Testimonials

Started going to the adult GK training recently and would recommend it to anyone, regardless of the level you play at. I started playing again last season after 6 years out and can already tell these sessions are going to help me on a Sunday. Good fun, very well run and something I look forward to every week
Tina Reed

Arrived prompt, fully equipped, looking and acting very professional. Brilliant, knowledgeable coaches who presented well while challenging and engaging all involved even in a very varied age spectrum of players. Great player to coach ratio observed too!
Les Chrisp (Blyth Town FC)

My son decided when he was 10 (after having no interest in football whatsoever) that he wanted to become a goalkeeper. I tried to talk him out of it but found out to my surprise and delight that he’s a natural. He’s been on a few courses over the years and he’s always come away from them saying he’s learnt nothing. That is until he started with Elite Goalkeeper Academy. He looks forward to it every week and more importantly he’s learning new things every week! A well organised, professional set up.
Jim Ripken

My son has loved his sessions here, Professional staff and mixed up sessions mean they are never boring and keep the children’s attention focused !
Jo-Ann Trinder

Very well organised and fun for keepers from all age groups.
Justine Ripken

My little boy (6) loves these sessions and has done holiday camps. Always learned something new and put his new skills into his matches!
Kirsty Haswell

In February my son attended his second goalkeeper camp ran by Elite Goalkeeper Academy. He also receives coaching from Elite at his club so as soon as the camp was advertised I had no hesitation in booking up, and I am so pleased I did!
Dylan felt comfortable from the start despite not knowing anyone as the rapport Steve builds with the keepers is excellent.
The camp was 3 days long and each day he came home with a massive smile on his face. He talked about all the things he had learned that day, what new friendships he was making and most importantly how much fun he had been having. He was a little upset when he was picked up on day three, why? Because the camp had finished and he wished it had been on all week. We can see how much he has progressed in his game and training. He has already asked can he go to the next one and we have said yes absolutely!

Updated:

If there are any parents looking at the courses, the camps or any other training elite offer, and are thinking about sending their child then please don’t hesitate, you will not have any regrets. The coaches at Elite are fantastic with children of all ages and abilities.
When Steve and Ross started coaching at my sons former club there were 2 shy, 8 year old boys from one of the clubs younger teams. They were complete beginners. A few months later I went to watch a training …session and the change in these 2 young boys was unbelievable! I couldn’t believe what they had achieved in such a short space of time because of the excellent training they had been receiving!
My son Dylan was ready for a step up and a new challenge this year, Steve put his faith in him and recommended him to another club he coaches, Blyth Town, and we cannot thank him enough for all he has done, and will continue to do with Dylan. The rate at which Elite GK Academy has grown speaks for itself! As always, I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them.

Carla Falkland

Alex ( Green ) has always enjoyed your style of coaching and looks forward to his sessions. I have seen a huge improvement in his ability and confidence.

He currently plays for Felling Magpies U 11’s and they are delighted with his progress.

Alex says the sessions are friendly but he has learned so much. I would like to add that groups like this are a godsend for young children wanting further education in goalkeeping and as a family we cannot thank you enough
Helen Green

 It’s priceless watching my son look forward to attending any of elite goalkeeper academy sessions and coming away with new skills a better understanding of goalkeeping also new friends, il be honest as he’s only 5 I was apprehensive about leaving him on his first half term camp (I am ashamed to say I did spy on them) but I can safely say it’s been the best decision I made allowing him to go as well at Steve being a fantastic coach helping build his confidence while ensuring there’s still a element of fun, we also hear A LOT about Dan being ‘class’ I couldn’t thanks you’s enough
Leanne Collins

We were recommended elite goalkeepers by our team coach – Jacob started playing football beginning of March 2015 he’d never played before, he chose the goal keeper position and was frightened of being hurt in goal, he wouldn’t dive at all!
After the very first session with Steve and Dan, Jacob was diving! His confidence both on and off the field has increased week on week and this is down to the training and explanations Jacob has received from both guys. Jacobs game has improved 100% and still improves week after week. He’s now being awarded man of the match regularly, the praise from his team mates, coaches and other team coaches is fantastic! Jacob loves his one to one sessions and plans all week what he wants to ask Steve to work on next. Thank you Elite for showing Jacob that listening, practice and commitment gives results (not just in football) I would definitely continue to recommend

 

Michaela Graham

I could not recommend Elite Goalkeeper Academy enough! Brilliant coaching which is fun and friendly. Jack looks forward to his session every week!..

