Appearance fees for our best players

[robin moore]

Alex's point about coaching is fair. Coaching is a top priority. Paul and I are in the process of setting up a national online coaching network for our juniors. This is not an overnight fix, but a long term approach which we feel is essential in improving and organising our existing and future internationals in a much more professional way. We are using our best young players as online coaches that have came right through the junior scene from an early age. One thing that I accept may be controversial is that we are asking this core team to coach juniors as young as 7. Some of you may think this might be a bit potty, but as I have said previously, we are taking a long term approach, putting the strongest coaches we have in as quickly as possible to support our most promising juniors even at a very young age. I was taken aback by the number of boys and girls playing at U8 and U10 level at the Euroyouths. I feel we need to focus on this strongly. Other countries are playing from about age 6 up, with professional support. We,on the other the hand are only really joining in properly at U12 level. If we wish to make progress as a chess playing nation we are going to have to start at the very bottom agegroups and support them in every way we can right through to late teenage years.

Robin.