2024 SuperCupNI: Surf Select Head Coach Seth Swenson

Surf Select head coach Seth Swenson is full of praise for the hospitality shown to his team at this year's SuperCupNI tournament.

Transcript

00:00Seth, many thanks for joining us this afternoon. A 2-1 win. Can you just sum up the match, please?

00:08Sure, yeah. Ultimately, it's only our second match ever played together.

00:13We've got players from Rhode Island and Puerto Rico, California, all over the place.

00:19Trying to get them gelling together and sorting things out is good.

00:23Yesterday was our first match, this is our second.

00:26It was good to see. Ultimately, we went down 0-1 early in the game.

00:29Watching the players try to sort it out and figure it out.

00:32Halftime, made some adjustments, talked about some things.

00:35I think second half was better than the first, which is good on the boys, really.

00:38Not really playing together and having to sort that out.

00:41Ended up getting two goals in the last 10-15 minutes or so.

00:44Exciting, right? Exciting always to come back and win.

00:47Great side from these boys here.

00:50What does it mean to come to Northern Ireland and play in a competition like this?

01:01I think the opportunity is something the boys will maybe never get to experience again.

01:07To be able to play some of these teams from Europe, which is amazing.

01:12I think part of the best part is showing up to the different pitches throughout the week.

01:17Finding beautiful grass, beautiful layouts, nice locker rooms.

01:22It's something that, quite frankly, from a youth level, we don't necessarily always have in the States.

01:27Just the overall experience for them is unbelievable.

01:31Have you all had a nice welcome from the people of Northern Ireland?

01:34Everybody's been really, really awesome.

01:37Super nice, genuine people, really, which is great.

01:40Honestly, from the kids to the adults, it's been fun.

01:43Finally, what are you looking to get out from the week?

01:46Ultimately, the reality is you come to win. That's the hope.

01:50That's why we're here. Naturally, you gain experiences along the way.

01:55You grow and push.

01:57Overall, if the kids can walk away with great memories from the tournament, from Northern Ireland,

02:05and just everything about it, that's the memories that they're going to have.

02:10Even if they win the tournament, fantastic, great, obviously.

02:15At the end of the day, these guys are 12 and 13 years old.

02:18When they're 50, they're going to be like, I remember when I was in Northern Ireland playing.

02:21I want them to have that great memory.

02:23I feel like as a coach, that's my responsibility.

02:25I think as hosts, Northern Ireland and Super Cup has done a fantastic job.

02:31Manny, thanks for your time.

02:32I appreciate it.