What a week I have had. Waking up on Monday in a very scenic and secluded area of Sweden, Sysslebäck, and having lots of surrounding nature to explore, thats just what we did. There is one main road and then a few side roads, so a lot of the exploring that was done was off the beaten path. The Klaräven (The Clear River) follows the main road that is our escape to any place we need to go. The Klaräven flows from Norway and through Sweden, and the section near Sysslebäck is fairly wide and free flowing. There are many paths along the river banks that we were able to explore.

Monday night was my first training, and like most people, it took a little bit of adjusting to with different players, different style, and a different language too. At the end of the day, football is a language and so I was able to overcome these adjustments and settle in. I wasn’t too happy with my performance on Monday, however I was more comfortable and focused on Tuesday and I was pleased with how I performed.On Wednesday we had a friendly against a team from the division below Nordvärmlands FF. I was fortunate enough to play the whole game, first half at right back and second half at center back. A game is the greatest way for a player to prove his ability and I felt as though I did that pretty well in the friendly. Once again, the style of play in the game was different to what I had gotten used to with Bridges, so I just had to read and observe how our team played and then apply myself appropriately.

Thursday morning rolled around and our adventures continued. There is an old olympic ski jump a couple kilometers down the road, so as a bit of a recovery walk, Matt, Grant and I headed there. Matt and Grant are from my Bridges team and they are also on trial. We eventually found the ski jump and then took the challenge of climbing it. Its quite incredible the height you are at up there and the sheer decline the jump goes on. How they do it, I am not sure. We got some great views from up the top! Training continued that evening, and part of training was a bit of fitness, which consisted of forest runs. Yes like tree forest. The location of one of our training fields is right beside a forest and so the coach utilized that!

Friday rolled around and the three of us had been requested to go down to the office of the Sports Director for the club. My agent had informed me that they would be offering me a contract and we would be discussing terms, so it was an exciting time. After a positive meeting, I had a contract in hand and just had to make sure it was satisfactory for myself and my agent was happy with it. Grant was also offered a contract, and Matt is likely to sign with a lower division team. Saturday was another friendly and this time we had to travel about an hour down the road. I played the full game at Center Back and was pleased with my performance again. We won convincingly, 5-0. After the game I signed my contract, international clearance was sent through, and an official photo was taken! It was a special moment, but more so a moment of relief that finally all my hard work has paid off. Now I can truly settle in and crack on with developing myself and getting better and contributing to the team climbing up the table! Hoping my international clearance comes through this week so I can play next Sunday when the league restarts. Once we got home, we headed to the rive for a quick dip. Ill call it a Norwegian Glacier Ice Bath! That is where the water comes from, and although its travelled a fair distance, its still bloody cold, but great for the muscles!

Sunday was a nice lazy day but as always there was time and places to explore. Matt and I found a new path along the river and followed it for as long as we could. Many cool little spots along the way! Now that the week is over and the future begins Monday, I can really begin to settle into a routine and get things cracking!