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PSL in bid to improve football quality

Sport
The Castle Premiership Premier Soccer League is seeking to establish a technical study group involving former coaches and administrators in a move aimed at improving the standards of football in the country. The PSL has since requested Zifa for the establishment of the body to monitor the league’s games and competitions in collaboration with the […]

The Castle Premiership Premier Soccer League is seeking to establish a technical study group involving former coaches and administrators in a move aimed at improving the standards of football in the country.

The PSL has since requested Zifa for the establishment of the body to monitor the league’s games and competitions in collaboration with the football mother body’s technical director Nelson Matongorere and make recommendations for improvement.

PSL chief executive officer, Kennedy Ndebele yesterday said the league has made an application to Zifa and are awaiting a response. He said if the idea gets Zifa’s blessing, the PSL wanted to implement the programme beginning next year.

“It’s what we are planning to do as a league and we have written to Zifa requesting to establish a technical study group composed of retired coaches, referees and football administrators to look at the general organisation of all our events and report back on where we can improve.

“The coaches would look into the tactical and technical areas of teams and assist in making recommendations on improving organisation, physical fitness, techniques and tactics,” Ndebele said.

The PSL chief executive said the programme would be more of research and will have its main thrust on youth development and will fall under portfolio of the league’s board member (development), Cuthbert Chitima.

“They (members of the study group) will be observing our matches from next year. We want involvement of the Zifa technical director, that is why we are seeking permission from Zifa. It will be more of research work and the main objective is to improve the quality of football and help in youth development,” Ndebele said.

By the time of going to Press yesterday, Zifa communications manager Nicky Dlamini-Moyo said probably the letter from the PSL was in the hands of chief executive officer Jonathan Mashingaidze who was said to be out of office until today.

According to the Fifa website, a technical study group (TSG)’s priority is “to observe teams in matches and training sessions. “Initial impressions are fleshed out in a series of in-depth conversations, with the objective of prompting discussion and an exchange of views.

The information is collected in a report made available to Fifa member associations afterwards as a development tool. DVDs containing visual support materials for training programmes are also distributed.

The material aims to enhance and promote day-to-day activity on the training ground. The key goals are raising quality thresholds and promoting individual player development.”

Fifa says the TSG issues summaries and recommendations which are forwarded to the relevant decision-makers and, “Another hot topic is the role of national teams in an increasingly global game.

Major tournaments tend to confirm a very strong popular identification and focus on national teams. The TSG undertakes a wide range of tasks, but the fundamental priorities remain the same: to continue the development of the world’s best loved sport.”