Bradford City catch elite players early (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Bradford City catch elite players early

9:40am Saturday 15th September 2012 in Sport By Simon Parker, Bradford City Reporter

City have come up with an elite plan they hope will improve footballers from a young age.

The clubs’s Elite Centre will run at the Five Alive headquarters in Fairweather Green for boys aged between seven and 11.

Run by former City defender Louis Horne , the centre will focus on improving skills and being comfortable on the ball.

Horne said: “Three things must be right – always giving the players as much time with a football as possible, a nice friendly environment to learn in and good coaches who are patient and committed to teaching.

“Young players will be given every opportunity by Bradford City to progress into our academy or a coaching pathway through one of our satellite centres.”

The Elite Centre is part of the FA’s new Elite Player Performance Plan, aimed at restructuring the way youngsters are developed by clubs.

The new foundation phase head coach will be assisted by academy coaches Ben Hardaker, Samir Butt and Mark Trueman. It will run every Friday from 5-7pm.