Scottish football's sliding doors moment? The SFA Performance Schools 10 years on

Despite a demoralising defeat to Ukraine in the World Cup play-off semi-finals in June, the fortunes of the Scotland men's national football team can be acknowledged to have seen a marked upturn in recent years.

Indeed, the Qatar qualification campaign was statistically the Scots' most successful in over 20 years on a points per game basis, with a 2-0 victory over EURO 2020 semi-finalists Denmark at Hampden last November widely regarded as one of the most complete Scotland performances in many a year.

This commendable qualification showing came off the back of Scotland's milestone participation in the EURO 2020 finals - the first time the men's side had taken part in a major tournament since the France '98 World Cup.

In what was a testing group stage for the Scots which ultimately ended in elimination, it was the team's performance in a 0-0 draw against the Auld Enemy and eventual finalists England at Wembley which drew the most plaudits.

One of the shining lights on the night was Ardrossan's finest, Billy Gilmour, with the diminutive 20-year-old Chelsea midfielder awarded UEFA's Star of the Match on his very first start for Scotland.

For the limited band of Tartan Army representatives permitted inside Wembley Stadium during a COVID-ravaged summer, and the millions watching on TV back home north of the border, the young Gilmour's midfield masterclass was cause for hope and excitement for the future.

However, for a select group of personnel charged with launching and progressing the SFA's new flagship Performance Schools programme back in 2012, Gilmour's breakthrough moment at Wembley meant more than this. It was a source of vindication.

Established with the aim of rearing a new generation of Scots football stars and breathing new life into a national game engulfed with an air of shame and despondency amidst a barren spell of 14 years without qualification for a major finals, Billy Gilmour can be observed as just one of several green shoots to have emerged from the programme to date.

Indeed, Gilmour was joined in Scotland's EURO 2020 squad by former Rangers academy teammate and fellow Performance School graduate Nathan Patterson, who in January of this year moved from Ibrox to Everton in a record £16m deal for the Govan side.

Aberdeen's record transfer export now also happens to be an SFA Performance School participant, after Liverpool paid £6.5m to take Calvin Ramsay to Anfield this summer.

There appears to be more where they came from too, with Gilmour, Patterson and Ramsay just three of 11 Performance School players currently honing their talents at English Premier League clubs.

It therefore feels timely, a decade on, to fully dissect the Performance School process and its impact on the Scottish game as a whole.

Are we looking at Scottish football’s sliding doors moment?

A 2020 vision

Back in 2010, former Scottish First Minister Henry McLeish launched an independent review on the state of Scottish football amidst the perpetual failure of the men's national team to qualify for a major finals.

His findings and recommendations were laid out in the SFA’s new Performance Strategy to help elevate the Scottish game at all levels, titled ‘Scotland United: A 2020 Vision’.

The establishment of Performance Schools located in seven regions of the country – Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Dundee, Kilmarnock, Motherwell and Falkirk – was a key component of the SFA’s fresh vision.

Billy Gilmour and Nathan Patterson are not the only Performance School players to have represented their country. A contingent of 11 participants made up the Scotland U17s squad for the Euros in Israel this summer, with Performance School players now included at every national age group.

Keith Wright points towards the number of Performance School players being picked up by big clubs south of the border and overseas as a further reflection of the programme’s success.

Alongside Billy Gilmour and Nathan Patterson at Brighton and Everton respectively, there are nine more Performance School players currently on the books of Premier League clubs.

Calvin Ramsay secured a big money move from Aberdeen to Liverpool this summer, whilst 18-year-old Liam Smith made the switch to rivals Manchester City from Kilmarnock back in 2020.

Aston Villa have snapped up three young SFA Performance School talents in the last couple of years in the form of Ewan Simpson, Rory Wilson and Kerr Smith from Hearts, Rangers and Dundee United respectively, whilst Newcastle United signed Scotland Under 17s captain Charlie McArthur from Kilmarnock ahead of this season.

