Born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, Albert Watson is familiar with everything about the Milk Cup.

The FC Edmonton defender began participating in the international youth tournament as a 14-year-old and had plenty of advice for two of his teammates off to this year’s event.

Hanson Boakai and Sadi Jalali were named to the Under-20 Canadian team taking part in the tournament. The two are already with the Canadian national team and will miss FCE’s next two home games, including Sunday’s at Clarke Stadium against the Indy Eleven.

“I played for the Under-14 County Antrim,” said Watson on Thursday. “Back home in Northern Ireland there are six counties, so I was in County Antrim.

“If you are from that county, you get to go for trials and if you make the team then you get to play in the Milk Cup.”

The tournament has been held annually in Northern Ireland since 1983. It features three separate age groups and attracts a number of professional scouts from throughout Europe.

“I remember the first year, we played on the team with Steve Davis and he plays for Southampton now,” Watson said. “We had a really good side.

“We played Middlesbrough and Middlesbrough were renowned for their youth academies and their great players … they beat us 1-0. They beat us, but we didn’t deserve to lose that game.”

Boakai and Jalali will be going up against Mexico, China and the host Northern Ireland. Canada opens the tournament on Monday against Mexico.

“It’s a really great experience there are a lot of top scouts there,” Watson said. “If you want to showcase your talent, it’s the tournament to do it. It’s a short trip from anywhere in Europe, so it’s brilliant for showcasing talent.

“I know Hanson and Sadi are going there and they have good talent, so I just told them to go and light it up and you never know what happens. Any Premiership club can come in and see how good they are, because they are really young. I think it’s the best youth tournament in the world now. All the top teams go.”

Watson participated at the event at all three age levels, representing Northern Ireland in his final tournament.

“In the Under-20s you play for your country,” he said. “Playing in the Under-20 for Northern Ireland, it was a really great experience. It’s a great experience to pit your ability against some of the top talent in the world. It’s an experience getting to play against Brazil. Brazil is usually in the tournament on the Under-20 side. There are teams from Germany, Holland, teams from South Africa. It just shows you how well it’s know and well it’s thought of this tournament.”

Both Boakai and Jalali worked their way up through the FC Edmonton youth system, but have been on Canada’s radar for some time.

“From a playing experience and from a cultural experience it’ll be massive for them,” said FC Edmonton head coach Colin Miller. “The reflection on the club is fabulous as well. I think that’s a testament of the time we’ve put in with the young players. Sadi … scored at the tail end of the Spring season and did very well. Hanson, everyone knows about him. It’s no surprise that he will be one of, if not the, youngest players on that squad. But he deserves to be there, he’s a player that is different from anybody else in the Canadian program at the moment.

“I know the tournament because I coached in it for Hearts,” Miller said. “I took the Hearts Under-14 team and finished fourth in the tournament.

“When we played the Manchester United youth team, there were 5,000 people in the crowd. The game was broadcast live in Northern Ireland and we beat them 1-0.”

derek.vandiest@sunmedia.ca

@SUNdvandiest