{"id":3311,"date":"2018-11-20T09:45:59","date_gmt":"2018-11-20T09:45:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/rr2021\/?p=3311"},"modified":"2018-12-10T16:08:29","modified_gmt":"2018-12-10T16:08:29","slug":"jma-rockets-enjoy-erasmus-trip-to-spain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/jma-rockets-enjoy-erasmus-trip-to-spain\/","title":{"rendered":"JMA Rockets enjoy Erasmus trip to Spain"},"content":{"rendered":"

The John Madejski Basketball Academy with Reading Rockets took 22 players to Spain, visiting three of their beautiful cities in Madrid, Valencia, and Barcelona.<\/p>\n

The group departed from JMA at 2.30am in order to fly from London Luton airport at 6.30am – nice and early, or in most cases no sleep! A relatively smooth flight arrived in Madrid at around 9am local time and the group then started what seemed like an episode of Top Gear in their three 9-seater vehicles driven by Messrs Johnson (Clarkson), Benlloch (Hammond) and Fisher (May). The group was also accompanied by JMA and Rockets Division 1 Men\u2019s Head Coach Alan Keane, as well as JMA\u2019s Rebecca Anderson.<\/p>\n

First stop for the party of 27 was to their accommodation at Aristos, the home club of former Rockets Coach Raul Lozano, where they would stay for four nights. After a short rest, the team travelled to Fuenlabrada to watch their ACB practice and have a Q&A session with GB Captain Dan Clark and Assistant Coach of Fuenlabrada Anna Monta\u00f1ana who also coached one of the JMA Rockets players Paula Romero Tarrega when she was younger.<\/p>\n

Tuesday saw the group take a tour of the centre of Madrid with a familiar guide in former JMA Rockets player I\u00f1igo Perez Baena. Later that day both boys and girls teams would play Tres Cantos, the home of both I\u00f1i and Fidel Gomez who also had two years in Reading. Both teams played the club senior teams and were defeated with lots of learning occurring just 48 hours into the trip.<\/p>\n

Wednesday morning was a time to reflect on the first two days, catch up on some rest, and for the players to meet with their coaches individually to discuss what they would be looking to gain from such an impressive trip. Both girls and boys teams then played Estudiantes that evening with the girls recording their first win coming from behind to take victory whilst the boys fell against a very impressive Under 18 outfit.<\/p>\n

The following day and it was a trip to the NBA offices in Madrid to meet Alex Sarama. A most interesting presentation from a man that started coaching in Surrey and made the transition all the way to work in the biggest basketball association in the world. Later that day, the group visited the University in Madrid to meet the current GB Women\u2019s Head Coach and Sports Psychology lecturer Chema Buceta. A fascinating insight was given to the players on all things surrounding the mental part of being an elite performer from self-talk, to confidence, to mindset and the like. An action packed day ended with a trip to the Wizink Centre to watch Real Madrid take on Buducnost in the Euroleague with the home team running out convincing winners 89-55.
\nFriday saw the end of the group\u2019s time in Madrid and the three vehicles headed towards Blai Benlloch\u2019s home town of Valencia. On arrival, the group was privileged to have a discussion with ex-WNBA player and Spanish star Marina Ferragut who is one of the most capped players in Spanish history.<\/p>\n

The weekend started with a strength and conditioning session for the players followed by a very interactive physio session with Alvaro Gil. The players learnt how to tape themselves and each other in a really beneficial two hours. Later that day it was then time to visit another ex-JMA Rocket in former academy head coach Pedro Garcia Rosado. Now the head coach of women\u2019s division two outfit Picken Claret in Spain, his team secured an 11-point victory.<\/p>\n

Both teams were back on court practising on Sunday, getting ready for their upcoming games in the second week of the trip before watching Valencia v Fuenlabrada (the team they had previously seen train) in the ACB. Valencia Head Coach Jaume Ponsarnau visited Reading for three months about two years ago and it was his team that secured victory on the day 86-67 in another great spectacle for the tourists.<\/p>\n

