WARRINGTON Wolves' scholarship scheme is shaping up well.

Chief scout Jimmy Reader was doing all the recruitment of young players before I came to the club but I felt we had to rationalise a bit.

We had our successes with the likes of Lee Penny, Mark Hilton, Paul Sculthorpe and Iestyn Harris, but I just thought the averages were a little down.

Also we needed to home in on the players between 14 and 16 years old and properly develop their skills because I was concerned about young players' lack of basic understanding and basic skills - and this is right across the country.

I was also conscious of giving children in Warrington an opportunity too because it is their club and their town and this scheme allows us to do this.

So now we have the under 14, under 15 and under 16 scholarship groups.

After trimming the squads down to manageable sizes of around 15 to 20 they come to Wilderspool once a month.

They come here to train under the first team players and coaches John Fieldhouse and Bob Eccles. On Monday, Scott Wilson and Simon Gillies gave them a session but it will be rotated so that the young players are introduced to different varieties of coaching.

But the theme of it all is based on the simple things, building a better quality player by the time he reaches 16 and 17. It means now we will only be contracting young players after they have come through our scholarship ranks, with rare exceptions being looked at on an individual basis.

The squads aren't closed, they are monitored and if anyone has missed out on our initial recruitment then if someone advises us we will have a look at the player.

And if the young players are not professional in relation to turning up for the monthly sessions they will be cut. It is all about the discipline and regimentation that we need to have in a professional club. I want to teach the kids at this age that I don't want them turning up with boots covered in mud. They must look professional and have a pride in themselves and their performances. All these things are crucial in the final make-up of a professional player.

The scheme is based on the youngsters not receiving any monetary reward - instead they receive sponsored kit every year, such as boots, tracksuits and other gear.

It is similar to a scheme I ran in Australia when I was with the South Queensland Crushers. Our youth development officer Paul Darbyshire is running it for me and has done a super job in setting it up and has worked really hard on it. He should receive all the accolades.

Incidentally, we are still looking for a sponsor for the scheme. If a company is looking to put around £6,000 back into the community then this could be just for you. This is not just kids signing for Warrington, some of them will be signed by other clubs at the end of their period. The ultimate aim is to make these players better players, more professional and disciplined in day to day life, not just in Rugby League. And from this, if Warrington Rugby League Club benefits from players coming through to join us on contracts then that is a bonus.

It is a community objective. I want the kids off the streets, down here training and playing and enjoying being part of hopefully a successful club.

This column is sponsored by Copy Centre, Design and Print, London Road, Stockton Heath

Converted for the new archive on 13 March 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.