Scott Banks, Stuart McKinstry and Marc Leonard complete the Performance School Premier League roll of honour, who represent Crystal Palace, Leeds United and Brighton respectively.

Even further afield, former Grange Academy pupil Liam Morrison has recently started matches for Bayern Munich’s reserve side and trained with their first team following his transfer from Celtic in 2019.

“We are now seeing English clubs and even teams on the continent coming and looking at young Scottish players which signals the improvement in standards,” Wright says.

“For me that’s a direct result of all of the good coaching going on in the Performance Schools and at clubs.”

Performance School players can be seen to be shining on the domestic front too, with Connor Barron of Aberdeen and Ross Graham of Dundee United recognised as nominees for Scottish Young Player of the Year gongs last season.

Other Performance School starlets to look out for in the Scottish Premiership in the upcoming years include Lewis Neilson and Connor Smith at Hearts, St Mirren’s Ethan Erhahon and Jay Henderson, along with highly-rated Rangers youngster Alex Lowry.

Kieran Freeman, who arrived back at Dundee United in 2020 following a four-year stay with English Premier League club Southampton, believes the level of emerging talent in Scottish football is often underplayed.

At this stage, 10 years on since the programme began, every professional club in Scotland can be observed to have benefited from Performance School participants in one way or another, either as academy graduates or loan signings.

It is also pertinent to highlight the role and impact of other Performance Schools in the country, some of which can be acknowledged to have been inspired by the SFA’s programme.

Since the establishment of the SFA’s own Performance Schools setup in 2012, clubs such as Rangers, Hearts and the two Dundee teams have moved to strike up similar connections with schools in their local vicinities in order to bolster their youth ranks.

Andy Goldie believes this trend of clubs deciding to mould their own school development programmes is indicative of the success of the SFA's national initiative.

"The fact there are other Performance Schools now in place highlights their importance in academy player development.

"I think the success the Scottish FA have achieved in this area is resounding, and hopefully the club programmes are able to continue to produce the same results or even better."

Celtic’s partnership with St Ninian’s Academy in Kirkintilloch was set up three years before the SFA initiative, and largely explains the lack of their players involved within the national programme.

The Celtic model operates in a similar manner, with selected academy prospects combining their education at St Ninian’s with additional football training sessions from club coaches during school days.

St Ninian’s alumni includes four current full Scotland internationals – Kieran Tierney, Jack Hendry, Anthony Ralston and Aaron Hickey.

Other distinguished former pupils include Liam Henderson and brother Ewan, Stephen Welsh, Mikey Johnston, Karamoko Dembele and Ben Doak.

Coupled with the high calibre emerging players from the SFA’s Performance Schools, this cohort of Celtic youngsters reared through their own school creates almost a who’s who picture of the country’s finest footballers under the age of 25.

As such, almost every single one of Scotland’s best young players at the moment shares something in common – their formative education was fused with additional time spent on the football training pitch working with top coaches. This shows the Performance School approach has proved to have been fruitful.

However, it is clear that alongside such lofty goals of turning professional and representing Scotland comes a great deal of hard work and sacrifice along the way.

Stuart Glennie, the Elite Performance Coach at Hazlehead Academy in Aberdeen, is mindful of the level of dedication and commitment from a young age it takes for Performance School players to reach the top level.

New Liverpool signing Calvin Ramsay is one of many talented Performance School players Glennie has coached and mentored during his time at Hazlehead.

“I think it’s easy when these big transfers happen for people to forget how hard these guys have worked to get to that point. I’m talking from as early as 5 years old,” Glennie says.

“Calvin didn’t enter the programme thinking he was going to achieve this and that, he just came into school every day and showed an enthusiasm and desire to do well.”

Glennie describes how players are often forced to undertake significant commutes to attend the Performance Schools, arriving early in the morning to have breakfast before being picked up to go to club training at the end of the day.

This makes for very long days for some of the young people involved. With only seven Performance Schools across Scotland, there is an argument the geographical net of the programme does not spread wide enough.

For example, large areas of the country including Fife and the Highlands and Islands do not have a designated Performance School partnership in place at present.

