SWARCO Raiders Head Coach Shuan Fatah poses for a photo with Hall of Famers Willie Brown (left) and Rod Woodson. Photo by Tony Gonzales.
The Austrian Football League's SWARCO Raiders' head coach Shuan Fatah, offensive coordinator Lee Rowland and strength and conditioning coach Andreas Proller are in Napa with The Oakland Raiders as part of the International Guest Coach program. The SWARCO Raiders, The Oakland Raiders Austrian sister team, won both the Eurobowl and the Austrian Bowl this summer for the first time in team history. Coach Fatah checks in with his second blog post.
Servus Raider Nation,
Our time at The Oakland Raiders training complex in Napa, California, has gone by so fast. Tomorrow we will leave with the team to San Francisco to watch the game against the 49ers from the sidelines. It will be definitely the highlight of this trip filled with memorable moments.
As a matter of fact we are not the only ones excited about the upcoming game. At today's practice you could feel the energy and the tension out there. Coaches and players alike are ready to enter Candlestick Park and leave it with a win.
Both offense and defense made some great plays out there today. Everyone practiced hard and the tempo for a last practice before a game was unbelievable. For me this game against the 49ers is special, too as I know a couple of guys on the San Francisco side from my days in NFL Europa. And it's always good to meet old friends.
Speaking of friends: I have to tell you that the last ten days have been amazing. The Oakland Raiders welcomed us with open arms and gave us every opportunity to gather information, ask questions and learn from a three-time Super Bowl champion.
Just today I was able to chat with Hall of Famer Rod Woodson. What a great guy he is. And what a great experience it was for me to have actually two Hall of Famers in Woodson and Willie Brown at every practice.
I feel like a kid in the candy-store. And I can tell you that my fellow coaches from the SWARCO Raiders feel the same. We all want to thank The Oakland Raiders for all their support and for an unbelievable time here in Napa. I'm sure the Silver and Black will have a great season.
Thanks for reading my blog. Go, Raiders!
Coach Shuan Fatah
*August 13, 2011
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Servus Raider Nation,
First of all I want to take the opportunity and thank you all for your support of the SWARCO Raiders. We had so many fans from the USA and all over the world watching our games online this season, it was simply amazing. And on top of winning two championships this summer me and two of my fellow coaches get the chance to visit training camp of The Oakland Raiders here in Napa.
We arrived on Thursday after an 11-hour plane ride. But before we could head to Alameda to the front office I had a run-in with customs. Nothing serious, but it cost me some nerves. When we finally arrived at our destination we had to jump on the team bus right away. Guess what: We were the only people on the bus. All the players went earlier or drove with their own cars since Friday was an off-day. So the three coaches from Austria had a five-man police escort blocking the streets to the O.co Coliseum. Not too bad.
That experience only was topped by the fact that we were able to watch the game between the Raiders and the Arizona Cardinals from the sidelines. We were standing right next to QB Jason Campbell, DT Richard Seymour, LB Rolando McClain, Hall of Famers Rod Woodson and Willie Brown and all the other players and coaches. It was an amazing feeling.
And you could tell that players, coaches and fans alike were happy that football is back. I was blown away by the speed and the strength of the players and I couldn't wait to see them up close at training camp in Napa.
After the off-day, which we spent sightseeing in San Francisco, the first day of watching practices and learning from the best in the business was finally here. And while we were watching the coaches correcting the mistakes from the Arizona game during the morning walk-through, Head Coach Hue Jackson came up to us to welcome us at camp.
He congratulated us once again on winning the Eurobowl and the Austrian Bowl. That was really nice of him. You can tell we are very welcome here. This is a big family and I'm glad the SWARCO Raiders are a part of it. Thanks to Coach Jackson we were able to watch the afternoon practice up close. To me it's especially interesting to see how The Oakland Raiders organize camp. And I'm looking forward to soaking in as much as possible in the next days.
What exactly that is? Find it out in my next blog.
Thanks for your support,
SWARCO Raiders Head Coach Shuan Fatah