John Patterson

Top notch technical goalkeeper coaching, friendly atmosphere & great coaches all round, highly recommended to any up & coming keepers, started taking my 7yr old daughter to help her progress as she’s starting to play for a team & she loves every second of it.
Alan Gardner

High quality coaching that really mixes it up and is very modern in the way of coaching, thoroughly enjoy every session with Steve!!
Phil Mills

Top coaching which covers all aspects of goalkeeping, sessions are fun with a serious side to it. Steve has really helped me improve my goalkeeping.
Danny Lister

McKenzie started training with elite goalkeeper academy at the start of the season going into a team as goal keeper having never played before. Can’t thank Steve and Dan enough for how much he has came on both with his skills and confidence in goal. He leaves every session with a smile on his face telling me what he has learned and goes and puts it in to practice on a Sunday. Would definitely recommend them
Natalya Kelly

My son Bradley started training with Elite Goalkeeper Academy as a new ‘keeper with WBBC last year. The progress he has made under Steve & Dan has been quite remarkable. To see him take the techniques he is taught at GK training into a match day is testament to the coaching from Steve. Bradley loves his GK training above everything else – Steve is great with all the lads and makes it enjoyable and in Bradley’s words ‘it’s fantastic’.
Neil Dinning

My son dos one to one with Steve and he has come along way in such short time his manager is over the moon with his progress and he done a eight weeks masters class and loved every moment the guys are great with the kids and Carlton has signed up for January again he loves his elite training and you can get strip and gloves everything you need all in one place thanks to elite training
Sarah Ashman

My two sons aged 8 and 11 have both trained with elite goalkeeping academy. They thoroughly enjoyed the sessions and found the coaches very friendly and approachable. They have both improved greatly as goalkeepers as neither of them had been doing it for long. Would recommend to anyone!
Janet Cook

My son loved the goalkeeping holiday camp, would definitely recommend and will be signing up to any future camps that come up.
Paula Shaftoe

My son Hayden attends the Saturday session with elite goal keeping, he absolutely loves it this is 2nd season here, Hayden had never played for a team before and on his first year as being a goal keeper he received the “most improved player of the season” all with the help of Steven and Dan, Hayden looks forward to a Saturday session he thinks the world of Steven and Dan and how they make the learning fun for the boys he has a smile on his face start to finish when he is there and continues to do so for the rest of the day, we would like to wish Dan the very best of luck for his future he has shown exceptional teaching skills and Hayden thinks the world of Dan (except when he shaved his beard off haha) Steven and Dan are brilliant coaches keep up the good work!!
Lisa Ross

Our son, age 12, decided to become a goalkeeper a year ago, and has thoroughly enjoyed training with Elite Goalkeeper Academy. The training is very professional, the coaches are friendly and he feels like they have helped improve his skills and knowledge at goalkeeping- thank you for all your hard work.
Vikki Milne

All for the kids, fantastic support, would recommend to anyone. Brilliant set up with fantastic coaches.
Julie Mckitterick

My son has used his Tuesday training session for a few months , he has progressed exceptionally well, the classes are well organised , due to my sons team training on a Tuesday were no longer able to attains but finding goalkeeper training is very hard and to find one as good as elite is exceptionally difficult , I would recommend elite goalkeeper training to everyone I know as the coaches are second to none !
Jeff Fairs

My son started his goalkeeping through Steve’s coaching which had been arranged with his club, Whitley Bay Boys Club. Steve is a great coach who always turned up as agreed whatever the weather. My son loved the sessions and his technique improved no end due to this coaching. Highly recommend this GK coach!
Paul Eaton

My son finds the training well planned with a defined structure that he can understand with the tempo of the training consistent throughout each session always keeping him engaged. He finds it a lot of fun and enjoys both one on one and group sessions. His performances for his team we both believe have benefited from the skills learned and the confidence the sessions have brought to his game. As a parent I find the coaches provide sessions professionally and punctual safe and supportive with a good level of communication.
Steve Smith

Very professional and well organised… Good quality coaching that all being taught will benefit from…. Would highly recommend…
Carl Hetherington

My son has been to several Elite Goalkeeping workshops, most recently the 2 day summer camp. Not only has he thoroughly enjoyed them, they have improved his technique and taught him an array of training strategies resulting in him being more confident when he plays for his team and generally a better keeper. I can’t recommend Elite Goalkeeping highly enough!
Lucy Davies

An excellent and reliable coach to all age groups. We have seen a noticeable improvement in the development of our keepers and their game performance.
Andy Sherrin (Whitley Bay BC)

I think that the goalkeeper camps, organised by Steve and Dan, are very fun but most importantly, helped me become a better goalkeeper all round. Also, the coaches are really supportive and kind; the other kids are nice too which makes it easier to make friends. Therefore nobody is left out. I would highly recommend this camp to all young goalkeepers because of these things.
Dylan (aged 11)

 We can’t recommend Elite Goalkeeping Academy enough.
The coaching is always first class, and tailored to ability.
Sessions are well planned and organised. The pace is always good but young goalkeepers also get individual attention to help them improve.
However I think that Steven’s greatest asset, which sets him apart from others is the way he engages with the goalies…..he always hits the right note between working hard to improve, and having fun so that the kids are “eating out of his hand,” and hence improving in leaps and bounds almost without realising it.
Thom always leaves with a feel good factor and loves the sessions.
His skills as a goalkeeper have improved immensely as has his confidence during matches.
We are always happy for Thom to go to the academy because we are confident that it will be worthwhile whatever the activity, whatever the location and whatever the weather! The value for money is unbeatable.
Pauline White

 My son George has been to just about all Steve’s camps and he always asks when the next camp is, as we finish one he’s looking to the next one, he’s always tired after everyone so I know he’s work hard and been trained hard he always picks something up and then puts in place in every game. I would like to thank Steve and his team of coaches for their hard work it’s really paying of now.

