The Guernsey Football Association Aztec Academy caters for Years 4-9, with the Spirit Development Academy now added to that programme to key an eye on good players who have missed out on the main squad but have the potential to be late developers, both physically and technically. In the U11 to U14 age band there is also the Aztec high performance programme for stand-out players from each year.
But as GFA academy manager and high performance manager Ross Allen explains, there was a missing link for those then moving up in age.
‘When players get to under 15, under 16, under 17, there’s the opportunity maybe for them to get lost with other activities, [and] teenage life. It can be a challenging time.
Hear more from Ross Allen on the latest Guernsey Press Football Podcast
‘And there was an obvious gap there where we felt we needed to keep eyes on these players and offer them something more, something different, to allow them to be in the best possible position to move into senior football, to move into those Guernsey representative sides and GFC.
‘That’s where this new programme has come about that we started last year. It’s called the the Guernsey High Performance Academy, sponsored by Imperium. It’s a programme that’s fully supported by some investors and sponsor. It’s something that we just wouldn’t be able to do without incredible support.
‘With all these things over here in Guernsey, it’s really vital that we get this support and it’s just allowing us to do so much more with some of these kids.’
Allen added that the programme has evolved since it began.
Last year the kids in the Imperium Academy had three sessions a week, consisting of a more technically-based football session on a Monday, strength and conditioning work on a Wednesday and then a classroom session on Friday which dealt with aspects such as nutrition, sleep and sports psychology with the help of coach Craig Tyrrell’s knowledge in those areas.
‘The classroom stuff has been really valuable and I think the kids have learned a lot from it,’ said Allen.
‘This year we’re getting them in 7am on a Monday, but that’s a collaboration session with the Guernsey FC players. So for me, instead of coaching that one, I’m involved as a player and it’s more of a recovery session because most people have played on a Saturday or maybe some of the kids have played on a Sunday or sometimes both. So the Monday morning is now kind of getting everyone together and as much as it is about recovery, and socially it’s really interactive. Steve Sharman runs that one, usually with Kevin Gilligan.
‘Socially for these kids to have that and see that stepping stone into a GFC development team or GFC team, it’s really good.
‘I think back to when I was 16, there was nothing like this. Obviously there wasn’t a Guernsey FC, but there wasn’t anything really at that age other than the odd rep match or rep trip maybe – South-West Counties, something like that.
‘But now we see them three times a week – they get a Monday morning, we’re still doing the strength and conditioning on a Wednesday and a football session on a Friday.’
Players also have club and school football, as well as their education, so Allen emphasised the importance of balance.
‘There’s a lot for them to do, so player loading is probably our highest priority.
‘They all have to send a weekly loading form, show us what they’ve done and what they’ve got on the next, especially early in the next week. We don’t want to overwork them and we understand that club matches often have to take priority. We might only see them once or twice a week, but, it’s just great that these kids are maybe getting four or five sessions a week and that’s a pretty decent level.’
The programme is already reaping some rewards with the likes of Tyrese Kelly and Gil Hunter filtering into the GFC environment.
Allen revealed that he has seen a lot of improvement from those who have been involved.
‘It’s just really exciting when you see it from that visual point of view for those kids coming through.
‘And for me, it’s about the ones even below that who are 11, 12, 13 who can now see what is potentially ahead of them if they keep doing well, if they stay as a high performance player or academy player. They know what could be ahead of them and the players, the role models who are these 18-year-old kids now, who are then coming into a GFC environment or going off for trials somewhere.
‘It’s just added so much, in my opinion, to all the brilliant programmes that have been run around the island and that’s clubs, that’s outside parties offering football sessions.
‘There’s so much compared to five, six, seven years ago. It’s really exciting. The future looks good.’
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