• Centre of Development Overview

Centre of Development Overview

From April 2012 Capital Football will be launching a new Centre of Development structure to replace the previously run Winter and Summer Development Programs. The new Centre of Development (COD), will be a seven month program designed to underpin the Capital Football Skill Acquisition Program (SAP), providing identified players with a program of Football Training and education that will help young players improve technically, tactically, physically, mentally, and socially while preparing them for professional and international football.

Technique

For many years there has been the recognition at the elite level of Australian football that our players fall behind the world’s best football nations in terms of technical development. (Source: FFA National Curriculum, FIFA Technical Reports Fewer than 17s, Under 20s, and FIFA World Cups).

Players representing Australia are seen as highly competitive but lack the technical and tactical skills necessary to compete consistently on a world stage. The traditional Australian coaching model at youth level could be generalised as being a ‘win at all cost’ mentality that promotes a very direct ‘long ball’ style based on the physical prowess of players. The most highly developed football nations recognise that coaching skilful players to play an ‘effective possession’ based style of football will bring a superior outcome.
There is also a strong recognition that many coaches at key age groups see very little difference in coaching young players to adults. Their focus is results driven rather than creating a learning environment and it is clear that this impacts on player and parent behaviour in a negative way.

Building Blocks

For this reason the National Curriculum has created the Building Blocks methodology which is the framework that provides the practical guidelines for coaches working at all levels of youth development.

The phase for the ‘golden age’ of motor learning (9 years to 13 years) is known as the Skill Acquisition Phase and it is from this methodology that our program is focused.

Structure

The Capital Football Centre of Development provides a pathway for identified talented football players in which players aged U0-U12 years are selected into one training centre. The structure of the COD involves identified players in each age group training once a week for seven months of the year in addition to playing coached games against the Capital Football SAP.

The Centre of Development will be based at the Hawker Football Centre, with weekly training to be held on Friday nights from May until October.

The Centre of Development will consist of the following squads for 2012:

Under 10 Combined Squad (Born 2003 & 2002)
Under 12 Boys  (Born 2001 & 2000)
Under 12 Girls (Born 2001 & 2000)

Selection of players for the Centre of Development Program

The initial squads for the Centre of Development will be selected through a series of selection trials with players nominated for the trials by their junior clubs. Throughout the year players may also be identified by Capital Football scouts while playing for their local club and invited to trial for the program.

Players identified and nominated for trials will be contacted directly be Capital Football with details of their trial.

Promotion and Release process

Throughout the course of the program identified players may be offered the opportunity to trial with the SAP with a view to joining the program on a permanent basis.

If a player is to released or replaced from the program parents or guardians will receive correspondence which will state the reasons why and when they will finish with the program.