The start of the second week of the trip commenced with another S&C session and practices for both teams before an absolutely wonderful afternoon spent at Blai\u2019s \u201csummer house\u201d where his mum and dad put on the most glorious spread of food including the traditional paella which was magnificent! Some fun then with Blai\u2019s dog, Rudy and Gasol, as well as a trip in the swimming pool for some of our braver students ended what was a much-needed relaxed and fun time together.<\/p>\n

Tuesday saw another action packed day with a trip to Valencia city centre in the morning followed by watching the Valencia Basket Women\u2019s team train at their brand new and incredible training facilities at L\u2019Alqueria del Basket. The girls\u2019 team returned to the venue later in the day to claim a great victory over their Under 18 girls team whilst the boys suffered an agonising two point loss as Ben Fisher took the helm with Alan Keane returning to England on Division One Men\u2019s duty.<\/p>\n

The next day, the group was back at the Valencia headquarters for a talk with the Valencia Community Manager on all things social media. A very informative talk looked into the detail of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and how to use all the social media platforms effectively. After some familiar study time for the group it was game time for the boys as they fell to a very impressive Valencia Under 18 team.<\/p>\n

Thursday came along and after a visit to the Valencia ACB team practice and some memorable time with Jaume, the three vans once again hit the road to Barcelona. A much more peaceful drive ended with a drop off at the hotel before heading to the Camp Nou complex to watch another Euroleague game, Barcelona v Maccabi Tel Aviv where the players and staff would be court-side for pictures with the players before the game. In what was an incredible atmosphere, Barcelona came out convincing winners taking a 74-58 win.<\/p>\n

Friday, and it was back to Camp Nou for a tour of one of the most impressive football grounds in the world and the museum that accompanies the most impressive of architecture. After a great time there, both teams prepared for their final games against Joventud Badalona. In a shortened game, the girls secured another victory and the boys won their first game of the trip with an impressive 75-70 win on the club\u2019s ACB court.<\/p>\n

The penultimate day of the tour was a time to really enjoy the city of Barcelona and meet up with one of Rockets\u2019 finest products – Matthew Marsh. The group travelled to L\u2019Hospitalet to watch Marshy\u2019s Under 18 team record a double digit victory with the 6\u201911 centre having two big dunks in the game much to the excitement of the supporting boys! Marshy then joined everyone for dinner at Barcelona\u2019s NBA Cafe as the final evening of the trip came to a close. \u00a0 The group returned to England the following morning and arrived back to JMA around 3pm after an incredible two weeks of highs, lows, learning, and enjoyment.<\/p>\n

