U17 tactician calls for stronger youth structures

National technical director Richard Tardy has said that it is a must to have well organised proper youth football structures in the country, which would in turn produce a stronger U-17 national team.The junior wasps head coach, Tardy has continued to meet challenges with some of the players he called to join the U-17 team ahead of the CAF Africa U-17 Championships qualifiers in July.While closing a one week ‘intensive training’ camp with the 26 youth players last week, the Frenchman observed that the lack of properly run youth academies, remains the main hitch in his work. “There is a lot to be done to have a team like we put together three years ago. Ten of the selected players don’t have the capability in terms of strength, but we still have five months ahead, so we only work with what we have to build a team that will represent the country,” admitted Tardy.He noted, “Discussions are underway with the Ministry of Sports and Ferwafa to set up a youth football project for the U-14, U-15 and U-16. These are the key age groups that need special attention for a better future ofRwandan football.”Tardy further added, “The youth intake and youth development will be a more comprehensive process. We can monitor these junior players for a longer period of time and be able to influence the process of picking the best suited talents.”Thirty-eight countries will compete in the CAF U-17 championships. The finals will be held in Niger in May 2015.Rwanda participated in the FIFA U-17 World Cup for the first time in 2011, having finished second in the 2011 African U-17 Championship in Kigali.