Talent ID
Introduction
This essay will identify and discuss the current talent identification and development practices used within soccer in Ireland. The national governing body for soccer in Ireland is the Football Association of Ireland, commonly known as the FAI. The majority of information given throughout this essay will come from the FAI website and from interviews with FAI development officers who implement the FAI’s strategy across Ireland. Information gathered from the FAI will be compared to information from published journal articles on this topic.
An in dept exploration will be taken into what the FAI look for in a player and how they go about looking for it. This will involve examining the FAI’s scouting system and identifying how their trial games for international squads are set up as well as investigating what attributes the FAI consider most important when picking a player.
Next to be looked at will be the development of young footballers in Ireland and what development model the FAI has chosen to use. It will be discussed whether this model of development is sports specific and, through interviews with development officers, whether this model is actually implemented.
Lastly the problem of late maturing, and potentially talented, players dropping out of football at a young age will be analyzed. Here a careful eye will be cast upon the FAI’s attitude to the relative age effect and what programmes they have in place to help players who do not develop physically until they are in their late teens.
Requirements
The first thing needed to become a top soccer player is a huge desire to be the best. This means that a player needs to have the heart and passion to practise as much as they can and be willing to listen and learn from coaches. Having the desire to work hard and overcome setbacks is essential. Next the player needs to know the game inside out. This means learning about the game from training and watching professional matches. This will
This essay will identify and discuss the current talent identification and development practices used within soccer in Ireland. The national governing body for soccer in Ireland is the Football Association of Ireland, commonly known as the FAI. The majority of information given throughout this essay will come from the FAI website and from interviews with FAI development officers who implement the FAI’s strategy across Ireland. Information gathered from the FAI will be compared to information from published journal articles on this topic.
An in dept exploration will be taken into what the FAI look for in a player and how they go about looking for it. This will involve examining the FAI’s scouting system and identifying how their trial games for international squads are set up as well as investigating what attributes the FAI consider most important when picking a player.
Next to be looked at will be the development of young footballers in Ireland and what development model the FAI has chosen to use. It will be discussed whether this model of development is sports specific and, through interviews with development officers, whether this model is actually implemented.
Lastly the problem of late maturing, and potentially talented, players dropping out of football at a young age will be analyzed. Here a careful eye will be cast upon the FAI’s attitude to the relative age effect and what programmes they have in place to help players who do not develop physically until they are in their late teens.
Requirements
The first thing needed to become a top soccer player is a huge desire to be the best. This means that a player needs to have the heart and passion to practise as much as they can and be willing to listen and learn from coaches. Having the desire to work hard and overcome setbacks is essential. Next the player needs to know the game inside out. This means learning about the game from training and watching professional matches. This will