Reader,
During the holiday period I reflected on 2023, a year that was packed with football, coaching, coach development and constant conversations around athlete development with colleagues and peers.
One reflection I had was that over the last year or two I have noticed the word ‘pathway’ becoming more and more prevalent in youth sport, even in amateur and community settings. Whether it’s clubs, schools or coaches constantly referring to player pathways, I started to wonder whether this word has become way too overused and applied in contexts where it’s not really relevant.
In truth, it’s likely that the word pathway is being thrown around by people who are trying to attract players to an environment, selling the dream that if you join our programme, then we will provide the pathway for your child to become a professional or secure a scholarship.
This is a reflection of the over-commercialisation of kids sport where players are often now seen as commodities in a system, as opposed to young people playing. In reality, high performance is only a fraction of any sporting system, yet we continually see job titles and programmes described with terms like ‘high performance’, ‘elite’ or ‘academy’ when they aren’t.
More often than not, exceptionally talented players who have potential to pursue a career in the game will have a combination of unbelievable technical ability, the right mentality, physical attributes and commitment to excellence. Often they will face adversity, but most importantly they will have intrinsic motivation and hunger to train harder – true determination to succeed.
I count myself lucky to have seen what an exceptional player looks like at almost every age and stage. While many players I was fortunate to work with in England and Australia are still in the professional game, some of those I (and others) thought may go on to succeed, haven’t. This is unlikely to be down to just a lack of talent, more likely a lack of hard work, possibly the wrong environment at the wrong time or simply the fact that a player found their ceiling.
Combine some of the traits above with performance behaviours like a growth mindset, being a team player, curiosity, humility, desire, competitive edge and you’re likely to see an athlete who could be deemed to have potential. It’s almost impossible to quantify potential, but these behaviours and attributes might indicate someone who is ready to enter a performance pathway. More often than not, these players will rise to the top, and it’s almost certain that the younger the player is, the harder it is to predict what success they could achieve.
So what does this mean for those working in community, grassroots of development programmes?
Essentially, in any system, talent will emerge, but most importantly it’s OK to focus on coaching kids without feeling like we constantly have to level up, or aspire to have them enter a pathway. Let’s focus on keeping them in the game as opposed to early selection and selling dreams.
Three things to consider.
- Keep joy at the centre of any grassroots, community or amateur environment you work in. Plan your sessions with a fun-first approach and you’ll be on the right track.
- Be honest with parents and players. Encourage kids to dream, but don’t sell a dream to secure a player.
- Put yourself in a position to observe performance contexts. If you get a chance to peek behind the curtain of a professional environment, this may provide some great insights as to what good looks like.
One thing for you to try this week.
Plan a session that focuses entirely on fun. Whether that’s a joyful arrival activity, street football, small-sided games or mini tournaments, deliver something that doesn’t necessarily have a technical or tactical focus. Take the pressure off and watch them play.
One critical resource on the topic.
Check out this Masterclass Discussion with a truly world class athlete development expert, Ken Lynch. Ken shares in depth insights into high performance athlete development and how systems can support athletes with potential.
