TRAINING was short, light and relaxed for Bahrain on Wednesday afternoon.
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The visitors made it clear, though, they were seriously focused on serving up a big game against Jordan this weekend on their adopted home pitch at the Ballarat Regional Soccer Facility.
Nigerian-born Bahraini striker Jaycee John said a 4-1 friendly win against neighbouring rival Saudi Arabia in Geelong on Tuesday had been a fantastic way to launch the team’s Australian-based preparations for the AFC Asian Cup.
Jordan was going to be another huge test.
“It’s a good win for us, but we don’t want to let the game go to our heads,” John said.
“... It is a good start for us and I think with this win will come a lot of confidence for playing in the main competition.”
Only those who took to the field in Geelong had a light run at Morshead Park to loosen up.
The rest of the playing group were back at their Creswick hotel for a weights session in the gym. Free time had been pencilled in for all players later in the afternoon before training steps up again.
John looked forward to his chance to explore the area a little. This is his second visit to Australia for soccer, having played a World Cup qualifier against Australia in Sydney.
“So far it’s amazing; I love Australia from years back,” he said.
Training on Wednesday was a closed session, overlooked by team officials and media, with players working through a series of stretches and light running for no more than half an hour.
The vibe was bright after pulling off a big upset against Saudi Arabia a night earlier.
Bahrain had opened the scoring with a penalty after
24 minutes and then doubled the advantage at 26 minutes.
Saudi Arabia closed the gap at 47 minutes, but gave up another penalty 11 minutes later.
The Bahrainis sealed the game by putting the ball into the net for a fourth time on 79 minutes.
Bahrain Soccer Association president Sheikh Ali Bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, a member of the Bahraini royal family, said the welcoming and positive reception to the team in Ballarat was important in the team’s preparations and had, indirectly, helped in capturing the big upset win against Saudi Arabia a night earlier.
He hoped that continued on the pitch when his nation hosted Jordan.
“We’re here to enjoy the Asian Cup and to enjoy football,” he said.
“All the support we’ve seen since day one has been fantastic.
“... Soccer is a morale game. We don’t want to be too optimistic but it’s important to keep that calm.
“We’ve got some tough games coming up.”
The team is schedule to train twice daily for the next two days before tapering for Sunday’s friendly against Jordan.
melanie.whelan@fairfaxmedia.com.au