Aspiring future stars from the Football NSW girls and boys Skills Acquisition Program teams were treated to a brush with footballing fame when they met Sydney FC players at Football NSW headquarters on Monday evening.
Aspiring future stars from the Football NSW girls and boys Skills Acquisition Program teams were treated to a brush with footballing fame when they met Sydney FC players at Football NSW headquarters on Monday evening.
Sydney FC players Joel Chianese, Jamie Coyne, Scott Jamieson and Ivan Necevski had words of praise for the Subway Skills Acquisition Program when they visited Parklea as part of the Sydney FC Community Program.
The Sky Blues players had a first-hand view of what drills and skills these aspiring SAP youngsters went through on a daily basis. All four players were very professional and approachable, signing autographs and were willing to answer questions from the SAP players and their parents.
Australian capped Scott Jamieson, who was also a former Blacktown City FC youth player heaped praise on the SAP program.
“Football NSW Technical Director Alex Tobin has got the program going in the right direction. It-s a good avenue for the kids to go down and work their way to the top and it-s getting to be a good position for the kids to make their way to the top,” Jamieson said.
“The most important thing about the program is that it-s professional; that-s why the experienced coaches are part of the program. It-s going in the right direction under Tobin-s experience and long may it continue.”
Former Blacktown City FC star midfielder and now rising Sydney FC player Joel Chianese was delighted to see such a program implemented at Football NSW for the aspiring youngsters.
“It-s great to see these development programs happening. It-s a pathway to the Hyundai A-League for teams such as Sydney FC, but it-s a program to show their skills and how good they are to progress through to the higher levels.
“Players are training a lot more now and every time you train you always learn something. I wish we had these types of programs in the past. All these coaches are qualified and they know what they are doing, so everything they teach always helps the players to progress.
Yet another former Blacktown City FC Goalkeeper and Sky Blues custodian Ivan Necevski was very impressed that the SAP also involved goalkeepers in the program led by Sydney FC Goalkeeper Coach Zeljko ‘Spider- Kalac and his assistant Davide Del Giovine, which was different from his junior days.
“It-s very good. The kids are here for a reason; they love it. It-s a stepping stone to where we play in the A-League and hopefully there will be a few up-and-coming stars from these groups. It-s really good for goalkeepers to be a part of the program from a young age under the guidance of SAP goalkeeper coach Zeljko Kalac.
“I really didn-t have a goalkeeper coach when I was 15 years old and it-s meant to start early and meant to keep your technique right. Kalac teaches the boys all the right attributes for their future as a keeper.”
Sydney born defender Jamie Coyne had a lot of praise for the SAP program, acknowledging the changes of structure which have made it such a success for Football NSW.
“The younger the players start within the right development group; they will see progress further down the line. This is the correct pathway in NSW and if parents are aware of these programs, this allows players to progress correctly to further their career, whether it-s for enjoyment or if they want to make a career out of it.”
Football NSW technical director Alex Tobin discussed the importance of the Sydney FC players- being in attendance, saying it demonstrated to his young chargers what life was like at the end of the development pathway leading into the Hyundai A-League and W-League.
“It-s important to see the Sydney FC players showing a pathway to the kids,” Tobin said. “These guys are playing professional football. It-s great to see the Sydney FC players coming to support the program and it shows the SAP players that they can make it towards the next level.
“The Sydney FC players were also young players once – they understand the pathway and want to support the SAP.
“The SAP program is concentrating a lot on the younger age groups in particular. We are here to assist in skill acquisition and to ensure that all players involved in the SAP program understand all the technical aspects in football. All this as well as making sure these youngsters are playing in a fun and safe environment is paramount.”
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