Mousehole are proud to announce that their performance analyst Kieran Stephens has been recruited by League One club Ipswich Town.

This is a major step forward in his young career, after spending three years at Mousehole in a ‘behind the scenes’ role providing detailed analysis of video footage of the First team’s fixtures.

Manager Jake Ash speaks very positively of Kieran:

“He has worked so hard to refine our analysis programme, so that we can give better feedback to the players on their performance.  He has been incredibly diligent in analysing every video recording, which is a hugely time-consuming process.”

“I spoke to Ipswich as part of their recruitment process, and it was clear that the work he has done with us had really impressed them.  We are so pleased to have played a very small part in helping him to develop his skills and to step up into the full-time game.  I just hope he can still help us next season!”

A Sports Science student at Liverpool John Moores University, Kieran will have a one-year internship at Ipswich Town, working mainly with their Under-23 and Under-18 teams.  He says he faced a tough test during the recruitment process, being required to analyse a match video and present his key findings.

“At the Ipswich interview, my role at Mousehole certainly raised eyebrows – they found the approach used by Mousehole very unusual for that level of football.  But it’s been my ambition since the age of about 14 to specialise in the use of data in football, as a means of supporting improvement – and I’ve been fortunate to be able to work with a club like Mousehole who also think this is the way forward.”

“It’s going to be massive for me to be working within the professional game – a huge learning experience.  Looking to the future, I hope to gain a coaching qualification and get a full-time job with a professional football academy.  In the meantime, I’ll be spreading the word about Mousehole and maybe finding a way to be still involved.”

Mousehole Director Kevin Bishop, a former BBC sports journalist and author of a recently completed eight-part series “Way Out West”, a film documentary on a year in the life of `Mousehole AFC, sees the club’s value in offering young people the knowledge and skills to help with their career choices.

“Kieran Stephens’ progress is a perfect example of what young people can go on to do after gaining practical experience working within the club.  Our recently launched sports media traineeship scheme has already attracted a lot of keen interest – I firmly believe this and similar initiatives at Mousehole can provide a pathway for people to develop real employment opportunities in a field of genuine interest to them.”