EACH season, the Rangers Academy delivers a dynamic tournament programme designed to challenge and inspire our young players at each stage of their development.
As well as the weekly domestic challenges for each age group, the programme provides players with the opportunity to test themselves against elite opposition from across the UK and worldwide, both at home and abroad.
Interim Head of Academy, David McCallum, said of the Academy’s strong tournament curriculum: “It’s vital for us.
“It means our players can gain a little bit more of an understanding about not just what the Scottish game is like but also travelling further afield and playing against top European teams and worldwide opposition.”
The prestigious Alkass International Cup, for instance, saw our Under-16s side return to the tournament in Qatar for the first time in four years.
The young Gers made a strong impression at the event, enjoying an unbeaten group stage campaign before securing a podium finish with a resounding 4-1 win over Seattle Sounders of the U.S. in the third-place play-off.
Further down the age groups, the inaugural Reece James Cup in January – named after the Chelsea full-back and academy graduate – provided a stern challenge for our Under-15s in their development.
The Light Blues squared off against Feyenoord, Chelsea and RC Strasbourg over the weekend at the Cobham training facility, while the side also competed in the East Mallorca Cup once again earlier this year.
More recently, it was destination Denmark for our Under-15s as they pitted their wits at the Norhalne Elite Cup, which included teams of the calibre of OGC Nice and FC Midtjylland.
Elsewhere, our Under-14s side had a busy tournament schedule last month as they competed at both the Cairo Montenotte in Italy and Dr. Nimmrichter Gedenkturnier in Austria, where they reached the last four.
On an individual level, too, the young Gers as impressed as Josh Callaghan (2012) was included in Team of the Tournament for the Under-14s in Italy, while Charlie Miller (2011) was voted Player of the Tournament in Austria.
Our Under-13s competed at the CVV Zwervers Cup earlier this month, which counted PSG, Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund among its participants.
McCallum continued: “When you sometimes play against the same players all the time, it becomes the norm and they know who each other are.
“So going into a tournament format against teams whose sole focus is only winning, and the way they approach the game is only about that, clearly, as a Rangers team you want to go and win, it means that the opposition challenge you a little bit more aggressively and they are more driven by the outcome.
“We, of course, want that outcome to be the same, and in a manner which everyone expects Rangers to play.”
In addition, it was an exciting few days for the Under-12s last month as they competed at the ARC Heitinga Cup, named after former Ajax youth product and now current manager, Johnny Heitinga.
Indeed, it is an age group which has relished the challenge of tournament football this season, having also featured at the Surf Cup in Spain back in November.
The Covebo International Under-11 Tournament in the Netherlands was a fruitful one for the young Gers earlier this season as the Light Blues embarked on a memorable run to the final before being edged out narrowly by Club Brugge.
The development of the team has been aided by participation in two separate tournaments in France this season; Bandiera Cup in October and Dirinon International earlier this month.
Elsewhere in the Netherlands, our Under-10s competed alongside Manchester City, Chelsea and Ajax, among others, at the Rood-Wit International Under-10 Tournament in what proved a fantastic experience.
McCallum added: “We want to see our top players being challenged against top players of European and worldwide clubs.
“Ultimately, taking our players out of their comfort zone and normality to what they’re used to into a place where they need to think differently means some of the challenges are different.”
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