Mick Horsfall Interview

By Sam Heaney

Youth team coach - Mick Horsfall, very recently received his UEFA B level in coaching.

'It was hard work, I'm not going to lie. However, it was definitely worth it.‘There's a whole range of topics that goes into the coaching level. It isn't just related to the football side, on the pitch, but there's also nutrition, fitness, psychology etc... It is a very in depth procedure with tactics playing a part in it also! I really enjoyed it!’

Mick's coaching badge will without a doubt benefit Fleetwood Town's Youth Team.

'The players are not just looked at now as footballers. They're receiving information on the topics such as psychology and nutrition. The fitness levels will now improve because I'm a qualified fitness trainer due to getting the UEFA B.'

'I believe the players need the further information rather than just being good with a ball. Their knowledge and understanding will increase which will benefit all.'

The Youth Coach is always aiming high and pushing on.

'I will definitely be aiming higher. Already, myself and Steve Carlin (Youth Team Manager) are
lined up to do the UEFA A prep course - the highest level we can go. I start at the end of November.'

Fleetwood Town's Youth are well into their season. Competing in the league and the cup.

'Unfortunately, we were knocked out on penalties to Hartlepool. It was a difficult game that we could have won - that's the cup for you, anything can happen!'

'We had been practising our penalty taking prior to the match but the one missed penalty was the one that counted and saw the team knocked out of the cup.'

'In the league we've been a little hit and miss. The league table doesn't look great on our behalf but on terms of performances you could really say the lads have been outstanding at times. Mainly, we have just failed to capitalise on chances - if we took these and scored more goals our league position would be a lot different.'

There is of course, an academic side at Fleetwood in which has a big impact on the staff and the players.

'It's obvious all footballers want to play non-stop. The academic side will help the players a lot in the future; it's important they realise this because it can have a huge impact on their lives.'

Not everyone is the same age and it can be hard for players to bond and play together at first.

'There are some characters in the team - a few jokers! The first year students are getting used to the sudden change from school and they've been really good. We have a great set of lads on board, all willing to work hard.'

'In order to improve, we want the players to start putting what the coaches are saying into action. Football is all about learning from mistakes; therefore it can be done right the next time. This helps everyone understand what does work and what doesn't.'

'There are some unbelievably talented lads in our set up. Not all players will make it as a pro but we're hoping that we take ¾ of them up to the First Team.'

Mick Horsfall plays a big part in the Youth set up with a continuous routine every week.

'On Monday, we tend to watch the fixture from Saturday on dvd and then do a bit of match analysis. We work on things that may have gone wrong in each game so we can rule out mistakes made.’

‘Tuesday is usually the day for fitness. It's a full day full of exercises. We usually go into training for a bit in the afternoon - it can get really busy.’

‘Wednesdays, we tend to have a solid training session in the morning. Then go to our fitness partners, the De Vere Hotel in Blackpool, and use their superb facilities.’

‘Thursday is our day off which is nice to we as coaches can recoup and plan things and the players get to rest.’

‘Friday is mainly preparing for the game on Saturday so there isn't really any time to rest when there's a game the next day!'

The team have a packed fixture list so the games come thick and fast.
'We recently lost 3-1 to Bury but we were able to take some positives from that game.We had a really good 45 minutes.'
'We are competing in another cup soon, against York. We don't know what they are like but we're expecting a good challenge!'