Les Croft, the father of Jacob kindly shared his story so far and the journey following an excellent performance at our Manchester trial.

Jacob, Les, please tell us more about your football background?

Jacob started playing Sunday grassroots from the age of 6 (playing up a year for an U7’s team, San Siro FC). They won the league cup that year and since then, had been playing for FC Samba from u7’s right up until u12’s, but eventually had to leave after signing for Chester FC from your events.  

In our opinion - having fun is the most important part of a young grassroot player. Having that fun allows the child to play, grow and develop without the pressure of failure. With FC Samba, this was his ‘fun’ team in which he had long term friends, and we would do lots of team bonding events and tournaments, just as a group of boys and parents that just enjoyed the social side that grassroots has to offer. Jacob’s Saturday grassroots team was always more of a competitive nature with a higher level standard. It was important to us to balance the two sides out.

What was the reason you weren’t getting an opportunity and decided to come to a UK Football Trials Event?

Prior to attending the UK Football trial, Jacob had some exposure to scouts. We were lucky to be part of Football Tots,  Jacob’s Saturday grassroots team. The coach there was fantastic and was integral to Jacobs early years development. We visited many academies around the north west and Wales. Jacob also had a short spell at Everton development academy at u8’s. I always felt that Jacob was just ‘unlucky’, or ‘the coaches weren’t looking his way’. Having looked at UK Football Trials website, I was very confident that Jacob was going to be seen, and it was just about him having to perform on the day.

What was your club trial/training like, how did you find the level and the whole experience?

Jacob was originally asked to complete a 2-week trial. It was for three 90-min session a week. The training was very well organised and fast paced. Jacob applied himself with confidence, settled in straightaway and did what he always does, and that impressed the coaches and was asked sign for them on the second day of his trial. Jacob found the whole experience exciting, albeit with the added pressure of not wanting to fail.  

Has the experience changed your mindset or training away from the club?

Jacob has become a lot more conscious of having to keep doing all the right things away from the training he is getting. Trying to get the right rest, exercise and diet has become important to Jacob.

What advice would you give to other players who think they have the talent but need an opportunity to get scouted?

My advice would be to be patient. If a child has ability, then there will be many many opportunities for them to showcase their skills as they grow. The key thing is knowing that when opportunities do happen, that your child is ready to conduct themselves in a way that will get them noticed. UK Football Trails offered us invaluable insight on this and advice on how to prepare. If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.  

Congratulations to Jacob from all the team at UK Football Trials and we look forward to tracking his progress and development in the game!