PARAROOS coach Kai Lammert has finalised his squad, featuring Callala Bay's Ben Atkins, to compete at next month's International Federation of Cerebral Palsy Football World Cup in Seville, Spain.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Fourteen players will venture to Europe on Saturday, June 29, with the Pararoos' first stop being Oberhaching near Munich where the team will play two international friendlies against Germany's national CP (Cerebral Palsy) football team.
While in Bavaria, Lammert's squad will set up shop at Sportschule Oberhaching, a modern college of physical education that was built in 1994 and features a range of elite outdoor and indoor facilities.
The Pararoos will play Germany on July 1 and 2, before venturing to Spain where they will take on Ukraine, Argentina, and Spain in Group C of the tournament.
Australia's Pararoos have displayed steady improvement on the international scene in recent years, having finished 13th in the world in 2013, 12th in 2015, and 10th in 2017.
Lammert has belief that his boys can finish in the top 10 at the forthcoming IFCPF World Cup despite being drawn in a tough pool for the competition.
"Our preparation for this year's IFCPF World Cup has been thorough with the team having had three camps at Football New South Wales' headquarters in Glenwood in the build up to the tournament," Lammert said.
"The time that we will have in Oberhaching will help us fine tune our plans leading up to the tournament, and the games that we will play against Germany, who are also bound for the World Cup, will offer fantastic preparation.
"The 14 players that have been selected for this year's World Cup have all overcome obstacles in their lives to earn selection in this squad, so it is a special moment for all of the boys that have been picked and they are ready to represent Australia with passion and pride," he said.
Joining Atkins, who has 62 international caps and four goals to his name, in Lammert's squad are David Barber, Connor Bunce, Daniel Campbell, Cosimo Cirillo, Matthew Hearne, Alessandro La Verghetta, Taj Lynch, Angus Macgregor, Augustine Murphy, Christopher Pyne, Banjamin Roche, Bradley Scott and Benjamin Sutton.
The 2019 IFCPF World Cup will be held between July 4-20, with the Pararoos set to play their opening match against Ukraine on Sunday, July 7.
