Godalming Town Football Club travelled to Morocco from 19-30 June to take part in the Al Riyadiah TV International Futsal competition which was being held in the city of Meknes.  The G's played eight matches against sides from Holland, Germany, Italy, Tunisia and four games against Moroccan opposition.  The extreme heat was a serious challenge for a Godalming squad consisting of several first team players and a handful of trialists.  This was the first experience of futsal for many of the squad and it took a while to adjust to the various rules of the sport.  Every match was filmed by North African television stations and matches were played in front of lively crowds at the Universite Moulay Ismail arena.

The G's drew their opening match against a mediocre Italian side but this was not surprising given the fact that many Godalming players had never kicked a futsal ball before.  The match was followed by an emphatic 8-1 victory over the Tunisian side ACTM.  Futsal matches are split into 25 minute halves with each side containing five players.  There are two referees and countless unusual rules, including the punishment of limited physical contact with a free kick.  Fouls are recorded and a penalty given once a side accumulates six fouls.  Every foul after this (regardless of where it is committed on the pitch) is awarded with another penalty!

After being interviewed for local TV, Godalming opened Day Two with a match against the professional futsal players of Association Sportif Al Faith.  The professionals, who included several internationals in their squad, ran out 8-4 winners but Godalming could take great heart from an excellent performance.  The G's won their final match of the day 9-7 against the German side Marrokkanich Kulturverien.  Andy Ottley was fast becoming one of the tournament’s top scorers after tucking away several goals from the penalty spot.  Meanwhile trialist James Duncan (AFC Hayes) was proving to be a very valuable member of the side and looks like one to watch during pre-season.

After two days at the pool, Godalming resumed their quest for a qualification spot for the Tournament Finals in Dubai with a good 5-5 draw against Club Al Nasre, despite some ludicrously biased decisions from the partisan match officials!  Godalming's opponents once more included professional players so this represented a very good result.  The G's also beat Club Likus 7-5 to set up a very interesting last couple of days.

Godalming went into their game against local side Club Najm knowing that a win would almost guarantee a spot in the finals but a defeat would mean we would need to beat the invincible Dutch in our last match.  Before the match started the local fans passionately sang the Moroccan national anthem and created a great atmosphere with a range of musical instruments and chanting.  Godalming soon set about dampening the crowd's enthusiasm by leading 4-3 at half time.  However, weary legs got the better of The G's and the home favourites eventually ran out 6-5 winners to the delight of virtually everyone in the arena! 

Godalming's last match was against the superb Dutch side SMJH.  The G's produced a very good first half performance and surprisingly held their full-time opponents 3-3 at half time.  Rodney Chiweshe had produced a number of fine saves whilst Chris Wales scored his first goal of the tournament to keep us in the game.  However, once more some clinical play by the Dutch saw them grab a 7-5 win and push Godalming outside of the qualification places.

This was a very useful pre-season workout for the squad and a very interesting trip to Chuck Martini's hometown of Meknes.

Godalming Squad: Rodney Chiweshe, Damian Matthews, Chris Wales, Benson Paka, James Duncan, Calum Martin, Andy Ottley, James Mariner, Garry Aulsberry, Kenny Ojukwu, Douglas Kisuule, Reece Stanislas, Steve Darlington