Stanmore, who runs the exclusive IQ Academy soccer camps twice a year at Chevalier College, told the News during the school holiday live-in camp last week that he is solely driven to try and produce the best soccer players.

“It is about developing players, not making a profit,” he said.

“Some people are coaching for the wrong reasons.”

Stanmore took over the reigns of the IQ Academy from guru David Lee and said the 70 kids at his camps are taught to play every positon on the field.

“The speed of thought is not being taught, we are trying to make multi-functional players,” he said.

Stanmore grew up in Dubbo before moving to Sydney to teach at Westfields Sports High. After becoming disillusioned with the coaching systems in Sydney he teamed up with Lee.

The players for the camps are selected at the beginning of the year and are aged from nine to 18 years old. The key aim of the camps was to take the prospective Socceroos out of their comfort zones by holding the live-in camps in the Highlands.

“They don’t have their mummy and daddy to pick up after them. It is about making them accountable,” he said.

Last year Stanmore took a group of 32 kids on a tour on the UK with seven of them conducting three-week assessments at various clubs.

For the full story see the Southern Highland News, Wednesday, October 8

sport.highlandnews@ruralpress.com