Jakub Sema set to debut for the Poland U-19 American football team!

Preparations for this historic game took many months. American head coach Timothy Richardson Jr. put a large pool of candidates through a rigorous selection process. More than 130 players from across the country were assessed at the February tryouts. The coaching staff first picked a 60-man squad, then after two intensive training camps in Wrocław finalised the 45 players who will travel to Finland.

Photo: NFLPolska.com (opens in a new tab) editorial team

The core of the team is made up of young players who compete week in, week out in the Polish Football League. An interesting addition to the squad is running back Oliver Zarembski, the only call-up who plays abroad, turning out for British side Loughborough. The whole team is determined to show on Holy Saturday that Polish American football is back on the European map in style.

"Over the last few months the Poland national team has gone from a dream to a reality. In a short space of time we assembled an elite staff of coaches from all over the country and opened registration for more than 180 Polish players. After open tryouts and hours of video analysis we narrowed the squad down to 60 players. The coaches worked non-stop to put together a playbook that showcases our players' greatest strengths. After two intensive training camps we have forged a team identity and built real chemistry within the group. You can expect physical football from players who play with ruthless determination." – says Timothy Richardson Jr., Head Coach of the Poland U19 team.

Photo: Łukasz Skwiot

It is worth stressing that the strength of the national team is built on talent from local football programmes. The matchday squad for the upcoming game against Finland includes a player who represents Warsaw Eagles – Jakub Sema has received the call-up.

The upcoming debut is seen as a pivotal moment for the sport in our country. After a difficult period for Polish football, the determination of the community has made it possible to create a national project that should give fresh impetus to growing the game among young people. Poland are among the continent's top ten nations, alongside heavyweights such as:

• defending champions Austria (#1),
• Sweden (#2),
• Finland (#3),
• Germany (#4),
• Italy (#5),
• Czech Republic (#6),
• Spain (#7),
• Israel (#8),
• Hungary (#9).

Seeded tenth, the White and Reds were drawn into a tough Group C, where they will battle for progression against Germany, Hungary and the aforementioned Finland.

The first opponent sets the bar as high as it gets. Finland are one of the most successful nations in the history of European youth football. The Fennoscandian side have won U19 European Championship gold three times (in 1992, 1994 and 1996). At the last two editions of the tournament the Finns confirmed their class by taking bronze. Their development system regularly supplies players to the strongest leagues on the continent.

"Finland are ranked third in Europe for a reason; they are a superbly run team with huge experience, so this first game will be a real challenge. But this is exactly what we wanted – the chance to take on one of the best teams in Europe, one that will push us to our limits and ultimately make us much stronger. The whole organisation, from the board to the ball kids, shares the same mentality: fight to win for Poland!" – adds Timothy Richardson Jr., Head Coach of the Poland U19 American Football Team

Photo: Łukasz Skwiot

Delivering a project of this scale was a huge logistical operation, involving a team that extended far beyond the training pitch. Alongside the hard work of the coaching staff and players, a number of experts responsible for marketing, media relations and technical support contributed to building a new standard for Polish football – without them, this trip would not have been possible.

"There is no denying that building the entire U19 national team project from scratch in such a short time was quite a challenge. Personally, it mattered a great deal to me that the young players had the best possible conditions to prepare, because we face a tough test – Finland are one of the best junior national teams in Europe. Every detail counts here: communication, organising training sessions, proper nutrition during demanding camps and medical support. Right now I can say with complete confidence that, thanks to a team of wonderful people – coaches, physiotherapists, organisational staff and the media crew – we have done everything in our power to let the young players focus 100% on the upcoming game. As a national team we have so many people supporting us: parents, fans and sponsors. All of them deserve our heartfelt thanks for believing in this programme. We promise to head north, fight for what is ours and make the white and red colours proud!" – sums up Karolina Janas, Director of the Poland American Football National Teams

You can watch Saturday's game against Finland for free on YouTube!

Live stream of the game

Poland U19 American football squad for the game against Finland:

Offence

• QB – Bychawski Tymon – Kraków Kings
• QB – Frąckiewicz Oskar – Rhinos Wyszków
• RB – Chwierut Grzegorz – Kraków Kings
• RB – Jaworski Igor – Kraków Kings
• RB – Jusiński Michał – Rhinos Wyszków
• RB – Zarembski Oliver – Loughborough
• WR – Babiarz Krzysztof – Kraków Kings
• WR – Berbeć Kacper – Rhinos Wyszków
• WR – Chorążewski Kacper – Panthers Wrocław
• WR – Cybula Maksymilian – Panthers Wrocław
• WR – Pierzchało Karol – Lowlanders Białystok
• WR – Sema Jakub – Warsaw Eagels
• TE – Dąbrowski Kornel – Lowlanders Białystok
• TE – Grzesiak Eryk – Panthers Wrocław
• TE – Skuła Szymon – Panthers Wrocław
• OL – Kędzior Jakub – Lowlanders Białystok
• OL – Łysik Mateusz – Kraków Kings
• OL – Makowski Krystian – Warsaw Mets
• OL – Pacyna Paweł – Kraków Kings
• OL – Rusel Krzysztof – Lowlanders Białystok
• OL – Skowronek Szymon – Silesia Rebels Katowice
• OL – Wróblewski Maksymilian – Lowlanders Białystok

Defence

• DL – Brzeziński Oskar – Hunters Tarnów
• DL – Dzyruk Tymoteusz – Panthers Wrocław
• DL – Kaczmarczyk Alan – Hunters Tarnów
• DL – Łach Marek – Kraków Kings
• DL – Łapniewski Filip – Lowlanders Białystok
• DL – Senderowicz Sebastian – Kraków Kings
• DL – Szajczyk Bartosz – Rhinos Wyszków
• DL – Szefler Maciej – Warsaw Mets
• LB – Rodzik Bartosz – Lowlanders Białystok
• ILB – Bromboszcz Tomasz – Silesia Rebels Katowice
• ILB – Jasiński Nikodem – Rhinos Wyszków
• ILB – Królik Szymon – Warsaw Mets
• OLB – Kaflik Bartosz – Rhinos Wyszków
• OLB – Smagowicz Marek – Kraków Kings
• DB – Bahyrycz Dawid – Panthers Wrocław
• DB – Duraj Franciszek – Kraków Kings
• DB – Jakubowski Witold – Warsaw Mets
• DB – Kozłowicz Artur – Warsaw Mets
• DB – Ksepka Oskar – Rhinos Wyszków
• DB – Ulatowski Miłosz – Panthers Wrocław
• DB – Wróblewski Wiktor – Lowlanders Białystok
• DB – Zaguła Jakub – Panthers Wrocław

Special teams

• K – Ciurkot Maciej – Hunters Tarnów