For many, a ‘trip of a lifetime’ might come later in life. But for football-mad Cambridge 12-year-old Toby Cornegé, it’s already a reality.
Toby Cornege trains with Club Deportivo Leganes
During a three-month trip to Europe, Toby has trained with top football academies in Spain and Portugal, and played in an international youth tournament.
He has also attended a UEFA Champions League match, two La Liga games in Spain, a Primeira Liga match in Portugal, and enjoyed multiple stadium tours.
The family trip through Europe with parents Phillip and Kate and younger sister Martha is the result of a sabbatical from work for mother Kate.
With Toby starting high school in 2025, the family realised the opportunity for any extended time overseas — they have family in Europe — would be limited.
The trip has taken them to the Netherlands, France, Spain and Portugal; and they’ll stop over in Austria, London and then Costa Rica on the way home.
Toby, who plays for Cambridge FC and trains with Ricki Herbert’s RH3 Academy, has been playing football since he was six.
Football is a family affair; dad Phillip has coached junior teams and often takes to the pitch as a referee, while sister Martha also plays for the club.
When planning the trip, Phillip Cornegé reached out to Foot Draft, a Portugal-based company who are RH3 Academy partners, to seek training opportunities.
Toby and sister Martha at Sporting Lisbon game
Foot Draft organised for Toby to train with CD Leganés in Madrid, Spain, and Varzim S.C. near Porto, Portugal.
In Madrid, Toby joined CD Leganés’ U-12 Cantera (academy) team, who compete against youth sides in the city, including the world-famous Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid clubs.
Toby was unable to play in official matches because he wasn’t registered as a footballer in Spain, but he still enjoyed a month of training with the team, with 1.5-hour sessions three times a week.
Phillip Cornegé says the quality was high.
“The technical skills of top junior players in New Zealand are comparable,” he says.
“But the speed and physicality were on another level. It was like watching senior football played by 12-year-olds.”
Toby says he had no issues communicating on the pitch.
The Spanish players practised their English with Toby, while the coaches had a good level of English.
Toby described the training as “intense”. Part of the intensity is due to the high pressure — If the boys don’t perform, they are released at the end of the season and replaced by boys from other clubs.
Next up was Porto in Portugal, where Toby trained with Varzim S.C.’s U-13 team. Here, he joined the team in their 90-minute training sessions, four times a week.
The family moved to Lisbon, for the Christmas IberCup tournament, and an opportunity for Toby to train and play as part of an Australian selection.
“Toby’s RH3 Academy connections helped us connect with the organisers,” Phillip explained.
“Toby was selected after we sent over video footage, and he’s the first New Zealander to play in an IberCup.”
The team trained at the Benfica Academy in Lisbon, and Toby trained with Portuguese coaches, including Luis Dias, a former Sporting Lisbon youth coach who once worked with global football star Cristiano Ronaldo.
Toby played against academy teams from Portugal, Spain, and around the world, at the four-day tournament.
It’s a trip he’ll carry with him for years to come.
It’s given him an insight into how football is coached and played overseas, as well as opening his eyes to future possibilities.
Toby Cornege playing for Australia team
