I just wanted to fill everyone in on where we are with the ‘Introduction to Performance Analysis’ workshop. It’s been a really busy few weeks organizing everything and we feel confident we’ve put together a fantastic line-up, packing with insights into key areas and invaluable in helping people get into performance analysis. There has been a change to one of the speakers since we launched, but I think you’ll see we’ve secured one of the best around (Ross Appleton) as a replacement. Here’s what’s in store.
Speakers:
Ross Appleton is our first speaker up. Ross is a graduate in Sports and Exercise Sciences from UWIC and has spent over 10 years working as a Performance Analyst. Having previously been with the RFU, including two highly successful World Cup campaigns away with England in 2003 and 2007. He is now beginning his 4th season with 2011 Heineken Cup Finalists Northampton Saints where they deliver one of the best analysis programs in rugby. Ross has tremendous experience working at both international and club level. He will give a full run down on what it’s like to be a Performance Analyst at the highest level and what it takes to stay there. There are not too many opportunities to learn from people with this much experience so come ready to learn.
Ben Smith is up next. Ben is hugely experienced and currently leads an analysis department for Chelsea FC in Player Development. He has 8 years experience across the FA, Fulham FC, England Hockey, GB Wheelchair Rugby and host of other teams. Ben’s talk is all about the ‘new’ areas of Performance Analysis and the different ways it can be used away from traditional match analysis. Ben will explore analysis and its potential in areas such as Player development, Player Screening & Injury Prevention, Medicine, Scouting and Coach Development. This promises to be a great talk and a chance to learn about the areas of analysis that are growing fastest, so you can hone your skills and experience to be able to offer more than just ‘match analysis’.
Rob Carroll is the 3rd talk of the day. I will be talking about the Performance Analysis career path. Since establishing thevideoanalyst.com in 2008 it is the one question I get asked the most ‘How do I get a job in Performance Analysis’. During my presentation I will also go through the varied routes you can take to get into analysis and the merits of each. I will be discussing some of the tips and tricks you need to separate yourself from the herd, going from application to getting the job. Having spoken to many head performance analysts, I will give practical examples of the good and the bad ways to go about getting your dream job.
Jobs/Internships:
It has always our intention to offer exclusive internships on the day of the event. We are delighted to announce that we will be offering intern opportunites at the workshop from numerous sports and from varied areas of the country. These will vary from short term commitments (e.g. 2 weeks) through to season long development opportunities at the biggest clubs in the country. Some of these will be exclusively announced at the conference so it is an excellent opportunity for those who attend on the day. Full details will be given at the conference.
Companies:
As you will have seen from the conference program, we have a full section dedicated to learning more about the tools of the trade. It is important that you are exposed to the variety of equipment now operating in the market and get a good understanding of the particular uses of each. Not all performance analysis tools are the same and this final section will offer you a good opportunity to experience them all and come away with a solid understanding of how they are used professionally. Attending on the day are: ProZone, Dartfish, Sportscode, Focus, SpinSight and Performa Sports. There is a really good mix here of established players in the market and some new companies that are very innovative and will grow rapidly. Some of the products you will see have not yet been released on the market so will give you a great opportunity to be ahead of the pack.
Experience/Prizes:
We have a whole host of prizes to give away designed to help you get ahead in analysis. The prizes will include an IPad, analysis software and ‘analysis experience days’. These days will vary from working with a performance analyst in an elite sport institute, to product and training course giveaways. These prizes will be given away on the day.
All-in we think this will make for a fantastic day and gives you an opportunity to learn from some of the best analysts and companies in the business. To help you get to grips with the presentations and material again and again, we will be filming all sessions and make them available (cost and availability to be decided). We look forward to meeting you and hope you enjoy it.
As a friendly warning:
We are limiting the number of places this year and only have 25 places remaining. It is highly unlikely we will be able to take new bookings on the day. If you are interested in coming but haven’t booked yet, then you need to book ASAP to avoid disappointment (see thevideoanalyst.com). Thanks.