 

John Havelock

I would recommend Elite Goalkeeper Academy to any kid wanting to learn and enjoy the art of goalkeeping… My son has worked with Elite through his Boys Club and has also had 1 to 1 coaching from Steve himself. He has not only thoroughly enjoyed every session but he has improved greatly.
Steve’s knowledge of the game and ability to deal with goalkeepers of all ages is fantastic.
My son has, since training with elite progressed from the 3rd team to the 1st team and is continuing to learn and improve.

Andrew Johnson

Excellent technical coaching, covering every aspect of keeping from handling through to distribution and everything in between our lads really benefitted from working with Steve.
Danny Sutherland

Sometimes it is very difficult to unlearn something you’ve been doing a long time and try it another way. Steve’s sessions showed patience whilst a keen eye for improvement, proving that it is possible to teach an old dog new tricks.
Aaron Jaffery

Mckenzie loves his goal keeper coaching on a Saturday and says without your sessions he would not of had his Man of the Match awards. He has only been a keeper since August 2015 and has come on amazing with your coaching thanks Steve
Liz Kelly

My little boy Jack has been attending coaching sessions with Steve and Dan since last season. The progress he has made in a year is outstanding, not only with his goalkeeping but his confidence also. He lights up at training and doesn’t stop smiling. He began last season a very quiet 5 year old low on confidence. He’s now one of the loudest there! He also won “outstanding player of the season”. Jack loves keeper training and we could not recommend Elite Goalkeeper Academy enough.
Stacey Patterson

Josh really enjoyed his 8 week stint at elite gk academy, in his own words “it was class”. He learned a lot to take back to his football matches and enjoyed making new friends. Ordered a HO gk strip also which Josh loves and can’t wait to wear when he starts his next stint January 2016
Amy-Louise Brown

My son had the most amazing time. Coach was friendly arrived promptly and was just amazing he can’t wait till he ca
Helen Poole

My son attends a session on a Thursday night he really looks forward to going it’s brought his skills on fantastically. Taught well by great coaches
Paul Bland

This review was written by my Son, Joe Ross, NUFC Foundation & Cramlington United U11’s goalkeeper :

Steven Rodden is a marvellous coach who’s sessions have really helped me a lot.

There were lots of different types of sessions such as shot-stopping, 1v1s, kicking and throwing and to finish it all off there was a fun night filled with lots of games such as keeper wars and many more.

Since it was a variety of all ages we got split into two groups, everyone under10 would be together and everyone 10 or over would be in the older group.

He is a coach who will work on you with something until it gets perfect, so you will emerge a better goalkeeper than when you started.

He has helped me work on my technique as a goalkeeper and I hope he carries on doing these 8 week courses. When I go back I hope to learn about my kicking a bit more, and so far, Steve has been an excellent coach.

Mal Ross

This was Jacks first time attending the goal keeper soccer camp! He really enjoyed it, learnt alot in 2 days like scooping, handling and kicking! He was that impressed on the first day he wanted me to take a video of him of what he had learnt and he had never done that before! He said everyone was so friendly, and can’t wait to attend in October! As a parent all I want is for my son to be happy and to be able to attend a camp and come away with more confidence and skills and …he definitely did that! Happy little boy thanks Steven
Since this post Jack has attended an 8 week course and has learnt so much from this and has been able to use these skills in his games! He has also started one to one sessions that Jack was a bit apprehensive about but was made to feel comfortable that he has grown in confidence and taking this confidence into his matches! The difference in Jack from a year ago is incredible I have had so many compliments about his abilities and that is down to the great work of Steven and his team alongside his club coach! The beat decision I ever made bringing Jack to Elite

Sharon Beaton

My 7 year old son has been attending these sessions for over a year as part of Whitley Bay Boys Club. He has improved so much in all areas of goalkeeping. Steve is very knowledgeable and adapts his language to cater for the age of the children. The sessions are fun and varied and they are the highlight of my son’s week! He really enjoys working with Dan too!

Austin Robinson

Our son attends 1 on 1 sessions with Steven. Steven has the ability to bring out the best in him. He makes the sessions hard work, interesting, fun and enjoyable all the while by being encouraging and supportive. We’ve seen a big improvement in our sons confidence as this is his time to focus on his weaker attributes and push the boundaries to become stronger and better. Steven is a professional, friendly, encouraging person and a brilliant GK coach! Would highly recommend.

Sherrie Carrick