Ollie Scarles said that West Ham United U19s have learnt a lot whilst out in India.
The Irons rounded off their participation in the Premier League Next Generation Cup in Navi Mumbai with a 3-0 victory over Everton at Reliance Corporate Park on a Thursday evening.
Scarles scored the games second goal, sandwiched between two finishes from U18s captain Gideon Kodua.
It means that the Irons finished third in the Next Gen competition, behind Wolverhampton Wanderers and Stellenbosch, who face each other in the final on Friday.
Scarles was pleased that the young Hammers were able to end the tournament with a victory.
“It’s a nice way to end our time here,” the young midfielder told whufc.com. “I think all of the lads would have liked to have been in the final but it wasn’t meant to be.
“It’s a really positive way to end what has been a really enjoyable experience that has challenged all of us. Things like the conditions, playing every three days, it’s all things that we’ve had to adapt and get used to really quickly.
“We’ve also played a different style of football than what we have for the majority of the season, which allowed us to have control in the heat. I think we’ve slowly got better at controlling the play, and the performance tonight against Everton really showed how we’ve progressed as the tournament has gone on.”
Away from the pitch, the Irons have experienced a number of enriching activities, which has seen them embrace the country.
The team visited the slums of Dharavi early this week, took in the excitement of the Mumbai Indians final regular Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket match of the season, as well as taking in the sights of South Mumbai.
Scarles says all of the experiences that the Irons have had the opportunity to experience have given the team a new perspective.
“It’s been a really humbling experience being here in India. It’s given all of the lads a different perspective, we’re so lucky to be able to do what we do and have the lifestyles that we have.
“People here in India do a lot of things so differently to we do, so it’s great to be able to experience all of the different things that they do here. We’ve all learnt a lot.”
The majority of the team that have been out in India have been involved and in the U18s FA Youth Cup and League titles, and Scarles believes it’s nice for this group to finish the season together with a trip abroad.
It’s been a really great season for us as a group,” Scarles admitted. “We’ve had a really strong season and managed to come away with a couple of trophies.
“It’s nice for us to finish the season all together with a tournament like this. As I said, the icing on the cake would have been to have won the Next Gen Cup, but it wasn’t to be.
“Now we will head home and rest, and hopefully we will have another successful season next year," he concluded.
