Mate, to be honest I think 19 is a massive stretch. I know it says that on the NZ page, but by the looks 5-6 of those will be bots in the next couple of weeks. So I would say we are left with 10-12 teams that are possible to have engaged in any plans moving forward. I would be happy if we could get half of those active and contributing to both the U21 and the NT. I know myself and Hoddy also have utopian teams that will basically be used as farms for training Kiwis. If with the utopian teams we can get to 6-8 teams training and working together then I think we will be in a position where we can even start to look to train U21 and NT players separately.
By separately I am referring to the fact that optimal training for U21 players is actually different to NT players. U21 players need to be trained in primary skills straight away and basically the whole way through until they are 21. If we can get 6-8 teams training then we may be able to earmark 1-2 trainees per season who can be trained especially for the NT. Usually this involves training the secondary skilll positions earlier so that the salary is kept under control for managers over a longer period of time.
Either way I think the most important thing is to find another couple of managers that can help out with all plans over the next 5-10 seasons. As I mentioned this isn’t results based at all in the short term.
Chers