Edusport Academy

Last updated

Caledonian Braves
Edusport.png
Full nameCaledonian Braves Football Club
Nickname(s)The Braves
Founded2011
GroundAlliance Park,
Strathclyde Country Park,
Motherwell
Managing DirectorChris Ewing
Head coach Ricky Waddell
League Lowland League
2018–19 Lowland League, 9th of 16
Website Club website

Caledonian Braves is a residential football academy based in Scotland, United Kingdom. The academy was founded in 2011, initially in order to assist young French players, and was initially based at the Ravenscraig Regional Sports Facility in Motherwell, North Lanarkshire, before relocating to Lesser Hampden in Glasgow in 2015. A second centre based in Edinburgh opened in 2014. An Edusport Academy team has also competed in Scottish senior football from the 2014–15 season onwards, the only private academy to do so in a recognised senior league. They initially played in the South of Scotland League before winning promotion to the Lowland League in 2017. From 2019, senior matches are played at Edusport's own Alliance Park ground within Strathclyde Country Park in North Lanarkshire, the team having previously played at the Hamilton Palace Sports Ground in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire (2014–2015) and Galabank in Annan, Dumfries and Galloway (2015–2019). For the 2019-20 season the Academy's senior team was renamed Caledonian Braves.

Ravenscraig Regional Sports Facility

The Ravenscraig Regional Sports Facility is a public leisure centre that is located in the Ravenscraig area of Motherwell, North Lanarkshire, Scotland.

Motherwell town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland

Motherwell is a large town and former burgh in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, south east of Glasgow. It has a population of around 32,120. Historically in the parish of Dalziel and part of Lanarkshire, Motherwell is the headquarters for North Lanarkshire Council. Geographically the River Clyde separates Motherwell from Hamilton to the west whereas the South Calder Water separates Motherwell from Carfin to the north-east and New Stevenston and Bellshill towards the north. Motherwell is also geographically close to Wishaw to the south-east.

Lesser Hampden

Lesser Hampden is a football stadium in Glasgow, Scotland, which is located immediately beside the western end of Hampden Park stadium.

Contents

History

Academy

The Edusport Academy was founded in 2011 by Chris Ewing with the aim of helping talented young French footballers to develop their skills in football and the English language, and gain opportunities with British professional clubs. [1] Initially, the main training venues were the Ravenscraig Regional Sports Facility in Motherwell, North Lanarkshire, and the Hamilton Palace Sports Ground in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, [2] with English classes taking place at New College Lanarkshire. [3] Edusport expanded in 2014, opening an Edinburgh centre with training at Ainslie Park and education at Edinburgh College. [4] In 2015, they decided to relocate from Motherwell to a new Glasgow base; the Academy now trains at Lesser Hampden with educational classes at City of Glasgow College. [5]

Hamilton, South Lanarkshire town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland

Hamilton is a town in South Lanarkshire, in the central Lowlands of Scotland. It serves as the main administrative centre of the South Lanarkshire council area. It sits 12 miles (19 km) south-east of Glasgow, 35 miles (56 km) south-west of Edinburgh and 74 miles (120 km) north of Carlisle. It is situated on the south bank of the River Clyde at its confluence with the Avon Water. Hamilton is the county town of the historic county of Lanarkshire.

New College Lanarkshire

New College Lanarkshire is a further education institution in Scotland in North Lanarkshire. The college was created on November 2013 from the merger of Cumbernauld College and Motherwell College, and in 2014 it absorbed Coatbridge College. It has over 25,000 students.

Ainslie Park

Ainslie Park is a football stadium located in Edinburgh, Scotland, which is the home ground of Lowland Football League club Spartans. From the 2017–18 season, Scottish League Two club Edinburgh City will also play at the ground while Meadowbank Stadium is being redeveloped.

