The Pembrokeshire College Football Academy 1st Team have been crowned champions of the BcS Mens Football Wales Championship league after winning 14 out of 14 games and are looking forward to being presented with the cup after Easter at 1 of their 2 remaining games. In the last 2 weeks, the team had beaten their second and third-place rivals to make it thirteen wins in a row, a record they are aiming to keep as they finish the season in style.
The team is coached by Steve Briers, a Pembrokeshire footballing stalwart whose knowledge and expertise of the game has earned him the admiration and respect of many around the county. He also currently serves on The Pembrokeshire League Council and is a previous Chairman and current President. He has coached the College side since 2010 and held his UEFA ‘A’ Coaching Licence for 12 years having attended the FAW coaching course alongside current Wales National team manager Rob Page. I sat down with him to talk about the season so far and how the team operates.
The Football Academy Team won the Welsh Schools Under 19s Cup in his first year with the side, when Steve took over from the much respected and talented coach Ronnie Beynon after his retirement. Steve has enjoyed plenty of success since, coaching some of the county's most talented players who have gone on to succeed at a high level including some of the current Pembrokeshire League Champions Hakin and Haverfordwest County duo Jack Wilson and Ben Fawcett, with Ben now working alongside Steve to coach the team, and indeed many players playing in all 5 divisions of the Pembrokeshire League. Steve is keen to stress that whilst he is a small part of their footballing journey, most of the hard work in developing the players is done by the coaches at their clubs as they bring the players through their mini-football and junior age groups and pays them the utmost respect in helping the players enjoy their football and to keep on playing.
The College Academy Team is open to anyone studying at the college, with different options available for a variety of sports. There are men's football and rugby academies, as well as a girl's academy which offers a mix of football, rugby, netball and other sports depending on the skill set of the talent available each year. Unique international representative opportunities are also available with The College recommending players for trials with Welsh Colleges (U-19) and Welsh Schools (U-18) levels each year. Indeed, current 1st team captain Lucas Davies has gained caps this year at both levels and is currently playing for Welsh Schools in the Centenary Shield competition.
The Pembrokeshire College team before their away victory versus Bridgend College
Pembrokeshire College Football Academy has three different teams, the first team and development team both play in the British Colleges Sports Leagues, at Cat 2 and 3 level respectively playing against colleges from all over South Wales, like Bridgend, Neath Port Talbot, Gower College, Coleg Sir Gar, Cardiff & the Vale, Coleg Gwent etc. There are certain criteria to meet before playing at Cat 1 level, which Steve is hopeful for in the future. Then there is a participation team for students who want to take part, train and play in organised friendly matches to enable them to also enjoy the game.
The academies work around the timetables of the players, helping them balance studying and training to the right level and making sure that they have the time to train and play, with any student attending college able to join the Football Academy.
Playing at college level offers players a unique chance to continue playing against players of a similar age and quality. When playing at club level, after finishing their junior football, 16-year-olds become part of senior teams where the ages of team players vary, whereas the college league system is for players aged between 16 and 19 years of age, therefore extending the opportunity for them to match their skills against opponents of the same age for another 2, and sometimes 3 years. They are also encouraged to continue playing for their local Pembrokeshire League side at senior level too, or indeed if the player has a different club pathway, for Haverfordwest County or Carmarthen Town.
Steve talks about how playing for Pembrokeshire College Football Academy offers a great playing platform with fair parity and great quality on display, with fast high-energy technical football being played by the college teams. He talks about how it is a brilliant and enjoyable level to play at and is constantly being told by previous players how they miss being able to play for the college team where they were able to make great memories.
The Pembrokeshire College Team playing at Ysgol Caer Elen
The team trains twice a week, on Monday and Friday, with games being played on Wednesday. On Mondays they train at Ysgol Caer Elen and on Fridays at Pembroke’s 3G pitch. The first team play their matches at Caer Elen with the development team playing at Marble Hall Pitch in Milford haven.
The training consists of a mixture of tactical and technical training. This is always tailored around the group that you have, with focus on formations, player position roles, individual and collective responsibilities.
An important part of the training sessions is analysing the match from the previous week which is made much easier by the fantastic technology available to the team who use a VEO camera system that offers an easy to setup camera that automatically tracks the ball in games. Watching the games back always provides great analytical opportunities as well as banter between the group, “the camera never lies!”.
The training focusses on and prioritises the tactical and technical elements of the game both as individuals and as a team working on dealing with overloads, attacking and defending principals, pressing, breaking lines, exploiting space, transitions, roles in and out of possession, and so on. Steve tells me that although strength, endurance, stamina, power and speed are vital football elements, there isn’t always a need, especially with the limited time available on the training pitch to overly focus on these physical elements which come naturally with a sports-focussed group, and of course happens naturally to a degree within the sessions in any case, "a good first touch and ability to pass a ball accurately has to be the foundation of everything that follows."
There is great camaraderie in the squad with players enjoying the social side and gelling together brilliantly as a group. The most important thing is that everyone enjoys playing in the team, improves as a player, and create great memories with each other.
The Pembroke College Team playing in a 3-2 victory away versus Cardiff & The Vale College at Leckwith
The coaching of the first team side is supported by Ben Fawcett, Haverfordwest County striker and ex-College student and player. Steve tells me how having him on board is a massive help. Ben is a "huge asset to the team with a natural knowledge and understanding of the game and is a superb coach as well as player". Steve also tells me of the fantastic work being done by ex-college student and player, Liam Parr of Milford United and lecturer Andrew Thomas (both with UEFA coaching qualifications and with great knowledge and understanding of the game), who coaches the development team. All 4 coaches work as a coaching team sharing ideas and the workload too, along with Ben Coates, also a lecturer, who coaches the participation team.
As well as working on the technical side of the game, the coaches help instill important life skills to help improve the players, encouraging a disciplined approach to sport with punctuality and good communication, and a firm, understanding, fair and open system bringing out the best in people.
The hard work is certainly paying off with Steve and Ben already leading their "exceptional group of players" to league success, with a full season of wins now the aim. The team’s final game is on the 3rd of May against St Davids College, Cardiff and we’d like to wish Steve and the team all the best on achieving their goals for the rest of the season.
Pembrokeshire College Football Academy First Team
John Chesters
Seth Woodhouse
Jey Uddin
Kane Mason
Henry Sturman
Aden Francis
Tom Edmonds
Robbie Sly
Harri John
Dan John
Fletcher Picton
Callum Shirt
Dan James
Alfie Evans
Ieuan Irvine
Callum Rees
Floyd Copeland
Lucas Davies (Captain)
Steve Briers (Manager / Coach)
Ben Fawcett (Coach)
