As part of Reading Rockets Basketball Club girls' and women's development pathway programme, in September 2012 the club will launch a new focused academy for girls' basketball. The academy will aim to develop juniors on an elite player performance pathway with the target of producing senior national league women. The combination of the club development programme along with the Advanced Apprenticeship in Sporting Excellence (AASE) is an excellent opportunity for girls that wish to pursue a career in playing women's basketball at a professional level.
The programme will allow young female athletes the chance to train regularly whilst choosing their own academic routes through a variety of college and school options and will also allow them the opportunity to play in the U18 and / or National League women's team that the club has developed over the past 8 seasons.
Director of Coaching Matt Johnson said: "It has taken us 8 years of focused programming and development to create a system for the male athletes to train regularly, study their preferred courses from A Level/BTECs to Masters Degrees and compete at the highest level in the country with some of the best coaches around.
The academy programme will allow female athletes 10-12 hours of training per week of dedicated skills and physical development and the chance to play in the U18 National League as well as playing Senior level in the Women's National League.
With the new female basketball programme starting at the University of Reading there is now a fully functioning and genuine pathway for women through the club with provision for high level academics and basketball training in the same area".
This is an exciting time for women's basketball in the UK: with the Olympics just around the corner and a competitive national league programme for girls to compete in, there is a lot to be positive about.
The Reading Rockets girls programme is run by a team of enthusiastic and experienced coaches including: Steph Johnson, the current head coach of the U14/U15 girls’ development team, Jenni Phillips, the current head coach of the U18 girls' National League team and Josh Thorne, the head coach for the Senior women’s National League Division two team. The coaches are all really excited about the new girls' programme and e are working hard within our squads to build a strong pathway for the girls developing through the club.
Rockets' coaches are more than happy to answer any questions, talk to any young female about the programme or host any visits for any athletes interested in finding out more information.
For more information please make contact via our academies interest form on the Rockets' website
www.readingrockets.co.uk or call Matt Johnson direct on 0118 9263040, or e mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
