The newest group of apprentices sign on
Greenock Morton were delighted to welcome six new apprentices to Cappielow with their families last night to sign their first apprentice contracts with the club.
With presentations and speeches from Club Chairman John Laird, Head of Youth Derek Anderson, under 18’s Head Coach Pat McIlvogue, Academy Sports Scientist Daniel Nelis and General Manager Dale Pryde-MacDonald, the players had the next year clearly mapped out for them.
They will now enter the first year of their apprenticeships where they will be exposed to further contact time with coaches, additional gym and sport science work as well as developing their education opportunities within the school environment.
The apprenticeship programme aims to help develop the young talents of Greenock Morton Football Club into First Team players as well as giving each player the chance to continue formal education and achieve new qualifications.
The programme which has been developed over the last couple of years has seen benefits for integrated players within the first team such as Logan O’Boy and Sam Murdoch and the club looks forward to watching our next batch of apprentices thrive.
In this year’s Academy Apprenticeship group, we are delighted to welcome the following players onboard:
• Niall Graham
• Brandyn Bain
• Isaac English
• Joe Burns
• Fraser Rodger
• Sam McGarva
This programme would not be possible without the support of Dalrada Technology and Morton Club Together who continue to provide significant financial backing which in turn provides a platform for the club to help grow and develop youth players.
General Manager, Dale Pryde-MacDonald said, “Firstly I have to say it was great to meet and speak with the 6 boys and their families. They have a fantastic opportunity in front of them, an opportunity that could only be available thanks to the support of Dalrada Technology and MCT.”
“The hard work really starts for the boys now. I asked them when they signed, who do you want to be in 15- 20 years time: do you want to be the guy that played 600 games in their career or do you want to be the guy who didn’t have the right mindset and bounced around making 200 appearances in their career and retires at 27? At this age its now about their mindset and beginning to live your life like a professional footballer – your diet, your routine, your preparation and we want every young player to grasp this opportunity with both hands.”
“For these players now its about pushing themselves each and every day and being accountable, making sure that they gives themselves the best opportunity to progress. If they do that hopefully we will see them make some exciting strides over the next couple of years.”
