In October, founding member of Grasspiece Promotions Bruce Sigsworth, travelled to the United Kingdom to embark on the equivalent of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) C Licence/English Football Association (FA) Level 2 Certificate in Coaching Football and the FA Safeguarding Children Certificate, which is a prerequisite for the UEFA B Licence.

Having already obtained his CONCACAF D Licence, Coerver Youth Diploma and other English FA Certificates in Coaching Football, Mr. Sigsworth spent two weeks in the United Kingdom based in Swindon, where he was attached to the Swindon Town FC Youth Academy outside of the 75- hour course. With good weather he completed the Initial Course and the FA Safeguarding Children Certificate at a high level and will return to the United Kingdom to complete the two Mandatory Support Training days and the Final Assessment Day early in the New Year.

For further experience during his trip he also visited the Reading FC Youth Academy and the prestigious West Ham FC Youth Academy, with the added bonus of observing one of the best youth development coaches, Tony Carr, train the West Ham Under 18 Academy team.

Mr. Sigsworth was also privileged to meet with the Queens Park Rangers (QPR) Under 18 Academy coach and former Reggae Boy Paul Hall and witnessed the Arsenal ladies player Rachael Yankey and ex-Chelsea player Paulo Ferreira undertake a few practical sessions in their UEFA B Licence Course.

Commenting on his experience during the trip, Mr. Sigsworth said, “It was a very challenging, detailed and methodical course. It is designed to challenge all participants and is not simply a ‘show- up and pass’ course. Your ability as a coach is tested and if competent, you gain certification. I thoroughly enjoyed my time on the course, at the Swindon Town, West Ham and Reading FC Academies and meeting with QPR’s coaches and other individuals. This was a treasured gift to me

and was only accomplished with the support of Grasspiece Promotions, JNB Distributors, Fitzroy Simpson, Jeremy Newton and Jamie Pitman of Swindon Town FC, my family and friends and the Borde family. I am hoping to secure additional financial support to complete the next leg of this journey in the New Year.”

The UEFA C/Level 2 Certificate in Coaching Football course provides a more in-depth understanding of coaching. The course introduces new themes and key aspects related to the role of a football coach in working with youth players. It looks at different coaching styles, all the technical aspects of coaching including the principles of attacking and defending, developing progressive coaching sessions, fitness and nutritional needs of footballers, coaching session evaluations and preparing for potential accidents and emergencies.

The UEFA Coaching Licence ‘Pyramid’ consists of Level 1 Certificate in Coaching Football, Level 2 Certificate in Coaching Football, Level 3 UEFA B Licence, Level 4 UEFA A Licence and the Level 5 UEFA Pro Licence.

Grasspiece Promotions was formed in 2013 primarily to promote and improve youth football and relationships between the Cayman Islands’ football fraternity and its partners through tournaments, coaching clinics, player clinics, and other events.

Over the past year, Grasspiece Promotions has solidified its relationship with Swindon Town FC’s Youth Academy through the hosting of the inaugural C3 Cayman International Youth Football Tournament in February 2014, which included the Cayman Islands National Under 15 Team, the Under 15 team from Swindon’s Youth Academy and Major League Soccer’s (MLS) Houston Dynamo.

While in Swindon, Mr. Sigsworth spent time with several of the teams at the Swindon Town Youth Academy and coaching staff under the tutelage of Academy Director and frequent visitor to Grand Cayman Jeremy Newton.

He also stated “I look forward to sharing what I have gained with local coaches and hope for additional support towards improving coaching from all associated with football in Cayman.

Grasspiece Promotions is currently organising the 2015 Cayman International Youth Football Tournament and a Swindon Town Youth Academy Camp, which is scheduled for February.

Teams confirmed to compete in next year’s tournament are the Cayman Islands Under 15 National Team and the Under 15 team from the Swindon Town FC Youth Academy. Grasspiece is currently in negotiations with three other youth academies from English professional teams as well as the Houston Dynamo from the MLS.

For further information or support of the 2015 Cayman International Youth Football Tournament and the Swindon Town FC Youth Camp, please e-mail [email protected].