A thick grey mist hangs over the village of Pentre as the Rhondda valley is blanketed in rain. There is a piercing glare of lights in the dark.
The Rhondda Cynon Taf Schools Football Association use the pitch as a training area.
Children from 97 primary schools in the area are selected to play tonight. It can be tempting to wonder if I could watch the next Jess Fishlock.
You should think about which of these boys or girls might become the next great coach.
The field used to be home to promising young local football players who are now some of Wales' most successful managers.
Steve Cooper, the head coach of the Forest, and Nathan Jones, the new boss of the Saints, both played here in the early 1990s.
The house where Jimmy Murphy lived is close to the park. There is a blue plaque outside the house where he lived when he was the last man to lead Wales to a World Cup.
Robert Page and his Wales side will face the United States on Monday in a game that will change the fact that Murphy is the only one to have done it.
Page is a descendant of the Rhondda football factory and his valleys roots are an important part of who he is today.
There is a village in the Rhondda valley where Page was born. The village is called Tylorstown.
These distinctions are important in the valleys.
There wasn't a hospital in the valley, so people think I'm from there. Page says that he was born in Tylorstown.
I have it in my genes. I believe it is with people who have grown up in the valleys.
The closing of the pits made life difficult. A lot of the industry was outside of the valleys, so you had to go further to get food for your family.
People help each other out during that time. I think I've been brought up in the right way, and I've taken that throughout my life.
I have a lot of good memories. My mom used to wash the kit on the line every Sunday when she was a member of the Tylorstown Boys Club.
Maerdy is the last village at the top of the valley and the closest pitch to us. It was interesting on a cold day. You could see the rain was driving down the valley from the outside.
You just played because you love the game.
Page stood out on the pitch not just because of his long hair, but also because he was a good player.
Page was selected to represent Rhondda Cynon Taf schools.
Lynn James, who coached RCT Schools at the time and is a life member of the association, proudly wears one of the association's white and red tracksuits as he reminisces on the touchline in Pentre.
"Physically, he was a dominant individual and technically quite good, but what made him outstanding was his ability to take on information and use it to his advantage."
He was a good influence on other people. He was a leader, a quiet but funny individual, and exactly the kind of person you want as a skipper.
Page was attracting the attention of the national selection committee.
"When he was 14, he was nominated for a Welsh trial and we were all very confident having watched his performances in a recent county competition," recalls Brian Hughes, an RCT Schools official since 1983.
The day of his sister's wedding caused a bit of stress for the family. The trial and wedding were about 10 miles away from each other.
I promised his parents he'd be back in time for the wedding if we were able to get him there.
I remember his father putting the football kit in the boot and his mother putting the suit and tie in the backseat when I picked him up.
He stood out in the trial and I was like, "OK, you've obviously seen enough". Give him five more minutes, said the chairman of the selection committee.
We stopped at Maerdy, where my mother lived, after he had a quick shower, and I told him to go.
As he was walking up the steps, I looked in the mirror and saw the bride's car pull into the space I was vacating. He made the wedding and was selected to go to Wales.
Page was spotted by Tom Walley, who helped launch the careers of Malcolm Allen and Iwan Roberts, when he was a schoolboy.
Page found time to play men's football in the valleys before he signed a full-time contract withWatford.
He remembers playing a couple of games for Ferndale Athletic.
When I told my players to go out and do the hard yards, go out and play competitive football, there was nothing more competitive than playing for Ferndale Athletic." Some boys were tough.
After the event, I went to the pub and had a beer with the boys. I wasn't old enough to drink lemonade, but I did drink it.
The team spirit and camaraderie was what I liked the most. They liked playing football but also enjoyed the banter. That was quite amazing.
Before they were demoted to the Second Division in 1996, Page cut his teeth as a young professional withWatford in the first tier.
At the start of the 1997-98 season, Page was appointed captain by Graham Taylor, and he went on to lead the Hornets to the Second Division title.
Page was named the player of the season for the second year in a row, despite the fact that they were demoted to the second tier.
The most lasting effect on the man who would become Wales manager was Page's time atWatford, where he spent the longest time of his career.
Graham Taylor taught me a lot. I believed he was the best. He had a positive impact on my career.
