ETS welcomes West Bromwich Albion for week of footballing masterclasses
Coaches Dave Lawrence and Katie Grainger paving the way for player and staff opportunities
Coaches don’t just tweak or tinker, they mould and inspire.
As part of their ongoing partnership Education Through Soccer (ETS) hosted two senior coaching figures from West Bromwich Albion Football Club. For just over a week, Dave Lawrence and Katie Grainger treated ETS players and coaches to multiple sessions a day of refined technical and tactical training. ETS helped to spread the pair’s expertise with as many as possible, spending three days in Durban as well as welcoming guests from the North West province.
Dave was appointed Director of Football for West Brom’s women’s programme in late-2021 and Katie has been at West Brom for five years, developing female talent and running their schools outreach programme. Many of the sessions were structured in a way that forced the players to either problem-solve or step into leadership roles, while learning to understand the game in a less rigid fashion. Katie noted how teachable the players were but emphasised a need to break away from classroom-like coaching plans.
One of the local visitors was Rocking Stars FC from Rustenburg. Jerry Kule brought 20 players from various age groups for the rare experience. “It is important to give the boys this type of exposure. It is very beneficial to have them see the methods used outside of the country.”
Additionally, a feature of the week was the coaches clinic held on Saturday June 25. As well as the English duo, attendees were treated to a coaching exhibition from Mamelodi Sundowns Head of Youth and Methodology, Shawn Bishop.
The week’s visit is part of the long-term strategy for ETS to grow their coaching capabilities and develop accessible pathways for young players. This vision mirrors Dave’s own ambitions, as he said, “It is about working with key people who we know can work with us to create opportunities for players. We work in South Africa with ETS only and I see ETS as having a really good model here for coach education that can be a leader across Johannesburg and even South Africa.”
Lloyd Tuffney, ETS’s owner, reiterated this stance, welcoming the opportunity to have his coaches and players learn from seasoned professionals. “It gives them all an added dimension. It shows them the level that they need to attain to become good footballers,” he said.
With interests aligned, a partnership can blossom, as Dave highlighted, “We certainly are quite humble in our approach, we only want to be working with people whose intentions revolve completely around player and staff development. Here, ETS has the drive and ambition to support that.”
