Joondalup City reaping rewards from Everton link-up

Joondalup City is a football club going from strength to strength thanks to their ongoing partnership with English Premier League side Everton.

The Perth-based community club remains a valued member of Everton's International Academy Affiliate Programme (EIAAP).

Joondalup City, who now has over 650 junior players registered on its books, have benefited from a sharing of information and development programmes with Everton, which included coaching masterclasses being run online by the Premier League club during the pandemic.

The impact of Covid also meant that many talented junior players from the Club's intake have been unable to travel to England to benefit from training at the Blues' Finch Farm training complex on Merseyside.

However, City's rising standards have led to a dramatic upturn in recruitment and the number and quality of trialists, with the Club now ranking as the largest club in the northern suburbs, with a healthy number of players signing up for the Club's NPL and development squads.

Joondalup City Director of Coaching, David Clayton, said: “Our partnership with Everton FC gives Joondalup City a point of difference that other clubs in Western Australia simply don't have. 

“In previous seasons we have occasionally lost some of our stronger players to so-called ‘bigger clubs'.

“That has all changed now and those same teams are now losing players to us. We have a different approach to many teams, as we aren't focused on winning and no senior Premier League players talk about how many under 12 leagues they won.

“We want to educate our junior players how to play football and results will take care of themselves, with the right building blocks in place.

“We are totally focused on developing players to be the best they can be. Results are a by-product of playing well, and playing in the right way.

“We have a great group of qualified coaches, all who are striving to improve their respective playing groups, and partnering with Everton FC was the best move our club has ever made.”

Technical Director, Paul Turvill, added: “We began our partnership with many ideas and plans to lift not only our profile, but to expose our members of the many attributes of junior player development programmes and processes at one of the most prominent Junior Academies across Europe and the UK, at Everton's Finch Farm training facilities.

“We also had plans for Everton's Academy coaches to visit us in Australia, in addition to us sending a playing group across to England, where the players would be able to see these training facilities and view the Academy environment at first hand.

“Sadly, COVID intervened, but online sessions through the EIAAP Coach education platform have proven to be a substantial benefit of partnership with Everton, and we have seen a fundamental progression over the past two seasons, across these programmes.

“Hopefully, with the borders re-opening, we can look forward to welcoming Everton's coaches to Australia in the near future.”

Turvill added: “Since our affiliation, and year-on-year, we have seen increased attendances to our trials; generating a positive environment for those engaging with the club for the first time and leading to some, at an advanced level, taking up offers of positions across our NPL and development squads. 

“While we may be on the other side of the world, Everton Football Club is certainly now a constant topic of conversation within the West Australian football fraternity.”

The EIAAP initiative provides clubs at all tiers of the game with access to the finest coaching knowledge from Everton's renowned Academy to support the growth of each club — a level of support that sets it apart from more traditional models.

These include:

• Full access to the Everton Academy curriculum
• Weekly support from Everton International Technical Lead
• Holistic approach to player, coach and club development, offering technical support from USM Finch Farm and business and marketing support from the Royal Liver Building.

Everton International Technical Lead, Paddy Byrne said: “We are delighted to see the success of Joondalup City, especially being one of the first clubs to join the programme during its infancy, over two years ago.

“The Club's NPL teams are setting new benchmarks and their standing in Australia is a big improvement on previous seasons.

“Their philosophy is clearly paying dividends, supported by the similar messaging being delivered by Everton.

“Overall, it is a model example of how two clubs can come together for the betterment of young players and by continuing to share our values and coaching methods, we will further enhance both our affiliate programme and Joondalup City, all while strengthening Everton's bond within western Australia.

“I'm looking forward to visiting Paul and the wider Joondalup City team very soon to work one-on-one with the coaches on the field.”

The Everton International Academy Affiliate Programme (EIAAP) is available to grassroots teams, professional sides, youth academies, girls' and women's teams, as well as colleges and universities.

To find out more, please visit www.EvertonInternationalAcademy.com

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