The Magpies head down to the live music capital of the USA, Austin, Texas, this weekend to play Austin and Dallas in a 4 team tournament that includes Nashville as well. According to Magpies Coach Glenn Ormsby, “The players are pretty excited about the chance to head down to Austin and play teams that we don’t normally face. All the teams in the tournament are very strong and we’ll have to be at our best to have a chance.”
The Magpies will find the conditions tough as it is going to very hot, with weather scheduled in the mid 90’s. Ormsby said “It’s certainly going to be trying conditions, but it will be a good test for us to see how we are going at this point in the season.”
The Magpies will have a different looking team this trip with forwards Keating and Tornay, midfielders Roberts, Smith and Buxton, and defenders Lewis, Thompson and Polulach all unavailable. While acknowledging that the Magpies face a huge battle to cover these loses, Ormsby remains upbeat about New York’s chances pointing out that “we have a couple of significant ins that will help cover the loss of all those players who are unavailable. Squires coming back will shore up the backline. He’s a straight- at-the-ball player, which will give us a bit more hardness. With Smiley, Mantzaris and Buckingham also coming back, it should straighten us up a little. Mitchell and Hawkins should play if they both pass fitness tests and that’s important as they provide genuine class around the ball. We have also been able to get a full game into the likes of Norman, Lin and Gluck, so they will be better for the run. The form of newcomers Davis and Sani is encouraging.”
Good luck Pies!
The 2010 season is off to a great start as Tuesday trainings saw the Magpie army show up in full force. After a bit of time off, the team dusted of their running shoes and got some touches with the footy. Coach Glenn Ormsby knows that fitness will be key to a successful season so is pushing the team with some great circuit training.
We hope to see even more people at the next training session so head out to the Dapolito Center on Tuesday from 6-8pm. Everyone is welcome!
