Asian country coaching local school children at a regional football tournament in Jakarta, which was held on behalf of the Santini Group.
O’Donnell and Hunter then headed onto Surabaya to develop further links ahead of coaching opportunities involving the ISA.
The pair hosted coaching clinics and sessions for aspiring footballers, spreading the TRFC word in the process.
The ISA continues to make plenty of strides through its Asia programme, and the partnerships with Indonesian government organisations, corporate businesses and private educators which we have made strengthen the links.
Dan said: “Matt and I were honoured to represent The Club in Indonesia. The trip was in two parts. Firstly, we scouted promising U15 players in Jakarta on behalf of our partners at Santini Group.
“We selected a number of players who we are now in discussions with regarding a two-week elite training camp at The Campus in June. This gives us the opportunity to see where the players are in comparison to our own players in the Academy system as we look to develop our international scouting system.'
“Secondly, we were welcomed to Surabaya to the home of Mayor Risma to discuss Tranmere Rovers delivering coach education courses to the coaches of the 89 football schools in Surabaya.
“We also laid the foundations for The Mayors' visit to the Club later this year. Mayor Risma will pay a cultural visit to the Wirral in August, during which, promising U16 football players from Surabaya will experience a two-week training and games programme at the club.
We are excited to keep developing these types of relationships worldwide and enhancing the Football Club’s reputation in Indonesia which has the fourth largest population on the planet.”
The ISA plays a key role in the Sister City relationship between the Liverpool City Region and Surabaya City Government in Indonesia.
Elite players from Surabaya have attended ISA programmes located at The Campus, Tranmere Rovers’ training ground, with another group scheduled for a visit later this year.