Bahamas upbeat despite Swiss defeats

The Bahamas went down twice to Switzerland in Nassau but things are on track for next year’s FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup hosts.

There were positive signs for FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2017 hosts the Bahamas on Friday and Saturday despite friendly defeats to a traditionally strong Switzerland outfit in the Kalik Light Cup.

Held at the Bahamas Beach Soccer Facility, Nassau, where a new stadium is to be built especially for the World Cup, the hosts went down 13-3 to the Swiss side on Friday before improving to a narrow 9-6 loss a day later in front of enthusiastic home crowds.

The Bahamas have been working with respected Swiss coach Angelo Schirinzi during recent weeks and the 2017 World Cup hosts will have been buoyed by their improvement over the two days and no doubt benefited from taking on the world’s sixth-best team.

More than 3,000 spectators attended over the two days and saw the likes of Noel Ott offer a glimpse of the quality the Bahamas are due to face on home sand next year – the Swiss registering 12 goals across both games.

The bulk of those who watched on in Nassau were locals, with the strong attendance and excellent organisation across the event remarked on by organisers and officials respectively.

While things look promising for the Bahamas, both on the sand and in the stands, the Swiss will take confidence from their first workout of 2016 as they prepare for competitive fixtures to come.

The former Euro Beach Soccer League winners play two stages of the competition in July, after the Euro Beach Soccer Cup in Belgrade during June.

The Swiss then begin their bid to return to the Bahamas when World Cup qualification starts in September.

pic by 10thyearseniors.com 

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