Support Our Academy Day is the club’s rally call.
With an emphasis on youth development, despite the academy status changing when we dropped to the National League, we still have an extremely active Rochdale AFC academy. Its vitality is still driven by passionate young footballers who want to develop and grow under the Rochdale AFC banner. Indeed, as a club which has thrived on “HomeGrown” players, it’s great to see such activity, which will be showcased this coming Saturday when we play Truro on our nice new pitch. Sharing that experience, and indeed the day, will be our academy students.
Read the article below (all images thanks to RAFC Media Dept), taken from the club’s website, and let’s not only verbally back the lads but also financially back the boys by dropping a coin or two into the buckets, which will be shaken by the players’ parents, as the club designates Saturday’s game as an ACADEMY DAY!
Players from our Under-9 to Under-16 boys teams will be in attendance, raising money for their upcoming footballing trips to Belgium.
The teams will face established Belgian academies such as Club Brugge and Royal Antwerp during their visit, as well as enjoying a training camp and social activities.
Players and parents will be holding a bucket collection before our match against Truro City on Saturday, before taking part in a half-time lap of honour. Additionally, when you purchase a match ticket on Fanbase, an option to donate to the Youth Team will appear. Just select the Youth Team fundraiser button when going through the checkout process.
Head of Academy (U9-16s) James Caldwell commented:
“We’re heading out to Belgium with our YDP (Youth Development Phase) groups on the 16th February for five days. We’ll be playing against some stellar European sides as well as having a training camp.
“It’s also a great opportunity for the players to learn some social skills. For some of the boys, it will be their first time away from home without their parents.
“We’ll be doing the same again in April with some of our younger age groups. We’ve fundraised heavily already to try to cover the costs, which are expensive.
“The support we can get from the wider fanbase helps us to push these trips over the line and make sure we can provide a great experience for the players.”
We would encourage supporters, where they can, to donate on Saturday. Bucket collectors will be situated inside the turnstiles and in our hospitality areas.
Click the video below to hear more from James Caldwell. It is great to see the commitment shown by the players.
