Last year FFA started Skill Acquisition Programs for talented 10-13 year-old boys and girls in every state and territory. The pinnacle of these programs were the ‘Skilleroos’ squads where the most talented U/13 kids train and play under the guidance of FFA-trained expert skill coaches in a year-round, free-of-charge elite program. Unfortunately the awareness of the Skill Acquisition Programs, especially among parents, still has to improve dramatically. “Parents would rather pay thousands of dollars to send their kids to so-called elite academies instead of sending them our programs that deliver real quality, for free.”

These Skill Acquisition Programs underpin and lead into the next phase – the State Institute Programs. These are programs aimed at the best 14-16 year-old boys and are also year-round and free of charge. The coaches involved are trained and selected by FFA and the Game Training Phase is covered by these programs: teaching the players the individual team tasks and how these tasks link together when you play as a team.

In conjunction with the various Member Federations, FFA have appointed State Technical Directors to oversee and guide the whole process. “Previously scouting was focused on identifying and selecting big, fast and strong players,” says Berger. “This has caused a major problem in Australia called the “Relative Age Effect” – where players born in the first months of the year are selected as they are more developed physically.

This undoubtedly results in us losing many potentially talented players from a player pool that already isn’t very large. The coaches who work in the national programs have now been instructed to first look for skilful players. Physical shortcomings can always be refined later and appear not to be the determining factor at the top anyway.” 

The next ‘Performance Phase’ takes place at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) in Canberra. The AIS football program is a full-time residential program for the very best Australian U/17 players. The majority of Australia’s U/17 team, the Joeys, are in this program and they play as a team in the National Youth League. For many of the AIS graduates this pathway is the start of a professional career, with several inking professional contracts with A-League or European clubs every year.

“Nationally, there is now a clear pathway for talented boys, in which the various steps are logically linked,” says Berger. “Access to any of these programs should not be money-driven – it should be about every talented kid getting the opportunity to enter these programs.” For the girls the pathway is different and not that streamlined yet. Berger claims FFA are currently working hard to improve this, because the interest among girls and women in football has increased dramatically.

“We also are aware that the number of available places in this pathway is too limited and needs to be increased,” says Berger. “FFA is working on a number of initiatives to make that happen, in particular an accreditation system for A-league and state league club youth development academies.”

While the above lays out the pathway for young Aussies players, there is a second element to Berger’s Curriculum – coach education. “Via the programs of the National Talented Player Pathway we can only influence a very limited number of players,” says Berger. “A better education of coaches at all levels of the game is the most effective way to bring about the desired changes and improvements throughout the whole football community.

“This is a long-term process and we should be thinking in decades rather than years. We have totally reviewed and restructured coach education across Australia. The content of the coaching courses has totally changed, our courses now match the standard of world’s best practice, I dare say.” The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) recently signed off on an agreement which allows FFA to run their own, AFC-approved, advanced coaching courses. From 46 AFC member federations only Japan and Australia have been granted this right, due to the standard and quality of their coach education programs. 

In Australia there are two coaching pathways – the community coaching pathway, which is aimed at volunteers, parents and anyone working at the grassroots level, where the courses are free. The second pathway is the advanced coaching pathway, which starts at C-Licence level and moves onto B-Licence, A-Licence and finally the highest licence possible in football, the Pro Diploma. There are higher costs for the advanced coaching courses as they are aimed at those planning to make a living out of football coaching.

Despite criticism of the costs associated with the advanced coaching courses, Berger says that most career education involves a cost, and that FFA have taken measures to reduce the costs and improve the accessibility. “Until recently C-Licence courses were conducted in either Canberra or Sydney, now we run C-Licence courses in all member federations. We have a pool of instructors in each of the states who can deliver these courses. The same will be the case with the B-Licence courses, as soon as we have trained sufficient instructors. This makes coach education more accessible and less expensive as everyone can take a course close to home.”

To assist in the broadening of coaching knowledge across Australia’s vast geography, the National Coaching Conference, which traditionally took place annually in a major city, now encompasses a road trip-style Coaching Conference which visits every member federation across the country. “We offer a compact, refresher coaching course at these conferences,” says Berger. 

He goes on to stress that the many of the fitness coaches involved in football in Australia come from other codes such as AFL and rugby. “Their fitness programs are often generic and not football-specific. This way we lose a lot of valuable football training time, while we need to improve technically and tactically. This is the reason the football conditioning methodology of Raymond Verheijen [interviewed in last month’s FourFourTwo] is now an integrated part of our A and Pro Licence courses,” says Berger.

When Berger joined FFA in 2008, five coaches in the A-League had only a B-level coaching licence. Today, an Australian coach in the A-League must at least hold an A-Licence and a foreigner needs to have a Pro Diploma. From 2015 a Pro Diploma will be compulsory for every head coach in the A-League.

One of the most controversial aspects of the Curriculum’s release in 2009 was the use of the Dutch-style 4-3-3 formation as standard at the various youth levels. Many were left concerned that our young players would develop only being able to play one formation.  “The fact that a 4-3-3 formation was made ​​compulsory for the Institute teams gave rise to many discussions and has led to a number of widespread misunderstandings,” says Berger. “Playing in a 4-3-3 formation is a ‘training tool’, particularly in the Game Training Phase. To learn to play together as a team at a young age, I am absolutely convinced that the 4-3-3 formation offers some clear advantages. However, the media ran off with it and suggested I wanted everybody in Australia, from the lowest to the highest level, to play 4-3-3.

“There are many successful formations and playing styles, but when it comes to learning to play as a team I undoubtedly prefer 4-3-3. The fact is that for youth players, the positions and the attached basic tasks of the 4-3-3 are clear, logical and recognisable.

“In the 4-3-3 formation there are three lines with a balanced spread of players over the pitch  and ‘triangles’ of players. This creates a range of other, and more logical, options for young players. Rather than just kicking the ball forward, players almost “automatically” start making combinations. The 4-3-3 formation also stimulates the development of creative, match-winning players; more specifically the three attackers and the attacking midfielders and that’s what Australia desperately needs.”

While the implementation of the Curriculum and its Building Blocks many seem convincing in theory, Berger has faced several challenges since his arrival. “There are so many roadblocks coming from the game’s various “stakeholders” – associations, clubs, private academies, agents and schools – who too often operate with their own interests, like money, ego or power at the fore. When it comes to youth development, the interest of the players should be at the top of the list. The best players should train with each other and play against each other under the guidance of specialised youth development coaches. Many kids might be playing a lot of football, but the quality is important, not the quantity. We are convinced our programs deliver the best quality.”

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