Torrential rain is the order of the day at a recent masterclass for aspiring goalkeepers at Tavistock Football Development Centre.

The day-long session ‘Save like a Pro’ at Crowndale Road was a soggy affair but the pouring rain did little to dampen the spirits of the 30 or so youngsters who’d turned out for the coaching session with Plymouth Argyle women’s goalkeeper Lily Felgate. She made her debut at Argyle in the 2023/24 league after joining at under-14s level.

Coach Andy Meeds is putting the children through their paces alongside Lily and although soaked to the skin the children launch themselves enthusiastically at each ball. Despite the deluge, the ground is hard after weeks of dry weather. Andy laughs reassuringly as he carefully watches the children: “We teach them how to land properly.”

The idea behind the new development centre came about when co-director at the centre Louis Ormston was coaching for Tavistock Community FC and became manager for Tavistock AFC Development Squad. He was regularly contacted by Plymouth Argyle fielding queries about the talent in the club. It took a parent raising the issue of having to travel to Plymouth or Saltash for training for Louis to realise they were missing a trick.

He said: “It was a penny-drop moment, I’ve spent two or three years here sending our talent away, oh no! What have I done?! I need to do something about it.”

Co-director of the centre Michelle Fitzsimmons, a published author of children’s storybooks, had been running inclusive football sessions, in an oversaturated football after-school clubs and inclusive-for-all programmes market, Louis explains.

He said: “What was being forgotten about was, what about some of the players with talent? Can we bring what Argyle have brought to the areas that they focus, to Tavistock? Can we bring good quality coaches in?”

The answer to the question was a resounding yes. The centre’s current Monday night sessions have had 200 children through the doors in the first six months. The development programme offers sessions across ages seven to 16, including skill development, advanced training, elite performance, goalkeeper coaching and dedicated girls coaching. Their offer also includes ‘Mini Lambs’ sessions for children aged four to six years old.

The centre was established to focus entirely on player development through high-quality coaching and creating opportunities for young players to improve their skills in a positive and supportive environment. It regularly attracts UEFA B and A coaches who share the ethos of the development centre.

Louis, who is a qualified teacher and football coach emphasises the difference between their development centre and grassroots football, explaining: “Kids are under pressure on a Saturday morning to get three points for their team but the environment that we offer is purely development; let’s try and improve your individual skills and break that down and there’s no pressure on wins.

“We do games too so that we can see the things that we have taught the children, we can see them doing in a game scenario under pressure.

“Our wins are seeing children improve with their technique rather than getting a win against another side.”

With the business acumen of co-director Michelle and Louis’s footballing connections, the six-month-old initiative is going from strength to strength, and is now attracting children from a wider area with children from Plymouth, Callington and even Newton Abbot making their way out to Tavistock to join in, but the emphasis is very much on developing the local talent.

“The threshold changes in football and you have to work out what you’ve got in the area. You can’t set the bar too high because we’re a developing area. The pool of players that we’ve got we have been assessed but 90 per cent have been ready for what we’re offering,” said Louise.

“It’s person-centred as well,” he adds. “Ultimately there are a couple of people that have come in, and they’re maybe not quite ready. We work with them on a plan. We don’t just go, you’re not good enough, see you later! We go, how can we get you to that? Is there an open group we can refer you into now and then let’s keep an eye on it for a couple of months and get you to there and bring you back in.

“What I didn’t want was a cut throat academy environment,” Louis adds. “Football can be quite a cruel place.”

The group which has been operating since October 2024 has aspirations to follow the model of Argyle Community Trust, with the connection and networking and giving back to the community.

The centre has attracted some criticism from local grassroots clubs in Tavistock since its inception. For Louis however, the club blueprint is crystal clear, with initiative filling a void that can only enhance the current offering in the town.

The negativity he said came from people who hadn’t taken the time to just contact the centre and have a conversation to understand what they were trying to do. “For me,” he said, “it’s got to be about the children. Are we focusing on them? Do they like the additional one or two hours a week? Do they like that? All the kids say, yeah, if we can play more football, that’s great.

“We’re educating Tavistock at the moment, because a lot of people feel a disconnect with the club. Getting people into the right mindset has been difficult. We’re still years behind your Plymouth, your Saltash and Torpoint.

“It was sad at the beginning,” added Louis, “because you’re offering a service, and trying to bring the area up to spec with Plymouth and places like that; there was a bit of resistance.

“But now people around football have approached us and understood what we’re about.

“We’re not a grassroots club and we’re not going into a grassroots league. Our blueprint will always be developing the children.”