Academy restructuring - set to become the norm?

"The Club has been forced to rethink the way it develops young players as a consequence of the impact of the Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) system."

This was the line from Tranmere Rovers FC following the unfortunate news that the club were set to, essentially, close down their youth academy. 

Tranmere have been in the Conference now for a couple of seasons. With a full time academy (and various other ventures that they are leading the way in), this was eventually going to be an area that they had to scale down should they not get back into the football league in the near future. 

This will have been tough on the many players in their academy that may not be so lucky to find another professional club. Tranmere have acknowledged themselves that and will try to assist them in finding new clubs but not all will be able to. Equally, I imagine many will have lost jobs and roles and have to find themselves new environments to work and coach in. 

However, Tranmere are not the first side to come to this conclusion following the impacts of EPPP. Wycombe, Brentford and more recently Huddersfield have all restructured in some form. 

Jason Koumas - a success story of
 Tranmere's academy in the past

All four of those clubs have produced a good standard of player from their academies. In days gone by, Tranmere have profited from the sales of Jason Koumas (£2.5m), Ryan Taylor (£750k), Ian Nolan (£2m), Clint Hill (£250k) who they had produced in their academy set ups which will have surely helped with the running of the club, let alone the academy. Due to the current system, Tranmere are now losing players for free at the younger age groups where they may previously have been able to hold onto players. 

These are not decisions that clubs are taking lightly. 

Brentford were well regarded in the competitive environment that is the London academy scene, with Miguel Rios, Kevin O'Connor and Ose Aibangee known figures for their good work at the club who were thriving in the Championship. 

Huddersfield cited their frustration at the lack of local players coming through to their first team. A startling fact in the BT 'No Hunger in Paradise' documentary revealed that Manchester City had more scouts in Huddersfield than Huddersfield themselves. They clearly did not feel the academy was value for money, despite having one U15 that was in the England youth squads and has since signed for Manchester United.  

"Running our academy in its current format (U8s to U18s) costs in excess of £300,000 a season and over the last two years we have lost over £500,000 of central funding for academy operations. 
  

Prior to the introduction of the EPPP system, the income from player sales offset some or all of the cost, and Tranmere had some notable success in developing and selling players." 

Tranmere's academy operated in, like Brentford, Wycombe and Huddersfield, a very competitive environment. They are probably used to losing out on players, but also probably made some good money previously for players that they lost to clubs around them. With EPPP making it easier for clubs in the higher categories to sign players from further away, this only compounds this issue. 

In terms of developing players, Tranmere are now going to focus their efforts on a 16+ development team. This may have come off of the back of Brentford's success in this area, as they now have more freedom to play against different types of opposition and focus their efforts on one group of players. You would imagine that this is more financially viable for them too, as well as still offering high levels of coaching in 'centre of excellences' at "affordable prices" for players in the local area. 

What will not be cut is the Futsal academy, contrary to reports earlier in the week. Tranmere have been a real leader in this area and are helping to develop Futsal in England as it continues to become ever more popular. They have received lots of praise for how they promote Futsal and also have an international coaching scheme, where the have coaches in China. 

I also found this statement interesting too: 

"Change is never comfortable but football has changed and we have to react and redefine our academy operation order, to protect the Club and to benefit those in our community."

Again, this is something similar to Brentford in being able to offer more to the community. Money that they may feel was wasted towards their academy programme may go to better use in creating more inclusive communities. Tranmere have announced several things that they are going to do with schools and grassroots football, which I commend them on.

One of the major criticisms (and I believe this too) of professional clubs is the lack of work or partnerships with grassroots clubs. I have mentioned this before, but Ajax work with over forty clubs in their local area, working with them to develop players and importantly, coaches! 

There is so much work we can do that could help raise the standard of coaching, not only to develop players but offer more opportunities for young children to be physically active and feel part of their local community. 

Tranmere feel that they expect more clubs to follow suit and it is hard to argue with this. 

EPPP serves a purpose, that being benefitting those at the top of the tree but much like in wider society this does not trickle to those lower down. Why not reject EPPP if this is the case? 

Ultimately, clubs outside of that inner circle may have no other choice.

You can read the story from Tranmere here. I'd certainly be interested to hear people's views on this!

The Winter Football issue - is Futsal the answer?

It's a common issue every year for grassroots football across the country.

A downpour of rain over night and your weekend can be ruined in one moment when you receive the dreaded message.

'Game is off'.

It is a constant point of debate amongst supporters of grassroots football. What can be done to stop this annual period of postponed games due to waterlogged pitches and bad weather?

Some of this discussion turns to the state of facilities for the grassroots game. 3G pitches were recognised as the way forward, with the core issue being funding. While the Parklife scheme is being

rolled out across the country by Sport England and the FA, a lack of facilities at this current time has been considered a real issue. And hearing the prices that some of these football 'hubs' are going to charge to hire it anyway, I'm not sure it's going to solve much of the problem.

Just this weekend, a central venue league for under sevens which play all their games on a 3G astro had to call off their games anyway. We can have as many astro turf pitches as we want but if even they get ruined by the weather, we need another plan.

A familiar sight

Another idea has been to move the grassroots football season to the summer. Whilst this is a decent proposal there will be issues around holidays, the great summer tournaments we have in that time and importantly, sports such as cricket would really lose out. 

More recent talk has centred around an alternative solution. Leagues have begun to pilot winter Futsal programmes.

This just seems to make so much more sense than the current, traditional set up. There are plenty of halls, such as in primary and secondary schools, with the space to play games in. The facilities would not be hard to come by with the right planning and are probably cheaper too. Futsal goals may be an issue, but again with the right preparation this can be organised in good time. It could be as simple as running through the start of December to the end of January, the times were traditionally rain stops play. 

