For Britain's 17-year-old forward and Everton supporter, George Fletcher, meeting Leighton Baines added up to an unforgettable experience.

"It was one of the best days of my life," he reflected.


GB captain Matt Dimbylow (pictured above, left), 24 years Fletcher's senior and formerly on Liverpool's books, was equally made up to meet one of his heroes, Steven Gerrard (pictured above, right).

"Meeting some of their England heroes gave my players a real boost," Lynch told insideworldparasport. "Roy Hodgson made a point of shaking every member of my squad by the hand and offering them words of encouragement, which was really great of him.

And it was also great to see the England players in action. They looked really impressive – and my keepers in particular were really interested to watch Robert Green and Joe Hart in action, because they have had the opportunity to train with them in the past.

"It was an inspirational visit. There was a lot of energy around in the stadium, and when we got back I told my players to try and use that to their advantage. Which they did!"

That energy carried through to a 7-3 win over the Republic of Ireland, a team who, although they have not qualified for the forthcoming Games, are classed by Lynch as being just outside the top cluster of teams in the world, as are Britain.

But Lynch's men were unable to overcome Brazil, who finished fourth in Beijing 2008, losing 4-2 to them in both their opening round robin match and in the final at Manchester. What the tournament did reveal, however, is that Britain have a well organised, composed team who are able to retain the ball and who, in Ibrahim Diallo (pictured below, left), have an outstanding midfield talent.


After their first game, Brazil's hugely promising 21-year-old Mateus Calvo (pictured below, left), whose driving presence and precise touch in midfield proved a constant torment to the host team, commented: "Britain were very strong – it was the first time I have ever played against them. But we were faster than them.

"London 2012 will be a different competition. Ukraine, Iran and Russia will be the teams to beat in London and we have to be stronger than we are now."

Britain, too, will have to be stronger if they are to challenge for a place on the podium in the Olympic Park.

"We're scoring goals against the top sides, but we have got to work on our defensive problems and also on converting more of the chances we are creating," said Lynch.

"Coaching in CP (Cerebral Palsy) football is a little different from coaching I have done before in the game. What I have tried to do with this squad is to change the style of play and to lay emphasis on keeping possession of the ball. That's what all the top sides do, and if we want to challenge them we have to learn how to do that too.

"But we are also strong physically. All the players follow their own strength and conditioning programme. We pride ourselves on our fitness. It was pretty hot out there against Brazil, but I said to them in the changing room at half-time: 'We are British. We know we can go to the end. We know we can be strong.' And I think we finished as the stronger team.

"Brazilian footballers always have an aura about them, and I think they have brought this to the World Cup. But before I was in charge of the CP squad I ran the England Learning Disability team and they beat their Brazilian opponents. That was what I was impressing on my players before they played Brazil this week – we will close the gap."


Lynch knows a thing or two about closing the gap in football. He enjoyed a successful career as a part-time player with Ilford and Bishop's Stortford, for whom he achieved fleeting fame during their FA Cup run of 1982-1983, when he scored a hat-trick in a 4-1 win over fellow Isthmian Leaguers Slough Town in the second round, and scored Stortford's goal as they lost 2-1 in their third round replay against Second Division Middlesbrough, then managed by Malcolm Allison.

Lynch's exploits, and his shaven-headed resemblance to the then world middleweight champion Marvin Hagler, who was preparing at the time for British challenger Tony Sibson, earned him the instant nickname of Bald Eagle in the national tabloid press.

It was a nickname that no one had ever called him before, and no one ever called him afterwards, as he reflected with a rueful grin. As for Lynch himself, he was never likely to let his brief moment of fame go to his head. When the headlines occurred, he was already 30 and working as a PE teacher.

Thirty years on, he is still in education – an assistant head teacher at a college in Leytonstone. Before taking charge of the current British squad, who play a seven-a-side game lasting half an hour each way which has been adapted for athletes with Cerebral Palsy, Lynch – in his position in charge of the England Learning Disability team – received considerable support from those in the professional game, including the medical team at Manchester United's Carrington training ground.

He was happy to highlight a similar level of support in the last four years from the Football Association that has allowed his team, if not to match the full-time preparations of their main rivals, to travel abroad in order to broaden their competitive experience.

"Our stretch target for the 2012 Paralympics is top six, but obviously I aspire to be on that podium in London. The top sides in the world are full-time, and we aren't, even though we have had great support and funding from the Football Association in recent years," said Lynch (pictured below).

"We have competed out in Russia, and we have played at a tournament in the United States. The top three sides in the world at the moment are Russia, Ukraine and Iran. Our aim is to close the gap on them, and I'm sure we can get there. The FA support is helping us get closer to these full-time sides.

"When I started this job in 2008 we had our first get-together as a GB team in January 2008, so we had eight months to prepare. We've had four years to prepare for 2012. We have been able to spend a lot of time together, and particularly in the last 12 months when we have met every week.


"We are planning to play in Portugal soon, and we will also be getting a chance to get onto the surface at the Riverbank Stadium in the Olympic Park where we will be playing our Paralympic games."

Lynch sees the rising success of his current squad as no more than a reflection of what is going on throughout the CP game in Britain.

"We have got regional centres of excellence now, as well as senior and junior regional squads. I went recently to a regional League Cup competition which involved about 200 players, including seniors, and it really excited me to see the depth of talent in our under-16s. The future of CP football in Britain is looking really good."

In Beijing, Britain lost their first match – against the eventual gold medallists, Ukraine – by 8-1. They are unlikely to endure such a heavy defeat four years down the line.

"I think there will be a lot of support for us at the London Paralympics," Lynch said.

"Some of the players were in Beijing, where they were playing in front of crowds of 15,000. But for most of the squad events like this are brilliant in terms of getting experience of playing in front of larger numbers of people. We are going to try to turn the presence of a home crowd into a positive, to make sure it is an advantage, not a disadvantage.

"Obviously football is our national sport, so that always helps. I live and work only a few miles from the Olympic Stadium – I live in Barking, and I am an assistant head teacher at the Leytonstone Business Enterprise Specialist School.

"So many of our children have been enthused by the Games. They have been doing the Get Set programme, and they know so much about Paralympic sport now, which is really good. It's so important that we use these Games to push the message home."

Mike Rowbottom, one of Britain's most talented sportswriters, has covered the past five Summer and four Winter Olympics for The Independent. Previously he has worked for the Daily Mail, The Times, The Observer, the Sunday Correspondent and The Guardian. He is now chief feature writer for insidethegames. Rowbottom's Twitter feed can be accessed here.