Oxford United takes great pride in the development of the best local youngsters, both boys and girls, and has a fantastic tradition of giving those players an opportunity in the first team. The Spring Series saw a squad built predominantly from local players who have come through the RTC programme into the WSL side.
This summer will see a restructuring of the RTC programme and an adjustment to become Step 2 rather than Step 1. This will lead to a slight reduction in coaching hours, but as Women’s Manager Andy Cook explains, this will hopefully lead to greater gains in the long term.
“We have reviewed the RTC programme in consultation with FA” Andy told us “ and we feel now is the time to change things before the new season in August.
“Our commitment to helping the best young players develop in Oxford, and across Oxfordshire, is just as strong but at the same time we have to be sustainable and use the resources available to the best effect.
“There won’t be wholesale changes, but a few adjustments designed to focus what we do and allow us to be even sharper in our approach. We’ll be talking to the players and parents about this over the next week or so and outlining what we believe can be a winning formula for girl’s and women’s football at Oxford United.”