Wednesday was a slow day for the team, using the day to recover following the training session and game on Tuesday. With the large roster available, the coaches split the squad on Tuesday morning - taking half of the team to Field C for an intense training session and the other half up to Field G for the game against Sandefjord.
In the training session, head coach Colin Clarke and assistant Steve Morrow ran the group through sprint drills, timing the runs and focusing on the initial burst from a standing position. The group also went through exercises with the ball, getting a workout with the possession drills that were both fast and sharp. In the drill, the 12 players were divided into three sets of four - two sets in the middle and the other group on the outside providing assistance to the team with possession. The goal of the drill was to anticipate your next move while stringing together the most possible passes between your four and the four neutral players. The opposite team worked on ball recovery, cutting off angles and being quick to the ball.
Assistant coaches Oscar Pareja and Marco Ferruzzi worked with injured midfielder Richard Mulrooney before heading to Field G to prepare the starters for the game.
The team was given the night off as well as Wednesday morning.
Tuesday night was a planned fun night, and the evening began with head coach Colin Clarke and assistant coach Steve Morrow informing Carlos Ruiz that his goal against D.C. United in 2005 was voted by the fans as the Sierra Mist Goal of the Decade through online voting on the league's official website. Clarke informed the team a few hours later, and they reacted with loud applause and hollers of congratulations for their teammate.
The Survivor Game took another twist, with teams competing against each other in sports trivia and personal trivia questions about each other. Morrow asked questions out loud and the teams were to answer on their own answer sheet. The night was fun as rarely was there a question that did not cause laughter or comments from someone.
On Wednesday, the team's training was also different then the previous days. On this day, the coaching staff selected the trails of the nearby Nature Park of Calblanque for the team's workout. Following a 20-minute run up the path, the team was able to observe the Bateria De Cenizas, a former fort built in 1931 that was used to protect the city and port of Cartagena in Murcia, Spain from potential sea invasions. Among the remnants that remain are two massive rotating cannons positioned at the highest point of the mountain that overlooked the coast. Known as Vickers 1923, the cannons were 20 yards long, weighed more than 97 tons and had a range of 21 miles (35,000 meters).
The team will begin Thursday with a training session at 10:00 a.m. for the entire group before the final preseason game in Spain against Stabäk at 6:00 p.m. local time. The staff will decide on the lineup for the evening game following the morning training session.
On Friday, the team arrives in London at 2:30 p.m. and will bus the 1.5 hour trip to the Meon Valley Marriott Southampton before training in the evening.
Due to Portsmouth Reserves having a game on Monday, March 13, the staff is looking at an alternate day to play the previously scheduled match. On Tuesday, March 14, the Hoops will take on Brentford FC, which is currently tied for second place in England's Coca-Cola Football League One and looking to be promoted to the Coca-Cola Football Championship - England's second highest division following the Premier League - at season's end.
