Our Elite Development Academy (EDA) exists to give gifted and talented players within grassroots football an opportunity to receive high quality football coaching twice weekly within a professional environment, where players are able to challenge and stretch themselves alongside other players of similar enthusiasm and ability.
In conjunction with our coaching syllabus, there is a comprehensive games programme where players and squads can showcase their ability against other professional Academies or shadow squads from clubs around the whole of the south of England.
Our aim is to help these talented young footballers reach their full potential and ambitions of becoming a signed Academy footballer and, maybe one day, going on to play with a professional first team. Currently there are well over 75 players playing within Academy clubs who began their football education with Wycombe Wanderers EDA.
Dan Moss recently joined our Sports Participation Team as our Senior Delivery Officer. October Half Term was Dan’s first opportunity to experience a full week of fixtures within our EDA programme and below is his thoughts on his involvement.
The fixtures over October half term were the first time I got to see all of our age groups in action and putting everything they’ve learnt in training to the test. Over the course of the week, both our Elite & Development Squads played Reading F.C, Stevenage F.C and MK Dons F.C, with varying difficulty across the age groups. Some age groups were stronger than others and provided a more challenging environment. Each fixture was a combination of home and away matches with each match split into four 20-minute quarters for the younger age groups, or two 45-minute halves for the 11-a-side age groups.
Across all groups that I managed throughout the week, we came out victorious and won every game; racking up 92 goals and conceding only 24, leaving us with a respectable +68-goal difference at the end of the week. This was a testament to the outstanding coaches we have within our team who deliver high quality sessions to their specific EDA age groups on a weekly basis and, more importantly, the players who continuously work tremendously hard to develop their game and earn the right to win each game and be the very best they can be individually and as a team.
To each and every EDA/GDA player, keep up the strong work! These performances & results are no accident or fluke and are a reflection of the hard work and learning that takes place on a daily basis.
The very best players/teams work tremendously hard when no one else is watching.
Do you have a young player who has what it takes to be part of our EDA/GDA Academy then please use the link below to view dates of our upcoming Talent ID Evenings.
Talent ID Days | Wycombe Wanderers
