Contributed by Isaac Butler – VU WIL Placement Student
Last Friday Night the Western Bulldogs Futures Academy Pres-season block wrapped up with a set of three matches being played under lights at Skinner Reserve, Braybrook. These were be kicked off by the U14 Boys squads at 5pm followed by the combined U14 & U15 Girls squads at 6pm and concluded with the U15 boys at 7pm.
The Western Bulldogs Futures Academy is a club-led initiative in partnership with Western Jets, and surrounding leagues (including WFNL, RDFNL, EDFL) that supports the pathway for emerging Australian football talent in Melbourne’s West. Offering elite skill coaching, strength and conditioning, as well as in-depth athlete education.
For the past four weeks these U14 and U15 boys and girls have all participated in training sessions weekly helping to foster their skills and outlook on being a high performing athlete. Training sessions feature football craft development with experienced AFL-accredited coaches from the Western Bulldogs and other talent pathway programs providing in depth knowledge and guidance on improving as a player and teammate. Additionally having access to state-of-the-art gym facilities at Mission Whitten Oval provides the opportunity for structured and targeted athletic training for these athletes. Focusing on movement mechanics, injury prevention and long-term athlete development. Throughout these trainings there is also a large emphasis on holistic athlete education, this ranges from nutrition, training load, leadership, and mental health and resilience. Being run by industry experts, guest speakers and Western Bulldogs staff provides participants with real knowledge from experienced high-performance professionals.
Throughout this pre-season program spanning five weeks, the Future Academy participants have been able to improve their skills and knowledge exponentially and having a match to showcase this development was a great event.
Arriving in the uninspiring cold and slightly rainy March weather the U14 boys were still extremely excited to get underway. This being the first match for most of their seasons meant everyone was keen to get back into it. Two teams of 17 would play in two 20-minute halves. This game would prove to showcase the high standards that the Academy has instilled with brilliant moments showing up consistently. No score would be kept for this match, but it was an end-to-end affair throughout.
The Under 14 and 15 girls would combine to play a match together and even with the weather deteriorating managed to outshine the boy’s energy levels. This group would feature 56 attendants so 3 teams were created, these being split with the green, blue, and yellow Bulldogs jumpers. Each team would play a 13-minute game against all other teams. Again, these games showcased great levels of football and immense improvement was seen from the start of the block.
The U15 boys were the last game to be played at 7pm and similarly there were three teams due to the 50 attendees. During these short form games skills and athletic development were the key takeaways.
It was a great occasion and a brilliant end to a successful block of training and education for these young aspiring athletes. Thankfully the weather held off and it proved to be a great night of football with family and friends. The Western Bulldogs Futures Academy is slated to return in October 2026.
