The Sports Clinic of Football

Most young footballers love the idea of playing professionally, but do they really know what it takes to be elite?

It’s getting up early and training before school while other kids are still sleeping. It’s getting stronger in the gym and doing recovery work after school when your friends are watching tv.
It’s fuelling your body before training and games and not relying on your parents to do everything for you.

It’s doing the work week after week, month after month, year after year.

It’s getting dropped, losing a final, having a bad game, and developing resilience after an injury and still get up ready to work again and again and again.

It’s giving up nights out, or time with friends because soccer is your passion and matters more to you than anything else.

Plenty of players want the opportunity but few are willing to work consistently. Thats what separates the elite players from the average.

Elite isn’t something you say you want, it’s something you’ve got to prove with action over and over again ⚽️💪🏆

If you want to work with us this off-season DM your email address and we will send you our off-season expression of interest form.

Here are my three tips for playing finals:

1. Keep training in the gym to maintain strength levels and avoid injury. You want to be available to play

2. Recovery – Ice baths, massage, and sleep, so you are fresh and ready to go on game day

3. Keep training with intensity. Everything needs to be short and sharp, and keep high-speed running exposure up so there is a real intent and purpose with every training session.

Good luck ⚽️💪🏆

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Some players will finish the season and switch off.

Others will use the off-season to become a different athlete.

If you spent too much of this year on the bench, missed games through injury, lacked speed, faded late in matches, or simply know you’re capable of playing at a higher level…

This is the time to do something about it.

And if you had a great season?

Good, now build on it.

Our Senior Football Off-Season Program starts Monday 21 September and runs for six weeks through to October.

It’s designed for ambitious NPL, VPL and State League players who want to return in 2027:

Faster
Stronger
More powerful
Fitter
More robust

This isn’t about turning up to preseason and hoping you’re ready.

It’s about arriving ready to compete for a starting position from day one.

Six weeks of structured football performance training at the Sports Clinic of Football.

Don’t come back the same player.

DM ‘OFF-SEASON’ and we will send you the details.

Are you getting bumped off the ball or losing your 1v1 contests in football? 🤔

Start with these four things:

* Get low to the ground - lower your centre of gravity and your base of support
* Brace through your trunk - connect your ribs to your core and frame so you can absorb contact without collapsing
* Body position - get close to the tackle don’t reach in from a distance
* Tackle with intent – hesitation often leads to poor contact and injuries

The players who hold their ground best are not always the biggest on the field, they’re the ones with the best position, posture and intent.

For young footballers, this is exactly why strength training, trunk control, and tackle technique matter so much ⚽️💪🏋🏻‍♀️

Save this for your next game and send it to a teammate who keeps getting knocked off the ball.

MYTH OR FACT?

“Strength training stunts, a young athletes growth.”

❌ MYTH.

There is no scientific evidence showing that properly supervise strength training or lifting heavy weights stunts a young athletes growth.

In fact, building strength is one of the most important things young footballers can do to improve performance and reduce injury risk ⚽️

Strength training helps young athletes: ⚡️accelerate faster, 🛑 accelerate safely, 🦘jump higher and win headers, 💪 stay strong in contests and not get bumped off the ball,
↔️ change direction quickly, and improve agility.

The key is age-appropriate programming, good technique, and qualified coaching – not avoiding strength training altogether.

📌 Save this post for the next time someone says “weights stunt growth”, and share it with a football parent who needs to hear it.

In March, Adelaide United young gun jakenajdovski suffered an ACL injury during a training incident.

Like every footballer who’s been through it knows, it’s one of the toughest moments in the game.

Because Jake is originally from Melbourne, and thanks to the great relationship between Sean Baker , Head of Performance at Adelaide United Football Club and Tim Schleiger, it was decided that Jake would complete his rehabilitation back home in Melbourne with Tim and Shaq The Sports Clinic of Football .

Since day one, Jake has attacked his rehabilitation with an incredible attitude. He’s brought energy, personality and professionalism to every session, making him an absolute pleasure to work with.

His progress has been exceptional.

🏋️ 260 kg hip thrusts
🏋️ 100 kg safety bar squats
🏋️ 145 kg trap bar deadlift for 8 reps
🏃 Building a huge aerobic base with 3:00/km running efforts and 1 km time trials
⚽ Back juggling the ball and progressing through football-specific running and skill work every week with our on pitch skills coach Ryan Lethlean .

After many years in elite football, Tim says Jake’s commitment to the rehabilitation process is up there with the best he’s seen. Talent opens the door, but it’s consistency, discipline and buying into the process that gets you back stronger.

A huge credit also goes to Shaq, who has worked closely with Jake throughout the rehabilitation journey. At the Sports Clinic of Football, we pride ourselves on a genuine team approach, and seeing athletes thrive is always a shared achievement.

We’re also incredibly grateful for the trust Adelaide United continues to place in us with the rehabilitation and development of its players, including Jake and Dylan Pierias . Football is a small community, and no matter which club we’re working with, our mission is always the same, to help Australian footballers return stronger, more resilient and ready to perform at the highest level.

Jake, your investment in yourself has been outstanding. Keep attacking every session with the same attitude, keep enjoying the journey, and we can’t wait to see you back out there doing what you do best 💚⚽️