Young player Olani has progressed to the top level of the Northampton Town Girls Pathway despite only starting football in August.
Back then, Olani joined a local grassroots team and soon after started attending the Northampton Town weekly Girls Skills Centre sessions. The Skills Centre is a participation-based group for girls aged 7-15 currently playing grassroots football. These are held during term times in the football season and give female players the chance to practice and build on their skills in a safe and friendly environment.
From the start, her talent and willingness to learn was clear to see as she would regularly ask what she could do to keep pushing herself, with clear aspirations to become a footballer. As the weeks went on, she began to stand out, through adding her own skills and progressions to various activities as she continued to improve.
Due to numerous factors such as skill, attitude, and personality we thought it would only be right for her to attend one of our ‘Talent Identification’ evenings. From here she was offered a trial at the club's ‘Emerging Talent Centre’ which bypassed another step on the ladder.
The FA Emerging Talent Centre’s (ETC) were launched with the aim to increase the number of young female players engaged in Football Association programmes across England. Part of the FA’s talent identification approach to help nurture the future generations of England’s Women’s football stars. The players at the Northampton Town ETC get weekly access to strength and conditioning and performance testing at the state-of-the-art University of Northampton gym. They also receive pitch side injury support and access to the injury rehabilitation support in the University’s Sports Rehabilitation and Conditioning Clinic at Waterside, with comprehensive injury advice and treatment plans. They also receive psychology support and nutrition seminars with the University’s lecturers in their respective fields alongside a comprehensive football syllabus delivered by our UEFA B and C licensed coaches.
Despite now playing at the club's top girls standard, Olani still comes down to the mixed ability skill centre to develop her skills to get closer to her goal of being a professional footballer.
Jane Davies (Olani’s Mum) said:
“Olani has only been playing football for a few months having started with a local grass roots team August 2023 having gone on and on to me about joining a football team! She has very quickly developed such a love and passion for the game and has since given up years of gymnastics training to fully devote her time to developing her football skill and knowledge further.
"She has loved coming to the skills sessions meeting new friends and building skills and confidence and is very much enjoying the exciting journey with the ETC having just been offered to play her first match for Northampton Town. Olani has enjoyed the holidays camps too.
"Olani is so excited to be given the opportunity to play her first match for the Cobblers and her face when she received her first kit, she was so very proud.”
For more information about the Girls Skills Centre and our Women’s pathway please email Scott.Loughran@ntfc.co.uk or visit ntfccommunity.co.uk/women-girls-home
