This program was broadcast on 2xxfm (98.3mhz), Tuesday 13 July 2010 at 7:00PM, through the Australian Community Radio Network.
In this program we continue the excellent interview series with the Manager of the Football NSW High Performance Unit, Paul Bentvelzen. The flagship high performance program in NSW is Project 22.
Last week Paul spoke at length on the substance of Project 22 and already you would have observed that this high performance program is truly high performance. Its well ahead of the current Capital Football HPP and well in advance of its predecessor, Capital Football Academy program.
Rumour has it that Capital Football will review the current HPP. Lets be sure that we do not head back toward the tired and discredited Academy system. Lets be sure to keep what is going well and change what is not and include what we have missed in version one of the HPP. Lets not get stuck on that old chestnut, HPP playing squads, that so fascinated a small number of the Capital Football Board, causing major delay, uncertainty and anger at Club level. Who will write the terms of reference for the review and will we, the footballing community get a chance to see the draft and comment?
The Capital Football Board could do no worse than listen to their staff, rather than employ some third party who in time honoured consulting fashion, will interview the employees for the information an ideas, serve them up as original thought, massage it to suit the outcomes really desired by the those engaging them, then present a tome akin to the ten commandments. The likelihood that you get told anything you could not find out or did not know yourself is small, but it sounds so clever to have a “consultant” tell you. We all know how it works - the good old Canberra two step!.
Importantly, lets see open consultation with the football community, not just the favoured few. Bring in expertise as required, but don’t hand the whole business over to some one else. Time is running out fast.
Benchmarking against Project 22 is instructive. Take from it what works in our environment, what we can resource, then implement it bit by bit, review it every year in open forum. Keep what works, change what doesn’t.
If your child is in a Capital Football HHP, do you have a whole of program detailed periodised program for your child? No? Well there is one change straight off the mark and the wonder is its was never there in the past. It’s a basic organisational, technical and educational requirement of high performance training. Do you need a consultant to tell you that?
Tonight Paul Bentvelzen speaks on Coaches in Project 22, the importance of continuously scouting talent rather than just staying with the original selections, some of the cultural / behavioural issues they are wrestling with and finally, the systems for coach support and communication they have implemented and underpin Project 22.
We are not close enough yet in the ACT on some of this and you don’t need an external review to work it out or fix it. There are plenty of smart people in football around the ACT and the AIS is just up the road. Why not ask Football NSW?
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