Supporting Professional Football Clubs and Players Since 1994          
SSD SK VORTEC TAC
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  Interview - Eddy Whyte

It is important to note from the start that Edward Whyte Sports Management is totally independent (has no direct affiliation with any professional sports body) - no conflict of interest and therefore in a position to offer totally impartial advice at all times.
Also, we do not operate as licensed football agents (who are trained solely to interpret the FIFA and FA elements of a football contract), instead, we use our extensive knowledge and experience to work with clubs and players on the real day to day footballing issues.
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A BRIEF HISTORY OF EWSM
Click 'Interview with Eddy Whyte and SSD - Structured Develop' on the side menu to get a better overview of how EWSM came about, but in short, after a spell of both playing and coaching overseas with Borussia Monchengladbach (Germany), Standard Liege (Belgium), MVV (Maastricht). and PSV Eindhoven (Holland) I returned to the UK and published the Grass Roots Report 1995 - highlighting a number of shortfalls within the UK football development process, plus recommending a complete new structure - SSD (Systematic Structured Development).

From that point onwards, things started to change:
1995
to
1997		 I was contacted by a number of professional clubs in England to act in a consultancy basis to improve their existing youth development systems (COE - Centres of Excellence)
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1998
to
1999

With the Grass Roots Report 1995 playing a major part the Premier League formed what is now known as the Professional Academy Scheme (in 1998), which in turn, led to clubs asking for guidance in the initial formulation of their new internal academy structure
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2000
to
2009		 In 2000 I published Coaching Tools 2000 (SSD development techniques for senior players and teams) which widened the scope of EWSM even further - acting as an independent consultant to clubs on European style coaching techniques and team performance analysis
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2010
. . .		 Although around 75% of the original Grass Roots Report 1995 had now been implemented, there were still, however, a number of key elements missing, so in June 2010 I published my final report Kicking Into The Future 2010 - outlining major deficiencies within the current overall grass roots structure and academy scheme, plus further recommendations regarding important SSD elements
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Today, a number of the top clubs in England and overseas now incorporate SSD techniques as part of their general training and development programmes.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
All club coaches are professionally trained, so why do they need outside assistance?
For many years most UK coaches were trained under a 'Rigid System' which did not allow for any level of flexibility and to pass a coaching course you had to go by the book! SSD is all about flexibility, adaptability, using your own initiative, and continually adopting new ideas.
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SSD Creative Coaching
Most old style coaching manuals provide 'rigid' procedures, but SSD is all about assessing each situation as it arises and then being adaptable. There are lots of different ways of achieving the same objective, so the SSD Manual just acts as a framework for you to build upon:
There are hundreds of exercises and tips in other books and on the net, so pick some out and try them. If successful, add them to YOUR training manual, if non-effective, then bin them and try something else. Be innovative and inventive by creating your own exercise routines. The ultimate aim is to have several different exercises and routines for each skill element - understand your players- prevent boredom - make it fun by finding what they like - and achieve your objective at the same time.
                 
             Remember - Coaching manuals should only act as a guideline, not as a bible
All EWSM does is offer an exchange of ideas plus put forward some suggestions based on my overseas development background - somebody on the outside looking in and offering alternative ideas!
                         Modern Day Progressive Coaches Always Welcome New Input
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What clubs have EWSM worked with?
We always operate on a strictly confidential basis and at no time, without the appropriate permission from the club in question, do we disclose any details of our clients. If a particular club, manager, coach, or player wishes to make our presence public then they are perfectly entitled to do so, but only after having the necessary clearance from the club board.

Suffice it to say that some clubs have better academy structures than others and some teams have a different approach to their style of play and training methods.
What does EWSM cover?
The full range - development programming. skill coaching techniques, mentoring, personal management, club structures, feeder input systems into academies - right through to senior player development, team performance, and analysis.  
     
