The Scottish FA Coach Education department are currently midway through the delivery of their annual UEFA B Licence: Pro Players course, which provides the platform for professional football players with similar playing experience and abilities to gain knowledge and acquire skills in several aspects of the game.
These skills range from developing a clear methodology for what and how to teach, catering to the needs of all players with a variety of backgrounds, to analysing and reflecting on performance using a variety of different methods in order to provide effective feedback to individual players and the team as a whole.
This course is designed to cater for professionals who have played at least seven years in the top division of a FIFA or UEFA member association; however, the course also attracts professional players who have gained a UEFA C Licence or UEFA Goalkeeping B Licence.
One candidate on the course, is current Heart of Midlothian midfielder, Blair Spittal, who progressed on to the UEFA B Licence: Pro Players course after successfully achieving his UEFA C Licence with the Scottish FA in 2024.
Spittal has endured many peaks and troughs within football, but the current Hearts’ midfielder has become a very experienced player within the Scottish leagues, playing in the country for his entire career thus far for teams such as Queen’s Park, Dundee Utd, Motherwell and Hearts.
It has been an impressive rise on the pitch for the 29-year-old, and he now looks to enhance his coaching development alongside being a full-time player, to help prepare for life after his playing days come to an end. He gave us his experience learning through the Scottish FA, as well as his ambitions for the future
He said: "Coaching is always something I’ve thought about getting involved in after football, so I went on the C Licence first to see if it was something I would enjoy and then have taken that natural progression on to the B Licence.
"Obviously, I’m still playing but it is important to prepare for what is ahead and luckily, Hearts have been really accommodating with that.
"I’ve not got much experience in terms of coaching a team or taking charge of sessions, but as a player experiencing highs and lows, it sets you up for this. Once you come on to the course and see the sessions, working on things like distances and size of areas, it can be difficult at first, but it’s been a really good experience and learning alongside fellow players has really helped.
"I think through the years of playing, you take small snippets from each manager, with things you like, or you wouldn’t do, but you want to put your own stamp on things when the time comes.
"Having fellow players there is key, as they can step in and pick up on things you might not notice, and they can step in and help you when needed.
"The course is split up over periods of the year, so we’ve got time to think about what we are going to do, and it fits in well with a busy playing career.
"Hopefully once I pass the B Licence, I can start working within the Hearts academy, which is somewhere where I can develop and learn from my mistakes. I also hope to progress to the UEFA A Licence, see how I get on and take things from there."
The full interview with Blair Spittal can be viewed below.