Forth Wanderers say their Under-20s Development League link-up with Motherwell FC Community Trust is a ‘win-win’ for both clubs.
Under-19 players from the Fir Park club who aren’t going on to senior football either with Motherwell or elsewhere get an opportunity to continue their pathway with Forth.
That also means the West of Scotland League club won’t be short of players for their own games, giving Motherwell youngsters a chance to develop further in a competitive environment.
Forth co-manager Thomas Devine, who has been behind the move, said: “We had a meeting with the committee, who were keen to get a development team on board, because it seemed like a good opportunity to support the senior team.
“I knew a few of the coaches and the people who have been involved with the Motherwell Community Trust, and what usually happens is they’ve got age groups all the way up to under-19s, but after that they can disperse and go their own way, and some of them will go on to other teams.
“Guys at that age group can get lost in football, and it’s a tough age to keep people motivated. Motherwell were keen to find a pathway for their boys to have an opportunity to continue playing senior or semi-professional football, and we were looking to bring that together.
“I got in touch with one of their coaches, Malcolm Taylor, and he put me on to the general manager of the Community Trust, Dawn Middleton. We talked about how we would structure it and how it would work, and they were keen.
“We have two coaches in Greg Paton and Steven O’Brien, who will take the new Forth Under-20s development squad. They’ve come from a Motherwell under-19s background and it suited both parties.
“A club the size of Forth isn’t going to run under-10s all the way through – it just isn’t practical, but this has allowed us to tie in with Motherwell Community Trust, and if it works well their under-17s will go into their 19s and will give us that continuous feed. It’s a good relationship to have.”
Devine is delighted that the whole thing has come to fruition.
“It’s brilliant,”he said. “Myself and my co-manager Graham Cairns ended up looking for games on a Friday night, and now we’ve got our own under-20s.
“It’s the same contracts that the under-19s or 20s will sign at a senior team, so they can feed in players who are doing well into the senior team. If any teams are short you’re not scouring about looking for bodies to cover.”
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