Indeed, looking ahead to the future, this is an issue the SFA ought to look into further when it comes to evolving the programme.

Whether it be expanding to new school premises or installing a hub and spoke model in which coaches from the existing network operate in coordination with these uncovered areas, it seems unfair for talented kids to be left out of this potentially lifechanging and supposedly nationwide initiative due to where they are based.

Kieran Freeman’s own journey certainly required a great deal of commitment. Getting up at 5am every day to travel around an hour from home in the small town of Inverbervie in Aberdeenshire to St John's RC High in Tayside due to his connection to Dundee United, the former Scotland youth captain says the experience hardened his mentality.

“Having early mornings and late nights were tough but I wouldn’t change it.

“I was doing 5am – 7pm days from the age of 12. Professional footballers get it easy in comparison."

Dutchman Mark Wotte views this raw enthusiasm for the game as one of Scotland's main competitive advantages over other nations.

"Scottish youngsters have a fantastic mindset and work ethic. It’s one of the most important success factors for Scottish football.

"It’s also maybe compensating the lack of natural physical strength compared to other countries.”

Better players, better people

Although the programme strives to mould international level footballers, Performance School participants’ education and self-development as young people will always come first as far as their coaches are concerned.

Andy Goldie says it is imperative the children in the programme are able to enjoy a normal education.

“We don’t want to steal any part of their childhood from them. We want them to experience real school life like any other kid does."

Goldie believes the hours of practice and dedication demonstrated throughout the process can lead the children in good stead no matter where their lives take them after school, whether it be professional football or the wider world of work.

“It’s important we develop the identity of the young people first and foremost, and make sure they’ve got transferable skills.

“This experience can help the young people understand the commitment, sacrifice and work ethic required to be successful in anything in life, not just in football.”

Indeed, a cornerstone of the SFA's upgraded Performance Strategy laid out in 2011 was to invest in the social and psychological competencies of young players as part of an integrated approach alongside their technical training.

This concept of 'better players, better people' therefore applies importance to the development of mental skills such as discipline, commitment and resilience in order for the overall needs of each young person to be fully catered for throughout the programme.

Matthew Clarke, a teacher of Physical Education at the Braidhurst High Performance School and former Motherwell academy player and coach, speaks of the “performance mentality” the young players are encouraged to adopt at the school.

“The performance mentality the pupils are encouraged to have can help them with their studies and divert them from distractions outside of school.

"They seem to keep themselves on the straight and narrow as a squad together.

“There is also data on the attainment levels of pupils in the programme - they tend to do better in their studies too.”

Clarke also describes how the Performance School players are able to develop their self-confidence and communication skills in ambassadorial roles.

Appearing in video clips and carrying out public speaking duties can only make the young people more employable in whatever career pathway they ultimately pursue, Clarke suggests.

This support for “different pathways” is something Hazlehead Academy’s Elite Performance Coach Stuart Glennie is particularly conscious of as he guides his young players through their respective journeys at the school.

"There's lots of different pathways for the children.

"Regardless of whether they go into full-time football, part-time football or out of football, we like to keep in contact with them to give them that added support."

'More than a game'?

In order to fully assess the impact of this form of large-scale educational initiative, reported to cost around £700,000 per year to roll out, it is important to observe the wider community and national picture.

Tasked with enhancing the standard of players emerging in Scotland and simultaneously improving the fortunes of the national teams, it is clear such outcomes would be welcomed throughout the country.

Keith Wright points towards the buzz emanated from Scotland’s participation in its first major tournament for over 20 years at the Euros last summer as evidence of the appetite the nation has to become a permanent fixture at the top table of international football once again.

“To qualify for the Euros gave the whole of Scotland a lift and everyone got behind the team.

“Football is absolutely massive in this country.”

Andy Goldie echoes this sentiment, and underlines the importance of continuing to bring through young Scottish players of the highest calibre via the Performance Schools in order to help bring the nation closer together.

“Having talented young Scottish players who we can relate to on the pitch is ultimately all we want as football fans.