             
           SSD Junior Player Development
           SSD Youth Player Development
           SSD Senior Player Development
           SSD Individual Player Performance and Analysis
           SSD Team Performance and Analysis
 
Does EWSM have contracts with individual players?
Yes - we also act on behalf of individual players. The vast majority of FIFA and FA licensed football agents are only qualified to deal with contracts and do not have the necessary experience or background in development programming to properly mentor professional players or academy scholars. These are two completely separate issues, and indeed, we at EWSM hold a strong belief that some licensed agents, especially at youth level (see item below - PFA and Transitional Step), are causing more damage than good - which may explain why a lot of top clubs have now banned agents from their academy matches. Yes, we do work with certain agents, but on a completely different level - they deal with contracts and we deal with mentoring and personal day to day management.
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PFA (England)
Around 85% of young players signing professional contracts in England are leaving the game by age 21.
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In SSD this is called the TRANSITIONAL STEP and something which I specifically highlighted away back in 1995 (Grass Roots Report) as needing professional nurturing, coaching, and mentoring by specially trained development coaches. This hasn't happened and as a result EWSM have now decided to enter this specific area by helping clubs and mentoring young talented players.

                       EWSM have STRICT CRITERIA regarding YOUNG PLAYERS

*  The player must be age 16 or over - younger players can be mentored but only if their club academy employs the services of EWSM for this purpose

*  All players age 16 & 17 will require the signature of a parent or legal guardian

*  The player must already be registered with a club academy/centre of excellence in the UK or playing under a professional club contract

*  Players who already have a contract with a licensed football agent will have to sign an additional 'Development Programming Contract' with EWSM as both are completely separate entities - EWSM and agents do not operate under joint contracts


Important Notes for Parents
* Contrary to popular belief, professional players and academy scholars DO NOT require the services of a licensed football agent to sign club contracts. Players themselves can sign a contract (counter signed by a parent or legal guardian dependent on age), plus every club has a PFA representative that you can seek advice from

 * If at any time you are approached by an agent (or somebody purporting to be such) then do not disclose any personal details whatsoever (especially telephone numbers, addresses, etc) - instead, just ask what club they represent and get their business card. If concerned, pass over their details to your son's team manager. If ever approached by someone claiming to be from EWSM then please telephone Eddy Whyte directly on 01629 56503 so that the appropriate action can be taken. Only Eddy Whyte himself will make any official contact on behalf of EWSM and issue you with the proper authorised information.

* All parents think that their son is good enough to go to a professional academy or centre of excellence, and as such, clubs get inundated every day with letters, emails, and telephone calls. Like junk mail, virtually all of these direct approaches will end up in the bin.
Steps to Follow
1.  Make sure that your son plays for a local league team
2.  Check club websites (under youth or academy) to see what their recruitment procedure is
3.  Either write or send an email (whatever their process is) with the following information:
* Your son's name, age, dob, school, team he plays for in local league, shirt number, position, team colours, a list of fixtures and locations for the next 3 months, and your telephone number and address
This information will then be passed onto the local scout. You may or may not receive a reply from the club or indeed know of the scout's presence at any particular match - but if he is good enough they will be in touch.

* Similar to the above, EWSM are very selective in quality of players that they mentor, so if you would like your son to be considered for a Development Programming Contract then please don't telephone us directly, instead, press the 'Contact Details' button below and send us an email in the first instance. A decision will only be reached after completion of a questionnaire and interview.

Contact from Professional Clubs
An official member of staff at a professional club can contact EWSM via any of the available sources in the strictest of confidence as Eddy Whyte himself has sole access to all initial incoming correspondence and calls
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THE EWSM STRUCTURE
Professional
Clubs		 From junior to senior player development programming, performance analysis, club coaching structures, SSD training techniques, skill coaching, mentoring young players, transitional stepping, . . . . . . . . .
Player
Agencies		 Whilst you are fully equipped to deal with contractual and financial issues - have you got the development background to professionally mentor the actual real day to day footballing aspects? Why not offer your clients additional career support by recommending EWSM?
Sponsors All of the players under Development Programming Contracts with EWSM have been specially selected and receive individual mentoring and guidance - why not get in early and offer your support?
Professional
Players		 How ambitious are you? With or without an agent, EWSM offers proper ground level football support - mentoring, personal skill coaching, club selection, development programming, day to day personal management and advice . . . .
Young Players /
Parents 		The Transitional Step is your biggest hurdle in making it as a professional player. If at a club academy or centre of excellence and of a high standard then why not consider additional support through EWSM - individual mentoring and guidance?
Whatever your needs . . . contact EWSM TODAY
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