Oratia United Academy 2023

Oratia United’s Academy Programme provides extra training for players who have the “football bug”, the desire for additional practice and more ball-time.

Players benefit from the expertise and experience of Steve Cain, the club’s Director of Football, who makes sure participants spend as much time as possible with the ball at their feet. Jason Beeston, a player in Oratia United's first team, and a coach of school football, assists him at the busier sessions. 

Steve and Jason lead the players through drills and mini-games as part of Academy training aligned with New Zealand Football’s Junior and Youth development programmes. The emphasis is on learning through small sided games.

Academy options:

Skills Academy

The Skills Academy is open to individual players from the 7th to 14th grades and is limited to 60 participants. It is skill-based and the focus is on technique and movement. Players are taken through drills, to help them develop techniques, and play a number of mini-games. 

Team Training Academy

Team Training is designed for an entire team to train together in a more tactically-focused way, enabling them to function more effectively within their team shape during competitive games. 

Teams will work on specific and relevant technical and tactical elements in a game-specific framework.

Contact

For more information about the Skills Academy, or the Team Training Academy, please email Melanie, our Academy Coordinator: academy@oratiaunited.co.nz

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Academy Coaches

Steve Cain

Steve is Oratia United's Director of Football and First Team Coach.

He is a high school teacher and one of New Zealand's few professionally licensed football coaches.

Steve has played and coached at national and international level in New Zealand and around the world.

As the Academy coach he enjoys the enthusiasm, willingness to learn and love of playing the game that our young players bring to the sessions.

​​​​​​​Jason Beeston

Jason, who assists Steve with the Academy coaching, has played Northern League football in Auckland for a number of years. He's played for Oratia United’s first team for the last two seasons.

He enjoys coaching kids and seeing their skills and love of football grow as they improve.

He has also coached school teams in his role as a teacher over the past 10 years.

Dates and Fees

Our Academy sessions run during term-time.
The Term 1, 2024 Academy programme will start the week of February 5. (But there will be no Academy programme on Tuesday February 6, Waitangi Day. A make-up session will be held in the first week of the holidays).

Registrations will open approx 2 weeks before the term starts.
There will be a STRICT cut off date for registrations. 
A child MUST be registered to attend from the first session of the term. 

Please note:

  • The fee for the Academy programme is a set fee for the entire term. There may be times during the term when sessions cannot be held due to illness amongst the coaches, or due to weather. If a session is cancelled, every effort will be made to offer a make-up session in the following school holidays. Refunds will not be given. 
  • The times listed below may be subject to change depending on age groups, and the numbers that register. ​​​​​​​

Skills Academy - Mixed - $120

  • 7 to 8 year olds - Tuesdays 5pm-6pm. (No session on February 6, Waitangi Day)

  • 9 to 14 year olds - Tuesdays 6pm-7pm. (No session on February 6, Waitangi Day) 

Skills Academy - Girls - $120

  • 7 to 14 year olds - Thursdays 5pm-6pm.

Goal Keepers Academy - $120

  • Open to all Goal Keepers - Thursdays 6pm-7pm. 

​​​​​​​Academy uniform

Shirt, shorts and socks will be provided to all participants once fees for their first term of participation have been paid. ​​​​​​
Players should wear shin pads, socks that cover the shin pads, and football boots (where possible).