“I don’t think there’s anybody in this country who doesn’t want to see the national team doing well and participating in major tournaments."

For Clare Adamson MSP, Scottish sporting success can provide inspiration for youngsters and be pivotal in the promotion of fitness, wellbeing and physical literacy across the country.

Adamson also outlines how the Performance School project has provided wider societal benefits at a more local and regional level too.

A Member of the Scottish Parliament for Motherwell and Wishaw, she has been closely aware of the programme at Braidhurst High School ever since it was launched back in 2012.

“From visiting the Performance School at Braidhurst I know how the young people’s achievements have instilled a sense of pride in the community."

Adamson speaks of the value of this kind of sporting initiative in terms of opening doors for youngsters, especially in more deprived areas.

“It’s really important to have this type of opportunity available for disadvantaged young people who maybe don’t have the same avenues to pursue sporting activity as those in more well-off areas.

“To have the Performance School in Motherwell on their doorstep is brilliant.”

Adamson is especially proud to see Performance School participants at Braidhurst go on to represent Motherwell Football Club, the team she has supported and watched grow throughout her life.

Just this summer, four Braidhurst Performance School graduates signed professional contracts with Motherwell – Shay Nevans, Max Ross, Brannan McDermott and Dylan Wells.

Adamson is delighted to see local youngsters signing on at a club which has done so much positive work in the community in recent years, in areas such as suicide prevention which has been a prevalent issue amongst young men in particular throughout the region.

“It’s like a virtuous circle for me to see the investment coming through and helping a club that is really invested in its own community."

This filtering of players through the Performance School system into the first teams of local professional clubs is something which can also be felt in the city of Dundee.

Kieran Freeman is one of five first team players at Dundee United to have graduated from the St John’s Performance School in Dundee, along with Ross Graham, Archie Meekison, Logan Chalmers and Chris Mochrie.

“All of us are good friends with each other.

“I think you have a different bond with people you’ve been to school with and it’s really nice to be able to share a pitch with them.”

Women's Football

It’s not only young boys who have benefited from the SFA’s Performance School programme over the past decade.

Just ask Rangers Women’s player and Scotland youth internationalist Emma Watson. Having graduated from Broughton High’s Performance School in Edinburgh this summer, Watson has already broken into Rangers’ first team and captained her country at Under 17s level by the age of just 16.

The only girl in her age cohort at Broughton, Watson believes her experience of training alongside boys every day helped elevate her game.

“The training was so fast and physical so the demands set on me were higher.

“I definitely think it’s made me the player I am today.”

Just as Performance School boys such as Billy Gilmour and Nathan Patterson have been able to bypass age groups and be fast-tracked to first team level at a young age, Watson has managed to do exactly the same in the women’s game.

Emma’s mother Karen credits the Performance School process, and in particular the experience of training alongside boys, as the biggest factor underpinning her daughter's rapid development.

“Emma went into the under-19s at Rangers aged 13 and the first team at 14. I think she’s progressed so fast because of the standard and quality of the Performance School.

“If you could swap anything about her journey, she wouldn’t have swapped this."

However, although the Performance School programme has proved capable of unearthing high level female players such as Emma Watson and full Scotland internationalist Leah Eddie, it is clear there are far fewer female participants compared to their male counterparts.

A report from The Herald this summer revealed that no girls have been accepted to any of the SFA’s Performance Schools for this year ahead, with all 48 places offered to boys.

This news has prompted criticism of the programme’s recruitment process and accusations of a lack of equality in a supposed mixed-gender initiative, with 72-times capped former Scotland Women’s player Leanne Crichton declaring the Performance Schools as “not really suitable for girls.”

Emma Watson and her mother Karen say they would like to see more girls involved in the Performance Schools, but only if the standard of training is maintained for all participants involved.

Karen Watson says: “You wouldn’t want to dilute the process for the boys. If you said you had to include a certain number of girls you might bring down the standard, which would ultimately diminish the value of the Performance Schools.”

