NEW WESTERN Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge could be the final senior coach appointed before the introduction of an accreditation program that will become a mandatory qualification for all applicants to vacant senior coaching posts.

 

The AFL is edging closer to developing the Level 4 AFL Award course with hopes high that up to 10 assistant coaches will start the two-year program early next year.

 

Most senior AFL coaches have been consulted since a draft proposal was shown to club presidents and CEOs at a meeting in August and are understood to have expressed support for the framework being developed.

 

The proposal will also require all senior coaches to engage in continuous professional development in order to be re-accredited every two years.

 

In addition, every coach employed within the AFL system will need to have completed the existing level three high performance coach program.

 

AFL Coaches Association CEO Mark Brayshaw met with the AFL's Michael Poulton last week and is pleased with the progress being made on the new qualification.

 

"There is widespread support among all the coaches that I have spoken to for the idea of accreditation but it is conditional and the condition is that it is meaningful, fair, and basically the support [exists] subject to the detail," Brayshaw told AFL.com.au.

 

The two-year program would expose prospective coaches to all elements required to do the ever-expanding job successfully and also requires supervised practice with support from former senior coaches and others in the industry.

 

Although the name of the proposed program is yet to be confirmed Poulton described it as the "PhD in coaching AFL football, as it will tailor a very high level of learning specific to the needs of an AFL coach. In a PhD the rigour involved is substantial, the investment in time and learning significant and the recognition justifiably enormous."

 

Despite this, having achieved the qualification, no one is under any illusion that the coach will still have plenty of learning ahead of them once they are in the role.

 

The two-year program would include a peer review system and would qualify participants to become a senior coach.

 

A further outcome of the program would be the preparation of senior assistant coaches who are aspiring to the role of a director of coaching, rather than a senior coach.

 

To gain entry to the program, applicants will be assessed by a selection panel made up of representatives from inside and outside the industry.

 

Poulton, who worked at the AFLCA before joining the AFL, expects to consult every coach before it is launched.

 

He said it was important that a profession such as coaching had a relevant qualification, continuous professional development underpinning it and the accountability of peer review.

 

"The accreditation program teaches skills and provides relevant experience that you need to be successful in a role such as senior coaching," Poulton told AFL.com.au. 

"With other professions we don't question it but somehow with coaching we think anyone can do it."

 

Brayshaw agrees with Poulton saying if it is good enough for other professions such as doctors or pilots to commit to professional development to maintain their licence or registration then it is good enough for senior coaches to do the same.

 

Brayshaw said the increasingly regulated environment in which the game operates made it essential for even the most experienced coaches to constantly update their knowledge and ability to learn.

 

"The game is evolving and the framework in which the coach works is changing at such a rapid rate that it makes even more sense to continue to make time to make sure even the most experienced coaches are across the evolution of the game," Brayshaw said.

 

He said the AFLCA's role was to make sure the program developed was strong enough to be clearly valuable to current and prospective coaches and impacted on their readiness for the role.

 

Poulton said the support he has received from senior coaches and the AFLCA has been superb.

 

All parties understand that the accreditation system will work if it has support because of its value rather than being a program imposed on coaches. 

 

Brayshaw said the AFLCA also had a responsibility to reduce the turnover and ensure those going into the job were as prepared as they could be when the opportunity arose.

 

"The failure rate in coaches is unacceptably high," Brayshaw said.

 

Whilst Poulton agrees with Brayshaw and the acknowledges the cost to the industry of sacked coaches he does not believe the qualification is the 'silver bullet'.

 

"In all professions, fully qualified individuals still fail at their job and sadly this program won't guarantee that every coach will be successful. What it will do is prepare prospective coaches as well as possible for their role and clearly identify the pool of talent from which the senior coaches will come," Poulton said.

 

Three coaches were replaced in the off-season with Hawthorn, North Melbourne and Richmond the only three clubs to have not changed their coach since the start of 2010.  

 

Former senior coaches are keen to help develop the next wave of senior coaches.

 

"To a man they have exhibited a willingness to share their experiences and help the next guy," Brayshaw said.