South Canterbury pair earn player of tournament awards
A trip to the SuperCup back in July proved the right decision for Timaru Boys’ High School pair Mitchell Skudder-Dey and Cam Anderson.
The pair were named joint players of the year at a prizegiving last week in Dunedin.
Skudder-Dey and Anderson were the two South Canterbury players picked for the tour and excelled.
Anderson played every minute up front, while Skudder-Dey was a shining light in goal.
Skudder-Dey, who has applied for a football scholarship in Dunedin next season, said it was an awesome honour winning the award.
‘‘It was a special moment that I won’t forget and I’m super proud of how I played over in Ireland.’’
The 17-year-old said he was pleased with how his year went.
‘‘It was a surprise I didn’t expect it at all.’’
He said it was nice getting it with his good mate Anderson, as they were the only two players from Timaru in the side.
‘‘It was such an awesome experience, the football was just so strong.’’
Like Anderson, he spent every minute on field and loved the challenge of being in goal against some quality players.
‘‘I enjoyed playing GPS Bayern, they scored two goals early and then I managed to make a number of strong saves to keep them out for the rest of the match.’’
Skudder-Dey also managed a clean sheet at the tournament.
The pairs performances at the tournament showed how strong South Canterbury Football is and that chances are available for the younger players in the region to do well.
Anderson, who is part of the Southern United Youth Squad, is being courted by a number of clubs in the Dunedin area, while Skudder-Dey hopes to also play down there.
Both boys finished their time with Timaru Boys’ High School this year.
Skudder-Dey playing over 20 games, while Anderson finished with over 100 caps and both achieved their goals, Anderson’s was to surpass 40 goals and Skudder-Dey to make some strong saves.
Former Roncalli College pupil John Woodall attended the 2016 tournament.