“I have worked closely with Derek Lilly over the past 5 years and he clearly understands what is needed at the grass roots level for young footballers. Derek’s philosophy is that we must teach young children the basics of technical football before we try and “leap” into the more complex side of the game. Derek’s “3-2-1″ concept is very simple to implement and has a proven track record of enabling young footballers to start their journey. The results over the past 2 years have been very encouraging and I would strongly urge coaches to pay attention to the very simple concepts Derek is prescribing – teach children to play with the ball at their feet, to control with ease and to pass accurately and quickly.”
~ Pete Waters Founding Partner: Football Central Wanaka Academy
“I’ve known Derek for a number of years and the thing that first strikes you about his ability to coach is his enthusiasm. Derek loves football and his natural enthusiasm for the game helps to focus those working with him and passes down to those he coaches. He has an excellent understanding of the game and the approach to de-construct it into a more simplistic coaching concept clearly works for younger children”.
~ Ashley Brown Director: Portsmouth Football Club
“Having recently worked with Derek at regional age group tournaments, I have a good appreciation of the way Derek likes to see the game played. The 3-2-1 Academy will be a illustration of his vision.
The philosophy will enable players to develop a strong first touch and ultimately lead to players having a better overall technique. Once mastered this will enable players and teams to play the game at a higher speed of play”.
~ Jamie Whitmarsh Founder: The Whitmarsh Academy (FA Uefa “B” Licence coach)
If you have any comments you want to share with me about your success, please email me at del@321footballacademy.com and I will post your comments on the testimonials page.