Four women were added to the Edusport Academy programme in 2015. They are based at the Edinburgh centre and will gain senior experience through a partnership with Spartans of the Scottish Women's Premier League. [6]

Spartans Football Club Women's and Girl's is a women's football team that plays in the Scottish Women's Premier League, the top division of women's football in Scotland. Spartans F.C. Women is part of Spartans F.C. in north Edinburgh and play and train at the club's training facilities.

The Scottish Women's Premier League (SWPL) is the highest level of league competition in women's football in Scotland. The league consists of two divisions, SWPL 1 and SWPL 2, each with eight teams and is owned and managed by Scottish Women's Football. The league was formed in 2002 when the Premier Division of the Scottish Women's Football League (SWFL) broke away to form the SWPL. Initially operating as a single division of twelve teams, the current format was introduced in 2015 with the creation of SWPL 2.

Senior football

In June 2014, Edusport Academy successfully applied for membership of the semi-professional South of Scotland League in the sixth tier of the Scottish football league system, [7] becoming the first private football academy in the world to operate a team in a FIFA-recognised senior league. [8] They made further Scottish football history in a league match against Creetown in September 2014, when they first fielded a team composed entirely of French nationals. [8] The senior team won two trophies in their first season, the South of Scotland League Cup and the Cree Lodge Cup. [9] They applied to move up a level to the Lowland League in 2015, but their application was rejected. [10]

South of Scotland Football League

The South of Scotland Football League (SoSFL) is a senior football competition based in south-west Scotland. The league sits at level 6 on the pyramid system, on par with the East of Scotland Football League and acts as a feeder to the Lowland Football League. It is currently composed of 16 member clubs in a single division.

The Scottish football league system is a series of generally unconnected leagues for Scottish football clubs. The Scottish system is more complicated than many other national league systems, consisting of several completely separate systems or 'grades' of leagues and clubs, with Senior football, Junior football, and beneath these Amateur and Welfare football.

FIFA International governing body of association football

The Fédération Internationale de Football Association is a non-profit organization which describes itself as an international governing body of association football, fútsal, beach soccer, and efootball. It is the highest governing body of football.

Edusport Academy won the 2016–17 South of Scotland League title to gain promotion to the Lowland League in the fifth tier of Scottish football. In February 2018, Ewing announced plans to separate the senior team from the academy and attract a fanbase by launching a new online membership scheme, Our Football Club. Members will have voting and decision-making powers, including a say on choosing a new name, crest and colours for the team. They will be able to recommend potential signings, but will have no say on team selection. Ewing stated at the launch of the project that his aim was to reach the Scottish Premiership by 2025. [11]

Scottish Premiership mens association football top division

The Scottish Premiership, known for sponsorship reasons as the Ladbrokes Premiership, is the top division of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL), the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish Premiership was established in July 2013, after the SPFL was formed by a merger of the Scottish Premier League and Scottish Football League. There are 12 teams in this division, with each team playing 38 matches per season. Sixteen clubs have played in the Scottish Premiership since its creation in the 2013–14 season. Celtic are the current league champions, being the only league champion to date since its establishment.

Stadium

Galabank, where Edusport Academy played their home fixtures from 2015 to 2019 Galabank - geograph.org.uk - 1221445.jpg
Galabank, where Edusport Academy played their home fixtures from 2015 to 2019

For the first season, South of Scotland League home matches were played at the Hamilton Palace Sports Ground in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire. From 2015 onwards, the team groundshared with Annan Athletic at their Galabank stadium in Annan, Dumfries and Galloway. [12] From the start of the 2019-2020 Lowland League season, the team will play at Alliance Park, their own purpose-built facility at Bothwellhaugh in Strathclyde Country Park near Motherwell, North Lanarkshire. [13] The name, which was voted for by more than 90% of Our Football Club members, was chosen to reflect the unity between the French and Scottish elements of the club. [14]

Annan Athletic F.C. association football club

Annan Athletic Football Club is a Scottish association football club based in the town of Annan, Dumfries and Galloway. The club was founded in 1942 and competes in Scottish League Two as a member of the Scottish Professional Football League.

