INNOVATIVE FOOTBALL COACHING

COACH EDUCATION AND PLAYER DEVELOPMENT

PREMIER SKILLS is a football company dedicated to developing top quality coaches

And great players. We aim to do this by delivering innovative coach education and

Player development courses at all levels.

OUR HISTORY

In 2002, John Cartwright and Roger Wilkinson recognised the deficiencies in the development

Of football coaches and young players in the United Kingdom. Together, they developed

Cartwright’s vision of how the game should be played, incorporating high levels of skill within

An advanced tactical framework. Understanding that young players and coaches needed

Something greater to aspire to, Cartwright and Wilkinson founded PREMIER SKILLS.

At PREMIER SKILLS we have designed a truly unique and innovative coaching methodology

Called Practice Play. We have been delivering this methodology around the world since 2002

And have established PREMIER SKILLS as a leading educator of coaches and players.

COACHING NETWORK

PREMIER SKILLS employs a number of coaches worldwide. Coaches are handpicked to ensure

The quality of our courses is maintained. Within our network of coaches are a number of

Former professional and international footballers.

FOUNDERS

JOHN CARTWRIGHT

Co-founder of PREMIER SKILLS. With over 40 years of experience as a player and coach, John has been Technical Director for the English PFA and Academy Director at Crystal Palace. John has coached for England at youth level and was a first team coach at Arsenal. John is a former player with West Ham and Crystal Palace.

ROGER WILKINSON

A co-founder of PREMIER SKILLS, Roger has over 35 years football coaching experience. Roger has worked at Crystal Palace and West Bromwich Albion, coached internationally with the New Zealand under 17 and 20 teams and is a former director of coaching for the New Zealand Football Association. He is also the author of a series of best selling youth coaching DVDs. Roger is a former player with Luton Town and Stevenage Town.

4 | INNOVATIVE FOOTBALL COACHING | COACH EDUCATION & PLAYER DEVELOPMENT

COACHING PHILOSOPHY

PREMIER SKILLS developed the PRACTICE PLAY coaching philosophy with the aim of producing great coaches and players. PRACTICE PLAY recreates the street football playing environment through modern coaching methodology.

WHAT WAS STREET FOOTBALL?

Street football was the name given to the chaos type informal play times, often seen in the

1960’s, in which young players could practice.

Features of street football:

• Unorganised games were played (invented) according to numbers of players available.

• Small area size meant small sided games were predominant.

• Small games meant more touches of the ball with more decisions to make.

• Lots of movement – fitness improved.

• Games were realistic in many ways similar to full games.

• High individual skill levels were produced.

WHAT IS PRACTICE PLAY?

PRACTICE PLAY is about re-introducing the chaos learning’s of street football whilst carefully

Developing game understanding through advanced coaching.

The PRACTICE PLAY methodology:

• Concerns itself with gradual increases in difficulty – through adding opposition or decreasing area size or combining both. Difficulty is increased in gradual stages while maintaining continuity in the work.

• Involves practical realism at all stages.

• Develops the individual first then teaches the individual to share the benefits of their skill with teammates.

• Has a skills and tactical spine that runs throughout the work from junior to senior football.

The PRACTICE PLAY philosophy produces a contradiction in terms – it produces natural players.

PREMIER SKILLS delivers the PRACTICE PLAY methodology through two interlinked areas of football

– coach education and player development.