Licensed, Then Left Alone

Coaching + Development

29 Mar

Written By Victoria Morton

Coach Education in Tasmania: The Gap No One Talks About

Coaching is not a side issue

Coaching sits at the centre of football.

It sets standards.
It shapes players.
It defines environments.

Football Australia is clear on this. Coaches are central to player development and the overall quality of the game.

If that is true, then coach development should sit at the centre of the system as well.

The system, in simple terms

Coach education in Australia is structured.

Football Australia sets the pathway, licences and requirements
Football Tasmania delivers it locally

The pathway is formal:

Foundation
C Licence
B Licence
A Licence

It is sequential.
It is assessed.
It is not optional.

Licensing is not a suggestion

This matters.

Coaching qualifications are not just encouraged. They are required.

Under national club licensing:

senior coaches must hold, or be working toward, a B Licence
assistants must hold, or be working toward, a C Licence

Football is not asking for better coaches.

It is mandating them.

Licences do not last forever

Once you get your licence, you don’t keep it.

To remain accredited, coaches must complete - Continuing Professional Development (CPD).

Ongoing development is not optional.

It is part of maintaining your licence.

What it costs

This part matters.

Because coaches are not just giving time.
They are investing their own money.

Courses themselves:

C Licence ~ $1,000
B Licence ~ $2,000+
A Licence ~ $5,000+

Then add time and travel.

When my sons Ned Clarke and Max Clarke completed their licences, they were not offered in Tasmania.

They had to go interstate.

Fly.
Stay.
Commit weeks.

As a family, we estimated the cost across C, B and A at around $40,000 per son once everything was factored in.

The cost has come down since.

But the investment remains significant.

What we expect from these coaches

We expect them to:

plan and deliver sessions
develop players
understand tactics
manage behaviour
adapt in real time
meet licensing standards

We expect them to improve every year.

We mandate qualified coaches.

We require them to maintain their licences.

We assess clubs against coaching standards.

But we do not consistently provide the system that supports coaches to meet those expectations in Tasmania.

What CPD is supposed to be

Ongoing development.

practical learning
discussion
mentoring
observation

A system that keeps coaches growing.

What CPD actually is

In Tasmania, it is difficult to identify a consistent structure.

some online modules
occasional webinars
no regular in-person program
no visible mentoring system
no clear annual calendar

That is the reality most coaches experience.

CPD is not optional.

But access to meaningful, practical CPD locally is inconsistent.

What coaches are telling us

Across the interviews I have done with coaches so far, the message is the same.

lack of ongoing coach education
lack of support
feeling left on their own

This is not one voice.

It is a pattern.

Coaches want to learn.

They are already investing in themselves.

The demand is not the problem.

The reality of CPD

Many coaches don’t build CPD into their year.

They chase it.

Late.

logging in
completing modules
collecting points

Not because they don’t care.

Because there is no consistent system to engage with.

The conference problem

Coaching conferences exist.

But they often miss.

long days
similar content
passive delivery

The day stretches.

Because it has to feel like value.

So it becomes longer.

Not better.

You sit.
You listen.
You take notes.

And then you go back to training and ask:

What do I actually use from that?

Too often, very little.

After the licence

This is the part that sits quietly in the background.

You invest the money.
You complete the course.

And then…

Nothing.

No follow-up.
No system.
No ongoing engagement.

You are back on the ground.

Working it out yourself.

And what happens next

Coaches don’t stop wanting to learn.

They just look elsewhere.

They connect with:

interstate coaches
overseas contacts
private networks

They share ideas.
They solve problems.
They build their own development.

Tasmanian coaches are developing themselves outside the Tasmanian system.

When coaches have to leave the system to develop,
the system is no longer leading their development.

Who should be delivering this?

At a state level, this should sit clearly within Football Tasmania.

the Technical Director owns coach development
coach education staff deliver courses and support
the federation provides a consistent CPD program

Not just licences.

A system.

Right now, the structure is thin.

A Technical Director.
Course delivery when scheduled.

No clearly visible, ongoing system that supports coaches once they are qualified.

This is not about individuals.

It is about structure.

Where responsibility sits

Football Australia sets the framework.

Football Tasmania delivers it locally.

The expectations are clear.

The delivery, at scale, is not.

Why this matters

One coach works with:

15–20 players
across multiple teams
over multiple years

That becomes hundreds of players.

Sometimes thousands.

One coach will influence more players in a year
than most programs will in a lifetime.

If you want to impact players at scale,
you invest in coaches.

The question

If coach development is central to the game,
where is the system that supports it, week to week, in Tasmania?

The uncomfortable truth

We have built a system that:

requires coach development
mandates CPD
enforces standards

But not one that consistently delivers it.

Final line

We ask coaches to invest thousands of dollars.