England U17 v. Brazil: 2-1

I'm sure every true fan has heard of it so far, but this site's biggest news over the weekend was the last second winner from Jordan Spence to seal the victory over Brazil in the U17 World Cup!!!

(From TheFA.com)

With a cultured swing of his right boot, Jordan Spence made history at the Goyang Stadium on Friday night.

With England and Brazil locked at 1-1 in injury-time, the Three Lions skipper cleverly diverted Henri Lansbury's shot past Marcelo's outstretched right hand before embarking on a joyous celebration.

Not only did the West Ham's defender's goal ensure his country topped Group B, it meant England beat Brazil for the first time ever at a FIFA Finals.

"It's a blur now," said Spence as he tried to recall his moment of history.

"When the ball fell to Henri I was pleased as of all the people it could have landed to, he has scored some great goals from the edge of the area. But he did not seem to catch it right.

"I managed to stay onside, I just wanted to direct it towards goal. I did not see the ball hit the back of the net. As soon as I made contact I was gone. It was the biggest buzz. Crazy. Just one of those feelings where I wish I could hit a rewind button and go through it all again."

Spence has enjoyed much success since taking the captain's armband at U16 level but, for a pure adrenaline rush, his goal against Brazil takes some beating.

"There are a few highlights - The European Championship Final and how we got there, and qualifying in Bosnia, but for a sheer moment of joy, this is up there," he added.

Like the rest of his team-mates, Spence was always confident England would emerge victorious from their meeting with Brazil.

While the small contingent of England fans feared the worst when Tales' 40-yard free-kick deceived Alex Smithies in the England goal, Spence remained unruffled.

"It was a freak goal," he insisted. "But football can change in a matter of seconds so we never thought it wouldn't be our day just because that went in."

England equalised through Lansbury's penalty at the end of the first half, but there was another twist to the tale when Brazil won an 82nd minute penalty.

But Smithies guessed right, diving to his left to parry Lulinha's penalty and keep England in with a chance of victory.

"Alex has got a great record at saving penalties," said the captain. "I think he's saved five for England - that's ridiculous. He got us out of trouble. That gave us a big boost. I thought 'let's go and win it now'."

And England did just that, with Spence's instinctive finish the difference between the sides.

"Hopefully we have sent a message out to the other teams and to the public who doubted us at the start of the tournament that we are here to win it," said the captain.

"We have the capabilities to do so. We will enjoy the moment, but we will push this to one side and concentrate on who we will play in the next round."

Spence was adamant that the bar of expectation has not been raised in light of the win as the team were always aiming to reach the top of the mountain from the moment they left for Korea.

"The aim was always to win the World Cup," he said. "If you are not here to win it then there's no point being here. We set the initial objective of winning the group and we have done that. The next objective is to win our game in the last-16. But ultimately the goal is to win the World Cup. If we play to our potential there is no reason why we can't do that."

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Truly a testament to The Academy of Football. Cheers to Jordan and good luck against Syria!

England U17 v. New Zealand: 5-0

England absolutely drubbed New Zealand, they scored 5 from 3 players and look a good bet to move into the next round of the U17 World Cup.

Young Lions captain and Academy trainee Jordan Spence went the full 90 in the effort.

Not too much else to be read about his performance, but since New Zealand didn't score and there were no on-field bust ups, I guess he did his job... may have had his eyes closed... but did his job nonetheless

England U17 v. Korea DPR: 1-1

The Young Lions tied 1-1 with the Korean U17s on a sweltering day in Jeju. Academy trainee Jordan Spence went the full 90 and had a realistic look at the situation after the game. He says:

"We'd have to admit we did not play as well as we can, Everyone has off days. Conditions were tough, it was warm, but we are not going to use that as an excuse. It's no excuse for our ball retention and quality of play. It was hot and humid, but everyone got through it. The first game of any tournament is always a tough one." (full interview)

Signs of a honest leader... Let's hope things go better against New Zealand tomorrow.

U-17 World Cup Streaming

Keep tabs on England U17 captain Jordan Spence with FIFAs live streaming of the U17 World Cup from South Korea.

