The Tribune

BEACH Soccer World Cup team hopeful Timothy Munnings Jr has left nothing to chance. 

For the past two weeks, Munnings Jr connected with world top coach Angelo Schirinzi and the 2015 world number one beach soccer player Heimanu ‘Manu’ Taiarui of Tahiti in Switzerland where he is undergoing intense practice sessions and a high level competition. 

To supplement his training, Munnings Jr was allowed to join a professional beach soccer team called ‘Bienne,’ which plays in the Suziki League and has frequent matches against other professional teams. 

Munnings Jr will remain in Switzerland with the Bahamas team for another six weeks to continue his development and team synergy.

“I want to say thank you to the Bahamas Football Association for making this opportunity available to me and with this great opportunity,” Munnings said. “I will certainly make the best of it. “I’m also looking forward to my teammates joining me here so that we can continue to work together to improve our skills, and improve our synergy so that next year at the World Cup, we can make the Bahamas proud.”

Munnings Jr, the son of Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture’s Director of Sports, Timothy Munnings Sr, said the conditions are great in Switzerland.

“Everything works like clockwork and the area is very clean,” he said. “Training sessions are tough and sometimes after running on the sand for so long, my legs feel like jello. 

“Our training routine is very structured and easy to remember - train, train and train some more. My teammates at home train hard now, but being in this training camp will help everyone focus more without the distractions of being home.”

Munnings Jr is expected to be joined shortly by a team of hopefuls that the Bahamas Football Association will send to Switzerland for the six-week training camp to also help them to benefit from the same high level competition and play.