03-08-2012, 10:05 AM
Quote:What we have lacked over quite a few years is any form of structure that players can engage in and which will develop them in a systematic manner that ensures that they have all the skills and not just raw talent.
Such structures exist in sports like cycling and swimming. Not sure what comes first - the money or the structure but I do suspect without such a structure it will be harder to attract investment.
Is this not something that that the junior board should address?
External investment is always going to be difficult with sponsors/investors getting something in return - many will not do or give anything without some form of return (advertising, publicity - something tangible no matter how small). Early posts hinted at producing some form of material that could be given to potential sponsors and that probably needs to come first. Simply saying that someone is investing in future talent is not enough, especially when you are only looking at 20/30 select players and not the whole spectrum of junior development.
Increase the membership as a whole, bringing in revenue in membership fees, and perhaps more money (even a little is better than none) can come from within.
We really need to get juniors into clubs - all juniors into all clubs across Scotland, and all playing strengths. Once in clubs they will gain competition experience and additional encouragement playing in club and league competitions - maybe even starting a junior league with a team being made up of juniors from different age categories.
To assist clubs, and schools for that matter, should there not be a national curriculum of chess teaching/development with certification as students progress. Clubs, trainers do the teaching and we have some national test bank that can be applied for when the need arises (and a small fee for the test) and taken under controlled conditions. Would obviously need some considerable amount of work, but there is more chance that this sort of thing could attract government funding than overseas trips for a select few.