‘A lot of players pursue the dream of becoming a full-time footballer and really put all their eggs in one basket,” says Adam Cairnie, Head of Football Development and Pathway at Caledonian Braves. “And the issue we brought up was, ‘what happens when that doesn’t work out’?”
The answer the Lowland League side came up with was a performance pathway for players aged between 16 and 20. A one-year safety net for kids who dropped out of full-time academy football or played grassroots football at a high level, offering daily training, under-20s competitive games, performance support and education supported by the Johan Cruyff Institute.
Some might sustain and breathe new life into their football careers. Others might secure a scholarship or an entry-level role in the sports industry.
Currently accepting applications for the first intake in September, Cairnie witnessed similar courses in England and Northern Ireland and believes the Braves pathway offers a bridge for young Scottish prospects struggling with the blunt reality of rejection.
“You see a lot of 17 and 18-year-old players who go full time with certain Premiership clubs, go into training every day in a great environment for their footballing development.
“But what happens at the end of that if they sustain an injury or if they don’t get that contract extension?
“For 90 per cent of them the
reality is that they will go to a part-time footballing environment.
“We have introduced this as a pathway for players who are school leavers keen to pursue full-time
football or players who have previously been in an academy environment who want to continue in a full-time environment but are also conscious of the educational element.
“The idea is to give them a depth of knowledge that would allow them to go and pursue entry-level jobs in sport.
Read more:
- SFA official's 'sinister' plot to ban Rangers great from football for life revealed
- The painful truth behind Scottish football's talent drain
“We have one player who is coming up to our game on Saturday who was with Oldham, Man City and Bolton and released at 17. He wants to stay full time and exper-ience something different, so he will come up.
“We have also had players who have been in academies in that 20 to 21-year-old corridor where they maybe feel it’s a bit late for them to stay or get back into full time. But this might give them an avenue to continue and while we tell everyone that full-time football is not a
guarantee at the end of the programme, they will have another year under their belt and will be fit and ready to go wherever the next opportunity might arise.”
A one-year course with training on Monday and Thursday mornings, players will pursue educational courses in subjects such as sports management, sponsorship and operations through the Johan Cruyff Institute. Playing games in the under-20s league, the plan is to enter a Braves B team in the East or South of Scotland League in future.
More than 250 initial enquiries have already been whittled down to a shortlist of 50, with an entry cohort of 20 or 22.
While players will pay their own way this year, Caledonian Braves – Scotland’s youngest senior club – hope to show the concept to bodies such as sportscotland, the SFA and the Department of Culture Media and Sport, and tap into external funding.
“The hope is that we will be able to extend the course to two or three years and extend the educational provisions that we provide.
“The intention of our programme is to give players like that, coming to the end of their lifespan in full-time football, an opportunity to continue in that environment and pursue other opportunities while still receiving an education.
“We have just employed our first coach, Andy Walker, an A licence coach with experience at West of Scotland and academy level who will help the players to develop.
“It will be a professional full-time environment with physios and sports scientists coming in and we are hoping to get a partnership with a local gym to allow the players to use their facilities.
“We have a limited number of spaces for players over the age of 20 available and we would look to send them out on loan to the West and East of Scotland leagues to try and maintain that competitive game element while still training with us as well.”