Galabank

Galabank is a football stadium in the town of Annan, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It is the home ground of Scottish Professional Football League club Annan Athletic, who have played there since 1953. The ground has been shared by non-League teams Mid-Annandale (2012–2014) and Edusport Academy (2015–2019).

Annan, Dumfries and Galloway town in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland

Annan is a town and former royal burgh in Dumfries and Galloway, south-west Scotland. Historically part of Dumfriesshire, its public buildings include Annan Academy, of which the writer Thomas Carlyle was a pupil, and a Georgian building now known as "Bridge House". The Town Hall was built in Victorian style in 1878, using the local sandstone. Annan also features a Historic Resources Centre. In Port Street, some of the windows remain blocked up to avoid paying the window tax.

Current squad

As of 27 July 2019 [15]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.PositionPlayer
Flag of Scotland.svg GK Alex Marshall
Flag of Scotland.svg GK Nicky Hogarth(on loan from Rangers)
Flag of Scotland.svg DF Alan Reid(captain)
Flag of France.svg DF Jean Guy Lucas
Flag of Iraq.svg DF Ali El-Zubaidi
Flag of Scotland.svg DF Jack Breslin
Flag of Scotland.svg DF Dominic Slattery
Flag of Scotland.svg DF Kyle Johnson
Flag of Scotland.svg DF Jack McDowall
Flag of Scotland.svg MF Ben Daily
No.PositionPlayer
Flag of Scotland.svg MF John Guthrie
Flag of Scotland.svg MF Blair Docherty
Flag of Scotland.svg MF David Sinclair
Flag of Scotland.svg MF Ryan Finnie
Flag of Scotland.svg MF Reece Glackin
Flag of Scotland.svg FW Neil McLaughlin
Flag of Scotland.svg FW Marc Kelly
Flag of Scotland.svg FW Ross McNeil
Flag of Scotland.svg FW David Winters

Honours

Academy staff

As of 7 August 2018 [16]

PositionName
Owner / managing directorChris Ewing
General managerLaurent Ciechelski
Head coach – Lowland League Ricky Waddell
Coach Colin Cameron
Coach Jim Chapman
Coach Ryan McCann
Goalkeeping coach Bryn Halliwell
Sports therapistRoss Anderson
Sports scientistShannon McClellan

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References

  1. ↑ Mitchell, Robert (9 November 2011). "Edusport academy hopes to make footballing stars in Ravenscraig". Daily Record. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  2. ↑ "Football". Edusport Academy. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  3. ↑ "Education". Edusport Academy. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  4. ↑ "Edinburgh". Edusport Academy. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  5. ↑ "Edusport Academy evolves". Edusport Academy. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  6. ↑ "Spartans welcome French quartet to Ainslie Park". Spartans F.C. Women. 8 September 2015. Retrieved 12 November 2015.
  7. ↑ Gillespie, Stuart (6 June 2014). "St Cuthbert Wanderers boss welcomes new sides". Daily Record. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  8. 1 2 "South of Scotland League". Edusport Academy. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  9. ↑ "Wigtown unlucky in Cree Lodge cup final". The Galloway Gazette. Newton Stewart. 2 June 2015. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  10. ↑ Thomson, Paul (3 June 2015). "Lowland League welcome Cumbernauld Colts for next season". Daily Record. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  11. ↑ "Edusport Academy eyes Premiership place by 2025 under web-based fan membership". BBC Sport. 7 February 2018. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  12. ↑ Rutherford, Nichola; Rinaldi, Giancarlo (29 July 2015). "South of Scotland Live". BBC News. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
  13. ↑ "Alliance Park, home to Edusport Academy - Football Ground Map". www.footballgroundmap.com. Retrieved 29 June 2019.
  14. ↑ "Our new home!". Our Football Club. 29 May 2019. Retrieved 30 June 2019.
  15. ↑ "The Team - Our Football Club". Our Football Club. Retrieved 3 October 2018.
  16. ↑ "Meet the team". Edusport Academy. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
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