Dr. Mark Partington, Senior Lecturer in Sport Coaching, with vast experience in academy football coaching and development, as well as working with the English Football Association, has partnered with Wigan Athletic Football Club and designed a transformative Coach Development Programme. The initiative responds to a pressing need within football coaching and the Premier Leagues’ Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) to have structured, evidence-based support that directly improves how coaches improve players.
Historically, the literature highlights that coach development has been fragmented, often relying on subjective feedback, decontextualised and fails to address the unique demands of professional football development. This “one size fits all” approach limits meaningful change in coaches’ practice and, by extension, player development. By working directly with Wigan Athletic FC, Dr. Partington’s programme sought to embed a consistent, measurable, and context-specific coach development programme that would benefit both coaches and players.
Embedding evidence and observation in practice
The coach development programme’s success included structured observation, objective data collection, video analysis, CPD workshops, and individualised coach support. This multi-layered approach, working alongside the Head of Coach Development, enables coaches to see the impact of their decisions linked to player development, reflect on their behaviour, and adapt their practice accordingly.
During the first phase with Wigan Athletic FC, coaches demonstrated notable improvements in their practice design, communication, and player engagement. The use of video and data-informed feedback complemented just opinion-based advice with precise, actionable insights, helping coaches become more consistent and intentional in their interactions.
Tangible Impact on Coaches and Players
The partnership with Wigan Athletic FC has produced measurable benefits. Coaches now approach sessions with greater clarity and purpose, aligning their behaviour with research-informed best practice. Players, in turn, benefit from more engaging, structured, and effective learning environments.
Jake Campbell, Academy Manager at Wigan Athletic FC, reflected on the changes the programme brought:
“The Coach Development Programme from Mark at Edge Hill University has brought real clarity, consistency, and purpose to how our coaches interact with players and design sessions, and the impact on our learning environment has been clear to see.”
Beyond immediate behavioural changes, the programme provides academies with robust evidence to support internal accountability and the Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) audit process. Season-long observations and reviews enable ongoing planning, quality assurance, and continuous improvement across the coaching team.
Research-Backed, Practical Transformation
The programme draws on over 20 years of research and practical experience in coach development. Dr. Partington highlights:
“The Coach Development Programme is informed by the literature and 20 years’ experience of helping coaches change their coach behaviour and practice to best support their players development and application”.
Published research demonstrates how coach development led to measurable change in professional youth coaches’ instruction, feedback, questioning, and use of silence (Partington, Cushion, Cope & Harvey, 2015). By applying these methods in partnership with Wigan Athletic FC, the programme has moved coach development from abstract theory to a practical, repeatable model with real-world impact.
Through this collaboration, Wigan Athletic FC has not only enhanced the effectiveness of its coaching team but has also created a blueprint for evidence-informed development that can be scaled but bespoke across academies and clubs, ensuring that coaches and players alike benefit from purposeful, high-quality learning environments.
