“You need people who score goals. That’s how you win football games!” (Former England and Newcastle United goalscorer, Michael Owen)

It was another scintillating performance by the young lions from Concha Blanca. Despite the opposition being older, physically stronger and more experienced, the ConchAttack team showed some outstanding levels of skills, maturity and most importantly, team work. The boys played to their full potential throughout the whole game, defending every oppostion attack, winning every header, not backing out of any daunting tackles and taking advantage of every attacking opportunity.

The final score was 5-1 to the ConchAttack team, led by top goalscorer Masanobu and their ever present Captain, Maxim. The goals came quickly, with Sebastian scoring the opener with a beautiful piece of skill inside the area. He almost scored a second, however approached the referee and admitted that the ball made contact with his arm, which is a level of maturity that you don’t often find in a twelve year old. Masanobu then doubled the scoring with an incredible freekick from the edge of the box, blasting the ball low into the net. Mr Erik then scored the third goal, controlling the ball neatly with his back to goal, before turning onto his right foot and placing it accurately past the goalkeeper into the bottom left corner. The fourth goal came from starman Masanobu, who’s long range shot took a slight deflection which looped over the goalkeeper and found it’s way into the net.

However, the moment of the match came from the danger man himself. The man that never disappoints on the football field. He has been compared to Totti, Eusebio, Pele, Maradona, Messi, Ronaldo, Ibrahimovic, Raul, Figo, Beckham, Owen, Seedorf, Pirlo, Ronaldinho, Sturridge, Crouch, Heskey, Henry, Graveson, Jones (Vinnie), Tevez, Van Nistelrooy, Bergkamp, Hasslebank, Weah, Neymar, Eto’o, Mbappe and Balotelli all from his outstanding natural talent. That’s right football fans, the Albanian Ronaldo himself, Kristian scored another world class individual goal, cutting inside like Leo Messi, before turning the defender inside out like Cristiano Ronaldo, and finally blasting the ball past the helpless goalkeeper like the legendary Jamie Vardy. We were truly “having a party”. Well done boys!

A special mention must also go to Dima and Rodrigo, who are former Concha Blanca boys, they played really well for the opposition and stayed behind to congratulate the team.

Final Score – 5-1

Goalscorers – Masanobu (2), Sebastian, Mr Erik and Kristian

Man of the Match – Sebastian

Masanobu returned to La Chataigneraie International School today to play in the semi final of the football tournament, with the CDL Football Team. The team narrowly lost on penalties, and all played very well. Coach Guillermo was very impressed with Masanobu, who showed a good attitude and scored eight goals throughout the tournament. Well done Nobu!

Masanobu travelled with the school football team and Coach Guillermo today to compete in a school football tournament, hosted by La Chataigneraie International School. He performed really well over three matches, scoring six goals and helping his teach reach the semi-final. He will go back on Sunday morning when the semi final and final will be held, and hopefully the team can bring back the trophy to CDL.

Well done Nobu!

The Pumpkin Carving competition didn’t go too well for the Concha boys… however, they had a lot of fun taking part!

Well done Seb, Henry, Mauricio and Mr Matt!

Leonardo and Mauricio presenting their Surf Camp experience to the whole boarding school.

Well done boys!

“You need people who score goals. That’s how you win games.” (Former Real Madrid substitute, Michael Owen)

First Half

After defeat in their last fixture, and a week off resting during half term, the ConchAttack players were eager to get back to winning ways. The scouts have been working hard to find some new talent to bolster the attacking options from the bench, and they have not disappointed, with Jerry being brought into the ranks in recent weeks. Jerry is a player that comes with good experience, after previously being nurtured by Italian legend, Mr Salva.

The game started very well, with Leonardo, Masanobu and Mr Erik attacking from the off. The boys had tough opposition in front of them, with many of the Galatassaray players being Grade 11 and Grade 12 students. They had a lot of experience and ability, and were very pleasant to play against. However, the ConchAttach boys have something that not many teams possess. Something that cannot be taught, cannot be coached, something that comes from within, and that is team spirit. Mr Matt defines team spirit as, “the feeling of pride and loyalty that exists among the members of a team and that makes them want their team to do well or to be the best.” The opposition defense was excellent throughout the first half, with the goalkeeper making some very impressive saves. But they could not withstand the barrage of attacks for too long, and a long powerful drive from Masanobu burst into the net before half time, giving the ConchAttach boys the lead.

