celtic's future is in safe hands

Gregor Kyle
CELTIC’S young goalkeepers will be able to draw on the experience and knowledge of a full-time goalkeeping coach this season, as Stevie Woods becomes the club’s newest addition in the lead-up to the opening of the Lennoxtown training base.

The former Motherwell goalkeeper has been working at Celtic Park on a part-time basis for the past seven years and last season combined his duties with that of first team goalkeeping coach at Dunfermline.

This new appointment will see the 37-year-old appointed full-time to the Celtic Youth Academy, working with the youth goalkeepers and over-seeing the work of the Academy goalkeepers down to grassroots level.

“It’s a fantastic opportunity for me,” said Woods, speaking exclusively to celticfc.net. “I was goalkeeping coach at Dunfermline last season and the last game that I was involved in was the Scottish Cup Final.

“Over the summer I had a few options, but when John Park called me and told me about this opportunity that was coming up, I was only too pleased to come in and speak about it.

“Making this appointment and providing the young goalkeepers with a full-time coach highlights the importance that Celtic are putting on young player’s development.

“Jim Blyth works mainly with the first team and it’s geographically difficult for Jim to work with the Academy keepers during the season, particularly when the first team are up at Lennoxtown. So this is a far-seeing appointment in many respects.

“What I will start doing is ‘goal-setting’ with the young players and letting them know that everyday they should be moving one step closer to Celtic’s first team.

“My job is to assist them to be as good as they possibly can be and for every goalkeeper, that will involve a different part of my job, whether that’s to make them physically stronger or mentally and tactically better. I am there to help them.”

The move follows the recent appointments of new Director of Youth, John Park and youth coach Tony Taylor and as Woods explained, with the opening of Lennoxtown on the horizon, it is a particularly exciting time for the Academy.

“Last year I was working with the goalkeepers and asked them, ‘who wants to go to Lennoxtown?’
“Every one of them shot their hands up and there is a carrot there for them and they all want to be a part of Celtic Football Club’s future.

“It’s a fantastic time for the club at the moment and the future will look even better when Lennoxtown is open and that positivity filters right down through the Youth Academy.”

Woods added: “Personally this is what I got into coaching for, to work in a fantastic environment with great coaches and the best players, you can’t ask for any more than that.”