Reds' Coolen hunting for the next Leckie

[General Ashnak]

A mate from Tasmania is going to be running free clinics along with 2 other coaches down there, if you haven't had a read yet here is the link http://au.fourfourtwo.com/forums/Defaul ... ts&t=51967 ignore some of the stuff in the thread, the most important parts are what he is actually going to be doing.

[Stuckey]

Its a great point!!

There would be many migrant children who's familys just cant afford to pay the High fee's surely there is a massive amount of potential slipping through the cracks.

Id like to see them take it one step further and encourage new arrivals to support AU, just get them onboard!! It could be a very fruitful partnership in the future

Yeah how hard would it be to slip in a couple of AU shirts into each families care packages!
I think AU needs to do the same thing with foreign students in Adelaide. You never know they might unearth a star!

[Steelinho]

I saw a story on the news a while ago saying how the local football league in Port Augusta has gone gang busters since the refugee community openned up there.

If that's the case, excellent news.

When I was growing up there, footy was pretty much the only sport (despite the fact that we used to also play rugby and gridiron at lunchtime), while football was very minimal. Occasional outdoor class that was simple to organise was pretty much the extent of the game in the region. I remember one year they tried to organise an inter-school league; my school only played one game, the next school forfeit due to lack of interest and then no others were competing, so... yeah, just the one game was played in my recollection of events. And I don't really recall any coaching.

So great to know it's picked up. I had seen online that they did have a league in '08 (or maybe it was earlier), but wasn't sure if it'd kept going beyond that one or two seasons.

[sevengoals]

It's logical, isn't it?

The migrants come from the parts of the world where football is the main game/passion.
The kids in theory should be 100% round ball because of the influence at home.

But that doesn't always happen in Australia.

[Stuckey]

Community program starts week commencing 18th April, and this year we have extended the age groups for our Academy Program, from 6yrs of age to 16yrs of age.

We are looking to improve on last year with our Head Coach, Rini Coolen attending some sessions to identify talent and give his input into the coaching sessions. Current A-League players will also be taking some of the program sessions throughout the IGA & Adelaide United Academy 22 week program.

The Development and Identification program will deliver a professional skill based program focusing on developing and improving technical ability. Players will be encouraged to reach their personal potential and stay committed to the game and club they love.

Last year, our elite Academy program was the 12 – 14 year old age group, as it is a very important age to work with especially when it comes to wanting to develop them technically, as it’s the ages where they work to perfect their skills. The work we did with this group was rewarding, and enjoyed watching the boys develop under out program. The FFA have introduced the Skillaroos program nationally which will now cover this age group.

Our Elite Academy Program is now for participants 15-17 years of age, so we can work with talent that we identify, and potentially select players for our NYL team. We will work alongside coaches from local clubs, and also through our community programs, to identify participants in that specific age group to participate in our Elite Academy.

http://www.adelaideunited.com.au/defaul ... y&id=39474

Sounds good the kids that were in the last year should be continuing on in the elite program. So the season after this they'll hopefully make the jump to youth league.

Great to see the coverage of age levels here hopefully Rini spots a few stars and tie them to the club long term!