Sheran Yeini and Omer Vered returned to school and talked to students at the Na'amat Secondary in Tel Aviv
Last week two of Maccabi Tel Aviv's brightest stars, captain Sheran Yeini and fellow midfielder Omer Vered, took time out from a busy holiday week to visit the Na'amat Secondary in Tel Aviv, where they spent the day talking to students and catching up on their school days. Na'amat is no ordinary secondary by the way; it's a school where kids having problems at other schools go to receive special help in getting the best out of themselves. And they succeed because it's a school with a difference, where the kids are the focal point and the parents and teachers are imbued with a mission, with a spirit of generosity bordering on the infinite, who believe in these kids and simply love them to bits. Most of the kids come from difficult backgrounds too: low incomes, social and behavioural problems, difficulties at school. And it's these kids in particular who find their respite in sports, football in particular.
The students were particularly interested in hearing how the two Maccabi stars managed to balance their busy and successful careers as football players with their determination to further their educations. "Omer is studying undergraduate business management and I'm finishing a degree in psychology," captain Sheran Yeini said. "True, if we have to give something a miss we'll skip a class to be at training, but we always make sure to do catch-up with our classmates." Omer Vered added: "Even when we were kids it was really important to get good grades, even when we were giving our all to get into the first team." When the talking was done everyone got together for a group picture and the students were treated to a special Maccabi hat and scarf. At the end of November they were the guests of the club at the Toto Cup tie against Hapoel Haifa.
