WHILST members of the first team squad continue with their pre-season preparations in Germany, the Academy had a somewhat different experience last week as they spent time with the Marines at Lympstone, Devon.

Academy boss David Dodds took 12 scholars down to the base to see how the young 'Orns cope with a different type of pressure and physical endurance.

Five first years attended and they were Jonathan North, Ross Jenkins, Rob Kiernan, Billy Gibson and Marvin Sordell. The second year scholars were Dale Bennett, Aaron Morgan, Raphael Brown, Kieron Forbes, Loren Maxwell, Ewan Clarke and Liam Henderson. All of the second year scholars had attended before so knew what to expect.

Marine Gary Jackman was in charge of the Hornets for the second season running and along with fellow Marine Anthony Newton put them through a number of grueling mental and physical tasks.

The scholars arrived mid afternoon and were quickly introduced to the Marine way of life. They were shown a video about recruiting for the Marines and what is expected of them. Their first physical task was a three mile run near the sports pitches at the base. One-and-a-half miles there then some sprints and then one-and-a-half miles back. After that it was on to the pull up test, which many of the lads found difficult.

During their stay at the base they lived as a Marine would do, so they were staying in accommodation at the base. The rooms were basic with just a bed and a locker with three or four lads in each room.

After having showers and getting all their kit ready they had to make sure their accommodation was tidy and respectable and ready for any inspections.     

The real work started on the Tuesday morning with an early start, breakfast was served from 6.55am. Once they'd finished the Watford troops had to make sure their beds, locker, bedrooms and general living accommodation was presentable as well as looking tidy and smart themselves.

The Hornets were punctual but got pulled up on a couple of misdemeanors and soon they were all doing press ups. With the rain starting to fall heavily they were out on the tarzan assault course which includes a death slide, abseiling and some good old fashioned running up hills.

After a break for lunch it was time for the endurance course which had broken many a trainee-marine let alone an Academy footballer.

As the title suggests this was a real test of their stamina, and was in terrain not usually associated with young footballers. This time they were in the hills and valleys near Lympstone taking in the 'smartie tunnel', 'crocodile pit', some traditional hill climbs and generally a tough test of their characters and fitness levels. First time round was individually then they were divided into two teams by manager Dodds and co and were up against one another.

The course was tough and tested them physically and mentally, after just over three hours in the hills of Devon they were back in the safety of the base where they had to sort and clean their muddy, wet kit and clean their boots before they could head off for some hard-earned food.

After a refueling session they were back to talk to some of the new recruits at the base, whom had only been on site a few weeks. This gave the boys an insight into their lives and what they have to go through a weekly basis, having experienced just part of that in the previous 24 hours or so.

It was an action packed five days at the base and they had to deal with a number of other tough challenges such as an assault course, Common Hill training and a mud run.

Marine Jackman was pleased with the how the week went and feels it will benefit the Academy team this season. He said: "There were a few new faces from last year and the lads started inconsistently and took time to adapt. However after a bit of a pep talk we got it sorted and they pulled it out of the bag, they worked well as a team and individually too.

"Once we started mixing them up and testing them they realised they couldn't do things on their own so they had to work together. I think the way we do things in the military is seen as a good way to work together, what we do rubs off on not only other military forces around the world but sport as well. Sport is a massive thing within the Marines so the success is there and since England won the rugby World Cup after coming down to Lympstone several times, people have acknowledged this and its success and decided to try it."

For further information on the Marines click here. 

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