NATIONAL Under-17 player Junior Flemmings, along with Luca Levee and Raewin Senior, was chosen as the top performer of the Next Generation Valencia Easter Football Camp which was concluded yesterday at Sabina Park.

Meanwhile, Vanie Clarke was chosen from the 30 coaches to have a two-week stint at the Valencia Academy.

The three players who were chosen from 180 young players, will take up scholarships at Valencia Academy after receiving $50,000 Top Performer cheques and trophies.

Flemmings, 15, of Jamaica College, who is the youngest member of the successful Jamaica U-17 World Cup-bound team, said he was elated.

“… It’s a good feeling… I was shocked. My dream is to play in Spain and now it’s a reality because I’ll be going to the Valencia camp,” said Flemmings, who also plays for Tivoli Gardens’ youth team.

The five-day camp which has major sponsors in ScotiaBank, Claro and the Spanish Court, is in its second of three years with the Valencia Foundation from Spain.

Levee, 14, of Campion College and Senior, 11, of Hydel High, along with Flemmings, will join King Kaya Beckford and Martin Davis who won scholarships last year.

Clarke, who coaches at Brown’s Town High and started the season at Premier League club Benfica, said he was happy for the opportunity.

“The support from my fellow coaches was tremendous. I’m excited to get this opportunity to go into a different culture and see how they do things in a professional environment and see how much I can learn,” he said.

Andre Virtue, technical director of the Next Generation Camp, stressed the need for the coaching of tactical awareness to the youngsters.

Carlos De Lera, Valencia’s director of sports operation, thanked everyone for giving them the opportunity to spread the Valencia coaching methodology and its brand.

Meanwhile, local football head, Captain Horace Burrell, praised the initiative to expose footballers from a tender age — something his organisation is also emphasising.

“The JFF is truly grateful to the organisers for putting on this camp. These kids are the future,” said Burrell.

He said the ‘popping’ and ‘brucking’ is normally associated with Jamaican football but lacks a sense of tactics.

“When we have these experts coming to Jamaica to impart these knowledge I have to say many, many thanks,” said Burrell.

“I’m sure that come 2018, many of these youngster, will become Reggae Boyz,” he added.

Meanwhile, Burrell bemoaned the missed opportunity of the Under-17 team to get valuable training experience in Spain because of a lack of funding.

The JFF was trying to have the Under-17s play against Valencia, Villarreal and another Spanish club in a 10-day training stint, but the US$70,000 needed to make the trip possible did not materialise.