France 2-1 England
Nimani Ngalou
Tulasne		 Ephraim

Montaigu Under-16 Tournament, France
5th/6th Place play-off
Monday 12th April 2004

In their fourth game of the Easter weekend, John McDermott's side lost out by two goals to one as the Montaigu Tournament hosts took 5th place ahead of England.

Goals either side of the break from Les Bleus duo Frédéric Nimani Ngalou and Geoffrey Tulasne were too much for England despite Ephraim's well-taken response.

But the chance to earn valuable international experience, despite just one victory, was a major objective at the start of the weekend. "Obviously we came here with the intention of winning it," said McDermott, "but not at the expense of giving the boys experience on the pitch, playing in a certain style."

"They've handled it extremely well. We've shared the minutes around so all eighteen boys had a chance and we were able to look at what they are capable of doing. 

"In the past we've had the Walkers Tournament, providing top opposition from Europe, but this year we've gone from the Victory Shield to Montaigu, so it's been quite a big step, from playing against the Home nations straight to continental sides," added McDermott.

"It was an excellent tournament with very high quality and varied opposition and we can take away some very big plusses as a team, while we saw a number of impressive individual performances from our players.

"After the Victory Shield at the end of last year, playing against similar styles from Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland, Montaigu gave us a fantastic opportunity to challenge an African side, two strong Europeans and the USA, So when we play in the Pepsi Tournament later this year, we'll be able to do so with even more confidence."

It was Japan who were crowned tournament champions in France, after beating Italy in the final and McDermott says they were 'well-deserved' winners.

"Japan were a very accomplished side.  They didn't have any real individuals, but as a unit they were well-drilled and deserved to come out as the team of the weekend."

This age group has a trip to Finland for the Nordic Tournament next on their agenda.  An alternative squad to that selected by McDermott for Montaigu will go to Finland, before an amalgamation of the two will be chosen for the Pepsi Tournament at the start of next season.

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