GB’s Under 18s will be in action in Northern Italy next week (13th-19th July) taking on their counterparts from across the continent in the European Championships.
Head Coach Matt Moran has named a strong squad of players and they are hoping to reach the top of the standings.
In the round robin section of the tournament GB, who are currently ranked 20th in the World, will take on Austria (27), France (25), Hungary (48), Israel (21) and hosts Italy (14). The second pool comprises Belgium, Czechia, Spain, Germany, The Netherlands and Poland. After the pool games, there will be two play off matches for each team to determine the final rankings.
First up for GB will be a game against Austria in Trieste on Monday 13th, followed by Israel in Ronchi on Tuesday 14th, Hungary in Trieste on Wednesday 15th, Italy in Trieste on Thursday 16th and France in Ronchi on Friday 17th.
“The tireless effort of this group of players to put in the work, to communicate and to build a culture together has led us to a great place, in which we can compete at the European Championships,” said Head Coach Matt Moran.
“I am honoured to be able to support this group to reach their potential. They have all earned their opportunity to compete alongside each other.”
The squad complete their preparations for the tournament with a three day training camp at Farnham Park.
The players selected for the tournament are:
- Akshay Chopra, Tompkins High School
- Ben Peters, Herts Baseball Club/Archers
- Ben Sclafani, Georgetown Prep.
- Calvin Musil, Croydon Baseball Club/Monarchs
- Charlie Battista, Croydon Baseball Club/Archers
- Christian McCarthy, Croydon Baseball Club/Monarchs
- Dylan Nelson, Essex Baseball Club/Monarchs
- Euan Gulliver, Brighton Baseball Club/Archers
- George Evans, Webber Wildcats
- Griffin Franklin, Croydon Baseball Club/Monarchs
- Harry Craig, Archers
- Jacob Henry, Leicester Blue Sox/Archers
- James Parmet, Harvard-Westlake
- Kyle Griebenow, Regensburg Baseball Academy
- Luke Donaldson, River Ridge High School
- Oliver Galvin, Croydon Baseball Club/Monarchs
- Oscar Miller, Brighton Baseball Club
- Owen Wagner, Croydon Baseball Club/Monarchs
- Sam White, Ontario Blue Jays
- Slane Maguire, London Mets Baseball Club/Archers
Joining Head Coach Matt Moran will be:
- Aidan Pearce, Bench Coach
- Matt Magallon, Third Base Coach
- Nick Parnell, Pitching Coach
- Louis Dean, First Base Coach
- Beth Moran, Operations Manager
- Chris Waller, Athletic Trainer
All games are available to stream (subscription required) via the WBSC Europe website and reports on the team’s progress will be posted here.