Wolves Nurture Young Talent
Warrington Wolves held their annual U16 Academy Launch this week in association with Warrington Collegiate, who sponsor the U16 Academy.
Each year the club works hard to identify talented young players to enter the Warrington Wolves' U16 Academy programme, which is the first step on the professional pathway for many players to progress towards Super League.
Those players joining the U16 Academy for 2012-13 were presented with their kit and training packs by members of the first-team training squad James Mendeika and Gene Ormsby, and were addressed by club chairman Steven Broomhead along with a range coaching staff including: John Bastian, director of youth development; Ben Lazenby, player performance manager and; Ben Povey U16 head coach for 2013.
Members of Warrington and Cheshire Rugby League Development Board and club directors were also in attendance as the young players looked ahead to their ultimate goal of the first team.
Wolves' player performance manager Ben Lazenby said: "These young people have made the next step on the pathway to the first team. The club is keen to develop this home-grown talent and with the help and guidance of our committed staff we aim to build the next crop of young stars. At Warrington Wolves we not only look to develop players for the future but also concentrate on developing people who promote our key values of honesty, trust, loyalty and respect."
The success of the Academy U16 programme is strengthened by the ongoing support of the Supporters Trust emphasised in 2012 by the sponsorship of the SquadBuilder Elite Development Programme. This programme extended the training opportunities for a select number of this year's elite U16 players providing them with a rare insight into the workings of the first team and their training venue.
Danny Fullerton, the under 16 head coach for 2012, headed up this first elite programme and planned the delivery all around skill, repetitive exercise and deep practise, improving on the skills through repeating the skills and practises over and over. This elite concept is a means of providing those in the U16 set-up with an opportunity to gain added experience and accelerate their development prior to them progressing to the next stage; the U19 Academy.
John Bastian, Wolves' director of youth development, reinforces the club's ongoing desire to invest in youth development: "Once again Warrington Wolves have been very proactive in identifying talented young players with potential which can be nurtured and developed within our culture and environment, which is growing stronger from the first grade through to the performance department.
"The importance of each individual player developing will be down to the expertise of the Warrington Wolves staff and the determination and dedication of the young players to progress to the first grade squad and the first grade team."
Thank you must go to several partners and associates for their continued support of the youth development at the club: Warrington Collegiate, Warrington Wolves Vice Presidents Association, Warrington Wolves Supporters Trust, The University of Chester, Birchwood Community High School, Warrington and Cheshire Service Area, Warrington Borough Council, The RFL, ISC, Asics and Integrated Dental Holdings.
08, Nov, 2012
