Day 3

Day 3 completed, and we’re alive and well. 

Today commenced with a plethora of gourmet ham and cheese sandwiches, along with some tasteful Guarana which made for quite a breakfast prior to our trip to world famous Ipanema beach. The weather wasn’t the best today, so the beach was not very populated, nevertheless we all managed to have a great time in the waves, playing in the sand, and drinking coconuts as we walked down the strip admiring the scenery. 

The afternoon consisted of a few long bus rides and a trip to legendary Maracana stadium to watch Flamengo play San Paolo. The venue was incredible along with the quality of play. We got to see multiple world famous players including Alexander Pato, Luis Fabiano, and Paolo Ganso which made for a very entertaining 90 minutes. The home team Flamengo was defeated in the end, which made for a very discouraged fan base, but from a neutral perspective it was a quality match and a fair result. 

Finally we arrived back at the compound where we ate some dinner and relaxed awaiting our game tomorrow at 3 o’clock against a formidable opponent in the Tigres. 

Day 2

Day 1

My name is Tucker Coons from Atlanta, Ga. I am going into my third year at the college after having red shirted at Coastal Carolina my freshman year.

The trip started with a four hour bus ride. Every year during the season, we have all the rookies put on Beats by Dre headphones and sing a song of their choice to the entire bus. We never had a good chance to do it last fall or this spring mainly due to coach’s bedtime being at 7:30. This bus ride felt like the right time to get the rookies singing to kick start this exciting trip. Overall, the upperclassmen were a little disappointed with the quality and effort put forth by this rookie class. I don’t mean to point fingers, but Brian Kilgallon was the worst performer I have ever seen. He had to sing three different songs because for some reason he kept picking songs that he didn’t know the words to. I also feel that I need to mention that Nico has possibly the worst singing voice on Earth, but nonetheless, he tried. Not all were bad though as we had a couple dark horses that really stepped up to the occasion. Big shout out to Xavi as he caused the bus to erupt in laughter with his rendition of Notorious B.I.G’s Juicy. Also, due to his unbelievable performance from last year, ( Although I humbly believe I was a unanimous lock for second place last year) Ryan Mclaughlin came back for a celebrity performance so amazing I saw Adam Purvis shed a tear as he belted Adele’s Someone Like You.

We then arrived to the airport in preparation for the long night ahead of us. The flight to Atlanta was nice due to the fact that we were landing in probably the greatest city  in the whole world. We then ate some great food there to hold us over for the 9 hour flight ahead of us. Naturally, with my luck, I got fortunate enough to get a middle seat which made the flight that much easier for my 6’4 body.

We finally made it and then drove an hour or so to our “compound”. Now for weeks prior, a variety of rumors were going around about what the living conditions were going to be like. So as we pulled up and unloaded, we realized the rumors were true. The whole team is staying in one room with about 15 beds and a suspect bathroom to say the least. On a more serious note, it is a nice place with a great view. The people are extremely friendly and we have a nice pool out front.

We are all out on the patio playing pool and looking at a Portuguese speaking TV relaxing in preparation for our first game at 9am tomorrow. Stay tuned as everyone will have their turn blogging on here with unique perspectives of the trip.

Welcome!

Welcome to the official blog of the College of Charleston men’s soccer team and their international trip to Brazil in May of 2014.

Head coach Ralph Lundy has once again arranged to challenge his Cougars by uprooting them from their comfort zones and familiarities at the College, and immersing the student-athletes in foreign culture when the team spends 16 days touring, training and exploring the country of Brazil, the 2014 World Cup host.

The Cougars will play five international friendlies against talented teams in impressive venues which will undoubtedly test the Cougars’ game, but perhaps more importantly, demonstrate how “The Beautiful Game” transcends culture and language on a global scale.

Be sure to keep up with all of their adventures and endeavors here on the official blog! You’ll get to hear the players’ personal accounts of the events of each day as they regale their experiences to the Cougar family.

The Cougars leave the United States on Thursday, May 15 and return more than two weeks later on May 30 with countless memories unfolding in between.