NORTH Coast Football (NCF) will be holding their high-performance player trials in December in preparation for the 2022 season.

The Skill Acquisition Phase Program is for female and male players aged 9 to 12 who train with NCF twice a week to gain skills in addition to their club football.

The National Premier League Program is for female and male players aged 12 to 16 who play in a 24 round competition against teams from Newcastle and the Mid-North Coast.

Trials take place in the first two weeks of December where NCF Head of Player and Coach Development Alex Nolan is enthusiastic about seeing the local talent.

“The NCF Player Development Program links into the Northern NSW Football Talented Support Program, which identifies talent early and gives them additional support as well as opportunities to perform at the state and national level.

“Our Player Development Program is delivering week in week out for footballers on the North Coast, players are getting tastes of football they can’t get anywhere else.

“Improvement comes from top-level competition, and we get that with the National Premier League for our older youths.

“Younger youths are training and watched from an early age and compete against each other from all over northern NSW regularly in season.

“We’ve got a great set-up now at NCF with excellent coaching staff, excellent facilities, and a strong partnership with NNSWF to get players visibility with A-League Men and Women clubs.

“In the last 18 months, we’ve had players train with the Newcastle Jets, Central Coast Mariners and Melbourne City.

“This year, Alice Webster joined the Wander Women program of the Western Sydney Wanderers, NCF has proved a great stepping stone.

“I think the trials in December will set a new standard for football in the region, we can’t wait to see what’s on offer,” said Alex.

 

By David WIGLEY