When to get the boys on the grass was something he knew. He would come in on a Monday morning after a defeat and think "They have had a long time on the grass, too much detail, we need to get them off it"
"He'd get six volunteers to drive, we'd all be wondering what we're doing, we'd all get in a car and go somewhere."
We'd walk for an hour and end up in a country pub, where he'd already arranged lunch for us, and we'd have a drink.
He would say "Thanks, boys, see you tomorrow" and it would be the right thing to do.
Knowing when to give them a break and when to get them on the grass is important.
He was still having an influence on us because we were together as a group and not on a footballing level.
You learn a lot from your bosses.
Page will need a similar instinct in Qatar, where country pubs may not be as easy to find but where the demands of a World Cup will require a fine balance between serious work and the human need for occasional light touches.
For last year's European Championship, Page says, the heat was quite severe.
When to train them, when to work them, and when to just throw the lilos in the pool and get them to relax are all things we know. They are also getting those bonds.
It worked for us because of the professionalism and different approach to the game that Gary Speed implemented and then Chris Coleman took it to another level.
It's important that we know when to relax and when to work hard.
The important roles his predecessors have played in getting Wales to this point are often cited by Page.
After reaching the World Cup quarter-finals in 1958, Wales had to wait 58 years to qualify for their next major tournament and, at Euro 2016, Coleman's side overcame all expectations to reach the semi-finals.
The influence of the late Speed, the legendary former captain turned coach who was in charge for less than a year but whose influence on his young squad was profound, was mentioned every step of the way by the manager and his players.
Coleman took Wales to new heights by building on Speed's foundations.
Following his departure after Wales had qualified for Euro 2020, it was yet another of Speed's former team mates, Page, who assumed the responsibility for last year's Covid- delayed competition.
Wales have qualified for three major tournaments in a row for the first time in more than 50 years.
Wales ended their barren years with two European Championships and will return to the World Cup next year.
The man who has led them there is Page. Page is on the shoulders of a giant
You want to qualify for the World Cup. Two valley boys have done it.
We're both from Wales and we've got Wales to a World Cup.
I'm happy for Jimmy to get the recognition because it was an achievement back in the day.
Tylor Welfare Hall was chosen as the location for the official squad announcement due to its symbolic significance.
The hub of the place where Page was raised was a five minute walk from his childhood home.
It was the perfect setting for a celebration, not only of what the manager and his players have accomplished but also of who they are.
It was meaningful because of its specificity to Page but also because it was the kind of place that would feel familiar wherever you came from.
Sport is more than what a group of people do on the field of play, it is about sharing experiences, identity and a sense of belonging.
The Welsh language plays a prominent role in the culture of the country's national team, and the Football Association of Wales has harnessed the power of one particular word.
It feels apt for a footballing nation where the majority of players and coaches live outside Wales and whose fans include a widely scattered diaspora, many of whom will come together thousands of miles away in the Middle East.
Even if you've been away for a while, there's always a place you can call home.
Page says that he comes back into it when he's living outside of it.
Every time I come back, it's the same thing. All the kids come up to me and ask me if I can sign this. Is it possible that you'll sign that?
Sometimes I think it's not sunk in. It's an immense amount of pride to have been a part of it.
When I took my kids to Cyprus for a week's break, my youngest asked if I would be recognised, but I said no, probably not.
"Then one lad came to me with his family, then another and then another, and they all wanted to take pictures with me."
It was amazing to be a part of that and everyone just wanted to say thank you.
Page has steered Wales to the World Cup, which has changed his life. Page could return home to visit his parents without much attention from other people.
His place in Rhondda folklore is even deeper than that of Murphy.
There will be one person who Page will always make time for, his father.
"With his health, not that there's anything wrong with him, but it would be too risky for him to fly all that way in the heat and so he probably won't make it," says Page.
He calls every day, apart from matchdays when he sends me a message but knows not to ring me because I'll be busy, but as soon as I'm on the coach, he's my first phone call.
He is very clear right away. Whether I want to hear it or not is up to him.
That is him. He used to shout at me from the touchline, "Zip it!", when I was playing. He would let me know if he disagreed with me.
I have a lot of time for him because he is no different now.
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