A Port Moody youngster has just returned from England where he tested his skills against some of the best young soccer players in the world.
Nikolas White was on the Canada U12 team that finished 14th out of the 32 countries in the Danone Nations Cup that was held Sept. 4-7 in London, England. After playing to a 1-1 draw, the Canadian side fell 4-3 in penalty kicks to Spain in their final placement game.
"It was really disappointing," White said. "We were just unlucky. I think it would have been better if we lost in the game rather than losing in penalty kicks."
Canada picked up wins against Brazil 3-2 and Saudi Arabia 1-0, while playing to a draw with South Korea and Switzerland and falling 1-0 to both Mexico and Argentina.
"This year's event sparked a new energy and motivation in these young athletes; they were able to measure themselves against other talented young players from around the world in one of the greatest stadiums, Wembley," said Dean Howie, head coach of Team Canada. "They'll now return to their clubs with a new perspective on the game and also knowing what they are capable of achieving."
White said the tie against South Korea was one of the highlights of the tournament.
"I thought we were going to lose that game because they were last year's champions but we tied it," he said. "It was an unbelievable feeling. And beating Brazil is always a great feeling too."
White picked up three assists during the tournament and was the only member of the Canadian team to play every minute of all seven games.
"I was a little bit tired after the sixth game but being in Wembley [for the game against Spain] my energy went way up."
Playing in the iconic Wembley Stadium has always been a dream for White, who got to live out that dream in front of 30,000 screaming fans.
"Being in Wembley was by far the highlight of my trip," he said. "It was awesome."
White was the only Western Canadian player selected to play for the national team, which was made up from the Eastern Canadian team that knocked off the West 3-2 earlier this summer.
In addition to exposing him to some highly skilled soccer, White was also able to make a number of new friendships.
"I made a ton of new friends from the Eastern Canada team as well as from the other countries," said White, who will now join his team from the Coquitlam Metro-Ford High Performance League.