Thank you so much to Erasmus, the White Horse Foundation, the John Madejski Academy, and Reading Rockets for making the trip so enjoyable and memorable!<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> \"\"<\/a> \"\"<\/a> \"\"<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The John Madejski Basketball Academy with Reading Rockets took 22 players to Spain, visiting three of their beautiful cities in Madrid, Valencia, and Barcelona. The group departed from JMA at 2.30am in order to fly from London Luton airport at 6.30am – nice and early, or in most cases no sleep! A relatively smooth flight […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2037,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_price":"","_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_header":"","_tribe_default_ticket_provider":"","_tribe_ticket_capacity":"0","_ticket_start_date":"","_ticket_end_date":"","_tribe_ticket_show_description":"","_tribe_ticket_show_not_going":false,"_tribe_ticket_use_global_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_global_stock_level":"","_global_stock_mode":"","_global_stock_cap":"","_tribe_rsvp_for_event":"","_tribe_ticket_going_count":"","_tribe_ticket_not_going_count":"","_tribe_tickets_list":[],"_tribe_ticket_has_attendee_info_fields":false,"spay_email":""},"categories":[3,7,166,2],"tags":[218,167],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/Making-the-Most-of-your-Pre-season-Basketball-Training_STACK.png?fit=705%2C287&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pdDaI5-Rp","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4887,"url":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/jma-rockets-return-from-their-erasmus-trip-to-spain\/","url_meta":{"origin":3311,"position":0},"title":"JMA Rockets return from their Erasmus trip to Spain","date":"10\/02\/2020","format":false,"excerpt":"22 players and 6 staff were privileged enough to spend 2 weeks in Spain recently thanks to the Erasmus plus programme. Erasmus plus is the European Union programme for education, training, youth and sport. Erasmus plus aims to modernise education, training and youth work across Europe. It is open to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Club Announcements"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/erasmus.png?fit=700%2C298&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2106,"url":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/jma-rockets-academy-appoints-new-head-coach\/","url_meta":{"origin":3311,"position":1},"title":"JMA Rockets Academy appoints new Head Coach","date":"22\/06\/2017","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Alan Keane named as Head Coach of the Rockets Academy at JMA in Reading. After his initial year working with the club and Head Coach Manuel Pena Garces the time was right for Coach Keane to take over from Pedro Rosado at the Club\u2019s EABL Academy in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Club Announcements"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/Alan-Keane-England-U16s.png?fit=612%2C300&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2972,"url":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/jma-rockets-teenager-makes-history-with-fc-barcelona-move\/","url_meta":{"origin":3311,"position":2},"title":"JMA Rockets Teenager Makes History with FC Barcelona Move","date":"16\/07\/2018","format":false,"excerpt":"A 15-year-old basketball prodigy, trained and supported by Reading Rockets throughout 2018, has become the first British player to sign for FC Barcelona Basketball Club. Matthew Marsh, who originally hails from Penryn in Cornwall, moved to Reading in early 2018 to attend the Rockets basketball programme based at John Madejski\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Club Announcements"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Matthew-Marsh-news-header.png?fit=700%2C298&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3870,"url":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/jma-rockets-duo-in-great-britain-under-18-squad\/","url_meta":{"origin":3311,"position":3},"title":"JMA Rockets duo in Great Britain Under 18 Squad","date":"13\/07\/2019","format":false,"excerpt":"John Madejski Academy students and Reading Rockets players Samuel Grant and David Chive have recently represented the Great Britain Under 18 team alongside Division One Men\u2019s Head Coach and JMA Basketball Director Alan Keane who oversees the programme as Head Coach.Coach Keane selected 16 players for his initial squad but\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Club Announcements"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/gbu18-head.jpg?fit=700%2C387&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":293,"url":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/rockets-to-expand-aase-programme-matt-davis-departs-to-spain\/","url_meta":{"origin":3311,"position":4},"title":"Rockets to expand AASE programme \/ Matt Davis departs to Spain","date":"30\/08\/2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Rockets to expand AASE programme \/ Matt Davis departs to Spain Reading Rockets will have 20 players on the Advanced Apprenticeship in Sporting Excellence (AASE) programme for the 2015\/2016 season at both the John Madejski Academy and Henley College. 9 returning players will be completing their second year this term\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Club Announcements"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/latest-news-banner_zps8906efc5.jpg?fit=555%2C241&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6070,"url":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/vacancy-elite-coach-for-reading-rockets-div-1-senior-men-and-jma-basketball-academy\/","url_meta":{"origin":3311,"position":5},"title":"Vacancy: Elite Coach for Reading Rockets Div. 1 Senior Men and JMA Basketball Academy","date":"10\/06\/2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Vacancy Elite Coach for Reading Rockets Div. 1 Senior Men and JMA Basketball Academy. Job Description Reading Rockets are looking to appoint an elite coach to act as the Head Coach for the NBL Div. 1 Men\u2019s team and for the Basketball Academy at the John Madejski Academy. The coach\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Club Announcements"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/YOUTUBE-COVERS-5.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3311"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3311"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3311\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3312,"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3311\/revisions\/3312"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2037"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3311"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3311"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3311"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}