The onus therefore lies with the Scottish FA to formulate a way of incorporating more girls into the programme whilst maintaining its high standards across the board, with current levels of female representation undeniably lacking.

The fact no girls have been selected for the Performance Schools' new intake for the upcoming year appears shocking amidst a spiked interest in the women’s game following the landmark success of this summer’s Euros south of the border.

The tournament, in which hosts England came out victorious, marked a number of significant milestones for women’s football. The crowd of 87,192 at the final between England and Germany at Wembley broke the attendance record for an international women’s match, whilst a TV audience of 17.4 million made the showpiece the most watched event of the year in the UK.

It is therefore fair to suggest that if we acknowledge the potential for a successful men’s national team to bring people together and foster national pride, the same can be said for our women.

The Scotland women’s national team have secured a play-off place for the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand next year, with a side made up of several players plying their trade at some of Europe’s biggest clubs.

Midfielder Caroline Weir has this summer signed for Spanish giants Real Madrid, whilst eight other members of the squad selected for June’s World Cup qualifier against Ukraine are on the books of Women’s Super League clubs in England, such as Chelsea’s Erin Cuthbert, Aston Villa’s Rachel Corsie and Arsenal’s Jen Beattie.

The emergence of these Scottish female stars and the team’s participation at the 2019 World Cup in France has helped drive a rapid growth in participation in girls football throughout the country in the last few years.

For Clare Adamson MSP, formerly the Convenor of the Scottish Parliament’s Education and Skills Committee, the inclusion of girls in the SFA’s Performance School programme is hugely important moving forwards.

“I think in the past we’ve probably let a lot of young women down when it comes to sport.

“It’s good to see things changing to open up new opportunities for girls to pursue sporting activities, and we must continue to promote this.”

The future?

Despite the general popularity of the Performance School initiative, its future has been cast into doubt in recent years by media reports suggesting the funding for the schools is constantly under review.

The long-term future of the programme may well depend on the success of the national teams on the park.

Scottish FA Chief Executive Ian Maxwell announced in June that the men’s team’s failure to qualify for the World Cup in Qatar meant the body would miss out on £8m in revenue.

“That money lets you do things you can’t at the moment," Maxwell told the media.

“It is the slush fund that allows us to do the bigger and better.”

"Bigger and better” may well translate as the Scottish FA's ability to maintain and improve the Performance School programme, by potentially adding new institutions in different regions of the country and providing more opportunities for girls.

It remains to be seen what impact the Qatar World Cup disappointment, alongside the sizeable financial squeeze caused by COVID-19, will have on the national game.

As one of the Scottish FA’s flagship initiatives which requires a substantial level of ongoing investment, any tightening of the purse strings within the national body may well have implications for the direction the Performance Schools head in next.

Andy Goldie affirms the importance of capitalising on the clear achievements the Performance School project has delivered so far, despite the setback of the men’s national team’s defeat to Ukraine this summer.

“Unfortunately it’s not happened for the World Cup this time, but there’s no reason why we can’t qualify for the next Euros.

“I think when you’re riding on the crest of a wave it’s important that you capitalise on that and continue to build.”

For Clare Adamson MSP, any cuts or compromises applied to the Performance Schools would be a real shame.

“I wouldn’t like to see the funding cut because I know how much of a success it has been and the difference it has made, not just for the young people involved but the schools as a whole.”

Speaking as a top-flight player in Scotland, Kieran Freeman is more than convinced of the value of the Performance School programme for the development of Scottish youngsters moving forward.

A decade on from the launch of the SFA's Performance School initiative, with the first cohort of participants still only 22, the project appears to have reached a critical juncture.

Following the commendable breakthrough of two young national stars who played their part in the men's first participation in a major finals in a generation, there will undoubtedly be an expectation for more to follow as Scotland prepare to bid for a place at EURO 2024 in Germany.

With more and more Performance School prospects earning professional contracts at clubs up and down the country and rising through the national youth ranks, the next few years could just prove to be pivotal in the history of Scottish youth football development.