This is not an attempt to stop kids playing in the rain, as some might worry or claim the world is going mad. I love football in the rain, but it is this period where games are routinely called off due to the pitches being unplayable that we need to find a solution for. Additionally, the pitches that regularly take a hammering could get a much needed rest as well and be in better condition potentially by the time the football season starts up again.

From a player development perspective, this could be massively beneficial too. Whilst Futsal is a sport in its own right, there is no denying it could be a great tool for improving a player's technical ability, especially in the early ages. That combined with decision making, with less space and time on the court, can add to the holistic development of a player. 

We wouldn't quite need these facilities...

It could be viewed from a multi-sport perspective too, with a variety of health and social benefits. This would offer something alternative, something fresher, to also give young players a chance to try something new that actually they may want to take up later down the line to stay physically active.

There would, I am sure, be other minor barriers. Such as knowledge of the rules of Futsal for players, coaches and importantly, referees. Or having to buy enough Futsal specific balls for the games.

Once again, these are problems that are simple enough to solve and while it may take some more of our time (and money) it may just be worth it. 

Coach Education: Changing for the better?

It has been mooted for a while now that the shape of coach education is set to change in major ways. Exactly how it would change it wasn't easy to say, but it was quite clear that different courses and pathways are to become more 'aligned'.

After attending a CPD (Continuous Professional Development) event last Monday - based around the FA Youth award - we were given a snippet of how it was going to look come the end of 2016. Coach education is set to become more modular, and set in blocks. For example - the Level 1 Football could be block one, while the Level 2, Youth Modules 1 + 2 could fall into block two. We weren't given the exact or full detail, but you get the picture!

Equally, the way in which candidates will be assessed is changing. You do get the feeling that the Football Association want to move away from the old school, high-pressure assessments. Back in August I attended a UEFA B assessment day and the tension was immediately obvious. This was very much make or break for some people, they had a lot riding on completing this qualification.

It was not at all nice to see that pressure affecting people. There were sighs of relief for those who weren't to be assessed that day. They didn't feel ready whatsoever. And while it didn't put me off applying for the course - it made me consider if I was ready just yet. To hear that the form of assessment was to become more competency based pleased me.

There will of course be those who disagree, of the belief that this might water down the courses and make them easier. But there are good coaches out there who are let down by the system currently in place. They need support, not rejection.

The brilliant candidates on the recent Futsal Level 2 course!

I was able to see this in full flow last weekend as I completed the FA Futsal Level 2 course. My own session went swimmingly and I passed well. There was a great mix of people from various backgrounds on the course but for a couple of candidates there was an obvious language barrier and this had become evident in their assessed topics. I don't think any of us doubted their knowledge of Futsal, in fact one was a truly excellent player! It was simply a case of articulating this knowledge through their coaching.

Rather than failing those that hadn't quite ticked all the boxes there and then, they were given the support they needed to be able to pass the course. They were asked questions to check their knowledge and offered another opportunity to demonstrate that in their session. They passed.

Is there really anything wrong with that? Shouldn't the tutors, the coach educators, be doing just that? To their credit the tutors on my course were brilliant.

The direction the education of coaches is going in is a positive one - and social media does a good job of highlighting this. Coaches can interact, learn off of each other and network.

I hope that this new approach will be welcomed and that the Football Association will update us accordingly. What is needed most is transparency to not allow any confusion over the changes.

One thing is for sure - times are changing, don't fall behind!

Futsal, give it a go!

Futsal is a sport played across the world, with some of the most celebrated sporting nations hailing its influence in the development of some of their star footballers. It is the only small sided format accredited by FIFA and UEFA. There are professional leagues around the world. And yet, despite the hard work of many, in this country it is still met with hesitation by those who do not quite understand it yet.

I was fortunate enough to attend the Futsal Level 1 course on the 18^th July, delivered in Slough by the excellent Tracey Bourne. Tracey has been involved in Futsal for many years, a keen advocate of the game, and was quick to dispel the myth that Futsal is a diet five-a-side. It is obvious that this is a bugbear for many within the game. For that reason, the first thing we consider are the differences between the five-a-side game and Futsal. And there are many differences that do separate the two.

The England Futsal team is improving as the sport grows

Even just playing the game and learning the techniques, you realise how much this sport can help develop a player’s football ability. The ball, with thirty percent less bounce, stays at your feet when you take a touch.  You are likely to take six times more touches than in the eleven a side format, so we are told, leaving you with more chances to develop technical ability and play one versus one. The physical demands are rigorous resulting in greater fitness whilst, most importantly, having FUN. What’s not to like? 

Looking past player benefits, there is a clear pathway for coaches in a growing sport. The next step is the Level 2 and further down the line the UEFA B License that is in it's infancy, but is set to be launched this year. Should you find that this sport is for you, there will be plenty of opportunities for you to progress up the Futsal coaching ladder.

There is the argument that Futsal is its own sport and not simply a development tool for Football. The idea of it being solely used to develop players for football would belittle Futsal as a sport but there is no reason why it can’t help produce better footballers, particularly ones hoping to play at the highest level. At this moment in time those trying to promote Futsal cannot afford to be picky over who plays the sport so any participation, whatever the gain from it, is positive.

I would encourage anyone with preconceptions of the sport to enrol on the Level 1 course. It is just thirty five pounds for one day’s work in which you take part in lots of practical exercises, get the chance to meet others looking to work in the sport and meet tutors with a fountain of knowledge. You may find, as I have, that there is more to it than meets the eye!