Visit this link... and follow the directions

England's first Group B game against South Korea will kick off Saturday, August 18th at 6AM UK time. (full schedule here)

England U17s: Jordan Spence = Badass

The England U-17s have embarked on a huge journey as they are traveling to Korea for the U17 World Cup. Only one Hammer has been named in the squad which normally would be upsetting, but not today. This one Iron is the captain of the U-17s and has issued a warning to all who come before the Young Lions:

"There will be no fear"
By Russell Staves. Tuesday, 07 August 2007.

FIFA U17 World Cup
18 August - 9 September
Korea

England Under-17 captain Jordan Spence was in confident mood on Tuesday evening ahead of the flight out to Korea for the World Cup.

The young stars will spend a week in Jeju acclimatising before focusing on their first group game with North Korea and the skipper can't wait to get started.

"I’m really excited," the West Ham defender told TheFA.com. "There are lots of things to look forward to. But just playing in the World Cup, for us it’s the biggest tournament we can play in at this age."

England automatically qualified for the showpiece event following a fine display in May's European Championships, where they finished second to Spain after being edged out 1-0 in the Final.

"At the end of the Euros we knew we had secured our spot, but after having two weeks off, I had to get pre-season out of the way first before I could start thinking about the World Cup," added Spence. "I had to concentrate on getting myself fit."

Spence is one of the few members of the squad who has been to the Far East before, having travelled to Japan with West Ham for a pre-season tour a year ago.

"It was an excellent experience," he said. "It was a very different experience to playing in Europe. You certainly felt a long way from home."

The squad are a harmonious bunch, particularly after a lengthy spell together when they reached the European Final in Belgium, and their tight bond will help both on and off the field.

"This group has been together for quite a while – Wes [Foderingham] is the only new boy," added the skipper. "We all get on really well, everyone just slots in. We were together quite a long time at the Euros and that brought us closer together. Winning breeds happiness."

England face North Korea, New Zealand and Brazil in the group stages and despite the game with the Samba Boys being the plum tie, Spence echoed his Head Coach John Peacock's thoughts when he insisted that the team will take each game as it comes.

"Every teams deserves respect for having reached the World Cup, so we will respect them," he said. "But we are confident we can beat anyone if we play well.

"Brazil is the game that sticks out – playing them is a once in a lifetime experience - but we don’t want to look that far ahead. The first two games are the important ones. We want to win the first two games so that we face Brazil with six points.

"But it will be the same as the Euros, we don’t want to look too far ahead of ourselves. We want to win it though."

For Spence, personal achievements are shelved in favour of the team - no wonder he's captain - but he knows he will have to lead from the front if England are to progress.

"I just want to do well as a team," he said. "When we are winning, everyone is happy. But I want to play well. Being on the world stage, I want to show what I am about.

"I will get butterflies before the games, but there will be no fear. Ultimately, we are here on merit, both as a team and individually, so we should be confident."

COME ON YOU IRONS!!!!!!

Republic of Ireland U-19s v. Chile: Game 2

Sadly, defender Lorcan Fitzgerald and the rest of the Irish U19s suffered another friendly defeat at the hands of Chile. Fortunately though, this was only a friendly and the squad still has time to get it together before the preliminary UEFA qualifying in November.

Ireland went up 1-0 in the 23rd minute and held that lead into halftime, however Chile came out strong after the half and scored two goals within 2 minutes and held on for the 2-1 victory. Lorcan went the distance for the Irish and notably had a long range equalizer tipped off the post near the end of the game.

Good to hear, no knocks and he's firing away from long range...

Republic of Ireland U-19s v. Chile: Game 1

The Irish U-19s were beaten by Chile 2-1 in a friendly yesterday evening.

Sad for Ireland but great for the Academy as defender Lorcan Fitzgerald went the distance in the defeat. He is on the way to solidifying his place in the team ahead of the first phase UEFA qualifying series in November.

The Irish have been grouped with Belarus, Andorra and the host nation Portugal for the preliminary phase which starts on November 1st. A top two finish in the mini-group after the round-robin series would advance Ireland into next year’s Elite round of qualifiers.

Lorcan and the rest of his squad will attempt to exact revenge on the Chileans as they play again on Thursday night.

Update will follow...