D
David Whitehouse
Guest
This from AFC Wimbledon manager Terry Brown. I would rather have him in charge than Ridsdale. This is how we should do it, and one day a long time from now I think we will.
So when Wimbledon went full-time last season he eased the players into it. They now train morning and afternoon, but the latter session is weights, or technical work "like the right-winger practising his crossing". There was another aspect to consider when going full-time. "I sent our scouts to get hungry, quick, athletic players ... living with mum and dad. If we're paying someone £75, £150, £300 a week, and it is their only job, they can't afford to live around here. So it is a young squad, but we told the parents, 'we're not paying a king's ransom, but your son will be coached every day, on a smashing surface. It's a great opportunity'. I keep telling these boys, 'The sun's out, it's a carpet of a pitch, and we've a first-class coaching staff here whose aim is to make you better players, to give you the chance to [move up the league and] earn thousands and thousands of pounds'.
So when Wimbledon went full-time last season he eased the players into it. They now train morning and afternoon, but the latter session is weights, or technical work "like the right-winger practising his crossing". There was another aspect to consider when going full-time. "I sent our scouts to get hungry, quick, athletic players ... living with mum and dad. If we're paying someone £75, £150, £300 a week, and it is their only job, they can't afford to live around here. So it is a young squad, but we told the parents, 'we're not paying a king's ransom, but your son will be coached every day, on a smashing surface. It's a great opportunity'. I keep telling these boys, 'The sun's out, it's a carpet of a pitch, and we've a first-class coaching staff here whose aim is to make you better players, to give you the chance to [move up the league and] earn thousands and thousands of pounds'.