David Sneyd

A FUND THAT was set up by senior Republic of Ireland internationals to allow the FAI begin a scholarship programme for emerging League of Ireland academy stars went unused by the governing body for almost a year before the money was eventually redistributed.

The 42 has learned that in the region of €30,000 was made available to the FAI after donations from players, among them men’s captain Seamus Coleman, goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu, and centurion James McClean.

When it became clear after numerous requests for updates on progress that the scheme had yet to be utilised by the FAI, it was decided by the players that the money be used for other causes with the Professional Footballers’ Association of Ireland.

The players are believed to have informed the FAI that they remained available to help with the scholarship if the parameters could be put in place to put the scheme into practice.

A number of players, such as Enda Stevens, Kevin Long, Derrick Williams, and Shamrock Rovers duo Jack Byrne and Richie Towell, had also contributed.

It was only last October that the FAI championed the pilot scholarship initiative, stating in a publicity release that it would allow one male and female player aged 17 “receive a salary as well as their schooling covered in conjunction with going full-time at the professional club they’re affiliated to.”

However, it never got off the ground, despite the FAI declaring that “each player will also work with a mental health professional to help monitor and improve how the players navigate the stresses of professional football.”

The fund had originally been started during the Covid-19 pandemic to assist League of Ireland players dealing with hardship.

It was confirmed in that initial FAI statement last year that “due to the management clubs displayed during the COVID pandemic, money remains from the players fund and the players have agreed to use the money to pilot a scholarship initiative.”

Marc Canham, then the FAI’s director of football but who has since been promoted to chief football officer, was in the process of launching the new player pathway plan at the time of this announcement. And the association cited that “education will be an integral part so this programme will be a helpful trial for some of the key areas of that development.”

Canham was quoted in that press release last October: “This programme will be a great trial for some of the initiatives that will form the wider integration of education, which we see as one of the biggest opportunities for football development across the country.”

However, the programme went no further than that press release and it was later stated by the FAI that funding of €10m a year from the Government would help transform the academy system in this country.

A spokesperson for the FAI said: “The Football Association of Ireland continue to make plans to integrate full-time football and education scholarships as part of our overall League of Ireland Academy vision, in line with the aims and objectives set out in our Football Pathways Plan.”