Carlisle United Football Club are delighted to announce an exciting new partnership with Durham-based Park View Academy of Sport, with the focus on under-19s football. This partnership will create a pathway for Carlisle United to have an under 19 squad playing in the National Football Youth League, with the education delivered by Park View Academy of Sport.
Park View Academy of Sport are based at the Emirates International Ground Riverside Chester-le-Street. This new partnership will provide pathways for 16 to 19-year-old footballers who are not affiliated to professional club’s academies the chance to be part of a football scholarship scheme, representing Carlisle United in a National League structure. Through this unique and innovative partnership players can benefit from a clear route into a career in sport and perhaps professional football.
The formation of Carlisle United PV U19 will see the academy expand its reach providing more players from the north east with a realistic pathway into professional football. Park View Academy of Sport and Carlsile United Academy staff are set to work closely together. Academy manager Darren Edmondson will visit Park View to carry out player performance analysis sessions and the programme will mirror the under-18 scholarship scheme already in place at Brunton Park.
United’s academy boss Darren Edmondson said: “Traditionally we’ve taken players from the north-east over the years and it can be quite an upheaval for them, particularly at such a young age.
“Moving across here to live in digs adds pressure to what is an already intense two-year period, but we’ve been very aware of the fact that the north-east is a region we want to continue to tap-in to, whenever possible.
“We’ve seen in the recent past that there are some very good players over there who fall out of the system at all ages, from clubs like Sunderland and Newcastle United, but they’re still good enough to go on to have very successful careers.”
“I’ve been talking to Park View for a long time now, and they have a structure which fits with our own professional ethos,” he added. “It’s an exceptional facility, and the players will get a high standard of educational opportunities alongside their football needs.
“If players develop as we think they will, the opportunity will also be there for them to play over here. Having looked at the campus, met the staff and explored the vision and pathway, it’s become clear that it is going to be hugely beneficial to all parties.
“Park View will be playing in the National Football Youth League which is primarily for those lads who have been released at 16, and those who are extending their scholarship having moved on from clubs at 18. We think there will be a wealth of talent for us to take a very close look at.”
Lewis Pendleton, the Director of Sport at Park View Academy, said: “We founded the academy last year, and it’s effectively a third campus of Park View school which is dedicated to sport.
“We’re based at the Emirates International Cricket Ground in Durham and we have world class facilities, which includes full-sized grass pitches, a 3G pitch and a centre showcase pitch with an athletics track.
“The push for us at the moment is to develop the 16 to 19-year-old programme alongside Carlisle United. That means we are basically expanding Carlisle United’s academy into the north-east.
“The scholars who are with us have a choice of any A-Level course they want to study, and they combine that with our football scholarship programme. They can also choose a BTEC Diploma in Sport, or a Fitness Diploma.
“Every player in the academy will be screened, so they must be of a high standard. We will then provide Darren will all of their stats. We use Playertek GPS analysis for the players which allows us to analyse their performances in training and games.
“The main idea here is that we go on to provide a pathway for players from the north-east to represent Carlisle. Going forward we’ll also be looking to develop a third-year programme, so when boys leave Carlisle United’s Academy at 18, we can provide them with an additional year of playing national football.
“That would then mean they’re a year closer to the first team, as it’s obviously a massive jump from under-18 football to the professional ranks. We’re hoping to be able to help to begin to bridge that gap.”
“I must say that Nigel Clibbens has been instrumental in seeing this vision through with us, and it’s fantastic that we’re coming together to present young people with the opportunity to push on,” he concluded. “As a school we are obviously delighted to be associated with Carlisle United because they are a massive Football League club.”