Half Time – 0-1

The second half saw much of the same, with the energy and endeavor from Maxim, Masanobu, Leonardo and the rest of the team causing the Galatassaray players constant trouble. Anuar was solid in his role as Goalkeeper, making several important saves and distributing the ball well. Maxim and Sina were rock solid in defense, breaking up play and finding intelligent passes into the midfield players. Mr Erik and Masanobu never stopped running in midfield, closing every loose ball and turning defense into attack very quickly. However, it was Leonardo in his new role as a striker who impressed the most and could have scored several goals in the second half, if not for some superb goalkeeping from the opposition. Masanobu was unstoppable in attack, and every time he received the ball on the turn, he looked like scoring. He managed to score two more goals before the end of the game and picked up the sacred Man of the Match award. Zihao, Jerry and Mauricio entered the field before the final whistle and performed very well. An amazing performance, and a great feeling to get back to winning ways.

Final Score – 1-3

Goal Scorers – Masanobu x3

Man of the Match – Masanobu

Squad – Anuar, Maxim ©, Sina, Mr Erik, Masanobu, Leonardo, Jerry, Zihao, Mauricio

Well done boys, very proud of all of you! JG

Dear Parents,

I am writing to you as the first half term of the 2018/19 academic year is coming to an end, and I would like to recap the events of the past months in Concha Blanca.

For many of the boys, the start of school in September was their first experience of Boarding School, living abroad and being away from their family. The boys have all adapted very well to the challenges of living away from home and have formed a close group of friends in the Boarding House. They have had the opportunity to participate in many weekend activities, including trips to Chamonix and Montreux, as well as the Inter-House Competition, in which we are currently in 6th position. The students have participated in the Sports Day and House Quiz events, and all performed and behaved impeccably. The boys have also been taking part in the CDL Soccer Tournament, under the team name ‘ConchAttack’. They have won one game, and lost on game, and have all impressed so far.

October saw the first Traffic Light reports entered, which has given us a chance to see how the students in Concha are progressing in their academic studies. For some this was a chance to celebrate their hard work before the first marking period, for others it was encouragement to increase their effort before November, with clear areas to improve. The Concha boys have been performing very well overall and were placed 3^rd with a 92% positive feedback ratio. This reflects that out of 12 students, 11 students received at least 5 green lights or more, which shows an excellent start to the academic year. It is very pleasing for the Concha team to receive positive news from the boy’s academic teachers.

We have introduced several activities in Concha this term, to reward the students for their good behavior, hard work and going the extra mile to help others. The ‘Wheel of Fortune’ and ‘Race Track’ have been designed for the students to earn a reward once they have moved up ten positions. This can be anything from receiving an excellent mark in class on a test, to helping someone carry their bags or picking up litter in the garden without being asked to do so. It has been great to see boys working together in the house and around the school campus. We have also introduced a monthly ‘Movie Club’, which has been popular amongst the middle school houses.

Moving forward to after the October break, we will be preparing for the weather to change from the Mediterranean warmth that we have been receiving, to the colder and crisper winter days that will come around quickly in the coming months. Therefore, we please ask that the students return with the appropriate clothing and footwear. On their return, the boys should arrive between 16:00 on Saturday 27^th October when the boarding house reopens, and the evening of Monday 29^th October, before lessons start again on the morning of Tuesday 30^th October. We would also like to add that for the next break in December, we will need to receive their travel details at least two weeks before they depart for the holiday, so that we can complete the necessary administration work and legal procedures.

Finally, I would like to wish you an enjoyable holiday and hope that your son will return, rested and ready for the challenges of the next academic period.

Kindest regards,

James, Matthew, Erik, Salvatore and Joanna

“Footballers these days often have to use their feet!” (Former Liverpool, Real Madrid, Newcastle United, Manchester United and Stoke City striker, Michael Owen)

A superb performance by our brave and determined young men. A disappointing result which did not reflect the effort and quality each boy from the team displayed. Congratulations to Street Team, who scored two excellent goals to decide the game!